Kaitlin Wowak recognized for her socially valuable research in management

University of Notre Dame IT, analytics, and operations professor Kaitlin Wowak recently received the 2022 Responsible Research in Management Award from the Academy of Management Fellows. Presented annually, this award recognizes and celebrates research that benefits society by producing credible and useful knowledge.

Since 2018, the Responsible Research in Management Award has assembled a collection of responsible research that is considered academically credible, societally useful, and makes the world a better place. This award is the only of its kind that recognizes research with actionable findings that are valuable for practicing executives. Wowak received the award for her study, “The Influence of Female Directors on Product Recall Decisions,” published in Manufacturing and Service Operations Management. In collaboration with co-authors George P. Ball of Indiana University, Corinne Post of Villanova University, and David J. Ketchen Jr. of Auburn University, the research looks at how adding females to a firm’s board of directors affects whether and how quickly the firm recalls defective products. The researchers found that when women are on a firm’s board, the firm recalls products much faster when there are severe product quality problems, which can injure or even kill consumers. Additionally, when products have lower-severity defects that can be hidden from regulators, these defects are less often hidden when a female is on the board of directors. One hundred twenty scholarly works were nominated for the 2022 Responsible Research in Management Awards, with just 11 being recognized.To read more about the research study, please click here.