Caroline Nahas (B.A. ’70) Becomes UCLA Anderson Board of Advisors Chair

OFFICE OF THE DEAN

Thursday, 10/08/2020 10:05 a.m.

Dear Anderson Community:

It’s my pleasure to announce that Caroline Nahas (B.A. ’70), Korn Ferry senior advisor, is succeeding Bob Murley (’74), Credit Suisse vice chairman, as chair of our Board of Advisors, effective at the close of the board retreat in October.

Caroline W. Nahas

Caroline is a long-time member of our Board of Advisors. For the past six years, she has served as vice chair, and has served for many years on the executive committee and intermittently as chair of the nominating and corporate governance committee. In addition to giving her time and expert counsel to the school, Caroline and her husband, Richard, are generous donors to both UCLA and Anderson. As part of UCLA’s Centennial Campaign, they established the Richard and Caroline Nahas Fellowship to benefit both UCLA Anderson and undergraduate students. A Bruin herself, Caroline was the first woman to deliver an Anderson commencement address.

Caroline’s professional career is exemplary. She has been with Korn Ferry for more than 40 years, was the firm’s first woman to become partner, served as managing partner of the Los Angeles office for 25 years and as vice chair, and is currently senior advisor to the board and CEO services practice. In addition, she serves on the board of directors of DineEquity Inc., where she is chair of the nominating and corporate governance committee, and sits on the compensation committee. Caroline also serves on the board of United Way. As the first female chair of that organization, she led the board during the 2009 financial crisis.

Caroline’s awards and recognition are too numerous to fully enumerate, though it must be noted that she is one of the Los Angeles Business Journal’s Top 500 Influencers for five years and received the Association of Executive Search Consultants’ (AESC) Eleanor Reynolds Award, which is given to an executive search professional who combines excellence in the search profession with a strong commitment to volunteerism.

In my time as dean and as a faculty member, I’ve come to know Caroline as an advisor I can depend on for perceptive insights and sound counsel.

Robert S. Murley

At this time of transition, I also want to take the opportunity to publicly thank Bob Murley for the exceptional leadership he has provided our board and our school. He has served on our board since 2009, and assumed his role of chairman in October 2014. In my one-year tenure as dean, Bob has proven a highly valued partner to me, providing unflagging support, forward vision and sage leadership. I know he excelled in that same role with my predecessors, Senior Associate Dean Al Osborne and Dean Emeritus Judy Olian.

During his tenure, Bob, working closely with volunteer leaders and the Anderson leadership team, oversaw our highly successful Into the Next campaign, which raised approximately $335 million for the school. He also helped shape our Anderson 2021 Strategic Plan and led the board through key initiatives, including the construction of Marion Anderson Hall and an overhaul of our financial accounting system. Bob extended his term as board chair an additional two years to guide the board through our dean transition. Philanthropically, he has led by example as a generous donor to the Into the Next campaign. In 2017, Bob received the John E. Anderson Distinguished Alumni Award, the highest honor the school may bestow upon a graduate, and is one of Anderson’s Inspirational 100 alumni. Bob is a proud alumnus of Princeton University, where he serves on the board of trustees. He holds a master’s degree in international economics from the London School of Economics, in addition to his Anderson MBA.

Professionally, Bob has served Credit Suisse for 45 years. He joined First Boston (later acquired by Credit Suisse) in 1975, and rose through the ranks to be named a managing director in 1984, vice chairman in 1998 and chairman of investment banking for the Americas in 2005. Bob, who resides in Chicago, is very active in numerous civic organizations. He is a trustee of the Museum of Science and Industry, Chicago; serves as chair of the Lurie Children’s Hospital board, where he led the campaign to build the new children’s hospital; and serves as a trustee for the Berklee College of Music in Boston and for Lake Forest University in Illinois. He serves on a number of corporate boards, including as chairman and lead director of Stericycle Corp., and is on the board of Brown Advisory, based in Baltimore. In addition, he is past chair of the board of the Educational Testing Service in Princeton, New Jersey.

UCLA Anderson Board of Advisors

The Board of Advisors is a vital part of our Anderson community. It drives the trajectory of our school through its leadership and philanthropy. Excluding the generous gifts of the Anderson family, the board contributed more than $60 million to our Into the Next campaign. Its committees steer strategic planning, finance, real estate, development and alumni engagement, in addition to nominations for ongoing growth of board membership. Its value to the school simply cannot be overstated.

Please join me in thanking Bob for his exemplary leadership as our board chair and in congratulating Caroline on her appointment.

Best,

Dean Antonio Bernardo
Dean and John E. Anderson Chair in Management