Dr. Kisito Futonge Nzembayie

Assistant Professor, Trinity Business School

Biography

Kisito F. Nzembayie is Assistant Professor in Entrepreneurship and Director of the MSc in Entrepreneurship and Innovation at Trinity Business School, TCD. He holds a PhD in Digital Entrepreneurship and lectures at the nexus between entrepreneurship, digital technology, marketing and business strategy. His main research interests lie at the intersection between Entrepreneurship, Information Systems, Management Education and Action Research. He is the lead author of a book on Digital Entrepreneurship published by Edward Elgar in 2022. Kisito has also been published in the Journal of Business Venturing Insights, European Management Review, and others. He is also a reviewer for a number of academic journals and was recently appointed guest editor of a special issue on Digital Entrepreneurship in Technovation. Kisito also holds a postgraduate certificate in University Learning and Teaching. His expertise reaches far beyond the confines of academia. As a serial digital entrepreneur turned scholar, he has successfully bootstrapped and established debt-free businesses in the EdTech industry. These ventures have gained significant traction, attracting over 80 million users worldwide, with an annual reach of approximately 7 million users. This unique blend of practical experience and scholarly pursuit positions him as a scholar-practitioner, effortlessly bridging the gap between theory and real-world application. With a global perspective shaped by living on three continents, including 12 years in China, Kisito possesses a deep understanding of diverse cultures. His fluency in multiple languages, including Mandarin Chinese, impresses students when he teaches modules like International Entrepreneurship in the MSc Entrepreneurship programme. Currently, he is actively involved in groundbreaking research exploring emerging themes such as platform-dependent digital entrepreneurship and Digital Darwinism (on platforms), generative AI affordances, entrepreneurship as design, crises as external enablers of entrepreneurship and entrepreneurship education in an era of AI.

Publications and Further Research Outputs

Peer-Reviewed Publications
Non-Peer-Reviewed Publications

Kisito Futonge Nzembayie, Anthony Paul Buckley, Entrepreneurial Process Studies Using Insider Action Research: Opportunities & Challenges for Entrepreneurship Scholarship, European Management Review, 2020Journal Article, 2020, DOI
Kisito Futonge Nzembayie, Anthony Paul Buckley, Thomas Cooney, Researching Pure Digital Entrepreneurship " A Multimethod Insider Action Research approach, Journal of Business Venturing Insights, 11, 2019, pe00103Journal Article, 2019, DOI
Nzembayie, K.F., Using insider action research in the study of digital entrepreneurial processes: A pragmatic design choice, Electronic Journal of Business Research Methods, 15, (2), 2017, p85-98Journal Article, 2017, DOI
Kisito Futonge Nzembayie, Anthony Paul Buckley , Digital Entrepreneurship: Disruption & New Venture Creation , 1, UK, Edward Elgar, 2022, https://doi.org/10.4337/978180ppBook, 2022, DOI
Kisito Futonge Nzembayie, Doing Insider Action Design Research (IADR) in Entrepreneurship: Lessons from a PhD Case, 2023Case Study, 2023, DOI
Kisito F. Nzembayie, Natasha Evers, Covid-19 as an External Enabler of Digital Venture Growth, RENT XXXVI, Naples, Italy, 16-18 November, 2022, 2022Conference Paper, 2022
Kisito F. Nzembayie & David Coghlan, Entrepreneurship education as first-person transformation: Interiority as an operationalizing mechanism, Journal of Business Venturing Insights, 2024Journal Article, 2024, DOI , TARA - Full Text
Futonge, Conceptualising Digital Entrepreneurship: Artifacts, Platforms & Infrastructures, European Conference on Innovation and Entrepreneurship, 17, (1), 2022, p101--106Journal Article, 2022, DOI
Kisito F. Nzembayie, Natasha Evers, David Urbano, Power dynamics in transaction platforms: Adaptive strategies of platform-dependent entrepreneurs, Technovation, 138, 2024Journal Article, 2024, DOI , TARA - Full Text
Kisito F. Nzembayie, Anthony Buckley, Isilay Talay, Experiential Pedagogies for Cultivating Entrepreneurial Mindsets: Action Design Learning as Tailored Framework, Entrepreneurship Education and Pedagogy, 2024Journal Article, 2024, DOI

