I grew up in family business, helping to build and grow a multi-family-owned small construction firm into one of the premier design-build commercial/industrial construction firms in the Midwest. I spent a decade living and working aboard, consulting...
Ph.D., Organizational Behavior, Case Western Reserve University
M.B.A., International Business, Case Western Reserve University
B.S., Management, Northern Kentucky University
I grew up in family business, helping to build and grow a multi-family-owned small construction firm into one of the premier design-build commercial/industrial construction firms in the Midwest. I spent a decade living and working aboard, consulting with industrial manufacturers around the world, and bring that mix of small-firm founding and large-firm management to every course that I teach.
I am interested in how ideas are formed, organizations are created, and how those organizations create change in our world through the power of enterprise. I teach on topics in entrepreneurship, social enterprise, nonprofit management, strategic management, marketing and innovation, and leadership, and I focus on opportunities for my students to learn through practice. My research focuses on how organizations make sense of their identities, values, and missions, how entrepreneurs and their organizations confront failure, and how entrepreneurship can be used to make our world a more equitable and sustainable place.
Beyond the walls of Jepson, I consult with public entities, small businesses, and non-for-profit organizations on market development, leadership capacity-building and succession planning, strategic planning and goal setting, and business valuation and transition. I’ve served on and led a half-dozen not-for-profit boards in Spokane and have held several administrative roles at Gonzaga and in higher education organizations. I served on the Editorial Review Boards of The Journal of Business Venturing and Entrepreneurship Theory & Practice – two of the highest-rated journals in the world, and my work has been featured handbooks of the leading research in social enterprise, new venture creation, and entrepreneurial failure.
As a native of Louisiana, I’m a passionate LSU Tigers and New Orleans Saints fan and I enjoy cooking (well) and painting (badly) in my spare time.
Journal Articles
Awotoye, Y. F. and Stevens, C.E. (2023). Gendered Perceptions of Spousal Support and Entrepreneurial Intention: Evidence from Nigeria. American Journal of Management, 23(2). https://doi.org/10.33423/ajm.v23i2.6053
Awotoye, Y. F. and Stevens, C.E. (2021). Breaking a promise never made: managing employee expectations at Rococo, LLC. The Case Journal, 17(5), pages 691-722. https://doi.org/10.1108/TCJ-10-2019-0096
Stevens, C.E. (2020). 90-second selling – An exercise in communicating value and persuading. Journal of Marketing Development and Competitiveness, 14(4), pages 39-50. https://doi.org/10.33423/jmdc.v14i4.3173
Cardon, M. S., Gregoire, D., Stevens, C. E., & Patel, P. C. (2013). Measuring entrepreneurial passion: Conceptual foundations and scale validation. Journal of Business Venturing, 28(3), 373-396. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusvent.2012.03.003
Pepper, M., Loroz, P. S., Patil, V. H., Stevens, C. E., & Buller, P. F. (2011). Towards a mission-centered business school: A process for engaging faculty and tracking progress. Journal of Jesuit Business Education, 2(1), 79-96.
Cardon, M.S., Stevens, C.E., & Potter, R.D. Misfortunes or mistakes? Cultural sense-making of entrepreneurial failure. (2011). Journal of Business Venturing, 26(1), 79-92. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusvent.2009.06.004
Smith, B.R., Knapp, J., Barr, T.F., Stevens, C.E., & Canatelli, B.L. (2010). Social enterprises and the timing of conception: Organizational identity tension, management and marketing. Journal of Nonprofit and Public Sector Marketing, 22(2), 108-134. https://doi.org/10.1080/10495141003676437
Smith, B.R. & Stevens, C.E. (2010). Different types of social entrepreneurship: The role of geography and embeddedness on the measurement scaling of social value. Entrepreneurship and Regional Development, 22(6), 575-598. https://doi.org/10.1080/08985626.2010.488405
Godwin, L.N., Stevens, C.E., & Brenner, N.L. (2006). Forced to play by the rules? Theorizing how mixed-sex founding teams benefit women entrepreneurs in male-dominated contexts. Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, 30(5), 623-642. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1540-6520.2006.00139
Cardon, M.S. & Stevens, C.E. (2004). Managing human resources in small organizations: What do we know? Human Resource Management Review, 14(3), 295-323. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.hrmr.2004.06.001
Book Chapters
Smith, B.R., Knapp, J., Barr, T.F., Stevens, C.E., & Canatelli, B.L. (2014). Social enterprises and the timing of conception: Organizational identity tension, management, and marketing. In J. Kickul, D. Gras, S. Bacq, & M. Griffiths (Eds.), Social Entrepreneurship. Cheltenham, UK: Edward Elgar.
Cardon, M.S., Stevens, C.E., and Potter, D.R. (2013) Misfortunes or Mistakes? Cultural Sensemaking of Entrepreneurial Failure. In D. Shepherd (Ed.), Entrepreneurial Failure. Cheltenham, UK: Edward Elgar.
Cardon, M.S., Stevens, C.E., and Potter, D.R. (2013). Misfortunes or Mistakes? Cultural Sensemaking of Entrepreneurial Failure. In D. Kuratko and M. Morris (Eds.), Entrepreneurship and Leadership. Cheltenham, UK: Edward Elgar.
Smith, B.R., Stevens, C.E., & Barr, T.F. (2010). Social entrepreneurs and earned income opportunities: The dilemma of earned income pursuit. In A. Fayolle & H. Matalay (Eds.), Handbook of Research in Social Entrepreneurship (pp. 284-303). Cheltenham, UK: Edward Elgar.
Conference Proceedings
Cardon, M.S. & Stevens C.E. (2009). The discriminant validity of entrepreneurial passion. Academy of Management Best Paper Proceedings.
Stevens, C.E. & Schulze, W.S. (2005). Do business incubators work? Perspectives on incubated firm success. Frontiers of Entrepreneurship Research 2005: Proceedings of the 25th Annual Babson Kauffman Entrepreneurship Research Conference (pp. 596-610). Babson Park, MA: Babson College.
Godwin, L.N. & Stevens, C.E. (2004). Are birds of a feather better? Theorizing the impact of gender and racial diversity on entrepreneurial founding teams. Institute of Behavioral and Applied Management 12 Proceedings.
