Biography

Dr. James Vardaman holds the Free Enterprise Chair of Excellence and is a Professor of Management in the Fogelman College of Business and Economics, where he also serves as the Management Ph.D. program coordinator. Dr. Vardaman’s research focuses on employee retention and reactions to change in entrepreneurial ventures, with a particular emphasis on the study of family businesses.

Dr. Vardaman is on the Editorial Review Board of several journals, including Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, Journal of Organizational Behavior, and Journal of Management. He is also a former member of the Southern Management Association’s Board of Governors. Dr. Vardaman’s doctoral students have placed at institutions such as Oklahoma State University, The University of New South Wales (Australia), East Carolina University and Mississippi College.  

Research 

His research has been published in journals such as Organization Science, Harvard Business Review, Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, Human Relations, Journal of Organizational Behavior, Human Resource Management Review, Family Business Review, and Journal of Small Business Management. In 2021 he co-authored his first book, Global Talent Retention: Understanding Employee Turnover across the World.  

Recent Publications

Vardaman, J.M., Maher, L., Sterling, C., Allen, D., & Dhaenens, A. (2023). Collective friend group reactions to organizational change: A field theory approach.Journal of Organizational Behavior. https://doi.org/10.1002/job/job.2706.

Vardaman, J.M., & Tabor, W.E. (2022). Crafting a retention strategy for your family business. Harvard Business Review. https://hbr.org/2022/09/crafting-a-retention-strategy-for-your-family-business?ab=hero-subleft-2.

Antin-Yates, V.M., Vardaman, J.M., & Chrisman, J.J. (2023). Social network research in family businesses: A review and integration. Small Business Economics, 60, 1323-1345. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11187-022-00665-y.

Vardaman, J.M. & Montague-Mfuni, M. (2022). Forced transgenerational succession: Insights from a South African family business. Journal of Small Business Management. https://doi.org/10.1080/00472778.2021.1937634 

Vardaman, J.M., Markin, E., Penney, C.R., Marler, L., & McKee, D. (2022). Willing and able? The screening and adoption of habitual family venture opportunities. Family Business Review, 35(2), 126-135. https://doi.org/10.1177/08944865211059467

Carr, J.C., Vardaman, J.M.,Marler, L.E., McLarty, B.D., & Blettner, D. (2021). Psychological antecedents of decision comprehensiveness and their relationship to decision quality and performance in family firms: An upper echelons perspective. Family Business Review, 34(1), 33-47. https://doi.org/10.1177/0894486520917774

Vardaman, J.M., Amis, J.M, Wright, P., & Dyson, B. (2021). Reframing childhood obesity: The role of community interests in change implementation failure. Human Relations, 74(2), 258-285. https://doi.org/10.1177/0018726719899464

Tabor, W.E., & Vardaman, J.M. (2020). Succession in family firms: The importance of non-family buy-in. Harvard Business Review. https://hbr.org/2020/05/the-key-to-successful-succession-planning-for-family-businesses?ab=hero-subleft-3&fbclid=IwAR2z9JPU1K4bgSctSOEs-ivVpmQiSthJk67oC7r9R2diWAvThma5E8m8Y2k

Tabor, W.E., & Vardaman, J.M. (2020). How family businesses can attract quality non-family employees. Harvard Business Review. https://hbr.org/2020/02/how-family-businesses-can-attract-non-family-talent?ab=hero-subleft-3&fbclid=IwAR0J-h6XQ8ZvpzNFP5ncPKbfcKCH-Jj1wWkjlKehOLRw1xw3jSSrOk0i6Vg.

McLarty, B.D., Vardaman, J.M., & Barnett, T.R. (2019). Congruence and exchange: The influence of supervisors on employee performance in family firms. Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, 43(2), 302-321. https://doi.org/10.1177/1042258718796079

Vardaman, J.M, Allen, D.G., & Rogers, B.L. (2018). We are friends but are we family? Organizational identification and nonfamily employee turnover. Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, 42(2), 290-309. https://doi.org/10.1177/1042258717749235

Tabor, W.E., Chrisman, J.J., Madison, K., & Vardaman, J.M. (2018). Nonfamily members in family firms: A review and future research agenda. Family Business Review, 31(1), 54-79. https://doi.org/10.1177/0894486517734683

Dhaenens, A.J., Marler, L.E., Vardaman, J.M., & Chrisman, J.J. (2018). Mentoring in family businesses: Toward an understanding of commitment outcomes. Human Resource Management Review, 28(1), 46-55. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.hrmr.2017.05.005

Rogers, B.L., Vardaman, J.M., Allen, D.G., Muslin, I.S., & Baskin, M.B. (2017). Turning up by turning over: The change of scenery effect in Major League Baseball. Journal of Business and Psychology, 32(5), 547-560. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10869-016-9468-3

Allen, D.G., & Vardaman, J.M. (2017). Recruitment and retention across cultures. Annual Review of Organizational Psychology and Organizational Behavior, 4, 153-181. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-orgpsych-032516-113100 

Vardaman, J.M., Allen, D.G., Otondo, R.F., Hancock, J., Shore, L. & *Rogers, B. (2016). Social comparisons and organizational support: Implications for retention and commitment. Human Relations, 69(7), 1493-1505. https://doi.org/10.1177/0018726715619687

Vardaman, J.M., Taylor, S.G., Allen, D.G., Gondo, M.B., & Amis, J.M. (2015). Translating intentions to behavior: The interaction of network structure and behavioral intentions in understanding employee turnover. Organization Science, 26(4), 1177-1191. https://doi.org/10.1287/orsc.2015.0982

Vardaman, J.M., & Gondo, M.B. (2014). Socioemotional wealth conflict in family firms. Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, 37(6), 1317-1322. https://doi.org/10.1111/etap.12126

Allen, D.G., Hancock, J.., Vardaman, J.M., & McKee, D.N. (2014). Analytical mindsets in turnover research. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 35(1), 61-86. https://doi.org/10.1002/job.1912

Vardaman, J.M., Gondo, M.B., & Allen, D.G. (2014). Ethical climate and pro-social rule breaking in the workplace. Human Resource Management Review, 24(1), 108-118. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.hrmr.2012.05.001