Episodes

Andy Policano, is one of those truly rare, gifted, academic leaders: a master of the craft. Andy is a three-time dean having served as dean of social sciences at Stonybrook in the late 1980s and later as a business school dean at the University of Wisconsin-Madison starting in 1991. In 2004, Andy assumed his third deanship at the University of California-Irvine – today known as the Paul Merage School of Business, with a naming gift Andy helped acquire. Serving no less than a decade at each of t...

It was about three and a half years ago (May 2023, Episode 12) when we first interviewed Jeff Brown from the Gies College of Business at the University of Illinois in Urbana-Champaign. At the time, we discussed leading a college through remarkable transformation, something Jeff is well-versed in, due in part to the extraordinary innovation he led the Gies faculty through when they introduced the Illinois’ iMBA, an internet-based mba degree program that now serves thousands of students around the...

Our guest today is Jim Ellis, Dean Emeritus at the University of Southern California's Marshall School of Business. You may know him better as one third of our triumvirate of Deans Counsel hosts. Jim took a somewhat unusual path into higher education. Before joining USC, he spent nearly three decades in business as an entrepreneur and business leader, including serving as President and CEO of Porsche Design’s U.S. operations. He later joined the faculty at USC, where he became a highly regarded...

Our guest today is Dr. Rajiv Ranjan, Dean of Faculty and Academic Affairs at Chandigarh University in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, India, a position he took on in March 2026. Prior to that, he served as Dean of Integral Business School, also in Lucknow, where his impactful leadership resulted in positive gains in most areas under his purview. Prior to moving into academia in 2024, Rajiv was a Principal Consultant and Associate Partner at Ernst & Young in India, where he specialized on initiatives and...

On this previously-published episode of Deans Counsel, moderators Ken Kring and Dave Ikenberry speak with Bob Bruner, University Emeritus Professor, Distinguished Emeritus Professor of Business Administration and Dean Emeritus of the Darden School of Business at the University of Virginia. Bob is a giant in the field of deaning, and we're honored to have him on the show. As the former longtime Dean of one of the top business schools in the country, Bob has the experience to speak with authority...

Our guest today is Anne-Marie Croteau, Dean of the John Molson School of Business at Concordia University in Montreal. She is the first woman to serve in this position. She has more than 30 years of experience in teaching and research, as a full professor and researcher specializing in strategic management of information technology. Her highly cited work has been published in renowned international scientific journals and has been the recipient of numerous awards. For seven consecutive years, s...

Our guest today is Vickie Antolini, Senior Client Partner, Global Education Practice at Korn Ferry, a major consultancy specializing in Academic Leadership Search. Vickie specializes in the recruitment of Presidents, Provosts, Deans of professional schools, with an emphasis in business education, as well as senior level functional administrators in finance, operations, human resources, and compliance. Vickie has completed leadership engagements for such prestigious institutions as Johns Hopkins...

Our guest today is Lily Bi, the President and CEO of AACSB (Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business) International, the world’s largest business school association and global accreditor; she's been in the role for nearly three years. With more than 30 years of experience in strategy, global growth, internal audit, and technology innovation, Lily has held senior executive roles with organizations such as The Institute of Internal Auditors (IIA), the Internal Audit Foundation, and K...

Our guest today, Bill Hardgrave, has had a remarkable career. After graduating with his PhD from Oklahoma State in Information Systems, he moved to the University of Arkansas where he developed a passion for Radio Frequency Identification, perhaps better known as RFID. After spending 17 years with this intense research focus, Bill’s career shifted into academic leadership as he was tapped to become Dean of what is now known as the Raymond J. Harbert College of Business at the Auburn University. ...

In today’s episode, we hear from Joyce Russell, the Helen and William O'Toole Dean of the Villanova School of Business (VSB) from 2016 to 2023. Under her leadership, her college strengthened faculty research output, enhanced student programs, upgraded facilities, and established programs aligned with Villanova's Augustinian mission. She expanded alumni efforts and employer connections with the college, while driving fundraising and celebrating the school's centennial year. Today, Joyce has rejoi...

In this rare and truly special edition of Deans Counsel, we are joined by the legendary Dr. Stanley Ikenberry. This posthumous publication was recorded earlier last season, just one week before his passing following a long and remarkable life. During the interview, as Jim Ellis and Ken Kring sit with an historic leader in American higher education, our co- host, Dave Ikenberry, is off mic quietly encouraging his dad to go easy on his humble moderators. We explore highlights of a career of servi...

On this episode of Deans Counsel, hosts Ken Kring and Dave Ikenberry welcome back to the podcast François Ortalo-Magné, Executive Dean (External Relations) and Professor of Management Practice in Economics and Strategy & Entrepreneurship at London Business School. He served as the School's ninth Dean from 2017 to 2024, leading it through the COVID-19 pandemic, geopolitical upheaval, and the sustained pressures facing global higher education. Before that, he was Dean of the Wisconsin School of Bu...

