G. Richard Shell

G. Richard Shell is the Thomas Gerrity Professor of Legal Studies, Business Ethics, and Management at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. He has served as Chair of the Legal Studies and Business Ethics Department from 1995-2000 and 2012-2021, and has been a faculty member since 1986. He directs Wharton's Executive Negotiation Workshop and Strategic Persuasion Workshop, and has consulted with major organizations including Google, Johnson & Johnson, the FBI's Crisis Negotiation Unit, and many Fortune 500 companies.

His educational background includes a JD with Honors from the University of Virginia and a BA with Honors from Princeton University. His early career included diverse experiences as a social worker, housing relocation counselor, market researcher, account executive, law clerk for Judge Levin H. Campbell, and associate at Hill & Barlow law firm in Boston.

Professor Shell's research focuses on negotiation, persuasion, influence, business ethics, leadership, moral psychology, and the meaning of personal and professional success. His work explores the psychology of belief states in negotiation, organizational culture in conflict resolution, and ethical leadership. He has developed practical frameworks for ethical decision-making, most recently articulated in his Conscience Code methodology for maintaining integrity in challenging workplace situations.

His publications show a consistent trajectory from foundational negotiation theory toward increasingly sophisticated integration of ethics, psychology, and practical leadership development. His recent work emphasizes the psychological dimensions of ethical decision-making and the practical implementation of values-based leadership in complex organizational contexts.

• Business Book of the Year and Personal Development Book of the Year Awards for Springboard (2013)
• Wharton Excellence in Teaching Award (2018-2024)
• Hauck Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching (2009)
• Multiple Wharton Undergraduate and MBA Teaching Awards spanning over three decades
• Book Award for Excellence for Bargaining for Advantage (1999)

Professor Shell has taught tens of thousands of students and executives from diverse professional backgrounds, including Silicon Valley entrepreneurs, Fortune 500 CEOs, FBI hostage negotiators, Navy SEALs, and United Nations peacekeepers. His work has been cited by the United States Supreme Court, and he regularly addresses major professional organizations including the American Bankers Association, Army War College, and Chief of Naval Operations' Senior Strategy Group.