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Berna Polat Aksu , Ph.D.
Professional Overview
Bio: Dr. Berna Polat Aksu is an endowed professor of strategy and entrepreneurship and Chair of the Management and Entrepreneurship Department at Saint Mary’s College School of Economics and Business Administration. She is currently serving as Associate Dean of the School.
Dr. Aksu received her Ph.D. degree in Strategic Management from the University of Washington in Seattle. She also holds a Master of Business Administration degree in Finance and Marketing from San Francisco State University, and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science and International Relations from Bosphorus University in Istanbul, Turkey. She has taught and conducted research in the areas of strategy, global management, entrepreneurship, corporate governance, ethics, and sustainability.
Dr. Aksu has been teaching executive, graduate, and undergraduate students for more than 20 years. She is the recipient of a 2015 Saint Mary's College Teaching Excellence Award. Over her career, Dr. Aksu has worked with and consulted for startups as well as large corporations. Her research has been published in edited books and international journals such as the Academy of Management Discoveries, Journal of International Finance and Economics, Frontiers of Entrepreneurship Research, and the Journal of Learning in Higher Education.
Specialties: strategy, global management, entrepreneurial mindset, top management teams, creativity and innovation, corporate governance
Courses Taught:
- Business Strategy
- Competitive Strategy
- Creativity, Innovation, and the Entrepreneurial Mindset
- Doing Business in World Regions (Travel Course - Italy, Spain)
- Entrepreneurial Concepts and Mindset
- Entrepreneurship for Innovators
- Global Business Strategy
- International Business
Publications:
- Aponte-Moreno, M., Aksu, B. P. (in press). Understanding Immigrant Leaders in the United States: A Preliminary Study. Cultural Leadership (vol. forthcoming). San Diego, CA: Cognella.
- Hadani, M., Aksu, B., Coombes, S. (2021). 15 minutes of fame? The impact of media visibility and media reputation on the relationship between corporate political activity and government contract awards. Academy of Management Discoveries, 7(1), 57-84.
Education
- PhD, Strategic Management (Minors in Research Methods and Organizational Behavior). University of Washington
- MBA, Marketing and Finance. San Francisco State University
- BA, Political Science and International Relations. Bosphorus University