Creating and disseminating knowledge to positively impact business and society is critical to the mission of the Wisconsin School of Business at the University of Wisconsin–Madison—and is the foundation of the Wisconsin Idea.
New posters celebrating the impact of the School’s Erwin A. Gaumnitz Distinguished Research Award winners were installed this month in WSB’s Grainger Hall.
The Erwin A. Gaumnitz Distinguished Research Awards recognize peer-nominated WSB faculty researchers. Selection is based on research quality and significance and on a nominee’s research productivity.
Erwin A. Gaumnitz was a professor and the dean of the School of Business from 1955 to 1972.
Below is the complete list of Gaumnitz winners. (Note: Titles reflect endowed positions at the time of the awards.)
2019
Charlie Trevor, professor of management and human resources and the Ruth L. Nelson Chair in Business. Trevor’s research examines conditions under which human resources practices enhance, or impede, desired consequences at the individual and firm levels.
“I focus on context to better understand employee performance and turnover. My hope is that this sensitivity to workplace nuance makes my work interesting and meaningful.”
2018
Enno Siemsen, professor of operations and information management and the Proctor & Gamble Bascom Professor in Total Quality. Siemsen’s behavioral research focuses on forecasting, quality management, and global operations and supply chain management.
“Human behavior is enigmatic. Unlocking it provides pathways to create processes, organizations, and supply chains that function and last.”
2017
Russ Coff, professor of management and human resources and the UW Foundation Chairman Orr Bascom Professor of Strategic Management. Coff’s research explores how human capital helps companies innovate, address strategic challenges, and ultimately gain competitive advantages.
“CEOs often note, ‘People are our most important asset.’ My work explores how firms can leverage these assets in strategy formulation and implementation.”
2016
Karla Zehms, professor of accounting and information systems and the EY Professor in Accounting. Zehms’ research aims to advance understanding of all aspects of the auditing function, including the economics of auditing, portfolio management, fraud detection, and internal control.
“Contemporary auditing practice motivates my research, whereby I explore emerging trends, contribute to academic research, and then bring this knowledge to my students so they enter the workplace at a competitive advantage.”
2015
Mark Covaleski, professor of accounting and information systems and the Robert Beyer Professor of Managerial Accounting and Control. Covaleski’s research focuses on accounting in organizations and society and the evolution of the accounting profession.
“Organizational accounting information and the accounting profession continue to evolve. My goal is to understand and explain the roles of information and the profession in continually evolving contexts.”
2014
Jan Heide, professor of marketing and the Irwin Maier Chair of Marketing. Heide’s research explores distribution systems, strategic partnerships, and marketing strategy.
“The current research I share with students, which is not found in standard marketing textbooks, gives them unique perspectives.”
2013
Craig Thompson, professor of marketing, Gilbert and Helen Churchill Professor of Marketing, and the James R. McManus Bascom Professor of Marketing. Thompson’s research examines qualitative methodologies, consumer gender differences, media effects, and consumer satisfaction in culture and the marketplace.
“My research contributes basic knowledge that can shape public policy, business decision-making, and social science conversations on the impact of marketing and society.”
2013
Randall Wright, professor of finance, investment, and banking, and the Ray B. Zemon Chair in Liquid Assets. Wright’s research focuses on monetary, macro, and labor economics.
“Hard work is an essential component of research excellence. If you put in the hours, you get better at it and it gets more fun.”
2012
Neeraj Arora, professor of marketing and the John P. Morgridge Chair in Business Administration. Arora’s research experiments with and builds statistical models to study factors that drive consumer choices and related corporate implications.
“I love studying high impact business problems that leverage marketing analytics. Developing evidence-based answers to critical business and societal questions is a fun and fulfilling endeavor.”
2011
Barry Gerhart, professor of management and human resources and the Bruce R. Ellig Distinguished Chair in Pay and Organizational Effectiveness. Gerhart’s research studies how managing human capital in a global economy affects organizational and employee outcomes.
“My research focuses on evidence-based policy and recommendations for managing people in a global economy.”
2010
Anne Miner, professor emeritus of management and human resources. Miner’s research examines organizational learning and improvisation, industry-level learning, technological evolution, and product development.
“Students go on to develop ideas far past where I worked with them and have many more decades and settings to keep building theory and improving practice.”
2009
Edward Frees, professor of risk and insurance and the Assurant Health Professor of Actuarial Science. Frees’ research focuses on actuarial science, regression and business forecasting, and panel data.
“My goal is to deepen our knowledge so that we can better protect all participants of financial security systems.”
