Role
I am Associate Professor in Business Transformation at Nottingham Business School (NBS), Nottingham Trent University. My research journey began in 2010 as a PhD candidate at Coventry University, where I investigated how manufacturing businesses in China can become more sustainable. This early work shaped my long-term commitment to sustainability. Over time, my research evolved from sustainability in operations and strategy to broader themes of sustainability and transformation (e.g. circular and digital innovation, ESG, sustainability, social media engagement and behaviour).
In 2022, I joined the Centre for Business and Industry Transformation at NBS, where I co-developed and led the MSc Business Transformation programme; contributed to a successful BC funding bid (MOSMOP). Since then, my work has been increasingly focused on circular economy, business innovation, and circular and digital business transformation. Much of my research has become highly interdisciplinary, and I collaborate with colleagues in STEM to develop innovative, practical approaches to circular and digital transformation and resilient sustainability in e-waste, renewable energy, and digital and smart agri-food, textile and manufacturing sectors.
Doctoral supervision - I am currently accepting candidates in several pertinent research domains, including (or a combination of) :
- Circular Economy
- Business Innovation
- Circular and/or Digital Business Transformation
- Sustainability/CSR/ESG
Please contact me at dongmei.cao@ntu.ac.uk. I welcome expressions of interest from potential doctoral students in these areas. My completed doctoral projects cover Strategic Management; Talent Management; ERP Management in Higher Education Institutions; Green Supply Chain Management; Co-innovation in Bioplastic Packaging; and Social Media Engagement and Brand Loyalty. My current doctoral projects include Digital Twin Models and Supply Chain Management in Agriculture; Traceability-enabled Business Innovation; tourism forecasting; Entrepreneurship; etc.
Career overview
Prior to my current appointment, I worked at Coventry University and Anglian Ruskin University. I have extensive teaching and PGR supervision experience in Strategy and Management, International Business, Business Analytics, etc.
Research areas
My expertise spans Circular Business Innovations, Circular and Digital Transformation, Ecosystems, and Societal Sustainability. I have published widely in journals of international repute, such as Long Range Planning, Journal of Business Research, Technological Forecasting & Social Change, IEEE Transactions on Engineering Management, Business Strategy and the Environment, Industrial Marketing Management, etc..
External activity
Associate Editor: International Journal of Management Reviews (IJMR); Journal of Marketing for Higher Education (JMHE);
Managing Guest Editor: Technovation; Resource, Conservation and Recycling (RCR);
Course External Examiner for Huddersfield Business School;
Doctoral External Examiner for University of Sheffield, UK; University of Agder, Norway; SRM, Institute of Science & Technology, India; Institute of Business Management, Pakistan.
Co-chair for BAM’s SIG: Sustainable and Responsible Business (SRB);
Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (SFHEA);
Member of BAM Peer Review College;
Mentor of BAM Doctoral Symposium;
Member of the Association of British Chinese Professors (ABCP).
Publications
Weblinks: LinkedIn, Google Scholar.
Award received:
*2021 Research Excellence Award by the Faculty of Business & Law, Coventry University
*2026 Daniel Shapiro AIB Insights Award for Actionable Insights, Academy of International Business (AIB)
Selected publication:
Mergaliyeva, L, & Cao, D (2026). Accountability, empathy and the digital transformation of care: a qualitative study of UK homecare agencies. Information Technology & People, ahead-of-print. https://doi.org/10.1108/ITP-11-2025-1709
Rohit, K.S., Kaliyan, M., Cao*, C., & Saikouk, T. (2026). Resource use optimisation for public sector infrastructure projects: An empirical examination of digital twin adoption. Technological Forecasting & Social Change. 227, Article 124625. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.techfore.2026.124625
Haiyue Yuan, Shujun Li, Fatima Gillani, Dongmei Cao, & Xiao Ma. (2026). Does Travel Stage Matter? How Leisure Travellers Perceive Their Privacy Attitudes Towards Personal Data Sharing Before, During, and After Travel. arXiv.org. (in Computer Science> Computers and Society). https://doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.2603.01992
