Impact of affirmative action on Black MBA graduates' careers

Affirmative Action

The impact of Affirmative Action on the Professional Success of African-American MBA Graduates

BASE THEORY:

Affirmative action as it stands in the professional and business sphere has generated a wide spectrum of controversy. Antipathetic views have flourished over the years arguing that African-American MBA graduates should receive similar treatment and meet the standard criteria for admission into business organizations. The inimical perspective is that affirmative action in a sense gradually introduces reverse discrimination against the majority. "Those who believe Affirmative Action's time is limited are of three minds. Some believe that discontinuing affirmative action would be a mistake-whenever that might be. Others see discontinuation is long overdue. Still others see affirmative action as a current necessity whose life expectancy is limited." (Roosevelt, 2004, p.2)

This study is driven though by the recognition that Affirmative Action is designed to counteract what may be characterized as a sociological 'achievement gap' persisting between the white hegemony and various racial 'minorities.' The achievement gap theory serves as a basic rationale for the endorsement of affirmative action that will be contended here. In the context of education, this has had distinctly damaging effects on the lives and opportunities of students, beginning with their academic performance in a fundamentally unequal system. Accordingly, IES (2009) indicates that "a difference in scores between two groups of students (for instance, male and female, or Black and White) can only be considered an achievement gap if the difference is statistically significant, meaning larger than the margin of error." (IES, 1) Quite certainly, the conditions impacting minority groups in the United States reinforce the theory that such a gap is a presence in America's schools.

The article by Alon (2009) draws the focus of our base theory for its preoccupation with indicators that suggest in most areas that race remains the primary cause of the achievement gap. The Alon articles primary argument is that a cultural condition of inherent segregation, which occurs by geography, economy and personal experience, causes the achievement gaps found in schools. His research employs an Early Childhood Longitudinal Study-Kindergarten Cohort (ECLS-K) in order to compare the early educational indicators that seem to distinguish academic performance by race.

The study is focused on examining "the perplexing role of schools in narrowing the achievement gap among students of varying social classes while widening the gap between black and white students. He finds that between the fall and spring of first grade, black students' reading and math skills fall almost two months behind those of white students." (Alon, 731)

The Alon study suggests itself as one due for further examination as it provides a clear intercession of the various patterns of inequality that warrant the use of Affirmative Action in education and employment decisions. Namely, Alon explicitly connects the general sociological isolation of minorities from hegemonic opportunities to the clear differences in testing and academic performance capabilities. This helps to underscore a study which presupposes that this achievement gap may be narrowed for the demographic identified as African-American MBA graduates. In response to the imperatives established by this theory, this dissertation will primarily deal with the conceptualization of affirmative action and the basis of claims suggesting that this policy helps to bring greater educational access and career success to African-American business students. This improves the pool of African-Americans who graduate from post-graduate MBA programs and advance to serve in prominent business leadership roles.

A Brief background

Though affirmative action is still a controversial issue, it is nothing new. Debates can still be heard on this subject as it inundates news broadcasts, radio airways and printed materials. Currently you can find debates that are focused on the use of affirmative action in higher education as a result of recent judicial inquiries into the fairness and necessity of the practice. Those that are for affirmative action argue that its implementation is more than necessary to ensure that minorities receive equal opportunity. Opponents of affirmative action contend that the practice is not necessary because it does not promote equality; in fact those against affirmative action argue that it does not help minorities but rather degrades them. Some opponents even argue that affirmative action sends minorities the message that they can only succeed if they are given extra benefits; which results in a damaging of their cultural credibility and collective advancement.

Education is justifiably regarded by politicians, activists and policy-makers as the access point to employment, social mobility and economic independence, which denotes the reason for the selection in this research to focus on MBA graduates. Due to the firmly entrenched history of racial imbalance which has forged the United States of present day, education and its associated prospects have long been made available to white men with a degree of exclusivity that has severely handicapped the opportunities available to demographics such as African and Hispanic-Americans. Indeed, categorized under the umbrella misnomer 'minority,' these groups are not simply detained in their access to quality education, but often are steeped in cultural and economic conditions which do not encourage the pursuit of education at all.

