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Veikko Thiele

Associate Professor & Distinguished Faculty Fellow of Business Economics

Overview

Dr. Veikko Thiele is Associate Professor & Distinguished Faculty Fellow of Business Economics. His research focuses on entrepreneurial finance and applied contract theory. He also teaches microeconomics in the Commerce as well as in the MSc/PhD program.

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Academic Area

  • Business Economics

Interest Topics

  • Economics
  • Entrepreneurship

Faculty Details

Profile

Full Bio

Dr. Veikko Thiele is Associate Professor & Distinguished Faculty Fellow of Business Economics at Stephen J.R. Smith School of Business.

His research focuses on entrepreneurial finance, with the main emphasis on the interplay between different financial resources for start-up companies, such as angel investments and venture capital.

In another stream of his research, Dr. Thiele examines performance evaluations and the efficient design of incentive schemes in organizations. His work has been published or is forthcoming in leading international journals, including the Journal of Financial Economics, Management Science, the American Economic Journal: Microeconomics, Journal of Law, Economics, & Organization, Journal of Economics & Management Strategy, and Labour Economics. He is the 2014 recipient of the Smith New Researcher Achievement Award.

Before he joined Queen's in the summer of 2009, Dr. Thiele was a Postdoctoral Fellow at the Sauder School of Business at the University of British Columbia, where he was nominated for the Commerce Undergraduate Society's Teaching Excellence Award in 2008. Dr. Thiele received his PhD in Economics from Humboldt University Berlin in 2006.

Academic Degrees

Ph.D. in Economics (summa cum laude)
School of Business and Economics, Humboldt University Berlin, Germany (2006)

Diplom-Kaufmann (Master’s Degree in Business Studies)
School of Business and Economics, Humboldt University Berlin, Germany (2002)

Academic Experience 

Smith School of Business, Queen’s University
Associate Professor (with tenure) (2015 - Present)
Assistant Professor (2009-2015)             

Sauder School of Business, University of British Columbia
Postdoctoral Fellow, Strategy and Business Economics Division (2006-2009)

Publications

Publications in Peer-Reviewed Journals

May the Force be With You: Investor Power and Company Valuations, 2022 (with Thomas Hellmann). Journal of Corporate Finance, 72, 102163.

Competition in the Venture Capital Market and the Success of Startup Companies: Theory and Evidence, 2020 (with Suting Hong and Konstantinos Serfes), Journal of Economics & Management Strategy, 29(4), 741-791

Fostering Entrepreneurship: Promoting Founding or Funding?, 2019 (with Thomas Hellmann). Management Science, 65(6), 2502-2521.

  • Selected as featured article in the Management Science Blog (August, 2019)

Partner Uncertainty and the Dynamic Boundary of the Firm, 2017 (with Thomas Hellmann). American Economic Journal: Microeconomics, 9(4), 277-302.

Contracting among Founders, 2015 (with Thomas Hellmann), Journal of Law, Economics, & Organization, 31(3), 629-661.

Friends or Foes? The Interrelationship between Angel and Venture Capital Markets, 2015 (with Thomas Hellmann), Journal of Financial Economics, 115(3), 639-653.

Subjective Performance Evaluations, Collusion, and Organizational Design, 2013, Journal of Law, Economics, & Organization 29(1), 35-59. 

Incentives and Innovation: A Multi-tasking Approach, 2011 (with Thomas Hellmann), American Economic Journal: Microeconomics 3(1), 78-128.

Promotion Tournaments and Individual Performance Pay, 2010 (with Anja Schöttner), Journal of Economics & Management Strategy 19(3), 699-731.

Task-Specific Abilities in Multi-Task Principal-Agent Relationships, 2010, Labour Economics, 17(4), 690-698.

Aggregating Performance Measures in Multitask Principal-Agent Relationships, 2009, Economics Bulletin 29(4), 2693-2699.

Performance Measurement in Multi-Task Agencies, 2007, Research in Economics 61(3), 148-163.

In the Media

Angel investors, not entrepreneurs, need government support. The Conversation, December 2018.

May the Force be With You: Investor Power and Company Valuations. Oxford Business Law Blog, December 2018.

Angels and Venture Capitalists: A Match Made in Heaven? Harvard Law School Forum on  Corporate Governance and Financial Regulation, July 2015.

