The Suliman S. Olayan School of Business

On June 23, 2003 the American University of Beirut Board of Trustees unanimously approved a resolution to dedicate its business school to the late Suliman S. Olayan, a noted entrepreneur, international investor, philanthropist, and cherished friend of AUB. “The University is deeply honored to have the name Suliman S. Olayan attached to the school which aims to be without equal in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Arab world,” said AUB President John Waterbury.

Business education had long been offered at AUB, however it was not until 2000 that the university created an independent faculty for the program. In just three years the school has created a progressive curriculum based on programs offered at leading US and European universities; dramatically increased its faculty and enrollments; organized lectures and workshops by leading international business leaders and corporations; provided the latest in information technology; and developed more internships and post-graduation employment placement services for students.

The Suliman S. Olayan School of Business also places great emphasis on the importance of a strong liberal arts education along with courses in business ethics to ensure that its graduates are well-rounded individuals who will be principled in their career pursuits. Indeed it is an educational program and philosophy reflective of Mr. Olayan’s remarkable international career.
Suliman S. Olayan was born in 1918 in ‘Unayzah, Saudi Arabia of humble origins. In 1947, he set out as an independent businessman. Over the next half century, he built what started as a small trucking company into a diversified, multinational conglomerate known as The Olayan Group. Today, it is engaged in distribution, services, manufacturing, and investments.

AUB Chairman Richard A. Debs commented on Mr. Olayan’s distinguished career, “He was a towering figure in international business and he built his businesses the old fashioned way — with hard work, vision, and unimpeachable integrity. His children have been imbued with these values and have built upon his extraordinary success.”

Suliman S. Olayan was a member of AUB’s Board of Trustees from 1979 to 1985. In June 2000, at a special symposium held by AUB’s International Advisory Council, he was awarded the University’s Medal of Honor. Mr. Olayan passed away in 2002 at age 83. “During the course of his career, Suliman Olayan earned a reputation not only as one of the world’s most astute and highly trusted private investors, but also as an effective bridge between cultures and economies,” said Chairman Debs.

The Olayan family has had long-standing ties to AUB. Two of Mr. Olayan’s four children, Hutham and Hayat, are graduates and Hutham currently serves as Trustee. Khaled S. Olayan, who succeeded his father as Olayan Group chairman commented on his father’s long commitment to higher education and AUB, “Though he had no formal higher education of his own, my father had an insatiable love of learning his entire life. He was a great promoter of education for his children and the wider world and he was a great admirer and friend of AUB.”

Suliman S. Olayan’s commitment to AUB and its educational mission spanned decades. Following the bombing of College Hall in 1991, the Olayan Group constructed a fountain in the courtyard area between the newly rebuilt College Hall and the Jafet Memorial Library – a campus landmark that brings tranquillity to a bustling spot. Financial aid was an area of great importance as well; Mr. Olayan’s support insured that many qualified but financially challenged students benefited from an AUB education. Further testimony of Mr. Olayan’s firm belief in the high quality of an AUB education is the Olayan Group’s hiring of many AUB graduates to staff its offices throughout the world.

The first graduating class of the Suliman S. Olayan School of Business entered the international workforce in July 2003. Subsequent graduates will benefit from a program that is committed to keeping pace with international higher educational and business trends. “Naming our school for Suliman S. Olayan is just one more indication of the strengthened commitment the University has made to high-quality business education both at AUB and in the region,” said George Najjar, dean of the Suliman S. Olayan School of Business. “We aim to be nothing less than the premier business institution in the Middle East with standards of excellence in finance, accounting, management, entrepreneurship, and related disciplines, all housed in a world class, dedicated facility.”

To meet this expansion, a recently approved campus Master Plan calls for the construction of a new home for the Suliman S. Olayan School of Business along Beirut’s seaside Corniche. A leading architecture firm, Machado & Silvetti, was selected by an international jury to design the new school. The first renderings reveal a building that provides a high-technological learning environment, dynamic classroom and lecture facilities, and common areas that will facilitate group projects as well friendships. Suliman S. Olayan would have undoubtedly been proud of such a structure that will effectively combine technology, teamwork, and academics.

“We are very proud of this designation at one of the region’s great universities which has brought progressive education to successive generations of students from the Middle East and beyond. This will serve both my father’s memory and the institution for which my father cared so deeply,” Mr. Khaled Olayan said on the new Suliman S. Olayan School of Business at AUB.