Qian Gu

Qian Gu is an Associate Professor at J. Mack Robinson College of Business, Georgia State University, specializing in strategy, international business, and entrepreneurship with a focus on emerging-market firms' strategic responses to institutional environments, venture capital, and family businesses. Her interdisciplinary research appears in top-tier journals including Administrative Science Quarterly, Strategic Management Journal, and Journal of International Business Studies.

Education:

• Ph.D. from National University of Singapore

Her research examines how firms navigate global competition, government intervention, and technological change, particularly through the lenses of venture capital investment dynamics and family business governance. Recent work employs innovative methodologies like deep learning-based semiotic analysis of cultural goods and longitudinal studies of VC portfolio diversification, revealing nuanced relationships between institutional contexts and firm performance.

Her publications demonstrate consistent focus on emerging economies, with increasing attention to dynamic perspectives in family business governance and the contingent effects of geographic/institutional distance on international ventures. The research trajectory shows methodological sophistication through mixed-method approaches combining large-scale datasets with institutional theory frameworks.

Scientific Recognition:

• Best 40 Under 40 Business Professors by Poets & Quants (2020)
• John H. Dunning Fellowship from University of Reading (2022)
• Seven-time GSU IIB Professor of the Year Award recipient
• SMS Best Reviewer Award and MOR Best Reviewer Award
• IACMR Li Ning Dissertation Proposal Award
• Runner-up for AOM Douglas Nigh Award and AOM HKUST Best Paper Award

Professor Gu teaches corporate strategy and international business across undergraduate, MBA, EMBA, Master of International Business, DBA, and Ph.D. programs. She serves as Associate Editor for Global Strategy Journal and Journal of Management Studies, Senior Editor for Management and Organization Review and Quarterly Management Journal, and sits on editorial boards of Academy of Management Journal, Journal of World Business, and Strategic Entrepreneurship Journal. Her academic leadership extends through active participation in international business research centers at Robinson College.