Robert Strand, an international expert in sustainability and corporate social responsibility, has been appointed new executive director of the Center for Responsible Business at Haas School of Business. Strand started in his position August 18, 2014. He succeeds Jo Mackness, who was named COO of Haas in March 2014.
In this role, Strand will oversee the 12-year-old center, which has grown from an educational startup into a mature organization focused on establishing corporate social responsibility with five associated faculty, 10 classes each year, and more than 1,200 alumni.
Strand joins Haas from Denmark, where he most recently served as assistant professor of leadership & sustainability at the Copenhagen Business School and director of the Nordic Network for Sustainability.
Strand earned a PhD from Copenhagen Business School focused on Corporate Social Responsibility, an MBA from the University of Minnesota, and a BS in industrial engineering from the University of Wisconsin. In recent years, he has developed campus and study-abroad sustainability programs for undergraduates, MBAs, PhDs, professors, and executives.
Prior to his work in academia, Strand spent a decade in industry with IBM and Boston Scientific. Strand believes Haas is uniquely positioned to bring sustainable and responsible business into the mainstream.
Strand is a frequent contributor to both The Financial Times and The Journal of Business Ethics. His wife, Sarah Bly, a consumer behavior expert in sustainable consumption, and their 9-month-old old son, Mikkel Gavin Bly-Strand, will join Strand.