Speaker: Madhu Rao, Academic Dean; Adaptive
Your Name, what brought you to Regis?
Madhu Rao: Hi, my name is Madhu Rao. I'm the Academic Dean of the Anderson College of Business and Computing. I got to Anderson in January of 2024, so it's only been 3.5 months at the time of this recording. Uh, what brought me here, was I was a, quick story. I was born and raised in India, worked as a systems analyst for a software company in India. Came to the United States for my PhD at Indiana University, Bloomington, uh spent 20 plus years at a Jesuit University in Seattle, and then decided that it was time for the next challenge, the next leadership challenge. And Regis University and specifically the Anderson College of Business and Computing, was the perfect fit for me. It combined my technical expertise with my business background, and by bringing business and computing under one umbrella, uh, I see unlimited potential for what we can do in this, uh, in this college. So I came to Denver. It was my first visit to Denver, my first visit to Colorado, and I love the people. Uh, I love the environment. I love being close to the mountains, but also, uh, near a city that had, uh, businesses and nonprofits and the arts and parks. Uh, it was just the perfect combination, uh, of a perfect city. So, I'm looking forward to spending more time, uh, learning all there is to know about Denver and its surroundings, and helping Anderson achieve its vision of becoming a premier, private, uh, institution of higher education in the state of Colorado.
Chose a word to describe yourself. (e.g., innovator, leader, immigrant, etc.) Why did you choose this word?
Madhu Rao: One word to describe myself, uh, perhaps adaptive. I think I'm pretty good at, um, adjusting to circumstances as they emerge. And I think that's going to be an important part of the future, uh, for the college and for the world, of being able to adapt, be nimble, uh, and, uh, if you pardon the expression, be quick.
How does that word fit with your experience at Anderson College of Business and Computing?
Madhu Rao: I think adaptive doesn't just describe me, it describes pretty much, uh, the philosophy of Anderson, is to deal with circumstances as they arise, to anticipate them and react proactively. Um, and I think that's going to be the hallmark of the college for the next many years, for the next decade or two decades. It's going to be looking at the way the world is changing and making sure that our students are ready for it.
