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University of California, Berkeley
Walter A. Haas School of Business

S545 Student Services Bldg. #1900
Berkeley, CA 94720-1900
United States

In the school's own words...

Responsible Leadership Forms the Core of the Haas School of Business

No other university has as rich a history of social thought leadership and of challenging students to think beyond traditional paradigms of business, society, and the environment as the University of California, Berkeley. Since its founding in 1898, Berkeley’s business school has been a central force in preparing responsible business leaders.

The Haas School’s “Leading Through Innovation” concept embraces its core focus on teaching leadership combined with a distinctive mindset that stresses innovative thinking, particularly in sustainability.

This mindset empowers faculty and students to seek creative approaches to the world's enduring problems. Books by David Vogel and Kellie McElhaney have sparked nationwide discussions on CSR. The Financial Times recognized Haas as the #1 global program in corporate responsibility in 2008; corporate recruiters ranked Haas second in CSR in the Wall Street Journal’s 2007 poll.

To continue to attract the very best students, faculty, and partnerships in corporate responsibility stewardship, Haas launched the Center for Responsible Business in 2003 -- with astounding results. Its inventive "Strategic CSR & Projects" course connects students to executives at firms like Apple, Hewlett-Packard, Levi Strauss, and eBay to develop strategies that create competitive advantage through positive social impact. The course gets rave reviews from students and has resulted in additional corporate project opportunities and job offers.

The Center also develops pioneering experiential learning opportunities. The Haas Socially Responsible Investment Fund is the first SRI fund at a leading business school. The CSR Scholars Program and the McDonald’s CSR Research Fellowship take students into leading companies to apply CSR theories and frameworks in innovative strategy work.

Sustainable business is a pervading theme within the school. Students showcased their innovative spirit in creating the Berkeley Energy Resources Collaborative with the College of Natural Resources to leverage Berkeley's brilliant minds toward a sustainable energy future. The school’s newest center of excellence – the Center for Energy & Environmental Innovation – offers interdisciplinary curricula and programs to develop the next generation of sustainable energy leaders.

This fall, BERC partnered with the Lawrence Berkeley National Lab to help scientists bring their clean technology innovations to market faster. Student teams from business, law, public policy, engineering, and biology, provide scientists with analysis and strategies for commercializing their discoveries.

The school’s top-ranked Center for Nonprofit & Public Leadership prepares students to lead nonprofit and public organizations and entrepreneurial ventures. Next to the pioneering "Social Sectors Solutions" consulting course, the center hosts the Haas Board Fellows program providing students with first-hand experience of board service while nonprofits benefit from their skills in marketing, finance, strategic planning, and policy analysis.

In addition to creating social enterprises, Berkeley MBA students continue to lead the Global Social Venture Competition in its 10th year. The thriving competition reaches business schools across the US, the UK, India, Switzerland, France, Thailand, and Korea.

As a result of these robust efforts, the Haas School has become the top destination for thought leaders in social and environmental engagement and sustainable business.