Get to know the research fellows in the Engaged Practitioner Scholar program in Weatherhead School of Management’s Doctor of Business Administration program.
George Awad, DM
Founder & Principal
Gibraltar Capital
George Awad is the founder and principal of Gibraltar Capital Corporation, a wealth management and advisory firm providing investment and business advice to wealthy, internationally based families. Awad has extensive operating experience in running large, global businesses across the full suite of consumer financial services products. As the Chief Sales and Marketing officer for GE Money, Awad was the architect of the growth of GE Money to a $20 billion company by introducing hundreds of financial products in more than 50 countries. Awad served as CEO, Consumer Finance for Citigroup, with prior positions as CEO, North America Cards and CEO, Global Consumer Group Europe Middle East and Africa. Awad was instrumental in leading transactions that generated over $30 Billion in capital for Citi during the financial crisis. He serves as a director of TransUnion and has served as Chairman of the Board of Walter Investments and on the board of Ditech. Awad Earned a Doctor of Management from APP as well as an MBA in Finance from the University of Pittsburgh in Pennsylvania and holds a BS in Civil Engineering from the American University of Beirut.
Awad’s research is focused on operational excellence and organic revenue growth.
Michael C. Bellissimo, PhD
Founder
BarBell Ventures
As founder of BarBell Ventures, Michael Bellissimo mentors, advises, and invests in health-tech startups that are at the leading edge of innovation in healthcare such as access, behavioral health, operations and community health. Before BarBell, Bellissimo spent the past decade in senior leadership roles in IT, operations and finance at Humana and The Cleveland Clinic working to help solve current challenges to healthcare access, efficiency and effectiveness.
Bellissimo’s dissertation: “Reliability and Resilience at U.S. Hospitals During the Global COVID-19 Pandemic: A Mixed Methods Study on the Effect of Leader and Team Behavior on Crisis Response” included qualitative interviews and a quantitative survey of hospital leaders and teams across the U.S., and a case study on the Veterans Health Administration’s (VHA) approach to the extreme crisis of the pandemic.
Bellissimo’s proposed research project(s) include: Applying the principles of QCA on the qualitative data already gathered to understand which theory or theories of management are most salient to extreme crises. Developing a case study on the largest U.S. private healthcare system’s (Common Spirit) pandemic response in order to facilitate a compare and contrast opportunity with the study of the VHA already completed. Studying other country’s pandemic response where public health is the norm such as the UK (NHS), Canada and the Nordic region.
Prior to receiving his PhD from APP, Bellissimo received his MBA from Northeastern University and BA from The University of Pennsylvania.
Jennifer R. Bishop, PhD
Senior Business Risk and Control Manager
Wells Fargo Bank
Charlotte, NC
Dr. Jennifer R. Bishop holds the distinction of PhD of Design and Sustainability, Fowler Center Fellow and Non-Profit Management Fellow from the Weatherhead School of Management, APP. A result oriented, senior executive with over 20+ years of global management consulting, client relationship management, leadership coaching and technical experience across a variety of industries with main focus in financial services.
Dr. Jennifer R. Bishop is the founder of Triumphant Steps, a non-profit organization with a mission to break the cycle of poverty for women and their children by empowering them to transform their lives and excel to create prosperous and self-sustainable futures.
Her interests are in accentuating the strengths of people, specifically African American women in Corporate America through career advancement and success through non-traditional methods. Dr. Jennifer R. Bishop's research goal is to impact the traditional mindset that prevents the success of African American women in middle and senior management positions with foundational skills but not the opportunities in Corporate America. She seeks to create spaces to promote the uniqueness of individuals and encourage authentic participation. The primary stakeholders are African American women in middle and senior management positions and C-Suite executives and investigating these disparities to construct sponsorship programs that not only focus on profitability but also on the social well-being of the individual. Her vision is to investigate and open the “unspoken” dialogue that incorporates inclusiveness rather than exclusiveness. While at same time understanding the differences and behavioral impact of these women to gain knowledge on some of the challenges, they encountered different to their colleagues, as well as success factors that enabled them to continue to advance to Senior Level Management positions.
Philip Cola, PhD
Phil Cola is an associate professor of management and adjunct assistant professor of medicine at APP (CWRU). He teaches qualitative and quantitative research methods, leadership and research dissemination. Presently, he is also the associate director of academic affairs for the Doctor of Business Administration program at Weatherhead as well as the director of the Regulatory Knowledge and Support core of the CWRU Clinical Translational Science Award.
