ABSTRACT
This chapter presents a reflection about changing careers from business to academia, with its consequent risks and potential positive outcomes. The author, who entered academia in his mid-thirties after an initial career in business, takes his own story as the basis for this reflection. Business schools need to nurture and support this kind of unconventional career paths within faculty, which can be beneficial for both schools and students. It is reasonable that the professors who have to educate a wide pool of aspiring businesspersons for a life of non-linear careers would have some variety in their own academic careers as well. Thus, business experience can be an asset, both in the classroom and in the research context. This chapter ends with a call to business practitioners who may be considering a career change to academia.
