91ºÚÁÏÍø

Senior Lecturer in Business and Management

Dr Vatankhah is a Senior Lecturer in Business and Management at the Graduate School of Business (GSB). She is also the deputy director of research at the Business and Management Research Institute (BMRI), highlighting her role in academic leadership and research excellence. Vatankhah has published extensively in respected journals on topics ranging from strategy to sustainable business practices. Her research and consultancy work particularly emphasise inclusive entrepreneurship, focusing on empowering women-led businesses through innovative, socially responsible business models.

With her expertise, she makes significant contributions to shaping the strategic direction of business education and research. Vatankhah is also a certified CMI Level 7 business coach and contributes to the UoB Help to Grow: Management programme, supporting SMEs and underrepresented entrepreneurs in developing sustainable and growth-oriented strategies.

Qualification

• PhD. Business Management- Marketing specialisation, Azad 91ºÚÁÏÍø, Iran (2015-2019)

Teaching Expertise

• Business Management and Strategy
• Sustainable Development in Business
• Corporate Social Responsibility and Ethics
• Innovative Business Models
• Marketing

Research Interests

• Inclusive Entrepreneurship
• Sustainable Business Practices
• Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)
• Innovative Business Models
• Ethical and Responsible AI
• Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion in Business

Publications

• Altinay, L., Román, José M., Kromidha, E., Madanoglu, M., & Vatankhah, S. (2026). Psychological Capital and Perceived Environmental Uncertainty: Influence on Growth Aspirations and Quality of Life of Nascent Entrepreneurs. Journal of Small Business and Enterprise Development.
• Roodbari, H., Zheng, Y., Vatankhah, S., Woods, S., & Laker, B. (2026). Extreme context exposure and counterproductive work behaviour: The role of exhaustion, authentic leadership, and spirituality. Applied Psychology.
• Altinay, L., Vatankhah, S., De Vita, G., & Evrim Arici, H. (2026). Could AI technologies be harnessed to break down barriers to inclusivity for women entrepreneurship in tourism?. Tourism Management.
• Altinay, L., Toros, E., Vatankhah, S., & Seyfi, S. (2026). Women entrepreneurs as cultural custodians in tourism: A social feminism theory perspective. Tourism Management, 112, 105267.
• Roodbari, H., Ogbonnaya, C., Olya, H., Vatankhah, S. & Gyensare, M.A. (2025). Perceived Intensity of Extreme Events and Employees’ Safety Performance: An Affective Events Perspective. Journal of Occupational Health Psychology.
• Vatankhah, S., Darvishmotevali, M., Rahimi, R., Jamali, S. M., & Ale Ebrahim, N. (2023). Assessing the application of multi-criteria decision making techniques in hospitality and tourism research: a bibliometric study. International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management.
• Vatankhah, S., Bamshad, V., Arici, H. E., & Duan, Y. (2024). Ethical implementation of artificial intelligence in the service industries. The Service Industries Journal, 44(9-10), 661-685.
• Vatankhah, S., Bamshad, V., Altinay, L., & De Vita, G. (2022). Understanding Business Model Development through the Lens of Complexity Theory: Enablers and Barriers. Journal of Business Research.

Funded Projects

• BEACON (PI): Building Excellence in Academic Collaboration, Output, and Networking in Jordan (01/04/2025 - 31/03/2027), funded by the British Academy
• CREATECH (PI): Cultural and Creative Industries, Entrepreneurship, Innovation Ecosystem (EIT (European Institute of Innovation and Technology) Higher Education Initiative, Total value of €1.34 million, €250K received by UoB.

Contact Details

E: [email protected]