Ph.D. in Business Administration with a major in Strategy

Notable Recent Placements

Auburn University; Georgia Southern University; Mississippi State University; Old Dominion University; Rochester Institute of Technology; University of Alabama; University of Richmond; Samford University; Western Carolina University; West Virginia University

Awards

Rich Devine, Strategic Management Society Best Conference Paper nomination
Janice Gordon, Southern Management Association Best Doctoral Student Paper in Track Finalist
Andréa Hodge, Strategic Management Society Research Methods Prize nomination
Andréa Hodge (Editor’s Choice Award; Journal of Applied Psychology)
Gonzalo Molina-Sieiro, Best Ph.D. Student Paper in Track, OT/IB track, Southern Management Association Annual Meeting; Best Reviewer (International Management Division, Academy of Management Annual Meeting)
Trey Sutton, Strategic Management Society Best Conference Paper nomination

Defended Dissertations

• “Three essays exploring delay of gratification in the context of organizations” by Ashok Bhandary; Dr. Bruce Lamont and Dr. David Maslach, major professors
• "Drivers of international investment decisions: The role of safety risk" by Kaitlyn DeGhetto; Dr. Bruce Lamont, major professor
• “An institutional lens on firm responses to activism” by Richard A. Devine; Dr. Bruce Lamont, major professor
• “Institutions and imprinting in the formalization of informal firms: A cross-country analysis” by Katia Galdino; Dr. Bruce Lamont, major professor
• “Regulatory antecedents and moderators of firm self-regulation” by Janice M. Gordon. Dr. Bruce Lamont, major professor
• “Community social capital, tie strength, and firm-founding” by Reginald Jamar Harris; Dr. Bruce Lamont and Dr. Michael Holmes, major professors
• “Achieving legitimacy in the pursuit of social movement market opportunities” by Andréa M. Hodge. Dr. Michael Holmes, major professor.
• “Evolution, adaptations, and complexity in ecosystems: three essays on ecosystem evolution” by Kalan G. Horton. Dr. Dave King and Dr. Bruce Lamont, major professors.
• “Essays on the effects of the institutional logics of social impact accelerators on hybrid venture firm performance” by Christine Madonna Kirkland. Dr. Michael Holmes and Dr. Horacio Rousseau, major professors.
• “The influence of TMT cultural distance in the completion of cross-border acquisitions” by Gonzalo Molina-Sieiro; Dr. Michael Holmes, major professor
• “Three essays on entrepreneurship, income inequality, and social comparison” by Justin Pepe; Dr. Michael Holmes, major professor
• “Firm-state dependencies, threat activation, and corporate political activity” by Andrew L. Sutton III; Dr. Bruce Lamont, major professor
• "Competitive action and corporate governance: How do boards and managers influence competitive outcomes?" by Michelle L. Zorn; Dr. Bruce Lamont, major professor

Selected Recent Student Publications

Some recent representative publications from current or former students:

