Newswise — Babson College announces the appointment of Michael D. Johnson as provost. Johnson comes to Babson from the School of Hotel Administration at Cornell University, where he is the Bradley H. Stone Dean and E.M. Statler Professor.

“It is a pleasure to welcome Michael Johnson as the new provost of Babson College,” said Babson President Kerry Healey. “Michael is an accomplished academic and administrator who will bring valued leadership to our community. I would especially like to thank all who worked to bring the search process to a successful conclusion.”

“Babson is well positioned to grow and excel in the years to come,” said Johnson. “I embrace the opportunity to help lead this dynamic institution, and am committed to fostering a student-focused environment and building an inclusive community.”

Since his appointment as the dean of the Cornell University School of Hotel Administration in 2006, Johnson has successfully expanded learning and career opportunities for students, increased the school’s academic standing, and built a more diverse and inclusive community.

Prior to arriving at Cornell, Johnson was an endowed chair on the marketing faculty at the University of Michigan’s Stephen M. Ross School of Business. In addition to his role as Babson’s provost, Johnson will join the Babson faculty as a tenured professor in the Marketing Division. He will officially join Babson on July 15, 2016.

About Provost Michael D. Johnson

Johnson earned his PhD in behavioral science and marketing from the University of Chicago in 1983, his MBA in marketing from the University of Chicago in 1980, and his BS in economics and psychology from the University of Wisconsin – Madison in 1978.

He is the author of numerous books and articles, including Competing in a Service Economy: How to Create a Competitive Advantage through Service Development and Innovation, with Anders Gustafsson (San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass).

Johnson serves as the sixth dean of the Cornell School of Hotel Administration (SHA) after a distinguished 24-year career as a professor of marketing at the University of Michigan’s Stephen M. Ross School of Business. During his tenure at Cornell, Johnson focused his efforts on investing in faculty, expanding students’ learning and career opportunities, increasing diversity, building an effective fundraising organization, and growing the school’s global platform.

While at Cornell, Johnson has hired more than 60 percent of the School of Hotel Administration’s faculty, and increased the diversity of the faculty, student body, and staff. He has championed the expansion of academic programs, including the establishment and development of the Pillsbury Institute for Hospitality Entrepreneurship. Johnson led the school’s capital campaign, raising $150 million for students, faculty, and programs since 2006. He played an instrumental role in developing Cornell’s strategic plan, including the Business at Cornell Consortium which is aimed at leveraging the collective impact of management education at Cornell.

About Babson College

Babson College is the educator, convener, and thought leader for Entrepreneurship of All Kinds®. The top-ranked college for entrepreneurship education, Babson is a dynamic living and learning laboratory where students, faculty, and staff work together to address the real-world problems of business and society. We prepare the entrepreneurial leaders our world needs most: those with strong functional knowledge and the skills and vision to navigate change, accommodate ambiguity, surmount complexity, and motivate teams in a common purpose to make a difference in the world, and have an impact on organizations of all sizes and types. As we have for nearly a half-century, Babson continues to advance Entrepreneurial Thought and Action® as the most positive force on the planet for generating sustainable economic and social value. Visit www.babson.edu.