Sarath Balachandran
Assistant Professor of Strategy and Entrepreneurship
MSc (Georgia Tech) PhD (Wharton)
Sarath Balachandran is an Assistant Professor at London Business School. His research examines how collaborative relationships between firms enable (or indeed constrain) innovation. He studies how the implications of these partnerships for firms are shaped by factors at two levels of analysis. In one stream of work, he adopts a “micro” perspective to examine how the structures of the partnering organisations and the composition of its employees may shape the formation and evolution of these relationships as well as the exchanges that occur between the firms. In another stream of work, he takes a more “macro” view to examine how institutions – both formal institutions like laws or regulations and informal ones like social or cultural norms – influence the formation of these relationships and the outcomes they lead to.
At London Business School, Sarath teaches the elective on Mergers, Acquisitions and Alliances.
Prior to his academic career, Sarath worked for Unilever, first in logistics at a factory in Atlanta and subsequently in post-merger integration at the company's headquarters in London.
Academic and professional experience
Adecco Professor of Strategy and Entrepreneurship, London Business School (2007)
Professor of Strategy and Entrepreneurship, London Business School
Department Editor, Management Science (Organizations Section)
Awards and honours
Sucheta Nadkarni Award for Outstanding Publication on Women Executive Leadership, Strategic Management Society (2020)
W. Richard Scott Award for Distinguished Scholarship, American Sociological Association, Organizations, Occupations and Work Section (2020)
Best OMT Published Paper of 2017 Award, OMT Division, Academy of Management (2018)
Outstanding Publication in OB Award, OB Division, Academy of Management (2018)
Meritorious Service as Associate Editor Award, Management Science (2013)
W. Richard Scott Award for Distinguished Scholarship, American Sociological Association, Organizations, Occupations and Work Section (2013)
INFORMS–Industry Studies Association Best Paper Prize (2012)
Outstanding Reviewer Award, Editorial Board, Academy of Management Review (2007)
Best Paper Award, Careers Division, Academy of Management (2005)
James D. Thompson Award for Best Graduate Student Paper, American Sociological Association, Organizations, Occupations and Work Section (2004)