Ewald Kibler is Professor at Aalto University School of Business and Head of the Entrepreneurship Unit (ENTU). He also served as a Research Council of Finland (RCF) Fellow (2018–2023) during his Assistant Professorship at Aalto. Ewald holds an M.A. in Sociology from the University of Graz and a Ph.D. in Economic Geography from the University of Turku.
Ewald has extensive experience in entrepreneurship education across BSc, MSc, and doctoral levels in Finland and internationally. He has played a key role in developing educational programs at Aalto University, including contributing to the MSc program in Sustainable Entrepreneurship and the Aalto Founder School. He has served as Program Director at both PhD and Master’s levels and teaches a wide range of entrepreneurship courses, with a strong focus on research-based and impact-oriented education.
His contributions have been widely recognized, including the Entrepreneurship Educator of the Year Award (2023) by the Finnish Business School Graduates and Kauppalehti, the Business Researcher of the Year Award (2020) at Aalto University School of Business, and the Entrepreneurship Researcher of the Year Award (2024) by Boardman Network Oy and the Family Business Association of Finland. He was also listed among the World’s Top 2% Scientists (2025) by Stanford University and Elsevier, and his work has been featured among the Top 100 Worldwide Business Researcher Impact Studies by the Financial Times.
His research combines qualitative and quantitative methods and takes a strongly multidisciplinary perspective, drawing on psychology, sociology, and geography. His work covers topics such as new venture creation and legitimation, founder team dynamics and entrepreneurial failure, compassion and prosocial venturing, regional and institutional embeddedness of entrepreneurship, entrepreneurship in times of crisis, youth and senior entrepreneurship, entrepreneurial wellbeing and health, entrepreneurial narratives, and cultural entrepreneurship.
His research has been published in leading journals including Academy of Management Journal, Journal of Business Venturing, Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, Research Policy, Journal of Management Studies, Journal of Economic Geography, Business History, Entrepreneurship & Regional Development, and Organization Studies, among others, and has received international recognition, including Best Paper Awards at the Babson College Entrepreneurship Research Conference and the Academy of Management (AoM) Annual Meeting.
Ewald serves as Associate Editor at the Journal of Business Venturing Insights and as an Editorial Review Board member for journals such as Academy of Management Journal and Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice. He also collaborates with policymakers and international organizations, including the ILO, OECD, and the European Commission, on entrepreneurship-related topics.
