Dr. Hadi Fariborzi is an Assistant Professor of Innovation and Entrepreneurship at the Bissett School of Business, Mount Royal University. His research is situated at the intersection of international entrepreneurship, small-firm growth and survival, artificial intelligence in business, and cumulative science through systematic reviews and meta-analysis. Much of his work focuses on meta-analysis and systematic reviews. He also researches how new ventures and SMEs grow, internationalize, adapt, and make decisions in technologically and institutionally complex environments.

Hadi teaches a range of undergraduate courses that link innovation, entrepreneurship, and emerging technologies, including Creativity, Digital Entrepreneurship, Technology in Innovation, Innovation and the Entrepreneurial Experience (ENTR 2301), and How Technology Enables Innovation (ENTR 3360). He also designed and teaches AI for Business (ENTR 3901), an applied course that introduces students to AI-driven problem solving, machine-learning applications, and strategic decision-making with generative AI tools.
His research has been published in journals such as the Journal of International Business Studies, Journal of Applied Psychology, Journal of World Business, and Journal of Business Venturing Insights. Across these domains, his focus is on building theory-driven, transparent, and methodologically sound evidence using systematic reviews and advanced meta-analytic techniques.

Hadi is the co-founder of HubMeta.com and serves as the Research Director of the HubMeta Research Lab, where he develops meta-analytic infrastructure, leads collaborative systematic review and meta-analysis projects, and advances new methodological innovations in partnership with Dr. Piers Steel at the University of Calgary. Under his leadership, HubMeta has grown into a thriving community of more than 6,000 scholars who rely on the platform to conduct systematic reviews and meta-analyses. He also leads the development of AI-enabled research tools on HubMeta, enabling cumulative science to be conducted at a scale, speed, and level of accuracy that were previously unattainable.

In addition, Hadi teaches AI-for-research and meta-analysis workshops through instats.org, which remain available at no cost to MRU faculty, staff, and students.

Prior to joining Mount Royal University, Hadi served as a Lecturer in International Business at the University of Sussex Business School, teaching and supervising students across multiple programs. He completed his PhD in Strategy and Global Management at the University of Calgary and holds graduate and undergraduate degrees in business and engineering from Sharif University of Technology.

Research Interests:

• Systematic review and meta-analysis methods
• International entrepreneurship and SME internationalization
• Venture growth, survival, and strategic adaptation
• Growth and survival of new ventures and SMEs
• AI in business and ethical/strategic implications of generative AI
• Managerial governance and decision-making in international contexts

Recent Publications:

Fariborzi, H., Verbeke, A. & Steel, P. (2025). Early Internationalization: A Meta-Analysis of Antecedents, Dimensions, and Performance. Journal of Management Studies. https://doi.org/10.1111/joms.70008

Steel, P., & Fariborzi, H. (2024). A longitudinal meta-analysis of range restriction estimates and general mental ability validity coefficients: Better addressing overcorrection amid decline effects. Journal of Applied Psychology, 109(12), 1901–1920. https://doi.org/10.1037/apl0001214

Kanhaiya K. Sinha, Piers Steel, Chad Saunders, & Hadi Fariborzi (2023). Balancing entrepreneurial and learning orientations: A meta-analytic approach to understanding performance variability. Journal of Business Venturing Insights, 20, e00415. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbvi.2023.e00415

Steel, P., Fariborzi, H., & Hendijani, R. (2023). An application of modern literature review methodology: finding needles in ever-growing haystacks. Sage Research Methods: Business. https://doi.org/10.4135/9781529667417

Selected Publications (before 2023):

Fariborzi, H., Osiyevskyy, O., & DaSilva, C. (2022). The effect of geographic scope on growth and growth variability of SMEs. Journal of World Business, 57(5), 101371. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jwb.2022.101371

Verbeke, A., & Fariborzi, H. (2019). Managerial governance adaptation in the multinational enterprise: In honour of Mira Wilkins. Journal of International Business Studies, 50(8), 1213–1230. https://doi.org/10.1057/s41267-019-00251-7

Fariborzi, H., & Keyhani, M. (2018). Internationalize to live: A study of the post-internationalization survival of new ventures. Small Business Economics, 50(3), 607–624. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11187-017-9910-6

Verbeke, A., & Fariborzi, H. (2019). Celebrating 50 Years of JIBS: Anniversary Issue and Medal Awardees. Journal of International Business Studies, 50(9), 1441–1447. https://doi.org/10.1057/s41267-019-00272-2

For more detailed insights into Dr. Fariborzi’s work, please visit his Google Scholar Page.