On this episode of Deans Counsel, hosts Ken Kring and Dave Ikenberry speak with Brooke Elliott, the Josef and Margot Lakonishok Professor in Business and Dean of Gies College of Business at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. She leads the College in developing a compelling, strategic vision while continuing to build upon its distinctive brand and identity. This includes assessing and expanding Gies Business’ portfolio of on-campus and online programs to strengthen its position as an in...

On this episode of Deans Counsel, hosts Jim Ellis and Dave Ikenberry speak with David Thomas, President of Morehouse College and Dean and William Berkeley Chair (retired) at Georgetown University's McDonough School of Business. Since his installment in January 2018, he has led dynamic, purpose-driven advancement in Morehouse’s strategic and operational effectiveness, programmatic reach, and pedagogical innovation. Among other transformational successes, Dr. Thomas has overseen a fundraising acc...

On this episode of Deans Counsel, hosts Ken Kring and Dave Ikenberry speak with Stowe Shoemaker, a current Special Assistant to the President at UNLV, and until 2025 the Dean of UNLV's Dean Harah College of Hospitality. Since becoming Dean in 2013, Stowe has been active in advancing the William F. Harrah College of Hospitality to meet — and exceed — the Top Tier goals set by the university. His long and varied career in hospitality and gaming has garnered him numerous scholarly grants and honor...

On this episode of Deans Counsel, hosts Jim Ellis and Dave Ikenberry speak with Steve Currall, Executive Director and Associate Vice Provost for Academic-Corporate Initiatives at Harvard University, where he leads that school’s efforts to build multi-dimensional collaborations with major corporations and external stakeholders in support of research and innovation. Trained as a psychologist, Steve previously served as president of the University of South Florida, provost of Southern Methodist Un...

On this episode of Deans Counsel, hosts Jim Ellis and Dave Ikenberry speak with Chandra Subramaniam, Dean of David Nazarian College of Business and Economics at California State University Northridge. He has also served as the Interim Dean, Associate Dean for Students and Programs, Chair of the Department of Accounting, and Professor of Accounting at the University of Texas at Arlington College of Business. As Dean at CSUN, Chandra has focused on making his college's specific and unique demogra...

On this episode of Deans Counsel, hosts Jim Ellis and Dave Ikenberry speak with Bob Shepard, a true veteran in philanthropic circles with a storied career spanning roughly 40 years, much of that running Duke University's philanthropic efforts. Today, Bob is a consultant with Grenzebach Glier & Associates, a full-service philanthropic management consulting firm (and now a part of Huron Consulting Group), where he continues to help shape philanthropic efforts at a variety of universities. In thi...

On this episode of Deans Counsel, hosts Jim Ellis, Dave Ikenberry and Ken Kring speak with Vallabh "Samba" Sambamurthy, the Albert O. Nicholas Dean of the Wisconsin School of Business. Recognized as an impactful administrator, attentive leader, and preeminent scholar in the areas of innovation and digital strategy, Dr. Sambamurthy brings extensive experience to the dean position. Samba has been recognized for his contributions to teaching, research, outreach, and mentoring. This varied discussi...

[This recording of Deans Counsel originally published on July 25, 2025 as episode #67.] On this episode of Deans Counsel, Jim Ellis and Ken Kring speak with Blair Sheppard, Special Advisor to Duke Kunshan University, and previously Dean of Duke's Fuqua School of Business. Blair is responsible for directing all of Duke Kunshan's fundraising, corporate development, non-degree program development and regional development for the newly formed campus in China. From 2012-2024, Blair served as Global...

[This recording of Deans Counsel originally published on August 22, 2025 as episode #69.] On this episode of Deans Counsel, Jim Ellis and Dave Ikenberry speak with Bernard "Bernie" Banks, Director of Rice University’s Doerr Institute for New Leaders (and a Clinical Professor of Management within the University’s Jesse H. Jones Graduate School of Business). The mission of the Doerr Institute “…is to elevate the leadership capacity of Rice students and to improve the practice of leader developmen...

On this episode of Deans Counsel, hosts Dave Ikenberry and Ken Kring speak with Nate Sharp, the Dean of Mays Business School at Texas A&M University, where he is leading the school through a period of historic growth and innovation. His tenure has been marked by record-setting fundraising, the first media campaign to enhance Mays’ national reputation, the opening of the first new building at Mays in more than two decades, and the launch of an ambitious graduate facility project slated for comple...

On this episode of Deans Counsel, hosts Dave Ikenberry and Jim Ellis speak with Bridget Madrian, the Dean and Marriott Distinguished Professor in the Brigham Young University Marriott School of Business where she has a joint appointment in the Department of Finance and the George W. Romney Institute of Public Service and Ethics. Bridget Madrian studied economics at BYU as an undergrad, and after obtaining her Ph.D at MIT, she served on the business school faculty at Harvard, University of Chica...

This episode of Deans Counsel is the last of three featuring special guest host, Alex Triantis, Dean of the Carey Business School at Johns Hopkins University, and a previous guest (on Episode 16) of the podcast. Alex and co-host Dave Ikenberry speak with Ian Williamson, Dean of the Paul Merage School of Business at the University of California-Irvine, since January 2021. Ian is a globally recognized expert in the area of human resource management. His research examines the impact of “talent pip...