Marie Mitchell
Marie Mitchell, Ph.D., Professor of Organizational Behavior and Edward M. O’Herron Scholar
Full-Time MBA |Evening MBA| Charlotte MBA| Weekend MBA
What courses do you currently teach, and what do you love most about them?
I currently teach two courses that are offered to the Full-Time MBA and Executive MBA Programs: Ethical Leadership and Women in Leadership. Both classes are near and dear to my heart because they align with my research. What I love about facilitating these courses is the level of discussion and engagement from students, who share their challenges and offer incredible insights on how to traverse them!
How do you bring real-world business challenges or trends into the classroom?
The topics I cover naturally align with real-world business challenges and trends. For Ethical Leadership, there are a variety of ethical transgressions highlighted in the popular press that are explained in class, as well as critical strategies to avoid them. For Women in Leadership, the topics were developed with real-world business challenges in mind—how to advance women (and men) in organizations, which involves building knowledge and skills for these students to apply to their jobs as well as to help advance talent.
What’s one lesson or insight you hope every MBA student takes with them after your course?
Reflection for learning. Within my class, I incorporate a variety of exercises and case discussions. I tell students that my class is a safe-zone, where everything should be considered opportunities to strengthen themselves. But that shouldn’t stop in the classroom—with each slip-up, they need to hold themselves accountable with follow-up steps and how to be stronger the next time.
Can you share a moment or student success story that’s stuck with you?
My Women in Leadership course covers critical topics such as self-advocacy, personal branding, and job negotiation. Emphasis is on how to traverse these critical conversations to build success. Last spring 2025, one of my students reached out to me for help negotiating the job she really wanted. We created an outline based on lessons learned in class and she closed the deal, negotiating a significant bump in salary and signing bonus – working for her #1 pick! Success!
In what ways do you see our students standing out in the workplace or making an impact?
Impactful students are thoughtful and compassionate leaders—they target needed goals and strategies for their organizations, as well as lead ethically and inclusively toward building a work environment that considers employees’ well-being while also emphasizing performance goals. It’s a tricky balance, but those who do it well are highly impactful.
What excites you most about the future of business education or your field?
Each year brings exciting new topics that challenge businesses that then create new opportunities for learning, such as leading at a time when employees desire balance and flexibility, and knowing how to traverse AI in a manner that enhances knowledge and efficiencies but also does not introduce bias and dysfunction.
What advice would you give to incoming MBA students?
Be a sponge—learn as much as you can and how it applies to work, taking advantage of the talented staff and faculty at Kenan-Flagler Business School who are motivated to help with your success! (And, be strategic with time-management!)
Is there anything you’d like to highlight about your research, industry partnerships, or other projects?
I have 3 recent studies, with 2 on similar themes. On ethics, leaders need to understand the consequences of not holding employees accountable for their ethical transgressions—other employees are watching and they end up punishing leaders and creating dysfunction for the workgroup (unless there is a reason that warrants compassion). On gender and leadership, not all leader behaviors are bad and some are critical for success. Although there are stereotypes of what to expect by men and women leaders that may detract men leaders from behaviors that are not masculine and women leader from behaviors that are not communal, if the behaviors is critical for success, employees not only value them, but they decrease their stress and enhance their well-being.
What’s something your students might be surprised to learn about you?
I am somewhat introverted. I love teaching and engage the topics I teach with enthusiasm, but I have also had to work hard to build skills to offset the tendency so that I can effectively network and advocate for myself. I understand their anxiety about putting yourself out there!
Is there a student, colleague, or industry partner you’d like to recognize?
I would like to give a shout out to my colleague, Shimul Melwani – she is an incredible human, wonderful colleague, fantastic teacher, and caring citizen for Kenan-Flagler Business School. She gives so much and I appreciate her!