Research has sometimes been referred to as “knowledge mining,” imagery that captures the essence of the Fisher College of Business. As a premier management institution we serve not only as a transmitter, but also as an originator of knowledge. This generation of new information infuses all that we do.

The Fisher academic community drives and supports constant innovation, excellence and creation of new knowledge. This is seen when Fisher faculty author widely read books and case studies. It is reflected in the requests to have faculty serve on corporate boards and as advisors to companies, nonprofit organizations and government agencies. These assignments provide further opportunities for faculty research to be informed by the reality of practice. This commitment to gathering and understanding the significance of information is also seen in the number of top editorial positions held by Fisher faculty with the most respected journals in their disciplines.

As the following report illustrates, in field after field, the Fisher College is reshaping business through faculty research. Fisher faculty are defining the supply chain and sharing practical knowledge with executives around the world. They are leaders in research and education on aspects of real estate development. They have led the way in investments research and continue to inform the ongoing debate over valuing securities. They have helped guide the study of recruiting, retaining and motivating employees and volunteers. And they have built foundations of knowledge for doing business in emerging markets.

The power of knowledge is harnessed when research is translated into understandable forms and then made accessible to users of that information, whether students, practitioners or other scholars. It has value when a student, whether that student is an 18-year-old undergraduate or a top-level executive, takes what has been learned and uses that information to make a difference in the world. It has the greatest chance to have impact when faculty are sufficiently open to learn from their students as well.

Nowhere is this more evident than in our high-impact executive education programs, solutions-oriented business partnership centers and laboratory-based learning environments. Our executive education programs bring together faculty and industry leaders for dynamic learning
experiences where new approaches are created and exchanged. The college’s business partnership centers work directly with companies to solve current problems and issues. Faculty incorporate their research into the undergraduate and graduate experience as well. Finally, as you will read in this annual report, faculty are delivering knowledge to students in new ways, as they make use of web-based instructional tools, videoconferencing capabilities and other technologies integrated into our new facilities.

As you read through this year’s annual report I hope you will be impressed and intrigued not only with the depth and diversity of Fisher faculty research, but also with the breadth and significance of their contributions.

Joseph A. Alutto,
Dean Fisher College of Business