Ivey Business School

Ivey staff and faculty are excited to welcome approximately 2,000 new and returning students to Ivey Business School in just a couple of weeks!

At the annual staff and faculty summer barbecue, the team had a chance to reconnect and celebrate the extraordinary work they do for Ivey every single day.

In particular, the Spirit of Ivey award winners were recognized for their contributions that make the school stronger, more inclusive and collegial, and better at what we do.

🏆 Dean's Award: Stacy Maskell
🏆 Outstanding Achievement Award: Sue Haney
🏆 Heart of Ivey Award: Danny Madruga
🏆 Heart of Ivey Award (Faculty): Vanessa Hasse
🏆 Collaboration & Partnership Award: Toronto Campus Initiative Team including Ryan Parker, Mindy Studnicka, Melissa Welsh, Sarah Ward, Jimmy Bowers, Jason Stewardson, Delia Campbell, Darren Eveland, Tanzila Jamil, Andrei Sandu, Ron Gallagher, Vanessa Leiva, and Crystal Morgan.

Congratulations to this year's Spirit of Ivey award recipients — and to our incoming and returning students, we'll see you soon! 💚

Congratulations to the Ivey MBA Class of 2027 on wrapping up their core classes and best of luck on final exams next week!

Looking great in their new Ivey green quarter zips 💚

See yourself in a class like this? Learn more about Ivey's MBA program: https://www.ivey.uwo.ca/mba/?utm_source=Facebook&utm_term=Comms&utm_medium=SocialOnly&utm_content=CommsMBASweaterDay&utm_campaign=FacebookComms

Ivey has established a new Chair in Leader Character thanks to a generous $2.5-million gift from Rosamond Ivey, HBA '82, LLD '18, matched dollar-for-dollar through the Dean's Chair Match program for a total $5-million endowment.

This investment will help Ivey's Ian O. Ihnatowycz Institute for Leadership attract exceptional academic leadership, expand its capacity for research, teaching, and outreach, and further strengthen Ivey's position in character-driven business education.

For Rosamond Ivey, the gift reflects a conviction that leadership needs a broader sense of responsibility, and that business education has a role to play in developing it.

🗨️“There isn’t any corner of our society – culturally, economically, socially, internationally – that wouldn’t be enhanced by people having a greater vision of the common good of society...Business exists within social, cultural, and economic contexts. Exceptional business leadership should always take the greater good for society into account.” - Rosamond Ivey

Read more about the gift and the future of the Ian O. Ihnatowycz Institute for Leadership: https://www.ivey.uwo.ca/news/news-ivey/2026/august/rosamond-ivey-gift-to-launch-a-new-chair-in-leader-character/?utm_source=Facebook&utm_term=Comms&utm_medium=SCcomms&utm_content=CommsRosamondIveyGift&utm_campaign=FacebookComms

Kanica Thakur, HBA ’26, spent five months in Vienna on exchange at WU, exploring Europe, meeting people from around the world and learning how quickly a new city can start to feel like home.

What she didn't expect were the lessons she would carry with her long after leaving Austria.

💬 “Send the text first. Keep learning outside of what is familiar. Say yes when it is worth it, and know that sometimes ‘not now’ does not mean ‘never.’”

Reflecting on her exchange experience, three lessons stand out:

Send the text first – Before she even arrived in Vienna, Kanica reached out to another exchange student from New Zealand. That one message led to a new friendship and adventures across Europe.

Say yes ... kind of – Some of Kanica’s favourite experiences began with plans she wasn't sure about, including a trip to Ireland that started with a night sleeping in the Dublin airport. But she also learned that making the most of exchange doesn't mean doing everything. Sometimes, you have to decide what is worth saying yes to.

“Not now” doesn't mean “never” – Exchange can make every opportunity feel like a now-or-never decision. But Kanica learned there is no deadline on exploring the world. She may not have gone skydiving during exchange, but now she hopes to do it in New Zealand – a country she never imagined visiting before meeting a new friend from there.

Through it all, one phrase became a common theme: “Everything works out.”

Read Kanica's full reflection: https://ow.ly/AZ9y50ZAXOB

Back by popular demand: learning sessions are returning to Ivey's Homecoming Open House!

On Saturday, September 26, at 1 p.m., join us for one of two engaging sessions designed to bring the Ivey classroom experience back to life:

Navigating a Volatile World
Led by Romel Mostafa, Director of the Lawrence National Centre for Policy and Management, this case explores how Linamar Corporation is navigating an increasingly volatile global business environment. Revisit the Ivey case method while exploring strategic decision-making, global uncertainty and the challenges facing Canadian businesses today.

