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Gregory Vit

Title: 
Desautels International Advisory and Advancement Board; Associate Professor (Professional), Strategy & Organization (Retired); Board Advisor, The John Dobson Foundation; CEO, Vit Innovation Thinking Inc.
Gregory Vit
Contact Information
Email address: 
greg.vit [at] mcgill.ca
Degree(s): 

PhD, Organizational Theory & Strategy, University of Bradford, UK
MBA, John Molson School of Business, Concordia University, Canada
BCom, Finance & International Business, 㽶Ƶ, Canada

Biography: 

Professor Vit is an award-winning educator and researcher. He joined 㽶Ƶ's Desautels Faculty of Management in 2001 and is Associate Professor of Strategy & Organization, Professional (retired). Prior to the crash of 2008, Professor Vit was awarded the "Breaking the Frame Award" for the best paper in the Journal of Management Inquiry for 2007 for his paper: "The Multiple Logics of Conformity and Contrarianism: The Problem with Investment Banks and Bankers". Building upon this work, his book: “The Risk in Risk Management, The Problem of Conformity in Financial Organizations” was published by Routledge Press in 2013.

Professor Vit received the "Professor of the Year" award in 2013 for “teaching excellence” by the McGill Management Undergraduate Society.

Professor Vit's industry experience spans over three decades and includes working as an investment banker at the Bank of America, director at the International Centre for Monetary and Banking Studies at HEI, University of Geneva, Switzerland, and a financial derivatives expert at TD Securities Inc. in Capital Markets and Derivative Products.

In addition to his teaching and research, Professor Vit is also the former director of the award-winning Dobson Centre for Entrepreneurship at 㽶Ƶ. As academic director from 2007 to 2017, Professor Vit designed, launched, grew and managed several highly innovative entrepreneurship programs for 㽶Ƶ student and professor start-ups. From zero, he created and funded the flagship McGill Lean Launchpad program, the McGill Dobson Cup Start-Up competition, and the McGill X-1 Accelerator programme (aided by colleagues at MIT), together with Demo days in San Francisco, New York, Boston, Toronto, and Montreal. At McGill, Professor Vit also created and connected a large network of very successful senior and junior McGill mentor entrepreneurs in Canada and internationally. These McGill alumni and friends of McGill have assisted over 600 McGill start-ups comprised of students and professors.

Professor Vit retired in 2021 and has maintained strong ties with the Desautels Faculty of Management. In 2021, The Professor Gregory Vit Entrance and In-Course Bursaries funds, were created which will perennially assist Bachelor of Commerce (BCom) undergraduates who need financial support to pursue their studies.

Professor Vit is currently Board Advisor to the John Dobson Foundation, and is CEO of Vit Innovation Thinking Inc.

Feature articles
Specialization by geographical area: 
London
Montreal
Areas of expertise: 

Innovation and Entrepreneurship
Corporate Finance and Governance
Risk Management in Financial Organizations

Group: 
Desautels International Advisory and Advancement Board
Stream: 
Entrepreneurship
Finance
Strategy
Technology & Innovation
Selected publications: 

Papers in Peer-Reviewed Journals

Vit, G. (2011) 'Competing logics: Project failure in Gaspesia'. European Management Journal.

Vit, G. (2009) "Foreseeing the Problem of Conformity in Strategy Teaching & Research" in: MacKay, B. & Constanzo, E. "Handbook of Research on Strategy and Foresight" Elgar Press. 518-527.

Vit, G. (2007)"The Multiple Logics of Conformity and Contrarianism:The Problem with Investment Banks and Bankers",Journal of Management Inquiry, Vol. 16, No.3 217-226.

Vit, G. (2006) "Organizational Conformity & Contrarianism: Regular irregular trading at National Australia Bank" Corporate Governance, Volume 6, No. 2, pp.203-214.

Vit, G. (1996) "Financial Service Industry Mismanagement" Journal of Service Industry Management, MCB University Press, Vol. 17 No. 3, pp.6-16.

Vit, G, Boghossian, J, Nain, A. & Moore,K. (2009) ALCAN: Anticipating Industry Change. Harvard Business School Case, Ivey Case, London. p. 1-19.

Vit, G. & Graham, J. (1997). "Canada Changes Foreign Bank Laws" Butterworth's Journal of International Banking & Financial Law, September 1997,pp. 363-368.

Books and Edited Volumes

Vit, G. (1993) "Canadian Bank Strategy: The CEO's Perspective." Cahier de Recherche CETAI 93-18. Ecole des Hautes Etudes Commerciale, Montreal, ISSN 0825-5822.

Vit, G. (2013) "The Risk in Risk Management: Financial Organizations & the Problem of Conformity", Routledge Press, New York, NY. ISBN:978-0-414-50984-8

Awards, honours, and fellowships: 

Awards

2013: McGill MUS Professor of the Year

2007: "Breaking the Frame Award" for the best paper in the Journal of Management Inquiry

2004: Management Reviews citation of research excellence for IJSIM art

2001: 㽶Ƶ Golden Key International Honor Society, for academic contribution to research and teaching

McGill Desautels International Advisory and Advancement Board

Comprised of highly successful industry leaders from around the globe, whoprovide regular support and recommendations to our Dean and the Faculty.

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