Dr. Trevor Israelsen is an Assistant Professor of Organization Theory at the Smeal College of Business at Penn Sate. He received his PhD in Management and Organization Studies from the University of Victoria. Prior to this he worked as an Assistant Director of the Institute for Entrepreneurship at Miami University. He completed masters and bachelors degrees in History from Miami University and Utah State University.

Expertise

Dr. Israelsen studies the management of history, tradition, legacy, heritage, and inheritance in organizations. He uses qualitative and historical research methods to study forms of social and economic organization that achieve competitive position and resilience not only through economic efficiency but also by becoming embedded in an enduring community of stakeholders. Such institutions can include, for example, multigenerational family businesses, trust-owned businesses, business groups, foundations, heritage brands, estates, religious organizations, family dynasties, arts organizations, crafts and trades, community-based organizations, and other organizations dedicated to preserving a historical or cultural inheritance.

Education

Ph.D., Management and Organization Studies, University of Victoria, 2023

M.A., History, Miami University, 2016

B.A., History (Spanish), Utah State University, 2014

Courses Taught

ENGR 425 – New Venture Creation (3)
Via problem-based learning, students define new business ventures to meet current market needs, develop business models, and present to various stakeholders. The goal of New Venture Creation is to better prepare undergraduate students to be leaders in adaptive, globally-minded, technology-savvy organizations. The course is structured so students develop skills that are of high value in any workplace: leadership skills, self-efficacy, creativity and the ability to deal with ambiguity. Upon course completion, students will have a working knowledge of traditional and non-traditional ways for identifying a new product or business opportunity, quantifying the potential, understanding the key competitive factors, researching the audience, and producing a convincing plan for financing and launch. Students who want to augment the skills and knowledge from their major with the ability to develop a new product/service/process, will find New Venture Creation a valuable course. This is a novel problem-based learning (PBL) course, where the learning is student-centered, with faculty acting primarily in the role of facilitators. Active/Experiential learning happens in this course because students develop ownership of their venture concepts and are fully responsible for the genesis of ideas.

IST 425 – New Venture Creation (3)
Via problem-based learning, students define new business ventures to meet current market needs, develop business models, and present to various stakeholders. The goal of New Venture Creation is to better prepare undergraduate students to be leaders in adaptive, globally-minded, technology-savvy organizations. The course is structured so students develop skills that are of high value in any workplace: leadership skills, self-efficacy, creativity and the ability to deal with ambiguity. Upon course completion, students will have a working knowledge of traditional and non-traditional ways for identifying a new product or business opportunity, quantifying the potential, understanding the key competitive factors, researching the audience, and producing a convincing plan for financing and launch. Students who want to augment the skills and knowledge from their major with the ability to develop a new product/service/process, will find New Venture Creation a valuable course. This is a novel problem-based learning (PBL) course, where the learning is student-centered, with faculty acting primarily in the role of facilitators. Active/Experiential learning happens in this course because students develop ownership of their venture concepts and are fully responsible for the genesis of ideas.

MGMT 425 – New Venture Creation (3)
Via problem-based learning, students define new business ventures to meet current market needs, develop business models, and present to various stakeholders. The goal of New Venture Creation is to better prepare undergraduate students to be leaders in adaptive, globally-minded, technology-savvy organizations. The course is structured so students develop skills that are of high value in any workplace: leadership skills, self-efficacy, creativity and the ability to deal with ambiguity. Upon course completion, students will have a working knowledge of traditional and non-traditional ways for identifying a new product or business opportunity, quantifying the potential, understanding the key competitive factors, researching the audience, and producing a convincing plan for financing and launch. Students who want to augment the skills and knowledge from their major with the ability to develop a new product/service/process, will find New Venture Creation a valuable course. This is a novel problem-based learning (PBL) course, where the learning is student-centered, with faculty acting primarily in the role of facilitators. Active/Experiential learning happens in this course because students develop ownership of their venture concepts and are fully responsible for the genesis of ideas.

Selected Publications

Suddaby R., Israelsen T., Mitchell J. R., Lim D., "Entrepreneurial Visions as Rhetorical History: A Diegetic Narrative Model of Stakeholder Enrollment." Academy of Management Review, vol. 48, no. 2, 2023, pp. 36
Suddaby R., Israelsen T., Bastien F., Saylors R., Coraiola D., "Rhetorical History as Institutional Work." Journal of Management Studies, vol. 60, no. 1, 2023, pp. 36
Hua W., Mitchell R. K., Mitchell B., Mitchell J. R., Israelsen T., "Momentum for entrepreneurial internationalization: Friction at the interface between international and domestic institutions." Journal of Business Venturing, vol. 37, no. 6, 2022, pp. 19
Mitchell J. R., Israelsen T., Mitchell R. K., Lim D., "Stakeholder Identification as Entrepreneurial Action: The Social Process of Stakeholder Enrollment in New Venture Emergence." Journal of Business Venturing, vol. 63, no. 6, 2021, pp. 18

Honors and Awards