Curriculum/Program Development

Building the Entrepreneurial Ecosystem at UNLV

• • • As Research Director of Troesh Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation, formulated and implemented a strategic plan with the goal to elevate the research profile and enhance student development for the business school and the university.

    • Created the annual Troesh Research Conference, with distinguished scholars from leading schools discussing the future of entrepreneurship research, 2020-2026.

    • Initiated the Troesh Scholars Program as one of the first research funding programs at UNLV to encourage interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary research.

      • Supported 40 research proposals from business, engineering, public health, and sciences in 2020-2022

      • Funded proposals led to multiple publications in leading journals and brought in more than $520,000 in external funding by March 2023.

    • Program Coordinator, Graduate Certificate in Entrepreneurship and Innovation, UNLV, 2019-present. Revamped the program to facilitate student access from across the university

    • Judge, Inaugural President’s Innovation Challenge, UNLV, April 2022

    • Engagement with the local business and entrepreneurship community such as StartUpNV, AngelNV and Gathering of Angels. 2019-present

Building the Entrepreneurial Ecosystem at UB (SUNY Buffalo)

• • • As the Inaugural Academic Director of the Entrepreneurship Academy (2012-2015), created a strategic plan with the goal to cultivate and harness student entrepreneurial spirit, and implemented the plan in collaboration with the Provost’s Office, School of Management, Office of Economic Development (UB Technology Transfer Office), the School of Engineering and other units.

    • Designed the course curriculum for the Entrepreneurship Academy (Launchpad), 2012

    • Created the “Entrepreneurship Lab” (eLab) in 2013, a credit-bearing seed-funding program with focus on hands-on experience in new venture creation, supported by a $300,000 gift, including field trips to Z80 Labs and WNY Venture Association, engagement with entrepreneurs at 43North (world’s largest business plan competition), Student Entrepreneur Fellowships and a student co-working space (tenX) as well as mentoring and incubation.

    • Developed and taught the “Technology Entrepreneurship” course for MBA and graduate engineering students in 2012, co-sponsored by the School of Management and School of Engineering

    • Created the annual campus-wide elevator pitch competition, 2013

    • Initiated a series of co-curricular activities, including organizing a guest-speaker series to connect with industries and communities (e.g., Jordan Levy).

    • Launched the PhD Program in Strategy and Entrepreneurship in 2014, and developed and taught the core required seminar in Strategy and Entrepreneurship.

Student accomplishments

• • • Student teams raised more than $2.5 million from venture capital, angel investors, grants programs, and crowdfunding platforms (2014-present)

    • Student teams won 1st place in Panasci Technology Entrepreneurship Competition, 2014, 2016, 2018

    • Student teams won 1st place (2018) and 2nd place (2014) in New York State Business Plan Competition

University-Related Services

University level

• 1. • Leadership & Social/Entrepreneurship Advisory Board, 2021-present

     • Graduate College Grad Academy Advisory Board, UNLV, 2021-present

     • Graduate College Graduate Awards Committee, UNLV, 2020, 2022, 2025

     • Graduate College Graduate Faculty and Student Support Committee, UNLV, 2019

School level

• • Chair, PhD Committee, UNLV, 2022-

  • Dean Search Committee, UNLV, 2019-2020

  • Tenure and Promotion Committee, SUNY Buffalo, 2016-2018

  • PhD Committee, SUNY Buffalo, 2016-2018

Department level

• • • MET Governance Committee, UNLV, 2019-present

    • Chair, Mid-Tenure Review Committee, 2023, 2024, 2025

    • Ph.D. Program Coordinator, SUNY Buffalo, 2016-2018

Professional Services

Research Committee

AOM STR Division, 2023-2025

External Tenure and Promotion Reviews

2016 (1), 2017 (1), 2018 (1), 2019 (3), 2020 (1), 2021 (4), 2022 (1), 2023 (4), 2024 (1), 2025 (4)

Grant Reviews

Swiss National Science Foundation, 2025

External Examiner, Hong Kong SAR Research Grants Council, 2013-2017, 2020, 2022-2024

Grant Reviewer, Research Council of Canada for Social Sciences and Humanities, 2015

Conference, Event & Committee Leadership

• • • Co-Chair, Symposium. 2025. Artificial Intelligence and Strategic Decision Making: A Conversation between Research and Practice. With Aaron Chatterjee (OpenAI), Michael Jacobides, Felipe Csaszar, Kathleen Eisenhardt, Nikolaus Lang (BCG), and Shaker Zahra. Strategic Management Society conference. Oct. 2025, San Francisco.

    • Co-Chair, PDW, Artificial Intelligence as a Field of Dreams. 2024. With Kathy Eisenhardt, Geog von Krogh, Kate Kellogg, Gary Dushnitsky, Shaker Zahra. Academy of Management. August 2024, Chicago, IL.

    • Organizer, Symposium. Machine Learning and Its Implications for Strategy, Innovation and Entrepreneurship Research. Strategic Management Society annual meeting. Toronto, CA. Sept. 2023. With Kathleen Eisenhardt, Ritta Katila, Felipe Csaszar, Prithwiraj (Raj) Choudhury, Nan Jia, Milan Miric, Kenneth G. Huang, and Shaker A. Zahra.

    • Co-Chair, Symposium, Training Academic Entrepreneurs with the NSF I-Corps Program. August 2023, Boston. With David A. Waldman, Donald Siegel, and Maryann Feldman.

    • Organizer, Symposium, What to do with rejections? Academy of Management. August 2022, Seattle. With Gary Dushnitsky, Melissa Graebner, Peter Klein, Hart Posen, Laszlo Tihanyi.

