"Bradford has the most outstanding DBA programme in Europe. It combines academic excellence with the opportunity to tackle real life business problems in depth and apply new ideas into the workplace."

Axel Wellmann, DBA 2009
Head of Product and Sales Management of Used Cars - Mercedes-Benz & smart, Daimler AG in Germany

Internationally Excellent Research informs the student learning experience

"I started my search for an international business school to do PhD research at by looking at those with a strong academic reputation with researchers who shared my interests in consumer cultures."

Hector Gonzalez Jimenez,
Current PhD student

"I am incredibly grateful to Bradford University Law School and my lecturers for inspiring me and helping me find what I am passionate about and good at."

Ed Mowlam, LLB (Hons) Law 2010,
Current PhD student

The Bradford PhD

PHD AND DBA

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
Doctorate in Business Administration (DBA)

Overview

As a PhD student you will gain high-level research, organisational and interpersonal skills, which can open up exciting career opportunities in academia, research institutions or management consultancy.

Business and management research at PhD level will test your originality of thought and your determination to see a project through. The PhD places you at the core of the university's intellectual life and at the forefront of its worldwide quest to provide future generations with the necessary flow of new management ideas.

You are allocated two supervisors - a principal and a secondary supervisor. You are also allocated a Doctoral Research Board (DRB) tutor from outside your immediate area of research interest who mentors you through your time with us. We are particularly proud of our DRB system of monitoring and controlling the progress of your research, helping you to work towards completion within a reasonable time and preparing you for your oral examination.

+Course details

Our PhD programme enables you to integrate formal training in research methods with your research objectives.

Full time and part time students take part in an intensive week-long PhD induction programme. It features seminars designed to familiarise you with the research process, opportunities to get to know your fellow doctoral students and an introduction to our research facilities. During the week, we foster a supportive research environment and allow you to begin to examine the nature of research, define your research problem and structure a research proposal.

+Course structure

Diploma in Research Methods

During your first year (or first two years for part-time students) the Diploma in Research Methods (Business and Management) trains you in the skills and competencies you will need to undertake a sustained, original research project leading to the completion of a doctoral degree. It helps you to initiate your research, both conceptually and operationally, and to manage your project effectively.

The diploma consists of six modules

Research and Scholarship Skills
Data Collection Skills and Techniques
Philosophy of Research in Social Sciences and Humanities
Quantitative and Qualitative Data Analysis
Specialist Training within Specific Areas of Business and Management
Development and Practice in Management and Business Research

Full-time students will study these modules in a combination of block teaching weeks and timetabled classes throughout term. Part-time and extramural students study these modules during on-site block weeks in Bradford, usually held in November and March.

The Doctoral symposium

At the end of your first year (or after two years for part-time students), you will participate in the School’s doctoral symposium. This is a great opportunity for you to gain practice in presentation skills ready to attend academic conferences and to learn from the research of other PhD students in the School.

The PhD research project

From your second year onwards (or third year if you are part-time) you will focus on your research project. This typically involves

developing research instruments
carrying out fieldwork and data collection
analysing the data
interpreting the findings
producing a final version of your thesis
presenting your thesis
defending your thesis in an oral examination

+Accounting, Finance and Economics supervisors

PhD supervisor	PhD research topics	Considering applications for 2012/3 entry
Professor Roger Adkins	Real options analysis for investment projects significantly influenced by uncertainty and a degree of managerial discretion, for example over timing. Relevant research areas could include investment decisions in sectors strongly affected by commodity prices (oil, minerals, airplanes and ships, energy, bio-fuel, agricultural products and housing) or by technological breakthroughs. It may also include the use of real options in the valuation of companies	Yes
Andrew Coutts	Financial Econometrics and Financial Markets, more specifically : the validity of asset pricing models, seasonalities / anomalies / regularities / calendar effects and Technical Trading Rules in emerging and developed financial markets. The validity and application of the event study methodology, the stability and usefulness of empirical estimates of Beta, movements of security prices in parallel markets.	Yes
Dr Liz Hooper	Industrial economics focussed on the energy sector, particularly electricity; power market liberalisation and privatisation, and the evolution of the EU power generation sector; the relationship between environmental sustainability and technological change, in particular the innovation in low carbon technologies	Yes
Dr Jing Li	The intellectual capital reporting practices of firms and the determinants and effects of intellectual capital reporting, voluntary disclosure and corporate governance	Yes
Professor Khelifa Mazouz	The interactions between derivatives and equity markets, stock market quality, stock price volatility, asset pricing and liquidity, initial public offerings, market efficiency and anomalies, corporate governance of performance, Islamic Finance	Yes
Professor Frank McDonald	International business, especially the strategic development of foreign owned subsidiaries, the sub-national location of FDI, and institutional obstacles to the internationalisation strategies of both foreign and domestic firms in emerging countries	Yes
Dr Abhijit Sharma	Applied econometrics, international economics and firm theory; the analysis of the impact of economic liberalisation and openness on industrial restructuring.	Yes
Dr Damian Ward	Parametric and non-parametric efficiency measures; Production and consumption efficiency analysis; Applications of efficiency measurement within the financial services industry; Corporate governance.	No

