Ph.D in Business Administration

PROGRAM THE PHD PROGRAM IS DIVIDED INTO TWO PHASES Phase 1: Years 1 & 2 are devoted to courses, seminars and joint research projects with faculty members. Phase 2: Years 3 & 4 are devoted to dissertation work. AREAS OF EXPERTISE The GEM faculty has developed its expertise and created research teams in the following areas: Alternative Forms of Markets and Organizations Business Models and Strategy Consumer Behavior Energy Management Finance, Innovation and Governance Marketing Strategy and Innovation Social Networks, innovation and entrepreneurship Work, Life and Careers PHASE 1: TRAINING IN RESEARCH During Phase 1, students receive a thorough and sophisticated training in the latest methods of inquiry and state-of-the-art knowledge. The program is taught entirely in English. 1. TRAINING IN A CHOSEN FIELD Students lacking a business background may be required to follow courses from our Master of Sciences in Marketing or our Master of Sciences in Innovation and Technology Management. The specific choice of courses will be made on an individual basis. Possible courses include marketing management, management of innovation, brand management, etc. 2. TRAINING IN RESEARCH PhD students have to take at least 300 hours of advanced PhD seminars over the first two-year period. All students have to take seminars on the most commonly used methodologies in business administration research (minimum: 200 hours). The goal is to provide students with the skills to use a wide range of methods. Depending on their chosen concentration, students can choose the methodologies they wish to study in-depth. METHODOLOGICAL SEMINARS YEAR 1: Positioning your Work in Academia Introduction to Statistical Methods in Research Questionnaire and Scale Development Introduction to Qualitative Research Essential Tools in Qualitative Research Regression Analysis Introduction to Theories of Management Experimental Design and Analysis Advanced Seminar in Marketing, Strategy and Finance YEAR 2: Multivariate Statistical Techniques(Quantitative Track) Measurement Models and Structural Equation Models (Quantitative Track) Publishing and Reviewing Successfully Advanced Seminar II in Marketing, Strategy and Finance Social Network Theory and Methods Econometrics (Quantitative Track) Ethnography (Qualitative Track) Achieving Quality in a Qualitative Paper (Qualitative Track) Computed Assisted Text Analysis (Qualitative Track) Comparative Qualitative Analysis (Qualitative Track) 3. PRACTICAL TRAINING IN RESEARCH Immediately after their arrival in the program, students are integrated in a research team and start working on at least one research project. Within these projects they may have to perform several tasks such as literature review, conceptual and theoretical developments, data collection supervision, design of the experimental procedure and writing of a specific part of an article. Students also have to participate in internal research workshops. These workshops are usually organized on a weekly or bi-weekly basis by the various departments. They include presentations by internal or external participants as well as readings seminars. Students are also regularly asked to present their research at these workshops. TO PASS PHASE 1 AND MOVE ON TO PHASE 2, STUDENTS HAVE TO: Validate all courses and seminars taken and maintain a cumulative GPA of 13/20. Write a first year paper (empirical papers are preferred) Co-author at least one article for an international conference (e.g. AMA, AoM, ACR, EMAC, AFM, SMS, EGOS, AIMS, etc.) Take and pass a comprehensive exam (the second year paper). This paper must provide a review of a key area of research in the student's field of study. Submitted papers are similar to those which appear in the Psychological Bulletin, Journal of Economic Literature or Academy of Management Review. Present a detailed research project for his or her dissertation. At the end of Phase 1, students who have passed the requirements will be awarded an MPhil degree. In order to ensure that students are progressing adequately, a formal review of student progress is carried out each year. PHASE 2: DISSERTATION WORK This phase is devoted to the student's dissertation work. The student will have to choose his or her PhD supervisor and two committee members who will provide guidance on specific topics. The chosen committee members may come from a faculty other than Grenoble Ecole de Management. Students have the possibility to defend their PhD on the basis of their publications. The doctoral dissertation is designed to demonstrate that the candidate is capable of conducting significant independent scholarly research. The dissertation is expected to be of such a scope, magnitude and originality as to indicate that the student has acquired sufficient knowledge of an area of study to demonstrate his or her ability to contribute to the field of study by producing new knowledge or a new outlook.