Thomas Lorenz joined the faculty at St. Edward's University in August 2026 as an Assistant Professor of Entrepreneurship. Before transitioning to academia, he spent more than twenty years in corporate strategy at Cirrus Logic, where he served as Head of Strategy and Corporate Development, led corporate acquisitions worth over $1B, and holds multiple U.S. patents. He is also a co-founder of Virchow Photonics. Thomas bridges this industry experience with management research, studying how organizations build and defend legitimacy in politically polarized environments and how artificial intelligence is reshaping integrity and learning in higher education. His work has appeared in the Journal of Housing Research and Administrative Sciences, and he serves as the inaugural Media Chair for the Strategic Management Society (SMS).
I teach to prepare students for great outcomes, not just good grades. That means high expectations, grounded in fundamental business research, and brought to life through the real cases and exercises I built from two decades of leading strategy and deals in industry.
Education
PhD in Business (Management), University of Denver, Denver, Colorado, 2026
Dissertation: "Defense Against the Dark Arts of Polarization: Legitimizing Ethical Goals for All" (Chair: Dennis Wittmer)
MBA, Texas A&M University – Mays Business School, College Station, Texas, 2000 (Focus: Strategy)
Diplom Betriebswirt (B.S.), University of Applied Sciences Munich, Munich, Germany, 1998 (Focus: Marketing & Business Software)