Benjamin Hermalin has spent much of his career thinking about how organizations make decisions. At UC Berkeley, that work has taken him from the classroom to academic leadership. His connection to Michigan speech begins at Ann Arbor Huron, which he represented in Humorous Interpretation at the 1979 MIFA State Finals.
An Ann Arbor beginning
Hermalin grew up in a university family. His father, Albert, taught sociology at the University of Michigan, and his mother, Jolene, worked in fundraising for its music school. He has spoken warmly about Ann Arbor’s public schools and the value of learning alongside people from different backgrounds.
He graduated summa cum laude from Princeton in economics and earned his doctorate at MIT in 1988. That year he joined Berkeley’s faculty, with appointments in the Haas School of Business and the Department of Economics.
A career of asking questions
His research examines corporate governance, including how boards oversee the organizations they serve. He has worked extensively with economist Michael Weisbach and co-edited a reference handbook on the subject.
At Berkeley he has chaired the economics department, served as an associate dean at Haas and chaired the Academic Senate. He was appointed Executive Vice Chancellor and Provost in 2022.
For Hermalin, the appeal of university work is its purpose. “You can make a difference here and benefit people in many ways,” he has said. It is a thoughtful perspective from an alumnus whose Michigan story includes a turn on the Humorous Interpretation stage.
On record
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