Many people believe that all MBAs care about is money. Others feel that an MBA is an irrelevant degree, and that a manager's true education comes from experience. But Daniel Slater and Heather Dizon-Fowler wanted to see if the numbers backed up these claims. So, they conducted a study that posed a unique question: Does a CEO's education have any relation to his her company's corporate environmental performance (CEP)?

Firms have higher CEP ratings when they minimize their environmental impact and conserve resources for the future. Thus, companies with pollution prevention programs, strict policies for recycling and using recycled materials, and demonstrated compliance with environmental regulations will have higher CEP ratings than companies that don't have these things. Finding a relationship between having a CEO with an MBA and having a high CEP could suggest that MBA programs are actually helping companies learn to "go green" and improve their sustainability.

Slater and Dixon-Fowler started with a list of the companies on the S&P 500 for 2004. They were able to find educational background information on 416 CEOs. They then obtained CEP ratings for those 416 companies from an independent investment firm that specializes in measuring environmental, social, and governance performance. The average CEP rating for companies where the CEO had an MBA was 2.865, while the average rating for companies having CEOs without MBAs was 2,730. This difference was statistically significant, leading the researchers to suggest that far from being irrelevant, an MBA education can help managers make choices that have a positive impact on corporate environmental performance.

In the discussion section of their article, Slater and Dixon-Fowler pointed out that even though MBA - run companies may have high environmental performance ratings, those ratings may still be money based. Their concern is that MBA programs focus on the economic benefits of conservation, not on the need to protect the planet for future generations. Thus, CEOs might start a recycling program as a cost-saving tool, or reduc pollution more to enhamce the reputation of their organization than to save the planet.
Which of the following statements are consistent with the findings of Slater and Dixon-Fowler? Check all that apply. a. CEO education is positively related to an organization's sustainability. b. people with MBAs are more likely to lead a sustainable organization than people without MBAs. c. an MBA is necessary if one is going to lead a sustainable organization. d. MBAs care more about sustainability than money.