Harvard Business School Dean Jay O. Light will step down at the end of this school year, he announced in an e-mail to the HBS community Wednesday afternoon.

Light said that it was a good time, both for him and for the institution, for a new leader to take over.

"As the financial crisis hit it was clear to me that we had to move quickly and I had to take ownership of the process of making sure this institution got through what we now call the 'Great Recession,'" Light said in an interview Wednesday afternoon. "That's done... We're at the right place to bring in a new dean who will execute whatever set of choices we make."

During his tenure, Light has overseen a $600 million capital campaign for the Business School, the complete renovation of the school's Baker Library, and the introduction of the 2+2 program, which allows students to apply to HBS after their junior year of college, as well as leading the school through a wave of budget cuts earlier this year. Light has been at the helm of the business school since being named interim dean in August 2005. He assumed the position on a permanent basis in April 2006.

Prior to the deanship, Light served as Senior Associate Dean and Director of Planning and Development. In addition to teaching finance courses, he has been a member of the school's leadership team for 23 years. He joined the Business School faculty in 1969.

University President Drew G. Faust said she will begin to assemble a faculty search committee soon to look for a new dean, with the goal of having a successor in place by the time Light leaves in June.