Can an Angel Dance With a Venture Capitalist? Smith Business Insight, June 2015.

Working Papers

May the Force be With You: Investor Power and Company Valuations (with Thomas Hellmann)

Voluntary Self-isolation and Self-testing in an Ongoing Pandemic (with Thomas Hellmann)

Work In Progress

Anticipatory Shipping and Price Dynamics (with Konstantinos Serfes).

Scaling versus Selling Startups: An Ecosystem Theory (with Thomas Hellmann)

Teaching

Graduate Student Supervisions

  • Julia Otte, PhD (ongoing)
  • Khashayar Pourtaheri, MSc (2021)
  • Niloofar Bahadori, MSc, second reader (2021)
  • Julia Otte, MSc (2020)
  • Vahid Behroozabadi, MSc (2020)
  • Zhongwei (David) Qu, MSc (2018)
  • Xuanzhen (Regina) Zang, MSc, second reader (2018)
  • Jian (Jenn) Tian, MSc (2017)
  • Tuanying (Steven) Shen, MSc, second reader (2017)
  • Jiahui (Ryan) Zhuang, MSc, second reader (2017)
  • Wenjing Su, MSc (2015)
  • Sixia (Rick) Xie, MSc (2015)
  • Anna Koroleva, MSc (2014)
  • Andrew Rigsby, MSc (2012)
  • Jing Liang, MSc, second reader (2012)
  • Jean Teboul, MSc, second reader (2010)
  • Steve O’Neill, MSc, second reader (2010)
  • Dan Le, MHA (2009)

Graduate Student Examination – Internal/External Examiner

  • Nhial Kuch, PhD, Department of Economics, Queen’s University, March 2021
  • Jonathan Lee, PhD, Department of Economics, Queen’s University, August 2018
  • Alexander McLeod, PhD, Department of Economics, Queen’s University, September 2017
  • Koray Sayili, PhD, Smith School of Business, Queen’s University, July 2016
  • Louis Morand Perrault, PhD, Department of Economics, Queen’s University, June 2016
  • Swapan Sikdar, PhD, School of Engineering, Queen’s University, January 2016
  • Michel Cloutier, PhD, Department of Economics, Queen’s University, March 2014
  • Pier-Andre Bouchard St-Amant, PhD, Department of Economics, Queen’s University, October 2013
  • Tao Wang, PhD, Department of Economics, Queen’s University, June 2012
  • Lucy Qian Liu, PhD, Department of Economics, Queen’s University, July 2010

Queen’s University

  • Managerial Economics (BCom): 2010 – 2020
  • Canadian Business–Government Relations (BCom): 2014, 2016 – 2020
  • Managerial Economics and Policy Seminar (MSc/PhD): 2012, 2013 – 2015, 2017, 2020  Advanced Topics in Managerial Economics (MSc/PhD): 2010

 Recent BCom Teaching Evaluations – “Instructor Effectiveness” (average across all sections):

  • 2018:  4.9/5.0  (departmental mean, including electives: 4.3)
  • 2017:  4.9/5.0  (departmental mean, including electives: 4.3)
  • 2016:  4.8/5.0  (departmental mean, including electives: 4.2)
  • 2015:  4.9/5.0  (departmental mean, including electives: 4.1)
  • 2014:  4.8/5.0  (departmental mean, including electives: 4.0) - 2013:  4.8/5.0  (departmental mean, including electives: 4.1)

University of British Columbia

  • Managerial Economics (BCom): 2006 – 2008
  • Managerial Economics (MBA): 2009
  • Foundation of Managerial Economics (MSc): 2008 – 2009
  • Managerial Economics (MSc): 2007 – 2008

Research

Research Visits

April 2016: Institute of Innovation Research, Hitotsubashi University, Tokyo (4 weeks)

Oct. 2015: LeBow College of Business, Drexel University, Philadelphia (2 weeks)

April 2014: Sauder School of Business, University of British Columbia, Vancouver (1 week)

Sept. 2009: Fox School of Business, Temple University, Philadelphia (2 weeks)

Interests

Economics of entrepreneurship and innovation, Economics of organizations, Applied contract theory

Awards

Research Awards

New Researcher Achievement Award, Smith School of Business (2014)

