Shareholder Strategy, Activism, and Corporate Governance

Moving beyond the traditional view of investors as passive providers of capital, I investigate how activist investors, institutional owners, and common owners shape managerial decisions and firm behavior.

Selected Publications:

  • DesJardine, Shi, & Werner (2025). Shareholder Activism and the Deterrence Effect of Democratic Politician Shareholders. Organization Science.

  • DesJardine, Shi, & Westphal (2024). Shareholder Politics: The Influence of Investors’ Political Affiliations on Corporate Social Responsibility. Journal of Management.

  • Shi, Connelly, Hoskisson, & Ketchen (2020). Portfolio Spillover of Institutional Investor Activism. Academy of Management Journal

  • DesJardine, Shi, & Cheng (2023(. The New Invisible Hand: How Common Owners Use the Media as a Strategic Tool. Administrative Science Quarterly

COrporate strategy

This stream focuses on corporate strategic decisions such as mergers and acquisitions, divestitures, diversification, venture investments, and international expansion, emphasizing how governance actors can shape firm strategic investments.

Selected Publications:

·  Shi, Ndofor, & Hoskisson (2021). Disciplining Role of Short Sellers: Evidence from M&A Activity. Journal of Management.

·  Shi, Connelly, & Cirik (2018). Short Seller Influence on Firm Growth: A Threat-Rigidity Perspective. Academy of Management Journal.

·  Bu, Shi, & Yin (2025). Institutional Investor Diversity and Opportunistic Acquisitions. Journal of Management.

·  Li, Zhang, & Shi (2020). Geographic and Cultural Distances in International Expansion. Strategic Management Journal.

Global Strategy and nonmarket strategy

This stream examines how firms navigate international markets, government influence, and geopolitical uncertainty.

Selected Publications:

·  Shi & Li (2023). Foreign Takeover Protection and Innovation Efficiency. Global Strategy Journal.

·  Shi, Gao, & Aguilera (2021). Foreign Institutional Ownership and Political Spending. Strategic Management Journal.

·  DesJardine, Shi, & Sun (2026). When Activists Target Political Firms: A Governance Systems Perspective on Corporate Lobbying. Organization Science.

Corporate Communication and Strategic Impression Management

Executives manage stakeholder perceptions not only through actions but also through communication. This research explores how executives and firms use disclosures, narratives, and symbolic actions to influence stakeholders.

Selected Publications:

·  Song, Connelly, Ketchen, & Shi (2026). Anticipatory Impression Management. Academy of Management Journal.

· DesJardine & Shi (2023). The Downside of Displaying Agentic Values: Evidence from Shareholder Activism. Organization Science.    

· Shi, Zhang, & Hoskisson (2019). CEO-CFO Social Interaction Through Language Style Matching. Academy of Management Journal.

· Um, Guo, Lumineau, Shi, & Song (2022). The downside of CFO function-based language incongruity. Academy of Management Journal.

Stakeholders and Human Capital

This research explores workplace safety, labor practices, employee ownership, diversity, CSR, and human capital management to understand how firms create value for multiple stakeholders.

Selected Publications:

·   Shi, Xia, & Meyer-Doyle (2022). Institutional Investor Activism and Employee Safety. Organization Science.

·   Li, Huang, & Shi (2026). Labor Issue Exposure and Artificial Intelligence Investment. Information Systems Research.

·   Chen, Meyer-Doyle, & Shi (2021). Hedge Fund Activism and Human Capital Loss. Strategic Management Journal.

·  Connelly, DesJardine, Shi, & †Sun (2025). Corporate social responsibility in the age of activist directorships. Strategic Management Journal.

Corporate governance

This stream examines strategic implications of corporate governance practices.

Selected Publications:

·  Shi & Connelly (2018). Is regulatory adoption ceremonial? Evidence from lead director appointments. Strategic Management Journal.

· Connelly, Shi, Walker, & Hersel (2022). Searching for a sign: CEO successor selection in the wake of misconduct. Journal of Management.

·  DesJardine & Shi (2021). How temporal focus shapes the influence of executive compensation on risk taking. Academy of Management Journal.

·  Shi, Connelly, & Hoskisson (2017). External corporate governance and financial fraud: Cognitive evaluation theory insights on agency theory prescriptions. Strategic Management Journal.

Big Ideas, Real Impact.

Dr. Wei Shi named as the most prolific business scientist in Management and Organization category based on publications in Top 24 Business Journals from 2017 to 2021