Professor named to review board

Lou Marino, an associate professor of entrepreneurship and strategic management, has been named a member of the Babson College Entrepreneurship Research Conference Review Board.

"While this is an individual recognition, it is not really the accomplishment of one person," Marino said. "It is a team effort. As a team, the entrepreneurship group works together for the betterment of our students, our state and our field."

Marino is a member of the 13-member board that reviews research proposals and helps determine which should be published and which should receive awards.

The appointment is for a three-year term.

The Babson College Entrepreneurship Research Conference is considered to be one of the leading conferences in its field.

The conference highlights which areas of research are noteworthy and helps define upcoming research for the field. Approximately one out of three papers submitted is accepted, Marino said.

Each year, the conference attracts more than 300 entrepreneurial scholars who come to hear the presentations of more than 180 papers.

Those works chosen for publication will be featured in the book "Frontiers of Entrepreneurship Research," which the conference publishes annually.

Marino said he served as a reviewer for the conference in the past. At this position, he was one of many scholars who worked to choose the papers that were to warrant review by the review board at the conference.

"This is a significant invitation," said J. Barry Mason, dean of the Culverhouse College of Commerce and Business Administration, in a press release. "Dr. Marino is establishing a national reputation in entrepreneurship, and the insight he gains from this service will enhance that reputation and go far toward taking our entrepreneurial program to new heights."

The conference gives faculty members the opportunity to keep up with the newest research in the field of entrepreneurship. This benefit can provide a "competitive advantage" to UA students, Marino said.

It also gives faculty members the ability to network with leaders in their field from around the world, he said, and this networking profits the program and the students involved in the program themselves.

The Capstone's entrepreneurship program is ranked 18th in the nation, and Marino said he could not have achieved the honor alone.

"This honor is a reflection of the growing research quality that is going on at the University of Alabama," Marino said.

Marino's research is nationally acclaimed. His research in entrepreneurship has been internationally recognized with two national best paper awards.

His research appears in top management journals, like the Academy of Management Journal, the Journal of International Business Studies and Entrepreneurship Research and Practice. Marino has presented his research at both national and international meetings.

He earned his bachelor's of science degree from the State University of New York at Geneseo, his MBA from SUNY-Buffalo and his doctorate from Indiana University.

Babson College published the first issue of "Frontiers of Entrepreneurship Research" in 1981. It contains the proceedings of the conference. It is a prestigious publication in the field of entrepreneurship, and it is the most comprehensive collection of research papers on entrepreneurship research.

The conference takes place over three days. This year, the conference is at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill from June 5 to 7.