Strategic Plan
Positioned for success.
Simon Business School enters the next chapter of its evolution in a position of strength. In 2021, we were recognized by U.S. News & World Report as the #1 Most Diverse Top-50 MBA Program. Our student diversity also helped us earn the #25 spot in the Bloomberg Business Week 2021 Full Time MBA ranking. We are distinguished by our innovative programming, deep understanding of markets, policy, analytics, and we lead in finance and learning as evidenced by our #4 ranking in 2021
In order to grow, we cannot rest. Preparing students for the future of business requires us to be forward-thinking; we must be innovative, inclusive, agile, and sustainable. Simon 2025 is our roadmap to maximizing Simon’s impact on the future of business. It includes fundamental goals for the School, a clear roadmap, and a plan to allocate resources and track our progress.
The Future of Simon
BUILT ON THESE 4 PILLARS
Deep dive into the 4 pillars.
- Intellectual and Professional Hub
Simon has been a research and education leader with its rigorous and data-driven approaches to economic and business problems, and it was the first business school to offer a STEM MBA.
Simon 2025 aims to strengthen our traditional areas of expertise, develop new strengths, and increase our faculty diversity by hiring additional tenure-track faculty. We will build research activity at the intersection of business and policy (e.g. antitrust, regulation, ESG, healthcare policy, etc.). We will continue creating knowledge, content, programs, connections, and opportunities to be the destination of choice for researchers, learners, alumni, educators, recruiters, corporations, and practitioners wishing to lead in an increasingly tech-enabled, analytics and data-driven, global, and diverse business and research environment.
We will also continue to empower our talented clinical faculty to develop our world-class programs so that our reputation as business educators grows. The next few years will also see Simon harness the power of marketing to expand the reach of our intellectual capital and shine a greater spotlight on our undergraduate business program.
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- Agile Growth and Partnerships
Growth for Simon 2025 means building flexible and accessible programs for part-time and professional students through new modalities, technology-enabled teaching, and redesigned in-person and experiential opportunities. It also means collaborating with schools and programs at the University of Rochester, including the Economics, Political Science, and Computer Science departments, the Warner School, the School of Medicine and Dentistry, the Medical Center, and the Goergen Institute for Data Science and Artificial Intelligence. We will also strengthen our external partnerships, connecting with national and international business and academic partners to enhance interdisciplinary research and educational portfolios, increase their impact, grow our reputation, and attract new students to Simon.
A successful presence in the online education space is critical in a world where business is done digitally and flexibility is highly desired. We will continue developing new professional online programs, adding to our new Online MS in Business Analytics & Applied AI program, to ensure business professionals can acquire the skills they need from a top business school without interrupting their career.
Innovation isn’t just about what we teach; it’s in how we teach it. We will expand our rigorous experiential opportunities complementing our curriculum and offer additional internships and career preparation opportunities for all students.
Our partnerships within the University of Rochester’s School of Arts & Sciences and Hajim School of Engineering & Applied Sciences enhance our STEM-designated undergraduate business program and expose students to business fundamentals. Because research is a hallmark of our identity, we will establish a Business Research Initiative for undergraduate business students. We will also put increased effort behind building global corporate partnerships to bring the science of business and the practice of business together and to provide even richer experiential learning and employment opportunities for our undergraduate students.
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- Innovation and Entrepreneurial Mindset
Hands-on learning and an innovation mindset are critical pieces of the Simon experience and a vital element in equipping students for professional success. We are developing a structure to deliver more robust experiential learning opportunities to support entrepreneurial and innovative activities through project classes, capstones, venture funds, accelerators, and incubators, in collaboration with the University of Rochester, our local community, and industry partners.
Simon 2025 also sees recruiting and retaining top talent—students, faculty, and staff – as essential to Simon’s future and our students and faculty’s success. Since Simon students remain part of the Simon community for life, we are creating life-long value for alumni by offering enhanced learning opportunities by engaging with and supporting our Rochester community.
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- Opportunity and Access
Opportunity and Access is critical to the Simon 2025 plan. We are increasing opportunity and access by 1) maintaining student diversity and enhancing staff, faculty, and volunteer diversity; 2) equipping our students to build, lead and thrive in global, diverse, and inclusive workplaces; 3) delivering personalized, flexible programs and support for student success and outcomes; 4) increasing community projects and involvement; and 5) strengthening networking opportunities and corporate relationships.
Success in this area will be driven by the implementation of our Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Action Plan by continuing to provide financial assistance to our students, developing a robust Corporate Engagement Plan, and by catalyzing connections across all of our stakeholders.
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Momentum toward Simon 2025.
Strength.Simon 2025 is OUR plan—one that takes students, staff, faculty, alumni, and key partners into consideration, and empowers us to connect, collaborate, and support one another as we work to execute on these goals. Together we will track progress, hold ourselves and each other accountable, and respond quickly when necessary. | Pride.Welcome to Simon 2025. Come, grow with us. To view our strategic plan in its entirety, including key resources and drivers, information on financial investments, the role of rankings, and the dashboard and KPIs we’ll use to measure our success, download the PDF. | Growth.Though these goals require focused work and dedication in the years ahead, we are proud to launch Simon 2025 from a position of strength and with significant momentum. We are also proud of the collaboration and unity with which this new journey begins. |
Behind the strategy.
Take a closer look at how Simon’s 2025 strategic plan was developed by downloading the PDF. You’ll learn more about Dean Yeltekin’s four working groups, which are comprised of over 75 faculty and staff members, and how they came to identify the pillars outlined above; learn more about the planning survey that connected the teams with faculty, staff, students, and alumni, and how the process turned working drafts into the strategic plan before you today.
Help support our future.
Our alumni, donors, and friends are critical to our success. There are many ways to get involved and support Simon 2025. Attend an event in your city. Connect a Simon graduate with your professional network. Make a gift to support student scholarships or faculty research. Interested in learning how you can make a difference for Simon Business School? Contact Martha Krohn to learn more.
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Growing up in Jamaica, many people believe going to college isn’t feasible due to affordability. But through scholarships and academic discipline doors can open. Receiving the Ethel V. Drummond scholarship gave me hope and the financial access I needed to get to where I am today. I give back because I want to help play a role in providing access to students who want to be at the forefront of the future of business. I’m encouraged by Simon Business School and the thought leadership it brings through innovative programming and deep faculty expertise as outlined in the school’s 2025 Strategic Plan. I encourage all my fellow alums to join me in supporting the school and the strategic plan.
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The Journal of Accounting and Economics is a premier academic journal that encourages the application of economic theory to explain the accounting phenomena. It provides a forum for the publication of the highest quality manuscripts which employ economic analyses of accounting problems. The JAE was founded at the University of Rochester in 1979. In recent decades, the JAE has been holding annual conferences that rotate among several JAE-affiliated schools, including the Simon Business School, MIT, and the Wharton School. Each conference draws over 150 leading scholars. Our journals and the caliber of our faculty make Simon stand out as leaders in our fields.
Intellectual and Professional Hub
Agile Growth and Partnerships
Innovation and Entrepreneurial Mindset
Opportunity and Access