Dr Vahid J. Sadeghi (SFHEA) is an Associate Professor (Senior Lecturer) in International Entrepreneurship 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 Review, Journal of Business Research, Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Journal 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 Business, International 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.

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. 

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)

• 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

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)

• 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), 53^rd International Business Research Conference, Melbourne, Australia

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

• Director of PhD Programme, Sept 2023 - Present
• Director of MSc International Business, Mar 2022 - Oct 2023
• Director of BSc International Business and Management, Jan 2022 - Sept 2022

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)

   

Senior Fellow of Higher Education Academy (SFHEA)

Academy of Management (AOM)

Academy of International Business (AIB)

European Academy of Management (EURAM)