Erik Schlie

Erik has been fortunate to form part of IE’s impressive evolution since 2009. As Professor of Practice in Marketing and General Management he has accompanied generations of IE students in the International MBA, the IE-Brown Executive MBA, and the Global Executive MBA programs. In addition to his IE faculty role, Erik was Associate Dean of MBA Programs from 2009 to 2018 at IE Business School. Embracing the role of a proven disruptor, change agent and educational innovator, he spearheaded multiple re-designs of IE's flagship International MBA program, which helped increase student enrollments by 33%.

In 2018, Erik was appointed as Vice President at IE University and a member of IE’s Management Board with the portfolio of all alumni and careers-related activities across all IE Schools. He led the restructuring of the careers department, boosted its resources, and broadened its scope while simultaneously increasing engagement with the 80,000+ global IE alumni community.

In spring 2024, Erik was appointed as Dean of the IE Summer School, a newly created IE unit alongside the established undergraduate and postgraduate pillars, with the entrepreneurial mission to massively scale up its activities by showcasing the “best of IE” in an appealing summer format. 

Before joining IE, Erik helped build a new international business school from zero when he became the first hired member of the founding faculty at ESMT in Berlin, turning him into an “academic entrepreneur” and institution-builder early on. What was launched in 2002 as a business school start-up endowed by corporate blue-chips is now ranked among Europe’s top 10 schools 20 years on.

Academic Experience

• Dean of IE Summer School, IE University, Spain, 2024 – Present

• Professor of Practice, Marketing and General Management, IE University, Spain, 2009 – Present

• Vice President of Global Alumni and Talent & Careers, IE University, Spain, 2018 – 2024

• Associate Dean of MBA Programs, IE Business School, Spain, 2009 – 2018

• Visiting Professor, European School of Management and Technology (ESMT), Germany, 2009 – 2019

• Assistant Professor, European School of Management and Technology (ESMT), Germany, 2003 – 2008

Academic Background

• PhD, Marketing and Strategy, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom

• MPhil, Management Studies, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom

• MBA, Business Administration, George Mason University, Virginia, United States

Corporate Experience

• Senior Manager, Coopers & Lybrand Management Consulting (now PwC PricewaterhouseCoopers)

• Research Associate, The World Bank, Washington, D.C., United States