Diana Cordova
Clinical Professor of Executive Education
Academic Director of the Kellogg Executive Leadership Institute (KELI)
Managing Director of Executive Education
Diana Cordova is a Clinical Professor of Executive Education; Academic Director of the Kellogg Executive Leadership Institute and Managing Director for Program Development at the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University. Diana has published widely and is a recognized expert in the areas of Enterprise Leadership, DEI, and human motivation in organizational settings. She holds a B.A. "Summa Cum Laude" from Smith College and a Ph.D. in social psychology from Stanford University.
At Kellogg Executive Education, Diana serves as a member of the Senior Leadership Team and is directly responsible for providing management and oversight of the Program Development and Online teams. In collaboration with members of her team and faculty academic directors, she oversees the development of over 350 Executive Education programs each year delivered across all modalities - asynchronous, live virtual and classroom. Diana also serves as the Academic Director for a diverse portfolio of custom programs across a range of industries. Diana also co-taught (with former Dean Sally Blount) an MBA course on leadership and change management at the C-suite level.
Prior to joining Kellogg, Diana served as Vice President for Leadership Programs at the American Council on Education (ACE). ACE is the nation's leading higher education association, representing over 1,800 college and university presidents from public and private institutions. During her eight-year tenure at ACE, she designed, marketed and launched the ACE Institute for New Presidents and provided general oversight for the association's extensive suite of programmatic offerings for senior higher education administrators.
Diana began her career as a member of the Yale University psychology faculty, where she taught undergraduate and graduate level courses in social psychology and human motivation. She also served as Assistant Dean of the Yale Graduate School, where she worked closely with the Dean to raise the profile of the School and build a sense of community amongst Yale's graduate students.
While at Yale, Diana developed a strong reputation for being one of the most dynamic and engaging professors at Yale College. She was awarded the 1999 Lex Hixon '63 Prize for Teaching Excellence in the Social Sciences in recognition of her dedication to teaching and mentoring undergraduates.
Diana has consulted for Fortune 500 companies, helping them develop and execute strategic approaches to achieve sustained, profitable growth. She also advises companies on the design and delivery of exceptional leadership development programs for their senior executives.
In addition to her responsibilities at Kellogg, Diana serves on the board of directors of The Family Institute at Northwestern University and completed a term on the TIAA Hispanic Advisory Council, providing guidance to the organization on how to better serve the needs of Hispanic clients.
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Ph.D., 1993, Social Psychology, Stanford University, Stanford University
B.A., 1988, Psychology and Spanish Literature, Smith College, Smith College -
Clinical Professor of Executive Education and Academic Director, Kellogg School of Management, Kellogg Executive Leadership Institute, 2013-present
Assistant Dean, Yale University, Yale Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, 2000-2003
Assistant Professor, Department of Psychology, Yale University, 1994-2000
Assistant Professor, Department of Psychology, The University of Michigan, 1993-1994 -
Vice President for Leadership Programs, American Council on Education, 2012-2013
Assistant Vice President for Leadership Programs, Interim Director for Inclusive Excellence Group, Interim Director for Executive Leadership Group, American Council on Education, 2011-2012
Director of the Center for Advancement of Racial and Ethnic Equity, American Council on Education, 2005-2011
Acting Associate Commissioner of National Center for Education Research, Institute for Education Sciences (IES), 2003-2005 -
Member, Board of Directors, The Family Institute at Northwestern University, 3 year term
Service Excellence Award, Northwestern University
Member, TIAA Hispanic Advisory Council, 3 year term
EMBA: Leading into the Future
Elevate your leadership in a world transformed by digital innovation and generative AI. Designed for Kellogg Executive MBA alumni, EMBA: Leading into the Future offers a deep dive into how to strategically navigate today’s complex business landscape. With exclusive insights from Kellogg’s esteemed faculty, discover how to harness emerging technologies and lead at the highest levels with enhanced creativity and confidence.
Enterprise Leadership Program
Leadership at the enterprise level means rising to the challenge. No longer is your growth linear — it’s exponential. The focus moves past the single team or unit to the enterprise as a whole, beyond functional skills to strategic decisions based on a broader perspective. Kellogg Executive Education’s Enterprise Leadership Program prepares you to lead at height and scale and helps you develop an anticipatory mindset.
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