Ke Cao

I joined the faculty at Wilfrid Laurier University in July 2020. I earned my Ph.D. at the University of Alberta in Strategic Management & Organization and a Master of Environmental Management degree at Yale University. Prior to becoming an academic, I worked with The Forest Trust (now Earthworm Foundation), American Friends Service Committee, Heinrich Böll Foundation, and Global Environmental Institute in managerial and consultancy roles, following a student internship stint at World Resources Institute's Washington, D.C. headquarters. I have lived, studied, and worked in Cambodia, Canada, China, Laos, and the United States.

My academic portfolio centers on societal impact-oriented innovations in business practice and management theory. I teach Strategic Management, International Business, and Entrepreneurship and have engaged in broader humanities and social sciences research. My scholarship on Certified B Corporations and Benefit Corporations (commonly known as B Corps), presented at a set of frontline entrepreneurship, management, B Corps research outlets and in public discourse, has added to scholarly and public understanding and can be considered trailblazing and internationally leading.

In a separate line of research, armed with hubris, I have been trying to break new ground in enhancing the capacity and salience of management theory, a tall order primarily undertaken by eminently established and retired academic colleagues. Last, motivated by the dearth of quality China-themed scholarship, I have been building a research pipeline in this area.

Formal brief biography:

Ke Cao, Ph.D., is Assistant Professor of Strategic Management at Wilfrid Laurier University’s Lazaridis School of Business & Economics. He studies and teaches contemporary administrative sciences and has received awards and honours from the University of Alberta, Wilfrid Laurier University, Yale University, Lazaridis Institute, China Scholarship Council, Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) Canada, Responsible Research in Business & Management (RRBM) network, Academy of Management, International Association for Chinese Management Research (IACMR), and Academy of International Business.

Here are the slides for a brief introduction about myself and my academic portfolio at the January 2023 Lazaridis Business Faculty Council.

My research program centers on advancing contemporary administrative sciences and modernizing management theory. To this end, I pursue scholarship that is more contextual, integrative, robust, and responsive to societal needs. My broad research interests include: How do organizations work? How can businesses contribute to societal welfare? How can management scholarship help build a better society?

In other words, sitting on the well-decorated business school floor of the academic ivory tower, I work to alleviate and prevent human suffering through my scholarship as a champagne socialist (referencing Canadian rock band Arkells).

Below are some ongoing projects. It takes time to generate, develop, and formulate good academic ideas, stylish and not too stylized. I am energized by the inquiry and optimistic about the output in the coming years and decades before I retire at old age, like His Majesty King Charles of Canada, who plays a ceremonial but crucial role, remotely, multitasking, in the function of three branches of the government, and Their Excellencies the Honourable Presidents of the United States Trump and Biden, who both are credited as liberators of the American people and leaders of the free world. In April 2022, I predicted an epic 2024 comeback win for President Trump, a generational political leader. The forecast was reaffirmed multiple times in writing and teaching. I feel fortunate to have witnessed in my lifetime the two rounds of visionary, strategic, bracing, and pivotal shock therapy he has prescribed and administered with commitment, creativity, and élan for America, the greatest country on earth after Canada that was once on the precipice of becoming a weird neoliberal cultural Marxist banana republic keen on keeping its citizens illiterate.

I am one of the very few of His Majesty's Loyal Socialist Professors / HMLSP (Professeures et professeurs socialistes loyaux de Sa Majesté / PPSLM), propagandized by Castro and his Canadian comrades. I bank with Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce and Royal Bank of Canada, shop at groceries run by Empire Company Limited, and take vacations to Cuba from Kitchener/Waterloo or Toronto. During Laurier's renowned St. Patrick's Day Street Party, I stay at home, cook Fish and Chips, and reflect on the quiet dignity of the Crown. I cheer for the Gaels when they compete with the Golden Hawks. I live near the Queen Street and work near the King Street. Some Chinese and American friends were in awe. They didn't know that in True North, Hobbes and Castro have their fair share of purchases. Relatedly, bilingual, multicultural Monarchism and socialized public education and healthcare coexist in harmony. In the US and Canada, universities are run like a Cuban commune. Even students have their union. Funded mainly by taxpayers, faculties spend a lot of time talking bad about President Trump, and sometimes President Biden, at faculty lounges. Unlike many, I greatly admire both Presidents Trump and Biden. President Trump is more talented in theatrics, North America-style. Both are good guys. Like the People's King and the People's Presidents, and following the path of freedom and liberation they paved, I stand on the people's side of the barricades to the end against all baddies in Paris, Lexington, Derry, Oka or elsewhere when the banner of revolution is flying. The ideal scenario is that I will be on some fancy magazine's 80-Under-80 in the second half of the century before being knighted as a prestigious His Majesty's Royal Professor / HMRP (Professeur Royal de Sa Majesté / PRM) by his heir if not by King Charles himself.

