Post by H Ajay Khanna

The Paradox of "Professor of Practice" Hiring: Are We Looking for Innovators or Echo Chambers? Recently, I was invited for a discussion with a panel of members from a well known private University for a Professor of Practice position for their newly launched Executive MBA program. It was a fascinating experience—and one that taught me more about a single panel member, than the panel likely learned about me. I walked into a panel of four, including an external subject matter expert. For the first few minutes, the energy was professional. Then, the dynamic shifted. One senior official, the Dean for the Executive MBA programme & the very person leading the program—seemed to have a different agenda. Instead of a dialogue between peers, he made it like an interrogation of a fresh graduate. There was no room for lateral thinking, no appetite for industry-relevant innovation, and a clear preference for having his own pre-existing views echoed back to him. The most telling part? When it became clear that I (and other industry veterans interviewed that day) weren't the "yes-men" he was looking for, the goalposts shifted entirely. We were suddenly offered roles that didn’t align with our experience, our goals, or our expertise. I was offered a Senior Role in Administration (?) and a Chartered Account from MNC and another senior IT Official were offered regular BBA/MBA faculty roles which they never came for. We were laughing at ourselves and thanked God for not offering the desired role and saved us from working under such egoistic person. It left me reflecting on a critical issue in higher education: If an institution wants to bridge the gap between academia and the real world, it needs the right people in the selection panel. Academic rigor is vital, but industry relevance requires a different mindset. The Dean of the Executive MBA should understand that "Professors of Practice" aren't lecturers. They are practitioners brought in to challenge the status quo, bring in real-world messy data, and teach students how to navigate the ambiguity of the actual market. Also, Ego kills innovation. If a leadership team is intimidated by new perspectives, they will never attract the talent required to make an Executive MBA truly "executive." To academic institutions: If you want to attract top-tier talent from the industry, ensure your hiring panels are as agile, open-minded, and forward-thinking as the programs you claim to be building. Talent gravitates toward respect and growth—not toward echo chambers. Has anyone else experienced this "academic disconnect" when moving from industry to education?