CK Prahalad Award for Scholarly Impact on Practice

CK Prahalad Award for Scholarly Impact on Practice 2026 Recipient:

Annabelle Gawer

Annabelle Gawer was selected because of her exceptional and sustained contributions to the understanding and practice of strategy in the digital economy. Her pioneering research on digital platforms and ecosystems has defined a major field of scholarship while providing rigorous, actionable frameworks widely adopted by firms and policymakers. Beyond her academic achievements, she has had a profound influence on corporate strategy, public policy, and executive education on a global scale.

About Annabelle:

Professor Annabelle Gawer is a world-leading scholar in digital platforms and ecosystem strategy. She holds the Chair in Digital Economy at the University of Surrey, where she directs the Centre of Digital Economy. Her research has highlighted on how the digital age has given rise to new dominant organisational forms and new kinds of competition, innovation, and governance. The author of four books and over 60 articles, she has been among the most cited female academics in business and economics, receiving multiple Clarivate Highly Cited Researcher awards. She holds a PhD in Management from MIT Sloan and a MSc in Industrial Engineering from Stanford. She is a Fellow of the British Academy and a visiting professor at IMD. She has advised many multinational companies and has had impact on policy, having advised the European Parliament, the European Commission, the OECD, and the UK Competition and Markets Authority on the regulation of digital platforms.

LinkedIn: https://uk.linkedin.com/in/prof-annabelle-gawer-b223734