Scholars Joining Lang in 2021-2022

DR. RAY’S EXPERTISE IN MARKETING AND EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES WILL HELP ADVANCE LANG’S MISSION OF DEVELOPING FUTURE-FOCUSED BUSINESS LEADERS WHO WILL SHAPE TOMORROW’S BUSINESS WORLD. I AM CONFIDENT THAT HE WILL CONTINUE TO PUBLISH IMPACTFUL RESEARCH IN TOP-TIER JOURNALS. I LOOK FORWARD TO THE LEADERSHIP AND COLLABORATION HE’LL BRING TO THE LANG CHAIR POSITION.

Dr. Sourav Ray

In 2021-2022 the Lang School welcomed the Lang Chair in Marketing, Dr. Sourav Ray. Dr. Ray joins fellow Lang Chairs Laurie Barclay, Lang Chair in Leadership, Ann Pegoraro, Lang Chair in Sport Management, and Ilias Tsiakas, Lang Chair in Finance. The goal of the Lang Chairs is to advance Lang’s position as a globally focused business school dedicated to improving life through purpose-driven management education. The Lang Chairs are funded by the School’s historic $21-million gift from Stu and Kim Lang in 2019.

Dr. Ray earned his PhD in Marketing from the Carlson School of Management at the University of Minnesota. His research explores strategic issues in business-to-business marketing, distribution channels, pricing, emerging technologies and technology-intensive markets. Dr. Ray has taught undergraduate, graduate and executive courses for more than two decades. He fosters PhD student development in his research while prioritizing research quality, having published in the Journal of Marketing, Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, Journal of Marketing Science, Journal of Monetary Economics and The Journal of Law and Economics, among others.

Dr. Ray is senior editor of the E-Commerce Research and Applications (ECRA) Journal and supervises several doctoral students. In international seminars for academics and practitioners, he has contributed to media and industry associations with his expertise on marketing trends.

AS THE SPECTRUM OF CUSTOMER EXPERIENCES AND EXPECTATIONS EVOLVE WITH THE ADVANCES IN TECHNOLOGY, BUSINESSES ARE INCREASINGLY LOOKING TO HARNESS NEW-FOUND CAPABILITIES IN CONNECTIVITY AND ANALYTICS FOR COMMERCIAL PURPOSES. FOR MARKETERS, THESE CREATE NUMEROUS OPPORTUNITIES FOR CURATING VALUEADDED CUSTOMER EXPERIENCES THAT ARE ALSO SUSTAINABLE AND EQUITABLE. NEVERTHELESS, THESE OFTEN COME AT A COST AND UNFORESEEN BUSINESS CHALLENGES THAT REQUIRE RETHINKING OF TRADITIONAL MODELS AND OBJECTIVES.

Management

Dr. Burga earned his PhD from the University of Guelph. He brings decades of industry experience, academic research, and a passion for student success to his new appoint ment and looks forward to devoting more time to his research in the areas of project management, sustainability and the scholarship of teaching and learning in addition to continuing to guide undergraduate and graduate stu dents in their learning journey.

Heather Kennedy Assistant Professor, Sport Management

Dr. Kennedy earned her PhD from Temple University, in 2020, and completed a Postdoctoral Research Fellowship at Lang in 2021. Her innovative research focuses on optimizing the use of technol ogy by sport consumers and organizations. She has a strong background in sport and IS and brings expertise in predictive analytics and social media engagement to Lang, supporting the growing field of sport analytics.

Dr. Audrey Jamal Assistant Professor, Management & Assistant Dean, Strategic Partnerships and Societal Impact, Dean’s Office

Dr. Jamal earned her PhD from the University of Waterloo. Her research addresses questions related to local economic development, entrepreneur ship, and sustainability. She is working in partnership with the Shorefast Foundation, Community Foundations of Canada and the Canadian Urban Institute to map out place-based strategies to activate local econ omies in five prototype communities across the country.

Dr. Katie Lebel Assistant Professor, Sport Management

Dr. Lebel earned her PhD in Kinesiology from the University of Western Ontario. She spent three years teaching sport management at St. John’s University, in New York, one of North America’s most established Sport Management programs, prior to joining the Ted Rogers School of Management where she developed the sport business curriculum. Her research explores innovative disruption in sport, new sport business models, and gender equity. Dr. Lebel brings expertise in digital media and sport engagement to Lang, supporting the growing field of sport analytics.

Xiaowen Lei Assistant Professor, Economics and Finance

Dr. Lei earned her PhD from Simon Fraser University in 2018. Since then, Dr. Lei has held positions at the Bank of Canada as a visiting scholar and more recently a Postdoctoral Prize Research Fellow in Economics at the University of Oxford. Her research specialization is macroeco nomics, with a focus on understanding the interaction of belief heterogeneity and wealth distribution.

Dr. Fred Liu Assistant Professor, Economics and Finance

Dr. Liu joined the Lang School in July 2021 after completing his doctorate at the University of Western Ontario. Dr. Liu’s teaching and research interests reside within the intersection of finan cial econometrics, machine learning, asset pricing, and risk management.