Management Faculty Gather for Fall Retreat

Faculty in the Isenberg Department of Management at UMass Amherst held their annual fall retreat in September. Hosted by Department Chair Mzamo Mangaliso, the Sept. 19, 2025, retreat brought together 23 faculty members to strengthen collegial ties, deepen shared understanding of the department’s strategic direction, and align on priorities for the coming year.

Mangaliso opened the retreat with an overview of the department’s budget situation and presented the strategic plan, highlighting its alignment with Isenberg’s Roadmap 2027. This was followed by a general discussion of strategies to enhance research productivity and innovative approaches to teaching. Participants reaffirmed their commitment to amplifying both departmental and individual faculty impact.

One of the retreat’s goals was to revisit the department’s 2024 SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats) marketing analysis, which was due for an update to reflect recent developments and emerging industry trends at both local and national levels.

Mangaliso invited report-outs from four active working groups formed during the 2024 retreat. Each group summarized its key accomplishments and presented recommendations for the year ahead.

• Undergraduate Curriculum (led by Associate Department Chair Jennifer Merton)
• Research (led by Professor Emily Heaphy, the John F. Kennedy Faculty Fellow, and Associate Professor Ulya Tsolmon)
• Restructuring (led by Associate Professor Anurag Sharma)
• PhD Curriculum (led by Joe Labianca, the Berthiaume Chaired Professor of Leadership)

The retreat’s central outcome was the unanimous approval of the PhD Curriculum Working Group’s proposal for a doctoral curriculum revision, which was informed by faculty feedback from spring 2025.

“Retreats like this are vital to our department’s culture—they create the space to connect as colleagues, surface what matters, and make disciplined choices,” Mangaliso said. “I’m proud that we aligned on clear priorities and unanimously advanced the PhD curriculum. We are leaving with momentum, shared ownership, and a practical roadmap for collective impact this year.

“This retreat sharpened our focus and strengthened the Management Department community,” he added. “We turned good intentions into actionable steps that will elevate our research, teaching, and student outcomes.”