Global Advisory Board

Prof. Marcus Alexander

Professor of Strategy & Entrepreneurship

London Business School

Prof. Alexander is a proud parent of a daughter and twin sons. He and his wife Paula, who is American, met at Harvard Business School and have been married for 30 years. He combines a number of activities in three main roles. (1) As a Business Academic, he has been an Adjunct Professor of Strategy & Entrepreneurship at London Business School for 15 years and is also an Associate Fellow at Oxford University, a Visiting Professor at Vlerick Business School in Belgium, a Fellow of the Ashridge Strategic Management Centre and a regular instructor at the Danish Technical University and Stockholm School of Economics. He has authored many articles and books, including 3 Harvard Business Review articles. (2) As a consultant, Marcus worked at the Boston Consulting Group in London, Boston, Spain and Australia. He then co-founded a UK company that he subsequently sold before moving into a more academic career. He continues to carry out a number of consulting assignments, working primarily as an individual facilitator with senior management teams in many countries. He has worked with more than 50 Group CEOs over three decades. (3) As a Non-Executive Director and Trustee, Marcus has served on the boards of six companies in four countries, and is currently a Non-Executive Director of the Al-Dabbagh Group in Saudi Arabia and of Pamplona, a Private Equity fund. He is also a trustee of the Stars Foundation and was the Chairman of another charity. In terms of education, Prof. Alexander has an MA with Congratulated Double First class honours from Oxford University, where he was a Scholar and Slade Exhibitioner, and an MBA with High Distinction from Harvard Business School, where he was a Baker Scholar, The Ford Scholar, a Loeb Rhodes Fellow, winner of the Wolfe Award, a Harkness Fellow and top graduating student in his year. He was a tutor at Eliot House, Harvard University.

Mr. Elijah Bach

Co-Founder

Bach Family Foundation and Trust

Elijah Bach is a husband, father, entrepreneur, and philanthropist.  He is a former Founder/CEO of a real estate investment/holdings firm for 20 years. Since retirement in 2020, his current interests include global philanthropy with a focus on helping parents to become better educated, supported, and engaged parents as they strive for their children’s future educational and professional success. Born in Seoul, Korea, Elijah began his American journey in Minnesota as a teenage son of a homeless, immigrant single mother and studied at the University of Minnesota - Twin Cities as an undergraduate student, before getting several other graduate degrees and executive certificates from Harvard University and University of Pennsylvania. In the community, he performs violin and provides free instruments and lessons at his church. He also runs marathons and diligently trains at the gym to one day become the next American Ninja Warrior. He lives with his wife and children in New York City.

Dr. Athos Bousvaros

Professor, Department of Pediatrics

Harvard Medical School / Boston Children's Hospital

Dr. Athos Bousvaros MD, MPH is a pediatric gastroenterologist who has worked at Boston Children’s Hospital for over 25 years. He completed his undergraduate degree at Williams College, his medical degree and residency at Duke University, and his gastroenterology fellowship at Children's Hospital Boston, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School. As Associate Director of the Inflammatory Bowel Disease program at Children's Hospital Boston, he spends much of his time treating complex cases of Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis referred from across the country. His research interests include identifying the cause of IBD by studying the intestinal microbiome, developing new therapies for IBD, and examining the immune response of IBD patients to immunizations. He has over 100 original and review publications in the medical literature. He has served as chair of Chapter Medical Advisory Committee of the New England Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation of America, chair of the CCFA Pediatric Affairs committee. He has also served as president of the North American Society for Pediatric GI and Nutrition (NASPGHAN), where he helped lead a campaign to promote child safety by getting high powered magnets out of the hands of toddlers. When not busy caring for patients or doing research, he enjoys developing patient education materials for children with chronic illness. These include the medical comics: “Pete Learns All About Crohn’s and Colitis” (with the CCFA), “Amy Goes Gluten Free”, “JD Shapes Up”, and Sophie’s Science Project”. He also has co-authored the NASPGHAN book “Your Child with Inflammatory Bowel Disease".