Cao, Ke, Li Tong & Yongzhi Du. On management theory.
Cao, Ke. On China-related research.
Cao, Ke. On the B Corp movement.
Cao, Ke. On management theory.
Cao, Ke. On management education.
Cao, Ke. On sustainability-related issues in the palm oil industry.
On Chinese multinational businesses. With Pál Nyiri, VU Amsterdam. (Tried a grant application once and may try again)
Espahbod, Shervin (former doctoral student) & Ke Cao. Preparing a journal paper submission in the area of transportation and sustainability.

Member of International Expert Panels, Slovak Research and Development Agency, since 2024
Member of Adjudication Committee, Insight Grants competition, Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) Canada, 2024-2025
Institutional Explore Grants, SSHRC Canada, $6,500, Sole Investigator, on revitalizing business and management theory and education, for 2024-2025
Faculty Host, Mitacs Globalink Research Internship program, 2023-2024, 2024-2025
Outstanding Reviewer Award in the 2023 Emerald Literati Awards, selected by the editorial team of European Journal of Management Studies, 2023
Best Reviewer Award, IACMR Biennial Conference, 2023
Best Reviewer Award, Management and Organization Review, 2022
Best Reviewer Award, International Management Division, Academy of Management Annual Meeting, 2022
Travel Assistance Funding, $3,000, Business Department, Lazaridis School of Business & Economics, for 2022-2023
Insight Grants, SSHRC Canada, $31,571, Sole Investigator, on voluntary sustainability certifications of products & businesses, for 2022-2025
Member of Editorial Board, Management and Organization Review, 2022-2025
Member of Editorial Board, European Journal of Management Studies, 2022-2024
Research Seed Grant, Lazaridis Institute, Sole Investigator, $5,494 for 16 months on culture in technology firms, 2021 Spring Competition
Best Doctoral Dissertation Award Finalist, Organizations and the Natural Environment Division, Academy of Management, 2021
Responsible Research in Management Award Finalist, International Association for Chinese Management Research (IACMR) & the Community for Responsible Research in Business and Management (RRBM), 2019-2020
Chinese Government Award for Outstanding Self-financed Students Abroad, China Scholarship Council, 2018-2019
Best Poster Award, Alberta School of Business Ph.D. Research Conference, 2017
Ziegler Endowment Scholarship, University of Alberta, 2017
G.R.A. Rice Graduate Scholarship in Business, University of Alberta, 2016-2017
Attended a Barclays Premier League Trophy Tour, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 2015
Standard First Aid & CPR Certificate (valid for three years), 2015
Beinecke FES Scholarship, Yale University, 2007-2009
Cameron Speth Fellowship, Yale University, 2008
Champion of Mid-Autumn Texas Hold'em Tournament, Association of Chinese Students and Scholars at Yale, 2008
Member of Nanjing Citizen Soccer Team, admitted after winning a citywide soccer skill and knowledge contest; played a match representing the city with a Chinese celebrity team that included Wen Lirong, a silver medalist from the 1996 Olympics, and Huang Jianxiang, a famed sports commentator, 2005
First in the family who completed high school, attended college, went to graduate school, travelled abroad, worked overseas, obtained a Ph.D., and became an academic.
Running Race Finisher (Medal Winner by default):

2024

>October, Marathon, Toronto. 3 hours 48 minutes (Personal Best).

>August, 25km, Stone Cairn Trail Race, Niagara.

>May, Marathon, Ottawa.

>February, 8 miles, Re-Fridgee-Eighter, Waterloo.

2023

>October, Marathon, Toronto.

>May, Half Marathon, Ottawa.

2019

>August, 10k, Edmonton.

My medals are as impressive as a royal's. People say they are beautiful wow. I like beautiful medals. Thank you. Working toward becoming a sub-three-hours marathoner in 2025 at Mississauga, Toronto, or other places in Canada.

