After earning a Ph.D. from UCLA, Professor of Management Natarajan Balasubramanian joined the faculty at the Whitman School in 2009. Since then, he has contributed not only to educating Whitman students interested in the field of management but also in the ongoing effort to raise the profile of the school through his research, published works, awards, grants, presentations and service.

His most recent accomplishment is being named the inaugural Albert & Betty Hill Professor of Management at the Whitman School, endowed through a $1 million bequest from the late Robert S. Hill ’69, in memory of his parents.“It’s quite rare that a school installs a new endowed professorship, but, when we do, it’s to celebrate the outstanding accomplishments of our best scholars and world-class thinkers who are significantly influencing their field,” says Whitman’s Interim Dean Alex McKelvie. “Professor Balasubramanian is very deserving of this achievement, and this professorship will provide him with additional resources to further his research and positively impact the reputation of the Whitman School.” 

Natarajan Balasubramanian

Balasubramanian’s research in the field of management focuses on two main areas where business creates value: entrepreneurship, innovation and human capital; and learning and productivity. 

“My research is aimed at understanding what drives the tremendous variation in value creation, which I believe is the key to economic growth and prosperity,” he says. “Broadly, I view innovation as finding new ways to create economic value, and entrepreneurship as embodying innovation in a new company, which is often through the movement of individuals — human capital — from an existing company to someplace new. As for learning and productivity, I think of productivity broadly as the ability of a business to create economic value and learning as a key way to increase the business’ ability to create economic value.”

His work has been recognized widely throughout his career, published in Management Science, Review of Economics and Statistics, Academy of Management Review and Strategic Management Journal, where he was recently named an associate editor. He has also received a number of awards, including the Kauffman Junior Faculty Fellowship from the Kauffman Foundation, as well as several from the Whitman School, including the Edward Pettinella Associate Professorship of Business and a Whitman Research Fellowship.

Research is not Balasubramanian’s only contribution to the Whitman School, however. He enjoys sharing his knowledge and inspiring students in the classroom, as well, teaching strategic management to both graduate and undergraduate students. 

“I believe in learning by doing, and I’m continuously reflecting on new ways to improve my teaching while also encouraging students to think critically about the fundamental aspects of business,” he says. 

“My teaching is built on developing the ability to solve unstructured problems and the ability to bear quantitative analysis to decision making, along with the ability to persuade a diverse audience about one’s viewpoint, as those qualities are such critical assets for business professionals. I consider myself an active learner, and seeing students figure out answers to challenging problems gives me a lot of satisfaction. And often the questions they pose give me ideas to explore in my own research.”

Balasubramanian is happy to have established himself at the Whitman School, noting the welcoming culture and collegiality he felt from the start. Syracuse University and the Whitman School have been a good fit for him, as he and his wife, a physician at nearby Upstate University Hospital, are a dual-career family who were looking for a place where both could thrive, along with their two children. Today, after 15 years, he and his family consider the Syracuse community home.

As he takes on the responsibility of his new chaired professorship and continues both his research and teaching, Balasubramanian looks forward to the possibilities ahead.

“Over the long term, I plan to continue working on my primary areas of research interest, while occasionally indulging in other topics that may interest me,” he says. 

“I intend to see my future work be well recognized and published in high-impact journals in management and economics. And, at a broader level, my hope is that my research can contribute to the field. With the support of the resources, colleagues and students at the Whitman School, I think that can certainly be accomplished.”

By Caroline K. Reff