A lingering element of America's racist past, our only recently integrated public schools continue to exist within a larger framework of segregation patterns. Though no longer legally enforced by Jim Crow, the division in race is still harbored by public schools. To date, many attempts to curb the explicit racism of America's past have been blunted by implicit cultural tendencies, especially in universities and places of employment, to limit minority access to those resources readily available for white students. Affirmative Action is one of the strongest officially sanctioned instruments for eroding the continued imbalance of opportunity for black and white students in the United States, in its schools and in its post-graduate contexts. Therefore, this discussion will address literature pertaining to this subject with an intent to clarify its value, to identify the arguments against it and ultimately to illustrate that Affirmative Action remains necessary today. Indeed, evidence from the first several generations of Affirmative Action suggests that there are both greater numbers of African-American MBA graduates and that said MBAs have made strides in closing the achievement gap between the races. According to Austin (2008, p.1), "there was a significant economic progress among the African-American from mid 1990s. By the year 2000, the median black household had climbed to its highest level ever, while black unemployment and poverty rates had declined to their lowest levels on record." Corresponding to Austin's statement, this dissertation will focus on how affirmative action would affect the choice of African-American MBAs' professional and business careers and also their eventual professional success.

That said, arguments recommending the discontinuation of Affirmative Action fail to recognize that the gap still remains considerable and is ingrained in many aspects of America's professional culture. According to HJKF, (2006), "it was established that African-Americans were the nation's most unemployed groups and were the most disproportionately represented in the professional field." (p.1) African-Americans were also the least appreciated individuals at the workplace and least likely to experience promotion to managerial posts. As stated by Chima & Wharton (1999), "discrimination, though practiced by individuals, is often reinforced by the well-established rules, policies, and practices of organizations." (2) This means that once employed, discrimination at the organizational level results in advancement difficulties for African-Americans.

However, with the increasing call for affirmative action and equality, the representation of African-American MBA graduates in senior management and the rate of promotions increased from 1993 as identified by a study carried out by United States Government Accountability Office (GAO). Studies carried out by GAO from 1993 through 2004 revealed that there were increased promotions among African-American MBA graudates. The study reports that "during that period, EEO-1 data show that management-level representation by minority women and men increased from 11.1% of all industry management-level positions to 15.5%. Specifically, African-Americans increased their management-level representation from 5.6% to 6.6%" (GAO, 2006, p.3).

Affirmative action in academic and professional development

The Graduate Management Admission Council (GMAC) has conducted numerous studies and surveys to establish the career initiation and progress among minority groups, especially African-Americans in business school programs. Studies and surveys such as the mba.com Registrant Survey and the Global MBA Graduate Survey have given insight into the manner in which African-American MBA students acquire and secure successful professions in the business field. These surveys have proven reliable and now, many companies and organizations use these surveys to hire and retain African-American MBA graduates to comport with affirmative action policies.

These studies have also provided a means by which to gauge the impact of affirmative action in the professional and career field of African-American MBAs upon graduation. According to McCoy (1995), the different applications of affirmative action are identifiable through historical analysis of these studies and lead to benefits that African-American MBA graduates enjoy (p.56). By analyzing the business and professional aspect of these graduates, two distinct fields come into focus, academic and professional employment.

To this point, attitudes at educational institutions have evolved over the decades since the inception of Affirmative Action. In addition to changes in admission policies at universities, new workshops in education are beginning to address this issue head on, with teaching participants being taught that American history and education are both "written from the perspective of whites and that laws and policies benefit whites while putting minorities at an immediate disadvantage." (Fernandez, 1) This has helped to redirect the perspective on Affirmative Action within the profession, where institutions are beginning to espouse it as a legitimate means to balancing merit and racial fairness in both the admission of students and the courtship and hiring of teachers. A recent Supreme Court decision on student admission to the University of Michigan reflected this stance, offering real and applicable precedent that today reverberates in the collective movement to improve conditions for an ethnically diverse range of Americans.