Fellowships

Distinguished Faculty Fellow of Business Economics, Smith School of Business (2013 - Present)

Queen’s University SSHRC 4A Research Award (2013)

Teaching Awards

Nominated for the Commerce Undergraduate Society’s Teaching Excellence Award (2008)

Other Awards

Postdoctoral Scholarship (competitive basis), Fritz Thyssen Foundation (2007)

Ph.D. Scholarship (competitive basis), Konrad Adenauer Foundation (2004-2006)

Ph.D. Scholarship (competitive basis), Federal Government Berlin (NaFöG) (2003)

Grants & Funding

General Research Grant (2020-2021)
Smith School of Business | $12,825.80 

Insight Grant (principal investigator): The Economic Role of Angel Investors: Theory and Evidence (2016-2019)
SSHRC | $90,518

SSHRC Research Grant (2011-2014)

EDCO research grant (2011-2014)

Supplementary Research Grant, Smith School of Business (2012-2015)

Research Initiation Grant, Smith School of Business (2009-2012)

Service

Professional Activities

Referee for 

  • American Economic Journal: Microeconomics, B.E. Journal of Economic Analysis & Policy, Economic Journal, European Economic Review, International Economic Review, International Journal of Industrial Organization, Journal of Business Venturing, Journal of Economics, Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Journal of Economics & Management Strategy, Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis, Journal of Industrial Economics, Journal of Institutional and Theoretical Economics, Journal of Labor Economics, Journal of Law, Economics, & Organization, Journal of Political Economy, Journal of Public Economic Theory, Journal of Public Economics, Management Science, RAND Journal of Economics, Research Policy, Review of Financial Studies, Scandinavian Journal of Economics, Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) of Canada, Strategic Entrepreneurship Journal 

Service – Smith School of Business

  • 2020/2021: Renewal, Tenure and Promotion Committee (Equity Representative), Undergraduate Commerce Curriculum Committee, Workload Standards Committee, Research Fellowships/Professorship Task Force, Research Excellence Selection Committee 
  • 2019/2020: Renewal, Tenure and Promotion Committee (Equity Representative), Workload Standards Committee, Undergraduate Curriculum Committee, Research Excellence Selection Committee 
  • 2018/2019: Renewal, Tenure and Promotion Committee, Research Excellence Selection Committee 
  • 2017/2018: Graduate Academic (MSc/PhD) Committee, Research Excellence Selection Committee, PhD/MSc Awards Adjudication Committee
  • 2016/2017: Research Committee, Academic Integrity Panel
  • 2015/2016: Academic Integrity Panel
  • 2014/2015: Academic Integrity Panel, Commerce Academic Progress Committee
  • 2013/2014: Graduate Academic (MSc/PhD) Committee, Academic Integrity Panel, Monieson Centre Research Advisory Board
  • 2012/2013: Renewal, Tenure and Promotion Committee, Monieson Centre Research Advisory Board
  • 2011/2012: TA Management Committee
  • 2010/2011: TA Management Committee

Service – Queen’s University

  • PhD/MSc Awards Adjudication Committee – university-wide (December 2017)
  • Major Admission Awards – application review (January 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2017, 2018, 2019)

Service – Other

  • Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHR) – Member of Insight Grants Selection Committee – Economics (January – March 2019)
  • Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHR) – Member of Insight Grants Selection Committee – Economics (January – March 2018)
  • Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHR) – Member of Insight Grants Selection Committee – Economics (January – March 2017)

