Renewing Our Purpose for the Next Century

Sometimes, looking back is the best way to gain perspective on the present. This year, as Stanford Graduate School of Business celebrates its 100th anniversary, we have taken the opportunity to reflect on the seminal moments in the history of the school — and the world.

Since 1925, there have been 14 GSB deans (including four interim) and 17 American presidents. The school has grown and flourished throughout a century characterized by unprecedented economic growth and technological innovation, wars and geopolitical conflicts, financial crises, and a global pandemic.

The school has expanded from its first classrooms in Jordan Hall on Stanford’s main quad to our vibrant campus at the Knight Management Center. The GSB has led the revolution in making management a research-based discipline. In the last 100 years, we have awarded degrees to 40,000 students, continuously evolving our curriculum to prepare future leaders for the changing circumstances of the times.

Today, we are in another period of rapid change and global instability, with particular implications for higher education. Advances in AI are shaping how we learn, teach, and define the needs of the future workforce. At the same time, reductions in federal funding for academic research, along with proposals to raise tax rates on university endowment earnings, threaten to undermine the model that has historically supported both fundamental scientific research and financial aid for students. 

Stanford has taken several measures in response to these challenges. President Jon Levin and Provost Jenny Martinez are prioritizing Stanford’s leadership in the fields of AI and data science with the help of GSB faculty. They are also working closely with senior leaders across the university to monitor developments in Washington and meet regularly with lawmakers on Capitol Hill. There has never been a more important time to reinforce the message that American research universities like Stanford are drivers of the innovation economy that is essential to U.S. competitiveness and national security.

Given the political uncertainty ahead, Stanford recently announced a university-wide staff hiring freeze. Importantly, the president and provost have reiterated that the university remains guided by its core values and commitment to world-class research and teaching. As President Levin stated at a recent faculty senate meeting, Stanford wants “to chart a course through the current moment that is true to the enduring purpose and principles of the university.”

At the GSB, we are guided by the same principles. We are committed to attracting the highest-potential leaders and most accomplished researchers, and to ensuring that all are welcome and can thrive here. As an educational institution, we must maintain an environment of openness and curiosity where people can engage with and be challenged by a broad set of new ideas. These principles have guided the school for the last 100 years — and will guide us into our next century as we continue to develop principled leaders who will shape business, government, and society for the greater good.

I am delighted that we will have a new leader to take us forward. Professor Sarah Soule will become the school’s 15th dean on June 16. A scholar of organizational behavior and a former senior associate dean at the GSB, Sarah has served as the director of Stanford’s Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences since 2023. I have worked closely with her since she joined the GSB in 2008, including as co-directors of Stanford LEAD, our online business program. Sarah is an outstanding researcher, educator, and colleague with an amazing ability to connect with students, faculty, staff, and alumni. The school is in excellent hands.

On a personal note, this year also marks the 40th anniversary of my connection with the GSB. Throughout my Stanford career as a student, a finance professor, and now as interim dean, I have seen firsthand the school’s evolution. It has been an absolute honor and privilege to serve in this role, and I cannot wait to celebrate with Dean Soule and our entire community at our Centennial celebration on October 10, 2025.