Ex-Harvard Business Professor Took Easy Way Out, Didn’t Practice What the School Preaches

In many ways David Ewing’s commentary, “Even Harvard Business School Has a Downside” (Sept. 30), based on his recently published book, “Inside the Harvard Business School,” was fair in its critique. Nevertheless, I found the article profoundly disturbing.

If there is one thing we are taught here at HBS, it is that the right decision is not always the easy decision. It is sometimes easier to make a profit by polluting the environment; easier to cut costs by underpaying and mistreating employees, and easier to accumulate cash by bending a few rules or regulations.

It is much easier to offer petty criticisms such as HBS students are “arrogant” or “obnoxious” than it is to address the tougher questions, such as: Is HBS correctly addressing the events in Eastern Europe? Is the school teaching its graduates to cope with the increasingly diverse work force?

After 40 years at the Harvard Business School, Prof. Ewing inevitably has much knowledge and experience that could be quite valuable to the world’s future business leaders. It is sad and unfortunate that he instead chose the easy way to make a buck.

JEFF SHELL

The writer is president of Harvard Business School’s Student Assn.