Ivey is excited to welcome several new faculty members to campus this year! To get to know our new colleagues, we asked them some questions to learn about their interests inside and outside the classroom.
Get to know: Dilan Eren
Dilan Eren is an assistant professor of strategy. She completed her undergraduate and master’s degrees at Boğaziçi University in Türkiye before earning her PhD in sociology from Boston University with a specialization in organizations, occupations, and work.
Eren’s transition from sociology to business was inspired by her love for an organizational theory class she attended at the Questrom School of Business. Now, six years later, Eren says she is thrilled to teach strategy in the HBA program.
Q&A with Dilan Eren
What is the most important thing business executives can learn from your research/area of expertise?
Rapid digital technological change brings numerous opportunities for businesses to thrive and many challenges to navigate. My research speaks to these opportunities and challenges, particularly in the areas of employee upskilling and cybersecurity. For example, business executives can learn about effective and ineffective strategies for using digital technologies to upskill their employees or working with hackers to address cybersecurity vulnerabilities.
Where did you grow up and what was it like there?
I grew up in Istanbul – a vibrant city full of art, culture, and fantastic food. I attended Boğaziçi University near the Bosporus Strait, home to a stunning campus with stone buildings and lots of greenery. Western University's main campus strongly reminds me of it – but instead of geese and squirrels, we had stray cats and dogs accompanying us!
Who have been your strongest influences in life?
That’s a tough one. I guess I have always been inspired by people who go the extra mile to uplift others. My doctoral research was influenced by the work of Quincy Larson, the founder of Free Code Camp – a completely free resource for learning how to code. If you haven’t heard of it, I highly recommend checking out Free Code Camp. The organization, along with its volunteers and contributors, has transformed lives worldwide by making coding tools accessible to everyone, but especially those who wouldn’t have the opportunity to learn otherwise. I find the community surrounding Free Code Camp incredibly inspiring.
What led you to your career?
Speaking of people who go the extra mile to uplift others, my career has been shaped by two such individuals. My undergraduate and master’s advisor, Nükhet Sirman, was an accomplished ethnographer who sparked my passion for qualitative research and went above and beyond to train me in qualitative methods. We spent many nights together reviewing and improving my interview process, field memos, and analyses. Similarly, my doctoral advisor Michel Anteby –who is in the Questrom School of Business – went the extra mile by accepting a student from sociology. It took a lot of hand-holding and guidance on his part to deepen my engagement with the field and relevant literature. My transition from sociology to business school would not have been possible without his devotion and patience with me.
What do you like to do when you’re not working?
Taking long walks and cooking with my partner is a true joy! I’ve also been trying to grow indoor plants, though I’ve had some trouble keeping them alive. I recently lost a basil plant, but I’m not giving up. I’m hopeful that I’ll be able to keep a few alive after experimenting with new methods.
What might someone be surprised to know about you?
My partner and I have recently become fans of Phaidon cookbooks. No recipes have disappointed us. My favourite is The Silver Spoon, which contains recipes for simple, healthy, and delicious Italian food.
What’s the most played song on your playlist as of now?
Well, let’s check… Mean Green by Snarky Puppy. I usually listen to Snarky Puppy while writing – and I’ve been writing a lot lately! Of those I listen to when I’m not working, it seems like I’ve played This Must Be The Place by Talking Heads the most.
What book would you recommend to others? On the personal side? On the business side?
On the personal side, I’m a fan of Orhan Pamuk novels. My favourites are The Black Book and My Name is Red. Recently, I read Andrew Sean Greer’s Less, which was different from my usual reads but hilarious! I’m eager to start the sequel, Less Is Lost.
On the business side, Matt Beane’s The Skill Code: How to Save Human Ability in an Age of Intelligent Machines and Ethan Mollick’s Co-Intelligence: Living and Working with AI offer fascinating insights into professional skills and technological change – two issues I am deeply interested in.
