"Dean of the F.W. Olin Graduate School of Business"

Job Details

Dean of the F.W. Olin Graduate School of Business

Babson College

Wellesley, Massachusetts

THE SEARCH

Babson College, the No. 1 institution in the nation for entrepreneurship education and The Wall Street Journal’s No. 2 Best College in the U.S., seeks an innovative, strategic, collaborative, and globally focused leader to serve as its next Dean for the F.W. Olin Graduate School of Business. This is an exciting opportunity for a highly dynamic and creative leader who has a track record of success in advancing transformational change and who is ready to join an institution that is uniquely positioned to turn today’s challenges in graduate education into transformative opportunities. The incoming dean must be a highly visionary leader committed to innovation in higher education, playing a pivotal role in ensuring that all students have an impactful educational experience, and contributing to Babson’s mission to prepare and empower entrepreneurial leaders who create, grow, and steward sustainable economic and social value everywhere. The Dean will build upon Babson’s strong history of teaching excellence and its integration of theory and practice that has distinguished it as a leader in innovative, inclusive, and impactful education.

The Babson curriculum emphasizes “Entrepreneurial Thought and Action,” a methodology that teaches students to balance action, experimentation, and creativity with a thorough understanding of business concepts, rigorous analysis, and a broad and deep general education as the ideal approach to creating economic and social value. Acknowledging that traditional leadership models have failed to address the world’s complex challenges, Babson’s model builds on its distinguished trajectory in entrepreneurship education, which started more than 100 years ago and has been continuously improved ever since. The Dean will join an academic community of leading minds who bring together a mix of research expertise, teaching excellence, and practical experience. The Dean will have the opportunity to leverage Babson’s distinctive reputation and talent to develop a new vision for graduate education, firmly positioning the graduate school as one of the best in the nation and beyond, preparing the next generations of entrepreneurial leaders impacting communities everywhere.

Reporting to the Provost and serving as a member of the President’s Council, the Dean will lead the evolution of the graduate school and provide overall strategic and operational leadership for graduate academic programs, ensuring an innovative and inclusive academic and student experience. The Dean is responsible for defining and advancing the vision for graduate education balanced with real world outcome and impact, fostering an environment of academic excellence, and strengthening the College’s reputation as a global leader in entrepreneurial education. The Dean will lead curricular development and innovation and build upon existing strategic internal and external partnerships while developing new and exciting connections with industry to enhance the graduate experience, develop experiential learning opportunities for students, and lead the conversation as Babson embarks on transformational new ideas as it develops the education of the future.

As Babson is at an inflection point with extraordinary opportunities for the Graduate School, the Dean will lead a comprehensive effort to redefine the Graduate School’s value proposition and identity, improve cross-operational efficiency and collaboration, and work across Babson’s leadership to develop a new approach to market engagement. The Dean will assume strategic authority to define and execute a clear strategic direction for the Graduate School, working closely with other leaders to align strategy with budget, enrollment management, and marketing. The Dean will espouse a global mindset and acute market awareness, understanding demographic shifts and growth regions. They will be collaborative, data-informed, and willing to share resources across the institution. A strategic risk-taker committed to quality, innovation, and inclusive excellence, the Dean will embrace a holistic view of Babson’s continuum from undergraduate education to lifelong learning, positioning the Graduate School as a national and international leader in graduate education and a key partner in the development of Babson’s lifelong learning agenda.

Building on Babson’s #1 entrepreneurship brand, the Dean will work with a broad range of stakeholders to raise academic preparedness, enhance curricular responsiveness to industry trends, integrate key themes (technology, AI, globalization) across programs while strengthening brand clarity, improve placement outcomes, and build community and alumni engagement.

Babson College has retained the executive search firm Isaacson, Miller to assist with this important recruitment. Inquiries, nominations, and applications may be directed to the search firm in confidence, as indicated at the end of this document.

COMPENSATION

The salary range for this position is $250,000 - $275,000 annually, commensurate with related experience and qualifications.

APPLICATIONS, INQUIRIES, AND NOMINATIONS

Screening of complete applications will begin immediately and continue until the completion of the search process. Inquiries, nominations, referrals, and CVs with cover letters should be sent via the Isaacson, Miller website: https://www.imsearch.com/open-searches/babson-college-f-w-olin-graduate-school-business/dean

Electronic submission of materials is strongly encouraged.

Greg Esposito, Partner

David Grimes, Senior Associate

Isaacson, Miller

Babson College is an Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity Employer, committed to enhancing inclusive excellence. Candidates who believe they can contribute to this goal are strongly encouraged to apply.