The Kellogg Graduate School of Management gave a new title to a familiar face on Monday, promoting Kellogg Assoc. Dean Dipak Jain to dean of the school.

Jain, Kellogg’s associate dean for academic affairs for the past four years, has worked at the school for 15 years. He will replace current Dean Donald Jacobs, who will step down June 30 after 26 years at the helm.

Jacobs announced his retirement plan at the beginning of this academic year.

University President Henry Bienen said he expects Jain to carve out his own niche as dean despite his close relationship with Jacobs, who will stay on as a professor next year.

“He knows the Kellogg culture very well and will do a good job of preserving their tradition,” Bienen said. “But at the same time, I expect him to strike out on his own and put his own leadership stamp on Kellogg.”

Jain said he was “deeply honored” when informed of his selection as dean but is now eager to confront the challenges associated with the job.

“This is a major responsibility handed over to me, and following Don Jacobs will be a challenging task,” he said. “But with the Kellogg culture of teamwork and the supportive environment here, I am sure we can work to keep Kellogg’s flame burning for years to come.”

Jain and another candidate from outside Kellogg were nominated by Kellogg’s 12-person search committee for consideration by Bienen and Provost Lawrence Dumas. But Bienen said Jain’s relationship with Kellogg was not the deciding factor.

“I didn’t start this search with a bias for an insider or an outsider or with a bias for an academic or non-academic,” he said.

David Besanko, chairman of Kellogg’s search committee, said seven candidates were interviewed before the two finalists were recommended. Although Besanko said both candidates were offered with “great enthusiasm and remarkable consensus,” he believes Kellogg found the best person for the job in Jain.

“We looked for someone who had an appreciation for the Kellogg success model, but that didn’t mean they had to be an insider,” Besanko said. “I have complete confidence in Jain. He has tremendous vision and insight of how to move Kellogg forward in graduate management education.”

Brian Poger, the search committee’s student representative, also said the process was not based around an internal or external candidate.

“It was more of a question of who could do the best job with Kellogg,” he said. “The most important thing for students was to hire someone who would continue Kellogg’s trajectory up, maintain our culture and give students a say in how the school evolves. Jain will do an extraordinary job leading Kellogg in the years to come.”

Jain agreed that his strength during the search process was his association with Kellogg’s success and his ability to continue it in the future.

“In my current job, I have learned a lot about management, leadership and other qualities needed to run an academic institution,” he said. “I had an advantage in terms of being in a position to continue Kellogg’s culture.”

Jain said he hopes an agenda of greater academic discipline and focus will move Kellogg forward.

“The school is in a strong position now, so in the short run we will continue with initiatives that have been set forward,” he said. “We don’t need radical change, but we do need to continue the culture of innovation at Kellogg.”

Jain said his exposure to Kellogg’s global alliance program gave him an edge and he hopes to continue promoting and strengthening the school overseas.

He created a business school in his native country of India and has served as a visiting professor at the Koblenz School of Corporate Management in Germany and at Nijenrode University in The Netherlands.

Bienen said Jain’s educational research, including stints as editor for the academic journals “Management Science” and “Journal of Business and Economic Statistics,” also made him a good choice.

“He is a splendid scholar and has been wonderfully creative in developing new MBA programs and executive education programs,” Bienen said. “He is a tremendously strong person and an incredible human being.”

Jacobs said Jain is “the perfect person for the job.”

“I’m very pleased that someone who is a part of the institution was named dean,” Jacobs said.

Poger said the search committee is confident Jain will “extend and expand the legacy” left by Jacobs.

“It wasn’t a question of filling Jacobs’ shoes,” Poger said. “We feel with Jain we are getting a great new pair to move Kellogg forward.”