AGSM appoints new Academic Director for leading award programs

A new era has begun for AGSM's world-class award programs, with the appointment of Professor Clinton Free as Acade​mic Director.

Professor Free graduated from UNSW Australia with Commerce and Law degrees and went into private practice, before being awarded a Rhodes Scholarship to pursue a PhD at Oxford University.

Clinton has taught in leading MBA programs at both the Said Business School (Oxford University, UK) and Queen's School of Business (Canada), before returning to UNSW with the award of an Australian Research Council Future Fellowship in 2011.  Clinton has published widely in a range of leading international journals and is a leading authority in the areas of management accounting, fraud and control systems.

In 2015, he was appointed to lead AGSM's full-time MBA program, and now at the school's academic helm, he will collaborate with staff, students, alumni and faculty to ensure the school maintains and expands its thought leadership, in-house research and global reach.

Of the appointment, AGSM Director and Deputy Dean, UNSW Business School, Professor Julie Cogin​ says "Professor Free brings a wealth of experience and a fresh perspective to our award programs and we are looking forward to working closely with him to ensure AGSM continues to be a world leader in business education into the future."

Professor Free will also lead the AGSM Fellows, a team of dedicated faculty, who are experts and thought leaders in their fields to ensure their high-impact research is brought to life in the classroom.

Professor Free says his appointment to the academic helm of the programs is an honour and is looking forward to maintaining the reputation of AGSM programs while evolving and future-proofing them to meet the challenges of an ever-changing business environment.  

"Business education globally is going through an unprecedented evolution," Professor Free says "and leading such high-calibre programs during this time is a great honour."

"We are laser-focused on ensuring that our students are ready to meet the challenges of a business environment in a state of constant flux, with not only the academic knowledge, but the practical, social and ethical capabilities to step up as leaders and corporate citizens."

Read more about Professor Clinton Free here.