Satish Deshpande

As dean of Western Michigan University's Haworth College of Business, Dr. Satish Deshpande leads one of the largest schools of business in the United States, the academic home to more than 3,500 undergraduate students majoring in 17 specialized areas of business with an additional 500 graduate students. Following a national search, he became dean in January 2018.

Deshpande, a professor of management, served as the interim dean of the college from July 2016 until his appointment. Prior to that, he served for five years—2011 to 2016—as the college's associate dean for operations and graduate programs.

He has been quoted on TV, radio and in various newspapers including the Wall Street Journal and USA Today.

He received the Haworth College of Business Dean’s Teaching Award and also the Haworth College of Business Research Award.

Deshpande earned his bachelor's degree from the University of Bombay, a post-graduate diploma from Xavier Labor Relations Institute and a doctoral degree from the University of Iowa's Tippie College of Business. He began his professional career as a personnel officer in private industry before beginning his academic career as a teaching and research assistant at Iowa.

Deshpande's tenure at WMU has included such accomplishments as helping to create a human resources management major and leading the college's first strategic planning process. As associate dean, he was involved in revision of the college's MBA program, was instrumental in the introduction of a university-wide entrepreneurship minor and was responsible for maintaining the college's accreditation through AACSB—the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business. The Haworth College of Business is among a group of fewer than 5 percent of business schools worldwide accredited at both the undergraduate and graduate levels by AACSB International.

During his years at WMU, Deshpande spent a summer serving as a visiting professor at the University of Alaska, Fairbanks, and another summer as an exchange professor at Japan's Nihon University.

A member of the Society for Human Resource Management, the Academy of Management, and the International Association of Business and Society, Deshpande has been active over the years in presenting his research at conferences and symposia for those organizations and others. His research has been supported by such entities as Target Inc., the Government of Canada and the Center for International Business Education and Research.