Hello, and welcome to the rejuvenated blog space of the UVA Darden Institute for Business in Society (IBIS)!
As the newest member of the IBIS team, I’d like to take this opportunity to introduce myself and share my journey as I settle into my role and learn more about IBIS and Darden. Starting at the end of this past spring, I support the wide variety of initiatives and programs under the IBIS umbrella. From coordinating with students for the Tri-Sector Leadership Fellows program, to managing grants, and supporting faculty thought leadership, I am one of the people behind the scenes ensuring that everything runs smoothly at IBIS.
Before joining the team at Darden, I did not know a great deal about business school or MBAs. Coming from non-profit administration, I knew I wanted my work to have purpose and do some good in the world. I was attracted to the mission of IBIS: empowering responsible leaders to make better decisions and create greater societal value. In the months that followed, I engaged in many long conversations with my colleagues about the impact we have as an institute. I want to share some of these thoughts with you in case you, like me, want to understand what IBIS is and does.
First, I have discovered that much of the exciting work of IBIS is deeply research focused. I get to talk with faculty about their ongoing scholarly work in hot-topic fields like critical mineral supply chains, and multistakeholder problem solving. In conversations with my colleagues, we talk a great deal about emerging complexities, and what research is being done at Darden that is on the cutting edge, looking ahead to provide insights on how businesses, and individuals, can better approach these tough decision points.
So, how does IBIS do that?
I’m going to use an analogy from another aspect of my life as a gardener and tomato-lover. Think of an idea as a beautiful tomato plant where the fully ripened tomatoes are individual pieces of work, the fruits of Darden faculty labor made real and richly red. Can you picture it?
Initially, I thought that IBIS was the place where fresh-picked tomatoes were brought by Darden faculty for packaging and distributing to the wider world. However, the work of IBIS is more than just sharing the joy of fully ripened ideas. IBIS is also the proverbial gardener, helping faculty plant and water the seeds, intentionally deciding which varieties to plant this year and checking on which sprouts are growing well. Our work is adding structure as the ideas grow and flower, ripening into business case studies, books, journal articles, and more. The ideas are then brought into the classroom for students, talked about over lunch at events with practitioners, and shared with the public through online articles and social media.
IBIS provides the framework for a myriad of ideas at Darden. As a trusted entity at the Darden School of Business, IBIS guides both students and seasoned professionals to look beyond the bottom line to the broader horizons of societal impact. Beyond academic concepts, IBIS supplies practical tools to help leaders navigate the emerging complexities of modern business with both optimism and confidence.
IBIS cultivates ideas through focused initiatives that form the heartbeat of the Institute. Everything I do falls under one of these research initiative categories of emerging complexity. It will take another post to describe them all in detail. Maybe think of them as separate garden beds for now.
As I embark on this journey with the UVA Darden Institute for Business in Society, I invite you to engage with us (and enjoy our tomatoes). This blog will serve as a platform for sharing insights, sparking discussions, and celebrating the impact of our collective efforts.
Together, we are empowering responsible leaders to make better decisions and create greater societal value.
With enthusiasm,
Anna
