Dr. Deanne De Vries is an Adjunct Professor in the College of Business and Leadership at Eastern University teaching in both the MBA and Undergraduate programs. She teaches on a variety of topics around leadership, global development finance, and others. She is also an alum of Eastern’s PhD in Organizational Leadership.

Dr. D (as her students often call her) loves to bring leadership and the business and political worlds to life for her students through storytelling and real life case studies pulled from her 35 years of experience in corporate and non-profit settings living and working across Africa, the Middle East, Europe, North America, and Asia. 

She brings deep industry experience and senior leadership roles in multinational corporations, private equity, and global non-profits in sectors as diverse as supply chain, pharmaceuticals, paint, aviation and industrial warehousing. She has led large-scale organizational acquisitions and integrations, managed Africa-wide operations, overseen budgets and governance, raised up local leaders, as well as advised on and implemented cross-border growth strategies. 

Everywhere Dr. D has lived she’s pursued opportunities to teach – sometimes informally or as a mentor; other times at universities like in Kuwait, the Netherlands, Mozambique and the United States. She is also a published author on African political and business contexts, global leadership, and resilience, reinforcing her role as both scholar and practitioner.

From scaling the heights of Everest Base Camp to run-walking the Mayor’s Midnight Marathon in Anchorage, Alaska, sailing to friends’ wedding in Greece, hosting gatherings at her home or baking cookies, she loves living life to the full.