Postgraduate Prospectus 2013 - Swansea University

Business Management
Research opportunities
MPhil/PhD
RAE2008 40% of research rated
world-leading (4*) or internationally
excellent (3*)
Professors
Y Debrah A Simintiras
A Henley M Williams
D Knights
A Palmer
Academic and research staff 50
Postgraduates 493
Management is about making decisions
and getting the most from people at all
levels in all types of organisations. It is
interdisciplinary: social, environmental,
psychological, economic, and technical
factors play important roles. The Business
School welcomes proposals for
postgraduate research projects that
complement the staff research interests
listed below.
Research degrees in Business
Management will:
• provide you with new and
specialised research skills
• equip you with skills relevant for
a rewarding management career in
sectors such as retail, manufacturing,
finance, accounting, and the
public sector
• prepare you for a career in
academic research and teaching
Research Strengths
Staff research interests cover the core
disciplines of Business Management:
• E-business
• Entrepreneurship
• Finance
• Human Resources
• Information Systems
• Marketing
Entry requirements:
Normally a first or upper second-class
Honours degree in a relevant subject.
English Language requirement:
IELTS 6.5 (minimum of 6.0 in each
component) or Swansea University
recognised equivalent.
Scholarships and Bursaries
The School and the University awards
a limited number of research studentships
(MPhil/PhD). For details, please visit
www.swansea.ac.uk/postgraduate/
scholarships/
• Organisations and Work
• Risk Management
• Technology and Innovation
Management
Postgraduate students have access to
dedicated IT facilities within both the
University’s Library and Information Centre
and the Business School: The School has
extensive PC and multi-user computer
facilities which give students access to a
wide range of software including the latest
Microsoft packages, statistical packages
such as SPSS and SAS, and a range of
specialist Business and Economics
software including Nvivo, EViews, STATA
and Datastream.
Additional software and support is
available through the University’s central
Information Services and Systems (ISS).
This includes a comprehensive digital
library of resources which includes iFind
Research, official publications and
journals, library catalogues, Athens and a
comprehensive online reference collection.
The School has a number of established
research groupings, which provide focus
and support its ongoing research
programmes and culture. Further details on
research groups can be found at: www.
swansea.ac.uk/business
How can I find out more?
Visit our website:
www.swansea.ac.uk/business
Contact the Admissions Officer:
Dr Yogesh Dwivedi
Email: Y.K.Dwivedi@swansea.ac.uk
Tel: +44 (0)1792 295601
Visit the University:
see page 174 for details
Finance and Risk Management
Research in the finance area has a strong
empirical basis. Areas of current interest
include the modelling of futures and
options data, asset pricing models,
insurance industry structure, the credit
rating of insurers, and financial markets in
developing economies. This research has
been supported by national organisations
such as the Association of British Insurers,
and international organisations such as the
Handelsbanken-Wallander Foundation
and the Swedish Central Bank.
Marketing
Home to the Centre for Consumer
Confidence Research, the Marketing
research group undertakes theoretical
and applied research in buyer-seller
relationships (eg. customer experience,
service quality, service culture and
customer orientation), consumer behaviour
(eg. perceived risk and trust, confidence,
complaint behaviour, materialism,
consumer movement, bargaining
behaviour), internet marketing (eg.
technology adoption, addiction, music
consumption, social media), marketing
communications (eg. Word-of-Mouth,
attitudes toward advertising and emotions
/emotional confidence), Marketing in
Higher Education (eg. student involvement
and satisfaction, export marketing in HE),
Applications can be made online
at: www.swansea.ac.uk/applyonline
– see pages 176 – 177 for further
information
For details of the Master’s degrees
available in Business Management,
please see page 34.
personal selling and sales management
(e.g. adaptive selling behaviour; sales
force empowerment and cross-cultural
negotiations), research methodology (eg.
retrospective measures and cross-cultural
equivalence), and tourism research (eg.
tourism demand, seasonality and
performance of SMEs in the serviced
accommodation sector).
In addition to the above, the research
interests of the group extend to areas of
branding, strategy, retailing and pricing.
People, Organisations and Work
The People, Organisations and Work
research group is an internationally
acclaimed team of researchers interested
in the human dynamics and relationships
at play in organised work contexts.
Multidisciplinary in nature, the group
draws inspiration from across the social
sciences and humanities (sociology,
politics, psychology, gender studies,
history and philosophy) in order to
contribute to the disciplinary management
areas of organisation studies, critical
management studies, human resource
management, international business,
organisational psychology and industrial
relations. The group engages in
qualitative, quantitative and poststructuralist
research traditions, with
“I am in the third year of my PhD having completed both my
Bachelors and Master’s degrees at Swansea, and I’m still enjoying
every minute of studying here! I’ve really benefited from the research
skills training that has been available to me, as well as the excellent
support of staff in the Business School.
”
Kate Stacey,
PhD Business Studies
particular areas of interest being Ethics
and Politics in Organisations, Gender and
Diversity at Work, Human Resources and
International Management, Individuals
and the Collective, Leadership and The
Management and Organisation of
Health. Some current research projects
focus on care and health, ethico-political
organisation, ethics and embodiment,
futures of feminism, international business
and human resource management in
Africa, media discourse, mediation and
organisations, rethinking leadership,
re-thinking the relationship of power and
resistance within organisations, selfidentity,
team working, trade unions, and
working conditions and employment
relations in food retailing in Europe.
Technology and Innovation Management
The work of the Technology and
Innovation Management Group is focused
upon the key role played in modern
society by ICT as a tool for economic,
business, and societal development. It
also incorporates the Centre for e-Business
Research (CeBR) which acts as a focal
point for inter-group collaboration on
technology-related business research such
as e-marketing and e-banking. Research
of national and international significance
is conducted in the areas of electronic
government, technology adoption and
diffusion, electronic commerce/electronic
business (including knowledge
management and online marketing),
and supply chain management and
resource planning/allocation.
As well as providing focus and direction
for research, the research groups hold
regular colloquia and workshops
designed to promote interdisciplinary
research projects, and to provide
impetus for research grant applications
and consultancy activity.
The School has current externally-funded
research projects on the information
society (National Assembly for Wales),
on business succession planning
(European Social Fund), on environmental
management and on the labour market
in Wales (European Social Fund).
Research Degrees – Business Management
98
99