Old Dominion University

Dr. Kris
Irwin

Assistant Professor of Management
Strome College of Business · Norfolk, Virginia
E.V. Williams Fellow, 2026–2028

A scholar-practitioner bridging strategic management research and organizational practice. Her work spans mergers & acquisitions, entrepreneurship, and sustainability — with a particular focus on SMEs, transitional entrepreneurs, and underserved communities.

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ODU Faculty

Areas of Expertise

Research Streams

Mergers & Acquisitions

Investigating pre-deal antecedents, M&A motives, and the complex environments in which transactions occur. Published research challenges the alignment between academic theory and real-world M&A practice, with work in Journal of Business Research and Strategic Management Review.

Cross-Border M&A FDI High-Tech Firms CSR

SMEs & Entrepreneurship

Examining how underserved entrepreneurs — including women veterans, immigrants, and rural founders — navigate institutional barriers to create and grow ventures. Published in Small Business Economics, International Small Business Journal, and Human Relations.

Rural Entrepreneurship Women Veterans Digitalization Sustainability

Selected Works

Recent Publications

2026

Small Business Economics Premier · JIF 95%

Immigrant Communities and Rural Entrepreneurship: The Double-Edged Dynamics of Business Exits in Rural America

Irwin, K., White, J., Borgholthaus, C., & Cavanaugh, J.
2026

Journal of Knowledge Management Premier · JIF 96%

Research to Knowledge-Driven Action: Practical Relevance of Entrepreneurship Research

Datta, K., Irwin, K., Ring, J. K., Carr, J., & Drnevich, P.
2025

International Small Business Journal

Layers of Marginalisation: The Transition from Hardship to Entrepreneurial Success

Irwin, K., Li, S., & Vandecar-Burdin, T.
2025

Strategic Management Review

The Motives for Mergers and Acquisitions and Their Implications for Research and Practice

Irwin, K., Armstrong, C., Drnevich, P., & Schijven, M. P. G.
2022

Journal of Business Research Premier · JIF 96%

How Knowledge and Uncertainty Affect Strategic International Business Investment Decisions: Implications for Cross-Border M&A

Irwin, K., Gilstrap, C., McDowell, W., Drnevich, P., & Gorbett, A.
2020

Human Relations FT50 · JIF 97%

Does "How" Firms Invest in CSR Matter? An Attributional Model of Job Seekers' Reactions to Configurational Variation in CSR

Bachrach, D., Vlachos, P., Irwin, K., & Morgeson, F.

Background

Scholar–
Practitioner

Dr. Irwin joined Old Dominion University's Strome College of Business as an Assistant Professor in 2020, where she was recently named an E.V. Williams Fellow (2026–2028). She holds a Ph.D. in Management from the University of Alabama and an MBA from Duke University's Fuqua School of Business.

Before entering academia, she spent over a decade in management consulting with Deloitte and North Highland Consulting, leading large-scale change initiatives for Fortune 500 clients across healthcare, retail, and high-technology sectors. This practitioner foundation directly informs her research philosophy: evidence-based insights that organizations can use.

Her work has been recognized with multiple outstanding reviewer awards from the Academy of Management and Southern Management Association, as well as a Kauffman Foundation grant for rural entrepreneurship research.

Education

Ph.D.

Management

University of Alabama, Culverhouse College of Business · 2020
MBA

Strategy, Leadership & Ethics

Duke University, Fuqua School of Business · 2008
B.S.

Computer Science & Psychology

Vanderbilt University · 2002

Recognition

Honors &
Awards

E.V. Williams Fellowship, Strome College of Business (2026–2028)
Academy of Management STR Outstanding Reviewer (2025, 2020)
Southern Management Association Best Reviewer Award (2024)
Transitional Entrepreneurship Kauffman Foundation Grant Winner (2023)
Hampton Roads Chamber of Commerce Appreciation Coin Honoree (2022)
University of Alabama Outstanding Graduate Dissertation Award (2021)
Academy of Management ENT Outstanding Reviewer (2020)
SBI Colorado Lending Source Best Paper Showcase Award (2020)
SMS SHC Best Student Paper Finalist (2018)

Service

Associate Editor, Journal of Small Business Strategy (2021–)
Reviewer: Journal of Business Venturing, Organizational Research Methods, Journal of Business Research
Faculty Advisor, ODU Institute for Women in Business (2022–)
Transitional Entrepreneurship Colloquium Co-Chair & Facilitator (2022–2024)

In the Classroom

Courses Taught

MGMT 485W

Business Policy & Strategy Capstone

Strategic management capstone for graduating Business seniors. Examines managerial tasks of crafting and implementing strategy using real-world case analysis, ethics, and international perspectives.

★ 4.8 / 5.0 avg. rating

MGMT 490 / 595

Management Consulting

Applied consulting course for senior and graduate students. Students deliver real client engagements, gaining exposure to data analysis, frameworks, and organizational decision-making.

★ 4.7 / 5.0 avg. rating

MGMT 890

Advanced Research Methods

Ph.D.-level seminar covering meta-analysis, hierarchical linear modeling, panel data analysis, and qualitative methods for strategic management research.

★ 4.4 / 5.0 avg. rating

Dr. KrisIrwin