Last Friday, the Strategy Department at Michigan Ross came together to honor the life and legacy of Professor Rich Bettis (1947-2025), a foundational figure in our field and a proud Michigan PhD. I was honored to serve as moderator for a panel featuring Rich’s close collaborators Daniela Blettner, Gwen Lee, and Songcui Hu, where we learned much about Rich’s values as both a person and a scholar. Dean Sharon Matusik offered heartfelt opening remarks, and later in the day, we enjoyed scholarly presentations relating to Rich’s work from our three panelists and Dan Levinthal.
Songcui shared a memorable anecdote that perfectly framed our day. When she first met Rich, he introduced himself saying, “Hi! I’m Rich, but I’m not rich.” By the day’s end, I was certain this was an overly modest introduction. Rich created an extraordinarily rich intellectual landscape that we are privileged to inhabit, and he provided an equally rich example of human values that continue to guide us. Rich was indeed very rich.
Perhaps most poignantly, Songcui challenged us all to aspire to be “someone’s Rich someday”: to be the mentor, colleague, and friend who shapes careers and lives with the same generosity, integrity, and wisdom that Rich embodied. Rich’s example will continue to inspire our work and our community.
We recorded Dean Matusik’s remarks and the panel discussion, and will be uploading them to YouTube in the coming weeks. I will update this post once the recording is ready.
EDIT (2025-09-25):
- As promised, here is the link to the recording of this event: YouTube recording
- For those wishing to honor Rich’s memory, donations can be made to the Rich Bettis Memorial Fund.
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