Babak Taheri, Ph.D., an expert in the field of marketing, has joined the Department of Hospitality, Hotel Management and Tourism in the Texas A&M College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Bryan-College Station, as a full professor.
Taheri has specific expertise in marketing management, consumer research, hospitality, tourism, leisure and cultural consumption.
He earned his doctorate in marketing from the University of Strathclyde, Glasgow, Scotland, where he also earned a master’s degree in management science and postgraduate diploma in research methods. He has a master’s degree in information systems analysis from Glasgow Caledonian University and a bachelor’s in industrial engineering from Azad University, Tehran.
“Dr. Taheri has impressive international experience in marketing, and more specifically in the fields of hospitality, tourism and leisure,” said Brian King, Ph.D., head of the Department of Hospitality, Hotel Management and Tourism. “His innovative and multidisciplinary research is well known internationally and has been recognized in many top-tier publications. His research and teaching expertise will particularly benefit the department and College by increasing our understanding of consumer preference and engagement.”
Understanding and marketing consumer preferences
“I am excited to bring my expertise to the Department of Hospitality, Hotel Management and Tourism and hope I will be an asset to the department through my research, teaching and leadership,” Taheri said.
He said he will continue his research on consumer preferences and engagement, which will benefit the department by providing a greater understanding on how to market hospitality, tourism and leisure experiences to a variety of audiences.
“During my academic career, I have undertaken several projects with service providers to explore and gain an in-depth understanding of the experiences that engage the consumer, as well as the consequence of these interactions,” Taheri said. “The results from these projects have enabled service providers to provide deeper engagement and a more profound sense of value to the consumer.”
Academic and research accomplishments
Prior to joining Texas A&M, Taheri held a number of academic and research leadership positions at Durham University, Durham, England; University of Strathclyde, Glasgow, Glasgow Caledonian University; Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh, all in Scotland; and Nottingham Trent University, Nottingham, England. He also holds the title of honorary professor of marketing in the University of Aberdeen Business School, Scotland.
He has been a visiting professor at several universities, including the University of Sassari, Italy; University of Agder, Norway; Dan Nang University, Vietnam; and the University of Central Florida and Rochester Institute of Technology in the U.S.
Taheri has more than 150 academic publications, a significant number of which have appeared in internationally rated top-tier journals. He has given keynotes at several academic conferences and workshops in the U.S., Middle East and the United Kingdom. Additionally, he has also organized and hosted several academic conferences and workshops, and has been a keynote speaker and panellist at numerous academic and non-academic conferences and workshops.
His professional affiliations and responsibilities include serving as deputy chair of tourism marketing in the Academy of Marketing, U.K; deputy chair of heritage marketing in the Academy of Marketing; member of The Chartered Institute of Marketing; member of the Association for Consumer Research, member of the Academy of Marketing; and Fellow of The Higher Education Academy.
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