My New Year's Resolution for Owen: Dream big. Make it happen.

In a recent meeting with the Vanderbilt Board of Trust—the governing body of the university—I was encouraged to “Dream Big and Make It Happen.”

As one who believes in setting goals and driving to achieve them, I love this phrase. So much so, that I’m nominating it as the 2008 resolution and rallying cry for our school. So what is the Big Dream? It’s one that every member of the Owen community—faculty, staff, student and alum--wants and works for: to be among the best b-schools in the world, regardless of size, location or historical pedigree. As for Making It Happen: It is my job to build the support systems and structure that will allow us to achieve this collective dream.

Much of this dream will be fulfilled by our continued quest to attract the best and the brightest faculty and students. In addition, we will continue to fine-tune our curriculum and leadership development program to ensure that our graduates can compete with (and win) against the best. But, in addition, there are at least three areas—definitely less concrete and measurable, but critical nonetheless—on which I will personally focus attention this year.

Encouraging innovation

Owen faculty recently launched highly-distinctive immersion-based programs including the Health Care MBA, the Master of Accountancy, the MS in Finance and Accelerator, a summer business institute for undergraduates. Owen students envisioned and breathed life into OwenBloggers, Project Pyramid and the extremely successful 2007 Net Impact conference—three initiatives that have garnered Owen fame and lots of admiration in the past year. My goal is to find more, bigger, better ways to fuel innovation and progress. What will it take? A new or enhanced facility? State-of-the-art technology? Other incentives, resources or support? All of the above? Yes.

Maintaining our culture of community

Whether I’m in San Francisco, Shanghai or points in-between, I am constantly reminded by alumni that it is the Owen culture and community that sets us apart from other schools. The Owen culture is indeed unique and difficult to describe. It consists of many things—selfless students who support each other; accessible faculty who are willing to help; attentive staff who go the extra mile to make the Owen experience more than expected; alumni who are willing to share their time and perspective to help our students and advance the school. As we continue to develop new programs and grow to fill new or bigger spaces, I will be always mindful that this desirable culture is a delicate gift and one that needs to be continually cultivated and maintained at all cost.

A fresh approach to a global education

Graduate business education is at its best when it is cutting edge, relevant and paradigm- changing. It should change the way you see the world—both literally and figuratively. As our world quickly becomes “borderless”, our students must be ready to adapt and adopt to any and all cities or cultures in which they find themselves in. At this time, I see no “best-of-class example” of a B-school that is doing globalization right. True globalization of an MBA program is more than having than a diverse community with different cultures and perspectives represented. It’s more than an international trip that offers 7 to 10 days of immersion and consulting. It’s more than case studies that deal with international issues and challenges. We’ve got these, but it’s just not enough. How do we bring a true global education to Owen? Answering that question is a high priority in the coming year.