Speakers
Nadine Burquel
Summer School Director and Director General of HUMANE
Nadine is the Director General of HUMANE. She works closely with the Chair and the governing bodies on HUMANE’s strategic developments. She manages the HUMANE Office to offer the membership an attractive portfolio of professional development and networking activities. She has been involved with HUMANE since its foundation in the mid-nineties, until December 2022 as Executive Director of the three residential schools (the Barcelona Winter School, the Berlin Summer School and the Asia School).
Nadine has extensive director level experience, having worked with multiple international non-profit organisations, university networks and international boards. She has wide knowledge of leadership, governance and management in higher education institutions, and the global trends in the higher education sector. As EFMD Director of Business School Services she was responsible for a wide portfolio of large global events and communities of practices, interacting with business schools and universities in the wider Europe, North and Sub-Saharan Africa, Asia, Australia, the Middle East, the Gulf, as well as North and South America. More recently in Maastricht University she was strategic adviser to the leadership of the School of Business and Economics, advising on international accreditation, the internationalisation strategy, and delivering societal impact.
She has significant experience with EU (higher) education policy and programmes since the early days of the Erasmus programme. She has a strong track record of EU projects, leading large EU-funded European university networks and providing technical assistance to the European Commission. She is high level EU policy expert, working at system level in Brussels and beyond, carrying out capacity building and evaluations of EU interventions, having worked with EU Delegations in many countries.
Arnold Boon
University Director, Copenhagen Business School, DK
Arnold Boon is since 2022 the University Director at Copenhagen Business School. He is a strategic leader with solid management skills and experience from higher education and research institutions. He previously was University Director and member of the Senior Management Team at Aarhus University. He is responsible for the University administration, including finance, HR, it and digital transformation, student administration, research support and compliance. He is also responsible for real estate and campus development at the university. He has more than 18 years of experience with financial management and a wide experience in leading major change projects, digital transformation, continuous process improvement and organisational changes. He has an extensive network in higher education in Denmark and in Europe.
Earlier positions include Faculty Director at the University of Copenhagen at the Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences (2006-2015), Chief Financial Officer at the Danish Institute of Food and Veterinary Research (2004-2006), Head of Budget department at the Danish Agency for Food, Fisheries and Agri business (2002-2004), Executive Officer at the Danish Agency for Food Fisheries and Agri business (2000-2002), Executive Officer at the Institute of Agricultural Sciences (1999-2000) and Researcher at the Danish Institute of Agricultural and Fisheries Economics (1991-1998).
Niels Jespersen
CIO, Copenhagen Business School, DK
Niels Jespersen holds a master’s degree in mathematics and economics and has a 30-year career in public-sector IT leadership, taking on roles of increasing responsibility.
He served as Head of IT at Copenhagen Business School from 1997 to 2007 and returned to the role in 2016. In the intervening years, he held senior leadership positions in the Capital Region of Denmark and the Danish Police’s Security and Intelligence Service
Julie Lundberg Arildsen
Head of Process, Project and Change Management (PPF), Copenhagen Business School, DK
Julie Lundberg Arildsen is an experienced public-sector leader with more than 25 years of experience in IT, digital transformation, portfolio management and organisational change. Since October 2026, she has led Copenhagen Business School’s newly established Process, Project and Change Management function (PPF), with responsibility for strengthening governance, project execution, process development and change capabilities across the university.
Prior to this appointment, Julie served as Director of IT Projects at Copenhagen Business School.
Before joining CBS, Julie held senior management positions at DSB and the Danish tax administration, where she led large project and programme organisations, portfolio governance functions and strategic digital transformation initiatives in complex, politically governed environments. She has extensive experience building organisational capabilities, leading specialists and executives, and translating strategic priorities into successful delivery.
Søren Munk Skydsgaard
Head of Process, Project and Change Management (PPF), Copenhagen Business School, DK
Søren Munk Skydsgaard is University Director since May 2023 and in that capacity member of the University’s top management. He is responsible for the University Administration, comprising three campus administrations and eight group units.
Before joining the university, he served as CFO in the Social Services Administration of the City of Copenhagen from 2018 to 2023, and previously as CFO at the Danish Veterinary and Food Administration. He has also held positions as Head of Department at the Danish Agency for Science, Technology and Innovation, as a strategy consultant at Deloitte Consulting, and in various roles at the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, including as Head of the Trade Department at the Danish Embassy in Washington.
He obtained a master’s degree in economics (cand.polit.) from the University of Copenhagen in 1998 and a Certificat d’Études Politiques from Sciences Po Paris in 1995
René Ulrik Steffensen
Library Director, Copenhagen Business School, DK
Over more than three decades, René Ulrik Steffensen has built an extensive career at Copenhagen Business School (CBS) and other academic institutions, progressing from Librarian and Department Head to Vice Library Director, Library Director, and Director of CBS Library and Campus Services. Since March 2024, they have served as Library Director at CBS, with overall responsibility for strategic development, organisational leadership, project and quality management, financial oversight, stakeholder relations, and institutional representation. Their leadership has been characterised by driving innovation in academic library services, strengthening organisational performance, and aligning library strategy with broader institutional objectives.
Alongside their executive roles, they have made substantial contributions to the Danish and international library sector through numerous governance, advisory, and professional appointments. These have included long-standing membership of the Board of Denmark’s Research Libraries, service as President of the Members Presidency, membership of the European Business Schools’ Librarians Group, and participation in key CBS governance bodies including the AI Board and IT Portfolio Management. Previous appointments have included leadership roles in national research library initiatives, editorial responsibilities for professional publications such as REVY, external examining duties at the University of Copenhagen’s library and information science programmes, and board positions across a range of library, higher education, and professional organisations.
Their academic background combines expertise in history, management, and library science. They hold an Executive MBA from Copenhagen Business School, an MA and BA in History from the University of Copenhagen, and a professional qualification in Library and Information Science from the Royal School of Library and Information Science. Their international perspective has been strengthened through studies at the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology and professional training at the British Library of Political and Economic Science in London. Their academic and professional interests are reflected in research and strategic projects covering topics such as terrorism and the media, research methodologies in library science, and strategic business development.