5 Big Ten B-School Deans Have Minnesota Connection

Our school is not just great at developing leaders for the corporate world, we also do a great job developing leaders for higher education.

Four Big Ten business school deans (three of them women) were faculty members of one Carlson School department. Along with yours truly, Dean Alison Davis-Blake at Michigan's Ross School, Dean Christopher Earley at Purdue, and Dean Stefanie Lenway at Michigan State's Broad College were all in our Strategic Management and Organization Department. (A fifth Big Ten B-school dean, Dean Francois Ortalo-Magne at the Wisconsin School of Business, earned his PhD in the University's Econ department.)

Our Strategic and Management Organization Department has also given Dean Mary Nichols to the University's College of Continuing Education and Dean Kjell Knudsen to UMD's Labovitz School of Business. Not a bad tally for us!

In the past month, I have had so much fun sharing ideas with Dean Earley at an AACSB event, with Dean Davis-Blake over breakfast in Wayzata, and with Dean Lenway in the Carlson suite for the Gophers-Spartans football game last Saturday.

The only downside? We were too Minnesota nice as hosts, let the Spartans win, and I committed to wearing a (temporary) Sparty tattoo as a result. Next time, it's a Goldy tattoo for Dean Lenway (we hope)!