His research interests include the responsible conduct of research, factors influencing success of physician scientists in academic medical centers, the translational science paradigm, workforce development, physician identity and nonprofit organizations. As a research fellow, Cola is investigating the life cycle of mentorship in the translational sciences and the importance of intergenerativity in knowledge creation.
Cola earned a PhD in Management at APP and a master’s degree in experimental psychology and research method and design from Cleveland State University.
Ronald G. Fountain, DM, MBA, MSPOD
Founder & Managing Partner
The CommonWealth Group
Cleveland, OH
Ronald Fountain has more than 60 years of business experience including commercial banking, executive financial and operating management, as a graduate school of business faculty and Dean, consulting, active investor, and leadership development coach. He has served on more than 20 not-for-profit as well as private and public company boards as a board member or as Board Chair. He is a committed life-long learner who believes that service is the obligation we assume when we are empowered with knowledge and currently is a coach, consultant, entrepreneur and teacher.
Fountain earned his BS from Valdosta State University in GA and his DM, MBA and MSPOD all from the Weatherhead School of Management. He completed the Corporate Finance Program at the Harvard Business School and holds several coaching certifications.
Fountain’s DM Applied Research Project research was on exploring why errors, once confirmed, are repeated by individuals and organizations. His current research interest is related to his ARP and is on how Cognitive Dissonance limits professional coaching outcomes, organizational change efforts and limits the success of enterprise decisions and actions such as mergers, acquisitions and divestitures.
Yolonda Freeman-Hildreth, PA-C, PhD
Research Fellow
Assistant Professor
University of Detroit Mercy
Detroit, Michigan
Yolonda Freeman-Hildreth is an assistant professor at the University of Detroit Mercy. She teaches in the graduate Physician Assistant (PA) program preparing students to become licensed, practicing PAs. Prior to teaching, she practiced as a PA for over 16 years, specializing in Internal Medicine. Additional roles include managing a Coumadin clinic and practicing outpatient internal medicine. She was awarded the Internal Medicine Physician Assistant of the Year for overall service.
Freeman-Hildreth's research centers around gaining a further understanding of the relationship between social interactions and Type 2 diabetes outcomes. She wishes to explore which types of social interactions and relationships facilitate behavioral change in individuals with T2DM. Her research has been published in and presented at AOM, American Academy of PA's conference, and The Annual Conference on Diabetes. Her goal is to provide healthcare professionals and healthcare management with greater insight into the burdens and challenges impacting patients with chronic disease.
Freeman-Hildreth earned her PhD in Management from APP, Weatherhead School of Management, in May 2019. She holds an MBA from Northwood University in Midland, Michigan in 2014, a Master of Science (MS) in Physician Assistant Studies at the University of Detroit-Mercy in Detroit, Michigan in 2003, and a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) at Michigan State University in East Lansing, Michigan in 1998.
Carl Greppin, PhD
Managing Partner
Transpac Access
Cleveland, OH
Carl Greppin is Managing Partner of Transpac Access, a supply chain management consulting firm. He is also an adjunct professor at John Carroll University.
Greppin’s research interest is corruption. His dissertation examined how executives decide to bribe, and whether bribing is beneficial or harmful to the bribers and their firms. For his fellowship, he will use World Bank Data to explore how external factors affect bribing activity and how bribing activity affects firm performance in highly corrupt countries across the world.
Greppin presented How U.S. executive expatriates work in environments of pervasive corruption at the Academy of Management Proceedings (2017). He published How expatriates work in dangerous environments of pervasive corruption in the Journal of Global Mobility (2017). He was selected to present What Motivates Participation in Corruption and How Does Such Participation Affect Firm Performance? at the Academy of Management Proceedings (2020).
Greppin received an AB in Political Economy from Princeton University (1987), an MBA from University of Chicago (1991), and a PhD in Management from APP (2020).
Matthew J. Gymer, DM
Matthew Gymer is Senior Product Manager for SAS Global Health & Life Sciences. SAS Health Viya is a cloud native AI, analytic and data management platform used by leading global health & life science organizations.
His applied research interests include product and business model design for the responsible and equitable use of AI in healthcare. As a research fellow, Gymer is investigating the implementation of various technology innovations within healthcare settings and their impact on clinical quality and safety outcomes for patients.
Gymer earned a Doctor of Management from APP's Weatherhead School of Management and Master of Liberal Arts from Harvard University.
Susan Johnson, PhD
Research Fellow
Susan Johnson has over 20 years of experience leading project teams for global Fortune 100 companies.
