Professor Jennifer Chatman marked her first day as interim dean at Berkeley Haas during a celebratory gathering today with school leaders.
“The Chatman era begins!” said Courtney Chandler, Senior Vice Dean and Chief Strategy & operating officer at Haas, as Chatman entered the dean’s suite today.
Chatman, who served as a co-acting dean when Ann Harrison was on sabbatical in 2023, was appointed after Harrison announced in May that she would step down at the end of July and continue to teach half-time at Haas.
“I am deeply honored to step into the role of interim dean,” Chatman, a renowned researcher on organizational culture, said. “I look forward to carrying on Dean Harrison’s extraordinary work.”
Chatman said her immediate focus will be to assure the school’s financial health, support its growing and diverse faculty, and perfect the student experience across degree programs.
Mike Rielly, CEO of Berkeley Executive Education, said he admires Chatman’s vision and goals, which he called “inspiring and achievable.” “Her clarity of purpose allows us to focus on immediate buy-in and execution,” he said. “We’ve chosen the right leader, and she’s hitting the ground running.”
“There’s a sense that the transition is seamless with Jenny,” added Erika Walker, senior vice dean for instruction. “I’ve seen firsthand her deep care, extensive knowledge, and genuine pride in our school. These qualities will undoubtedly make her a remarkable leader.”
‘A triple threat’
A Double Bear with an 80-year family connection to UC Berkeley, Chatman is a longtime Haas faculty member and a former associate dean of Academic Affairs.
Wendy Guild, vice dean of MBA programs, called Chatman a “triple threat” as “an amazing scholar, an accomplished leader, and a respected teacher.”
Alongside former Haas dean and current UC Berkeley Chancellor Rich Lyons, Chatman helped to create and build out the Haas Defining Leadership Principles: Question the Status Quo, Confidence Without Attitude, Students Always, and Beyond Yourself.
She also co-founded and served as former co-director of the Berkeley Center for Workplace Culture and Innovation with Haas Professor Sameer Srivastava. In March, they launched a podcast, “The Culture Kit with Jenny and Sameer,” in which they apply insights from current research to help solve listeners’ workplace culture problems.
Abby Scott, assistant dean of the Career Management Group and Corporate Partnerships, said Chatman’s deep understanding of the companies that employ so many students and alumni is invaluable. “She understands corporate culture so well and will be such an asset,” Scott said. “I’m so excited to reconnect her with many of our alumni employers in the Bay Area and beyond.”