Faculty and Staff
Photo of Dr. Zahy Ramadan

Dr. Zahy Ramadan

Professor and Director, Internal Consulting & Project Management (ICPM) Office

zahy.ramadan@lau.edu.lb
Ext: 1931
AKSOB 1204
LAU Beirut 

View CV

Biography 

Dr. Zahy Ramadan is a professor of marketing and founding director of the Internal Consulting and Project Management (ICPM) Office under the President’s Office at the Lebanese American University (LAU). He holds a Doctor of Business Administration from Manchester Business School, as well as an MBA and a Bachelor of Science in Business Marketing with distinction from LAU.

His research focuses on consumer behavior, emerging technologies, and retailing, with particular emphasis on artificial intelligence, virtual influencers, immersive and metaverse-enabled services, technology-mediated brand-consumer relationships, and the evolving consumer journey. His work has appeared in leading international journals and policy reports, earning him recognition among the world’s top 2 percent of most-cited scientists since 2024. In 2025, he received the LAU Research Excellence Award with Dr. Maya Farah in recognition of their sustained scholarly contributions and international impact. His research has also been cited by Forbes and referenced by the European Union in shaping digital policy.

A Chartered Marketer with the Chartered Institute of Marketing in the United Kingdom, Dr. Ramadan brings more than 20 years of professional experience across the Near East, Arabian Peninsula and Asia-Pacific markets. His industry expertise spans fast-moving consumer goods, luxury goods and consumer electronics. He has also designed and delivered executive workshops in China and South Korea on shopper marketing, in-store retail fundamentals and SKU-mix strategy.

At LAU, Dr. Ramadan has contributed to both academic and institutional strategy. As founding director of ICPM, he leads initiatives at the intersection of institutional strategy, internal consulting, and project management, supporting university-wide strategic planning and implementation. He has also contributed to LAU’s Integrated Health Strategic Planning and the development and renewal of the university’s strategic plans.

Dr. Ramadan received the Excellence in Teaching Award in 2019 and was twice shortlisted for the Times Higher Education Arab World Awards’ Most Innovative Teacher of the Year in 2024 and 2025 for his work in immersive, metaverse-based learning. His teaching innovations also explore emerging approaches to learning in the age of generative AI, including reverse prompt engineering. In 2026, he was highly commended in the Outstanding Alumni category of the University of Manchester Making a Difference Awards. He also co-designed and launched the LAU Leadership Program with Dr. Georges Najjar in 2024 and co-developed the LAU Healthcare Customer Care Program with Dr. Maya Farah from 2021 to 2024.

Through his research, professional expertise, teaching innovation, and institutional leadership, Dr. Ramadan contributes to LAU’s academic and institutional development while preparing future-ready marketers, business leaders, and institutional change-makers.

Teaching Interests

Research Interests

Awards and Accomplishments

Consulting Activities

Publications

Articles in Academic and Trade Journals:

Ramadan Z, Farah MF, Nassereddine Y (2026), “Inclusive metaverse services: how desired self-identity shapes service evaluations and disability acceptance”. Journal of Services Marketing, Vol. ahead-of-print No. ahead-of-print. 

Ramadan Z, Farah MF, Nassereddine Y (2026), “The role of generative AI in shaping consumer–brand relationships: a comparative study of the microblogging platforms X and threads”. Marketing Intelligence & Planning, Vol. ahead-of-print No. ahead-of-print.

Farah, M. F., Ramadan, Z., & Nassereddine, Y. (2025). Mind the gap: virtual fashion shows and generational disparities. International Journal of Fashion Design, Technology and Education, 1-9. 

Ramadan, Z., & Ramadan, J. (2025). AI avatars and co-creation in the metaverse. Consumer Behavior in Tourism and Hospitality, 20(1), 131-147. 

Nassereddine, Y., Ramadan, Z., & Farah, M. F. (2025). From Wellbeing to Addiction: The Influence of Inclusive Beauty Brands on People With Physical Disabilities. International Journal of Consumer Studies, 49(1), e70017. 

Mrad, M., Ramadan, Z., Tóth, Z., Nasr, L., & Karimi, S. (2025). Virtual influencers versus real connections: Exploring the phenomenon of virtual influencers. Journal of Advertising, 54(1), 1-19.

