Rachelle Sampson

Rachelle C. Sampson is Associate Professor of Logistics, Business and Public Policy at the Smith School of Business, University of Maryland. She is also a Visiting Scholar at the ESG Analytics Lab at the Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania, and a Senior Policy Scholar at Georgetown University's Center for Business and Public Policy. Rachelle’s research focuses on how organization structure and ownership forms influence firm investment time horizons and R&D productivity. Her recent work exposes rising short-termism in US firms and capital markets, outlining implications for firm productivity and growth, the changing nature of R&D within firms, as well as environmental impact. Rachelle has a particular interest in the impact of sustainability practices and ESG performance on employee engagement and productivity, as well as how this translates into long-term financial performance. Her research has been published in several academic outlets, including Management Science, Strategic Management Journal, Academy of Management Journal and Case Western Law Review, and has received press coverage, including Bloomberg and Vox.com. She serves as associate editor at Management Science and on the editorial boards of Strategic Management Journal and Organization Science.

Rachelle regularly presents her research work to practitioner forums, particularly within the ESG investment community. She sits on corporate advisory boards supporting firms seeking to integrate ESG into firm strategy and valuation models. Formerly a professor at NYU-Stern and Georgetown University, Rachelle started her professional career as a consultant for Ernst & Young and as a corporate attorney in Australia. She received her PhD from the University of Michigan and her law degree from Queensland University of Technology, Australia.

Since returning to the U.S., Rachelle has received several awards for her research and teaching, including the Ross School of Business (University of Michigan) Distinguished PhD Alumni Award, the Ameritech Foundation Research Fellowship, the Krowe Award for Teaching Excellence, and recognition from Poets and Quants as a favorite business school professor. She teaches MBA and PhD courses in corporate strategy, managerial economics as well as firm ESG and environmental strategy. Rachelle is an active participant in several activities related to expanding the sustainability curriculum across disciplines at the University of Maryland, including serving as a faculty mentor and facilitator for the Sustainability Teaching Fellows for over a decade. Rachelle is also founder of Blue Prism, a leadership coaching practice focused on supporting individuals, leaders and organizations in aligning with values and purpose. She has received certification for her coaching experience, skills and training from the International Coaching Federation.

PUBLICATIONS

• Rachelle C. Sampson and Yuan Shi. 2020. "Are US firms becoming more short-term oriented? Evidence of shifting firm time horizons from implied discount rates, 1980-2013." Strategic Management Journal, 1-33, 2019. Strategic Management Journal.
• Rachelle C. Sampson and Y. Maggie Zhou. 2018. "Public vs. Private Firms: Energy Efficiency, Toxic Emissions and Abatement Spending." In Advances in Strategic Management: Sustainability, Stakeholder Governance and Corporate Social Responsibility, edited by Sinziana Dorobantu, Ruth Aguilera, Jiao Luo, and Frances Milliken, 38: 37-68. Emerald Insight, 2018.
• Michael D. Ryall and Rachelle C. Sampson. 2017. "Contract Structure for Joint Production: Risk and Ambiguity under Compensatory Damages." Management Science, 4, 63: 1232-53, 2017.
• Rachelle C. Sampson and Yuan Shi. 2017. "Is Corporate Short-termism on the Rise in the U.S.?" The CLS Blue Sky Blog: Columbia Law School Blog on Corporations and the Capital Markets.
• achelle C. Sampson. 2016. "Short-term thinking in corporate America is strangling the economy."
• Joanne Oxley, Rachelle C. Sampson, and Brian Silverman. 2009. "Arms Race or Détente? How Inter-firm Alliance Announcements Change the Stock Market Valuation of Rivals." Management Science, 8, 55: 1321-37.