Contact

306 Mervis Hall
dpslevin@katz.pitt.edu
412-648-1553

Profile

Currently, his research is focused primarily in two programmatic areas:

Entrepreneurship

The topic of entrepreneurship/intrapreneurship has become more and more salient for business firm success. With shrinking product life cycles, firms must be poised to have an enhanced Entrepreneurial Orientation (EO), (more risk taking, proactivity, and innovation). Dr. Slevin’s research interests focus on entrepreneurship in both large and small strategic business units, strategy, structure, and their impact on organizational effectiveness. He has published numerous articles in top refereed journals concerning the impact of Entrepreneurial Orientation (EO) on firm performance. This includes the issues of organizational complexity and the entrepreneurial management of transitions that high growth new ventures must accomplish as they sustain themselves.

In collaboration with Professor Jeffrey G. Covin of Indiana University and graduate students, a research program is being conducted looking at a large number of variables impacting upon entrepreneurial firm behavior and organizational transitions. We feel that a contribution can be made by measuring entrepreneurial behavior of firms, and relating this to the success of alternative strategies, competitive tactics, and organizational structures. This represents a logical synergy between the entrepreneurship, strategic management, and organization studies literatures.

Project Implementation

Successful organizations in the future will manage strategic change through the implementation of successful projects. As the environment becomes more complex and technologically sophisticated, project management and the implementation of change will cut across all levels of organization. We have mounted a program of research, grounded in previous implementation research, to better understand the project management process.

Our research has resulted in the development of the Project Implementation Profile which is available for use as a research /consulting instrument. It has been used by thousands of project managers to track their project success.

We have focused the attention of key researchers in the field on important project management research questions. Dr. Slevin has been the co-chair for three Project Management Research Conferences: 2000, Paris, France; 2002, Seattle, Washington; 2004, London, England. These conferences have resulted in two books and one proceedings reporting the latest international research in project management.

Courses Recently Taught

• BUSORG1020 Organizational Behavior
• BOAH 2801 Organizational Behavior
• IEMBA Project Management Workshop
• BQOM 2502 Project Management
• IEMBA Learning Community Workshop

Awards and Honors

“Pioneers and Followers: Competitive Tactics, Environment, and Firm Growth”, with Jeffrey G. Covin, Journal of Business Venturing, March, 2000, 15(2), pp. 175-210. This paper received “Paper of the Year Award in Corporate Entrepreneurship”, awarded by USASBE (United States Association for Small Business and Entrepreneurship) and presented at their national conference held in Orlando, FL., February 7-10, 2001.

“A Conceptual Model of Entrepreneurship as Firm Behavior” with Jeffrey G. Covin, Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, Fall, 1991. Winner of Paper of the Year Award, Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice; Winner of Best Paper in Corporate Entrepreneurship for 1991, United States Association for Small Business and Entrepreneurship.

H. J. Zoffer Award for Meritorious Service, Business School Alumni Association, May 2002.

Professional Service and Activities

• Institute for Entrepreneurial Excellence-Board of Directors
• Entrepreneurial Fellows Center-Academic Director
• MIT Enterprise Forum-Board Member (2000-03).
• Air University Board of Visitors (1997-2005).
• Building Committee, Katz School (1981-2008)
• Member of Academy of Management, United States Association for Small Business and Entrepreneurship, Project Management Institute, IEEE, Beta Gamma Sigma Honor Society, and Delta Sigma Pi Business Fraternity.

Consulting Activities

Design and implement highly targeted management development programs.

Degrees

• PhD, Business Administration (Organizational Behavior), Stanford University
• MSIA, Carnegie Mellon University
• BS, Physics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
• BA, Math, St. Vincent College

Recent Publications

“Aligning Strategy Processes in Pursuit of Firm Growth”. with Varkey K. Titus, Jr., and Jeffrey.G. Covin, Journal of Business Research, Vol. 64, Issue 5, May 2011, pp. 446-453.

“Modified Assessment Center Approach Facilitates Organizational Change” with Michael Lehman, Jerry R. Hudson, Jr., George W. Appley, Edward J. Sheehan, Jr., submitted to Journal of Management Development, Accepted, January 21, 2011, Forthcoming, 2011.

“Entrepreneurial Orientation: Evaluating Three Papers and Implications for Further Theoretical and Methodological Development”, with Siri A. Tergesen, Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, Accepted June 3, 2011 for publication September 2011.

“Pioneering Orientation and Firm Growth: Knowing When and to What Degree Pioneering Makes Sense”, with Brandon A. Mueller, Varkey K. Titus Jr., and Jeffrey G. Covin, Journal of Management, accepted 17 June 2010, on line published August 19, 2010, forthcoming.