In 2000, Gratz v Bollinger began the long process of defending the Constitutionality of Affirmative Action as a factor in shaping admission criteria for potential students. Under the premise that ethnic diversity could be considered a suitable goal for a university in selecting the members of its student body, a federal court found in favor of the University's reliance upon the practice. After being nullified the following year by a contrary decision in Grutter v Bollinger, then subsequently overturned once again on appeal, the University's policy was ultimately vindicated in the United States Supreme Court. In a landmark 5-4 decision, the highest court upheld "the University of Michigan Law School's policy, ruling that race can be one of many factors considered by colleges when selecting their students because it furthers 'a compelling interest in obtaining the educational benefits that flow from a diverse student body.'" (Brunner, 1)

The Achievement Gap for African-American Men

The knowledge and skill acquired through formal business school educational courses may play a vital role in helping individuals develop realistic and achievable career advances. The study provided by Sui-Chu & Willms points to the achievement gap which stands as the theoretical basis for our research. This is because the study makes a direct connection between this gap and a factor which largely enters into all other discussions on the subject. According to the study, "perhaps the most enduring finding in the sociology of education is that schooling outcomes are related to the socioeconomic status of the children's parents." (Sui-Chu & Willms, 126) This is to suggest that this root factor should be a present consideration as we enter into a greater consideration of the racial implications of the achievement gap. Indeed, most of these racial implications are in some way connected to the correlations between socioeconomic status and race, validating efforts at using these correlations to adapt a strategy for change.

The study by Hedges & Nowell provides us with some empirical confirmation that there is an observable achievement gap between whites and other ethnic groups that can be demonstrated though academic testing. Proficiency monitoring shows a clear imbalance where those at the top of testing indices are concerned. As the Hedges & Nowell study reports, "about a third of the gap in test scores is accounted for by racial differences in social class, and although this gap appears to have narrowed since 1965, the rate at which it is narrowing seems to have decreased since 1972. The two groups are becoming more equal at the bottom of the test-score distribution, but at the top, blacks are hugely underrepresented and are approaching parity with whites slowly, if at all." (Hedges & Nowell, 111) This provides us with an indication that even with some sociological improvement, there has been considerable difficulty in providing minorities with the avenues to improvement that might facilitate their more equal representation at the higher ends of the scorings spectrum, suggesting an ongoing need for affirmative action programs.

Formal employment of African-American MBA Graduates

Regarding the professional environment, African-American students who attend graduate schools are more likely to receive promotions and career advancement when compared to other races (GAO, 2005, p.3). This is mainly attributable to affirmative action because although organizations hire African-American MBA graduates increasingly, they still constitute a small percentage of the total workforce in managerial positions (Pager et al. 2009, p.5). Consequently, in certain circumstances, some organizations just cooperate with set quotas, which specify particular numbers of qualified minority members that must fill in vacant positions. "For example, a university with a high proportion of Caucasian male faculty maybe required to fill half of its faculty vacancies with women and other minorities" (Chima & Wharton, 1999, p.6).

Organizations are deliberately reorganizing their internal mechanisms to facilitate affirmative action. Numerous organizations are proactively progressing to ensure the facilitation of affirmative action. Many organizations are committed to ensuring that African-Americans MBAs have sufficient representation in managerial and senior posts. According to Austin (2008), African-American men with graduate degrees "are hence more likely to be promoted than was the case in the early 1990s." (p. 6). By offering their commitment to affirmative action, organizations are examining possible ways in which minority groups can be properly represented. In the experimentation process, African-American MBAs will receive more promotions due to the fact that they are the minority group least represented in most organizations (Austin, p.6).

With the increasing number of African-American MBAs graduating and vying for work in the professional sphere, there has also been an increase in opportunity as most organizations seek to employ men from competitive schools due to the advanced skills and knowledge they possess (Dugan et al., 2003, p.13). African-American MBAs are therefore likely to benefit from affirmative action due to the strict code of conduct it enforces on the business community. Affirmative action should however be viewed as a benefit to the whole the business world, for it ensures the consideration of input from all members of society regardless of race (Roosevelt, 2004, p.10).

