PhD in Business

PhD in Business Curriculum - 42 Credits

PhD Courses:

• PhD 1640 -- Intro to Quant & Stats Workshop - 0 credits
• PBU 1604 -- Business Workshop Parts I-IV - 3 credits  
• PhD 1750 -- Independent Summer Research Project - 3 credits  
• PhD 1650 -- Teaching Workshop - 0 credits  

PhD Methods Courses:

• PhD 1502 -- Quantitative Analysis I - 3 credits    
• PhD 1504 -- Quantitative Analysis II - 3 credits  
• PhD 1506 -- Quantitative Research Methods I - 3 credits  
• PhD 1503 -- Qualitative Research Methods I - 3 credits  

Track Specific PhD Courses:
(Marketing, Management, Information Systems & Business Analytics tracks)

• Four Track Specific Courses - 12 credits

Elective Courses: 

• Two Methods Electives - 6 credits    
• Two Open Electives - 3 credits

American University of Kuwait
Assumption University
Babson College
Bentley University
Boston College
Boston University
Brown University
Bryant University
California State University, Channel Islands
California State University, Easy Bay
California State University, Sacramento
Clark University
College of Charleston
Copenhagen Business School
Florida Gulf Coast University
IESEG School of Management
New England College of Business
Nichols College
Northeastern University
Providence College
Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT)
Salem State University
Salisbury University
Southern Connecticut State University
State University of New York, New Paltz
St. Francis Xavier
Tallinn University of Technology
Tilburg University
United States Coast Guard Academy, New London
University of Connecticut, Storrs
University of Massachusetts Amherst
University of New South Wales
University of South Carolina, Sumter
Wentworth Institute of Technology
West Chester University of Pennsylvania
Westminster University
Worchester Polytechnic Institute (WPI)

Zefeng Bai, Assistant Professor of Business Analytics, University of Tampa 
“Optimizing Pension Outcomes Using Target Volatility Strategies”

Olga Biedova, Assistant Professor of Business Analytics, Department of Supply Chain and Information Management, College of Charleston 
"Portfolio Insurance Strategies. Parameter Optimization and Comparison Study"

Joseph Dery,  Vice President and Dean of Data Science, Western Governors University 
"From Photoshop® to photoshop: Knowing How and When to Protect your Brand"

Guangying Hua, Lead Director of Data Science, CVS Health
“An Analysis of the Structure and Evolution of Networks”

Fernanda Araujo Maciel, Assistant Professor of Decisions Sciences, Department of Information Systems and Business Analytics, California State University Sacramento 
"The Analytics of Vulnerable Populations in Brazil"

Tao Li, Assistant Professor, Business Analytics, State University of New York, New Paltz 
"Studies of Financial Analysts: Over-optimism, Investment Value and Herding Behavior"

Fernanda Araujo Maciel, Assistant Professor of Decisions Sciences, Department of Information Systems and Business Analytics, California State University Sacramento
"The Analytics of Vulnerable Populations in Brazil"

Kevin Mentzer, Dean of Innovation, Research and Experiential Learning, Nichols College 
“Essays on Networks of Influence - Discovering Insight through Social Network Analysis”

Maria Skaletsky, Senior Research Consultant, Bentley University
“Essays on the Digital Divide - Explorations through Global, National and Individual Lenses”

Funda Sarican, Assistant Professor, Marketing, Nichols College 
“Towards a Better Understanding of Development of Collaborative Consumption Pricing”

Maria Skaletsky, Senior Research Consultant, Bentley University
“Essays on the Digital Divide - Explorations through Global, National and Individual Lenses”

Olumayokun Soremekun, Head of Business Development, OLX
"Essays on Rethinking African Development: Contextual and Methodological Advances" 

Chao Wang, President, Shaanxi Charles Holding Co.,Ltd 
“An Exploration in Health Analytics: Pediatric Burns, Care Policy Assessment, and Interrupted Time Series”

Ying Wang, Assistant Professor, Applied Mathematics, School of Computing and Data Science, Wentworth Institute of Technology
“Use Data and Evidence to Improve Quality of Life for Patients with Alzheimer’s Disease”

