Appointment of Executive Dean, Faculty of Business and Economics, Head, Monash Business School and Strategic Advisor (Lifelong Learning)
Professor Nick Wailes joins Monash University on 30 November 2026.
Monash University has announced the appointment of Professor Nick Wailes as Monash’s new Executive Dean, Faculty of Business and Economics and Head, Monash Business School. Professor Wailes will also serve as Strategic Advisor (Lifelong Learning), and will commence at Monash on 30 November 2026.
Professor Wailes joins us from the University of New South Wales (UNSW), where he currently holds the dual roles of Dean, Lifelong Learning and Director of the Australian Graduate School of Management. He has held several senior appointments within the UNSW Business School since he joined the university in 2013, and previously held roles at the University of Sydney and the University of Auckland.
During his tenure at UNSW, Professor Wailes oversaw the revitalisation of degree programs and short course offerings to equip graduates and organisations for success in rapidly changing environments. He was influential in establishing UNSW Online and developing its specialist online master’s degrees, including MBAX – an innovative online MBA program launched in 2015.
Professor Wailes was appointed UNSW’s inaugural Dean, Lifelong Learning in 2024 to drive lifelong learning programs across the institution. In 2025, these initiatives served more than 21,000 UNSW learners through a range of short courses, fully online award programs, and programs for enterprise clients. Professor Wailes will continue his pioneering work in this area at Monash as our new Strategic Advisor (Lifelong Learning). He will work closely with Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Education) and Senior Vice-President Professor Allie Clemans and I on the strategic development, integration and advancement of lifelong learning across the Monash Group.
Professor Wailes’s academic research focuses on international and comparative employment relations, and the impact of technology on organisations. His work has been published in books and prestigious international journals such as Industrial Relations and The Journal of Strategic Information Systems. Professor Wailes also has a strong track record of attracting competitive national research funding, and leading national and international research teams. He is an alumnus of the University of Auckland and holds a PhD in Work and Organisational Studies from the University of Sydney.
With an outstanding reputation in university leadership and research excellence, Professor Wailes will play a vital part in strengthening and growing the University’s standing as a global research and education leader in business and economics. He will also be instrumental in expanding the Faculty’s partnerships and developing stronger ties with industry.
We congratulate Professor Wailes and welcome him to the Monash community. We thank Professor Simon Wilkie once again for his remarkable leadership contributions to Monash and wish him all the best for his research sabbatical.