Unlicensed, without formal education but qualified to teach the theory and practice of long-distance running for beginners as an academic subject. I have coached myself to the intermediate level for amateur athletes for about two years. To thoroughly enjoy the sport, whenever physically and mentally feasible, close to the finish line, like a pro, I try to showcase a supercharged sprint (e.g., like Sifan Hassan) and raise my arms stylishly (e.g., like Eliud Kipchoge).
Potential races to run in the future: Dubai & Doha (having never been to the Middle East & interests piqued by the book A History of the Arab Peoples by Albert Hourani); Pyongyang (having never been there & intrigued by American Friends Service Committee's DPRK program, President Trump's peacebuilding work with DPRK, Michael Spavor's venture, Bruce Cumings' book The Korea War: A History, and Pablo Picasso's painting Massacre in Korea); La Habana (to compare road race vibes between Ottawa and Havana after reading the book Three Nights in Havana by Robert Wright; the cheers and standing ovations on the streets of Ottawa were invigorating and heartening); Dublin (having never been there & interested in the Irish history after reading Armed Struggle: The History of the IRA by Richard English and the SSHRC-sponsored book Secret Service: Political Policing in Canada From the Fenians to Fortress America by Reg Whitaker, Gregory S. Kealey <Order of Canada>, & Andrew Parnaby); Chicago (fast course; one of the World Marathon Majors; the city's history is sort of based, reminding me of Gerald Horne's books.)
I have taught myself to be a decent beginner golfer capable of delivering a solid and stylish swing on the driving range. By the way, as another matter of fact, President Trump is a "pretty damn good" (quoting President Biden) golfer. I hope people can accept the truth, no matter how unpalatable it may be. Before my golf practice, I sometimes do Trump Dance for warm-up and luck. In China, golf is an expensive bougie sport. A large number of golf-loving business owners and government officials have ended up in prison for golf-related bribery and corruption. Their beautiful golf membership cards and clubs were confiscated and auctioned, their social credit scores being reduced to zero. I thank His Majesty the King for the joy of playing golf in the Region of Waterloo.

1. Academic Review & Editing

On a range of theoretical themes, research settings, and methods, I have reviewed manuscripts for the Academy of Management Discoveries (a total of 5), Academy of Management Review (1), Asia Pacific Journal of Management (2), Business Ethics, the Environment & Responsibility (5), Business Strategy and the Environment (2), Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management (2), Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice (2), European Financial Management (3), European Journal of Management Studies (3), European Journal of Women's Studies (1), Journal of Business Ethics (7), Journal of Business Research (1), Journal of Business Venturing (5), Journal of Management (6), Journal of Management Studies (5), Management and Organization Review (8), Organization Studies (1), Organization & Environment (6), Review of Managerial Science (1), Strategic Entrepreneurship Journal (1), and Strategic Organization (8).

I review research grant applications for the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) Canada. For SSHRC, I reviewed one project in 2022 as an external and expect to read about 16-17 application files as an adjudication committee member in 2024-25 in the area of business studies. In 2021 and 2022, I reviewed book projects for Springer Nature (1; in Law) and the University of Toronto Press (2; in Business). Additionally, I review conference manuscripts of the Academy of Management (AOM) and the International Association for Chinese Management Research (IACMR) consistently.

2. Public Engagement

Panelist, Institutional Leadership and Policy Innovations for Purpose-driven Business: The Case of “B Corps" Paper Development Workshop. Academy of Management Meeting, Chicago. August, 2024. See Slide Deck.
Panel Speaker, "Strategic Planning and Risk Management: Critical Updates for Corporate Counsel" Professional Development Program, hosted and sponsored by Ontario Bar Association and Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP, for in-house corporate counsel audience. June 2022, Toronto. See Slide Deck.
Speaker, about "Research on B Corps: State of the Art" at "First B Academics Event in Spain," organized by EADA Business School, B Lab Spain, and B Academics, for researchers, teachers, and practitioners interested in Certified B Corporations & Benefit Corporations (both commonly known as B Corps). March 2021, Virtual. See Slide Deck.

