Q&AC: Get to know Interim Dean Aravind Chandrasekaran

For more than 15 years as a member of Fisher’s faculty, Aravind Chandrasekaran has dedicated himself to helping organizations run smarter and smoother. Now, his next professional step is a little more personal. 

AC, as he’s known, was named interim dean of Fisher College of Business in June. The appointment is an exciting step forward for the college and a pivotal opportunity to harness its collective enthusiasm to boldly elevate, enhance and advance Fisher’s reputation as a leader in business education. 

AC spent some time reflecting on his new role, his vision for the college, what the Fisher community can expect from him ― and how he spends his time away from campus.

Question: What does the appointment to this role mean to you?

AC: It’s an honor for me. I’m really grateful to so many throughout our college community who have been supportive of me throughout this past month. They’ve also been incredibly supportive of our vision for how we want to move Fisher forward as a differentiator and creator of value for our students and our partners.

That’s the charge that President Carter and Provost Bellamkonda have entrusted me ― and us as a college ― with, to boldly move us forward in a number of key ways. I’m thankful for their belief in me.

Q: What are some of those priorities you’ve set for Fisher?

AC: We’re aligning our collective efforts around four key areas ― all of which support Ohio State’s modern land grant mission, which of course is to create the knowledge and educate a workforce capable of advancing our state as a leader across all industries.

These four priorities are: 

1. Reimagining our undergraduate learning and curriculum. What and how we’re teaching needs to align with who we’re teaching. We want to disrupt the way we’re preparing our undergraduate students through ways we know resonate with them ― learning through real-world problem solving (i.e. front-end experiential learning), gamification of their experiences, competitions, a better classroom/co-curricular balance, and fluency in emergent technologies like AI.
2. Increasing our connections to companies and organizations, especially statewide. As part of a modern land grant university, our value ― as a pipeline for talent or as a source for knowledge and research ― needs to be present and available to all 88 counties. We’ve been doing that work, but not always in a way that’s systematic or synergetic. That’s a major focus because strong connections with industry are a win for our students, for those companies and for our state.
3. Exploring space and facilities. If we’re going to innovate on how we’re meeting the needs of our 10,000-plus students, we need the space to do so. And that doesn’t just mean more classrooms and offices. It means investing significant thought and resources into the creation of collaboration spaces and areas dedicated to hands-on learning, such as AI labs.
4. Enhancing our culture around research, innovation and learning. Simply put: Making sure innovation is woven into everything we do at every level of the college, and making the research done by our faculty and the thought leadership we offer translational, applicable and accessible to industry and practice. Our research centers of excellence will remain key to this effort. They are the gateways to what we do in the business community.

What’s exciting is that we’re not starting from scratch. These priorities are already familiar to our faculty and staff, with some progress already underway thanks to crossover with previous initiatives. We’re just sharpening our focus and accelerating our work.

Q: How can your background in operations be an asset for accomplishing these goals?

AC: My operations background is one that relies heavily on data-driven decision making. I am also a firm believer in agile learning and quick experimentations. Some of the best, innovative companies thrive because they have cultures that encourage frontline empowerment, rapid experimentations, scaling up good ideas and sunsetting priorities that don’t align with their strategy. We are going to use these principles in how we approach each of our priorities and how we ultimately move the needle in our college.

Q: What can Fisher’s alumni, friends and partners expect from you?

AC: Dedication and a genuine desire to connect with every member of our college community. I shared with our faculty and staff that our mission is a collective one. The priorities above aren’t mine, or the leadership team’s or the department chairs’. It’s all of ours. And that includes our incredible network of alumni and friends. They have a vested interest in seeing us succeed, so we need to meet them, hear from them and work with them to accomplish these shared goals. I’ll be at the forefront of that effort and really look forward to building some meaningful connections.

Q: Even as a business college dean, it’s not all business, all the time. What’s your life like off campus?

AC:  I enjoy running every day — it’s my time to reflect on daily activities and often sparks new insights. I also love playing tennis with my son and occasionally find time to cook. 

On weekends, I typically dedicate a few hours to ongoing research projects with wonderful collaborators, many of whom are my former doctoral students.

I also follow cricket closely (the sport, not the insect!) and still play it when I can. I once played professionally in India, back when formal leagues were far less common. The game has taught me invaluable lessons about teamwork and leadership — principles I continue to draw on every day.