A Study on the Cultivation System of Practical Ability of Management Students in the Age of Numerical Intelligence Empowerment ()
1. Introduction
As the core driving force of the fourth Industrial Revolution, digital intelligence empowerment is mainly composed of intelligent information technology clusters such as big data technology (data mining and knowledge discovery), artificial intelligence (machine learning and cognitive computing), blockchain (distributed ledger and smart contract) and 5G communication (low time delay and high reliable transmission). These technologies have had a subversive impact on the daily life, work and learning mode of the public in modern society, especially the breakthrough of Deepseek and other new-generation cognitive intelligence systems, which have brought new changes to knowledge acquisition and thinking mode [1]. In the teaching environment, by enriching educational resources, innovating teaching tools and upgrading the learning environment, digital intelligence enables schools to change the knowledge production paradigm, innovate the teaching model, reshape the educational concept, and then change the goal of talent training, that is, focus on the practical ability of students. Under the background of the modernization of higher education governance system and governance ability, it is of great significance to actively construct the teaching scene of numerical intelligence in order to cultivate students’ practical ability. From the theoretical point of view, focusing on the cultivation of practical ability of management students is helpful in changing the empiricism in teaching, that is, trying to understand and implement educational activities with abstract theory as the starting point. Through the development of management students’ practical ability, education research can be closer to the real situation, promote the further development of management education, and promote the improvement of the whole level of management education. From a practical point of view, the emphasis on the practical ability of management students can help universities or educators to clearly identify the deficiencies and bottlenecks in current teaching, so as to update course content, promote teaching reform and build practice bases. At the same time, it also enhances the assessment of students’ self-ability and the formulation of career development plans, and encourages them to consciously improve their practical ability in the learning stage, so as to enhance their employment competitiveness. Most importantly, influenced by changes in the digital intelligence enabling environment, students with rich practical skills are more sensitive to market changes and make timely and effective decisions. Therefore, the curriculum design of cultivating practical ability should combine practice-oriented and theoretical learning to promote the all-round development of students, so as to improve their adaptability and competitiveness in the changing economic environment.
Management is not only a study of management activities and management laws, but also a practical and applied discipline. Training the practical ability of management students is the key to training a new generation of high-quality composite talents [2]. However, a large amount of experience and knowledge in the field of management must be acquired and mastered by students themselves in practice [3]. With the gradual in-depth application of advanced technologies such as artificial intelligence, cloud computing and big data, it is particularly important to re-understand the cultivation of practical ability of management students. Under the background of the new era, the cultivation of management students must adapt to the challenges and opportunities brought by technological change, so as to improve their comprehensive quality and practical ability. Colleges and universities should deeply analyze the new requirements of the digital intelligent environment for the training of management professionals, and take the initiative to reform the curriculum and teaching methods to ensure that the educational content keeps pace with The Times. This process not only involves the optimization and updating of the curriculum system, but also requires teachers to integrate modern technological means in the teaching process to enhance students’ practical participation [4]. For example, using big data analytics to solve practical management problems, or simulating a business environment to improve students’ decision-making skills and teamwork skills. As educators seek a balance between tradition and innovation, how to train new management talents with practical ability and awareness of The Times has become an important issue to be solved urgently in national higher education [5]. More importantly, the timeliness of management involves not only the renewal of the technical level, but also the all-round innovation of educational concepts, educational contents and educational methods. With the rapid development of information technology and the diversification of social demand, the traditional education model and education concept have been unable to meet the current and future social demand for talents. Therefore, facing the new needs under the new situation, it is urgent to build a new path of modern talent training with the help of modern education concepts and digital technology. Therefore, the training of management students should take improving practical ability as the main goal. In the content of management teaching, the training requirements of high-quality skilled talents should be implemented to improve students’ innovative ability and practical ability. However, there are still many deficiencies in the current practice of higher management teaching, such as lack of practical teaching resources, single practice assessment and evaluation, and insufficient teachers, which seriously affect the effect of practical teaching and restrict the comprehensive cultivation of students’ practical ability [6]. Therefore, we must attach great importance to the cultivation of management professional practice ability, systematically sort out its connotation elements, summarize training principles, analyze the shortcomings, and put forward feasible improvement countermeasures. Based on this, this paper aims to sort out and summarize the problems and countermeasures related to the practical ability training of management students in higher education, and contribute some ideas and methods to improve the quality of management education and train management talents who meet the needs of society.
