Brian Connelly is a professor of management and entrepreneurship at Auburn University. His research explores how corporate governance structures, such as shareholders and boards, affect competition and strategic outcomes.

Some of the key theoretical mechanisms that underlie Connelly's work include signaling theory, social network theory and tournament theory. He is the former editor-in-chief of the Journal of Management and Associate Editor of the Academy of Management Journal. He has also published in journals such as the Strategic Management Journal, Organization Science and Strategic Organization.