Thomas Powell
Professor
Strategy
University of Oxford
United Kingdom
Biography
Thomas Powell is Professor of Strategy at Saïd Business School, University of Oxford. His areas of expertise include competitive strategy, behavioural strategy, and executive decision making. Thomas' research on competitive strategy examines the causes and consequences of sustained competitive advantage. His research shows how the dynamics of strategy innovation and imitation bring about the emergence and decline of firm-specific advantages. His highly-cited studies on organisation structure, total quality management, information technology, and formal strategic planning were among the first empirical studies of resource-based competitive advantage. Thomas' work in behavioural strategy uses brain imaging and neuro-chemical methods to understand the micro-foundations of executive decision making. This experimental research, along with Thomas' 2011 review paper in Strategic Management Journal, have pioneered the emerging field of neurostrategy. Thomas' research in neurostrategy focuses on group decisions in large organisations, and how the brain functions when faced with decisions involving large resource commitments and multiple stakeholders.
Research Interest
Competitive strategy, Behavioural strategy, Neurostrategy
Publications
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Thomas Powell (2014) William James In: Helin, Jenny, Hernes, Tor, Hjorth, Daniel and Holt, Robin (eds.) The Oxford Handbook of Process Philosophy and Organization Studies, Oxford University Press
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Teppo Felin and Thomas Powell (2015) Designing Organizations for Dynamic Capabilities California Management Review, 58 (4) pp. 78-96.
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Jerker Denrell and Thomas Powell (2016) Dynamic Capability as a Theory of Competitive Advantage: Contributions and Scope Conditions In: Handbook on Dynamic Capabilities, Oxford University Press
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Sabrina Artinger and Thomas Powell (2016) Entrepreneurial Failure: Statistical and Psychological Explanations Strategic Management Journal, 37 (6) pp. 1047-1064. ISSN 1097-0266.
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Thomas Powell (2017) Behavioral strategy and the strategic decision architecture of the firm Sage Journals, 59 (3) pp. 5-21.