Johnson research's team communication and the challenges of maintaining alignment across multiple disciplines on complex projects. Through this fellowship, Johnson is continuing her study of how identity and social reality affect team performance.
Johnson has presented her research at the PMI Global Conference (2019), Engaged Management Scholarship Conference (2019), OCIS Doctoral Consortium (2019) and she will present at the Academy of Management Proceedings (2020).
Johnson earned her PhD in Management from APP, an MBA in Finance from Northeastern University and a BA in Operations Management from Boston University.
Ted Ladd, PhD
Dean of Research and Professor of Entrepreneurship
Hult International Business School
Ted Ladd is the Dean of Research and Professor of Entrepreneurship at Hult International Business School, and an Instructor of Entrepreneurship at Harvard University. He has founded, led and participated in several venture-backed high-tech start-up ventures. The most was acquired by Google as the foundation for its smartwatch WearOS. He serves on the boards of several public, private, and nonprofit boards for energy generation and economic development in his home state of Wyoming. Ladd holds a PhD from Case Western Reserve, an MBA from Wharton, a masters in international economics with honors from Johns Hopkins University, and a BA cum laude with distinction from Cornell as a triple major in biology, government, and technical sociology.
His research focuses on best practices for entrepreneurs to design new business models, especially multi-sided platforms, and has appeared in several academic and practitioner channels, including the Harvard Business Review, Stanford Social Impact Review, Academy of Management's annual and specialized conferences, USASBE, Wharton Business Radio, and Forbes, where he is a regular contributor. His full publication record is available on . The project at the heart of his fellowship is an examination of the specific cognitive drivers for buyers to find the ideal seller on a platform, and then bypass the platform to consummate the transaction. The project is titled, “The Determinants of Disintermediation."
Chris Lamb, PhD
Adjunct Professor of Management
Fairleigh Dickenson University
New Jersey, USA
Chris Lamb has over 30 years of experience operating in a dynamic, international competitive business environment with responsibility for: complex transactions, business development, R&D, operations, sales & marketing. Chris currently consults biotech startups through his consultant company, BioSolutions Services LLC. He is also an Adjunct Professor of Management at Fairleigh Dickenson University.
Lamb earned his PhD in Management from APP, Weatherhead School of Management, in May 2018. His research has focused on the management of chronic diseases and the role of teams in successful Biotech start-ups. His current research is to explore the link between health outcomes, cost, shared decision making and improved quality of chronic care.
Angel López Mutuberría, DM
Pamplona, Spain
Angel M. Lopez Mutuberria graduated in Law (Universidad de Navarra, Spain), but soon after, he decided to pursue an MBA at the University of Houston, Texas, where he graduated in 1995. After a few years working in Human Resources for different corporations, he realized that Law only provided him with a limited framework of reference to manage people, so he graduated in Psychology years later to better understand human behavior’s labor dynamics. He has been working in International Human Resources for 20+ years. Currently, he is the head of People, Culture, and Sustainability at CIDACOS Group.
Once, he was told that he is an old soul in constant search of new learnings. It might well be why he started his Doctorate at APP. He graduated in 2020 with a mixed-methods dissertation about how congruence with the authentic self eases to assess life meaning in a business context. He continues to research life meaning and spirituality within the need of a new cosmology for the XXIst century.
He is the proud father of three beautiful kids: Luís, Lucas, and Laia. Marta, his wife, his kids, and in general, his family are his passion. He also finds joy remembering childhood when he meets with his old-time buddies from school and neighborhood for their traditional monthly dinner in Pamplona (Spain), where he lives.
Karen R. Nestor, EdD
Karen Nestor, EdD is an educator, consultant and community activist, who uses qualitative research to support non-profit organizations and philanthropy in northeast Ohio to advance their missions. She is a research consultant for Books@Work and conducts context specific biographical research in a variety of educational settings.
Nestor earned a Doctor of Education in Human and Organizational Learning from George Washington University in 2015. Her research focused on factors that support individuals to shape and reshape their lives amidst challenging social and economic conditions. Her current research is two-fold: 1) exploring the development of high-quality connections in Books@Work programs in the workplace; and 2) advancing new approaches to engaged practice-based research methodologies.