“Understanding the Relationship between Entrepreneurial Orientation and Strategic Learning: An Empirical Investigation”, with Brian S. Anderson and Jeffrey G. Covin, Strategic Entrepreneurship Journal, September, 2009.

“Market Responsiveness, Top Management Risk Taking, and the Role of Strategic Learning as Determinants of Market Pioneering” with Robert P. Garrett and Jeffrey G. Covin, Journal of Business Research, 2009, Vol. 62, No. 8, 782 – 788.

“Trust in Projects: an Empirical Assessment of Owner/Contractor Relationships”, with Jeffrey K. Pinto and Brent English, International Journal of Project Management, 2009, 27, 638 -648.

“Understanding the Relationship between Entrepreneurial Orientation and Strategic Learning: An Empirical Investigation, with Brian S. Anderson and Jeffrey G. Covin, Strategic Entrepreneurship Journal, September, 2009.

“Exploring the Relationship Between Strategic Reactiveness and Entrepreneurial Orientation: the Role of Structure-Style Fit”, with Kimberly M. Green and Jeffrey G. Covin, Journal of Business Venturing, May 2008, Vol. 23, No. 3, 356-383.

“How Corporate Entrepreneurs Improve their Problem Solving Capability: An Empirical Study”, with William J. Lekse, chapter in Reinhold Würth and Wolfgang Gaul (editors), The Entrepreneurship – Innovation – Marketing Interface, Swiridoff Verlag, Künzelsau, Germany, 2007.

“Strategic Process Effects on the Entrepreneurial Orientation-Sales Growth Rate Relationship”, with Jeffrey G. Covin and Kimberly M. Green, Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, January, 2006, Vol. 30, No. 1, pp. 57-82.

“Project Critical Success Factors: The Project Implementation Profile”, with Jeffrey K. Pinto, in Cleland, David I. and Gareis, Roland, Global Project Management, Second Edition, McGraw-Hill Companies, 2006.

“Corporate Entrepreneurship Challenge: Making Opportunities from Innovations and Marketing’s Common Thread-Information”, with William J. Lekse, chapter in Reinhold Würth, Wolfgang Gaul, and Viktor Jung, (editors), The Entrepreneurship – Innovation – Marketing Interface, Swiridoff Verlag, Künzelsau, Germany, 2005.

Innovations: Project Management Research, 2004, Dennis P. Slevin, David I. Cleland and Jeffrey K. Pinto (editors), Project Management Institute, Newtown Square, PA, 2004. (30 chapters consisting of the best recent papers in new Project Management research).

“An Overview of Behavioral Issues in Project Management” with Jeffrey K. Pinto, in Morris, P.W.G. and J.K. Pinto (Eds.), The Handbook of Managing Projects, John Wiley and Sons, New Jersey, 2004.

“The Entrepreneurial Imperatives of Strategic Leadership”, with Jeffrey G. Covin. Chapter 14 (pp. 309 – 327 in Strategic Entrepreneurship: Creating a New Mindset, Hitt, Michael A., Ireland, R. Duane, Camp, S. Michael, and Sexton, Donald L., (Eds.), Blackwell Publishers Ltd., Oxford, UK, 2002.

“The Concept of Entrepreneurial Leadership” with Jeffrey G. Covin chapter in M. A. Hitt and R. D. Ireland, Entrepreneurship Encyclopedia, Blackwell Publishing, 2004.

“The Concept of Emergent Strategy”, with Jeffrey G. Covin chapter in M. A. Hitt and R. D. Ireland, Entrepreneurship Encyclopedia, Blackwell Publishing, 2004.

“Rigidity – Flexibility – Rigidity: Incorporating CFCS into Project Management”, with William J. Lekse, chapter in Dennis P. Slevin, David I. Cleland and Jeffrey K. Pinto (editors), Frontiers of Entrepreneurship Research, 2004, Project Management Institute, 2004.

Frontiers of Project Management Research, Slevin, Dennis P., Cleland, David I, Pinto, Jeffrey K., (Eds.) Project Management Institute, Newtown Square, PA, 2002. (28 chapters consisting of the best recent papers in new Project Management research).

“Strategic Decision Making in an Intuitive vs. Technocratic Mode: Structural and Environmental Considerations”, with Jeffrey G. Covin and Michael B. Heeley, Journal of Business Research, 52(1), April, 2001.

Academic Area

Organizations and Entrepreneurship

Personal Interests

Travel, Gardening, General Aviation