Prof. Peter Frumkin

Professor, School of Social Policy and Practice

University of Pennsylvania

Peter Frumkin is Professor of Social Policy & Practice and holds the Mindy and Andrew Heyer Chair in Social Policy. He is Faculty Director of the Center for Social Impact Strategy and Director of the Nonprofit Leadership Program. His research and teaching focus on philanthropy, nonprofit management, and social entrepreneurship. Frumkin has written articles on all aspects of philanthropy, including the formulation of grantmaking strategy, the changing profile of major individual donors, theories of philanthropic leverage, the professionalization movement within foundations, and other topics. His book, Strategic Giving: The Art and Science of Philanthropy, was published by the University of Chicago Press in 2006. It has been touted by reviewers as the “benchmark text for the field” and “the most penetrating exploration of contemporary philanthropy now available.” He has lectured on philanthropy at meetings of grantmakers in the U.S. and abroad, and served as a consultant to foundations and individual donors on strategy and evaluation. Prior to coming to Penn, Frumkin was Professor of Public Affairs and Director of the RGK Center for Philanthropy and Community Service at the Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs, University of Texas at Austin. He has taught at Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government and served as a senior fellow at the New America Foundation. Before academics, Frumkin worked as a foundation program officer, a nonprofit manager, and as a program evaluator in both nonprofit and public agencies. Frumkin received his PhD in sociology from the University of Chicago.

Prof. Jacob Goldenberg

Professor of Marketing

Inter-Disciplinary Center / Columbia Business School

Jacob Goldenberg is a Professor of Marketing at the Arison School of Business Administration at the Inter-Disciplinary Center at Hertzelia and a visiting professor at the Columbia Business School. His research focuses on creativity, new product development, diffusion of innovation, complexity in market dynamics social networks effects, and social media. He is an Academic Trustee of the Marketing Science Institute. Jacob was the editor-in-chief of the International Journal of Research in Marketing and now is an area editor for Journal of Marketing Research and Journal of Marketing, and serves on the editorial board of Marketing Science. He has published papers in the Journal of Marketing, Journal of Marketing Research, JPSP, Management Science, Marketing Science, Nature Physics, and Science. In addition, he is an author of two books by Cambridge University Press one in Chicago Press, and one book by Simon & Schuster. Jacob’s work has been covered in the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Boston Globe, BBC News, Herald Tribune, The Economist, and Wired magazine. He received his Ph.D. from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem in a joint program of the School of Business Administration and Racach Institute of Physics.

Prof. David Hsu

Professor of Management, Wharton School of Business

University of Pennsylvania

David Hsu is the Richard A. Sapp Professor and a Professor of Management (with tenure) at the Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania. He graduated from Stanford University with undergraduate majors in economics and political science. After a few years working in industry, he received his master’s degree in public policy from Harvard University, followed by his Ph.D. in management from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Hsu’s research interests are in entrepreneurial innovation and management. Within that domain, he has investigated topics such as intellectual property management, start-up innovation, technology commercialization strategy, and venture capital. His research has appeared in leading journals such as Journal of Finance, Management Science, RAND Journal of Economics, and Research Policy. He serves as an associate editor of the Entrepreneurship and Innovation department of Management Science. In 2008, Hsu was awarded an Alfred P. Sloan Foundation Industry Studies Fellowship. At Wharton, he teaches two MBA electives, Entrepreneurship and Technology Strategy. At Penn, Hsu is Associate Faculty Director of the Weiss Tech House, which encourages and supports students in the creation, development, and commercialization of innovative technologies.

Prof. Jacqueline Manuel

Professor of Education, Dept. of Education and Social Work

University of Sydney

Dr. Jackie Manuel is an Associate Professor in English Education in the Faculty of Education and Social Work at the University of Sydney. She holds a BA (Hons 1) in English, a DipEd and a Ph.D. in English Literature from the University of New England. She is the Program Director for the Master of Teaching (Secondary), coordinator of secondary English curriculum in the Faculty, a member of the University Teacher Education Advisory Board, and an Affiliate of the Department of English, Faculty of Arts. Jackie has published widely in the field of English Education and her research interests and projects include new teacher motivation; teenagers and reading; creativity in English education; and the history of English curriculum. She has been Chief Examiner of NSW Higher School Certificate English (Standard and Advanced), and a member of the former NSW Board of Studies (2007-2013). Jackie specializes in working with teachers and students in strengthening teaching and learning in HSC English and student outcomes in HSC English examinations. She works extensively with the teaching profession in advancing and advocating for quality teaching and learning, curriculum development, engagement, and enjoyment in English education, 7-12, and in secondary education more broadly.

