People – Business Scholars and Managements Experts
The Teams
Dr. Maithilee Kunda looks on as lab member Josh Plamer helps Jennifer Frist try her hand at one of the visual cognitive tests used in the lab’s research (photo: John Russell, Vanderbilt University).
The AIVAS Lab
One of the AIVAS (Artificial Intelligence and Visual Analogical Systems) Lab’s current objectives is to better understand how visual thinking works in the human brain, both for neuro-typical and neuro-diverse individuals.
Inclusive Leadership Development
Organizational researchers at the Owen Graduate School of Management like Tim Vogus study the roles of leadership, organizational culture and structure, and team processes that help individuals, teams and organizations thrive.
Participants meet at the Social Ventures Summit in 2016 at the business school.
The People
Dr. Tim Vogus
Deputy Director of Business Innovations
Nationally recognized for his teaching abilities and his research on making health care delivery safer and workplaces more inclusive of neurodiversity, Tim Vogus teaches a class on leading teams and organizations that is among the most popular at Owen.
Professor Vogus was named one of the 50 most influential business professors of 2013 and earlier named one of the Top 40 Business School Professors under 40 by PoetsandQuants.com in 2011. He was the recipient of the Owen Graduate School of Management Research Productivity Award in 2013 and the Research Impact Award in 2022. His teaching has been recognized with the Excellence in Teaching Award from the Health Care Management Division of the Academy of Management in 2019, the James A. Webb Jr. Award for Excellence in Teaching in 2007 and 2013; he was a finalist for the Webb award on 11 other occasions, and a Dean’s Award for Teaching Innovation in 2018.
Professor Vogus is the Faculty Director of the Leadership Development Program and the Deputy Director of the Frist Center for Autism and Innovation. He serves as an Associate Editor of Health Care Management Review and on the Editorial Board of the Journal of Service Management. He previously served as the Division Chair for the Health Care Management Division of the Academy of Management.
Professor Vogus’ research has been published or is forthcoming in an array of top autism (Autism), health services (Health Affairs, Health Services Research, Medical Care, Medical Care Research and Review), industrial relations (ILR Review), management (Academy of Management Annals, Academy of Management Review, Annual Review of Organizational Psychology and Organizational Behavior), medical (Annals of Emergency Medicine), nursing (Journal of Nursing Administration), and social work (Children and Youth Services Review) journals.
DR. SARA FREDERICK
Neurodiversity Inspired Science and Engineering Fellows Instructor
Sara is currently serving as an STEM Instructor for the FCAI Graduate NISE Seminar (Neurodiversity Inspired Science and Engineering).
She is a a third-year Postdoctoral Scholar in Physics and Astronomy at Vanderbilt working as part of the Sloan Digital Sky Survey's Black Hole Mapper Project and Black Hole Physics Working Group in the Runnoe Lab.
Previously a PhD candidate and Grad Student President in Astronomy at University of Maryland College Park, Sara worked as a a primarily optical and X-ray spectroscopist and observing data collector, and member of the Engineering Commissioning, Machine Learning, and Black Holes Working Groups as part of the Zwicky Transient Facility Collaboration.
Judith Reilly
UConn's Center for Neurodiversity & Employment Innovation - Director
Judy joined the University of Connecticut in 2021 to design, build, and direct a national academic center whose mission is to address the challenges and opportunities related to neurodiversity and employment. The Center for Neurodiversity and Employment Innovation (CNDEI) was launched as part of UConn’s Werth Institute for Entrepreneurship and Innovation to exponentially improve employment outcomes nationwide for bright neurodivergent (ND) individuals with conditions like autism, ADHD, dyslexia, and other learning differences.
CNDEI pursues collaborative, innovative, and scalable solutions that embrace a strengths-based perspective on ND individuals’ talents and address the barriers blocking successful employment. The center focuses on two primary pillars of the employment ecosystem where change and innovation are critical: Accessible and comprehensive employer education and training and Innovative employment pathways within (and outside of) the higher education model.
DR. HALA ANNABI
Associate Professor, Information School, University of Washington
Hala Annabi is an Associate Professor of Information Management and Director of the Neurodiversity and Employment Research Group at the University of Washington's Information School. Annabi's research and consulting focuses on creating and maintaining inclusive learning organizations.
Dr. Annabi investigates diversity and inclusion initiatives aimed at recruiting, retaining, and advancing women, women of color, and neurodivergent employees. Her research emphasizes intersectionality and critical perspectives. She also pursues lines of inquiry focused on improving inclusive product management. Dr. Annabi's work is published in academic and industry outlets to advance the science and practice of inclusion.
Dr. Annabi collaborates with industry leaders to establish best practices for inclusion and has authored the Autism at Work Playbook and the Neurodiversity Playbook Engagement and Growth Series in partnership with The Neurodiversity at Work Employer Roundtable which includes firms such as Microsoft, SAP, JPMorgan Chase, and EY. The Autism at Work Playbook is the prominent industry guidebook for designing, developing, and scaling neurodiversity hiring initiatives.