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Deans Conference

Join us in Orlando!
19​ – 21​ October
Orlando, Florida, United States
Conference
Register for Conference
Agenda Time Zone:
ET
Eastern Time
Agenda:
Agenda Time Zone:
ET
Eastern Time
Sunday
18 October
Monday
19 October
Tuesday
20 October
Wednesday
21 October
Sunday
18 October
Check-in early and avoid the morning rush! This is your chance to receive your badge, explore the venue, and settle in before the sessions begin tomorrow. Start your conference journey with ease and connect with your peers in a relaxed setting.
Monday
19 October
New to the dean role or first time at Deans Conference? Join this orientation designed to plan your agenda, learn how to navigate the conference space, and get the most from the experience.
Maximize your conference experience while exploring the Sponsor Showcase, networking with peers and interacting with the conference sponsors. Whether you are seeking new insights or expanding your professional network, the Sponsor Showcase is your central space to engage, learn, and grow throughout the conference.
Join colleagues with shared interests or similar institutional contexts for interactive conversations on topics that matter most to your work. These peer-driven discussions offer an opportunity to exchange experiences, explore common challenges, and learn from one another in a collaborative setting.
Whether you're heading to an affinity group meeting, catching up with colleagues, or taking a quiet moment to recharge, take your boxed lunch and enjoy it wherever you feel most comfortable.
This session will be designed for those planning for a Continuous Improvement Review visit. Speakers will discuss visit preparation and planning, visit execution, and what to do when the unexpected happens.
Maria Baltar
Senior Manager of Accreditation
AACSB International
If you have an upcoming Initial Accreditation visit or are considering accreditation, this session is for you! We invite you to bring questions related to the initial accreditation process as we discuss what is expected and how to thoroughly prepare.
Suzanne Mintz
Vice President of Accreditation
AACSB International
Join us for a welcome message from Lily Bi, President and CEO of AACSB International.
Lily Bi
President and CEO
AACSB International
Today's most pressing challenges, from workforce transformation and AI to climate change and economic inequality, cannot be solved by any one institution acting alone. Yet many collaborations struggle to move beyond good intentions. Drawing on new research into some of the world's most successful cross-sector partnerships, this session explores the principles that enable catalytic collaborations to achieve extraordinary impact. Through real-world examples and discussion with leaders who have built large-scale collaborative initiatives, participants will gain practical insights into building trust, aligning diverse stakeholders, and creating partnerships that last.
Jean Oelwang
CEO & President
Virgin Unite
Relax and enjoy the company of your colleagues. This reception is the perfect opportunity to unwind and continue the day’s discussions in a more informal setting.
Tuesday
20 October
Start the day by reconnecting with your peers over breakfast.
Sponsored by
Kean University Logo
Maximize your conference experience while exploring the Sponsor Showcase, networking with peers and interacting with the conference sponsors. Whether you are seeking new insights or expanding your professional network, the Sponsor Showcase is your central space to engage, learn, and grow throughout the conference.
Many business schools have experimented with AI. Far fewer have developed a school-wide strategy. Through three case studies, this session explores how business school leaders are moving beyond isolated initiatives to rethink curriculum, faculty engagement, governance, and institutional priorities. Speakers will share leadership decisions, organizational changes, and lessons learned as schools move from experimentation to institution-wide implementation.
Paul A. Pavlou
Dean, Miami Herbert Business School
University of Miami
As careers become longer, less predictable, and increasingly shaped by technological change, learning is no longer confined to the years spent earning a degree. What if business schools supported learners across a 60-year career? This session explores how institutions are rethinking lifelong learning, employer partnerships, credentials, and learner engagement to create new opportunities.
Daniel M. Gropper
Dean
Florida Atlantic University
Mike Malefakis
President, University Partnerships
Emeritus
Business schools around the world are facing growing financial and strategic pressures, but the challenges vary widely across regions. Whether responding to funding cuts, inflationary pressures, changing revenue models, or broader economic uncertainty, deans are making increasingly difficult decisions about where to invest, where to adapt, and how to ensure long-term sustainability. Through real-world case studies, deans will share how their schools have responded to financial challenges.
Claudia Girardone
Dean, Essex Business School
University of Essex
Mayank Dhaundiyal
Professor and Dean
Jindal Global Business School, O.P. Jindal Global (Institution of Eminence Deemed to be University)

Business school leaders are making consequential decisions amid uncertainty, complexity, and competing constraints. Data can inform those decisions, but it can only take us so far. How do we balance what the data tells us with our own expertise, experience, and intuition? Drawing on her research on decision-making and “quantifying the unquantifiable,” Laura Huang will explore how leaders can bring these different sources of insight together when making difficult decisions. She will challenge conventional assumptions about evidence and intuition and offer practical perspectives on making better decisions in uncertain and complex environments.

