UTS pays tribute to management academic Associate Professor Antoine Hermens, founding Director of UTS’s Executive MBA program.
Friends and colleagues remember fellow academic Antoine Hermens, and his long-standing service to the UTS Business School over more than 27 years.
After many years involved in his family’s Sydney-based tyre import business, Antoine came to UTS with an MBA (1990) from Macquarie University, completing a PhD (2009) from UTS in Business Strategy and Strategic Alliances with Professor Thomas Clarke as Supervisor.
During his tenure at UTS, Antoine’s teaching and research included a focus on Global Strategic Management, which he taught within the prestigious UTS MBA program – a field of practice shaped by his commercial experience and his research in Strategy, Innovation, Entrepreneurship and Strategic Alliances.
Antoine was also the founding Director of the university's Executive MBA (EMBA) program, which he led for 10 years till 2011. UTS Business School Dean Professor Rob Lynch, who the EMBA program was founded under, was highly praiseworthy of Antoine's energy and wide engagement in the establishment of the program.
Antoine’s commitment building a dynamic, internationally-recognised program with a focus on diversity and innovation was embedded throughout the EMBA, with Antoine personally interviewing candidates and ensuring the Executive MBA’s cohort model of around 20 students incorporated diverse sectoral backgrounds.
Similarly, Antoine’s development of the EMBA capstone Strategy subject was uniquely distinguished on two counts – first, by a simulation game which he introduced and developed to model complexity and uncertainty in global strategy and negotiations, and second, by field trips to the factories of Airbus in France and Mercedes Benz in Germany. Being fluent in English, Dutch, German and French helped enormously in ensuring his EMBA students gained access to a breadth of internationally-renowned strategic and operational expertise.
Antoine was a widely respected colleague and friend, with much admiration from colleagues and students alike on his strong commitment to diversity and innovation in business and management education.
Antoine served as Head of the Management Department from June 2011 to August 2016, where he oversaw the transfer of the School of Leisure, Sport and Tourism from Sydney's north shore Kuring-gai campus to UTS’s City campus, and its new home in the iconic Frank Gehry-designed Dr Chau Chak Wing Building – a challenging and difficult move for many which he handled with consideration and sensitivity.
His leadership style as Head of Department reflected much that was consistent with what he learned from a Dutch family business with roots in northwestern European society – assuming as foremost responsibilities to ensure a sustainable and well-respected enterprise. Antoine thus took on challenges of the Management Department as if still the eldest in their family business, fiercely supportive of his Management colleagues, and assuming too often at times what colleagues considered an excessive workload.
His strong connections to industry also saw him take on a wide range of industry advisory roles where he easily garnered the respect of a wide circle of practitioners and academics alike.
While colleagues were aware of his Dutch heritage, many of us had not fully appreciated until his funeral that his allegiances to Holland were second only to his devotion to his large family and dearest friends. His coffin was draped in the Dutch flag, upon which was placed cherished memorabilia starting with his PhD cap from UTS, a selection of photos including his fishing boat and much prized Mercedes car badges. The funeral was attended by a strong delegation of past and present staff members, industry colleagues and a large cohort of past EMBA, Masters and PhD students.
On behalf of the Management Department and the UTS Business School, we extend our deepest condolences to Antoine’s wife Beverley and his family. Antoine is remembered with affection and regard as a highly and widely respected colleague and friend.