Kurt Dirks, a first-generation college student whose scholarly pursuits have focused on trust and values-based leadership, has joined the University of Utah’s School of Business as its dean.
Dirks, the former Bank of American Professor of Leadership at the Olin Business School at Washington University in St. Louis, succeeds Dean Rachel Hayes, appointed in 2021.
In addition to teaching at the private, nonprofit Washington University, Dirks served in multiple senior leadership roles including stints as acting provost, senior adviser to the chancellor for leadership, vice chancellor of international affairs and at the business school as senior associate dean and interim dean.
Dirks earned his bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Iowa State University, as well as a doctorate from the University of Minnesota, Dirks is a strong advocate for the role public universities play in offering transformative education for students who seek opportunity.
“I’m excited to get to work helping students of all backgrounds reach their full potential,” Dirks said in a statement.
“President (Taylor) Randall has a bold vision for making the U. a top-10 public university with unsurpassed societal impact, and I am committed to having the Eccles School play a key role in achieving that.”
Research on trust
Dirks’ research on trust has been published in leading scholarly outlets such as the Journal of Applied Psychology, the Academy of Management Journal, Organization Science and the Academy of Management Review. It has also been covered in popular media such as The New York Times, The Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, Business Week, Fortune and CNN.
His work has been cited nearly 27,000 times, according to Google Scholar, which is among the top 2% of scholars in the field.
Dirks has also excelled in the classroom, evidenced by multiple teaching awards from MBA students.
According to a university press release, Dirks prizes his work on student success, helping them to grow as leaders, who conduct themselves according to their values.
While at Washington University, he founded Bauer Leaders Academy for the university and Bauer Leadership Center at the business school, and he led the McDonnell International Scholars Academy.
Throughout his career, Dirks has placed significant focus on values-based leadership, which in turn has spurred work to boost access and success for all students. Across his roles, he has helped raise more than $30 million in gifts to support students and faculty research.
As dean of the Eccles School, Dirks will oversee multiple high-ranking programs, with eight ranked among the top 10 among public universities in the United States from various publications, such as TFE Times (formerly known as The Financial Engineer), Executive Education, Financial Times, U.S. News & World Report and Princeton Review.
President Randall a former dean
While business school dean is a high profile position at any university, it is noteworthy that Taylor Randall held the post before he was appointed president of the university in 2021. Like Dirks, Randall was honored for his teaching in the business school, winning the career achievement Brady Superior Teaching Award.
The David Eccles School of Business endeavors to provide a world-class business education with a unique, entrepreneurial focus on real-world scenarios where students put what they learn into practice long before graduation.
The David Eccles School of Business was founded in 1917 and educates more than 6,000 students annually. It offers nine undergraduate majors, four MBAs, eight graduate programs in business, doctorate programs in five areas, and executive education curricula. The school is also home to more than 20 institutes, centers and initiatives.