Ms. Rachel Proffitt, Esq.

Partner, Corporate Securities

Cooley, LLP

Rachel Proffitt heads Cooley’s San Francisco corporate practice and serves on the firm's board of directors. She practices corporate and securities law and represents public and private clients, as well as venture capital and investment banking firms and other institutional investors, across a broad range of industries. Her practice focuses on general corporate and complex transactional matters, including venture capital transactions, public and private securities offerings, mergers and acquisitions and other strategic transactions, and public-company disclosure and corporate governance. Prior to joining Cooley, Rachel was a partner at Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati. She is also an adjunct professor at the University of California – Hastings College of the Law.

Prof. James Schrager

Clinical Professor of Entrepreneurship and Strategic Management

Booth School of Business, University of Chicago

James E. Schrager studies the use of strategy by executives and venture capital partners. Drawn to this research by a fascination with extreme success and a desire to better understand how it happens--or not, Schrager pushes his students to discover how to better judge potential new venture investments and growth opportunities for existing businesses by using the unique power of strategy. His work is powered by the application of Herbert A. Simon’s concept of Bounded Rationality to strategy. He is an active advisor to boards and CEOs on matters of strategy. His clients range from some of the largest companies in the US to professional service firms to start-ups, in high- mid- and no-technology businesses. His previous assignments include a series of corporate turnarounds for the Pritzker family interests, through their Chicago-based industrial conglomerate, The Marmon Group. As executive vice president of San Francisco--based Getz Brothers Co, he was responsible for the successful execution of the Getz- Japan initial public offering in Tokyo, the first private US company accepted to go public in Japan. He has worked extensively on the commercial aspects of advanced cardiovascular devices with the surgeon who performed the first heart-transplant in the USA, Dr. Adrian Kantrowitz. He is currently a board member on a start-up founded by one of the most cited researchers in Malaria vaccines, Dr. Stephen Hoffman, whose company is partially funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Schrager earned a bachelor’s degree in economics from Oakland University, an MBA from the University of Colorado, a JD from the Depaul University College of Law, and a PhD from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business in organization behavior and policy. He previously was a certified public accountant in the state of Illinois.

Prof. Irvin Scott

Senior Lecturer, Graduate School of Education

Harvard University

Dr. Irvin Scott joined the faculty of Harvard Graduate School of Education during the summer of 2016. At Harvard, Irvin’s concentration is Educational Leadership. Before coming to Harvard, Irvin served for five years as the deputy director for K–12 education at the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, where he led the investment of $300 million in initiatives focused on transforming how teachers are recruited, developed, and rewarded. In an effort to address educational inequities in the U.S. He also led an effort at the Foundation to build strong partnerships and deeper engagement between faith-based organizations that serve underrepresented students, families, and communities. Prior to his Foundation work, Irvin spent over 20 years working in the “trenches” as a teacher, principal, assistant superintendent, and chief academic officer. Right before going to the Foundation, he was the Chief Academic Officer for Boston Public Schools, where he was responsible for the academic programming of the school systems, as well as overseeing all regional superintendents and schools in the district. He holds a bachelor’s degree from Millersville University; a master’s degree in education from Temple University; and a master’s and doctoral degree from Harvard University.

Ms. Sarah Shewey

Founder & CEO

Happily

Sarah Shewey is a pioneer woman of the experience economy. She is the Founder & CEO of Happily, the largest network of independent event specialists, representing more than 50,000 producers, technologists, filmmakers, and creatives who love building experiences. The team at Happily has helped organizations like Airbnb, H&M, the Obama Foundation, non-profit organizations and individuals off some of their most ambitious experiential campaigns. As one of the first few people to work at the TED conferences after they took their talks online, Sarah co-founded TEDActive - an experimental place for artists, TEDx organizers, educators, and entrepreneurs to incubate new distribution models for ideas worth spreading. Sarah is also the founder of EXP - a gathering of the world’s most iconic experience producers to share best practices of which the founders of Woodstock, Burning Man and SXSW are members. An environmentalist, Sarah has spoken about the importance of sustainable event practices on NPR and publications around the world. She also co-invented the world’s first underwater projector. In her spare time between family dinners and birthday celebrations of her loved ones, Sarah helps her friends build their communities. She serves as the board president of dublab.com, “the world’s best Internet radio station” according to The Guardian. She is also an advisor to MAKE IT IN LA, Mayor Garcetti’s initiative to create the nation’s largest community of product makers and manufacturers and The What List, a clever list for curious people. She holds a dual degree in Communication and Film/Television Production from the University of Southern California.