Kisito F. Nzembayie, Natasha Evers, David Urbano, Surviving Dominant Digital Platform Ecosystems: Strategies for Small Digital Platform-Dependent Entrepreneurs, ISBE 2022, York, UK, 27th to 28th October, 2022Conference Paper
Kisito Futonge Nzembayie, Digital Darwinism on Platforms Survival Strategies of Platform-Dependent Entrepreneurs, INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON MARKETING INNOVATION & ANALYTICS (ICMIA"23), India, 15th-16th Dec. 2023, 2023, y International School of Business and Media (ISB&M)Invited Talk

My research contributions, particularly in digital entrepreneurship, action research and entrepreneurship education, position me as a strong candidate for progression. I have advanced entrepreneurship theory through engaged research methodologies, such as insider action research, exploring under-studied themes in digital entrepreneurship. My scholarly output includes publications in well-regarded ABS 3 and 2 journals, including Technovation, European Management Review, and Journal of Business Venturing Insights. Additionally, my 2022 monograph, Digital Entrepreneurship: Disruption and New Venture Creation (Elgar), further reinforces my academic standing in the community. I also recently published a case study on the use of Generative AI for the Centre for Academic Practice, TCD. Currently, I serve as Guest Editor for a Special Issue on Digital Entrepreneurship in Technovation, and with six papers under development, my research pipeline reflects a sustained effort to push the boundaries of entrepreneurship scholarship. My work combines theoretical rigour with practical relevance, a hallmark of engaged scholarship. Given my unique approach, primarily rooted in Action Design Research, two of my publications focus on methodology, while another explores pedagogical approaches. This close alignment between my research and the courses I teach has had a direct impact on my students' learning experiences with my courses consistently rated 4.6/5 and above. My role as Guest Editor for a Special Issue on digital entrepreneurship in Technovation, along with several awards for research and teaching excellence, further demonstrates my leadership in the field. My ongoing research into generative AI in education, entrepreneurship as design, digital transformation and the role of digital platforms continues to make valuable contributions to the discipline, with significant practical implications. Given the impact of my research, I am confident my qualifications meet and exceed the criterial for accelerated progression. I am only 2 years into the tenure process and my research targets have already been surpassed, with 6 papers still under development.

Economics and Business Administration,

Recognition

Best Paper Finalist - Technology Entrepreneurship - ISBE Conference, York 2022 2022
First Place Gold Medal Award - TU Dublin, MSc Entrepreneurship, 2015 2015
2023 TBS Teaching Excellence Award 2023
Best PhD Paper - ECRM, 2017, Dublin 2017
2024 TBS Teaching Excellence Award 2024
Best Paper Finalist - Technology Entrepreneurship - ISBE Conference, Birmingham, 2023 2023
Best Paper - Technology Entrepreneurship - ISBE Conference, Birmingham 2018 2018
Best Paper Finalist - Technology Entrepreneurship - ISBE Conference, Newcastle 2019 2019
Student Excellence Gold Medal Award, TU Dublin 2015 2015

RENT Conference/SIG-ECSB - Institutions and Entrepreneurship Present
EURAM - European Academy of Management 2025
IPDMC - Innovation and Product Development Management Conference Present
ISBE - Institute for Small Business & Entrepreneurship 2023

Guest Editor for Technovation (ABS3) journal special issue titled: Unlocking the Potential of Digital Entrepreneurship in Turbulent Times 2023
Guest Editor - Technovation Special Issue - Digital Entrepreneurship 2023
Technovation Guest Editor - I am the guest editor for a Special Issue on Digital Entrepreneurship 2024
Advisory Board - Irish Exporters Association 2024
Keynote Speaker: INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON MARKETING INNOVATION & ANALYTICS (ICMIA"23) 2023
Member of the Organizing Committee of the 2024 IPDMC: INNOVATION AND PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT MANAGEMENT CONFERENCE 2023
Represented Trinity Business School's Executive Education programme at the 2023 Irish Export Industry Awards as judge and presenter of award for sustainable trade company of the year. 22-09-2023
Representing Trinity Business School at the 2022 Irish Export Industry Awards. I delivered a brief speech on TBS and sustainability and proceeded to offer awards to the winners of the Sustainable Trade Company of the Year (Maersk Ireland) I also granted a video interview. 30/09/2022