Professor Cox, the longest serving dean of a UK business school, said: “I feel very proud to have been Dean. LUMS is in a great place: we are in the top 50 of the Financial Times Global MBA Ranking and are ranked first in the Research Excellence Framework (REF) for ‘research power’. We are established as one of the world’s leading business schools; it is a good time for me to step down and for a new Dean to build upon our achievements to date.”

Much has changed in the time that Sue has led the School, as one of only a few female deans of leading business schools.

“We have come a long way since I arrived in 2001. Back then, we had around 80 faculty members, now we have nearly 250. In 2001, I was the only female professor, now we have 14. We have also recruited a large number of excellent international colleagues from around the world.

"The number of women across the sector is not sufficient. However, I have had nothing but support from colleagues across the university. I hope that my role as Dean will encourage more women to progress to senior positions."

Professor Cox has many fond memories of her time at the helm of LUMS. 

"We have achieved so much over the past 14 years.  I remember our pride when we had our first accreditation; EQUIS. It was a real team effort.

"Similarly, the work we did in establishing our Department of Entrepreneurship and changing our approach to working with businesses, leading to a Small Business Gold Award, is something I’m extremely proud of.

"Also, I think we were all proud to take the inaugural Business School of the Year award."

Not all the hard work was done by staff though.

"I remember the first student ball. The work the students do to create the LUMS spirit is really great. 

“During my time as Dean I have been consistently impressed by the achievements of our alumni and I am delighted to see the alumni network grow."

The past 14 years have seen plenty of changes in the sector. 

"For business schools across the world, there’s been huge growth," said Professor Cox.

"The growth in ASEAN schools has been very high, meaning that competition for student s and faculty has increased.

"Another change is that now we really do need to support our students in employability. The importance of students’ careers is critical to our reputation. We value the support we receive from alumni in this.

"It’s been a privilege to lead the Management School. I would say to Angus that LUMS is a great place to work and our colleagues offer great support at all levels to create our special environment; that’s something that he needs to continue to nurture and develop.”

Professor Cox will retain a role at LUMS in her role as Dean Emeritus, along with work for external organisations.