The figures are impressive and well known: last year, 93 per cent of London Business School¡¯s MBA students accepted offers of employment within three months of graduating, on an average salary of ?79,866.

But according to Fran?ois Ortalo-Magn¨¦, who joined the institution as dean last August, employment data tell only part of the story.

¡°People definitely come here to get a boost in their career ¨C and you measure that by the salary for the first employment and the slope afterwards,¡± the Frenchman, who was previously Albert O. Nicholas dean at Wisconsin School of Business for six years, told?Times ÖйúAƬ.

¡°But when I talk to our students about why they chose LBS versus some of our competition, what I find particularly telling is the tremendous value [they place] on the fact that we help them to find their voice.¡±

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Typically, Professor Ortalo-Magn¨¦ said, graduates ¡°will talk about the first year as when they really pushed themselves. And then, towards the end of the first year and second year, [they talk about] being able to breathe and look at the world differently ¨C because of the people they encounter, the experiences, the trips we organise and meeting other alumni. I don¡¯t know how you quantify that, [but] that¡¯s a lot more than salary.¡±

This chimes with what employers who recruit from LBS are telling the institution, Professor Ortalo-Magn¨¦ explained: a desire for students to have ¡°curiosity and [the] ability to adapt and learn¡±.

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This is one of the reasons why there are many ways in which the humanities can contribute to the business education experience, according to Professor Ortalo-Magn¨¦. ¡°We have programmes here where we take students to the zoo with an anthropologist or take them to the Design Museum,¡± he said, adding that the institution is also in talks with the Royal College of Art. ¡°Part of it is helping us to appreciate our shared humanity.¡±

Compared with his previous institution, which was part of a university, LBS also has more freedom to partner with other institutions thanks to its independent status.

¡°One thing that I really like in London is that we are part of a great ÖйúAƬ ecosystem,¡± he said. ¡°So the way I think of it, I am free to partner with whoever I want.¡±

Reflecting on his experience of working on both sides of the Atlantic ¨C his first academic appointment was at the London School of Economics ¨C Professor Ortalo-Magn¨¦ acknowledged that the different philanthropic culture was a key influence on business school leadership.

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While US deans have concentrated their efforts on attracting philanthropic donors, LBS has focused its attention on executive education, which forms a significant proportion of the school¡¯s revenue; although Professor Ortalo-Magn¨¦ jokes that, if someone were to offer him a ¡°?4 billion endowment¡±, he would accept it ¡°by all means¡±.

¡°It¡¯s not as easy to manage as philanthropy, because you have to win the customer again and again,¡± Professor Ortalo-Magn¨¦ said. ¡°But what it does to the culture of a school is that it makes you more outcome- and user-focused.¡±

sophie.inge@timeshighereducation.com