“I am thrilled to welcome Nathan and Wenxi to these roles and to work closely with them to continue to advance the Asper School of Business’ mission to offer exceptional business education here in Manitoba,” says Dean Bruno Silvestre. “Both highly regarded in their teaching and research, Nathan and Wenxi demonstrate impressive drive, innovation and bring unique insights from their years of experience. The Asper School of Business is really well-served for the years to come.”

Associate Dean of Professional Graduate Programs and Executive Education – Nathan Greidanus

As Associate Dean of Professional Graduate Programs and Executive Education, Greidanus will oversee strategic initiatives related to the MBA, MCSM and MFin programs, offered by the Stu Clark Graduate School, and the James W. Burns Executive Education Centre. Greidanus has previously taken on this portfolio, serving as acting associate dean in 2023.

During his 15 years of service at the Asper School of Business, Greidanus has been involved in professional graduate programs and executive education at both administrative and teaching levels, chairing the MBA committee from 2013 to 2015 and later serving on the professional graduate programs committee.

Greidanus is also the academic director for Manitoba’s Director Education Program, a program jointly offered by Asper Executive Education, the Institute of Corporate Directors and the University of Toronto’s Rotman School of Management.

The Associates Fellow in Entrepreneurship, Greidanus is motivated by the desire to increase societal well-being through sustainable economic development in both his research and teaching. His research focuses on entrepreneurship, international business strategy and sustainable development and governance, with recent publications exploring ADHD and entrepreneurship and economic inequality and entrepreneurial activities.

Says Greidanus, “For over a decade I have had a strong passion for growing and supporting our professional programs. I’m excited to continue this work as associate dean, and plan to focus on the quality and student experience within our current and to-be-developed offerings.”

Associate Dean of Teaching and Learning – Wenxi Pu

Taking on the new Teaching and Learning portfolio for the Asper School of Business, Pu will support innovation and improvements in teaching to elevate student learning both inside and outside of the classroom, working with all faculty members to embed quality, development, benchmarking and review processes across the Asper School.

Since joining the Asper School of Business in 2020, Pu has crafted four courses in management information systems, incorporating cutting-edge technologies and experiential learning into his teaching. In his previous role at Clemson University, Pu won multiple teaching awards for his approach to business statistics and management information systems courses.

The Associates Fellow in Innovation, Pu researches topics like stigma and mental health in the ever-evolving context of machine learning and artificial intelligence (AI). His recent work has examined social media, post-traumatic stress disorder and hiring and media coverage of climate change.

Pu looks forward to bringing his technological expertise to the role, preparing faculty and students for an AI-infused future.

“I believe what we teach, how we teach, and how we test will go through a vast transformation, and I hope to facilitate that transformation here at Asper by building AI-powered platforms for our instructors and students, taking advantage of experiential learning and working closely with companies in and beyond Winnipeg. I also aim to reinforce sustainability and human flourishing in our teaching and learning practices,” he says.

Nathan Greidanus has been named the Associates Fellow in Entrepreneurship, Wenxi Pu has been named the Associates Fellow in Innovation, and Raj Manchanda has been named the Associates Fellow in Sustainability. The new Associates Fellows were honoured at a celebration in the Drake Centre last week.

Bruno Silvestre, Dean of the Asper School of Business, comments on the significance of the fellowships and the Associates Achievement Awards.

“As a world-class business school, the Asper School of Business is driven by our connections to the local business community. By investing in Asper-led research, teaching and professional collaboration, the Associates support our mission to lead in knowledge creation and produce scholarship that makes impact on the practice of management. Congratulations to Nathan, Wenxi and Raj for this well-deserved recognition!”

The Associates Fellow in Entrepreneurship: Nathan Greidanus

Nathan Greidanus is an associate professor in the department of business administration and is currently serving as the acting associate dean of professional graduate programs and executive education.

Greidanus’ research interests lie at the intersection of entrepreneurship, international business strategy and sustainable development. His recent work has examined the connections between ADHD and entrepreneurship, co-authored with 2022 Associates Fellow Chi Liao. In the classroom, Greidanus includes a strong experiential component, with his Entrepreneurship and Innovation class in particular offering students opportunities to apply in-class theory to real-world contexts.

The Associates Fellow in Innovation: Wenxi Pu

An assistant professor of management information systems in the department of accounting and finance, Wenxi Pu examines machine learning algorithms, artificial intelligence and stigma.

His research broadly focuses on the transformative impacts of IT innovations on organizations and individuals. In recent work, he explores how mental health stigma can impact hiring assessments, focusing specifically on post-traumatic stress disorder and veterans seeking employment. Pu engages with AI-driven technology in the classroom and in his research, advocating for students, researchers and practitioners alike to learn more about emerging technologies in order to better work alongside them.

The Associates Fellow in Sustainability: Raj Manchanda

Raj Manchanda is a professor in Asper’s marketing department. His research interests include the role of negative affect in marketing, as well as sustainability and social marketing.

In his recent work, co-authored by fellow Asper professor Bruno Dyck, Savanna Vagianos [BComm(Hons)/19, MSc/23] and Michèle Bernardin [BComm(Hons)/21], Manchanda has examined sustain-centric approaches to marketing. His research and teaching challenge current dominant world views, seeking to re-envision many of the fundamental concepts and frameworks of business, and specifically marketing.

Emerging Topics Speaker Series

As Associates Fellows, Greidanus, Pu and Manchanda will pursue their creative, impactful scholarship and soon share their work with the academic and business community through the Emerging Topics Speaker Series.

The 2022 Associates Fellows—Sean Buchanan, Kelsey Taylor and Chi Liao—have been presenting their work throughout this academic year, with Buchanan discussing “the new corporate activism,” and Liao set to present a lecture entitled “ADHD in Finance and Entrepreneurship” on January 24, 2024.

Associates Teaching Achievement Awards

In addition to awarding these multi-year research fellowships, the Associates took the opportunity to recognize excellence in the classroom with the Associates Teaching Awards, valued at $5,000 each. Narendra Malalgoda and Judy Jayasuriya each received an award recognizing their commitment to engaging and transformative teaching.

Dean Silvestre says: “Congratulations to Narendra and Judy! The teaching excellence that you practice every day in our classrooms enhances the learning experience of Asper students. Thank you for you continued commitment to training our business and community leaders of tomorrow.”

Associates Achievement Award recipient Narendra Malalgoda with Denise Zaporzan

Malalgoda, assistant professor of supply chain management, is described by students as an engaging and effective teacher who makes theoretical concepts accessible through a deft ability to demonstrate them through real-world examples.

As a coach, he led a team to first place at the Association for Supply Chain Management (ASCM) London Student Case Competition. His willingness to mentor students and investment in their personal and professional development have left a lasting impression on his students.

Associates Achievement Award recipient Judy Jayasuriya

Jayasuriya, lead of experiential learning at Asper, has already made a name for herself at as an exceptional case coach and mentor, receiving the J. Pierre Brunet Coach Award from the John Molson School of Business earlier this year. Jayasuriya has also built a robust volunteer base for case competition coaching, judging and mentorship, exceeding 100 individuals annually.

In support of her nomination for the Associates Achievement Award in Teaching, her students emphasize her attention to training well-rounded business professionals, emphasizing both hard and soft skills that allow them to flourish.

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Comprised of 365 senior executives, the Associates have been a driving force in advancing business education at the Asper School of Business since 1982. The Associates Achievement Awards and the Associates Fellowship represent their commitment to giving back to the Asper School of Business and the business community broadly.