Bob Bruner is the eighth dean of the Darden Graduate School of Business Administration at the University of Virginia. He teaches and conducts research in finance and management.  Before his appointment as dean in August 2005, Bruner served as the founding executive director of Darden's Batten Institute, which focuses on entrepreneurship and innovation. There, he expanded Darden's Business Incubator.

As a financial economist, Bruner is best known for his research on mergers and acquisitions, corporate finance and financial panics. His books include "Deals from Hell," "Applied Mergers and Acquisitions" and "The Panic of 1907: Lessons Learned from the Market's Perfect Storm," with Sean D. Carr, which attracted wide attention for its discussion of the underpinnings of financial crises.