2. Research Status
Under the background of the digitalization of the global economy, the rapid rise of digital intelligence technology is profoundly changing the education system and teaching methods of management. The training of management talents requires not only a solid theoretical foundation, but also rich practical ability. Practical ability refers to the ability of individuals to reasonably use their own knowledge and skills in social activities to solve practical problems they face. In the management major, the cultivation of practical ability is particularly important, because it is related to the students’ future career competitiveness. Based on this, the practical ability of management majors can be understood as the ability of students to effectively identify, analyze and solve practical management problems and challenges by integrating management concepts, methods and tools in dynamic management situations. This ability not only includes the understanding and analysis of management processes, but also includes the ability to integrate management concepts, methods and tools. It also covers practical skills in project management, teamwork, resource allocation and decision making. As the intelligent environment changes and management theory continues to evolve, management students need to have a keen insight to identify complex management situations and develop practical solutions. In addition, practical competence requires students to be able to communicate, lead, and coordinate effectively in real or simulated management situations to advance team goals. In terms of the connotation of practical ability of management talents, modern management is not only the basic criterion for the innovation and development of new business talents, but also an important part of the new liberal arts field [7]. Modern management emphasizes practical ability as the orientation, through the combination of systematic theoretical guidance and practical experience in the real environment, to cultivate compound talents with innovative thinking and the ability to solve complex problems. With the deepening of economic globalization and scientific and technological progress, the traditional management mode is facing unprecedented challenges, which requires management education to keep pace with The Times, integrate interdisciplinary knowledge and technology, and enhance the adaptability and competitiveness of talents in the dynamic market environment. Therefore, promoting the practical ability of management professionals is not only the need to improve personal professional quality, but also an important way to promote the development of the entire social economy and innovation transformation.
3. Objectives of Management Personnel Training in the Era of
Digital Intelligence Empowerment
Under the background of the era of numerical intelligence empowerment, the training goal of management talents is to cultivate innovative talents with career orientation and practical ability. The cultivation of management professionals emphasizes student-centered, occupation-oriented and project-oriented, and encourages students to master practical skills in real situations [8]. Especially in the context of the continuous evolution of the global economy and the digital wave sweeping all walks of life, the field of management education must keep pace with The Times, closely adapt to the development needs of The Times, and train a new generation of business talents to adapt to the era of digital intelligence. The wide application of digital technology has become a new trend of business development. New management talents not only need to master the emerging business laws, but also need to have interdisciplinary abilities such as data mining, information acquisition and decision analysis to adapt to the changing business environment. At the same time, it is very important to pay attention to the cultivation of moral quality and thinking ability, and the cultivation of new management talents must also have a sense of social responsibility and ethical standards, and have the ability to efficiently analyze problems, think independently and innovate solutions to cope with complex business challenges, so as to effectively improve the overall productivity and competitiveness of individuals. In terms of knowledge literacy, new management talents need to cover a wider range of fields, including business, technology and social sciences, in order to better adapt to the changing environment.
4. At Present, The Training of Practical Ability of Chinese
Management Students Is Insufficient
First, the practice time or links are not enough. In the process of training modern management talents, it is essential to combine theoretical learning with the application of real business environments, especially in practical operations and field internships. However, the current educational situation makes it difficult for students to get access to real work content and operational practice in a short time. In addition, some colleges and universities set the practice of management major for a short period of time, which seriously limits the opportunities for students to deeply understand the core concepts of management, and thus has a negative impact on the cultivation of their management thinking. As a result, many students lack the necessary experience when facing practical work after graduation, and it is difficult to effectively adapt to the work requirements of enterprises and industry standards. This problem needs to be paid attention to and solved. Therefore, relevant educational institutions should re-examine and optimize the course design, increase the length of internship and the depth of content, so as to better guarantee the effective connection between theory and practice, and promote the improvement of students’ comprehensive literacy and professional ability.
