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Principal and Vice-Chancellor Patrick Deane is announcing the appointment of Wim A. Van der Stede as dean of Smith School of Business at Queen’s University for a five-year term, effective July 1, 2026. His appointment follows a comprehensive international search.

Dr. Van der Stede will join Queen’s from the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), where he served as dean of extended education and is the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA) professor of accounting and financial management.

“I am delighted that Dr. Van der Stede will be joining Queen’s as the next dean of Smith School of Business,” says Principal Deane. “An outstanding scholar, he brings to the position a wealth of international experience at top business schools in the United States and Europe, a strong track record in strategic leadership roles, and a deep commitment to research excellence. These will be invaluable assets to Smith Business’s mission of developing outstanding leaders with global perspectives and creating new knowledge that advances business and society.”

Dr. Van der Stede earned his PhD in economics from Ghent University in Belgium in 1997 and then served as an assistant professor in the Leventhal School of Accounting at the University of Southern California’s Marshall School of Business. He joined LSE in 2006 as a professor of accounting and has since held several leadership and governance roles there, including serving as head of the Department of Accounting from 2012 to 2022.

As dean of extended education at LSE, Dr. Van der Stede led a wide portfolio of academic programs, including executive education offerings, long-distance degree programs, and LSE’s large summer school. His research specialty is financial management and management control with a focus on strategy implementation through effective organizational design, performance measurement, and incentive systems.

“I’m greatly honoured by the opportunity to lead Queen’s Smith School of Business into its next chapter,” says Dr. Van der Stede. “With its distinctive strengths in education and research, and its strong sense of innovation, purpose, and impact, Smith Business has many assets, and I look forward to working with the entire Queen's community to build on them, particularly at a time when business education and research must deeply connect to society’s biggest challenges. What drew me to Smith Business is its remarkable community and proud legacy. I’m thrilled to join a school where people, purpose, and possibility come together.”

Principal Deane and Provost and Vice-Principal (Academic) Matthew Evans express their thanks to Lynnette Purda, who has been serving as interim dean of Smith School of Business since January 2025. She will stay on as interim dean until June 2026 and will then continue in her role as a professor and RBC Fellow of Finance at the school.

“I am grateful to Dr. Purda for her dedicated and thoughtful leadership of Smith Business, which has ensured the school’s momentum and positioning for growth and success,” says Principal Deane. “I would also like to extend my gratitude to the Principal’s Advisory Committee, which was chaired by Provost Evans, for their dedication to the search process.”

Learn more about Smith School of Business on its .