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THE HITCHHIKER GUIDE TO A PHD THESIS

Prof. B. Gailly

European Summer University

Benevento, September 12, 2009

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MENU

The wrong person at the wrong place

PhD as a project

PhD as a communication

PhD as a personal journey

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MENU

The wrong person at the wrong place

PhD as a project

PhD as a communication

PhD as a personal journey

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EFFECTIVE PROJECT TEAMS

Source : Fernez-Walch S. et Romon F. (2006) “Les formes d’organisation pour Innover” in Management de l’innovation: de la stratégie aux projets. Vuibert Gestion, pp. 136-153Tidd J., Bessant D. and Pavitt K. (2001) “Effective team working” in Managing Innovation (2d ed.), Wiley, p 334.

• Speed to market

• Complexity of tasks

• Multi-functional aspects

Dedicated teams

• Effective project leader and sponsors (“godfathers”)

• Clearly predefined lifespan and deliverables (tasks and objectives)

• Core and associated members with clear roles associated with individual behavioural style

• Dedicated resources and coordination; effective conflict resolution mechanisms

• External partners

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AGREEING ON DELIVERABLES

Final (thesis)

Introduction (scope, motivation) Literature review and theoretical framework Hypotheses and Methodology Data analysis Results Discussion Conclusions (contribution, limitations and next steps)

Intermediary

Research projectIMRJ publication + WP1ESU presentationDatabaseWP2ESU presentation 2ASQ publication

Approved by PhD committee :

ILLUSTRATIVE

There is nothing more frightful than ignorance in action. Goethe

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DEVELOPING A WORKPLANScripta Manent

Deliverable

Research projectIMRJ publication + WP1ESU presentation 1DatabaseWP2ESU presentation 2ASQ publicationFinal text

Y1

v0

Xv0

Y2

v1X

v1

Outline

Y3

vf

v2XX

Draft

Y4

vf

XFinal

Approved by PhD committee :

ILLUSTRATIVE

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WHY WE GET THINGS WRONG

Source : Horn J.T. et al. (2006) “Learning to let go: making better exit decisions” McK Quarterly 2006, n°2

Confirmation bias (you hear only what comforts you)

Sunk cost fallacy (factoring unrecoverable costs)

Escalation of commitment (boiling frog)

Anchoring (inability to question initial estimate)

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THE DEVIL IS IN THE DETAILS

“If you don’t know where you are going, you will probably never get there”

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MENU

The wrong person at the wrong place

PhD as a project

PhD as a communication

PhD as a personal journey

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DEFINING YOUR KEY MESSAGES

I have only made this letter rather long because I have not had time to make it shorter.

B. Pascal, 1656

The elev

ator

pitchThe average Ph.D. thesis is nothing but a transference of bones from one graveyard to another.

J. Frank Dobie

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…. yet scientific conferences, workshops and seminars remain full of presentations which do not follow those recommendations

Most recommendations about how to make a professional presentation are common sense and straightforward….

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DEFINING YOUR OBJECTIVES Business Plan example

1. Excite

2. Convince

3. Validate

Business Angel

Venture capitalist

Banker

Management committee

Do you want to engage? Convince? Inform? Entertain?

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MENU

The wrong person at the wrong place

PhD as a project

PhD as a communication

PhD as a personal journey

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Norma Teeve Hugh Tilitarian

• Has a degree in comparative organisational literature – knows what “hermeneutic of continuity” means

• Believes the world would be better if people would communicate more and have more time

• Wants her PhD thesis to save the planet

• Initial subject : corporate entrepreneurship through responsible sustainable fair politically correct strategies.

• Time horizon : unknown

• Supervisor : maybe Prof. Zapp, who is on sabbatical

• Does not know what she will do after (but does not want to travel too far from her boyfriend and her English is not too good)

• Has a degree in applied managerial econometrics – thinks hermeneutic is a washing machine brand

• Believes the world would be better if only Universities were a bit more professional

• Wants his PhD to help him get a good job

• Initial subject : the impact of patenting rates to IPO over-evaluation through stochastic structural modelling.

• Time horizon : three years

• Supervisor: the one with the best record at supervising quick PhD theses

• Has already identified the three best places to do a post-doc, checked the admission criteria and met the key faculty

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MENU

The wrong person at the wrong place

PhD as a project

PhD as a communication

PhD as a personal journey

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QUESTIONS ?

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THE HITCHHIKER GUIDE TO A PHD THESIS

Prof. B. GaillyLouvain School of Management (UCL)

European Summer University

Benevento, September 12, 2009