Dr. Jung-Ho Shin

Professor & Asst. Dean, Dept. of Obstetrics and Gynecology

Korea University

Dr. Jung-Ho Shin is the Assistant Dean of the College of medicine, Korea University. He is the head gynecologic endocrinologist and is the current Director of the Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology, Guro Hospital, Korea University Medical Center, Seoul, Korea. He completed his medical degree, residency, and gynecologic endocrinology fellowship at Korea University as well as the Guro hospital of Korea University Medical Center. His primary research focus is abnormal menstruation to include irregular cycles, dysmenorrhea, heavy menstrual bleeding, and menopause (endometriosis, polycystic ovarian syndrome, leiomyoma). Dr. Shin currently serves as the Secretary General of The Korean Society of Obstetrics & Gynecology and is an acting medical-government negations liaison providing expertise and input in policy development and actively involved in government policy reformation. His work is also associated with various top caliber academic societies, institutes, and publications to include serving as the Chairman of Public Relations for the Korean Society of Bone and Mineral Research, the Chairman of Public Relations for the Korean Society of Gynecologic Endocrinology, the Chairman of the Legislation Committee for the Korean Society of Contraception and Reproductive Health. He is the Deputy Spokesman for the Korean Society of Obstetrics and Gynecology, an active Policy Management Committee member, and serves on the Presidential Committee on Aging Society and Population Policy for the Republic of Korea, and is the presiding Chief of External Cooperation Team for the Korean Women’s Health Foundation.

Dr. Shefali Tsabary

Clinical Psychologist & Author

Dr. Shefali Tsabary is a world-renowned clinical psychologist who received her doctorate from Columbia University. She specializes in the integration of Eastern philosophy and Western psychology, making her an expert in her field. Her first book, THE CONSCIOUS PARENT, has been endorsed by Oprah as one of the most profound books on parenting she has ever read. Dr. Tsabary also speaks as a keynote speaker at various conferences and workshops around the world. Some of the venues at which she has presented are: Wisdom 2.0, TEDx, Kellogg Business School, The Dalai Lama Center for Peace and Education, and many more. She has had key collaborations with Goldie Hawn’s MindUp Foundation, Kids in the House and many educational and transformational centers around the world.

Prof. Simon Young

Professor & Associate Dean, Faculty of Law

University of Hong Kong

Professor Simon Young is Associate Dean (Research) in the Faculty of Law and Deputy Director for Education and Development of Research Integrity at the University of Hong Kong. A practicing Hong Kong barrister, he teaches criminal law and evidence in the Faculty's J.D. program and a LL.M. course on human rights in the criminal process. He is known internationally for his scholarship on the Hong Kong political and legal systems, and the forfeiture of proceeds of crime. His public policy research projects have focused on a wide range of topics including stalking law reform, anti-corruption law, money laundering, proceeds of crime, security and anti-terrorism laws, public sector disciplinary processes, screening processes for asylum seekers, laws for electing Hong Kong's legislators and Chief Executive, and Hong Kong's Court of Final Appeal. As counsel, he has advised on important constitutional, public law and criminal law cases. He has advised the Hong Kong Government on its Convention Against Torture screening mechanism and led the Continuing Legal Education program in the Prosecutions Division of the Hong Kong Department of Justice since 2011. He has been a member of the Review Body on Bid Challenges under the WTO Agreement on Government Procurement, Post-Release Supervision Board, and Disciplinary Panel A of the Hong Kong Institute of Certified Public Accountants. He served on the Hong Kong Law Reform Commission subcommittees on double jeopardy and hearsay in criminal proceedings and was a member of the Independent Police Complaints Council’s Observers Scheme. Prior to joining the Faculty, Professor Young worked in Toronto as appellate counsel in the Crown Law Office-Criminal, Ministry of the Attorney General for Ontario, and before that as Assistant Crown Attorney in Hamilton, Ontario, where he prosecuted persons for sexual assaults, domestic assault, fraud, manslaughter and other offences.