Dr Vahid Jafari-Sadeghi

  • Phone+44 (0) 121 204 5848

Accepting PhD Students

PhD projects

SME internationalisation, International entrepreneurship, Innovation and digital technologies

Personal profile

Contact Details

Phone:  +44 (0) 121 204 5848       Email: v.jafari-sadeghi@aston.ac.uk
Room: SW1108

Biography

Dr Vahid Jafari-Sadeghi (SFHEA) is a Senior Lecturer in International Business and the Director of the PhD Programme at Aston Business School. Before joining Aston University, Vahid was a Senior Lecturer in International Entrepreneurship at the Newcastle Business School, Northumbria University, and a Lecturer in Business Strategy at the School of Strategy and Leadership at Coventry University. He is a member of the executive board of the Academy of International Business UK & Ireland Chapter (AIB-UKI) and is an active researcher in international entrepreneurship, particularly in the area of SME internationalisation. Vahid is the chair of the 50th AIB UK & Ireland Chapter Conference (2024) and a member of the organisation committee of The Institute for Small Business and Entrepreneurship (ISBE) 2023 conference, hosted by Aston Business School. He has published papers in leading international journals such as the British Journal of Management, Risk Analysis, International Business ReviewJournal of Business ResearchTechnological Forecasting and Social ChangeJournal of International Entrepreneurship, etc. Dr Jafari-Sadeghi is an associate editor at the EuroMed Journal of Business, and a member of the editorial board of The International Journal of Entrepreneurship and Innovation, International Journal of Entrepreneurship and Small BusinessInternational Journal of Business and Globalisation, and British Food Journal. He has served as the lead guest editor for special issues at the International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behavior & Research, Journal of Enterprise Information Management, Journal of Theoretical and Applied Electronic Commerce Research, and British Food Journal. Vahid has edited various books in Springer, Routledge, and Emerald and performed as track chair and presenter for several international conferences.

Chair and member for international conferences

Vahid is the chair of the 50th AIB UK & Ireland Chapter Conference (2024), which is hosted by Aston Business School, UK. He is also a member of the organisation committee of The Institute for Small Business and Entrepreneurship (ISBE) 2023 conference at Aston Business School. 

Research Interests

Building on the wealth of international entrepreneurship, Vahid is focusing on the internationalisation of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). His main research interests are

  • Drivers of successful internationalisation in different contexts 
  • Non-linear internationalisation strategies of SMEs
  • External and internal factors toward the de-internationalisation of entrepreneurial firms (e.g., born globals)
  • Knowledge management practices and inter-organisational arrangements among small internationalisers
  • Digital technology transformation, and new business models for international business venturing in the ear of the fourth industrial revolution (Industry 4.0)

Funding Applications and Awards

  • Midlands Engine (Aug 2022-April 2023), An explorative study on the export decline of Midlands Engine areas (£50,000.00), Co-Investigator
  • European Institute for Export Compliance (EIFEC)- Post-Doctoral Research Fellowship (Assegno di Ricerca in Università degli Studi di Torino) (Nov 2018-Sept 2019), Export compliance as emerging issues in international business (€19.637,00), Principal Investigator/ Fellowship Holder
  • Thompson Rivers University- SOBE Emerging Researcher Grant (Sept 2018- Aug 2019), SMEs’ International Entrepreneurship: Research Mapping the Environmental, Organisational, and Institutional Perspectives, ($5,000), International Co-Investigator
  • Thompson Rivers University- SOBE Emerging Researcher Grant (Sept 2018-Aug 2019), Examining Different Contingency Factors Effective in Entering International Markets of New Firms, ($5,000), International Co-Investigator
  • University of Regina- DEAN’s Grant (Sept 2018- Aug 2019), Structural and Competitive Determinants of Global Orientation by Indigenous-owned Small Business (Canadian Firms) ($5,000), International Co-Investigator
  • Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC)- Presidents SEED Fund (Sept 2017- Aug 2019), Entrepreneurship as a Vehicle for Effective Participation in the Global Economy "On One's Own Terms" (Firms in Iran, Zimbabwe, and New Caledonia) ($4,800), International Co-Investigator

Professional/editorial offices

Editorial Boards

  • International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behavior & Research (2022-Present)
  • The International Journal of Entrepreneurship and Innovation (2023-Present)
  • Strategic Change (2023-Present)
  • Journal of Small Business and Enterprise Development (2022-Present)
  • EuroMed Journal of Business (2021-Present)
  • International Journal of Entrepreneurship & Small Business (2021-Present)
  • International Journal of Business and Globalisation (2021-Present)
  • World Review of Entrepreneurship, Management and Sustainable Development (2021-Present)
  • British Food Journal (2020-Present)
  • International Journal of Electronic Trade (2020-Present)

Guest Editorship

Edited Books

 

PhD Supervision

Current PhD Students:

  • Moses Mmadubuko (2022-2025), Exploring the Dynamics of Small and Medium Enterprises Re-internationalisation in an Emerging Economy, Aston Business School. 
  • Behnaz Haj Mohammadi (2023-2026), Understanding internal and external factors of de-internationalization of SMEs. Aston Business School. 
  • Pearl Gyan-Amponsah (2023-2026), The impact of digitalisation on SME performance. Aston Business School. 
  • Yasaman Yazdanpanah (2024-2027), Navigating the Nexus of International Entrepreneurship: Leveraging New Technologies for Sustainable Development Goals, Aston Business School. 

Completed PhDs

  • Mojtaba Rezaei (2019-2022), The knowledge sharing drivers and their impacts in different platforms, Università degli Studi di Torino, Italy.

Visiting PhD Students

  • Caio Sousa da Silva (Jan- Sept 2024). FGV EAESP (Brazil)
  • Luca Simone Macca (March- Sept 2023). University of Turin (Italy) 

DBA Students

  • Syed Ijlal Hussain (2021-Present)
  • Yusra Anas (2021-Present)
  • Mohammed Almheiri (2022-Present)

Awards

  • Literati Award Winners 2022: Outstanding Reviewer, Journal of Small Business and Enterprise Development, Emerald Publishing 
  • SSL Award 2020 for 'Best Team: BA Business Administration', School of Strategy and Leadership, Coventry University
  • SSL Award 2020 for 'Research Impact', School of Strategy and Leadership, Coventry University
  • Outstanding Paper Award (2019), 53rd International Business Research Conference, Melbourne, Australia

Administrative Roles

Vahid has served as the director of the below programmes at Aston Business School.

Teaching Activity

Vahid teaches modules related to international entrepreneurship at the postgraduate (MSc) level.

  • BDM173: Research Method (MSc International Business Dissertation/Project) (2022-Present)
  • BSM933: International Business (2022-Present)
  • BSM934: Advanced Topics in International Business (2021-2022)
  • BSM936: International Business Strategy (2021-2022)
  • BSM948: Business Venturing (2021-2022)

     

Scholarship and Fellowship

Senior Fellow of Higher Education Academy (SFHEA)

Membership of Professional Bodies

Academy of Management (AOM)

Academy of International Business (AIB)

European Academy of Management (EURAM)

Education/Academic qualification

PhD, Business and Management (International Entrepreneurship), Università degli Studi di Torino

Oct 2015Sept 2018

Award Date: 1 Oct 2018

External positions

Executive Board Member

Apr 2022 → …

Senior Lecturer in International Entrepreneurship, University of Northumbria Newcastle

Jun 2021Sept 2021

Lecturer in Business Strategy, Coventry University

Sept 2019May 2021

Post-Doctoral Research and Teaching Fellow, Università degli Studi di Torino

Nov 2018Sept 2019

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