Office: RBC 422 Phone: 610-758-3435 Email: wif209@lehigh.edu

Department of Management:  Assistant Professor

Education
-  United States Air Force Academy, B.S.
-  Air Force Institute of Technology, M.S.
-  University of Colorado, M.B.A.
-  University of Virginia, Ph.D.

William Forster's research interests include founding partnerships, new venture teams, entrepreneurial decision making, and business ethics.  He has published papers on these topics in the Journal of Business Venturing and the Journal of Management Education. His dissertation investigated the antecedents and consequences of founding partnerships and was awarded a grant from the Kauffman Foundation & National Opinion Research Center (U. of Chicago).

Professor Forster joined the Lehigh faculty in 2009 after graduating from the University of Virginia with a Ph.D. in Business Administration with concentrations in Entrepreneurship, Strategic Management, and Business Ethics.   Prior to pursuing his Ph.D., he was an Instructor of Management at the United States Air Force Academy where he earned the James R. Woody Outstanding Educator Award and was awarded an Air Force PhD Fellowship.  He has twelve years experience as an Air Force officer and worked as both a financial and project manager in numerous technology development programs.

Research Interests

• Founding Partnerships
• New Venture Teams
• Entrepreneurial Cognition
• Business Ethics

Selected Publications and Working Papers

• Beyond Hubris: How Highly Confident Entrepreneurs Rebound to Venture Again
• The Genesis of Entrepreneurial Founding Partnerships: Why do some Co-found?
• An Error Based Theory of Entrepreneurial Confidence
• The Role of Under and Overconfidence in the Development of Entrepreneurial Expertise
• Founding Partnerships and New Firm Profitability
  

Links

Curriculum Vitae

 

   

College of Business and Economics
Lehigh University • 621 Taylor Street, Rauch Business Center, Bethlehem, PA 18015 • (610) 758-3400