AI, Creatitivy, and the Future of Work
Join Professor Yasser Rahrovani for an interactive look at AI's impact on creativity, innovation and the future of work. Drawing inspiration from the technology and creative breakthroughs behind Avatar, the session explores how humans and AI can work together to solve problems, generate ideas and create new forms of value.

Choose the session you'd like to attend when you register for the Homecoming Open House.

Register here: https://iveybusinessschool.my.salesforce-sites.com/summit__SummitEventsRegister?instanceID=a3YJR000000InBx

See the full Ivey Homecoming 2026 Schedule: https://www.ivey.uwo.ca/alumni/homecoming/?utm_source=Facebook&utm_term=Comms&utm_medium=SCcomms&utm_content=CommsHomecoming&utm_campaign=FacebookComms

Last week, the Ivey MBA classroom extended well beyond campus. In this month's Inside Ivey, learn why Social Impact Day matters so much to Ivey MBA students.

Around 130 Ivey MBA students volunteered at seven sites across London and the surrounding area — from river cleanups and tree planting to food hamper building and helping at an equestrian therapy stable.

Taylor Lee, MBA '27 candidate and VP External of the MBA Association at Ivey Business School, shared that the day helps turn the values and leadership principles they talk about in the classroom into action.

💬 "Social Impact Day matters because it reminds us that business leadership isn't separate from community responsibility. It gives students a chance to step outside case discussions and engage directly with the people and organizations around us. That kind of experience helps shape more grounded, thoughtful, and socially aware leaders."

The day was organized by a team of current MBA students comprised of Madison Brown, Aiden Estabrooks, Nathalie Kent, Taylor Lee, and Jarod Schmidt.

Swipe through the photos below to see some of our MBA students in action during Social Impact Day.

Read the full Q&A with Taylor in this month's Inside Ivey: https://www.ivey.uwo.ca/news/news-ivey/2026/august/ivey-mba-students-give-back-through-social-impact-day/?utm_source=Facebook&utm_term=Comms&utm_medium=SCcomms&utm_content=CommsInsideIveySocialImpactDay&utm_campaign=FacebookComms

Can you see yourself as part of the next Ivey MBA Cohort? The next application deadline is September 4! Learn more about Ivey's MBA Program: https://www.ivey.uwo.ca/mba/?utm_source=Facebook&utm_term=Comms&utm_medium=SCcomms&utm_content=CommsMBALinkSocialImpactDay&utm_campaign=FacebookComms

🎉 Congratulations to the Ivey MM-A Class of 2026 on wrapping up their program this past weekend!

The cohort celebrated with a final dinner at Rabbit Hole in Toronto and will officially graduate at Western University's Fall Convocation in October.

Ivey's Master of Management: Analytics (MM-A) is a 12-month, while-you-work program designed to accelerate the careers of data-driven professionals — without pressing pause on the ones they've already built.

Thinking about joining the next cohort? Applications close soon. Learn more: https://www.ivey.uwo.ca/mma/?utm_source=Facebook&utm_term=Comms&utm_medium=SCcomms&utm_content=CommsMM-AFinalDinner&utm_campaign=FacebookComms

150 high school students from around the world just wrapped up the 2026 John F. Wood Summer Leadership Program at Ivey Business School 👏

Out of roughly 1,100 applicants, 150 were selected for the five-day residential program, which gives students entering Grades 10-12 a taste of university life and an introduction to Ivey's case-method approach to learning.

During the week, participants:
🔹 Worked through three Ivey Publishing cases
🔹 Completed a Gallup CliftonStrengths workshop
🔹 Took part in a hands-on LEGO learning activity

The week culminated with a capstone project led by Morrissette Entrepreneurship, which challenged students to design a feasible initiative that would reduce barriers to young people participating in community opportunities. The students pitched their ideas to a team of Ivey alumni judges including Damian Hart, HBA '23; Nathan Leili, HBA '22; Elizabeth Shewchuk, HBA '25; Julianna Rizzo, HBA '26; Briana Tang, HBA '24; Katie Treviranus, HBA '16; Tulika Sharma, HBA '22; and Connor Glazier, HBA '16.

Congratulations to the winning teams! 🎉

🥇 First place: Siena Ciotoli, Nicole Davies, Stella Holland, Ustaat Singh, and Grayson Sooy
🥈 Second place: Coco Lee, Ella Ng, Pal Patel, Desmond Sivan, and Kostya Stoliarov

Read more about the event: https://www.ivey.uwo.ca/news/news-ivey/2026/august/summer-leadership-program-draws-150-high-school-students-to-ivey/?utm_source=Facebook&utm_term=Comms&utm_medium=SCcomms&utm_content=CommsIveySummerLeadershipProgram2026&utm_campaign=FacebookComms