Second, the setting of course content lags behind. With the development of digital economy, more and more emerging fields and new technologies have emerged in the field of business, but the management curriculum of some higher vocational colleges lags behind and is not updated and adjusted in time. For example, at present, digital tools such as artificial intelligence and big data analysis have been widely used in enterprise management, but most college management courses still focus on traditional management theories (such as Taylor Scientific management and Porter’s Five Forces Model), and the teaching content mostly stays at the concept introduction level, lacking the operation training of cutting-edge tools such as AIGC (generative artificial intelligence) and intelligent decision system. This results in the mismatch between the knowledge and skills learned by students and the actual demand, which affects their employment competitiveness.
The third is the slow updating of practical teaching equipment. The equipment used in many university laboratories and training bases is mostly outdated models, which cannot meet the technical standards required for modern education, resulting in the tools that students come into contact with in the practice process and the actual industry standards, which affects the improvement of their professional ability. Secondly, the slow update of equipment also leads to the lack of diversity of experimental and practical training courses, which cannot cover the latest technology applications and industry dynamics, limiting the expansion of students’ thinking and the stimulation of innovation ability. In addition, outdated equipment not only affects the efficiency of teaching, but also may lead to the weakening of students’ interest in learning, thus affecting the overall learning effect. In the long run, it will be difficult for colleges and universities to train talents that meet the needs of society, which will affect the sustainable development and innovation ability of the national economy. In view of this situation, schools need to equip professional equipment support personnel, timely purchase or update equipment and software to meet the ever-changing practical needs of students.
Fourth, the lack of awareness of innovation training. In the era of digital economy, management talents need to have a high sense of innovation and entrepreneurial spirit to adapt to the ever-changing market environment. However, at present, the ability of some students in this field is relatively insufficient. The traditional model of management education often focuses on the teaching of theoretical knowledge, and neglects the systematic cultivation of core abilities such as “innovative thinking” and “critical thinking”. This educational tendency causes students to form the habit of passively absorbing knowledge in the learning process, resulting in the lack of active exploration and flexible response ability in the face of emerging management challenges. Therefore, in the face of rapidly changing market demands, educators and policymakers need to deeply reflect on existing teaching methods and actively explore and introduce diversified teaching modes, such as practical projects and case studies, to stimulate students’ innovative potential and entrepreneurial awareness. Through such measures, students’ understanding and ability to apply innovation can be effectively improved, thus laying a more solid foundation for training high-quality business talents to adapt to the requirements of the digital economy. This is not only a necessary move for education reform, but also an important guarantee for promoting sustainable and healthy economic development.
To sum up, in the era of digital intelligence empowerment, the training of management students faces many problems and challenges. It is necessary for the education sector, the industry and the government to work together to promote the reform and innovation of practical ability training, improve the quality of talents, and provide more powerful support for business development in the era of digital economy. When cultivating new management talents in the era of digital economy, it is necessary to pay close attention to the development trend and industrial demand of big data intelligence, adhere to the demand-oriented, and cultivate management talents who keep up with the development of The Times. Therefore, it is necessary to restructure the new management education system in relevant fields, aiming to create an ecological environment for cross-border integration of majors, teachers and resources, and cultivate developmental, composite, innovative and entrepreneurial new business talents with cross-disciplinary thinking, collaboration ability and innovation consciousness. At the same time, colleges and universities should also implement the transformation and upgrading of digital intelligence with the help of “digital intelligence empowerment” in terms of teaching resources, teaching methods, course design, teaching methods and evaluation, so as to cultivate new management students who can truly adapt to the urgent needs of the development of the new economic environment.
5. Cultivation of Practical Ability of Management Students
in the Era of Numerical Intelligence Empowerment
5.1. Innovation of Teaching Mode Oriented to the Needs
of the Times
Under the background of the rapid development of information technology and the accelerated process of economic globalization, the training of management professionals faces new challenges and opportunities. The traditional teaching mode often attaches importance to the teaching of theoretical knowledge, but neglects the cultivation of students’ practical ability. At present, the society is increasingly urgent for high-quality talents with practical operation ability. Therefore, in recent years, all colleges and universities and teachers are exploring the innovation of teaching mode, which is of great significance to improve the practical ability of management students. Tsinghua University, Fudan University and other universities have taken the lead in offering courses such as “Intelligent business decision-making” and “digital operation management” to strengthen the collaborative education of science and education, and establish a collaborative training mechanism of science and education integration and mutual promotion. The specific manifestations are as follows:
Project-oriented learning: The demand for talents of The Times often directly affects the direction of teaching reform in colleges and universities. In the field of management, the relevant needs may relate to human resource management, social responsibility, sustainable development, etc. Therefore, in the context of the needs of The Times, project-based Learning enables students to conduct relevant Project research around specific management problems or requirements, gain practical experience and improve practical ability. For example, students can focus on the actual management case of a certain enterprise, combined with realistic management requirements, analyze the management strategy that meets the project content, and propose improvement plans.
