Robert J. Dolan is dean of the Stephen M. Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan. He also holds the Gilbert and Ruth Whitaker Professorship at the school and is president of the William Davidson Institute, a research organization at the University.
He became dean of Ross School in July 2001 and implemented a strategy based on the school’s strengths in action-based learning where students combine classroom work with in-the-field engagements with companies worldwide.

 In September 2004, the school obtained two marks of distinction. First, Stephen M. Ross, a graduate of the school, made a gift of $100 million to the school in support of its strategy. This was by far the largest single gift ever made to a business school and the largest in the University’s history. Second, the Wall Street Journal, based on its polling of recruiters, named the school’s MBA program the #1 ranked program in the country, citing its strategy of “Leading in Thought and Action.” Later that fall, student evaluations placed the school at the top for leadership training in the BusinessWeek poll.

Prior to becoming dean at Michigan, Dolan was the Edward W. Carter Professor at Harvard Business School. His case studies and notes published there have sold over 1.25 million copies. He is the author or co-author of eight books including Marketing Management: Text and Cases and Power Pricing (co-authored with Hermann Simon). He published widely in journals such as Harvard Business Review, Management Science and Journal of Marketing.
He has consulted on marketing issues, particularly product policy and pricing, with a broad range of firms and has served on the boards of both public and private firms. He has also held faculty appointments at the University of Chicago and IESE in Barcelona, Spain.