Ella Lee is an Assistant Professor of Management at East Tennessee State University. She earned her Ph.D. in Human Resource Management and Organizational Behavior from the University of Kansas. She also holds a master’s degree in Human Resource Management from the School of Management and Labor Relations at Rutgers University and a master's degree in Economics from the University of Wisconsin–Madison.

Her research examines how individuals construct their work experiences through relational and personal processes. She investigates how formal and informal workplace relationships, ranging from leader-member dynamics to workplace friendships, shape employee outcomes, as well as how workers proactively craft their work environments to enhance their well-being and performance.

Prior to academia, Lee worked as an HR consultant in the service industry and as a policy analyst at a government-affiliated research institute, conducting economic and policy feasibility analyses. Drawing on both her scholarly research and industry experience, she teaches Human Resource Management, Talent Acquisition & Staffing, and Organizational Behavior.

Education:

• Ph.D. in Human Resource Management and Organizational Behavior, University of Kansas
• M.S. in Human Resource Management, Rutgers University
• M.S. in Economics, University of Wisconsin–Madison

Research Interests:
Workplace interpersonal relationships
Supervisor support
Job crafting & proactive work behavior
Person-environment fit

Selected Publications:
Downes, P. E., & Lee, E. S. (2023). A relational view of shiftwork: Co‐scheduling with higher performers. Human Resource Management, 62(4), 429–443.

Wang, L., Ali, M., Kim, H. J., Lee, S., & Hernandez Perlines, F. (2021). Individual entrepreneurial orientation, value congruence, and individual outcomes: Does the institutional entrepreneurial environment matter? Business Strategy and the Environment, 30(5), 2293–2312.