ABSTRACT
This chapter provides insights into the norms expected of business school deans. It examines vision, mission and values statements and compare job titles and descriptions in different countries, institutional contexts and cultures. The chapter highlights the most time-consuming activities for deans, including working with central administration, strategic planning, developing academic programmes, managing accreditations, fundraising, corporate engagement, faculty development, communications, budget planning, faculty and student recruitment and retention and risk/crisis management. It considers deans’ views during the COVID-19 pandemic and in the context of greater government policy focus on STEM disciplines (science, technology, engineering and mathematics). The chapter also considers the pipeline for business school deans and their vital role in not only supporting national productivity, institutional revenues, business school standards, wider social impact, their personal legitimacy and generativity – a concern for ‘establishing and guiding the next generation [which includes] productivity and creativity’.