Combination of curriculum design and practice: The practical demand-oriented teaching mode emphasizes that teachers must integrate practical links such as practical case analysis and field research into curriculum design, so as to help students understand and apply the theoretical knowledge more effectively. Under this model, the Case Study Method, as the main application method, can effectively guide students to systematically analyze various factors affecting the business environment of enterprises through in-depth understanding of relevant policies of national or local governments. Students will learn how to translate abstract theoretical knowledge into concrete applications in practice by exploring real-world cases, developing their critical thinking and practical problem solving skills. This teaching mode can not only enhance students’ grasp of classroom knowledge, but also improve their practical ability and adaptability in the future workplace, so as to promote their better adaptation and development in the rapidly changing economic environment. In addition, colleges and universities should also strengthen the training of teachers, encourage teachers to participate in practical projects and accumulate practical experience. In addition, colleges and universities should create an environment supporting the development of teachers, including system guarantee, resource support and cultural atmosphere, and improve teachers’ teaching ability and practical guidance level through regular practical teaching discussions and exchanges.
Diversified evaluation system: In today’s education system, the standards for evaluating students’ learning outcomes should go beyond the traditional teaching evaluation system and include more comprehensive evaluation dimensions to fully reflect students’ ability and quality. Among them, students’ performance in social practice, teamwork ability and the ability to solve practical problems are indispensable and important indicators. For example, through participation in Internship and Community Service, students are able to effectively apply the theoretical knowledge learned in the classroom to the practical environment. This process not only helps them develop the ability to solve specific problems in real situations, but also significantly improves their professional quality and social responsibility. In the process of internship, students should actively cooperate with the intelligent teaching courses arranged by the school or teachers, consolidate the theoretical foundation, follow the suggestions of the school, and actively participate in relevant digital academic activities and corporate practice activities, so as to comprehensively improve their professional ability through the combination of theory and practice activities. Therefore, building a diversified assessment system will not only help measure students’ practical ability more accurately, but also better meet the current social and workplace needs for talents.
Interdisciplinary cooperation: Interdisciplinary collaboration integrates knowledge of management with other fields so that students can comprehensively analyze the impact of management theories on various aspects of society and improve their comprehensive quality [9]. For example, the theory and practice of law, economics, sociology and other disciplines can form a complementary relationship in the learning process of management, helping students understand and solve complex problems from multiple dimensions [10]. To achieve this effectively, higher education institutions can provide students with the opportunity to work together in a real business environment by organizing interdisciplinary hands-on projects. For example, students can form teams with classmates in computer science, psychology and other majors to collaborate on practical projects such as market research and business planning. In this process, students are not only able to apply the expertise of their respective disciplines, but also develop communication skills, critical thinking and innovation skills in teamwork, which greatly enhance their practical abilities. Through this interdisciplinary integration and practice, students are able to better understand and respond to the increasingly complex challenges in today’s society and economy, thus laying a solid foundation for their own career development.
