Dr Irfan Saleem

Associate Professor
isaleem@su.edu.om
Phone: +968 26850100 Extn: 589
Location: Rustaq Building (F3-0362)

Biography
Dr. Irfan Saleem is an Associate Professor of Family SMEs at Sohar University, Oman, with a distinguished academic and professional background. He holds a PhD from IAE Sorbonne Business School, France, and multiple Master degrees, including an MS in Artificial Intelligence from Germany. His expertise spans family business management, digital transformation, and AI-driven innovation. Dr. Saleem’s unwavering commitment to bridging academia and industry is evident in his work. As a scholar and consultant, he brings cutting-edge insights into the classroom and fosters innovation in business practices by teaching and writing case studies. His dedication to practical relevance is evident in his work. In addition to his academic pursuits, Dr. Saleem has a strong consulting background and has led digital transformation initiatives, consulting family SMEs in Asia and the Middle East. He is managing his two family-led SMEs. His current research interests are at the intersection of artificial intelligence, prompt engineering, machine learning, and digital transformation, aiming to explore their impact on business processes and organizational performance using the context of family SMEs.

Qualification

• PhD in Management, Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne, France​, 2016.
• Master in Artificial Intelligence, International Applied Science University, Germany, 2025.
• MS in HRM, Mohammad Ali Jinnah University Pakistan, 2008.
• MBA in Business, BZ University Multan, Pakistan, 2006.
• BCS (Hons.),​ Bahauddin Zakariya University, Multan, Pakistan, ​2002.

Teaching Interest

• Entrepreneurship.
• Innovation in the Age of Disruption.
• Business Analytics.
• Organization Behaviour.
• Principles of Management.
• Gulf Business Environment.

Research Interest

• Family SMEs.
• Artificial intelligence.
• Digital Tranformation.
• Business Model Innovation.
• Frugal Innovation.
• Machine Learning.

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Publications

• Saleem I & Irfan A. (2025), Machine learning made easy: A beginner’s guide for causal inference and discovery methods using Python, International Journal of Data Analysis Techniques and Strategies, http://dx.doi.org/10.1504/IJDATS.2025.10064732
• Saleem, I., Al-Breiki, N. S. S., & Asad, M. (2024). The nexus of artificial intelligence, frugal innovation, and business model innovation to nurture internationalization: A survey of SME’s readiness. Journal of Open Innovation: Technology, Market, and Complexity, 10(3), https://doi.org/10.1016/j.joitmc.2024.100326
• ​​Aftab, S., Saleem, I., & Abu Mansor, N. N. (2024). How and when does witnessing incivility lead to psychological distress in family-owned bank employees?. Asia-Pacific Journal of Business Administration.
• Saleem, I., Hoque, S. M. S., Tashfeen, R., & Weller, M. (2023). The interplay of AI adoption, IoT edge, and adaptive resilience to explain digital innovation: evidence from German family-owned SMEs. Journal of Theoretical and Applied Electronic Commerce Research, 18(3), 1419-1430.
• Kumar, S., Raj, R., Saleem, I., Singh, E. P., Goel, K., & Bhatia, R. (2024). The interplay of organisational culture, transformational leadership and organisation innovativeness: Evidence from India. Asian Business & Management, 23(2), 180-210.
• Saleem, I., & Ashfaq, M. (2023). The interplay of entrepreneurial motivations, job attractiveness, and family-owned SMEs growth: evidence from the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor region. Journal of Chinese Economic and Foreign Trade Studies, 16(3),242-259.
• Saleem, I., Siddique, I., & Ahmed, A. (2020). An extension of the socioemotional wealth perspective: Insights from an Asian sample. Journal of Family Business Management, 10(4), 293-312.
• Saleem, I., Lamarque, E., & Hasan, R. (2021). State and self-regulation for better governance: an implication of collibration. International Journal of Law and Management, 63(2), 172-194.
• ​Saleem, I., Khalid, F., & Nadeem, M. (2019). Family business governance: what’s wrong? What’s right? What’s next?. Emerald Emerging Markets Case Studies, 9(1), 1-23.
• ​Nadeem, M., Zaman, R., & Saleem, I. (2017). Boardroom gender diversity and corporate sustainability practices: Evidence from Australian Securities Exchange listed firms. Journal of Cleaner Production, 149, 874-885.