+Human Resource Management/Organisational Behaviour supervisors

PhD supervisor	PhD research topics	Considering applications for 2012/3 entry
Dr Carol Atkinson	Small firm employment relationship, flexible working, psychological contract, HR and performance, performance management.	Yes
Professor Nelarine Cornelius	Commitment, leadership development, cross-sector partnerships, post-colonialism and human resource management, and public sector management in developed and developing economies	No
Professor Jackie Ford	Critical leadership/management studies or gender.	No
Professor Nancy Harding	Critical management studies, gender theory, psychoanalytical theory	No
Dr Hugh Lee	Business ethics, diversity and fairness within human resource management in the workplace, specialising in qualitative research. Human Rights, Corporate Social Responsibility and Sustainability.	Yes
Dr Alison Lewis	Strategic HRM, outsourcing, HR transformation and the role of HR in business strategy.	Yes
Dr Jo McBride	Trade union studies, worker collectivism in the workplace, the value of work	Yes
Dr Rob Perrett	Employment relations, Gender inequality, Women and seniority, Mentoring programmes	Yes
Dr Peter Prowse	Flexibility at work, Work Design for Midwives in Healthcare, exploring why people identify and join trade unions	Yes
Dr Andrew Smith	Sociology of work and employment relations issues	Yes
Dr David Spicer	Learning and change in organizations, organizational learning, organizational change, dynamic capabilities for learning and change, change agency and leadership, relationships between individual and organizational learning, and the impact and assessment of cognitive/learning style	Yes

+Marketing, Strategy and International Business supervisors

PhD supervisor	PhD research topics	Considering applications for 2012/3 entry
Dr Debbie Allcock	Executive pay, corporate governance and initial public offering companies	No
Dr Sarah Dixon	Strategic management of large corporations, more specifically relating to dynamic capabilities, organisational learning and organisational change.	No
Dr Jenny Fairbrass	Sustainability, corporate social responsibility (CSR) and the environment with a particular focus on energy and climate change issues., public policy and governance (the roles of, and relationships between, the private, public and third sectors in public policy formation and implementation). Geographical scope: Primarily the EU but also research into Asia and Africa.
Dr Fernando Fastoso	Cross-cultural marketing, especially advertising and branding with a “quantitative” (i.e., positivistic or objectivistic) approach to research	Yes
Dr Kyoko Fukukawa	Business/marketing and consumer ethics	No
Professor Christos Kalantaridis	Entrepreneurship, particularly in disadvantaged areas (rural or inner cities) or groups (immigrants, ethnic minorities). International entrepreneurship and globalisation in specific sectoral contexts. The contribution of entrepreneurs in the innovation process. Regional innovation systems, and open innovation systems. Knowledge transfer and the role of universities in stimulating innovation. The entrepreneurial university.	Yes
Dr Ben Kerrane	Consumer Behaviour, specifically issues which relate to family consumption, children and consumption or consumer socialization (or alike), role transition (e.g. to new fatherhood, parenthood) and the voices of underrepresented family types (e.g. blended families, single-parent families) in studies of family consumption, ethical/anti-consumption issues, qualitative research methods.	Yes
Dr Mei-Na Liao	Nonprofit/social Marketing - Market orientation, services marketing (including public services, especially health care sector), Word of Mouth.	Yes
Dr Rachael Maxwell		Yes
Dr Martin Owens	Inter-firm collaboration in international business, especially the formation and management of equity international joint ventures, inter-firm diversity and how multinationals manage dysfunctional organisational and managerial differences with partners.
Dr Nick Papageorgiadis	Enforcement of intellectual property rights (IPR) and the impact on international business strategy	Yes
Professor Jon Reast	Business/Marketing Ethics and Corporate Social Responsibility Relationship Marketing	Yes
Jean-Marc Trouille	European economic integration with emphasis on: the EU Single Market, EU policies affecting business particularly industrial, competition and trade policies; The management of government-industry relations within the EU, Franco-German economic and industrial co-operation and state-led inter-firm linkages; and Business cultures in the EU and intercultural dimensions of industrial co-operation.
Dr Myfanwy Trueman	How creativity, local communities and visual evidence of change can enhance city brands and regeneration.	Yes
Dr Chenganag Wang	Foreign direct investment and multinationals, international trade, international development and the Chinese economy. More specific areas of interests: the impacts and determinants of FDI and trade on host countries' economic development; technology transfer and spillover; firm performance and survival; internationalization strategies of firms; and impacts and determinants of foreign aid
Dr Anna Zueva-Owens	Cultural change in organisations, particularly those undergoing major upheavals such as mergers and acquisitions, and corporate social responsibility (CSR) and sustainability	Yes

