Eric Zimmer is a Partner at Inglewood and one of the most accomplished institutional turnaround leaders working in the mission-driven sector today. Across more than 30 years of fiscal, strategic, and operational leadership, he has repeatedly taken the helm of higher education, nonprofit, and faith-based organizations in distress and rebuilt them into financially sound, forward-moving institutions. Where others see terminal decline, Eric sees a balance sheet, a strategy, and a path back to surplus.
Most recently, as President and Professor of Business at the University of Saint Francis in Fort Wayne, Indiana, he delivered one of the more difficult results in the sector: he reversed multi-year enrollment declines, grew the endowment 53% to more than $40 million, and generated an average annual surplus of $3 million through the COVID era — a period when many peer institutions were cutting programs or closing entirely. That combination of enrollment recovery, endowment growth, and durable operating surplus is the signature of a genuine turnaround, not a temporary patch.
Eric pairs the instincts of an operator with the discipline of a scholar. As a former Associate Teaching Professor at Notre Dame's Mendoza College of Business, he taught strategy, negotiation, and crisis communications — the exact toolkit he brings to boardrooms under pressure. His earlier career includes leadership roles at Georgetown University, Creighton University School of Medicine, and The Holy See, where he directed oversight of more than 1,000 Anglophone institutions across a global footprint.
He is also a deeply experienced governance hand, having served as trustee and board member across education and nonprofit organizations, with a consistent track record of turnaround in financially distressed settings. That perspective — fiduciary, strategic, and operational at once — makes him a rare advisor who can sit on either side of the table and move an institution forward. He holds an MBA from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business and a PhD in Communications from the University of Pennsylvania.
Core experience
- President & Professor of Business, University of Saint Francis (Fort Wayne, IN)
- Grew university endowment 53% to $40M+ and reversed enrollment declines
- Averaged $3M annual operating surplus through the COVID era
- Associate Teaching Professor, Notre Dame's Mendoza College of Business
- Leadership roles at Georgetown, Creighton School of Medicine, and The Holy See
- University of Chicago Booth MBA; University of Pennsylvania PhD in Communications
Core Disciplines
Where Eric goes deep
Higher Education Turnaround
The discipline of restoring financially distressed colleges and universities to stability and growth. At Inglewood, Eric approaches it as a president has to live it: reversing enrollment declines, rebuilding endowment, and re-engineering operations toward durable surplus rather than one-time cuts. Having grown a university endowment 53% to more than $40 million while running an average $3 million annual surplus through the COVID era, he brings a practitioner's playbook for stabilizing mission-driven institutions without sacrificing the mission that justifies them.
Nonprofit & Mission-Driven Restructuring
Financial and operational restructuring for nonprofit and faith-based organizations, where balance-sheet repair must coexist with a mission that cannot be compromised. Eric brings more than 30 years of leadership across these settings, including directing oversight of 1,000+ Anglophone institutions for The Holy See. At Inglewood, he rebuilds the bridge between fiduciary discipline and organizational purpose — stabilizing cash, clarifying strategy, and giving boards a credible, executable path forward instead of managed decline.
Institutional Strategy
The work of setting direction for complex institutions and then actually executing it. As a former Associate Teaching Professor at Notre Dame's Mendoza College of Business, Eric taught strategy at the graduate level; as a university president he was accountable for its results. At Inglewood, that dual fluency lets him translate long-range strategy into enrollment, endowment, and operating outcomes leadership can measure — the difference between a strategic plan that sits on a shelf and one that moves the institution.
Crisis Communications & Negotiation
The leadership craft of steering an organization through moments of acute pressure, when what is said and how deals are struck determine whether stakeholders stay aligned. Eric taught both negotiation and crisis communications at Notre Dame and applied them across roles at Georgetown, Creighton, and The Holy See. At Inglewood, he helps institutions manage constituencies, protect reputation, and negotiate outcomes under stress — keeping boards, faculty, donors, and lenders moving in the same direction when it matters most.
Governance & Board Advisory
Fiduciary leadership and counsel at the board level, informed by extensive service as a trustee and board member across education and nonprofit organizations. Eric understands distress from inside the boardroom, with a track record of turnaround in financially distressed settings. At Inglewood, he advises directors and executives on the governance decisions that make or break a recovery — capital, leadership, and strategy — bringing a rare perspective that is fiduciary, strategic, and operational at the same time.
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