Li, Y., Cao, D., Hewitt, M., & Shan, S. (2026). Using large-language models to analyse social media engagement with the public sector communication on circular economy: Evidence from X. Technological Forecasting & Social Change, 222, Article 124400. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.techfore.2025.124400
Simba, A., Jones, P., & Cao, D. (2025). Information technology and people: Creating a better society for the ageing population. Technovation. https://www.sciencedirect.com/special-issue/323471/information-technology-and-people-creating-a-better-society-for-the-ageing-population
Kumar, V., Kaur, A., Cao, D., Sindhwani, R., Mathiyazhagan, K., & Lin, B. (2025). Exploring sustainable energy consumption practices: An extended environmental value-belief-norm framework using SEM analysis. Energy Economics, 145, 108408-. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eneco.2025.108408
Madan, P., Srivastava, S., Alzeiby, E. A., & Cao, D. (2025). Proliferating green innovative work behavior through green organizational culture: Mediating role of green ambidexterity and values in the hospitality context. International Journal of Hospitality Management, 125, 104006-. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhm.2024.104006
Chen, C., Li, Z., Yang, S. & Cao, D. (2024). Driving Eco-friendly Product Purchases through Social Media: How Does Peer Influence Work? Journal of Consumer Behaviour. https://doi.org/10.1002/cb.2400
Cao, D., Puntaier, E., Gillani, F. Chapman. D., & Dewitt, S. (2024). Towards integrative multi-stakeholder responsibility for net zero in e-waste: A systematic literature review. Business Strategy and Environment. https://doi.org/10.1002/bse.3960
Gillani, F., Chatha, K. A., Jajja, S. S., Cao, D., & Ma, X. (2024). Unpacking Digital Transformation: Identifying key enablers, transition stages and digital archetypes. Technological Forecasting & Social Change, 203. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.techfore.2024.123335
Ma, R., Mao, D., Cao, D., Luo, S., Gupta, S., & Wang, Y. (2024). From vineyard to table: Uncovering wine quality for sales management through machine learning, Journal of Business Research, 176, 114576. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2024.114576.
Shoukat, M. H., Selem, K. M., & Cao, D. (2024). How do corporate social responsibility initiatives enhance sustainability performance? Evidence from tobacco firms. Environment, Development and Sustainability, https://doi.org/10.1007/s10668-024-04477-w
Cao, D., Meadows, M., & Ma, X. (2024). Thinking fast and slow: a revised SOR model for an empirical examination of impulse buying at a luxury fashion outlet. European Journal of Marketing, 58 (1), 342-368.
Gillani, F., Cao, D., Ma, X. (2023). Making Beef Farming Supply Chains Sustainable: Unearthing the Role of Cognitive Digital Twins. BAM 2023 Conference Proceedings. The BAM 2023 conference on Towards Disruptive Sustainability: New Business Opportunities and Challenges, Falmer, Brighton, 1-6 September, 2023. https://www.xcdsystem.com/bam/member/update_profile.cfm?view=products
Yuan, H., Boakes, M., Ma, X., Cao, D., Li, S. (2023). Visualising Personal Data Flows: Insights from a Case Study of Booking.com. In Cabanillas, C., Pérez, F., 2023. Intelligent Information Systems CAiSE Forum 2023, Zaragoza, Spain, June 12–16, 2023, Proceedings 1st ed. 2023, 52-60. Cham: Springer International Publishing. 10.1007/978-3-031-34674-3.
Wang, W., Cao, D., Ameen, N. (2022). Exploring the reality behind augmented reality applications in retailing: The role of value orientation and use frequency. Information, Technology & People. https://doi.org/10.1108/ITP-04-2021-0293
Onjewu, A.-K. E., Haddoud, M., Tony-Okeke, U., Cao, D., Nowiński, W. (2022). Dissecting the Effect of Family Business Exposure on Entrepreneurial Implementation Intention. International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behavior & Research. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJEBR-05-2021-0350
Xiong, A., Xia, S., Wang, Q., Lockyer, J., Cao, D., Westlund, H., & Li, H. (2022). Queen Bees: How is Female Managers’ Happiness Determined?. Frontiers in Psychology, 13, 1-12.
Luo, X., Cao, D., Tjahjono, B., & Adegobile, A. (2022). Business model innovation themes of emerging market enterprises: Evidence in China. Journal of Business Research, 139,1619-1630.
