Danica Purg

Professor Danica Purg is the President of the IEDC-Bled School of Management, Slovenia, and the President of CEEMAN, the association of 219 management development institutions from 54 countries, established with the aim to enhance management development in Central and Eastern Europe. She is also leading the European Leadership Centre (ELC).

Prof. Purg is professor of leadership and effective management at the IEDC-Bled School of Management. Her special field of interest is looking for inspirations for managers from art and other professions. In 2010 prof. Purg received the 2010 Educator of the Year Award by the Academy of International Business (AIB) for her outstanding achievements in international business education. In 2013 Prof. Danica Purg was nominated Chair of PRME (Principles of Responsible Management Education) Steering Committee, the initiative started by UN Global Compact.  Prof. Purg is also member of several international advisory boards of well-known business schools, member of European Cultural Parliament (ECP) and President of UN Global Compact Slovenia.

She authored and co-authored several books and numerous articles on leadership issues. In 2004 she edited and jointly wrote with professors Lynn Isabella, Pierre Casse, Paul Claudel and Arnold Walravens the book Leaders and Teams – The Winning Partnership. In 2013  Prof. Purg was the editor of the book Hidden Champions in CEE and Turkey; Carving out a Global Niche (Springer, 2013). She is a frequent guest speaker at European and American universities and international conferences.

Prof. Purg is Fellow of Academy of International Business (AIB), fellow of the International Academy of Management (IAM), Doctor Honoris Causa at Moscow State University of Management, Estonian Business School and MESI - Moscow State University of Economics, Statistics and IT, and honorary professor at Moscow International Higher Business School (MIRBIS). President of the Republic of Slovenia awarded her with the “Honorary Order of Freedom” for her contribution to management development in Slovenia and CEE. By the American Chamber of Commerce Prof. Purg was chosen for a business leader role model of young professionals.  In January 2015, the Slovene Managers’ Association  conferred upon her Lifetime Achievement Award in field of Management.

After graduating from the Faculty of Political Science in Ljubljana, she completed her Ph.D. at the Faculty of Political Sciences, University of Belgrade, and extensively studied at Harvard Business School, IMD Lausanne, INSEAD Fontainebleau, Technological University Delft, London University, Sorbonne and at Kalamazoo College, Michigan.