Harvard Business School Sets Out Centennial Activities

Market Wire, February, 2008

Harvard Business School (HBS) will mark its Centennial in 2008 with a yearlong celebration of innovation and achievement and a series of special events designed to frame management education and research in the decades to come.

Throughout the year, faculty, students, staff, and alumni will commemorate 100 years of HBS with a wide and global array of activities, including academic and industry colloquia, alumni gatherings, and a business summit, "Leading in Business and Beyond." In addition, the School has launched a website that highlights significant milestones in the School's history and provides an interactive forum for dialogue on the major business issues of today and the future.

"Throughout 2008 we will showcase Harvard Business School's history of innovative research and teaching and the extraordinary impact of our alumni around the world," said Jay Light, Dean of Harvard Business School. "Our Centennial also will be an opportunity to ask the important questions that will frame our work over the next century. What is the future of business and business education in a global economy? How can we help shape it?"

"For a century Harvard Business School faculty and graduates have shaped the practice of business in the United States and around the world," said Harvard University President Drew Faust. "It is this enduring tradition of excellence that promises such an extraordinary future."

Harvard Business School was founded on April 8, 1908, by a vote of the Harvard Corporation. The School's faculty members have drawn on their passion for teaching, their experience in working with organizations worldwide, and the insights gained from their research to educate generations of leaders. Harvard Business School offered the first MBA degree, created the first Executive Education program, and pioneered in such fields as marketing and organizational behavior.

Throughout the Centennial celebration, Harvard Business School faculty -- working with colleagues, industry experts, and business leaders around the globe -- will present a series of colloquia designed to push the frontiers of knowledge on topics such as the sustainability of capitalism, management in a global era, leadership, and entrepreneurship.

"The HBS faculty will play an important role in the Centennial celebration," said Professor John Quelch, Senior Associate Dean and Chair of the Centennial Faculty Steering Group. "Whether leading wide-ranging discussions on the major business issues of the future, or speaking before alumni groups around the world, their support of the School's mission will be central to the Centennial experience."

HBS graduates will celebrate the Centennial through the Global Outreach Program, which will bring together alumni and faculty in 30 countries in a series of events and outreach efforts that will benefit nonprofit organizations in their local communities.

In October, the HBS campus will be the site for "Leading in Business and Beyond," a global business summit planned for more than 2,000 alumni and featuring thought-provoking discourse, debate, and insight into important topics facing the global community. Business Summit speakers include the Honorable Palaniappan Chidambaram, Finance Minister of India; Jamie Dimon, Chairman & CEO, JPMorgan Chase; Orit Gadiesh, Chairman, Bain & Company, Inc.; Bill Gates, Chairman, Microsoft Corp.; Jeff Immelt, Chairman & CEO, General Electric Company; and Meg Whitman, President & CEO, eBay.

For further information on these events and all Centennial activities, please visit www.hbs.edu/centennial

CENTENNIAL CELEBRATION EVENTS:

Colloquia Series

Creativity, Entrepreneurship, and Organizations of the Future
Chairs: Profs. Teresa Amabile and Mukti Khaire

Leading Organizational Transformation
Chair:  Prof. Clay Christensen

Venture Capital
Chairs: Profs. Bill Sahlman and Josh Lerner

Private Equity
Chairs: Profs. Bill Sahlman and Paul Gompers

Science-Based Business and the Business of Science
Chair: Prof. Kent Bowen

Social Enterprise
Chairs: Profs. Dutch Leonard and Kash Rangan

The Intellectual History of HBS
Chair: Prof. Richard Tedlow

Global Change in the Built Environment
Chair: Prof. Arthur Segel

HBS & Healthcare: Past, Present & Future
Chairs: Prof. Bill George and Bob Higgins

The Future of MBA Education
Chairs: Profs. David Garvin and Srikant Datar

The Future of Market Capitalism
Chairs: Profs. Joe Bower, Dutch Leonard, and Lynn Paine

Leadership: Advancing an Intellectual Discipline
Chairs: Profs. Nitin Nohria and Rakesh Khurana

Managing in a Global Era
Chairs: Profs. Dick Vietor and Tarun Khanna

Asset Management
Chair: Prof. André Perold

Entrepreneurship
Chair: Prof. Bill Sahlman

Managing Talent: Bridging the Gap between Theory and Practice
Chairs: Profs. Linda Hill and Boris Groysberg

Community Day

April 8, 2008

A series of events is planned for the on-campus community of students, staff, and faculty, including a morning convocation, a case discussion on the history of HBS and its strategy for the future, lectures, and social activities.