Biography
Professor Michael Sacks joined the Goizueta Business School faculty in fall 2000 after completing his Ph.D. in Organization Behavior and Sociology in the Kellogg Graduate School of Management at Northwestern University. Michael's research explores how entrepreneurs use social capital to negotiate economic opportunities.

His most recent work investigates how social networks heighten entrepreneurial access to venture capital money, and how the management of social capital affects future funding and ultimate economic profits. Other projects have been published in outlets including Research in the Sociology of Organizations, American Behavioral Scientist, Negotiation Journal, and The Financial Times.

Michael has consulted and done executive education work in the areas of negotiations, managing conflict, leading teams, and managerial leadership. He teaches frequently for Goizueta's Executive Education program and currently serves as faculty director for the Managerial Leadership Program.

Publications

• The Social Structure of Entrepreneurial Financing: Stratification and the Differential Liability of Newness in U.S. Venture Capital, Research in the Sociology of Organizations, 2002
• Turning Disputes into Corporate Advantage, with Andy Lewis, Financial Times, Reprinted in Mastering People Management (edited by James Pickford, Prentice Hall, 2002), November 26, 2001
• Global Institutions and Networks: Contingent Change in The Structure of World Trade Advantage, 1965-1980, with Marc Ventresca and Brian Uzzi, American Behavioral Scientist, 43 (3), 2000
• Stateness and System in the Global Structure of Trade: A Network Approach to Assessing Nation Status, Questioning Geopolitics: Political Projects in a Changing World System, edited by Georgi M. Derluguian and Scott Greer, Greenwood Press, 2000
• The Structuration of Interfirm Ties: The Case of Stick Versus Switch Decisions, Embedded Organizations: Sociological Conceptions on Organizational Evolution in Three Transitioning Economies, edited by Rueyling Tzeng, Peter Lang Publishing, 2000
• Broadening the Evaluation of Dispute Resolution: Context and Relationships Over Time, with Kara Reichert and Trexler Proffitt, Negotiation Journal, 15 (4), 1999

Working Papers

• Embeddedness is Not an Option: Social Capital and Escalation of Commitment in Real Options Investments, with Russ Coff and Kevin Laverty, under review at Organization Science
• Revisiting the Weberian Iron Cage: A Diversity-Centered Approach to Studying Organizational Structure, with Rodney Lacey

Areas of Specialization

• Negotiations and Conflict Resolution
• Organization Theory
• Social Networks
• Entrepreneurship

Achievements and Honors: Teaching

• Outstanding Teaching Award: Kellogg Graduate School of Management, 1998-99 academic year
• College of Arts and Sciences Teacher of the Year, Northwestern University, 1998
• University Teaching Fellow: Searle Center for Teaching Excellence, Northwestern University, 1998-99 academic year

Achievements and Honors: Grants Received

• Research Grant (with Karen Mumford): Arthur M. Black Family Foundation. Major grant to incorporate the study of park usage in the Atlanta Parks system with the core MBA leadership class. May 2005-July 2006.
• Service-Learning Grant: Emory University Office of Community Partnerships/Kenneth Cole Foundation, awarded to support the incorporation of service-learning in the core MBA leadership class, 2004-2005 academic year.
• Teaching Grant: Violence Studies Program, Emory University, awarded to support the incorporation of violence studies in my negotiations and dispute resolution course, 2002-2003 academic year.
• Dissertation Grant. Heizer Center for Entrepreneurship Studies, October 1999
• Research Grant (with Brian Uzzi). Dispute Resolution Research Center, Northwestern University, April 1998
• Research Grant (with Brian Uzzi). Institute for Policy Research, Northwestern University, June, 1998

Professional Memberships and Activities

• Board of Directors for the non-profit "CURE Childhood Cancer"
• Academy of Management: Organizational Management and Theory, Entrepreneurship, Conflict Management, Social Issues in Management, Gender and Diversity in Organizations
• American Sociological Association: Economic Sociology, Organizations, Occupations and Work, Conflict Management

Selected Consulting Clients

• Microsoft
• Delta Airlines
• Coca Cola Enterprises
• Bayer Pharmaceuticals
• Hanson Brick
• Bard
• Pearl Protected
• Brighthouse
• MarketSource

Academic Background
Ph.D., Organization Behavior and Sociology, Kellogg Graduate School of Management at Northwestern University, 2001
M.S., Organization Behavior and Sociology, Kellogg Graduate School of Management at Northwestern University, 1996
B.A., Sociology, University of California, Santa Barbara, 1993