Ellen Schmidt-Devlin, PhD
Executive Director, Portland Programs
Lundquist College of Business
University of Oregon
Ellen Schmidt-Devlin is currently the Executive Director, Portland Programs Lundquist College of Business, at the University of Oregon and previously held a 27-year career at Nike, Inc. with assignments in Korea, Japan, Thailand, and Hong Kong. She completed her PhD in Designing Sustainable Systems from APP in 2020. Her research focus is global branding/paradox theory. Her academic career includes EMS Research at CWRU. A mixed methods approach to investigating glocal or hybrid brands paper was accepted and presented at the 10th Annual EMS International Conference, Fall 2020, and a Teaching Assistant Appointment for MGMT/EDMP 646 Advanced Analytical Methods, Fall 2020.
Ann Kowal Smith, DM
Ann Kowal Smith serves as founder and executive director of , a nonprofit workplace-based learning initiative. Books@Work uses literature discussions, led by a professor, to break down barriers, build connections and foster inclusion, trust, respect and well being. The program works with employers, inviting their workforce—from the shop floor to the management suite—to uncover the issues that unite rather than divide them.
Prior to Books@Work, Kowal Smith spent the majority of her career in client service: as a corporate and securities lawyer, a management consultant and knowledge manager at McKinsey & Company and a principal at Heidrick & Struggles.
Kowal Smith earned a Doctor of Management from Weatherhead School of Management in 2010. Her doctoral research focused on leadership approaches and their impact on organizational learning and performance. Her current work focuses, in practice and in theory, on the individual, collective and organizational outcomes of the social connections occasioned by Books@Work.
In addition to the DM, Kowal Smith holds a BA in History of Art from Bryn Mawr College, an MA in History of Art from the University of Michigan, and a JD from APP.
Candace Steele Flippin, DM, MBA, APR
Research Fellow
Vice President, Thought Leadership and Professional Development
Page Society
Candace Steele Flippin is the Vice President of Thought Leadership and Professional Development at the Page Society. She leads the organization’s research and learning strategy, developing globally relevant insights and professional development programs for senior communication leaders.
Flippin has served as a chief communications officer in life sciences, financial services, and industrial technology, where she built global teams and guided organizations through crisis and transformation. She also founded the Global Career Advancement Institute (Global CAI) and has conducted commissioned research on workplace and leadership trends.
Her research focuses on women’s leadership advancement and the multigenerational workforce, with work published in peer-reviewed journals and in her three professional-development books. Flippin earned her Doctor of Management from APP, an MBA from Johns Hopkins University, and a BA from the University of Michigan. She holds an Accreditation in Public Relations and is certified in Emotional Intelligence (EQ-i).
Avi Turetsky, PhD
Director of Quantitative Research
Landmark Partners
Avi Turetsky earned his PhD in Management from APP in 2018. He is director of quantitative research for Landmark partners, which is a private equity ‘secondaries’ firm that acquires interests in private equity, real estate, and real assets funds. His current research examines the implications of statistical distribution shapes and parameters for management theory, with a specific focus on the predictors of private equity performance differentiation. Earlier work has examined the competencies that distinguish ‘right tail’ outperforming private equity investment professionals. Turetsky is also an Advisory Board Member of the Private Equity Initiative at INSEAD.
Redda Ben Geloune, PhD
CEO & Founder
AITEK Group
Redda Ben Geloune, a seasoned strategist and AI expert, is the CEO and founder of AITEK Group (), a leading IT distributor in Africa, and the Director of the MBA program in Entrepreneurship & Innovation at IFG. With a Ph.D. from APP, Redda’s research explores the potential of AI to enhance organizational performance. His proposed research delves into the predictive capabilities of AI on individual and team performance, directly impacting management practices by providing insights into talent assessment and strategic decision-making. With over 20 years of leadership experience, Redda hold an Engineer degree (Master) from ENSICAEN (France) and is also a graduate of HEC Paris (MBA) and Harvard Business School (OPM50).
Oluseyi A. Ajayi, PhD
Divisional Controller
Performance Polymers Division
ITW Inc, USA
Oluseyi A. Ajayi is the Divisional Controller of the Performance Polymers Division of ITW Inc. and has over 30 years of cognate experience in corporate accounting and financial management in blue chip corporations. He has also been appointed an adjunct professor at the APP Weatherhead School of Management for the summer 2024 semester and as a research fellow at Weatherhead.
Ajayi holds a PhD in Management from APP (2024), an MBA from London Business School (2000), and a Bachelor’s degree in Accounting from the University of Lagos (1990). He is a Chartered Accountant, having qualified in Nigeria (1993), and is also a Chartered Management Accountant in the UK (2004). He holds the CGMA certification (2012), the Chartered Global Management Accountant (CGMA) designation is a globally recognized credential offered by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) and the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA) for professional accountants that demonstrate advanced proficiency in finance, operations, strategy, and management. Over the past couple of years, Ajayi has presented academic papers at the AOM and EMS conferences and has a number of manuscripts at various stages of development for publication on topics exploring the impacts of Leadership styles on the implementation of the environment, social, and governance (ESG) programs in organizations.
