Will edX Put Harvard and MIT Out of Business?

I received an interesting email from "James in Arizona" today. James offers this comment on online education. Greetings from Arizona, Mish, I ran across this website while exploring various online options for my daughter (in high school, but she’s very computer savvy, so I’m looking for options to expand her interests/basis). It is EdX, an online education group started by Harvard and MIT, but other universities are joining.

A few weeks after Wharton announced that it would be offering a substantial part of its core MBA classes online, Harvard business school is developing online courses of its own, according to a report

Online courses, and massively open online courses (MOOCs) in particular, are quickly moving from a novelty to the mainstream. Leading colleges, graduate schools, and companies are investing significant resources into free education.

First Wharton decided to offer the core of its first year MBA program online. Now Harvard Business School is exploring online options as well. 

Self-Managed Teams Are Already A Proven Success A recent Harvard Business Journal article was titled, “Are We Ready for Self-Management?” as if this is a new, experimental thing. The fact is that many large, highly successful companies have been structured this way for up to fifty years, says inc.

One of the common complaints about Wall Street is that it sucks up a lot of Ivy League talent that could be going toward more productive endeavors. The common assumption is that the students are just following the money. But, my friend, an anonymous Harvard graduate who spent some time on Wall Street says that's not always the case. An edited transcription of our conversation follows: You went to Harvard. Then what happened?

We all make mistakes from time to time — and some missteps have bigger consequences than others. Hiring mistakes, for instance, can be extremely costly.

Inequality of the sexes has been on the agenda for years, but I think it is now vital to look at the huge issues we have with ageism as well. When managers are looking to recruit new employees nowadays they are often more concerned about what is thought of them by hiring an older person, than considering the capabilities of the older applicant. This is a trend that I see more and more when speaking with managers. Highly regarded men and women are displaying total disregard for potential employees nearing retirement age.