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Donna W. McCloskey, PhD, PMP

  • Associate Dean for Undergraduate Programs in the School of Business Administration
  • Professor
Media Expertise:
  • Business Administration
  • Economics & Finance
  • Technology

Affiliated Programs

Education

  • PhD, Decision Sciences / Information Systems (1997)
    Drexel University (PA)
  • MBA, Finance / Information Systems (1992)
    Widener University (PA)
  • BS, Business Administration (1990)
    University of Delaware (DE)

About Me

I approach every class – whether graduate/undergraduate or in-person/online – with the goal of providing practical and relevant knowledge in an engaging way.  I believe we all learn best when theory is applied to practice so my classes involve real-world projects and industry connections.  As a Project Management Professional (PMP), I prepare students to successfully complete project management certifications.  My data analytics classes address questions with real data sets using relevant software, such as SAS.  Committed to the university and school’s mission of developing leaders, skill development and professionalism are emphasized in all of my classes.

Research Interests

My research can be broadly characterized into three main streams: technology acceptance, work boundary/telecommuting and pedagogical work related to high impact practices (HIP) and curriculum design.  Working with colleagues, industry practitioners and student partners I have recently explored the adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) in the home, the impact of mobile technology on work and life satisfaction, how consumers assess honest reviews in online marketplaces, the evolving work-life boundary and how to embed career preparation in the business curriculum.  My work has been published in numerous journals including the Journal of End User ComputingEnterprise Operations ManagementInformation Resources Management JournalJournal of Information Systems Education, and Journal of Electronic Commerce in Organizations. Additionally, I have written more than nine book chapters and presented my research at national and international conferences.

Media Expertise

  • Telecommuting
  • International information systems
  • Data mining
  • Data warehousing

Publications

  • McCloskey, D. W. (in press, 2020).  An Examination of the Data Quality of Online Reviews: Who do Consumers Trust?   Journal of Electronic Commerce in Organizations.
  • McCloskey, D. W. and K. Crowne (2019).  You're Hired! Applying the Human Resource Selection Process to Team Formation.   Management Teaching Review, 4(1), 27-38.
  • McCloskey, D. W. (2016).  Finding Work-Life Balance in a Digital Age: An Exploratory Study of Boundary Flexibility and Permeability.   Information Resources Management Journal, 29 (3), 53-72.

Professional Affiliations & Memberships

Decision Sciences Institute (DSI), Project Management Institute (PMI)

Awards

  • School of Business Distinguished Graduate Teaching Award, 2008, 2011
  • Sabbatical Award, 2019
  • Keynote speaker and inducted into Phi Kappa Phi, 2019.
  • School of Business Administration Distinguished Undergraduate Teaching Award, 1995 and 2018.
  • School of Business Administration Summer Research Grant, 2018.
  • Excellence in Research Award from the journal publisher IGI Global, 2017
  • School of Business Administration Distinguished Service Award, 2017.
  • Widener University Trainor Leadership Fellow, 2017

News

In the Media

Noteworthy

  • Widener Hosts High Schoolers for Future Business Leaders of America Conference

    The School of Business Administration (SBA) hosted over 225 area high school students on Widener’s Chester campus for the Future Business Leaders of America (FBLA) Delaware County Leadership Conference.

    Students from eight high schools across Delaware County gathered for a day of Widener faculty-led workshops covering topics such as the basics of banking, sales and marketing, artificial intelligence, leadership and communication, and more.

    In addition, students competed for prized in events judged by Widener students, alumni, staff, and industry partners. Overall, students earned awards in 55 categories, and the top students will move on to compete at the state level. This was the first time the competitions were held in person since before the COVID-19 pandemic.

    “It was everything we say the SBA is – hands-on, engaged, real world, future looking, and industry aligned,” said Donna McCloskey, associate dean for undergraduate programs in SBA. “It was a great day to be a part of the pride!”

    Share link: https://www.widener.edu/news/noteworthy/widener-hosts-high-schoolers-future-business-leaders-america-conference

  • School of Business Administration Faculty Publish Article on Career-Preparedness Activities in Business Curriculum

    Several faculty in the School of Business Administration, including Associate Professor Kerri Crowne Brannen, Assistant Professor Danielle Durant, Assistant Professor Yamuna Baburaj, Professor Donna McCloskey, and Assistant Dean Lou Anne Vike, as well as Peter Hornberger and Maureen Brown, co-authored an article in the November 2020 issue of the International Journal of Management Education. The article, titled "A program for embedding career activities in multiple core business courses," details a Widener program for embedding career-preparedness into the undergraduate business curriculum.

    The program ensures every student in the School of Business Administration is provided with adequate career-preparedness training, and the school is well-positioned to achieve high job placement rates.

    Share link: https://www.widener.edu/news/noteworthy/school-business-administration-faculty-publish-article-career-preparedness-activities-business

  • Graduate Student Presents Paper on Artificial Intelligence

    Gary Bennett, a graduate student in the master of science in business process innovation program, presented a paper, "An Examination of the Acceptance of Artificial Intelligence: Exploring Smart Speaker Adoption with the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology" at the Pennsylvania Economic Association meeting in Kutztown, Pennsylvania. The paper is co-authored with Associate Professor Donna McCloskey.

    Share Link: https://www.widener.edu/node/11431/