In our latest Dean interview series, we sit down with Rana Sobh, Dean of the College of Business and Economics at Qatar University, who tells us about the importance of collaboration, how business education must be a force for good, and the need to humanise technology.

Here’s what she had to say:

Tell us about yourself and how you got to where you are today.

I’ve been at Qatar University for almost 18 years! I joined in 2007 and was so excited to teach consumer behaviour, my area of specialisation, and conduct research in the area of Consumer Culture Theory.

Then two years later, I was offered Head of Department, and the years in that position were a great learning experience. I learnt the core of academic administration work. Another level of experience was added to this when I took on the next role as a director of the Core Curriculum program at the university level and oversaw a full redesign of the Core Curriculum, ensuring alignment with contemporary general education needs.

Four years ago, I was offered the position of Dean of this College.

What are your priorities as Dean?

I have a strategic vision for the College – to be forward-looking, dynamic, and impact-driven. I want our college to be a role model in the region for advancing sustainability.

When I assumed the role of Dean, I quickly realised that achieving this vision could not be done in isolation. Meaningful impact requires collective action and regional collaboration. This realisation led to the establishment of the MENA Business Schools Alliance for Sustainability (MEBAS), a platform designed to bring business schools together to co-create solutions, share best practices, and collectively advance sustainability in business education across the region.

Another strategic priority relates to the calibre of graduates we would be preparing. It has been a priority to ensure that our graduates are responsible, digitally fluent and ready for the future.

This required that we revisit our teaching approaches because students need to be engaged and see the relevance and impact of what they are learning. We’ve focused on experiential and entrepreneurial learning. Students need to think like entrepreneurs; be creative, solve problems, turn challenges into opportunities, be adaptive and resilient.

Graduates must be prepared for the future and be able to compete in this rapidly evolving business landscape. They need to be able to constantly reinvent themselves.

What do your graduates go on to do?

Our graduates are known for having both soft skills and technical ability.

Tech and AI is the new literacy now. We have to be responsive and flexible as a result, but this is a challenge that all business schools are grappling with. We need to be agile. It’s deeper than many people think. AI is pushing us to redefine our value proposition as higher education institutions. We are no longer the gatekeepers of knowledge and instructions, and no longer the only experts in delivering it.  It’s more than just integrating a little AI into our courses and teaching. It’s a real paradigm shift.

Looking forward

Business education must be a force for good. We need to evaluate our societal impact and address the challenges faced by people and the planet. We have a huge responsibility. Our graduates must be ethical, responsible leaders who can gear innovation and technology to address challenges faced by humanity.

We need to humanise technology and make sure our graduates collaborate with it rather than compete.

For additional insights, announcements, and perspectives, visit the conversation on deans and business school leadership.