Cao, D., Sun, Y., Goh, E., Wang, R., & Kuiavska, K. (2022). Adoption of Smart Voice Assistants Technology among Airbnb Guests: A Revised Self-Efficacy-Based Value Adoption Model (SVAM). International Journal of Hospitality Management,101,103124. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhm.2021.103124
Mokhtarzadeh, N. G., Mahdiraji, H. A., Jafarpanah, I., & Cao, D. (2022). Examining the Influence of Environmental Turbulence on Firm Innovation Performance in Emerging Markets Using an Environment-Strategy-Performance Framework. International Journal of Innovation Management. https://doi.org/10.1142/S1363919622500281
Cao, D., Wang, Y., Berkeley, N., & Tjahjono, B. (2022). Configurational conditions and sustained competitive advantage: A fsQCA approach. Long Range Planning, 55(4),102131. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lrp.2021.102131
Cao, D., Gupta, S., Lim, M. K., Dhir, A., Li, Z., & Schiavone, F. (2021). Consumers’ role in addressing plastic pollution. Resources, Conservation and Recycling, 169, 105473. Sun, Y., Wang, R., Cao, D., & Lee, R. (2021). Who are social media influencers for luxury fashion consumption of the Chinese Gen Z? Categorisation and empirical examination. Journal of Fashion Marketing and Management. https://doi.org/10.1108/JFMM-07-2020-0132
Zhang, L., Chen, F., Xia, S., Cao, D., Ye, Z., Shen, C., Maas, G., & Li, Y. (2021). Value co-creation and appropriation of platform-based alliances in cooperative advertising. Industrial Marketing Management, 96, 213-225.
Rezaei, M., Jafari-Sadeghi, V., Cao, D., & Amoozad Mahdiraji, H. (2021). Key indicators of ethical challenges in digital healthcare: Delphi exploration and CFA validation. Technological Forecasting & Social Change. 167,120724.
Adegbile, A., Sarpong, D., & Cao, D. (2021). Understanding industry-university collaborations in emerging economies: A legitimacy perspective. IEEE Transactions on Engineering Management, 1-13. DOI:10.1109/TEM.2021.3050859.
Cao, D., Meadows, M., Wong, D., & Xia, S. (2021). Understanding consumers’ social media engagement behaviour: An examination of the moderation effect of social media context. Journal of Business Research,122,835-846.
Li, H., Wu, Y., Cao, D., & Wang, Y. (2021). Organizational mindfulness towards digital transformation as a prerequisite of information processing capability to achieve market agility. Journal of Business Research, 122, 700-712.
Tarhini, A., Alalwan, A., & Cao, D. (2020). Integrating emotional attachment, resource sharing, communication and collaboration into UTAUT2 to examine students’ behavioural intention to adopt social media networks in education. International Journal of Technology Enhanced Learning. 13(1), 1-23.
Yang, X., Cao, D., Chen, J., Xiao, Z., & Daowd, A. (2020). AI and IoT based collaborative business ecosystem: A case in Chinese fish farming industry. International Journal of Technology Management, 82(2),151-171.
Yang, X., Cao, D., Andrikopoulos, P., Yang, Z., & Bass, T. (2020). Online Social Networks, Media Supervision and Investment Efficiency: An empirical examination of Chinese listed companies. Technological Forecasting & Social Change, 154, 119969.
Xiong, A., Xia, S., Ye, Z.P., Cao, D., Jing, Y., & Li, H. (2020). Can innovation really bring economic growth? The role of social filter in China. Structural Change and Economic Dynamics,53,50-61.
Daowd, A., Hasan, R., Eldabi, T., Rafi-ul-Shan, P.M., Cao, D. & Kasemsarn, N. (2020) Factors Affecting eWOM Credibility, Information Adoption, and Purchase Intention on Generation Y: A Case from Thailand. Journal of Enterprise Information Management, https://doi.org/10.1108/JEIM-04-2019-0118
Liliani, L., Tjahjono, B., & Cao, D. (2020) Advancing bioplastic packaging products through co-innovation: a conceptual framework for supplier-customer collaboration. Journal of Cleaner Production, 252, 119861.
Xia, S., Xiong, Y., Zhang, M., Cornford, J., Liu, Y., Lim, M.K., Cao, D., & Chen, F. (2020). Reducing the Resource Acquisition Costs for Returnee Entrepreneurs: Role of Chinese National Science Parks, International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behaviour and Research, 26 (7), 1627-1657.
Cao, D., Tao, H., Wang, Y., Tarhini, A., & Xia, S. (2019). Acceptance of Automation Manufacturing Technology in China: An Examination of Perceived Norm and Organizational Efficacy. Production Planning and Control, 31(8), 660-672.
Koliousis, I., Cao, D., & Koliousis, P. (2019). European transport industry deregulation: an analytical investigation of the impact on incumbents’ managerial efficiency 1988-2015. Management Research Review, 42(9),1095-1115.
Yu, M., Cao, D., & Tan, J.Y. (2019). CSR-consumption paradox: Examination of UK apparel companies. Journal of Fashion Marketing and Management: An International Journal, 23(1), 124-137.
Cao. D., Berkeley, N., & Finlay, D. (2014). Measuring sustained competitive advantage from resource-based view: Survey of Chinese Clothing Industry. Journal of Sustainable Development, 7(2), 89-102.