Farah, M.F. & Ramadan, Z. (2024). Toward an inclusive metaverse: maneuvering between acceptance of disability and need for uniqueness. Journal of Research in Interactive Marketing, 18(5), 741-758.

Farah, M.F., Ramadan, Z., & Nassereddine, Y. (2024). When digital spaces matter: The influence of uniqueness and place attachment on self‐identity expression with brands using generative AI on the Metaverse. Psychology and Marketing, 41(12), 2965-2976.

Ramadan, Z. (2024). The rise of the egocentric brand and consumer: the case of soul bound tokens (SBT). Qualitative Market Research: An International Journal, 27(5), 921–940.

Ramadan, Z., Farah, M.F., Abosag, I., & Sleiman, A. (2023). Typology of e-commerce shoppers: the case of COVID-19. Qualitative Market Research, 26(4), 345-367.

Ramadan, Z., Farah, M.F., & Al Rahbany, N. (2023). Boosting customized and personalized interactive livestreaming experiences. Is Amazon Explore competing or complementing the hospitality industry? Qualitative Market Research, 26(5), 473-493.

Itani, O.S., Loureiro, S.M.C., & Ramadan, Z. (2023). Engaging with omnichannel brands: the role of consumer empowerment. International Journal of Retail and Distribution Management, 51(2), 238-261.

Ramadan, Z. (2023). Marketing in the Metaverse era: toward an integrative channel approach. Virtual Reality, 27(March), 1905-1918.

Mahdi, A., Farah, M.F., & Ramadan, Z. (2022). What to believe, whom to blame, and when to share: exploring the fake news experience in the marketing context. Journal of Consumer Marketing, 39(3), 306-316.  

Farah, M.F., Ramadan, Z., & Kanso, J. (2022). Satisfying the online food crave: The case of online food aggregators. International Journal of Consumer Studies, 46(4), 1413-1427.

Ramadan, Z. & Nsouli, N.Z. (2022). Luxury fashion start-up brands’ digital strategies with female Gen Y in the Middle East. Journal of Fashion Marketing and Management, 26(2), 247-265.

Mrad, M., Ramadan, Z., & Nasr, L.I. (2022). Computer-generated influencers: the rise of digital personalities. Marketing Intelligence and Planning, 40(5), 589-603.

Ramadan, Z., Farah, M.F., & El Essrawi, L. (2021). From Amazon.com to Amazon.love: How Alexa is redefining companionship and interdependence for people with special needs. Psychology and Marketing, 38(4), 596-609.

Ramadan, Z., Farah, M.F., & Bou Saada, R. (2021). Fooled in the relationship: how Amazon Prime members’ sense of self-control counterintuitively reinforces impulsive buying behavior. Journal of Consumer Behavior, 20(6), 1497–1507.

Ramadan, Z. (2021). “Alexafying” shoppers: The examination of Amazon’s captive relationship strategy. Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, 62, 102610.

Farah, M.F. & Ramadan, Z. (2020). Viability of Amazon’s driven innovations targeting shoppers’ impulsiveness. Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, 53, 101973.

Farah, M.F., Ramadan, Z., & Shatila, L. (2020). The examination of self-service replenishing solutions’ potential. International Journal of Web Based Communities, 16(2), 134–149.

Ramadan, Z. & Farah, M.F. (2020). Influencing the influencers: the case of retailers’ social shopping platforms. International Journal of Web Based Communities, 16(3), 279–295.

Abosag, I., Ramadan, Z., Baker, T., & Jin, Z. (2020). Customers’ need for uniqueness theory versus brand congruence theory: The impact on satisfaction with social network sites. Journal of Business Research, 117, 862-872.

Farah, M.F., Ramadan, Z. & Harb, D.H. (2019). The examination of virtual reality at the intersection of consumer experience, shopping journey and physical retailing. Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, 48, 136-143.

Ramadan, Z., Farah, M.F., & Kassab, D. (2019). Amazon’s approach to consumers’ usage of the Dash button and its effect on purchase decision involvement in the U.S. market. Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, 47, 133-139.

Ramadan, Z., Farah, M.F., & Daouk, S. (2019). The effect of e-retailers’ innovations on shoppers’ impulsiveness and addiction in web-based communities: The case of Amazon’s Prime Now. International Journal of Web Based Communities, 15(4), 327-343.

Ramadan, Z. (2019). The democratization of intangible luxury. Marketing Intelligence and Planning, 37(6), 660-673.

