Faculty Recruitment and Retention
The hiring and retention of business professors is and remains a challenge, especially for minority and women faculty. Wharton is not only competing against other institutions but also industry. In order to support and retain faculty, Wharton continues to actively participate in University led programs such as Penn’s Action Plan for Faculty Diversity and Excellence – this program includes action plans, presidential term professorships, faculty opportunity fundings, dual career programs, local recruitment pools, and partnerships with leader alliances (HBCUs, Tribal Colleges, Hispanic-Serving Institutions and Women’s Colleges). In addition, faculty salaries are analyzed each year for compensation equity across all faculty by rank, gender, and race.
General practices to encourage the fostering of holistic and inclusive hiring practices, include diversity search advisors, inclusive hiring statements in job postings and submission of diverse candidate slates prior to interviewing. These and other standard practices have aided Wharton in diversifying its faculty and staff ranks.
A critical component of retention is support and mentorship. Wharton continues to offer the Dean’s Research Fund, now a staple research incubator. Other programs such as Identity, Diversity, Engagement, Affect, and Social Relationships Lab (IDEAS), supports Wharton Organizational Behavior scholars (including faculty, PhD students, and Post docs) and others conducting research in areas related to diversity and related topics. The Wharton School also has a robust mentorship program for junior faculty designed to build community and support their professional development.
Additionally, Wharton provides funding for various initiatives to support faculty, staff, and student development as well as funds to support initiatives that benefited underrepresented communities. For example, funding for underrepresented minority faculty to support executive coaching opportunities, supporting a faculty training program called ‘Improv at Wharton’ which integrated improv comedy into a workshop that was used as a tool for developing communication, collaboration, storytelling, and presentation skills with an integration of diversity-related topics. These activities were impactful diversity, equity, and inclusion support, training, or funding that benefited Wharton faculty as well as our broader DEI community.
Provost’s Postdoctoral Fellowships for Academic Diversity
The Provost’s Postdoctoral Fellowships and CHOP’s Postdoctoral Fellowships are competitive programs intended to increase the diversity of the academic research community at the University of Pennsylvania and Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP).
The program is designed to provide postdocs with time to focus on research and publishing activities that will enhance their career prospects for either a faculty appointment in an academic institution or an appointment in other sectors of the economy such as industry, government or nonprofit organizations.
The Wharton School has accepted and supported several Provost Postdoctoral fellows since the program’s inception and as part of Wharton’s commitment to ensure we are able to recruit and successfully hire fellows from diverse backgrounds, Wharton provides additional funding atop of the existing stipend levels.
The Tenure Project
The Wharton School is a founding sponsor for The Tenure Project. The Tenure Project offers a supportive environment where junior faculty are welcomed and engaged in programs, events, and dialogues that address the important issues affecting Black, Latinx, and Native junior faculty obtaining tenure in U.S. business schools. The conference aims to build community, spur new research and pedagogy, provide access and connection to resources, and create intentional spaces for connection and information sharing. Wharton provides significant financial resources for conference-related expenses and current faculty serving on the conference steering committee. This is an important initiative that not only supports the Wharton School’s diversity and inclusion efforts, but it serves as a sense of belonging incubator for business school faculty across the U.S.
Contact Us
For any questions regarding diversity, equity, and inclusion at the
Wharton School, please contact the Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion.
