Prof. Dr. David Risi

Responsibilities

Scientific Project Leader; Teaching Module Leader

Biography

David Risi is a professor at the Bern University of Applied Sciences (Business) and a private lecturer at the University of St. Gallen, and works on business ethics, corporate social responsibility, organizational theory, strategic management, and sustainable business. He completed his doctorate and habilitation at the University of St. Gallen.

David Risi's work has appeared in influential practice-oriented (e.g., Harvard Business Review) and leading academic journals (e.g., Journal of Management Studies). He worked for a consulting firm for several years and was a senior researcher at Oxford University. He is an Editorial Review Member and Special Issue Editor of academic journals and leads teaching modules and research projects (supported by the Swiss National Science Foundation and Innosuisse, among others). He works closely with leading universities in Switzerland and abroad and with partners from industry and civil society, speaks on practical committees, and takes on consultancy mandates.

David Risi was awarded the Academy of Management Social Issues in Management Best Dissertation Award in 2017. In 2021, he was nominated for the Credit Suisse Award for Best Teaching. In 2025, he was honored in WirtschaftsWoche's business administration ranking as one of the top 100 “under 40s”.

Other projects

Creating a Corporate Social Responsibility Program with Real Impact.

Marti, E., Risi, D., Schlindwein, E., & Athanasopoulou, A. (2024). Creating a corporate social responsibility program with real impact. In Harvard Business Review. Harvard Business School Publishing. https://arbor.bfh.ch/handle/arbor/37196

How Companies Restrain Means–Ends Decoupling: A Comparative Case Study of CSR Implementation.

Athanasopoulou, A., Marti, E., Risi, D., & Schlindwein, E. (2025). How Companies Restrain Means–Ends Decoupling: A Comparative Case Study of CSR Implementation. In Journal of Management Studies (Vol. 62, Issue 1). Wiley. https://doi.org/10.24451/arbor.22282

Coordinated Enactment: How Organizational Departments Work Together to Implement CSR.

Risi, D., Wickert, C., & Ramus, T. (2022). Coordinated Enactment: How Organizational Departments Work Together to Implement CSR. In Business & Society (Vol. 62, Issue 4). Sage Publications. https://doi.org/10.24451/arbor.17111

Institutional theory-based research on Corporate Social Responsibility: Bringing values back in.

Risi, D., Vigneau, L., Bohn, S., & Wickert, C. (2022). Institutional theory-based research on Corporate Social Responsibility: Bringing values back in. In International Journal of Management Reviews (Vol. 25, Issue 1). Wiley. https://doi.org/10.24451/arbor.16804

What a mature CSR team looks like.

Wickert, C., Risi, D., & Ramus, T. (2022). What a mature CSR team looks like. In Harvard Business Review. Harvard Business School Publishing. https://doi.org/10.24451/arbor.18026

Illuminating the dark side of values: A framework for institutional research.

Risi, D., & Marti, E. (2022). Illuminating the dark side of values: A framework for institutional research. In Journal of Management Inquiry (Vol. 31, Issue 3). SAGE. https://doi.org/10.24451/arbor.16772

Business and society research drawing on institutionalism: Integrating normative and descriptive research on values.

Risi, D. (2022). Business and Society Research Drawing on Institutionalism: Integrating Normative
and Descriptive Research on Values. In Business & Society (Vol. 61, Issue 2). SAGE. https://doi.org/10.24451/arbor.13003

Wealthy private investors and socially responsible investing: The influence of reference groups.

Risi, D., Paetzold, F., & Kellers, A. (2021). Wealthy private investors and socially responsible investing: The influence of reference groups. In Sustainability (Vol. 13, Issue 12931). MDPI. https://doi.org/10.24451/arbor.15835

Time and business sustainability: Socially responsible investing in Swiss banks and insurance companies.

Risi, D. (2020). Time and Business Sustainability: Socially Responsible Investing in Swiss Banks and Insurance Companies. In Business & Society (Vol. 59, Issue 7). Sage. https://doi.org/10.24451/arbor.13002

Lonely at the Top? CEO sensemaking in the boardroom.

Risi, D., Athanasopoulou, A., Smets, M., & Morris, T. (2020). Lonely at the Top? CEO sensemaking in the boardroom. In Academy of Management Proceedings (Vol. 2020, Issue 1). https://arbor.bfh.ch/handle/arbor/41446

Corporate social responsibility (Elements in Business Strategy).

