Fireside Chat with HBS Senior Leadership - Open to all HBS alumni
Breakfast & Fireside Chat with HBS Senior Leadership
Open to all HBS alumni - No Registration Fee !
Join us for a special HBS Alumni breakfast and fireside chat featuring Jana Kierstead, Executive Director, HBS MBA Program and External Relations (MBA 1997) and Vincent Dessain, (MBA 1982), Executive Director, HBS European Research Centre.
Jana and Vincent will share reflections on the current state of the School, key priorities for serving students and the alumni community, and where HBS is heading next. Space is limited.
As Executive Director of the MBA, Doctoral Programs and External Relations in Boston, Jana leads a team of 300+ professionals responsible for every stage of the student and alumni journey at HBS.
From admissions and financial aid to career services, reunions, and lifelong learning, her team touches nearly every part of the HBS experience.
Based in Europe, Vincent leads the European Research Centre team, supporting faculty research, outreach and a wide range of activities focused on connecting the UK and Europe back to HBS.
We hope you’ll join us for this unique opportunity to connect with HBS leadership and each other over meaningful conversation and morning refreshments.
Audience Q&A – we welcome you to submit questions in advance or share in person.
Hosted by the HBS Club of France and the HBS European Research Centre.
- Where: 62 rue François 1er, 75008 Paris
- When: Monday September 22nd, 2025 at 8.30 am
Jana Kierstead is the Executive Director of the MBA and Doctoral Programs and External Relations at Harvard Business School. She brings over 25 years of experience to this role, with more than 20 years dedicated to leadership in business education. In her role as the Executive Director, Jana leads a team of over 300 full-time professionals who manage the lifelong relationship students have with the School, from admissions and financial aid to student life and career services to reunions and lifelong learning.
Vincent Dessain, a Belgian national, is the Executive Director of Harvard Business School’s Europe Research Center in Paris. To date, the Center has cooperated with 223 HBS faculty members on more than 750 research and case study projects in 34 countries. Mr. Dessain co-authored two books on finance and one on intercultural management, as well as more than 90 case studies and course notes. He is a frequent guest speaker on management and education topics at academic, corporate and government events. Prior to his appointment at the Center, he was Senior Director of Corporate Relationships at INSEAD in Fontainebleau and a management consultant with Booz-Allen & Hamilton in New York and Paris, where he advised a wide range of companies on international market entry strategies, financial products, strategy, negotiation and implementation of cross border alliances, financial restructuring, and mergers and acquisitions. Mr. Dessain is a 1987 MBA graduate of HBS, and holds law and business administration degrees from Leuven University in Belgium, as well as a PhD in management and communication from Paris VIII, France. For a list of publications visit:
http://hbr.org/search/Vincent Dessain
Diplômé