Skip to main content
${alt}

Serena G. Sohrab
PhD

Associate Professor

Organizational Behaviour and HR

Faculty of Business and Information Technology

Contact information

Business and Information Technology Building - Room 3014
North Oshawa
2000 Simcoe Street North
Oshawa, ON L1G 0C5

905.721.8668 ext. 5536

serena.sohrab@ontariotechu.ca

Research topics

  • Diversity and Inclusion
  • Work-family Conflict
  • Women's Advancement
  • Infertility and Work
  • Managing Team Dynamics
  • Team Decision Making

Background

Dr. Serena Sohrab is an award-winning management researcher, educator, and consultant. In her research, Serena examines organizational factors that can enhance individuals' work experiences. In one research program, she focuses on unraveling the complexities of women's advancement in organizations and society. In this line of work, she examines the intersection between infertility and work and seeks to understand the impact of infertility and other challenges of family planning on women's careers. In another research program, she examines managerial actions that are conducive to effective decision-making in teams. Her research has appeared in outlets such as Harvard Business Review, Journal of Organizational Behavior, Public Relations Review, and Small Group Research.

A passionate advocate of women's economic independence, she has built on her research to lead several non-profit initiatives focused on women's advancement in Canada and abroad. She is the recipient of several prestigious awards, including the top Paper Award of the Public Relations Division of the National Communication Association Convention, Doctoral Research Award for the Study of Women in Management, and Doctoral Fellowship of Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada. Serena earned her Ph.D. from the Schulich School of Business.

Education

  • PhD in Organizational Behaviour
  • Master of Business Administration
  • Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering

Courses taught

  • Managing Team Dynamics (MBA) - Schulich School of Business, York University
  • The Management of Change (Bachelor of Commerce) - FBIT, Ontario Tech University
  • Developing Management Skills (Bachelor of Commerce) – FBIT, Ontario Tech University
  • Recruitment and Selection (Bachelor of Commerce) – FBIT, Ontario Tech University
  • Behavioural Components of Organizations (Bachelor of Business Administration) - Schulich School of Business, York University

Research and expertise

  • Insight Development Grant, Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC), with Nada Basir ($63,297), 2021
  • SSHRC Explore Grant, Ontario Tech University, with Nada Basir ($6,900), 2021
  • University of Waterloo/SSHRC Robert Harding/Loid Claxton Humanities and Social Sciences Endowment Fund Research Award, with Nada Basir ($6,975), 2020
  • Start-up Fund, Ontario Tech University ($20,000), 2014
  • SSHRC Doctoral Fellowship ($40,000), 2009
  • Ontario Graduate Scholarship, Government of Ontario ($15000), 2009 (Recipient, but not accepted)
  • Doctoral Research Award for the Study of Women in Management, Schulich School of Business ($500), 2009
  • Doctoral Research Award for the Study of Women in Management, Schulich School of Business ($500), 2008
  • Schulich Entrance Scholarship of Merit, Schulich School of Business (Awarded to a selected number of entering students based on academic excellence) ($12,100), 2007
  • Top Paper Award (with Keri Stephens and Mary J. Waller), Public Relations Division, National Communication Association Convention, Baltimore, MD, 2019
  • Nominated for York University Best Dissertation Award, 2014
  • Nominated for J. Richard Hackman Award for the Dissertation that Most Significantly Advances the Study of Groups, 2014