Ramadan, Z. (2019). Brand–brand relational moments. Journal of Brand Management, 26(6), 705-716.

Ramadan, Z., Farah, M. and Halawi, B. (2018). How can the Lebanese traditional media stations survive in the presence of digital media? ArabAd Magazine, 28(8).

Ramadan, Z., Farah, M.F., & Dukenjian, A. (2018). Typology of social media followers: the case of luxury brands. Marketing Intelligence and Planning, 36(5), 558-571.

Ramadan, Z. (2018). The gamification of trust: the case of China’s “social credit”. Marketing Intelligence and Planning, 36(1), 93-107.

Ramadan, Z., Abosag, I., & Zabkar, V. (2018). All in the value: The impact of brand and social network relationships on the perceived value of customer endorsed Facebook advertising. European Journal of Marketing, 52(7/8), 1704-1726.

Farah, M.F. & Ramadan, Z. (2017). Disruptions versus more disruptions: How the Amazon dash button is altering consumer buying patterns. Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, 39, 54 -61.

Ramadan, Z., & Farah, M.F. (2017). The advent of the ‘social moment of truth’ in online communities. International Journal of Web Based Communities, 13(3), 364-378.

Ramadan, Z. & Farah, M.F. (2017). The Pokémonisation of the first moment of truth. International Journal of Web Based Communities, 13(2), 262-277.

Ramadan, Z., Farah, M.F., & Mrad, M. (2017). An adapted TPB approach to consumers’ acceptance of service-delivery drones. Technology Analysis and Strategic Management, 29(7), 817-828.

Ramadan, Z. (2017). Examining the dilution of the consumer-brand relationship on Facebook: the saturation issue. Qualitative Market Research, 20(3), 335-353.

Ramadan, Z. & Mrad, M. (2017). Fashionable stereotypes and evolving trends in the United Arab Emirates. Customer Needs and Solutions, 4, 28-36.

Case Studies:

Ramadan, Z. & Kanso, J. (2023). Zomato: shaping the future of food. Emerald Emerging Markets Case Studies, 13(1), 1-16.

Ramadan, Z. & Al Rahbany, N. (2022). Intangible Luxury Services: The case of Amazon’s Alexa. In Chapter 12, Fashion & Luxury Marketing 1st Edition, by Solomon, M. and Mrad, M. Sage, London, UK.

Ramadan, Z. (2019). Proven Arabia: Strategic Decision Making on a Digital Transformation Study in Saudi Arabia. The Case Centre, available at http://casecent.re/p/162211

Ramadan, Z. & Yunis, M. (2019). L’Oréal Brandstorm: Play, Experiment, Innovate. The Case Centre, available at http://casecent.re/p/162213

Books:

Ramadan, Z. (2018). Marketing Strategy in the Age of the ‘Omni-Moment of Truth’. Independently Published, U.S. ISBN 1980962804

Ramadan, Z. & Farah, M.F. (2017). The Dawn of ‘Guerrilla Marketing’: The alteration of consumers’ attitudes towards retailers and their usage of various social media platforms. [Kindle Edition], Retrieved from Amazon.com.

Chapters in a Book:

Ramadan, Z., Farah, M.F., Abosag, I., & Dahi, B. (2024, June). Love Me, Love Me Not: The counterintuitive relationships in social networking sites. In Digital Marketing and eCommerce Conference (pp. 15-22). Springer, Cham.

Farah, M.F., Ramadan, Z., Sammouri, W., & Tawk, P. (2024, June). Digital luxury fashion shows: leveraging interactive marketing opportunities through social media sentiment analysis. In Digital Marketing & eCommerce Conference (pp. 23-30). Springer, Cham.

Ramadan, Z., Farah, M.F., & Bekdache, S. (2023). The examination of social and service relational aspects on customers’ retention. In Springer Proceedings in Business and Economics (pp. 70-79). Springer, Cham.

Ramadan, Z., Abosag, I., & Gadalla, E. (2023). Less for more: does consumers’ proneness to join more online brand communities negatively impact consumers’ sharing ability? In Springer Proceedings in Business and Economics (pp. 1-8). Springer, Cham.

Farah, M.F., Ramadan, Z., & Yunis, M. (2022). The examination of tech disruptions’ patterns on the consumer journey. In Springer Proceedings in Business and Economics (pp. 142-149). Springer, Cham.

