COBI’s new dean, Dr. Anne Balazs, relishes the challenges and achievements of academic leadership

Just when you think you start to know her, you learn even more amazing things about COBI’s new dean, Dr. Anne Balazs.

During her first handful of weeks as dean, Dr. Balazs met many of her COBI faculty members and fellow UT administrators, spoke to members/supporters of the COBI Family Business Center, welcomed 2,500+ COBI students to the launch of the UT’s Fall semester, played golf with dozens of alumni at the annual COBI summer golf outing, and then some.

“We are a golfing family, so I could not miss the chance to meet COBI alumni, raise money for scholarships and play golf, all at once,” Dean Balazs said.  "We also enjoy skiing in the winter, the beach in the summer and international travel. People may be surprised to know that, as a teenager, I failed the lifesaving test at our local pool.  So 40 years later, I re-took the class (with a dozen fifteen-year-olds) and passed!  I am a certified lifeguard.”

“We have a very busy household,” she said. “My husband is a criminologist.  I have teenaged twins at home who attend Saline High School and a daughter at the University of Alabama.  We also have two Australian cattle dogs and a Siamese.”

As for her career path, Dean Balazs said, “My father was an English teacher and then a high school administrator.  He encouraged me from an early age to pursue a career in higher education.  I intended to be an economics professor but two events changed my path.  I worked for Fidelity Investments in Boston and loved financial services, and after taking my first marketing class in graduate school, I got excited about an academic career in business.”

Dr. Balazs holds a PhD in business administration from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, studied masters-level course work in economics at Boston University while working at Fidelity Investments, and earned a bachelor’s degree in economics from Smith College.  Her research has been published in the Journal of International Marketing, Journal of Consumer Affairs, Psychology & Marketing, and Journal of Business Research.

“The best part about this career area,” she said,” is the environment is constantly changing. As a result, there is always something new to address, such as developments in technology, social, legal and political trends, competitive forces and the like.  As interim dean at Eastern Michigan University, I was able to raise and allocate funds to support our college in multiple ways:  beautification and renovation projects, faculty research, centers and programs, and students in need with emergency funds, travel funding and scholarships.”

“Secondly, there is a need for quality research to inform the market, and it starts in the classroom.  Third, you can often see the impact of your work whether it is theoretical or applied.  It is useful to other researchers, business, and consumers.  It all has value.”

“I was attracted to the position at COBI because I wanted to join a winning team. I had been an ACE (American Council on Education) Fellow on the UT campus in 2014 and I was familiar with the landscape and many of the people,” she explained.   “The University is on an upward trajectory and I wanted to be a part of that.  The close supportive relationship that the College of Business and Innovation has with the business community is remarkable.”

“My goal for COBI is to strengthen our business school ranking and increase awareness of our College and programs…in short, to build our brand.  There is already momentum for this with new program development, productive faculty, and successful students and alumni.”

“It’s a great joy and honor to join The University of Toledo College of Business and Innovation with its impressive faculty, staff, students, supportive alumni and business community partners,” Balazs said. “This is a strong base from which to build and prepare the next generation of leaders for the global marketplace.”

During her 10 years at EMU, Balazs also served as interim assistant vice president and director of graduate studies, interim director of graduate studies, special assistant to the dean of the College of Business, head of the Department of Marketing, and professor of marketing.

Prior to EMU, Balazs worked at Mississippi University for Women as interim dean of the College of Business, head of the Division of Business and Communications, and associate professor of marketing. She started her teaching career at the University of Oklahoma as an assistant professor of marketing.

Anything else we should know about the accomplished Dr. Anne Balazs? “If I could make a good living at it,” she said, “I wouldn’t mind being a professional squash player.”