Title: Handbook of Corporate University Development
Edited by: Rob Paton, Geoff Peters, John Storey and
Scott Taylor
Publisher: Gower Publishing
Pages: 280
ISBN: 0-566-085-836
Price: £90
Reviewed by: Keith Brown, interim head of corporate learning and development, London Borough of Merton
If you are considering setting up a corporate university, then this book will be an informative read.
Aimed at those with responsibility for strategy and learning at a senior level, it looks at the key issues and current best practice. It has an impressive list of contributors from practical and academic backgrounds from around the world.
The book is divided into four parts: ‘Managing a corporate university’, ‘Prospects and possibilities for corporate universities’, ‘Positioning the corporate university’ and ‘Learning technologies and processes’ – the latter two of which are the most useful. Here, cogent arguments are made for corporate universities being strategic learning initiatives and drivers of strategic change.
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Corporate universities are often of a scale that many organisations have not reached and, whether run as physical entities or virtual ones, there needs to be real value to embark on this route. The book uses a number of case studies to highlight the reasons why corporate universities are adopted, as well as the issues encountered along the way.
This is a well-written work of reference. However, the busy executive could glean much of this information from the internet.
Useful? 3 stars
Well-written? 4 stars
Practical? 4 stars
Inspirational? 3 stars
Value for money? 2 stars