Farah, M.F., Mrad, M., Ramadan, Z., & Hamdane H. (2020). Handle with care: adoption of drone delivery services. In Martínez-López F., Gázquez-Abad J., Breugelmans, E. (eds) Advances in National Brand and Private Label Marketing. NB&PL 2020 – Seventh International Conference. Springer Proceedings in Business and Economics (pp. 22-29). Springer, Cham.

Ramadan, Z., Farah, M.F., & Audi, H. (2019, June). The advent of the voice moment of truth: The Case of Amazon’s Alexa. In Springer Proceedings in Business and Economics (pp. 165-174). Springer, Cham.

Ramadan, Z. & Abosag, I., (2017). The Mystique of Customers’ Saturation Behavior in Online Brand Communities. In Consumer Behavior, Sabah, S., InTech: Rijeka.

Ramadan, Z. & Abosag, I. (2016). Understanding online brand relationships in Western Asia: The Case of Lebanon and Saudi Arabia. In Asia Branding: Connecting Brands, Consumers and Companies, Melewar, TC, B. Nguyen and DE Schultz (Eds.). Palgrave Macmillan, UK.

Abosag, I., Martin, F. & Ramadan, Z. (2016). Social Media & Branding in Asia: Threats & Opportunities. In, Asia Branding: Connecting Brands, Consumers & Companies, Melewar, T.C, Nguyen, B. & Schultz, D.E. (Eds). Palgrave Macmillan, UK.

Proceedings and Presentations in Refereed Conferences:

Farah M.F., Ramadan, Z., Mrad, M., and Nassereddine, Y. (2026), “Can AI Foster Belonging? Exploring GenAI’s Impact on Disability Inclusion and Well-Being”, Academy of Marketing, Manchester; United Kingdom, 6-9 July

Al Bizri, Ramadan, Z., and Farah M. (2026), “Color Psychology in AI Advertising: Emotional Impact and Inclusivity for Color Vision Deficiency”, AIRSI, the Metaverse Conference, 1-3 June

Ramadan, Z., Farah, M.F., and Nassereddine, Y. (2025), “Breaking Barriers: How the Metaverse and Brand Love Empower People with Disabilities”, 8th International Consumer Brand Relationship Conference, Las Vegas, NV: USA, 16 – 18 October

Sharif, S., Ramadan, Z., and Farah, M. (2025), “The Illusion of Inclusivity in AI Generated Virtual Try-Ons”, Summer American Marketing Association (AMA) Academic Conference, Chicago, IL: USA, 22 – 24 August

Ramadan, Z., Farah, M., and Nassereddine, Y. (2025), “Shaping Inclusive Policy for a Virtual World: Ensuring Disability Acceptance in the Metaverse”, Summer American Marketing Association (AMA) Marketing & Public Policy Conference, Washington DC: USA, 20 – 22 June

Ramadan, Z., Farah, M., and Nassereddine, Y. (2025), ““Trust Me, I’m Virtual”: The Role of Structural Assurance, Brand Trust, and Ad Value in Shaping Self-identity in the Metaverse”, AIRSI, the Metaverse Conference, 9 – 11 June

Farah, M.F., Ramadan, Z. and Nassereddine, Y. (2025), “Unlocking Brand Power: Exploring Generative AI’s Role in Shaping Consumer Journey on Microblogging Platforms”, 18th Global Brand Conference, Porto: Portugal, 7 – 9 May

Nemer, R., Ramadan, Z., and Farah, M. (2025), “Exploring the Influence of Brand Mentions in Rap and Hip-Hop Music: Lifestyle Reflection, Cultural Identity, and Adverse Consumer Perceptions”, Winter American Marketing Association (AMA) Academic Conference, Phoenix, AZ: USA, 10 – 16 February 

Farah, M.F., Ramadan, Z. & Nassereddine, Y. (2024, August 16 - 18). The Migration from X to Threads: Consumer Journey and Brand-customer Relationships. Summer American Marketing Association (AMA) Academic Conference. Boston, USA.

Farah, M.F., & Ramadan, Z. (2024, February 23 - 25). Embracing disability versus need for uniqueness on the Metaverse. Winter American Marketing Association (AMA) Academic Conference. St. Pete, USA.

