The Campaign for Sustained Leadership

Wharton's Associate Dean for External Affairs, Steven Oliveira, has appointed Leslie Arbuthnot to head the School's newly formed Alumni Affairs and Annual Giving Department.

The announcement coincided with the merger of two former departments at the School — Alumni Affairs and the Wharton Fund. The restructuring unites approximately 20 employees in the new department, and additional staff will be added to work closely with Alumni. Oliveira stated, "With a united group, we are better positioned to develop a culture of lifetime engagement and participation for all Wharton alumni. We have one of the largest business school alumni networks in the world. This organizational change is the first step in the process to become the best."

Arbuthnot, who is former director of the Wharton Fund, joined Wharton after serving in a number of leadership positions in alumni relations and annual giving at Tulane University. "Our objectives are long-term, not short-term, and Leslie brings the combined experience that will help us to change fundamentally the way we relate to our alumni," Oliveira stated.

In addition to increasing efficiency and consistency in alumni outreach, the goals of the new Alumni Affairs and Annual Giving Department include:

• Promoting greater class identification and class-based networks
• Creating a stronger and more effective reunion program
• Improving regional and global outreach through a strengthened alumni club network
• Building alumni participation in the Wharton Fund
• Increasing web-based alumni outreach and communication
• Developing new virtual and affinity-based alumni networks
• Building processes to capture and enhance alumni data.

For current and matriculating students, the new department will seek to promote a culture in which their relationship with Wharton is lifelong and the transition from student to alumnus is seamless. The new department also will begin to develop a new generation of volunteer leadership for the future of the School.