5.2. Explore New Models of School-Enterprise Cooperation
Colleges and universities should strengthen the cooperative education of science and education, and establish a cooperative training mechanism of science and education integration and mutual promotion. With the rapid development of economy and science and technology, the market has put forward higher requirements for the quality and ability of professionals. In particular, management students, in addition to having a solid theoretical foundation, need to have a strong practical ability to cope with the complex and changeable business environment. In this context, school-enterprise cooperation has become an effective mode of education, which can combine academic research with practical application, provide students with abundant practical opportunities, and open up a new path for the cultivation of practical ability of management students. By signing strategic cooperation agreements with enterprises, colleges and universities clarify their respective rights and obligations, specify the specific rules of personnel allocation, capital investment, equipment provision and safety guarantee of practice teaching bases, ensure the effective integration and comprehensive utilization of resources, effectively improve students’ practical ability and employment competitiveness, and promote the improvement of education quality and the combination of industry, university and research [11]. The specific contents of the new cooperation mode are as follows: First, the needs of the industry and enterprises are highly integrated with the talent training of the school. Enterprises can deeply participate in the formulation of training objectives and the revision of talent training plans of the intelligent construction Industry College. The college integrates the new technologies and new processes of the enterprise into the course content in real time, and the two sides of the school and enterprise jointly develop and build the course system; Second, the Intelligent Construction Industry College adopts the “customized - non-directed” talent training model. The cooperative enterprises can encourage the growth of students by implanting corporate culture, carrying out talent customization, setting student grants and scholarships in the process of talent training. The third is the school-enterprise co-training cooperation mode, that is, the two sides of the school and the enterprise jointly train “double teacher” professional teachers and “double ability” industrial mentors. School teachers enter enterprises, receive practical skills training, participate in the planning, reporting and implementation of management projects, and master advanced research methods and implementation technologies in the management industry; Enterprise tutors participate in students’ on-campus curriculum design, internship and graduation design training to strengthen their education and teaching ability, and school-enterprise training to build a double teacher team is a strong guarantee to improve students’ engineering practice ability. To sum up, in the future, colleges and universities need to deeply explore the cooperation mechanism with enterprises, promote the coordinated development of education and economy, and cultivate high-quality management talents to meet the needs of the new era in various forms. The specific manifestations are as follows:
Construction of practice and training bases: In terms of the construction of on-campus training bases, colleges and universities need to improve the hardware facilities and strengthen the construction of practical training bases. At the same time, the teaching content can be enriched. Through scenario simulation, role playing and other ways, students can carry out actual practice in a simulated environment to improve their ability to transform theoretical knowledge into practical ability. For example, a simulation company can be set up to allow students to play different roles and experience the whole process of business management, so as to deepen the understanding and application of economic management theory. In the construction of off-campus practice base, colleges and universities should actively cooperate with enterprises to establish off-campus practice base. This kind of cooperation can be multi-level and multi-angle, including the integrated teaching method of industry, university and research, so that students can have practical training in a real enterprise environment, so as to enhance their basic skills and vocational abilities. When choosing the practice base, we should pay attention to the modern management concept and good practice conditions of the enterprise to ensure the practice effect. At the same time, the practice base should be avoided in a mere form and ensure that the practice base is really helpful to students. For example, it is possible to establish cooperative relations with well-known large enterprises and startups, so that students can practice in them, learn about the actual operation of enterprises and accumulate practical experience.
Drive project cooperation: Universities and enterprises can draw up feasible research topics and projects based on realistic needs, and promote school-enterprise cooperation in a project-driven way. In this model, students are able to participate in practical enterprise projects and complete related tasks under the professional guidance of teachers. This process effectively improves students’ project management ability and accumulates valuable experience in solving practical problems. Through such practice, students can not only combine theoretical knowledge with practical application, but also exercise their problem-solving skills and teamwork spirit in a real working environment, laying a solid foundation for future career development. The implementation of school-enterprise cooperation projects not only promotes the close contact between academia and industry, but also creates good conditions for training high-quality talents to meet the needs of society.
Advisory teaching: Employing corporate executives or industry experts as part-time teachers in colleges and universities to participate in the design and teaching of courses can effectively promote the deep integration between academia and practice. This advisory teaching model not only provides students with the latest industry trends and cutting-edge knowledge, but also gives them the opportunity to be exposed to real business cases and best practices. This method not only improves the depth and breadth of students’ theoretical knowledge, but also enhances the pertinence and practicality of their learning, thus laying a more solid foundation for students’ future career development. Through such personnel exchange and knowledge sharing, colleges and universities can better adapt to the changing market demand, cultivate talents with high quality and practical ability, and make more positive contributions to social and economic development.