    • Organizer, Research Symposium, Advancing Theory Building in Entrepreneurship, UNLV Troesh Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation. Oct. 2020. Virtual. With Rajshree Agarwal, Jay B. Barney, Gary Dushnitsky, Melissa Graebner, Saras Sarasvathy, and Shaker A. Zahra.

    • Co-Organizer (with Melissa Graebner and Timothy B Folta), SEJ Professional Development Workshop, March 25, 2020, canceled due to Covid-19

    • Co-Organizer (with Vikas Aggarwal), Doctoral Workshop, Strategic Management Society conference. June, 2020, canceled due to Covid-19

    • Co-Chair (with Shaker Zahra), PDW, Theory Development in Entrepreneurship: Our Entrepreneurial Journey, Academy of Management. August 2020, Vancouver.

    • Co-Chair (with Shaker Zahra), Symposium, Advancing Theory Development in Entrepreneurship Research, Academy of Management. August 2019, Boston.

    • Chair, PDW, Theoretical developments in entrepreneurship research, Academy of Management. August 2018, Chicago.

    • Co-Organizer (with Tim Folta and Joe Mahoney), PDW, Real options and strategic entrepreneurship, Academy of Management. August 2018, Chicago.

    • Track Chair (with Jing Li), Asia Academy of Management Conference. June 2017, Fukuoka, Japan.

    • Co-Organizer (with Gary Dushnitsky), Symposium (BPS, ENT, TIM), The Pursuit of Innovation, Academy of Management. August 2016, Anaheim, CA. Details.

    • Co-Organizer (with Shaker Zahra), Professional Development Workshop International Entrepreneurship: West Meets East, Academy of Management. August 2011, San Antonio, TX. Details.

    • Co-Organizer (with Joe Mahoney), Symposium (BPS), Real options within organizational economics: Taking stock and looking ahead, Academy of Management. August 2010, Montreal, Canada. Details.

    • Co-Leader, the SMS Doctoral Workshop on "Launching Your Job Search and Career". Strategic Management Society conference. October 10, 2009. Washington DC.

Scholarly Activities - Faculty Panelist/Mentor 

• • • Doctoral Consortium. Strategy Science annual conference. June 2025. Barcelona.

    • Doctoral Consortium. AOM IM Division. August 2024. Chicago.

    • Global Doctoral Workshop. Central University of Finance and Economics. July 2024. Beijing.

    • Junior Faculty Consortium. AOM STR Division. August 2023. Virtual.

    • Perspectives in Entrepreneurial Experimentation. AOM STR Division. August 2023. Boston, MA.

    • SMS Paper Development Workshop. June 2023. IACMR. Hong Kong. 

    • Junior Faculty Consortium. June 2023. IACMR. Hong Kong.

    • Crowdfunding: Broadening our Sight Through Theory-Building PDW. AOM. August 2020. Vancouver, Canada. Virtual.

    • Entrepreneurship in Emerging Economies Workshop. SMS. October 2017. Houston, TX.

    • Inaugural AOM ENT Division Plenary Session. August 2013. Boston, MA.

    • Real options and entrepreneurship. SMS. September 2013. Atlanta, GA.

    • Doctoral Consortium. AOM ENT Division. August 2011, San Antonio, TX.

    • Doctoral Consortium. AOM ENT Division. August 2010, Montreal, Canada.

Membership in Academic Organizations

Academy of Management

• • • • Entrepreneurship

      • Strategy

      • International Management

      • Technology and Innovation Management

      • Research Methods

Academy of International Business

Strategic Management Society

American Economic Association (2004-2006)

Beta Gamma Sigma

Research Affiliate, Alfred P. Sloan Foundations Industry Studies Program (2007-2011)

Community Engagement

 Entrepreneurial, Consulting and Advisory Experiences

Co-founded business, consult for businesses and startups, currently sit on the advisory boards of several startups.

 Industry Talks/Keynote Speeches

• • • Social impact in the age of AI. 4th Social Entrepreneurship Research Forum. Shanghai, Dec. 2023. Shanghai University of Finance and Economics. Virtual.

    • Developing theoretical insights in entrepreneurship research. CMIC, 2023. Virtual.

    • Startup vs. small business. TGA Workshop, UNLV Graduate College. Nov. 2021.

    • Customer Discovery. Nov. 2021. StartupNV, AngelNV, Las Vegas, NV.

    • Economic Impact of Covid-19 on Las Vegas Metro. Oct. 2020. GCEC Annual Conference. Virtual.

    • Social entrepreneurship: Past, present and future. 2nd Social Entrepreneurship Research Forum. Shanghai, Dec. 2019.

    • Entrepreneurial decision making under uncertainty. Quarterly Journal of Management. Guangzhou, July 2019.

    • Sharing economy and social ventures. Social Venture Forum. Shanghai University of Finance and Economics, July 2017.

    • Equity allocation among entrepreneurs. Zhongguancun High-Tech Zone, Beijing, July 2015

    • Venture Capital Investments under Uncertainty. China Venture Capital Forum, Shenzhen, May 2014.

    • Beyond trade: Entry into emerging markets. Buffalo World Trade Association, Buffalo. November 2009.

    • Mentor, Startup Weekend Buffalo, 2012, 2013, 2014

    • Judge, SAGE World Cup Entrepreneurship Competition, 2011, Buffalo, NY

Media Mentions

Forbes, Entrepreneur, Crowdfund Insider, Knowledge@Wharton, among others

Regional and local media: News Day, Buffalo News, Business First, WBFO, among others