[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 Leader for Strategy and Leadership at PwC, where he focused on building resilient strategies and leadership for PwC worldwide, and further sharpened his ability to see further into the future than most of the rest of us.

In this episode, we hear very compelling observations from Blair about four key mega-trends -- climate, technology, global forces and aging -- that he feels will fundamentally reshape every aspect of society (including business, of course).

With us, he shares some insight into how business schools, through their research and teaching, must soon lean into these abrupt changes in societal needs. In so doing, he also lends advice as to how we as leaders should go about the change process of taking faculty through this difficult process, touching on topics such as:

- Why some long-held assumptions are no longer holding

- Our rapidly changing world's impact on curriculum

- Rethinking the teaching of strategy

- How Ai will shape demand for the MBA

Learn more about Blair Sheppard.

Comments/criticism/suggestions/feedback? We'd love to hear it. Drop us a note.

Thanks for listening.

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Produced by Joel Davis at Analog Digital Arts

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DEANS COUNSEL: A podcast for deans and academic leadership.

James Ellis | Moderator | Dean of the Marshall School of Business at the University of Southern California (2007-2019)

David Ikenberry | Moderator | Dean of the Leeds School of Business at the University of Colorado-Boulder (2011-2016)

Ken Kring | Moderator | Co-Managing Director, Global Education Practice and Senior Client Partner at Korn Ferry

DeansCounsel.com

[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 development in higher education.”

Most recently, Bernie served on the faculty and senior leadership team at Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management from 2016-2024 prior to arriving at Rice.

Bernie retired from the U.S. Army in 2016 as a Brigadier General after having successfully led West Point’s Department of Behavioral Sciences & Leadership in his final assignment. In addition to having studied leadership extensively, he has led multiple military units ranging in size from 10 to over 3000 people.

In this instructive conversation, Bernie relates to our hosts some of the experiences he's gleaned through his decades as an inspiring leader, touching on topics such as:

- his objectives as Director of the Doerr Institute

- how he measures effectiveness

- acquainting students with the leadership mindset

- creative approaches to leadership development

Learn more about Bernie Banks.

Comments/criticism/suggestions/feedback? We'd love to hear it. Drop us a note at feedback@deanscounsel.com

Thanks for listening.

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Produced by Joel Davis at Analog Digital Arts

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DEANS COUNSEL: A podcast for deans and academic leadership.

James Ellis | Moderator | Dean of the Marshall School of Business at the University of Southern California (2007-2019)

David Ikenberry | Moderator | Dean of the Leeds School of Business at the University of Colorado-Boulder (2011-2016)

Ken Kring | Moderator | Co-Managing Director, Global Education Practice and Senior Client Partner at Korn Ferry

DeansCounsel.com

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 completion in early 2029. Just as importantly, he has prioritized investment in faculty and staff, building strong teams and fostering a culture of recognizing and rewarding excellence in research, teaching, and service.

Nate is a respected scholar in the area of financial reporting, and his research has received multiple best-paper awards. As you'll learn in this episode, he believes the future of business education belongs to leaders who embrace change, take risks, and stay true to their institution’s values.

In this engaging discussion, Nate shares his unique insights on Deaning, covering topics such as:

- Dealing with resistance to change

- Building state-of-the-art On-line masters programs

- Visiting deans at aspiring schools

- The Texas political climate

Learn more about Nate Sharp.

Comments/criticism/suggestions/feedback? We'd love to hear it. Drop us a note.

Thanks for listening.

-

Produced by Joel Davis at Analog Digital Arts

--

DEANS COUNSEL: A podcast for deans and academic leadership.

James Ellis | Moderator | Dean of the Marshall School of Business at the University of Southern California (2007-2019)

David Ikenberry | Moderator | Dean of the Leeds School of Business at the University of Colorado-Boulder (2011-2016)

Ken Kring | Moderator | Co-Managing Director, Global Education Practice and Senior Client Partner at Korn Ferry

DeansCounsel.com