Biography

Professor Suzanne Gagnon is Associate Dean of Professional Graduate Programs and Executive Education at the Asper School, a leadership role inclusive of three programs within the Stu Clark Graduate School: the Master of Business Administration (MBA), Master of Finance (MFin) and the new Master of Supply Chain Management and Logistics (MSCM). In addition to her associate deanship, Dr. Gagnon is the inaugural Director of the James W. Burns Leadership Institute, designing and directing new programming across disciplines including the flagship President’s Student Leadership Program. Dr. Gagnon is Associate Professor in Leadership and Organization and holds the Canada Life Chair in Leadership Education at the Asper School, and conducts seminal research that focuses on identity, inclusion and leadership development in international firms; leadership and innovation in diverse contexts; and gender equity, representation and strategic change in private and public sector organizations. Her work is published in leading management and organization journals.

Dr. Gagnon has helped firms through innovative programs such as DiversityLeads funded by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council, providing evidence-based strategies for promoting diversity in organizations, and through assisting with strategic planning in healthcare and large public sector organizations. She is currently senior scholar and member of the National Advisory Board for the Women’s Entrepreneurship Knowledge Hub, a national consortium of universities and partners to advance opportunity and dismantle barriers for women and diverse entrepreneurs.

Dr. Gagnon joined the Asper School from McGill University’s Desautels Faculty of Management, where she was a faculty member for 14 years. Dr. Gagnon holds a PhD in Management from Lancaster University in the United Kingdom and a Master's degree in Industrial Relations from Oxford University. Earlier in her academic career, she taught at both Oxford and Oxford Brookes Universities in the United Kingdom, and consulted in organizational change for KPMG Management Consulting.

Publications

Gagnon, Suzanne & Augustin, Tomke & Cukier, Wendy. (2021). EXPRESS: Interplay for change in equality, diversity and inclusion studies. Human Relations. April 2021.

Cukier, Wendy & Gagnon, Suzanne & Latif, Ruby. (2020). Changing the narrative: Shaping legislation to advance diversity on boards in Canada. Equality, Diversity and Inclusion: An International Journal. Ahead-of-print.

Grandy, Gina & Cukier, Wendy & Gagnon, Suzanne. (2020). (In)visibility in the margins: COVID-19, women entrepreneurs and the need for inclusive recovery. Gender in Management: An International Journal, 35(7-8), 667-675.

Ng, Eddy & Gagnon, Suzanne. (2020). Employment Gaps and Underemployment for Racialized Groups and Immigrants in Canada: Current Findings and Future Directions.

Cukier, Wendy & Jackson, Samantha & Gagnon, Suzanne. (2019). The representation of women and racialized minorities as expert sources on-air in Canadian public affairs television. Canadian Journal of Communication, 44(1), 25-47.

Cukier, Wendy & Elmi, Mohamed & Gagnon, Suzanne. (2019). Content Analysis: Examining Representation in Broadcast News.

Cukier, Wendy & Gagnon, Suzanne & Blanchette, Simon & Latif, Ruby. (2018). Competing Discourses on Muslims in Canada: The Institutional Environment of Organizations. Academy of Management Proceedings, 2018, 17037.

Latif, Ruby & Cukier, Wendy & Gagnon, Suzanne & Chraibi, Radia. (2018). The diversity of professional Canadian Muslim women: Faith, agency, and ‘performing’ identity. Journal of Management & Organization, 24(5), 612-633.

Gagnon, Suzanne & Mantere, Saku & Augustin, Tomke. (2018). Discursive Opportunities and Strategy-Making in Social Organizations: A Conceptual Framework. Academy of Management Proceedings, 2018, 18773.

Gagnon, Suzanne & Collinson, David. (2017). Resistance through Difference: The Co-Constitution of Dissent and Inclusion. Organization Studies, 38(9), 1253-1276.

Pullen, Alison & Vachhani, Sheena & Gagnon, Suzanne & Cornelius, Nelarine. (2017). Editorial: Critical Diversity, Philosophy and Praxis. Gender, Work & Organization, 24(5), 451-456.

Bah, Alioune & Barth, Isabelle & Chraibi, Radia & Gagnon, Suzanne & Carrim, Nasima M.H. & Pio, Edwina & Zakaria, Norhayati. (2017). Muslim Minorities and Workplace Diversity: An International Perspective. Academy of Management Proceedings, 2017, 17680.

Cukier, Wendy & Gagnon, Suzanne & Roach, Erin & Elmi, Mohamed & Yap, Margaret & Rodrigues, Sara. (2016). Trade-offs and disappearing acts: Shifting societal discourses of diversity in Canada over three decades. The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 28(7), 1031-1064.

Gagnon, Suzanne & Weiner, Elaine. (2015). Where are the Athenas? Mentors' gender talk and prospects for equality. Academy of Management Proceedings, 2015, 11074.

Gagnon, Suzanne & Prasad, Pushkala. (2015). Governing identities: Narrative and discourse as identity work at four levels of analysis. Academy of Management Proceedings, 2015, 14805.

Jackson, Samantha & Cukier, Wendy & Connely, Krysten & Gagnon, Suzanne & Roach, Erin. (2015). Beyond pipelines and talent pools: A comparative analysis of women in senior leadership positions across and between sectors in Canada. In Karen Longman, Susan Madsen, Faith Wambura Ngunjiri, and Cynthia Cherrey (Eds.), Women as Global Leaders: Women and Leadership Around the World (pp.122-149). Information Age Publishing.

Gagnon, Suzanne & Roach, Erin & Connely, Krysten & Jackson, Samantha. Beyond belonging and identification: A theory of inclusive practices and why they work. Academy of Management Proceedings, 2014, 17426.

Gagnon, Suzanne & Collinson, David. (2014). Rethinking global leadership development programmes: The inter-related significance of power, context and identity. Organization Studies, 35(5), 645-670.

Gagnon, Suzanne, & Lirio, Pamela. (2014). Follow the experts: Intercultural competence as knowing-in-practice. In Information Resources Management Association (Ed.), Cross-Cultural Interaction: Concepts, Methodologies, Tools, and Applications (pp. 889-908). IGI Global.

Gagnon, Suzanne & Vough, Heather C. & Nickerson, Robert. (2012). Learning to lead, unscripted: Developing affiliative leadership through improvisational theatre. Human Resource Development Review, 11(3), 299-325.