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Mona School of Business and Management congratulates Professor Lila Rao-Graham who has been appointed as the new holder of the S. Carlton Alexander Chair in Management Studies at the University of the West Indies (UWI), Mona Campus. Professor Rao-Graham is the third holder of the Chair, succeeding Professors Gordon Shirley (1992-2010) and Ian Boxill (2010-2018).

Professor Rao-Graham brings to the position extensive knowledge and experience in the areas of Strategic Business Intelligence, Data for Development and Data and Knowledge Management. Her sterling qualifications include a first-class honours BSc in Computer Science from The University of the West Indies, Mona (UWI) ( a Master of Mathematics in Computer Science from the University of Waterloo, Canada and a Ph.D. in Information Systems from the UWI. She has contributed to the developing body of work in the region in the area of data and knowledge management, through authored and edited books and prolific journal publications  including: “A Knowledge Broker for Collaboration and Sharing for SIDS: The Case of Comprehensive Disaster Management in the Caribbean,” “An Agile Approach for Academic Analytics: A Case Study”, “Big Data Analytics and Customs Throughput: The Case of Jamaica” and “Building Smart Communities for Sustainable Development: Community Tourism in Treasure Beach Jamaica”. Her research in Data and Knowledge Management and Strategic Business Intelligence has resulted in several engagements with the business community that involved presentations and training sessions, symposia and workshops, and inspired other research opportunities. This experience was integral to her co-authored book Business Intelligence for Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises (2019) written for both academics and practitioners.

Dr David McBean, Executive Director, Mona School of Business and Management (MSBM) in reacting to the announcement from GraceKennedy noted that “Professor Rao-Graham has a demonstrated track record of engaging in research projects that have been visibly impactful in both the public and private sectors in Jamaica and the wider Caribbean region. Professor Rao-Graham is not only an outstanding scholar but has served the MSBM in various leadership capacities, the most recent being as one of the Deputy Executive Directors, in which she was the Academic Director for the internationally accredited MBA programme.”

Professor Dale Webber, Principal, UWI Mona, noted that “Professor Rao-Graham is an organised, focussed and dedicated academic whose work and interest in business intelligence, data quality, knowledge management and decision support system has made her a unique contributor and author and an internationally sought after speaker. I fully expect Professor Rao-Graham to make a tremendous contribution to the UWI, the national and regional management agenda and development and congratulate her on her achievements.”

The Carlton Alexander Chair in Management Studies at the University of the West Indies was endowed by the GraceKennedy Foundation in 1989 in honour of the Hon Carlton Alexander, late chairman and CEO of the GraceKennedy Group and an outstanding businessman and patriot. It marked the beginning of a partnership with that institution which has lasted for over three decades and has contributed to the growth of a strong business and financial sector through the building of Jamaica’s human resource capacity.