Alumni Association recognizes best research of 2020

Professors Christian Eufinger, Núria Mas and Nuria Chinchilla were announced as the winners of the 2020 Research Excellence Awards granted by the Alumni Association in its annual recognition of the best research by IESE faculty members.

This year, the winning research pieces focused on unconventional monetary policies, economic reforms carried out in Japan since 2012 and the balance between professional and stiking a healthy work-life balance.

• Best paper: Christian Eufinger for “Whatever it Takes: the Real Effects of Unconventional Monetary Policy.”
• Best case: Núria Mas for “Restoring Japan: Abenomics.”
• Best book: Nuria Chinchilla for “Integrating life.”

All three are pieces of research that have had a significant impact on the business world, helping to address organizational problems in innovative ways.

Alejandro Beltrán continues as Alumni Association president 

The awards ceremony took place during the association’s annual Governing Board meeting, in which Alejandro Beltrán was inaugurated for another three-year term as president of the association.

The event was attended by Dean Franz Heukamp, ​​who, in addition to reviewing the new programs and methodologies launched in the last year, explained IESE’s future projects such as initiatives in artificial intelligence and sustainability.

Mireia Rius, the director of IESE Alumni & Institutional Development, spoke of the creation of three new alumni chapters (the Philippines, the Canary Islands and the healthcare sector) and assured the audience that the energy and sustainability sectors will soon count chapters of their own.

Among new Alumni Association initiatives are a redesigned website with greater user interaction and the launch of the IESE Social Action platform connection alumni to pro-bono projects and professional consultations. At the event, Rius advanced the GAR 2021 Sustain-Abilites theme and announced that a highly personalized hybrid event featuring top guest speakers is being organized with top guest speakers.

During the meeting, Association scholarships were rewarded to MBA and MiM students from the Class of 2020. The group of former students earmarked 1.7 million euros for scholarships and research over the past year.

Finally, the alumni who attended programs during the pandemic thanked IESE for its effort to maintain in-person classes: “We have been able to do the program on campus,” they said. “It’s something that distinguishes us from so many business schools and a truly premium experience.”