The new Vice Chancellor LUMS, Dr. Arshad Ahmad met the Honourary Dean of the Suleman Dawood School of Business (SDSB), Dr. Alnoor Bhimani, the SDSB faculty and Deans of the LUMS Schools and Ms. Nabiha Shahnawaz, COO LUMS at an informal meeting today. Dr. Bhimani welcomed the Deans of the LUMS schools - Dr. Shahid Masud, Dean Syed Babar Ali School of Science and Engineering (SBASSE); Dr. Kamran Asdar Ali, Dean Mushtaq Ahmad Gurmani School of Humanities and Social Sciences (MGSHSS) and Acting Dean Shaikh Ahmad Hassan School of Law (SAHSOL) and Dr. Tahir Andrabi, Dean Syed Ahsan Ali and Syed Maratib Ali School of Education (SOE). He said that he hopes to have similar interactions in future and shared a ‘surprise’ with the gathering – an entertaining musical performance by LUMS freshmen, Muhammad Khizer Atta Tung and Abdul Aleem Asim from SDSB and Muhammad Abdullah Bashir from SBASSE. They sang a medley of popular film tracks from the 60s and 70s, which the crowd enjoyed a lot and some even sang along!
The VC also spoke at the gathering. He delivered a very sincere and motivating address sharing his vision for the Business School and LUMS. He thanked Dr. Alnoor Bhimani for accepting the role of leading SDSB and starting his inspiring, witty address on a humorous note, said that we should be grateful for the SDSB acronym as it is ‘shorter than SBASSE and MGSHSS!’
He appreciated the transition of the Business School to its present stature from its humble beginnings. Reflecting on his discussion with Dr. Bhimani on the outstanding accomplishments of the SDSB he commented, “Our message is actually quite simple. You guys took LUMS to the nation and its time to take LUMS to the world.”
He shared his experience that he has been lucky to have studied and worked at various national and international organisations and looking back as he tries to figure out what was the common thing about these great organisations, he said that reputation is key, especially for a university. He added that LUMS is now a household name and a national treasure and that this kind of accomplishment is something palpable.
He said that in a short span of time, he has observed that LUMS promotes and thrives on ‘Tacit knowledge’, a term coined by the Nobel Laureate, Karl Polanyi. He shared that this expertise, a skill set and knowledge, which can only be observed and felt, is thriving here at LUMS, formally and informally among the students. This he claimed, makes ideas come alive and makes people excel. He added that faculty is a University’s most valuable asset and SDSB and LUMS can boast the best and most expert faculty in their fields. He also shared a research insight that students seek interaction with the faculty, not just in the classroom but outside too. He said that it pleases him that the LUMS culture encourages this interaction.
Dr. Bhimani, Professor of Management Accounting at the London School of Economics, who has a wide array of research and teaching interests, including cost management and digitalisation, strategic financial management, and tech entrepreneurship, appreciated SDSB’s rich history of achievements and its future path. He further addressed the gathering that the School stands for excellence in its direction, values and philosophy. He said that in a short span of 30+ years, SDSB has impacted many individuals, both professionally and personally and he shared that he wishes to uphold and build on this tradition with the support of the SDSB faculty and staff.
He further elaborated that he hopes to bring about a positive change in society through managerial practices driven by intelligence, innovation and ethics. He assured the gathering that the SDSB’s future trajectory will reflect their aspirations for the School and LUMS. “It will also be reflective of the multiple forces affecting management education today and Pakistan’s potential to develop its own imprint in this journey,” he said.
