As industry is beginning to recognize the importance of cross-disciplinary teams, it becomes more relevant for the members of the various disciplines to appreciate the value each member brings and for there to be an
environment of mutual respect. While many existing design firms already have a well-established culture that promotes the value of integrated team work, many industries are just now experimenting with how to change their corporate culture that has historically been segregated by hierarchy and discipline. It is challenging enough to change the corporate culture from within besides needing to guide new hires away from the antiquated culture towards the newly integrated company. This is especially challenging if the new hires are educated based upon the same premises as the senior members of the company and therefore readily adopt divisional and hierarchical perspectives as acceptable and the norm.

The fight against hierarchy and disciplinary segregation is even more challenging if incoming management does not understand nor appreciate the value of integrated teamwork. This is especially true in a company that intends to find success through a creative environment. While there are a few graduate-level management programs within the United States that provide a reasonably balanced view of corporate strategy, the alumni of these programs are handicapped by their pre-graduate school education, their prior work experience, and the pervasive culture that supports oligarchical rule within organizations. There were no undergraduate management, or business, education programs in the United States that intentionally prepared their students to thrive in an interdisciplinary, creative environment; though a few programs like this do exist overseas, most notably in Scandinavian countries. The School of Something at Generic University saw a unique opportunity to build on its already outstanding reputation for undergraduate management education in a liberal arts setting by purposefully creating a program that redefines student expectations for work environment. Much of this was conceived through consultation with creative alumni, industrial design faculty at other universities, and in response to a noticeable cultural shift towards prioritizing design.

The School of Something program, named Blah, Blah, and Blah (BBB), focuses on preparing entry-level managers for creative industries, especially design (Reference). In addition to traditional undergraduate management coursework, the students within the program have to take eight major-related courses. One of those courses is a semester-long design studio, a unique experience and educational opportunity.