Involvement

  • Refereed Journal Publications
    • Sohrab, S.G., Uitdewilligen, S., & Waller, M. J. (in press). The Temporal Structure of Team Interaction Under Asymmetric Information Distribution: The Solution Fixation Trap, Journal of Organizational Behavior. https://doi.org/10.1002/job.2592
    • Stephens, K. K., Waller, M. J., & Sohrab, S. G. (2019). Over-Emoting and Perceptions of Sincerity: Effects of Nuanced Displays of Emotions and Chosen Words on Credibility Perceptions During a Crisis, Public Relations Review, 45(5): 1-8. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pubrev.2019.101841
    • Sohrab, S. G., Waller, M. J., & Kaplan, S. (2015). Exploring the Hidden Profile Paradigm: A Literature Review and Analysis, Small Group Research, 46(5): 489-535. https://doi.org/10.1177/1046496415599068
    • Waller, M.J., Sohrab, G., & Ma, B. (2013). Beyond 12 Angry Men: Thin-Slicing Film to Illustrate Emergent Team Dynamics, Small Group Research, 44(4): 446-465. https://doi.org/10.1177/1046496413487409
  • Practitioner-Focused Publications
  • Chapters in Edited Books
    • Sohrab, S. G. & Karambayya, R. (2016). Women in Management in Iran. In A. M. Richardsen, & R. J. Burke (Eds.), Women in Management Worldwide: Signs of Progress, 3rd: 285 - 308, Abingdon, UK: Routledge Publishing. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315546742
    • Sohrab, G., Karambayya, R., & Burke, R. J. (2011). Women in Management in Canada. In M. J. Davidson, & R. J. Burke (Eds.), Women in Management Worldwide: Progress and Prospects, 2nd ed.: 165-181. Surrey, UK: Gower Publishing.
  • Refereed Conference Presentations
    • Sohrab, S. G., Moteabbed, S., Javadian, G. (2021). When Is the Right Time to Grow My Family? Hidden Challenges of Family Planning in Academia and Beyond, Academy of Management Annual Conference, Virtual.
    • Sohrab, S. G., Moteabbed, S., Javadian, G. (2020). When Is the Right Time to Grow My Family? Hidden Challenges of Family Planning in Academia and Beyond, Academy of Management Annual Conference, Virtual.
    • Stephens, K. K., Sohrab, S. G., & Waller, M. J. (2019). Surviving a crisis with an inexperienced spokesperson: Effects of nuanced displays of emotions and chosen words on spokesperson credibility, National Communication Association Convention, Baltimore, MD. Top Paper, Public Relations Division.
    • Christianson, M., Sohrab, S. G., & Waller, M. J. (2018). Managing a Real-World Unexpected Event: Trajectories of Routine and Non-routine Activities. Academy of Management Annual Conference, Chicago, IL.
    • Christianson, M., Sohrab, S. G., & Waller, M. J. (2018). Tracing Trajectories: Analyzing and Visualizing Unfolding Sequences of Action. Academy of Management Annual Conference, Chicago, IL.
    • Lehmann-Willenbrock, N., Kennedy, D.M., Meinecke, A.L., Sohrab, S.G., Kauffeld, S., Knight, A. P., & Waller, M. J. (2016). New Methods for Analyzing Group Interactions: A Multidisciplinary Symposium, Interdeisciplinary Network for Group Research Annual Conference, Helsinki, Finland. 
    • Sohrab, S.G., Tasa, K. & Waller, M. J. (2015) Leadership Style and Team Adaption to Loss of the Leader, Interdisciplinary Network for Group Research Annual Conference, PIttsburg, PA. 
    • McLeod, P. L., Schreiber, L., Sohrab, S. G., & Waller, M. J. (Alphabetical Order) (2015). Experiential Approaches to Teaching about Small Groups, Interdisciplinary Network for Group Research Annual Conference, Pittsburg, PA.
    •  Sohrab, G., & Waller, M. J. (2014). Team Interaction under Asymmetric Information Distribution Conditions, Interdisciplinary Network for Group Research Annual Conference, Raleigh, NC.
    • Sohrab, G., & Waller, M. J. (2014). How to Use Flexible Phase Mapping Technique to Analyze Temporal Patterns of Team Interactions, Interdisciplinary Network for Group Research Annual Conference, Raleigh, NC.
    • Waller, M.J., Sohrab, G., & Ma, B. (2013). Pedagogical Insights for Teaching Teamwork. Academy of Management Annual Conference, Orlando, FL.
    • Sohrab, G. (2012). Patterns of Team Information Processing in Times of Crisis. Academy of Management Annual Conference, Boston, MA.
    • Sohrab, G., & Waller, M.J. (2012). Team Adaptation to Nonroutine Events: A Social Identity Perspective. Interdisciplinary Network for Group Research Annual Conference, Chicago, IL.
    • Sohrab, G. (2011). The Input-Mediator-Outcome Framework as a Lens of Understanding Hidden Profile Paradigm: A Literature Review. Interdisciplinary Network for Group Research Annual Conference, Minneapolis, MN.
    • Sohrab, G. (2011). Team Identity and Adaptive Group Responses to Non-routine Events. European Association of Work and Organizational Psychology Annual Conference, Maastricht, the Netherlands.
  • Invited Talks
    • Supporting Employees with Family Forming, While Managing Costs. From Day One, 2021.
    • The Postponed Motherhood Cost: The Impact of Infertility on Women’s Careers. Divisional Grand Rounds (Medical Oncology and Hematology Division), University Health Network, Toronto, Canada, 2021.
    • The Postponed Motherhood Cost: The Impact of Infertility on Women’s Careers. IDEA Seminar Series, University Health Network, Toronto, Canada, 2021.
    • Winning Body Language. Alumni Engagement Meeting, Ontario Tech University, Oshawa, Canada, 2020.
    • Lead Like a Woman. Women in Business, Ontario Tech University, Oshawa, Canada, 2017.
    • Winning Body Language. University Communicators Connect Network, Ontario Tech University, Oshawa, Canada, 2016.
  • Media appearances

    Dealing with Disaster

    The Spark Magazine | May 1, 2020

    Dr. Sohrab comments on how management is an integral part of how employees succeed through crisis.

    View more - Dealing with Disaster