+Operations and Information Management supervisors

PhD supervisor	PhD research topics	Considering applications for 2012/3 entry
Dr Reza Abdi	Production/Operations Management; Manufacturing System Design; Decision Support Systems; AHP/ANP; Computer modeling and simulation; Fuzzy logic; Environment Management; Information Systems; System Thinking and System Dynamic	Yes
Professor Kevin Barber	Knowledge management in operations/manufacturing; Design of manufacturing systems; Project management; Knowledge management in support of quality systems; Quality management and performance measurement	No
Dr Roger Beach	The application of information technology - particularly in manufacturing, strategic and operational flexibility, high reliability organisations and supply chain management; partnering, supply chain risk and sustainability.	No
Dr Liz Breen	Risk management in NHS Pharmacy; Reverse Logistics; Homecare services in the NHS; Supply-chain development; E-commerce in hospital pharmacy	Yes
Dr Craig Johnson	The learning organisation; Organisational learning; Action learning; Participatory action research; Reflective learning; Experiential learning; Facilitation skills; Work-based learning; Professional development; Nature of managerial work; The management of change	No
Dr Rana Tassabehji	Managing information security in organisations from a holistic perspective - including implementation of technical solutions such as public key infrastructure and biometrics, organisational culture, risk management, people and organisational processes; Internet technology and supply chain management - evaluating the impact of internet technologies on supply chain management, including e-procurement and e-supply chain management; Reverse e-auctions - investigation of the impact of e-auctions on supply chain relationships and organisational agility; E-government - exploring the issues of trust in e-government; Exploring the impact of internet technologies on businesses - including strategy, organisational design and change management	Yes
Professor Andrew Taylor	Business improvement techniques and technologies such as Lean Manufacturing, Total Quality Management, Business Intelligence and Knowledge Management Systems.	Yes
Professor Margaret Taylor	Outsourcing and subcontracting; Technology Management throughout the value chain; Operations strategies for the exploitation of technology, technology licensing; The virtual enterprise, virtual manufacturing and other contemporary organisational approaches; Operations management in the manufacturing, public and third sectors ; Supply chain management	Yes
Dr James Wallace	Information and management, social enterprise and social regeneration, business and society, applied statistics	No

+Law supervisors

PhD supervisor	PhD research topics	Considering applications for 2012/3 entry
Dr Jess Guth	European citizenship, the free movement of people and, in particular, issues around highly skilled migration/mobility, academic careers, legal education and law as an academic discipline, higher education reform and the Bologna process for setting up a European Area of Higher Education, the establishment of a European Research Area, employment law, in particular work life-balance and the so-called "new rights" agenda	Yes
Dr Mark van Hoorebeek	Intellectual property including patents, copyright and the fixation of know how within innovation processes. Mark specifically looks at the concept of technology enhancement uptake inhibitors and has done so in a range of areas; University knowledge exchange and technology transfer; Open source systems; The regulation of the internet and cyberspace; Disability law; Technology enhanced learning (e-learning); Legal, communication and marketing impacts of web/internet applications.	Yes
Dr Ilias Kapsis	European Law; Competition law; Law of Sustainable development; English legal system	Yes
Dr Chris Taylor	The criminal justice system, the law of evidence and criminal procedure; pre-trial disclosure in criminal cases under the Criminal Procedure and Investigations Act 1996.	Yes

+Our students and alumni

Name

Andreas Chronopoulos

Nationality

Greek

Comments

I have two Bachelors degrees in business and computer science, a Masters in personnel management and a vocational certificate in business consultancy. My career has focused mainly on B2B sales roles in the Greek health sector (diagnostic centres and drugs warehouses), which has put me in contact with HR Directors, health professionals, pharmacists, doctors, etc. Recently, I have been involved in the clinical trials sector.

