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In this Medley Moments episode, Edith Cooper speaks with Francesca Cornelli, Dean of Northwestern’s Kellogg School of Management and Professor of Finance. They explore what it takes to lead in fast-changing environments, how today’s MBA students are preparing for an unpredictable future, and the importance of curiosity, collaboration, and connection in both life and leadership.
This Q&A is a curated summary of their full conversation.
A: My career has always been a bit erratic. It was not linear. I try to tell students, your career cannot be linear. My PhD is in game theory and economics. As an assistant professor, I started discovering finance and jumped to finance. I relearned. Then I started doing more applied work, sitting on boards, getting a taste of the other side. And when I was asked to interview at Kellogg, I did. I wouldn't have guessed I'd arrive here, but that's what I encourage everybody to do.
“If an opportunity arrives and it's not what you expected, ask: Are you curious about it? Is it interesting? If yes, jump.”
A: We try to position ourselves in the center of change because Kellogg has always been a school focused on leadership and the ability to work with others. It's also been a school that is 360 degrees in preparation, which is essential in an era of disruption and change.
If you specialize too much, you're going to be too vulnerable. Kellogg prepares people to pivot and manage uncertainty. In the middle of uncertainty, you need to rely on others. You might be very good at figuring out change and being decisive, but as a leader, that's not enough.
“If you don't get everybody else around you to embrace the change, you can't do it alone—whether it's your team, your organization, your investors.”
That's why we have courses like ‘The Art of Inspiring Others.’ I love that title because you can't change alone. It doesn't matter how good you are at seeing the right path—you need to communicate it to others.
A: Thank you for asking about KWEST because I love it. I always say it shows how intentional we are about this. I just welcomed the students on Friday. They have two days here and then go on trips—some far, some close. Groups of 12 to 15 people. Some go to the Czech Republic, some to Wisconsin.
There’s a second-year student who joins, but the important thing is: they cannot say where they’re from, what job they did before, or what they want to do next. You can bring a partner, but you can’t say who’s the student and who’s the partner.
You have one week to connect at the personal level. At the end of the week, there's a big reveal where everyone shares where they’re from, what they did, and everyone guesses beforehand. It really sets the stage for the two years: don’t just talk about your job. Connect in a meaningful way.
“You have to connect at a personal level… if you learn that, it will be incredibly important for the rest of your career and life.”
A: A big change is that only half the class now goes into traditional jobs—consulting, big tech, investment banking, CPG. The rest are interested in things like AI, private equity, healthcare, startups, and search funds. None of those paths have a clear-cut track, and they often happen much later.
These employers may not hire every year. They won’t know a year in advance they need someone. What they want can change quarter to quarter. That means our students have to pivot. What a healthcare company needs is different from a manufacturing firm or an AI startup.
We support our students and lean on alumni for feedback, because they’re out there seeing what’s happening. This way we can pivot with them. There’s more uncertainty in career paths now, and timing is different. If everything hinges on the last quarter and things don’t go well, students need support.
We also emphasize thinking about your career long-term. Life expectancy is increasing. Students likely won’t retire at 65 unless they want to. There’s time to plan, skill-build, and pivot.
“Your first job doesn’t have to be your end goal—get stronger so you’re ready when the opportunity comes.”
A: One thing we’re really pushing is the ability to navigate the bridge between business and science. Almost every job is going to be affected by that. AI is arriving everywhere. Biotech, material science—it’s influencing all decisions.
A key skill is knowing how to work with scientists. It’s like Cooperation 2.0. Business schools have gotten good at teamwork, but scientists bring a different dimension. You need humility to recognize their expertise and work with them to connect their insights to business needs.
We sometimes place students in Northwestern’s top science labs. It’s a cultural shock for some. But we tell them: if you have to fail, fail now. Figure out what you don’t want to do. That’s why we have labs and exploration courses.
A: We try to facilitate collaboration as much as possible. Northwestern is a very collaborative place. We work with Northwestern Memorial Hospital, allowing students to do projects and faculty to do research.
The Innovation Institute is one attempt to do more. We have faculty from economics and physics who have collected every patent, citation, and innovation paper from the top 30 U.S. universities—and they’re tracking the path to commercialization. With big data and AI, we can now connect the dots.
In one case, a paper by a top chemistry faculty member was identified as relevant to a German startup. She said, “I always thought this paper was so important, but I didn’t know who to talk to.” If business schools can help make those connections, we can really amplify innovation.
A: Yes, we have to change. I’m impressed by how creative our faculty is.
One faculty member created a virtual TA—a chatbot trained on his own notes, lectures, and past exams. Students feel more comfortable asking more basic questions. Grades have gone up. He teaches operations, which is technical, and students often don’t see its relevance. Now the chatbot asks about their background and then shows how specific lessons apply to their experience. It focuses them.
You still need the human part. The chatbot does the Q&A, but the faculty brings people together and offers perspective. That’s why we need research faculty in the room. They can say, “Let me tell you what I think will happen,” even if it’s a wild bet. We still need that.
“AI can take over repetitive tasks, and that gives us more meaningful in-person time—for dialogue, ideas, and debate. That’s where the real value is.”
Missed the live conversation? You can watch the full episode here. And if you’re not already following along, we share upcoming Medley Moments each month on our LinkedIn page here.
