With the launch of the 2024/25 academic year, educators across the globe are outlining their priorities for the next 12 months.

We had the pleasure of sitting down with Professor Soumitra Dutta, Peter Moores Dean at Saïd Business School, University of Oxford, as he explains how Oxford Saïd is continuing to put impact front-and-centre this year:

In an era defined by purpose-driven education, what is Saïd Business School at the University of Oxford prioritising this year?

In a word, impact. As the Business School of the one of the world’s greatest educational institutions – the University of Oxford – we are uniquely situated in an extraordinary network of global, multi-disciplinary scholars, all dedicated to creating significant real-world impact.

Together, we are one of the world’s most powerful research-led communities and a force for good in the world, bringing knowledge and understanding to the great issues of our day. Among these can be counted AI, climate change, vaccines for malaria and, not long ago, the vaccine for COVID-19. The work done by our scientists during the pandemic, developing the Oxford/AZ vaccine, is estimated to have saved more than six million lives.

Being part of this powerhouse University fundamentally shapes the way we work at Oxford Saïd and the way we look at the world. All that we do is based upon our faculty excelling in creating new research insights for impact. As a recent example, several of our faculty have over the summer won top prizes for their research at the 2024 Annual Meeting of the Academy of Management, including two recognitions for the most cited and impactful research of the decade. And we led in the research category for this year’s Financial Times Responsible Business Education Awards.

Our focus on impact is well illustrated by the Skoll Centre, an internationally renowned social impact centre, based at Oxford Saïd for 20 years. It brings academic research from across the University together with global expertise from social impact practitioners. The Centre generates actionable insights and shares best practices for driving systemic social change. Its learning programmes cultivate reflective, empathic leaders who create positive impact within and beyond business.

With global impact in mind, we are taking knowledge further out into the world, beyond Oxford, through new programmes for high school students on climate innovation and financial inclusion programmes designed to support existing and aspiring female micro-entrepreneurs in the developing world.  These are exciting new developments for us and areas of enormous opportunity.

Our commitment to creating impact is also shared by our founder, the entrepreneur and philanthropist, Wafic Saïd, who recently donated £10 million, the largest donation the School has ever had for MBA scholarships. It will help us bring even more of the best and brightest to Oxford from around the world, regardless of their means. Scholarships are a cornerstone of our work to change the world for the better.

In all these ways, impact is not just an aspiration, but a reality of studying and teaching here at Oxford Saïd.

What is the most important skill for Business School graduates entering the workforce in Autumn 2024?

Our programmes are not just highly rated globally but are based on the premise that business can and should be a force for good, a force for creating a positive impact on the world. Our degree and non-degree programmes focus on educating business leaders who gain the confidence, knowledge and tools to shape the world for good.

Business school graduates entering the workforce in Autumn 2024 need to be aware that their lives will not just be about creating business success. In fact, their lives will be defined by how well they used their positions of privilege in business to change the world for the better.

The world today is facing numerous challenges ranging from existential challenges triggered by the climate crisis to deep societal divisions caused by income inequalities and geo-political tensions. Awareness of these issues is key to success, along with the desire to lead and the courage to act and the ability to lead systemic change.

What distinguishes Oxford Saïd’s approach to teaching from its competitors?

Oxford University is a place for the academically curious. I like to say, it is like an academic Disneyland. An Oxford education is traditionally more focused on personal enquiry and this way of study produces thoughtful leaders.

I spoke earlier about the impact orientation embedded inside all of Oxford Saïd’s programmes. Another key feature that makes our approach different from other business schools is that our students are deeply embedded within the collegiate system of Oxford University.

The College system is key to Oxford Saïd’s uniqueness.  It is quite distinct and different from what you would expect or see in most business schools around the world. Alongside a first-class business education, our students gain from being members of Oxford’s College system. That means all students, as well as studying in the School, also spend time in and get tutored at one of the 39 different Colleges around Oxford. Thus they benefit from the amazing multi-disciplinary lives of Oxford Colleges, so they are not just immersed in a Business School, but live their lives amongst students from different disciplines at the world’s leading University.

One day, they could be seated at lunch next to an expert in Epidemiology, who is studying the spread of infectious disease, the next sitting with an Engineer, working on the next generation of wind turbines, looking to the future of sustainable energy.

As a result, our students have the broadest perspective. They are cognisant of global problems and understand different perspectives – and they are more open to help solve the most pressing global problems. There is depth and breadth in our learning. Our students learn all the time, and not just in the classroom but in all their interactions across the University. It is a wonderful privilege for us to be part of this amazing learning community.

How is the Business School doing its part to talk climate change?

We are very proud, actually, that, earlier this year, The Financial Times named Saïd Business School a double winner in its first global Responsible Business Education Awards. The School won in both the overall ‘Best Schools’ and the ‘Academic Research’ categories. Oxford Saïd was one of five winners, and the only UK school to be featured in ‘Best School’.

Climate has become a central focus of the School and we are in a very privileged position of being able to work closely with some of the world’s leading climate scientists, from the University’s Smith School of Enterprise and the Environment.

Along with them, we are committed to highlighting the need for the business world to take action and to bring climate onto the business agenda. Senior members of both our faculty and professional services are focused on climate-related issues, leading impactful research and thought leadership, and shaping how we run our business. For instance, Associate Professor Anette Mikes and Professor Richard Barker are leading figures in the field of accounting for sustainability, and Jack Stone is our School’s Head of Sustainability.

Our annual sustainability report sets out how we are doing, and helps make sure what we teach in our classrooms, and also how we run our School. Highlights from this year’s report included that zero waste was sent to landfill, 41 pieces of sustainability research was published by faculty and more than half of MBA teaching hours featuring environmental content.

We have also launched some impactful partnerships to collaborate on important environmental issues, among them our global Climate Change Challenge Competition for high school students, which saw applications from students across 47 countries. And recently, we had school students from around the world in Oxford on our inaugural Future Climate Innovators Summer School. It is a ground-breaking initiative, sponsored by Burjeel Holdings, designed to equip future leaders in tackling climate change.

In addition, we are working with eight other leading business schools in Europe, to promote the highest standards in Business Schools for Climate Leadership or BS4CL, alongside BS4CL business schools in the Middle East and Africa. The aim is to provide cutting-edge research and evidence-based recommendations, to help business and industry make decisions and align with climate goals.

What’s your vision for the future of Saïd Business School?

Saïd Business School is a young institution. We are very fortunate to be part of the best University in the world and we have done extremely well within our short history.

But business schools are changing. Just being one of the top business schools, and being ranked highly, is not enough. We have to be an effective agent of change.  We have to help businesses become a force for good in the world – to educate business leaders to deal with not just traditional business objectives but with world problems and strive to make society better. Our programmes have to reflect this broader objective.

Our faculty is central to our vision. Our faculty need to excel not just in their business disciplines but also be able to integrate with other academic disciplines and work on impactful change. This is possible at Oxford.

Our global alumni are also an integral part of our vision. We need to come together to create a platform of global change. We strive to create impact through the actions of our alumni as they play leading roles in business, government and civil society around the world. Impact is at the heart of our objectives and I hope that Saïd Business School sets the direction for the future evolution of all business schools.

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