Developing new drugs is a long and difficult process that can take years. Those working in the clinical trials sector are highly skilled professionals who spend a lot of their time travelling to hospitals and engaging with a range of stakeholders. Every detail must be logged and monitored.

During my time working in the clinical trials sector in the UK, I observed a number of issues facing employees and their companies that were holding them back from being more productive and efficient. The need for pharmaceutical companies to have large headquarters where all their staff are based and have to check in and out of seemed like a waste of resources. The corporate culture also seemed to be holding back innovation. Highly skills and experienced executives who understand the sensitive and vital nature of their role in clinical trials do not need constant face to face supervision and developments in technology mean that they can easily communicate with their teams whilst out ‘in the field’.

When I looked into it, I found that not only was it not really on the agenda or a priority for the sector, but there was a gap in existing knowledge about how new ways of working could be implemented. Often, flexibility of work is combined with low skilled, self employed workers – I wanted to prove that the highly skilled professionals in the clinical trials sector in the UK were just as suited to home working. And that more flexible home-based working is actually beneficial for the businesses they work for. It would mean companies could hire the best talent from around the country and significantly reduce overheads such as real estate and parking.

I started looking into doing a PhD research project to address this gap in knowledge. My ambition is to become an academic and business consultant on the subject and this felt like the best route. I came across Bradford University School of Management and was impressed with their track record in Human Resource Management and Organisational Behaviour research. I found a supervisor who understood my mission and was behind helping me achieve it. The support I have received so far in developing and scoping my research ideas has been fantastic.

I have found that my experience working in medical trials with huge amounts of data has really helped me develop academic research skills quickly. My PhD supervisor secured me an opportunity to undertake some research for law firm Ward Hadaway to identify Yorkshire’s 50 fastest growing companies. I used quantitative and qualitative criteria to rank all the companies headquartered in the region that had been profitable in the last three years and have a turnover of at least £1m, according to their growth. This piece of research helped me to apply my thinking about the potential for companies to innovate and grow by adopting new working styles and moving with technology.

Name

Hector Gonzalez Jimenez

Nationality

Spanish

Comments

“Being Spanish, but born and raised in Germany, I have always seen myself as multinational and been interested in different cultures from a young age. As a result, my career path has been very eclectic and has taken me all over the world. I chose to do my PhD at Bradford University School of Management because of my interests in culture as well as branding.

At 18, I did a vocational training course in business administration inSpain. This ‘apprenticeship style’ course gave me the opportunity to work for hair care brand Schwarzkopf, working in different departments of the business. I became interested in marketing and got a role working for a German firm , part of the Siemens Group, in Madrid when I finished the course.

I then decided to go to theUSto do some language training to make myself more attractive in the corporate market place. I had planned to only be there for six months but ended up studying exercise science (Bachelor of Science) at California State University Fresno. During my time there, I met lots of interesting people from different cultures, including a number of Japanese friends.

My interest in different cultures then took me to Japan to teach language to school children and business people. This taught me a lot about the issues that businesses face in international communications.

I then went back to theUSto do an MBA with an emphasis on marketing and entrepreneurship. I felt I needed this higher level qualification to make myself more marketable to international businesses. I was lucky enough to secure three MBA internships inSouth Koreaand for twoUSbusinesses.

After graduating from my MBA, I used the year left on my US visa to work for a multi-cultural market research firm in LA looking at consumer preferences in different markets for big brands like Pepsi and Ford.

When I returned toGermany, I worked in a strategic corporate development role in which I used my MBA expertise to advise the CEO on long term strategy planning. After two years, I was ready to return to education again. I feel comfortable in a learning environment and am passionate about investigating new areas.

