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Top Performers by Tricia Bisoux pion initiatives, and travel. Amidst all this activity, they also must reserve enough energy to build lives outside the business school. But how can schools help their professors juggle such diverse responsibilities, culti- A vating and fostering their talents while building on their strengths? More administra- tors are grappling with this question as they realize the importance of developing the right mix of faculty with the right mix of talent, says Stephen Stumpf of the Villanova School of Business in Pennsylvania. "More schools are starting to adopt a portfolio model for their faculty," says Stumpf, a professor of management and operations at Villanova and the business school's for- mer dean. Such a portfolio, he explains, can include academi- cally qualified faculty, profes- sionally qualified faculty, and adjuncts whose teaching and research loads vary according to their skill sets. "Under this model, faculty development is more about managing your portfolio of professors to accomplish the level of teaching that you want." Many faculty members, too, are looking for new ways to enhance their skill sets, says Kathleen Sutcliffe, the associate dean for faculty development and research at the University of Michigan's Ross School of Business in Ann Arbor. "Professors are much more interested in how they make material applicable to real-world situations," she says. "Their roles have expanded, and they now see themselves more as mentors, collaborators, and co-creators of the learning experience. They want to connect to students, to develop true learners rather than just masters of the material." To help faculty members fulfill their potential inside and outside the classroom, Stumpf, Sutcliffe, and other educators suggest that business schools make faculty development an essential part of their strategic planning. They outline eight key areas where business schools can get the most return on their investment in their professors' talents and potential. 26 BizEd NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2008 To cultivate professors with stamina and star power, a business school must find creative ways to support their personal and professional development. business school's professors are the lifeblood of its educational programs and scholarly productivity. However, today's business professors do more than teach and conduct research. They also mentor, consult, talk with media, attend conferences, complete paperwork, head committees, cham-