Ramadan, Z., Farah, M.F., & Nassereddine, Y. (2023, August 4 – 6). Mirror, mirror on the wall, can I with my physical disability be the fairest of them all? Summer American Marketing Association (AMA) Academic Conference. San Francisco, USA.

Farah, M.F., Ramadan, Z., & Bdeir, N. (2023, February 10 – 12). Inclusive Marketing in the Web 4.0 Metaverse, Winter American Marketing Association (AMA) Academic Conference. Nashville, USA.

Farah M.F., Ramadan, Z., Sammouri W., & Tawk, P. (2022, August 12 – 14). Social Media Sentiment Analysis: The Case of Virtual Luxury Fashion. Summer American Marketing Association (AMA) Academic Conference. Chicago, USA.

Majdalani, J., Farah M.F., & Ramadan, Z., (2022, July 23 – 26). The Addictive Subscription Economy. 28thRecent Advances in Retailing and Services Science Conference. Baveno, Italy.

Ramadan, Z., Farah, M.F., & Al Rahbany, N. (2022, February 10 – 18). Reconceiving customer experience: The case of Amazon Explore. Winter American Marketing Association (AMA) Academic Conference. Las Vegas, USA.

Ramadan, Z., Farah, M.F., & Bou Saada R. (2021, August 4 – 6). Fool me once, shame on me, fool me twice, shame on Amazon Prime. Summer American Marketing Association (AMA) Academic Conference, Boston, USA. 

Ramadan, Z., Farah, M.F., & Sleiman A., (2021, August 4 – 6). E-commerce and shoppers’ evolution post Covid-19. Summer American Marketing Association (AMA) Academic Conference. Boston, USA. 

Ramadan, Z. & Farah, M.F. (2020, February 14-16). The Advent of Artificial Intimacy: An AI-Consumer Relationship Framework Using the Case of Amazon’s Alexa. Winter AMA Academic Conference. San Diego, USA.

Farah, M.F., Ramadan, Z., & Mehdi, A. (2019, August 9-11). The impact of fake news on brands and social media. Summer AMA Academic Conference. Chicago, USA.

Abosag, I. and Ramadan, Z. (2018, September 3-5). Similarity vs. Uniqueness: How Social ads counterintuitively motivate the need for uniqueness. International Colloquium on Corporate Branding, Identity, Image and Reputation (COBIIR). Calabria, Italy.

Farah, M.F. & Ramadan, Z. (2018, May 2-4). The impact of retailers’ utilization of guerrilla-like marketing tactics on consumers’ attitudes. Global Brand Conference (GBC 2018). Newcastle, UK.

Farah, M.F. & Ramadan, Z. (2018, April 10-11). The long-term sustainability of retailer-driven tech innovations on shoppers’ impulsiveness.  3rd International Conference on Marketing, Strategy and Policy (MSP 2018). London, UK.

Farah, M.F., & Ramadan, Z. (2017, December 14 – 16). The consumer’s journey in the era of the “First Moment of Truth 2.0”. 43rdEuropean International Business Academy Conference (EIBA 2017). Milan, Italy.

Farah, M.F., & Ramadan, Z. (2017, October 26 – 29). The Rise of the Impulsive Shopper: The Case of the Amazon Dash Button. Association for Consumer Research North American Conference. San Diego, USA.

Abosag, I. and Ramadan, Z. (2017, April 26-28). The Paradox of Brand Similarity with Customer Uniqueness on Social Network Sites’ Satisfaction. The AM Brand, Identity and Corporate Reputation Special Interest Group (SIG). Kalmar, Sweden.

Ramadan, Z. and Abosag, I. (2016, April 27-29). The Co-Creation of Social Reputation; The Effect of Consumer – Social Networking Site’s Relationship on Socially Advertised Brands. The AM Brand, Identity and Corporate Reputation Special Interest Group (SIG). Bradford, UK.

Ramadan, Z., Mrad, M. & Farah, M.F. (2015, October 28 – 31). A Contemporary Challenge in the Globalization of Service Technology; Moving from Self-Service Technologies to Drone-Delivery Interfaces. The EAMSA: Theory and Practice in Bridging Europe and Asia: Contemporary Challenges in International Marketing. London, UK.

Ramadan, Z. and Abosag, I. (2015, April 27-29). From Community Addicts to Disengaged: The influence of Saturation on Consumer-Brand Relationship. The AM Brand, Identity and Corporate Reputation Special Interest Group (SIG). Turku, Finland.