The Role of Communication in Higher Education: A Conversation With the IE University President & Dean of Business & Law School

Soledad Atienza Becerril

Dean of Law School

IE University

https://www.linkedin.com/in/soledad-atienza-becerril/

I am the dean of IE Law School and I am currently copresident of the Law Schools Global League.



I have extensive international academic experience and a global vision of legal education. Previously, I practiced as a lawyer at the leading Spanish law firm Pérez-Llorca.



I earned a Ph.D in Social Sciences from IE University and I advocate international legal practice and innovation in legal education methodologies.



I have an Executive MBA from IE Business School and I hold a Certificate in European Studies from the Europa Institute of the Saarland University in Germany; I was a visiting student at Cornell University in New York, and I have a Law degree from CEU San Pablo University.



Among other responsibilities I co-chair the Commission for the Future of Legal Services of the International Bar Association (IBA), where I co-chaired the "Blueprint on global legal education" project; I am a senior advisor to the IBA Academic and Professional Development Committee, and co-director of the Pérez-Llorca-IE Chair of Business Law and I am also member of the Editorial Board of the European Journal of Legal Education.



I am the author of the book “Enseñar Derecho. ¿Puede servirnos la experiencia de Estados Unidos?” (“Teaching Law: Can the U.S. experience help us?”), on international legal education.

Santiago Iñiguez

President

IE University

https://www.linkedin.com/in/siniguez/

Santiago Iñiguez de Onzoño is the President of IE University and a prominent voice in the international higher education landscape. Widely regarded as an innovator in business education, he was the inaugural recipient of the Thinkers50 Founders Award in 2019, recognizing his lasting impact on the field of management thought.



He is the author of several influential books including The Learning Curve: How Business Schools Are Reinventing Education (2011), Cosmopolitan Managers (2016), In An Ideal Business (2020), and Philosophy Inc. (2023). His next book, Dante in The Workplace: How Leaders Can Avoid The Seven Deadly Sins, is scheduled for release in 2025. He is also co-editor of Business Despite Borders (2018) and Executive Education After the Pandemic (2021). His works, published by Palgrave Macmillan (Springer), have been translated into several languages, including Chinese and Spanish.



A frequent keynote speaker at global conferences, Iñiguez is a regular contributor to international journals and media outlets, where he writes on education, leadership, and executive development. He has been recognized as a LinkedIn Top Voice and named the leading Spanish influencer in Management by Emprendedores magazine.



He is a co-founder and board member of Headspring, the executive learning partnership between IE Business School and the Financial Times. He also serves on the boards of the European Foundation for Management Development (EFMD) and the Aramco Foundation, and holds advisory roles with King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals (Saudi Arabia), LUISS Business School (Italy), FGV-EASP (Brazil), and Cheung Kong Graduate School of Business (China). Iñiguez was the first European to chair the Board of AACSB, the leading global accreditation body for business schools.



Previously Dean of IE Business School, Iñiguez was described by the Financial Times as “one of the most significant figures in promoting European business schools internationally.” In 2017, he was the first European named “Dean of the Year” by Poets & Quants.



A Professor of Strategic Management, he holds a Degree in Law, a Ph.D. in Moral Philosophy and Jurisprudence from Complutense University of Madrid, and an MBA from IE Business School. He was also a Recognized Student at the University of Oxford.

Lee Newman

Dean of Business School

IE University

https://www.linkedin.com/in/leenewman/

Ninth dean of IE Business School, founding dean of the former IE School of Human Science & Technology, and professor of behavioral science and leadership.



𝗠𝗬 𝗠𝗜𝗦𝗦𝗜𝗢𝗡



➥ Every person has a next best version of themselves to be discovered and pursued. I call this the ❝Next Best You❞, and making this happen through business education is what I am about.



➥ I want to graduate a next generation of responsible AND successful business professionals prepared to drive better business and a better world.



➥ New technology and teaching methods will radically redefine the future of education and I am working hard to contribute to defining that future.





𝗠𝗬 𝗖𝗔𝗥𝗘𝗘𝗥



𝗠𝗮𝗻𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘀𝘂𝗹𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴: I was an Associate Consultant and later Engagement Manager at McKinsey & Company in Chicago where I served clients in the area of operational performance improvement.



𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘁𝘂𝗽𝘀: From beginning to end, I was part of the wild Dot.Com era as a founder and senior manager in two technology startups in NYC. We launched a “LinkedIn/Facebook” in 1996, and a “Zenefits” in 1999.  𝙇𝙚𝙨𝙨𝙤𝙣: Timing is critical!



𝗛𝗶𝗴𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝗘𝗱𝘂𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻: Spent last 14 years at IE University as dean, educational entrepreneur and professor. Prior to this I was a doctoral student and instructor at the University of Michigan in the Dept Psychology and Dept of Computer Science.





𝗣𝗘𝗥𝗦𝗢𝗡𝗔𝗟



Grew up in St. Louis, lived in Providence, Boston, New York, Seattle, San Francisco, Washington DC, Ann Arbor, and Madrid.



Love music (Jazz in particular),playing piano, hiking, and spending time with family and friends.