The research of Olga Hawn lies at the intersection of strategy and organization theory, business and society.
In particular, Dr. Hawn is engaged in multidisciplinary research on non-market strategy, including environmental, social and corporate governance activities of the firm with a focus on the strategic impact of such activities, their antecedents and consequences in developed and emerging markets.
Dr. Hawn is the faculty director of the Center for Sustainable Enterprise.
Other interests include international expansion of multinationals from emerging markets, such as how firms from BRICS can succeed in cross-border M&As and overcome the negative perceptions caused by their origin as well as the role of business incubators in emerging markets.
Dr. Hawn’s teaching interests include strategy, global strategy and emerging markets, non-market strategy, corporate sustainability and responsibility.
An award-winning teacher at UNC Kenan-Flagler, she received honorable mentions for the 2015 and 2016 Page Prize for Excellence in Sustainability Business Education for her MBA and PhD courses in sustainability strategy.
Her research has been published in the Strategic Management Journal, Academy of Management Journal and Research Policy. She serves on the board of the Strategic Management Journal, which presented her with the outstanding editorial board member award in 2014.
The Social Issues in Management Division of the Academy of Management gave her the best paper award in 2012. She was a finalist for the Haynes Prize for the Most Promising Scholar Under 40 from the Academy of International Business in 2014.The Alliance for Research on Corporate Sustainability (ARCS) honored her with annual conference outstanding paper awards in 2014, 2015 and 2016.
Prior to joining UNC, Dr. Hawn taught strategy and policy at Boston University.
She received her PhD from Duke, a master’s degree in management research from Saïd Business School at Oxford University, and a master’s degree in international business and a BA in economics from the Plekhanov Russian University of Economics.