Professor Michael Lounsbury joins The Australian National University (ANU) College of Business and Economics (CBE) as a new fractional appointment at the ANU Research School of Management (RSM).
“ANU is a world-class institution with many incredible scholars. I am extremely honoured to be part of the University, and to have the opportunity to interact with top researchers in management and related fields,” he says.
Coming from the University of Alberta School of Business, Michael will work part time at CBE as a Professor of Business Strategy and Entrepreneurship.
“I have already begun collaborations with ANU colleagues on diverse projects related to emancipatory entrepreneurship, inclusive markets and institutional change,” says Michael.
“Every time I visit Canberra, I am filled with excitement, and am learning a lot.”
Michael looks forward to nurturing and expanding on his knowledge during his engagement with ANU.
“While I hope to publish many papers with my new colleagues, more important to me is to cultivate lifelong relationships that continually nurture my passion for the exploration and development of ideas,” he says.
“I’m eager to continue mentoring early-career scholars, and pass along my love for our scholarly calling.”
In this interview, Michael expands on what he brings to the College, and what he believes CBE can do for his own research.
Q. What specialisation do you bring to RSM, and how do you plan to utilise it in your appointment?
My PhD is in sociology and organisational behaviour from Northwestern University. I am an organisational and economic sociologist, who studies entrepreneurial dynamics and institutional change. My scholarship is importantly informed by several ontological commitments grounded in macro phenomenology, contemporary social theory, and the cultural turn that swept through the social sciences and humanities beginning in the 1970s. More practically, at the University of Alberta, I founded and built the eHUB entrepreneurship centre, and have a lot of experience developing campus wide, interdisciplinary entrepreneurship programs that support everything from technology commercialisation to social innovation, including outreach to marginalised communities. I am also currently the chair of the Strategy, Entrepreneurship and Management Department at the Alberta School of Business. Given the breadth of my intellectual training, I am able to connect with a wide range of scholars, but I am also happy to support various strategic initiatives of the School.
Q. Can you tell us about your research interests, and how you plan to expand on them in the future?
As a sociologist, my research interests are vast. I am interested in big questions about the dynamics of society and economy. I have helped to pioneer a scholarship on the institutional logics perspective and cultural entrepreneurship, and have studied all sorts of empirical contexts. My excitement for research has only grown stronger over time, but it seems that in recent years, I have become even more attuned to how our research might become actionable, or at least be more relevant to policy. I am thinking more about grand challenges and have recent papers on sustainability and emancipatory entrepreneurship in a poverty context. I am also part of a group trying to develop a 2SLGBTQIA+ Entrepreneurial Knowledge Hub in Alberta. This latter project provides an opportunity for engaged scholarship, where the research can be intertwined with practical intervention to uplift equity-deserving folk.
The College is always keen to explore research collaborations with the public and private sector and to reconnect with alumni. Please get in touch if you would like to know more about partnering with us.