I started my search for an international business school to do PhD research at by looking at those with a strong academic reputation with researchers who shared my interests in consumer cultures. I came across Bradford University School of Management and had a strong chemistry with the academics here. These human relationships are particularly important for PhD students, as we work very closely with supervisors on our research and this relationship is likely to go beyond the PhD experience. Yorkshire has a reputation for being a friendly place and theSchool ofManagement and surrounding area provides a welcoming environment in which to study. It is also an affordable place to live which means I can have a good standard of living as a self funded full time student.

My goal is to use my PhD to extend current theories but it is important that my research has a practical application. Bradford’s close links with real businesses and practice-focused research is important for this. When I graduate, I would like to pursue a career in academia but want to stay firmly routed in the corporate world. The opportunity to lecture undergraduates and mix with other students at the School of Management from all kinds of backgrounds has been invaluable.”

Name	Mauro Victor Silveira de Souza
Age	37
Nationality	Brazil
Comments	"The School of Management encompasses some of the most important aspects for my doctorate - a perfect synergy between academia and the business sector, a state-of-the-art infrastructure for learning and research and a superior standard for higher education, supported by well-qualified academics from many cultural backgrounds," he said. "Both my educational background and work experience are in management and, more specifically, international business. I chose a PhD in this area because I wanted to further develop my skills and abilities as a researcher and a business practitioner. "The PhD programme has been exciting and challenging journey and I have had a chance to use my professional and academic expertise to find solutions to real problems in society. "I intend to work as a university lecturer and a business consultant in Brazil. The PhD programme has allowed me to develop and hone my abilities as a researcher - which is very important for both academia and private consultancy. "Bradford is a very friendly, cosmopolitan city in a great location. It's proximity to Leeds, York and Manchester make it an ideal place to live and the surrounding area is full of heritage site and natural beauty spots such as Saltaire, Haworth, the Yorkshire Dales and the Lake District."

Name	Jing Li
Age	26
Year of graduation	2007
Nationality	China
Previous Qualifications	BSc in Business and Management Studies, MA in Finance and Accounting Management, Bradford
Comments	"I have always been curious about the ever-changing business world and wanted to be part of it, so I took the undergraduate course in business and management. During the three years, I became more and more interested in accounting and this was further developed by completing the MA in finance and accounting management. While I was doing my MA, I began to feel that one year wasn't really enough time to reflect and develop my interest and some of my ideas that were emerging through the course. "I had become fascinated with my MA dissertation work in Intellectual Capital - it was exciting, liberating and very challenging. I felt that I could take it further and I had no doubt that Bradford School of Management was the place to continue with my PhD - I was impressed by the level of knowledge the lecturers had shown and their responsible and approachable manner towards students. "The day I received my studentship was the happiest in my life and one that changed its course forever. It is generous and unconditional and allows me to be fully committed to research as well as to attend conferences and research seminars. "Studying here is so stimulating and there's a great sense of freedom. It is a dynamic and close PhD community. As time has passed, I have realised that I want to follow an academic career and become a lecturer. During my PhD research I benefited tremendously from discussions with my supervisors who are famous scholars in their fields. They are sharp, supportive, always encouraging and full of ideas - they helped me lay a solid foundation for my future plans. "I have had such a wonderful and fulfilling time at Bradford that I hope my experience will encourage more people to come and enjoy it."

Name

Desmond Kapofu

Comment

Desmond Kapofu is researching the ways in which organisations can successfully retain the knowledge assets that underpin their competitive advantage in the business environment. He also tutors first-year undergraduates in the foundations of production and operations management.

"Having studied at Bradford before transferring to the United States on an athletics scholarship, it was a really easy decision for me when it came to looking for a university at which to study for a PhD," he commented. "The city had been good to me before and it hasn't disappointed me now that I have returned. It is multicultural and this makes it especially easy for international students, far from their families, to fit in.

"More importantly, School of Management staff are always prepared to help. They deal with situations effectively and efficiently. The quality of supervision has exceeded my expectations and I have come to know my supervisors as friends."

Name

Mathew Appleyard

Comment

Mathew Appleyard is studying the effectiveness of corporate anti-piracy strategy in the British recording industry. He chose to continue his studies to PhD level after completing an MA in International Business and Management.

"Bradford University School of Management offered me the opportunity to fulfill my ambitions and potential within a caring, relaxing and exceptionally well supported environment," he commented. "The facilities at the School are second to none. Its rural setting makes working on-campus an enjoyable experience, equalled by no other university I have experienced, with all the benefits of a major city near by.

"The close relationship between supervisors and students helps to build a confident support structure and valued friendship."