About Me

I am the Mosaic Company - Jim Prokopanko Professor for Corporate Responsibility with the Strategic Management & Entrepreneurship Department of the Carlson School of Management, University of Minnesota. My research focuses on questions of organizational governance, examining how a firm's scope and its capabilities interact over time, and what role for-profit firms may play in addressing social issues. More specifically, one stream of my work studies the intersection between corporate strategy and technology strategy, examining how the evolution of an organization's capabilities impacts its boundary choices, and how the resulting structure and scope of the organization impact its subsequent adaptation. A second stream of my research focuses on questions of nonmarket strategy, especially the welfare impact of corporate social responsibility, i.e., the conditions under which for-profit businesses may or may not be efficient or effective in solving social problems. More details about my research agenda, as well as links to published papers and details about current projects, can be found on my Research page.

My research has appeared or is forthcoming in the Academy of Management Journal, Academy of Management Review, Management Science, Organization Science, Strategic Management Journal, and Strategy Science. My work has received several honors, including a Mary and Jim Lawrence fellowship and an Outstanding Research award from the Carlson School, the Sumantra Ghoshal Research and Practice Award from the BPS Division of the Academy of Management, as well as a Distinguished Paper award from the same division, and multiple honorable mentions from the Strategic Management Society, among others. I serve on the board of directors for the Strategic Management Society (SMS) and the Consortium on Competitiveness and Cooperation (CCC), as an Associate Editor at the Academy of Management Review, as a member of several editorial boards, and in various other leadership positions, as detailed on my Service page.

In addition to my academic career, I am also a published writer and poet. My poems and short stories have appeared in a number of literary journals, and a book of my short fiction, titled études, was published in 2009. More information about my literary work can be found on my Creative Writing page.

Finally, the Teaching page details the various courses I have taught or am currently teaching at Carlson, the Biographical Information page summarizes my education and work experience, and the Elsewhere page provides links to other places on the Web that you can learn more about me. For any other information, please feel free to contact me at akaul@umn.edu