Academic Leadership Was Never Meant to Be Carried Alone
We are your trusted community for navigating complexity in higher education.
You’re Making Big Decisions. You Deserve a Global Community That Moves With You.
Leadership in business education is evolving fast. Budgets are tighter, expectations are rising, and the path forward isn’t always obvious. WIBE membership is where you gain support, strategy, and peer connection that actually helps you lead. not just survive.
Make this your strongest academic year yet, backed by a global community that shows up when leadership gets complicated.
Members
Countries
Global Convenings
Members Promoted to Dean
Why WIBE Exists
We are here to lead differently. Lead through challenges. Never lead alone.
Established in 2020 we started as Women in Business Education, championing women’s leadership in higher ed.
Now, we’ve evolved into Where Imagination Builds Excellence – WIBE, a space open to all business school leaders who want to shape the future with innovation, courage, and connection.
Join a strong circle of people who get it.
Monthly Small Group Inner Circles and Group Coaching
Our Inner Circles meet monthly with 6-8 of your peers. This is the kind of networking where someone remembers your name, introduces you to exactly who you need to meet, and becomes a trusted sounding board.
Professional Development You'll Actually Use
Our workshops are practical from budget negotiations to building a leadership team you love, get tools, templates, and strategies that you can implement the same week.
An Activated Community that Shows Up
We’re not here to gatekeep or protect the “old guard.” We’re here to lift each other up, share wins (and failures), and make leadership more affordable, fun and creative.
Unparalleled Networking & Professional Development
WE LEAD WITH IMAGINATION AND SOLVE WITH INNOVATION
WIBE is different. We make our community connections intentional, curated, and built for connection that sticks.
Peer Led Inner Circles
Ongoing groups where you actually get to know each other.
Year-Round Connection
We don’t just give you a directory; we connect you directly to the people you need to meet.
Collaboration Over Competition
Members swap ideas, share opportunities, and celebrate wins together.
” Without a doubt, WIBE stands as the most exceptional and specialized professional organization I have ever had the privilege to be a part of.”
“What I value the most about being a member in WIBE is the extraordinary networking opportunities, inspiring role models, and enriching learning programs that WIBE thoughtfully offers.”–Lan Ma Nygren, Associate Dean, Norm Brodsky College of Business, Rider University
Meet our Founder, Lisa Leander
I don’t wait for doors to open. I build new ones.-Lisa Leander, Founder & CEO
I’ve never been one to wait for an invitation. In fact, when I saw the leadership world in business education was too often exclusive, slow to change, and allergic to bold ideas… I built my own club, and invited the people who wanted to make a real difference.
For more than 20 years, I’ve worked with business school leaders across six continents. I’ve seen it all, the politics, the pivots, the power struggles, and I know exactly where the opportunities for creativity and connection live.
In 2020, I founded WIBE to do something disruptively simple. I brought together leaders who want to think bigger, lead differently, and have a whole lot more fun doing it.
What started as Women in Business Education has grown into a global hub for bold, innovative leadership open to anyone ready to reimagine the future of higher ed.
My gift is building communities where people feel seen, supported, and ready to make big leaps.
If you’re reading this, consider it your personal invitation to join our community.
You’ll be welcomed exactly as you are, and I can’t wait to connect with you.
-Lisa Leander, Founder & CEO
Where Imagination Builds Excellence (WIBE)
Your Year of World Class events
WIBE gives you access to a full calendar of virtual and in-person experiences designed to strengthen your leadership, expand your network, and keep you connected to the ideas shaping business education today.
You will feel the joy of being surrounded by people who understand your world.
And you will walk away with strategies and relationships that help you navigate your biggest challenges.