Poets&Quants™ Names New Leadership Team to Lead Next Era of Business Education Coverage

Sat Sharma Appointed Managing Director; Marc Ethier Named Editor-in-Chief; Pola Lem Joins as Executive Editor

OAKLAND, Calif. , March 2, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Poets&Quants, the leading independent media platform covering graduate business education, today announced that founder John A. Byrne will retire from his leadership role, marking the culmination of a distinguished career that helped shape the global conversation around MBA and graduate business programs. The company also unveiled a new leadership team to guide its next phase of growth and innovation.

Sat Sharma has been appointed Managing Director, Marc Ethier has been named Editor-in-Chief, and newly hired Pola Lem will serve as Executive Editor, leading market-facing editorial and multimedia initiatives.

Honoring a Legacy of Influence

Since founding Poets&Quants in 2010, Byrne has built the publication into one of the most trusted and influential voices in business education. Under his leadership, Poets&Quants has served millions of readers worldwide, providing authoritative coverage, data-driven insights, and in-depth analysis for prospective students, business schools, and industry leaders.

"Launching Poets&Quants was a bet that graduate management education deserved an independent, authoritative voice," said Byrne. "What began as a scrappy startup has become the world's leading platform on business education because readers trusted us and an exceptional team delivered every day. I'm most proud of the helpful role we've played to help tens of thousands of young people achieve their own dreams. I'm excited to see our team of veterans and newbies build on that foundation and take it to the next level."

Leadership for the Next Era

Marc Ethier, Editor-in-Chief
A journalist with decades of reporting experience, Ethier has served as managing editor of Poets&Quants for the past ten years, working with John Byrne to steer the publication's rise to become the preeminent global source of news and analysis on business education. He is the author of thousands of articles and is currently working on a book examining the impact of artificial intelligence on elite business school classrooms. As Editor-in-Chief, Ethier will oversee all editorial operations, ensuring continued excellence, integrity, and depth in coverage.

"Poets&Quants has earned the trust of the global business education community by delivering rigorous, insightful journalism," said Ethier. "We will continue to uphold that standard while expanding how we tell stories and engage our audience."

Ethier lives in Oakland, California, with his wife and two children.

Sat Sharma, Managing Director
A higher-education veteran, Sharma has been part of Poets&Quants in various capacities for over 15 years and a strategic partner in the business for more than a decade. As Managing Director, he will lead strategic growth, partnerships, revenue generation, and global market expansion, bringing extensive expertise in media publishing, digital engagement, and growth strategy to guide Poets&Quants into its next chapter.

"Poets&Quants sits at the center of the business education ecosystem," said Sharma. "Our focus is to deepen partnerships, expand our global reach, and create innovative ways for schools to connect with highly qualified candidates, all while honoring and furthering the critical mission of advocating business education established by John Byrne."

Sharma lives with his wife and 3 kids in North Carolina. He holds a B.S. in Marketing from Northeastern University and a Master's in Technology Management from Pepperdine University.

Pola Lem, Executive Editor
Lem joins Poets&Quants to lead market-facing editorial initiatives, multimedia storytelling, and audience engagement strategies. Her role signals an expanded commitment to video, interactive content, and new formats that meet the evolving needs of prospective students and institutional partners.

Before joining Poets&Quants, Lem served as trends editor at The Grocer, the UK's leading magazine covering the retail sector, where she led weekly data-driven features analyzing market shifts and consumer behavior. Prior to that, she worked at Times Higher Education, first as Asia reporter and later overseeing editorial content for THE's global rankings.

"I'm delighted to be joining Poets & Quants. It's a privilege to follow in the footsteps of John Byrne, a legend in the business school world," said Lem. "I'm excited to make connections in the sector, engage with student prospects, and help grow Poets&Quants' reach in the US and globally."

A native New Yorker, Lem earned a B.A. in Russian language with honors from Haverford College and an M.S. in journalism from Columbia University.

A Vision for the Future

Together, the new leadership team will guide Poets&Quants into its next chapter, focused on:

• Expanding multimedia and video storytelling
• Enhancing global coverage and audience reach
• Developing innovative data and AI-driven insights
• Strengthening partnerships with business schools and industry organizations

Poets&Quants will continue its mission to provide independent, authoritative coverage that helps prospective students make informed decisions and enables business schools to showcase innovation and impact.

Poets&Quants, a part of Times Higher Education, is the leading resource for complete coverage of graduate business education. We feature multiple tools and authoritative content, including consolidated business school rankings, news and in-depth features, videos, podcasts, two searchable directories, and events, empowering our community with information needed to make decisions along their journey from pre- to post-MBA.

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SOURCE Poets&Quants