Risi, D., & Wickert, C. (2019). Corporate social responsibility (Elements in Business Strategy). Cambridge University Press. https://arbor.bfh.ch/handle/arbor/41336

Implementing corporate social responsibility as institutional work: Exploring the day-to-day activities of CSR managers in multinational corporations.

Risi, D., & Wickert, R. (2019). Implementing Corporate Social Responsibility as Institutional Work: Exploring the Day-to-Day Activities of CSR Managers in Multinational Corporations (A. Sales, Ed.; Vol. 57). Springer. https://arbor.bfh.ch/handle/arbor/41337

Exploring the internal dynamics of corporate social responsibility implementation.

Risi, D., & Wickert, C. (2019). Exploring the Internal Dynamics of Corporate Social Responsibility Implementation. In Academy of Management Proceedings (Vol. 2019, Issue 1). https://arbor.bfh.ch/handle/arbor/41101

The role values play for agency in institutions.

Risi, D., Vigneau, L., & Bohn, S. (2019). The Role Values Play for Agency in Institutions. In Academy of Management Proceedings (Vol. 2019, Issue 1). https://arbor.bfh.ch/handle/arbor/41100

An institutional theory perspective on the implementation of corporate social responsibility within large firms: Empirical and conceptual considerations.

Risi, D. (2017). An institutional theory perspective on the implementation of corporate social responsibility within large firms: Empirical and conceptual considerations. Dissertation no. 4620.

Reconsidering the ‘Symmetry’ Between Institutionalization and Professionalization: The Case of Corporate Social Responsibility Managers.

Risi, D., & Wickert, C. (2017). Reconsidering the ‘Symmetry’ Between Institutionalization and Professionalization: The Case of Corporate Social Responsibility Managers. In Journal of Management Studies (Vol. 54, Issue 5). Wiley. https://doi.org/10.24451/arbor.12998

Toward a morally reflective institutional analysis.

Risi, D. (2017). Toward a Morally Reflective Institutional Analysis. In Academy of Management Proceedings (Vol. 2017, Issue 1). https://arbor.bfh.ch/handle/arbor/38962

Understanding financial intermediaries’ hesitation about socially responsible investing.

Risi, D. (2017). Understanding financial intermediaries’ hesitation about socially responsible investing. In Academy of Management Proceedings (Vol. 2017, Issue 1). https://arbor.bfh.ch/handle/arbor/38961

Longitudinal comparison between CSR implementation and CSR function’s resource access.

Risi, D. (2016). Longitudinal comparison between CSR implementation and CSR function’s resource access. Academy of Management Best Paper Proceedings, 2016(1), 25–28.

Internal memberships

Institut Sustainable Business

External memberships

Academy of Management
European Group of Organization Studies
Journal of Management Studies (Editorial Review Board)
University of St. Gallen (Institute for Business Ethics)

Prof. Dr. David Risi

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Activities

Responsibilities

CV

Biography

Projects

Other projects

Publications

Creating a Corporate Social Responsibility Program with Real Impact.

How Companies Restrain Means–Ends Decoupling: A Comparative Case Study of CSR Implementation.

Coordinated Enactment: How Organizational Departments Work Together to Implement CSR.

Institutional theory-based research on Corporate Social Responsibility: Bringing values back in.

What a mature CSR team looks like.

Illuminating the dark side of values: A framework for institutional research.

Business and society research drawing on institutionalism: Integrating normative and descriptive research on values.

Wealthy private investors and socially responsible investing: The influence of reference groups.

Time and business sustainability: Socially responsible investing in Swiss banks and insurance companies.

Lonely at the Top? CEO sensemaking in the boardroom.

Corporate social responsibility (Elements in Business Strategy).

Implementing corporate social responsibility as institutional work: Exploring the day-to-day activities of CSR managers in multinational corporations.

Exploring the internal dynamics of corporate social responsibility implementation.

The role values play for agency in institutions.

An institutional theory perspective on the implementation of corporate social responsibility within large firms: Empirical and conceptual considerations.

Reconsidering the ‘Symmetry’ Between Institutionalization and Professionalization: The Case of Corporate Social Responsibility Managers.

Toward a morally reflective institutional analysis.

Understanding financial intermediaries’ hesitation about socially responsible investing.

Longitudinal comparison between CSR implementation and CSR function’s resource access.

Memberships

Internal memberships

External memberships