Meet the Muse

I am an Associate Professor of Entrepreneurship and De La Vega Faculty Fellow for Innovation and Entrepreneurship at Northern Illinois University. I have professional interests, experiences, and expertise in empathy, design thinking, future thinking, lean philosophy, business model designs, market intermediaries, competition, cooperation, and coopetition. In addition to teaching these topics on a regular basis, I also provide consulting service to startups and deliver workshops within the US and internationally. I have helped more than 100 startups for ideation, business opportunity creation, creating a track record, starting and growing sales, pitch deck preparation, startup finances, connecting and presenting to angel investors and venture capital firms. I also regularly volunteer across non-profits and social ventures to help them with various entrepreneurial efforts, train young entrepreneurs, and serve as a judge in pitch competitions.

I received my PhD in Management from Louisiana State University. I earned my bachelor’s degree in Business Administration and my master’s degree in Production Management and Marketing from Marmara University in Istanbul, Turkey. I had entrepreneurial experiences and worked in the advertising industry before my academic career. I currently teach courses on Creativity, Innovation, and Entrepreneurship at Northern Illinois University. I have expertise in contemporary management and entrepreneurship methods including Agile, Design Thinking, Lean Startup, Lateral Thinking, Future Thinking, Business Model Canvas, and Technology Commercialization, among others. My research interests center on entrepreneurship, empathy, and interorganizational relationships. Specifically, I study entrepreneurial ecosystems and intermediaries; sustainability and employee ownership; empathy across contexts; inter-startup competition, cooperation, and coopetition; and geographic industry clusters. My work has been published in major management and entrepreneurship journals including Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, Journal of Management, Long Range Planning, Business Strategy & the Environment, International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behavior & Research, Journal of Service Management, and Journal of Management History, among others. I also provide startup consulting to a select group of traditional and social startups as well as non-profit organizations from around the world. I have many teaching and research awards including, Sage Leadership Award, Best Social Entrepreneurship Paper, Excellence in Online Teaching Award, Golden Apple MBA Teaching Award, and Honors Fellowship.