Maureen Scully

Maureen Scully is an Associate Professor in the Department of Management at UMass Boston, where she holds the Sherry H. Penney Chair in Leadership. Her work focuses on meritocracy, inequality, organizational change, and diversity at work, with a particular interest in how "tempered radicals" can drive social justice initiatives from within traditional corporate structures.

• PhD in Business (Organizational Behavior), Stanford University
• MA in Sociology, Stanford University
• BA in Social Studies, Harvard-Radcliffe Colleges

Her research explores the ideological underpinnings of inequality, the role of insider social change agents, and collaborative leadership models across corporate, nonprofit, and government sectors. Recent publications address topics like class reproduction in schools, political dimensions of organizing, and strategies for catalyzing social and environmental action.

Her 2020-2024 publications highlight collaborative ecosystems, labor process critiques of the sharing economy, and institutional approaches to privilege work. Earlier works examine bystander training, employee resource groups, and meritocratic contradictions.

• 2020: Joanne Martin Trailblazer Award, Academy of Management
• 2020: Donald Shephard Research Award
• 2018: Peter McClure Award for Diversity Research
• 2010: Best Paper Finalist, Academy of Management
• 2000: Breaking the Frame Best Article Award

She has served as Interim Dean of the College of Management and Founding Director of its PhD program, while contributing to the Center for Social Policy and co-authoring widely used academic texts like Managing for the Future and Reader in Gender, Work and Organization.