Laura Huang
DMSB Distinguished Professor of Management and Organizational Dynamics
Northeastern University
Some schools face demographic decline and shrinking applicant pools, while others are responding to growing demand amid affordability pressures and economic uncertainty. How should business schools rethink recruitment, market positioning, and their value proposition in this changing landscape? This session explores how schools are adapting enrollment strategies and remain competitive in an increasingly dynamic market.
Brent D. Williams
Dean
University of Arkansas
Elena Beleska-Spasova
Dean
Henley Business School, University of Reading
Steve Shriberg
VP, Partner
Eduvantis, LLC
For decades, business schools have refined and expanded a relatively common MBA model. But changing workforce needs, AI, new learner expectations, and growing competition are challenging long-held assumptions about what the MBA should be and who it should serve. This session explores three distinct visions for the future of business education: the AI-Native MBA, the Agile MBA, and the Immersion MBA, and examines how business schools can position themselves for a market that increasingly demands flexibility and differentiation.
Holly Raider
Dean, Quinnipiac School of Business
Quinnipiac University
Roy Mathew
Partner, Higher Education
Deloitte LLP
Speakers will share successful partnership models and the strategies behind them, highlighting how business schools and businesses are working together to address shared challenges and create mutual value. Attendees will discover new opportunities to build meaningful collaborations that benefit students, employers, and their institutions.
Sponsored by
Sometimes the most valuable lessons come from the moments that don't make it into leadership books. In this fast-paced session, five deans share honest reflections on pivotal decisions, difficult conversations, unexpected challenges, and the lessons that shaped their leadership. Featured talks: What I Got Wrong as Dean, The Most Difficult Faculty Conversation I've Ever Had, The Decision That Changed Our School, Who Speaks for Business Education? and What Keeps Me Awake at 3 A.M.
Pilar Castro González
Dean
Universidad Loyola Andalucía
As business schools expand how they define research excellence, many are rethinking how faculty contributions are recognized through promotion, tenure, and incentive systems. While scholarly publications remain foundational, institutions are increasingly recognizing a broader range of intellectual contributions, from research that influences business practice and public policy to research-informed case studies that extend scholarship into the classroom. Join this discussion on how schools are evolving faculty evaluation to reward research that is both rigorous and relevant.
Haya Ajjan
Dean, Love School of Business
Elon University
As business schools expand how they define research excellence, many are rethinking how faculty contributions are recognized through promotion, tenure, and incentive systems. While scholarly publications remain foundational, institutions are increasingly recognizing a broader range of intellectual contributions, from research that influences business practice and public policy to research-informed case studies that extend scholarship into the classroom. Join this discussion on how schools are evolving faculty evaluation to reward research that is both rigorous and relevant.
Jackson Nickerson
Dean of the Richard A. Chaifetz School of Business
Saint Louis University
Today's deans are increasingly expected to lead initiatives that extend far beyond their business schools, from AI strategies and lifelong learning to interdisciplinary research and university-wide innovation. These efforts require building coalitions across colleges, navigating different institutional cultures, aligning diverse stakeholders, and advancing priorities that span the entire university. Through practical case studies, experienced deans will share how they have successfully led cross-campus initiatives, the challenges they encountered, and the strategies that helped gain buy-in, align stakeholders, and deliver results.
Leila Triki
DEAN
SMU - South Mediterranean University
Enjoy coffee and refreshments while connecting with colleagues and peers. Take this opportunity to visit the Sponsor Showcase and discover new ideas and partnerships. Be sure to stop by the Discover AACSB area to explore our full range of offerings – from the Academy to technology, data, and other valuable resources designed to support your institution’s success.
AI can perform many of the cognitive tasks that universities have traditionally asked students to master - it can analyze, summarize, and solve problems in seconds. Are we at risk of outsourcing not only routine tasks, but also the curiosity, creativity, and critical thinking that drive innovation? If everyone has access to the same information and increasingly relies on the same AI tools, where will original ideas come from? This session explores the future of human thinking and the role of business schools in ensuring the next generation of leaders remains curious, creative, intellectually resilient, and capable of original thought.
Mark J. Cousino
Senior Vice President, Talent & Learning
Kyndryl
Continue your conversations in a casual environment, solidifying connections made during the day.
Wednesday
21 October
Begin the final day with networking over breakfast. Reflect on the insights gained and prepare for the final sessions.
Sponsored by
Maximize your conference experience while exploring the Sponsor Showcase, networking with peers and interacting with the conference sponsors. Whether you are seeking new insights or expanding your professional network, the Sponsor Showcase is your central space to engage, learn, and grow throughout the conference.
Enjoy coffee and refreshments while connecting with colleagues and peers. Take this opportunity to visit the Sponsor Showcase and discover new ideas and partnerships. Be sure to stop by the Discover AACSB area to explore our full range of offerings – from the Academy to technology, data, and other valuable resources designed to support your institution’s success.
The relationship between a dean and university president can shape everything from strategic priorities to resource allocation and institutional influence. In this candid discussion, university presidents share what builds trust, what damages credibility, and how deans can effectively influence institutional priorities and navigate competing demands while building strong relationships with senior leadership.
Ian O. Williamson
Dean
University of California, Irvine
Linda A. Livingstone
President
Baylor University
Moez Limayem
President
University of South Florida
Stephen Spinelli
President
Babson College
The assumptions that shaped international business education for decades are rapidly changing. Geopolitical tensions, shifting government policies, changing student mobility, and growing regional competition are forcing business schools to rethink what it means to be global. If the traditional model is under pressure, what should replace it? This session explores how deans are redefining international strategy and what a successful global business school might look like in 2030.
Laurent Muzellec
Dean
Trinity Business School, Trinity College Dublin, the University of Dublin
Yusuf Sidani
Dean, Suliman S. Olayan School of Business
American University of Beirut
Conference closing comments will offer a brief opportunity to reflect on key themes, insights, and takeaways that emerged over the course of the event.