In the words of Dr Valérie Sabatier, deputy director of the Doctoral School at Grenoble Ecole de Management in France, “What we knew several years ago doesn’t work anymore. We need new research and new models.”
Globalization, technological change, environmental concerns, social and political upheaval, the financial crisis of the end of last decade, and rising business school enrolments are all driving demand for business PhDs and DBAs across a spectrum of diverse, though interconnected topics. Here, course leaders identify five of the most in-demand areas of business research.
1. Managing technology & innovation
“Management of innovation and technology is of particular importance right now,” says Sabatier. “Questions about R&D, strategy and business models, and innovation are very important both from a theoretical and managerial point of view.”
What’s driving demand? Rapid and continuing change. “The world has changed so much and is evolving so quickly with new questions emerging all the time,” Sabatier says. Gillian Symon, director of PhD programs at the School of Management, Royal Holloway, University of London, adds: “The continuing rapid developments in social technologies that have revolutionized marketing, communications and organizational relationships make these topics vital.”
2. Resources management & sustainable development
Energy management, water management, and sustainable development are all identified among “the great ‘macro’ themes of the century” by Alessandro Binachi, DBA program thesis and research coordinator at European University’s Business School in Spain.
What’s driving demand? Quite simply, as Binachi says, “without solving [these issues] in the short term, life on Earth may become seriously jeopardized, or at least unpredictably complex.”
3. Social entrepreneurship
Recent years have seen a growth in the number of MBAs in social entrepreneurship – and there are also opportunities in this field for PhD and DBA candidates. “Social entrepreneurship, business models for developing countries, but also frugal innovations are hot topics,” Sabatier says.