Cooperative Innovation Laboratory: Cooperation between institutions of higher learning and enterprises can be achieved through the joint establishment of innovation laboratories, a strategy that is essential to cultivate students’ practical ability and innovative thinking. In such a laboratory environment, students can not only participate in practical projects such as the development of new products and market research, but also gain valuable experimental experience in actual operation. This kind of practical activity helps students to have a deeper understanding of the management needs of enterprises, while developing their critical thinking and problem-solving skills. In addition, through direct interaction with enterprises, students can understand the cutting-edge technology trends and market dynamics of the industry, so as to improve their comprehensive quality and practical ability. Therefore, encouraging students to actively participate in such projects can not only promote cooperation and exchanges between the college and enterprises, but also lay a solid foundation for students’ future development.
5.3. Build a Digital Practice Platform
To build a management practice education platform for colleges and universities based on digital intelligence empowerment, schools can start from the contents of professional classification and industrial integration, try to integrate basic management courses with school public basic courses, and adopt modular management to cultivate students’ professional quality and practical ability. In the era of digital intelligence empowerment, it is particularly crucial to build an effective digital practice platform for cultivating the practical ability of management students. First, digital practice platforms should make full use of advanced information technologies, such as cloud computing, big data and artificial intelligence, to achieve efficient integration and sharing of resources. This kind of platform can not only provide students with a rich case base and real-time data analysis tools, but also simulate the real business environment, so that students can improve their decision-making ability and problem solving ability in practice. At the same time, in order to enhance students’ practical experience, the platform needs to design a variety of project tasks, encourage students to participate in interdisciplinary cooperation and innovation, and cultivate their team spirit and leadership. In addition, universities should also strengthen cooperation with enterprises, through the introduction of practical projects, so that students can practice and test the knowledge in real business situations, to ensure that it is seamless with the needs of the industry. To sum up, building an efficient and interactive digital practice platform will not only help improve the practical ability of management students, but also lay a solid foundation for their future career development. At the same time, in the application process of digital practice platform, colleges and universities should set up more intelligent practical operation simulation training, according to different research directions of students, relying on big data algorithms to recommend suitable practical positions, so that students can participate in online remote internship, multi-region participation in project practice. Through online intelligent tools, students can not only participate in real projects, understand industry trends, improve their practical ability and comprehensive quality, but also reduce time costs and avoid the problem of mismatch between offline practical activities. At the same time, students are encouraged to conduct independent learning and innovative practice, and rich learning resources are provided. Students are encouraged to participate in diverse activities such as research projects and entrepreneurial practices to stimulate their creativity.
6. Research Conclusions
Under the background of numerical intelligence empowerment, this paper deeply discusses the transformation of talent training paths for management majors, highlighting the importance of cultivating students’ practical ability, and the transformation needs of educational thinking and teachers’ roles in the process of cultivating new talents. Through the analysis, it is clear that the intelligent education practice is not only the upgrading of technology, but also the fundamental reform of educational concepts, teaching methods and the whole student ability requirements. In this process, it is particularly crucial to promote the transformation of students from accepting passive knowledge and learning theoretical knowledge to actively exploring knowledge, and realize the transition of thinking mode from low order to high order. The application of digital technology should serve to improve the quality of education and realize the purpose of teaching. In the practice of training management professionals, emphasis should be placed on the individual development of students, and at the same time, the promotion of interdisciplinary learning should be strengthened to cultivate students’ innovative thinking and critical thinking when facing complex problems. This requires students not only to be able to apply their knowledge and skills flexibly, but also to continue to learn and adapt in a constantly changing environment. The transformation of the training mode of management talents from the perspective of numerical intelligence empowerment is an important part of the in-depth reform of the training mode. Future education should pay more attention to cultivating students’ comprehensive literacy, innovation ability and practical ability to adapt to the rapidly developing social and economic needs. Only in this way can we truly reflect the practicality of teaching cultivation and cultivate new talents who can lead the future.
Through continuous exploration and innovation, we believe that we can build a broader platform for management students to grow, improve their practical ability or comprehensive strength, and make them more competitive in the future workplace. With the continuous advancement of the new round of scientific and technological revolution and industrial transformation, the economic development is also undergoing profound changes, which puts forward higher requirements for the training of new management talents. The traditional management education has encountered difficulties in the face of this challenge. Therefore, this paper puts forward the cultivation ecology of innovative management students based on the ability of number intelligence, which provides a new direction and thinking for the cultivation of college talents.
Acknowledgements
We thank the reviewer for the positive and constructive comments regarding our paper.
Conflicts of Interest
The authors declare no conflicts of interest.