BUSB 4023
Cyrus Dioun studies how institutions, technologies, and emotions shape social evaluations and their consequences for organizations. His research covers a number of new and contested industries, ranging from legal cannabis markets to the do-it-yourself maker field. His work has been published in journals such as Academy of Management Journal, Organization Science, Organization Studies, and Socio-Economic Review, and cited by Time Magazine, The Hill, ABC News, and The Chronicle of Higher Education.
Professor Dioun has taught undergraduate and MBA students at the University of Colorado Denver since 2018. Before joining CU Denver, he was a Graduate Data Science Fellow at the Berkeley Institute for Data Science (BIDS) and founded the Oski Lab at UC Berkeley, an undergraduate research lab through which he mentored more than 100 undergraduates. He has also worked with or consulted for tech startups, business incubators, and real estate developers.
Virtual Office Hours
Cyrus Dioun believes in making knowledge accessible to everyone. As such, he offers weekly virtual office hours open to students and anyone in the community. These informal 15-minute sessions are your opportunity to discuss any topic (though you'll get the most value focusing on subjects he knows something about).
Whether you have questions, seek guidance, or want to explore potential collaborations, you can book time through Calendly.
Schedule Calendly Virtual Office Hours Here (https://calendly.com/cyrusdioun/office-hours)
Education
PhD, Sociology, University of California Berkeley (2018)
MA, Sociology, University of California Berkeley (2014)
MA, Quantitative Methods in the Social Sciences, Columbia University (2010)
BA, Public Policy Analysis, Pomona College (2005)
Areas of expertise
Organization Theory
Nascent Industries
Organizational Stigma
Collective Identity
Social Evaluations
Digital Platforms
Publications
Dioun, Cyrus. Kisha Lashley, Vontrese Pamphile. 2026. Market-stigmatized groups and the effectiveness of stigma management strategies: Evidence from Washington's marijuana market. Academy of Management Journal 69(3): 651–675.
Dioun, Cyrus. Vontrese Pamphile, Andreea Gorbatai. 2025. ‘Making it Easy to Do Hard Things’: How experts help novices perceive craft as accessible. Organization Studies. 46(4): 499–523.
Gorbatai, Andreea, Cyrus Dioun, Kisha Lashley 2021. Making space for emotions: Empathy, contagion, and legitimacy’s double-edged sword. Organization Science 32(1):42-63. *Equal first authorship.
Dioun, Cyrus. 2018. Negotiating moral boundaries: Social movements and the strategic (re)definition of the medical in cannabis markets. Research in the Sociology of Organizations 56, 53-82.
Dioun, Cyrus. 2017. Making the medical marijuana market. In Matias Dewey and Jens Beckert, eds., The Architecture of Illegal Markets. Oxford, UK. Oxford University Press.
Eaton, Charlie, Jacob Habinek, Adam Goldstein, Cyrus Dioun, Daniela Santibanez Godoy, Robert Osley-Thomas. 2016. The financialization of US higher education. Socio-Economic Review 14(3), 507-535.
Awards
Cascio Early Career Faculty Fellowship. University of Colorado Denver (2025, 2026)
Outstanding International Educator. CU Denver Office of Global Education (2024)
Summer Research Award. University of Colorado Denver (2023, 2024)
Early-Career Professional Advancement Grant. University of Colorado Denver (2023, 2024)
Young Upwardly Mobile Professor Award. University of Colorado Denver (2019, 2021)
Emerald Literati Award - Outstanding Author Contribution. Emerald Publishing (2019)
Leo Lowenthal Fellowship. UC Berkeley Department of Sociology (2017)
Berkeley Connect Mentoring Fellow. UC Berkeley (2015–2016)
Teaching
Assistant Professor of Management, University of Colorado Denver, 2018–present. Courses taught:
Leading Individuals & Teams (MBA; in-person and online)
Entrepreneurship in Emerging Industries (MBA and undergraduate; in-person)
Special Topics: The Business of Cannabis (MBA and undergraduate; in-person)
Strategic Management (MBA; online)
Business Insights & Cultural Delights in Munich & Prague (Study abroad; in-person)
In the Media
Flower Follower: How Lessons From the Cannabis Industry Will Impact Colorado’s Budding Psychedelic Scene. Denver Business Journal. April 19, 2024
Colorado Cannabis Companies Take a Page from the Apparel Playbook. Denver Business Journal. March 10, 2022
Events That Foster Positive Emotions Key to Creating a Collective Identity. Neuroscience News. April 5, 2021
Recreational Marijuana Could Be Legal Soon in Michigan. Most Local Officials Oppose It. Battle Creek Enquirer. September 17, 2018
Minorities, Once Wary of Drug Stigma, Now Seek Bigger Cut of Burgeoning Marijuana Industry. ABC News. April 20, 2016
Universities Are Facing a Financial Debt Bomb. TIME, September 14, 2016
Selected Service & Mentorship
Editorial Review Board, Journal of Management (2025–present)
Co-Organizer, Junior Faculty Mentoring Program (2025–present)
Management Lead, AACSB Assurance of Learning (2025–present)
Mentor, SCORE Small Business Mentoring (2024-present)
Task Force Leader (External Opportunities & Partnerships), CU Denver Sustainable Business Advisory Council (2024–2025)
Ethics Fellow, Daniels Fund Ethics Initiative (2019–2024)
Faculty Chair, CU Denver Business School 5-year Strategic Plan (2020–2021)
Mentor, University of Colorado Diverse Doctorates Initiative (2020-2022)
Co-founder of CU Denver Data Science Symposium (2019 & 2020)
Founder & Mentor, Oski Lab (URAP), UC Berkeley (2010–2018)
Team Mentor, Canopy Boulder Business Accelerator (2016–2018)
Program Committee, International Conference for Computational Social Science (2016–2020)
Ad hoc reviewer: Academy of Management Journal, Academy of Management Review, Administrative Science Quarterly, American Journal of Sociology, American Sociological Review, British Journal of Sociology, Business & Society, Contemporary Sociology, Journal of Business Research, Journal of Management Inquiry, Journal of Management Studies, Journal of Studies on Alcohol & Drugs, Law & Society Review, Organization Science, Research in the Sociology of Organizations, Socio-Economic Review