Organizations now show greater interest in promoting equality in hiring and promotion as well as reimbursement. According to Seltzer (1991), "internal racial job segregation is highly discouraged to allow for free interactions since unmonitored interactions in employment practices are more likely to produce discriminatory workplace practices" (p. 315). Organizations that rely on teamwork models will attempt to include members of all races in each of the teams. It is thus that senior management is encouraged to be accountable for all employees and that organizations diversify to ensure both racial fairness and unbiased performance. To this point, Leymann (1990) indicates that "racial discrimination is a learned behavior and is only tolerated in the environment it thrives" (p. 122). It is because of this that in the recent years, experts have insisted on the need for organizations to value diversity and diversity management.

Various organizations have set up mechanisms meant to handle internal affairs regarding racial discrimination. Employees are required to sign a contract establishing that they will not engage in discrimination, and they are to be penalized if found guilty. In the occurrence of such an incident, a given set of procedures has to be followed, which is initiated by the reporting of the matter to the proper Human Resource authorities (Landrine & Klonoff, 1996, p.145). Internal investigations would then be carried out to ascertain the validity of the accusation. Once the guilt of the employee in relation to discrimination has been established, the employee incurs either financial penalty or the loss of his or her job. Implementation of such stringent measures and precautions has safeguarded African-American men from possible discrimination. It is therefore more likely that African-American graduates will receive job offers according to their qualifications, and compete for promotions with members of other races in a fair manner (Turner & Struyk, 1991, p.5)

This helps to underscore the perceived imperative for a continued, if possibly refined, mode of Affirmative Action.

RESEARCH QUESTIONS

This research aims to answer the main research questions. These questions would be answered through the participation of already graduated African-Americans working and being successful in their respective business fields.

1. Would the elimination of Affirmative Action have a damaging impact on the ability of African-American men to gain access to MBA programs.

2. Can threats to curtail affirmative action admissions to institutions of higher education cause a widening of the achievement gap?

HYPOTHESES

All the hypotheses for my research questions are in the affirmative side. The hypotheses of this study are:

H1: Affirmative Action has led to increased African-American enrollment in universities and MBA graduate programs, producing greater business success for African-American men.

H2: Threats to curtail affirmative action admissions will have the impact of widening the achievement gap between African-Americans and white Americans.

SIGNIFICANCE of the STUDY:

This research will contribute to the field of scholarly knowledge by availing research findings that distinctively underscore the key implications affirmative action has for the academic and professional development African-American MBAs. This study acknowledges previous studies focusing on affirmative action on a racial or academic scale; however, by paying close attention to African-American MBA graduates, this study will provide a unique perspective to the impact of affirmative action exclusively on this demographic.

The dissertation will also take interest in the role of universities and graduate schools in providing the necessary set of skills required in the professional field, and in particular the role that such schools play in ensuring African-American men achieve professional success. It is imperative to emphasize that this research will mainly select its source material on the subject of the impact of affirmative action on the professional and business careers of black men, chiefly from the brief background provided within this account. The primary data for this study will be procured through questionnaires, which will assist in the examination of the findings and also provide the supporting information regarding the study.

PROPOSED METHODOLOGY:

This section presents the research methodology, which aims to optimally answer the questions. The methodology also seeks to support the arguments delineated in the previous section and reviews the brief background and procedure of data collection that will be used for the study.

The intention of this research is to analyze the role of affirmative action in the successful absorption of African-Americans MBAs into academic and professional success. This research also seeks to explore whether managerial or administrative individuals of African-American persuasion are in their current positions as a result of affirmative action. The research in addition aims at collecting information from participants on their views on affirmative action and the role of affirmative action in securing their admission into academic admissions, vocational acquisition, career advancement and career success. The purpose of this research is explanatory in that it seeks to elucidate the implications of affirmative action on African-American MBAs and, consequently, business professionals.

DATA COLLECTION METHOD:

The researcher will send the research questionnaire through mail as well as through email. The questionnaire will have a cover letter with postage-paid return envelope. The researcher will also contact the surveyor by telephone if there is no response. There will be follow up telephone calls and reminder emails, within 10 days, following the questionnaires mailings.