Graduate Management Admission Council Introduces New Global Executive Team

McLean, Va.—The Graduate Management Admission Council® (GMAC®) has announced the appointment of a vice president who will oversee all international operations.

For Immediate Release

Former Senior Officials from Pfizer and London Business School Tapped to Expand Council’s International Reach

McLean, Va.—The Graduate Management Admission Council® (GMAC®) has announced the appointment of a vice president who will oversee all international operations. The Council also named a vice president for the European, Middle Eastern, and Africa regions as part of a significant expansion of the organization’s international presence.

GMAC is an association of 160 top graduate business schools around the world and owner of the Graduate Management Admission Test® (GMAT®), used by more than 3,000 business programs worldwide.

Ramesh Thadani, a former senior executive with the American Red Cross and pharmaceutical giant Pfizer, has been named vice president of international operations and will be based at GMAC headquarters in McLean, Va. Julia Tyler, former associate dean of the London Business School MBA program, has been named vice president for the Europe, Middle East and Africa region, reporting to Thadani. Tyler will be based in London.

Both positions will be instrumental in executing the Council’s global initiatives, including the expansion of international membership, identification of new and emerging markets for graduate business education, and development of products and services for schools and prospective students abroad.

Thadani comes to GMAC following a three-year assignment at the American Red Cross in Washington, where he led the non-profit organization’s blood donation and distribution operations as chief executive officer of biomedical services. Before joining the Red Cross, Thadani rose to executive vice president for Asia during a 30-year career with Pfizer Inc. and its predecessor, Warner-Lambert.

“Enhancing GMAC’s international presence and awareness is an exciting opportunity as interest in graduate management programs worldwide continues to increase,” Thadani said. “I am delighted to be a part of the leadership team that will help create a stronger global presence for GMAC.”

Tyler had been with London Business School since 1994 and played a key role in the school’s rise to international prominence. Prior to joining London Business School, Tyler was a senior consultant with Coopers and Lybrand (now PricewaterhouseCoopers) and also helped establish the U.K.’s Open University Business School, which specializes in distance learning for adults.

Tyler served on the GMAC board of directors from 2002–05, including one year as chair, and has also been a member of the Governing Board of the London Business School.

“I have firsthand experience—both in a leadership role for the Council and for a school—in how effective GMAC can be in helping schools to be more competitive in what is now a global market for graduate business education,” said Tyler. “As the education landscape continues to undergo dramatic change—particularly in Europe—the Council’s knowledge and expertise will be even more valuable to business schools in this new environment.”

The Graduate Management Admission Council (www.gmac.com), based in McLean, Va., is a non-profit education organization of leading graduate business schools worldwide dedicated to creating access to and disseminating information about graduate management education. GMAC annually surveys thousands of corporate recruiters, MBA students and business school alumni to gauge their feelings about the job market and collect other data. The Council also owns the Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT), used by more than 3,000 graduate management programs around the world to assess applicants. The GMAT was created in 1954 and remains the first and only standardized test specifically designed for graduate business and management programs.

For more information about the Graduate Management Admission Council
or for a photo of Ramesh Thadani or Julia Tyler, please visit gmac