• Bouchra, N. H., Zahn, E., Aziz, H. A., Kirkland, C. M., & Holmes, R. M. in press. The impact of entrepreneurial cognition on opportunity-capitalizing capabilities and business model change: Evidence from Egypt. Africa Journal of Management.
• Holmes, R. M., Holcomb, T. R., & Hodge, A. M. in press. Creating and leveraging actionable mission statements. Organizational Dynamics.
• Smith, M. B., Wu, I.-H., Holmes, R. M., & Hodge, A. M. 2024. An integrative conceptual review of multi-perspective frameworks in personality research and a roadmap for extended applications in organizational psychology. Journal of Applied Psychology, 109: 1513-1532.
• Holmes, R. M., Klein, P. G., Foss, N. J., Terjesen, S. A., & Pepe, J. A. 2024. Government and cronyism: A reply to Chalmers. Academy of Management Perspectives, 38: 106-119.
• Galdino, K.M., Gordon, J.M., King, D. 2022. The impact of distance on acquisition performance. European Management Journal, 40: 857-872.
• Holmes, R. M., Waldman, D. A., Siegel, D. S., & Pepe, J. A. 2022. Declining trust in capitalism: Managerial, research, and public policy implications. Academy of Management Perspectives. 36: 984-1006.
• Klein, P. G., Holmes, R. M., Foss, N. J., Terjesen, S. A., & Pepe, J. A. 2021. Capitalism, cronyism, and management scholarship: A call for clarity. Academy of Management Perspectives, 36: 6-29.
• Holmes, R. M., Hitt, M. A., Perrewé, P. L., Palmer, J., & Molina-Sieiro, G. 2021. Building cross-disciplinary bridges in leadership: Integrating top executive personality and leadership theory and research. The Leadership Quarterly, 32, 101490.
• Devine, R. A., Molina-Sieiro, G., Holmes, R. M., & Terjesen, S. A. 2019. Female-led high growth: Examining the role of human and financial resource management. Journal of Small Business Management, 57: 81-109.
• Gordon, J., Molina-Sieiro, G., Ellis, K., Lamont. 2019. M&A Advisors: Padding Their Pockets or Source of Expertise. in C. Cooper and S. Finkelstein (Eds.). Advances in Mergers and Acquisitions, 18: 27-50.
• Lamont, B. and Molina-Sieiro, G.  2019. Are your results really robust?  In Clark, T., Wright, M. and Ketchen, D. (Eds.)  How to Publish in the Best Management Journals, 2nd edition. Edward Elgar Publishing.

Prerequisites

Strategy doctoral students must have a bachelor's degree from an accredited college or university. Although many students also have a master's degree in business or a related field (e.g., organizational sociology or economics), it is not a requirement.

Major Requirements

All strategy doctoral students must complete courses in three areas: Tools and Analytical Research (TAR), Primary Strategy and Support.

I. Primary Strategy Coursework

The primary area courses and seminars provide opportunities for in-depth study. The following doctoral seminars and courses are required in Strategy:

MAN 6275 Organizational Behavior 
MAN 6235 Organizational Theory
MAN 6917 Research Design
MAN 6932 Strategic Management: Literature Overview
MAN 6931 Strategy Microfoundations
MAN 6795 Strategy II (focus on entrepreneurship) or MAN 6235 Strategy III (focus on international business) or MAN 6933 Special Topics

Additional primary area courses may be selected in consultation with the student's advisor and the Strategy doctoral program coordinator.

In addition to these courses, first-year and second-year students will participate in a professional development series that will be an additional registered course in each semester of the first two years of the program. The development series is designed to introduce doctoral students to the roles and responsibilities of faculty, including research ethics, communication with faculty at other universities, the research review process, balancing research, teaching and service, among other topics. Third-year students and beyond continue to register for the professional development courses for 0 hours to meet the university scholarly engagement requirement.

II. Tools and Analytical Research (TAR) area

All strategy doctoral students must take four (4) Tools and Analytical Research (TAR) courses. 

Three (3) Required:
MAN 6934 Data Analysis
PSY 6919r Research Analysis and Design I
PSY 6919r Research Analysis and Design II

Select one (1) elective:
EDF 5464 Qualitative Methods
MAR 6655 Causal Models
EDF 5406 Multivariate Analysis
PSY 5916 Modern Psychometrics
PSY 5916 Meta-analysis
PSY 5916 Multilevel Modeling
PSY 5916 Structural Equation Modeling

III. Support Area Coursework

The support area provides students an opportunity to concentrate in a field of study complementary to their primary area and career objectives. Typically, the support area will consist of supervised teaching, plus two courses in one of the following fields: finance, management information systems, marketing, human resources and organizational behavior, public administration, sociology or research methods. The students’ advisor, the doctoral program coordinator, and appropriate faculty from the chosen area must approve support area selections. Examples include: 

GEB 6897 Applied Econometrics for Bus Res I
GEB 6### Applied Econometrics for Bus Res II
 

Tentative Program Sequence and Activities