GGFBM MBA alum Prof. Alon Chen is President-Elect of the Weizmann Institute of Science
Prof. Alon Chen Photo by Axel Griesche
Prof. Alon Chen will become the 11th president of the Weizmann Institute of Science, starting December, 2019.
Prof. Chen is a neuroscientist and head of the Neurobiology Department at the Weizmann Institute of Science, as well as a director at the Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry in Munich, Germany. In addition, he heads a joint Weizmann-Max Plank lab for experimental neuropsychiatry and behavioral neurogenetics, as well as being an adjunct professor at the Ludwig Maximilian University Faculty of Medicine in Munich.
Prof. Alon Chen holds a BSc magna cum laude (1995) in Life Sciences from Ben-Gurion University of the Negev BGU. He received his PhD 2001 (magna cum laude) at the Weizmann Institute of Science while concurrently attaining his MBA from the Guilford Glazer Faculty of Business and Management GGFBM at BGU, and continued directly to his postdoc as a Fulbright Scholar at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies in San Diego. He completed his postdoctoral research in brain processes that regulate stress and anxiety in 2005, and returned to the Weizmann Institute as a senior scientist in the Neurobiology Department, with an Alon Fellowship, Israel's highest award for returning scientists.
Prof. Chen explains: “Scientific research in the 21st century is, in many cases, an extensive collaborative project involving teams, resources and advanced technology. Thus to attain significant scientific achievement, the heads of such research groups and scientific leaders at many different levels often make use – alongside their vision, curiosity and professional knowledge -- of advanced management tools, which can be learned. Indeed, intelligent management is one of the central tools employed today at the forefront of modern scientific research."
In his multiple senior management positions, Prof. Chen has proved to be an astute manager and leader of the highest caliber. Prof. Chen is head of the Neurobiology Department at Weizmann, director in the Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, heads the Murray H. and Meyer Grodetsky Center for Research of Higher Brain Functions; the Nella and Leon Benoziyo Center for Neurosciences; the Gladys Monroy and Larry Marks Center for Brain Disorders; and The Norman and Helen Asher Center for Brain Imaging.
GGFBM Dean Prof. Miki Malul expressed how proud he and the GGFBM are of Prof. Chen's achievements, “particularly in his outstanding leadership roles which have brought him to such stature. Though audacious, it makes sense that Alon studied MBA while studying neurobiology. Clearly he was honing his leadership skills and stature, realizing the interplay between theory and practice, which is what the GGFBM is all about."
Meet more of our outstanding GGFBM Alumni who impact on society
The Guilford Glazer Faculty of Business and Management GGFBM at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev is the most dynamic Faculty in Israel, with the widest range of degrees. The tools acquired, the interaction in innovative teaching with leading senior executives in the field, the relevant research environment, address the growing need for managers who are also leaders and who have a broad vision that conjoins management with social responsibility and the environment.
