Melissa J. Williams, Ph.D.

Melissa Williams is an Associate Professor of Organization & Management at Goizueta Business School, Emory University. She earned her PhD in social psychology from the University of California, Berkeley, and completed a postdoctoral fellowship in Organizational Behavior at Stanford's Graduate School of Business. She joined the faculty at Goizueta in 2011. Her scholarship has been published in a number of top peer-reviewed journals in social psychology and management. She is a past Associate Editor at Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, and previously served as Area Coordinator for the Organization & Management group at Goizueta.

Prof. Williams is a longtime instructor of the core Organizational Behavior course in the BBA program and a social psychology seminar in the doctoral program. She now also teaches a BBA elective called Leading with Evidence, which guides students through using available evidence to make optimal organizational and life decisions, and obtain the best possible evidence when it's not readily available.

Click here for a full CV (pdf).

Current PhD Students

Sharvika Kherde

Sharvika (start year: 2022) holds a bachelor's degree in commerce from the University of Mumbai, and a post-baccalaureate certificate in psychology from UC Berkeley. Prior to graduate school, she worked as a research assistant at the Stanford Graduate School of Business and UC Berkeley (Haas). Sharvika's research interests are in diversity and social identity complexity.

Raigan Priest

Raigan (start year: 2023) earned a bachelor's degree in psychology from Florida State University and an MBA from the University of Southern California. During her MBA, she assisted with research and several graduate courses, such as negotiations and communication. Raigan's research interests involve power, status, and women's experiences in the workplace.

Jungmin Lee

Jungmin (start year: 2024) earned a bachelor's degree in interdisciplinary studies with a focus on media, culture, and identity from Tufts University. Before starting her PhD, she worked as an undergraduate research assistant conducting social identity research. Jungmin's research interests revolve around identity management, especially for racially and culturally minoritized employees in the workplace.

PhD Alumni

Dr. Tosen Nwadei is now an assistant professor of organizational behavior at the University of Toronto-Scarborough. Tosen earned a bachelor's degree in finance from the University of Pittsburgh, followed by a PhD in organizational behavior from Emory University in 2023. Tosen's research focuses on identity and intergroup relations.

Dr. Sara Hendrick is now assistant professor of management at the University of Northern Colorado. Sara earned a bachelor's degree in oceanography from the United States Naval Academy and an MBA from the University of San Diego, and completed her PhD in organizational behavior from Emory University in 2023. Sara’s research focuses on gender in the workplace, particularly the career pressures wrought by norms of masculinity, and work-life balance.

Dr. Sarah Lee is now an assistant professor of management at Dominican University. Sarah earned a bachelor's degree in psychology in music from the University of California, Berkeley, in 2012, and completed her PhD in organizational behavior from Emory University in 2019. Her research explores how the communication styles of Asian and White Americans may contribute Asians' relative under-representation in leadership roles.

Dr. Gabrielle Lopiano is now an assistant professor of management at Vanderbilt University. Gabby earned a bachelor's degree in engineering from Drexel University and an MBA from the University of Tampa, and completed her PhD in organizational behavior from Emory University in 2021. Her research aims to understand the effects of stigma and social hierarchy on workplace outcomes. She is especially interested in identifying the unique strengths that employees with stigmatized social identities bring to their organizations.

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