Petru Sandu

Petru Sandu
  • Lecturer
  • Professor of Entrepreneurship and Management

Contact Information

  • office Address:

    3016 SH-DH
    3620 Locust Walk
    Philadelphia, PA 19104

Links: LinkedIn

Overview

Dr. Petru Sandu is the founding director of the Family Business and Entrepreneurship Program (FBE) and the academic liaison for the High Center for Family Business at Elizabethtown College. As a tenured professor of Entrepreneurship and Management at the School of Business, he has been developing the FBE curricula both at undergraduate and graduate level. Petru was a visiting professor in several countries teaching in other two languages, besides English. His main research interests are family business professionalization, succession, and intergenerational entrepreneurship that were presented at conferences in more than ten countries and published in peer reviewed journals. In 2023, Petru was a Fulbright Senior Scholar at the University of Murcia, Spain, where he was teaching and conducting a research project in Spanish.

He received his Ph.D. from Al. I. Cuza University, Romania, his MBA from The Ohio State University, and the undergraduate degree from the Academy of Economic Studies, Bucharest, Romania. Before moving to the U.S., he co-founded a family business that is still active.

Continue Reading

Teaching

All Courses

  • MGMT2330 - Strat & Prac of Family

    This course is designed for those persons who desire to understand the distinct strategies and practices of family-controlled companies and family wealth creation. It will focus on stakeholder decision making; financial and resource driven options for long-run competitiveness, organizational structures, management team issues; strategic planning from a resource-based perspective; transition planning for the corporate entity, family dynamics and communication issues; and leadership empowerment. The course is intended for those who plan to consult or provide professional services to family-controlled companies and for those planning a career in a family firm. The class is structured around topical lectures with frequent utilization of case studies requiring active class participation, as well as on-site and off-site project work time. Submission of several written case studies, and a term project are required. Open to Wharton undergraduate & MBA students, as well as Penn graduate students. Format: The class is structured around topical lectures with frequent utilization of case studies. There will be in-class discussion, as well as on-site and off-site project work time.

  • MGMT8330 - Strat & Prac of Family

    This course is designed for those persons who desire to understand the distinct strategies and practices of family-controlled companies and family wealth creation. It will focus on stakeholder decision making; financial and resource driven options for long-run competitiveness, organizational structures, management team issues; strategic planning from a resource-based perspective; transition planning for the corporate entity, family dynamics, communication issues; and leadership empowerment. The course is intended for those who plan to consult or provide professional services to family-controlled companies and for those planning a career in a family firm. The class is structured around topical lectures with frequent utilization of case studies requiring active class participation, as well as on-site and off-site project work time. Submission of several written case studies, and a term project are required. Open to Wharton MBA and Penn graduate students.

Knowledge at Wharton

Why ‘AI Ethics’ Is a Misnomer — and Why That Matters for Business

Wharton’s Cornelia C. Walther explains how the language around “AI ethics” can create confusion and misplace accountability.…Read More

Knowledge @ Wharton - 7/7/2026
How Retailers Adapt When Growth Slows

Professor Marshall Fisher explains how successful retailers adapt their strategies when growth slows.…Read More

Knowledge @ Wharton - 7/7/2026
The Fed Explained: What It Does and Why It Matters

Former Philadelphia Fed President Patrick Harker and financial historian Peter Conti-Brown, both Wharton professors, unpack the central bank’s origins, its unusual structure, and the quiet ways it shapes the economy.…Read More

Knowledge @ Wharton - 7/7/2026