New Delhi, 16 September 2026: The All India Management Association (AIMA) and the University of Virginia Darden School of Business have entered into an agreement for academic collaboration and exchange to explore opportunities in management education, research and leadership development.
The agreement provides for collaboration through the exchange of educational and research material, joint research and meetings, partnership in events, and exploration of collaborative opportunities related to the AIMA Leadership Institute.
A UVA Darden delegation is visiting India this week, with representatives from the University participating in AIMA’s 53rd National Management Convention in New Delhi on 21–22 September 2026.
AIMA and UVA Darden are also collaborating on Building Future-Ready PSUs, a two-day executive education programme for senior public sector leaders, to be held in Delhi-NCR on 2–3 December 2026. The programme is designed around a key challenge facing public sector enterprises today: how established organisations can respond to rapid technological disruption while continuing to deliver at scale. It will help senior leaders examine how digital technologies and AI can be used not merely for incremental improvement, but to rethink business models, drive innovation and create more citizen-centric organisations.
The programme will be led by Professor Rory McDonald, John Tyler Associate Professor of Business Administration at UVA Darden and an expert on disruptive innovation and growth strategy. Combining strategic frameworks with interactive workshops and simulation-based learning, it will take participants through disruptive innovation, new digital business models, strategic experimentation, digital and AI transformation, the people dimension of change, and customer experience.
Mr T V Narendran, President, AIMA and CEO & Managing Director, Tata Steel, said the association with UVA Darden would add a valuable global dimension to AIMA’s management and leadership development initiatives. “The business environment is changing rapidly, and management education and leadership development need to keep pace with that change. This collaboration brings together AIMA’s engagement with Indian industry and Darden’s academic and global expertise to create relevant learning and knowledge opportunities for managers and leaders,” he said.
Ms Rekha Sethi, Director General, All India Management Association (AIMA), said, “We see considerable scope to build on this collaboration across executive education, research and knowledge initiatives. The immediate programme for public sector leaders is one such opportunity, and we look forward to developing more areas of engagement that draw on the strengths and networks of both institutions.”
“This partnership is ultimately about creating learning that leaders can put to work,” said Melissa Thomas-Hunt, vice dean and senior associate dean for professional degree programs at UVA Darden. “By bringing Darden’s highly interactive approach together with AIMA’s deep connections across India’s management community, we can help leaders strengthen their judgment, respond to disruption and create meaningful impact.”
The University of Virginia Darden School of Business was established in 1955 as the graduate business school of the University of Virginia. Darden offers graduate degree programmes and Executive Education & Lifelong Learning programmes, with faculty engaged in research, thought leadership and business publishing. Darden has campuses in Charlottesville, Virginia, and the Washington, D.C. area, as well as a presence in Mumbai and Shanghai.
AIMA is the apex body for management in India, and for seven decades, has worked to advance the management profession through its focus on leadership, innovation and management. A non-profit, non-lobbying organisation, AIMA works closely with industry, academia and professionals across the country through its network of over 38,000 members and nearly 6,000 corporate and institutional members, supported by 68 Local Management Associations.
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