Memberships

  • American Economic Association
  • Canadian Economics Association

Presentations

Conference Presentations 

  • Canadian Economics Association Annual Meeting, Banff, May 2019 (presenter)
  • 16th Annual International Industrial Organization Conference (IIOC), Indianapolis, April 2018 (chair, presenter, discussant)
  • 15th Annual International Industrial Organization Conference (IIOC), Boston, April 2017 (presenter, discussant)
  • Conference on the Macroeconomics of Entrepreneurship, Montreal, October 2016 (presenter)
  • Canadian Economics Association Annual Meeting, Toronto, May 2015 (chair, presenter)
  • World Finance Conference, Venice, July 2014 (presenter)  
  • Canadian Economics Association Annual Meeting, Vancouver, June 2014 (presenter, discussant)
  • 12th Annual International Industrial Organization Conference (IIOC), Chicago, April 2014 (presenter, discussant)
  • Conference on Economic and Social Sustainability, Tokyo, September 2013 (presenter)
  • Conference on Entrepreneurship and Finance, Lund, June 2013 (presenter)
  • Canadian Economics Association Annual Meeting, Montreal, June 2013 (presenter)
  • 11th Annual International Industrial Organization Conference (IIOC), Boston, May 2013 (presenter, discussant)
  • Economic Revitalization Conference, Kingston, March 2013 (presenter)
  • 39th European Association for Research in Industrial Economics (EARIE) Conference, Rome, September 2012 (presenter, discussant)
  • 66th European Meeting of the Econometric Society, Malaga, August 2012 (chair, presenter)
  • Canadian Economics Association Annual Meeting, Calgary, June 2012 (presenter, discussant)
  • 38th European Association for Research in Industrial Economics (EARIE) Conference, Stockholm, September 2011 (presenter)
  • Canadian Economics Association Annual Meeting, Ottawa, June 2011 (presenter, chair)
  • CIRPÉE-IVEY Conference on Macroeconomics and Entrepreneurship, Montreal, May 2011 (discussant)
  • 9th Annual International Industrial Organization Conference (IIOC), Boston, April 2011 (presenter, discussant)
  • Fostering Entrepreneurship in the Creative Economy Conference, Kingston, October 2010 (presenter)
  • 37th European Association for Research in Industrial Economics (EARIE) Conference, Istanbul, September 2010 (presenter, chair)
  • 25th Annual Congress of the European Economic Association, Glasgow, August 2010 (presenter)
  • Third Annual Research Symposium on the Economics and Law of the Entrepreneur, Chicago, June 2010 (presenter)
  • Canadian Economics Association Annual Meeting, Quebec City, May 2010 (presenter, discussant, chair)
  • European Financial Management Symposium, Montreal, April 2010 (presenter, discussant)
  • Second Annual Research Symposium on the Economics and Law of the Entrepreneur, Chicago, June 2009 (presenter)
  • Regional Comparative Advantage and Knowledge-Based Entrepreneurship Conference, Amsterdam, October 2008 (presenter)
  • European Summer Symposium in Financial Markets, Gerzensee, July 2008 (presenter)
  • Economics of Entrepreneurship and Innovation Conference, Kingston, June 2008 (presenter)
  • Canadian Economics Association Annual Meeting, Vancouver, June 2008 (presenter, discussant (x2), chair)
  • First Conference on Tournaments, Contests and Relative Performance Evaluation, Raleigh, March 2008 (presenter)
  • Canadian Economics Association Annual Meeting, Halifax, June 2007 (presenter)
  • 5th Symposium of the German Economic Association of Business Administration, Bonn,  September 2004 (presenter)

Invited Workshop Presentations              

  • Fudan University (Fanhai International School of Finance), September 2019
  • ShanghaiTech University (School of Entrepreneurship and Management), September 2019
  • Indiana University – Purdue University Indianapolis (Economics Department), November 2017
  • Max Planck Institute for Innovation and Competition, August 2017
  • Keio University (Economics Department), April 2016
  • Hitotsubashi University (Institute of Innovation Research), April 2016
  • University of Tokyo (Economics Department), April 2016
  • Hitotsubashi University (Economics Department), April 2016
  • Drexel University (LeBow College of Business), October 2015
  • Texas A&M University (Economics Department), November 2014
  • University of Rochester (Simon School of Business), March 2013
  • Queen’s University (Economics Department), March 2013
  • University of Winnipeg (Economics Department), April 2011
  • Drexel University (LeBow College of Business), April 2010
  • Universite du Quebec a Montreal (Economics Department), March 2010
  • Queen’s University (Economics Department), March 2010
  • Queen’s University (School of Business), November 2009
  • University of Saskatchewan (School of Public Policy), January 2009
  • Queen’s University (School of Business), January 2009
  • University of British Columbia (Sauder School of Business), November 2008
  • Simon Fraser University (Economics Department), June 2008
  • University of British Columbia (Sauder School of Business), May 2008
  • Erasmus University Rotterdam (Economics Department), February 2007
  • University of British Columbia (Sauder School of Business), December 2006
  • University of British Columbia (Sauder School of Business), November 2004