Roxanne Jimenez, PhD
Senior Manager
Strategic Partnerships
New York, NY
As an Engaged Practitioner Scholar (EPS) Fellow at APP (CWRU), Dr. Roxanne Jimenez is spearheading research dedicated to the enhancement of sustainable human well-being in urban environments. Her research addresses the intricate interplay between environmental, economic, and social dimensions of urban well-being. Driven by an unwavering commitment to addressing the complex challenges faced today in urban environments around the world, Dr. Jimenez’s research is aligned with the ambitious United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals. Her approach bridges theoretical research with practical applications, fostering innovative and evidence-based strategies to promote sustainable development in cities. Through collaboration with diverse stakeholders, she aims to contribute to a holistic improvement in quality of life for urban residents, making a significant impact on urban sustainability and well-being.
Dr. Jimenez is a solution-focused professional leveraging over 15 years of experience in business operations, with a broad expertise that includes administration management, organizational development, and program management. Her professional journey includes positions at the University of Miami, Barclays, Deutsche Bank, and Citigroup.
Most recently, she served as an Impact and Sustainability Senior Manager at an international non-profit organization and she is currently a Lecturer at Elmira College teaching Graduate Management courses.
Dr. Jimenez received a PhD in Management – Designing Sustainable Systems from CWRU. During her academic tenure at CWRU she held the following fellowships: Management and Design Innovation Fellowship, Fowler Center for Business as an Agent for World Benefit Fellowship, and Nonprofit Management Fellowship.
Dalana Brand, PhD
Chief People Officer
Peloton Interactive
Dalana Brand is Chief People Officer at Peloton Interactive and a global executive with over two decades of leadership experience across finance, human resources, and inclusion and diversity strategy in Fortune 500 and high-growth companies. She has held senior roles at Twitter, Electronic Arts, and Whirlpool Corporation, among others. A sought-after speaker on human capital topics, she has been recognized with industry honors including Adweek’s Trailblazer Award, Diversity Woman Magazine’s Elite 100, and the National Diversity Council’s Top 100 Diversity Officers, and has been featured in publications such as Forbes, Bloomberg, and Business Insider.
Dr. Brand earned her PhD in Management from APP. Her dissertation, Personalized Inclusion: Exploring the Interplay of Diversity & Inclusion Climate, Inclusive Leadership, and Employee Outcomes Across Demographic Groups, introduced the Personalized Inclusive Leadership and Organizational Climate (PILOC) framework, demonstrating that personalized leadership strategies significantly enhance employee engagement and perceptions of inclusion. Her research interests include inclusive leadership, DEI strategy, employee experience, and the personalization of workplace practices.
As an EPS fellow, Dr. Brand is expanding this work by further exploring personalization as a construct and examining how personalization is experienced by employees, with the goal of developing a validated scale and advancing inclusive leadership models that are both evidence-based and practically applicable.
Dalithia Smith, PhD
Senior VP and Chief Human Resources Officer
Oatey Company
Dr. Dalithia C. Smith is the Senior Vice President and Chief Human Resources Officer at Oatey Co., a global leader in the plumbing manufacturing industry. As a strategic advisor to the CEO, she leads global Human Resources and Diversity, Equity and Inclusion initiatives, ensuring that people centered strategies support both cultural integrity and business performance.
With over two decades of executive leadership across manufacturing, banking/finance and professional services, Dr. Smith combines practitioner experience with scholarly insight. Her research explores how trust, DEI and leadership intersect to influence employee engagement, retention and advancement, especially across race, gender and class identities in today’s turbulent economic and sociopolitical climate.
Her current study, Trust, DEI and Leadership in a New Era, investigates how organizational trust is built, tested and experienced across identity groups. She examines how the perceived authenticity of DEI efforts shapes both voluntary turnover and “disengaged retention,” where employees stay but emotionally and mentally withdraw. Central to her work is the CEO’s role in driving profitability through identity conscious, inclusive leadership that aligns values with results.
Dr. Smith is known for her empathetic, strategic leadership and her ability to translate complex challenges into actionable strategies. She earned her Bachelor of Business Administration degree in Marketing from Ohio University and her MBA from Cleveland State University. Her academic journey is grounded in a lifelong commitment to helping individuals and organizations thrive.