Jelena Cerar

Dr. Jelena Cerar is a tenure-track Assistant Professor at the Institute for International Business (IIB) at WU Vienna. She has held visiting postdoctoral positions at Copenhagen Business School, University of Southern California (USC Marshall School of Business), and the Institute for Artificial Intelligence Research and Development of Serbia. Her academic career is rooted in international business, with a focus on decision-making and behavioral strategy in multinational corporations (MNCs), leveraging AI, digitalization, and cognitive science.

Dr. Cerar earned her doctorate with honors from WU Vienna, focusing on headquarters resource allocation within MNCs. Her dissertation received the

• Stephan Koren Best Dissertation Award 2021
• Finalist for the Peter J. Buckley and Mark Casson AIB Dissertation Award

She also completed the UN Regional Academy, earning the

• Best Student of the Year Award
• Ban Ki-moon Global Citizen Award

Her master's degree from the Erasmus Mundus EGEI program in Economics included studies in China, Belgium, and Italy as a European Commission scholarship recipient, and her undergraduate studies were in Economics and International Relations in Belgrade, Serbia.

Dr. Cerar's research interests center on decision-making and behavioral strategy in MNCs, with a particular emphasis on AI, digitalization, and cognition in strategic contexts. She also investigates headquarters-subsidiary relations and international business research methods, especially laboratory and field experiments. Her ongoing research projects include:

• Reliance on AI in Augmented Strategic Decision-making: Navigating Cultural and National Dynamics
• Cognitive Exhaustion and Reliance on AI Advice in Multi-Decision Settings
• Strategic Decision-preparation Capabilities in Hierarchical Problem-solving: Causes, Effects, and the Role of Generative AI
• Problems of Hypothesis Testing in International Business Research
• Experimental Design in International Business Research: Challenges, Opportunities, and Pathways for Advancement

Her work has been published in top-tier journals such as the

• Journal of International Business Studies
• Journal of Management Studies
• Journal of International Management

and recognized with awards and nominations from the Academy of International Business (AIB) and the Academy of Management.

Dr. Cerar has taught at the bachelor's, master's, and Ph.D. levels across Austria (WU Vienna, JKU Linz), Montenegro, Poland, Serbia, and the UK. She has also contributed to research methods webinars organized by AIB. Her teaching excellence includes:

• WU Innovative Teaching Award
• Finalist for the Academy of International Business Teaching Innovation Award

Prior to her academic career, she gained industry experience as a business development manager and strategy consultant in international firms based in Germany, Austria, and the USA. She co-founded and served as CEO of Teach for Serbia, part of the global Teach for All network, and worked as Program Manager for CEE and Emerging Markets at WU Vienna. Her international experience spans living, working, and studying in 10 countries, shaping her global perspective in research and teaching.