Rod B. McNaughton is a New Zealand-Canadian academic, author, and entrepreneurship educator. McNaughton's research focuses on international entrepreneurship, entrepreneurial ecosystems and entrepreneurship education. McNaughton has been a professor in Management and International Business at the

University of Auckland The University of Auckland (; Māori: ''Waipapa Taumata Rau'') is a public research university based in Auckland, New Zealand. The institution was established in 1883 as a constituent college of the University of New Zealand. Initially loc ...

since 2013. Other academic positions held at the University include Academic Director for the Centre for Innovation and Entrepreneurship and Director for Innovation and Professional Development.

Early life and education

McNaughton earned a

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

(Hons) in Geography at

Wilfrid Laurier University Wilfrid Laurier University (commonly referred to as WLU or simply Laurier) is a Public university, public university in Ontario, Canada, with campuses in Waterloo, Ontario, Waterloo, Brantford, Ontario, Brantford and Milton, Ontario, Milton. The ...

. He later completed a

Master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional prac ...

and a

PhD A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, DPhil; or ) is a terminal degree that usually denotes the highest level of academic achievement in a given discipline and is awarded following a course of graduate study and original research. The name of the deg ...

in Economic Geography at Western University, focusing on venture capital investment in the United States and Canada, respectively. In 1997, McNaughton finished his second

at the

University of Lancaster Lancaster University (officially The University of Lancaster) is a collegiate public university, public research university in Lancaster, Lancashire, England. The university was established in 1964 by royal charter, as one of several new univer ...

Career

McNaughton's first academic appointment came in 1989 as an assistant professor in the Department of Geography at the

University of Lethbridge The University of Lethbridge (also known as uLethbridge, uLeth, and U of L) is a public comprehensive and research university located in Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada, with a second campus in Calgary, Alberta. Founded in the liberal arts traditio ...

. After a brief tenure in New Zealand at the

University of Otago The University of Otago () is a public university, public research university, research collegiate university based in Dunedin, Otago, New Zealand. Founded in 1869, Otago is New Zealand's oldest university and one of the oldest universities in ...

as a Professor of Marketing, McNaughton returned to Canada in 2001 to join the

University of Waterloo The University of Waterloo (UWaterloo, UW, or Waterloo) is a Public university, public research university located in Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. The main campus is on of land adjacent to uptown Waterloo and Waterloo Park. The university also op ...

as a professor. During his time there, McNaughton held the Eyton Chair in Entrepreneurship and served as the Director of the Conrad School of Entrepreneurship and Business. As of 2025, McNaughton continues to serve as an

adjunct professor An adjunct professor is a type of academic appointment in higher education who does not work at the establishment full-time. The terms of this appointment and the job security of the tenure vary in different parts of the world, but the term is gen ...

in both the Conrad School and the Department of Management Science and Engineering. In 2013, McNaughton returned to New Zealand. He became Head of the Department for Management and International Business at the

in 2015. He has since held additional leadership roles, including Deputy Dean of the Faculty of Business and Economics (2017–2019), Director of the Graduate School of Management (2021), Co-Director of Ngā Ara Whetū, the University's Centre for Climate, Biodiversity and Society (2023-2024), and Academic Director for the Centre for Innovation and Entrepreneurship (2014–present). Throughout his academic career, McNaughton has contributed to research on international business strategy and market entry dynamics. He has authored or co-authored over 125 unique publications in refereed journal articles and books. McNaughton is a Chartered Member of the New Zealand Institute of Directors and has served on multiple boards, including as a trustee of the International Centre for Entrepreneurship Foundation (ICE), which oversees The Icehouse, a prominent provider of growth services and investment for New Zealand startups.

Selected Works

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References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:McNaughton, Rod Living people Year of birth missing (living people) New Zealand academics Wilfrid Laurier University alumni Alumni of Lancaster University Academic staff of the University of Waterloo Academic staff of the University of Auckland