3. Faculty Roles

Faculty Platform Party or Marshal, Convocation, Lazaridis School of Business and Economics, three sessions, Fall 2022; two sessions, Spring 2024; three sessions, Fall 2024
Stood for election to serve on Vice-President: Student Affairs Search Committee, Laurier, 2024 Fall.
Stood for election to serve on Associate Vice-President: Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Search Committee, Laurier, 2023 Summer. Not elected.
Judge, World of Opportunities (WOO) Student Event, Lazaridis School of Business and Economics, Winter 2024
Semi-final Judge, The Integrated Case Exercise (ICE), Lazaridis School of Business and Economics, four times, Winter 2021, Spring 2021, Winter 2022, and Winter 2023
Member of Doctoral Advisory & Examining Committee, Primary Supervisor of One Essay in the Dissertation "Market Information, Human Behaviour, and Policy: Dissecting the Trucking Freight Spot Markets in Three Essays", Shervin Espahbod, Operations and Decision Sciences, Lazaridis School of Business and Economics, 2021-23. Defended in August, completed in October 2023. Placed as an Assistant Professor of Management Science at Shannon School of Business, Cape Breton University, Canada. Other faculty members: Drs. Shirley Chen (Laurier, Marketing), Stanko Dimitrov (University of Waterloo, Management Sciences), Patricia Goff (Laurier, Political Science; Chair), Michael Haughton (Laurier, Operations and Decision Sciences; Advisor), William Morrison (Laurier, Economics), and Victor Shi (Laurier, Operations and Decision Sciences).
Offered Paid Work Opportunities to Lazaridis (former) Undergraduates: Asad Ali (research & teaching assistance, 2021-22); Maria Yousof (research & teaching assistance, 2021-23)
Offered Paid Work Opportunities to Lazaridis (former) Ph.D. Students: Shervin Espahbod (2023, research with SSHRC grant; 2020, teaching assistance, in operations and decision sciences); Sarah Harcourt (2022, teaching assistance, in marketing); Sakshi Korde (2020, teaching assistance, in marketing)
Supervision of Visiting Research Undergraduate Student: 2024 Summer, Yaqi Li, in International Affairs and International Relations, Jinan University, Guangzhou, China, under the auspices of Mitacs Globalink Research Internship program.
Supervision of Visiting Research Graduate Student: 2022 Fall, Manling Wang, in International Trade, Nanjing University, China, under the auspices of Laurier-Nanjing University student exchange program. Received and accepted an offer of 2023 Finance Ph.D. program admission from HEC Montréal.
Reviewed 4 article submissions for LazSoc Business and Economics Review in 2023
Faculty Affiliate, The Co-operators Center for Business and Sustainability, Wilfrid Laurier University, since 2021
Faculty Advisor, Providing Resources for Information Systems Management (PRISM, student-run program), Lazaridis School of Business and Economics, 2021-22
Submitted recommendation letters and forms for about 60 students

4. Work and Membership in Academia

Facilitator/Mentor, Systems and Sustainability: Certified B Corporations and Benefit Corporations as a Useful Research Context Seminar at the 2023 Academy of Management Annual Meeting in Boston.
Facilitator for one Junior Scholars Group, Breakout Group Sessions, Responsible Research Academic Summit 2021. The Responsible Research in Business & Management (RRBM) initiative is a scholarly tour de force. It is cross-disciplinary and involves multiple participation opportunities such as doctoral scholarship, research training, and paper awards. RRBM pushes the boundaries of research at business schools worldwide. To fellow academics who take seriously scholarly responsibility and intellectual honesty, please consider contributing to and learning from RRBM.
Member of Collaborative Action Groups (CAGs) & Task Groups, The HIBAR (Highly Integrative Basic and Responsive) Research Alliance (HRA). I have become more involved since 2021 and primarily help with matters related to a). Facilitating HIBAR Research Across Disciplines, b). Cross-Organizational Cooperation, and c). Building Awareness and Understanding of HIBAR Research. The HRA is open to any interested individual or organization. See how you can become involved at https:www.hibar-research.org/become-involved
Member of Research Committee, The Global B Corp Academic Community (B Academics), 2022. Chair of Research Committee and Board Member, B Academics, 2021.

I have been a member of the following academic communities:

Academy of Management (AOM), since 2015
Alliance for Research on Corporate Sustainability (ARCS), since 2017
Responsible Research in Business and Management (RRBM) Network, since 2018
Global B Corp Academic Community (B Academics), since 2020
Chinese Management Scholars Community (CMSC), since 2020
Administrative Sciences Association of Canada (ASAC), since 2021
International Association for Chinese Management Research (IACMR), since 2021
International Humanistic Management Association (IHMA), since 2021
Academy of International Business, since 2022

I was on the 2019-20 management faculty job market. The following information may be of use to prospective and fellow academics in pursuing a career in this space:

Invited on-campus interviews: Management Area, University College Dublin (declined after accepting an offer); Management Area, University of Rhode Island; Management Department, New Mexico State University; Policy Area (renamed Strategic Management Area later), Wilfrid Laurier University; Leading People and Organizations Area, Fordham University.

Early-stage interviews not on-campus: Deakin University; Portland State University; University of New Hampshire; University of Arkansas; University of Memphis; University of Manitoba; Boise State University; Kansas State University; University of Texas at San Antonio.

Biography / Academic Background

Research Interests / Ongoing Projects

Awards and Achievements

Student Opportunities / Supervising

Selected Publications

Courses Taught

Academic Service

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