Welcome! My name is Rui (pronounced as "ray") Wang. I am a PhD Candidate in Strategic Management and Public Policy at George Washington School of Business. Previously, I completed my graduate studies at Nanjing University and received my Bachelor's degree from Southeast University.
Research
In my research, I strive to understand when and how sustainability concerns transform traditional organizational practices and drive innovative solutions, and to identify emerging challenges.
One stream of my research focuses on how organizations identify and integrate emergent sustainability issues. Two of my dissertation essays are within this domain. In my first essay, I explore how companies disclose climate risks, specifically examining how management’s agentic stance towards climate change is reflected in their risk disclosures and subsequently influences external evaluations. In my second essay, I explore the drivers behind the recent trend of greenhushing—organizations deliberately under-communicate their sustainability commitments and efforts. This essay investigates whether firms integrate sustainability issues into financial discussions, which are critical for communicating with investors and stakeholders.
In a second research stream, I study how recent advancements in technology and innovation—such as digital transformation, the rise of online platforms, and artificial intelligence—contribute to advancing global sustainability efforts by fostering new forms of organizing.
My third essay studies the function of online crowdfunding platforms, with a specific focus on multimodal entrepreneurial storytelling, in bridging the resource gap for entrepreneurs from underserved areas to address global challenges such as poverty. This study uncovers factors that lead to outcome inequalities in the funding process, an important inquiry given the growing significance of online platforms—which serve as an enabling mechanism for catalyzing social impact while having the potential to inadvertently exacerbate digital inequality if not carefully navigated.
Teaching
I have successfully taught an undergraduate capstone course, BADM 4801 Strategy Formulation and Implementation, during the Spring 2024 semester, achieving an average evaluation of 4.3 and a median of 4.6 out of 5, along with positive student comments. I am prepared to teach strategy and sustainability courses for both undergraduate and master's students.