Guillaume Weisang,  Trading Analytics Manager, Swish Analytics 
“Essays on Hedge Fund Replication: Methodological Assessment and Development of the Factor Approach, Nonlinear Modeling and Policy Perspectives”

Changan Zhang,Principal Data Scientist, Boston Consulting Group
“Essays on Marketing Analytics: Competition, Connectedness, and Controversy”

INFORMATION SYSTEMS

Yukika Awazu, Associate Professor, Management Information Systems, IESEG School of Management
"Implementing An Enterprise System: A Practice-Lens"

Quang (Neo) Bui, Associate Professor, Management Information Systems, Rochester Institute of Technology
"The Adoption and Diffusion of IT Management Innovations: Adaptation, Reinvention, Alternative Designs, and Rhetorical Persuasion"

Martin Dias, Associate Teaching Professor, Supply Chain Information Management, Northeastern University
“Public Safety Networks – Examining Mimetic, Complexity, and Legacy Effects on Interorganizational Collaborations"

Ja-Nae Duane, Postdoctoral Researcher, Brown School of Engineering 
“Digital Nudges: An Investigation of Both Consumer and Designer Perspectives” 

Dax Jacobson, Associate Professor, Dean, Gore School of Business, Westminster University
“Successful IT-Intensive Inter-organizational Relationships: The Role of Governance”

Anna Karpovsky, Assistant Professor of Practice, Boston College
"Information Systems Strategy and the Role of Chief Information Officers: Strategizing and Aligning Practices"

Mark-David McLaughlin, Head of Architecture and Engineering, InterSystems 
"A Resource View of Information Security Incident Response"

Wenxiu Vince Nan, Assistant Professor, Information Systems and Operations Management, Perdue School of Business, Salisbury University, Maryland
"Digital Innovation and Socioeconomic Transformation: The Case of Mobile Money in Sub-Saharan Africa"

Mari-Klara Stein, Associate Professor, Management, Tallinn University of Technology (TalTech) 
“Use and Non-Use of IT in the Workplace: Studies on Emotions, Identity and Technology”

Arthur Tomasino, Visiting Assistant Professor, Information Systems and Operations Management, Florida Gulf Coast University
“The Use of Complexity Theory and Strange Attractors to Understand and Explain Information System Development”

Barry Vary, BlockChain Researcher
“Distributed Governance in the Digital Age: Blockchain for Inter-Organizational Collective Action” 

Wilson Wong, Associate Teaching Professor, Computer Science, Worcester Polytechnic Institute
"User Resistance and Trust in a Clinical RFID Employee Location Tracking Information System"

MANAGEMENT

Naeimah Alkhurafi, Assistant Professor of Business Strategy, American University of Kuwait
"The Role of Context in Country Level Entrepreneurial Activity"

Quinn Coen, Consultant, Boston Consulting Group
"Careers and Romantic Partnerships: Three Essays on Gender Differences in Role Centrality, Wage Gap, and Life Satisfaction in Dual-Career Couples"

Roisin Donnelly, Assistant Professor, Management, University of Tilburg
"The Dynamics of MNC Locational Decisions: Extensions and Contingencies"

Sami Ghaddar, Assistant Professor of Strategy In-Residence, Management, University of Connecticut
“Board of Director Composition: An Examination of How Director Age and Board Innovation Committees Impact Corporate Social and Financial Performance”

Peter Imbriale, Assistant Professor, Management, United States Coast Guard Academy, New London, CT
“Disaster Relief and Humanitarian Logistics: Three Essays” 

Nora Junaid, Lecturer, Operations & Information Management, University of Massachusetts, Amherst
"Technological Proactivity: Development of a Measure and Initial Test"

Opal Leung, Associate Professor, Management & Leadership, St. Francis Xavier University
"Micro Role Transitions in Two Contexts"

Patrick McHugh, Professor of the Practice, School of Engineering, Brown University
"Ties that Bind: A Network Perspective on University Spinouts"

Luisa Melo, Assistant Professor of Management, University of South Carolina, USC Sumter-Aiken Business Program
"Firm-Level Corporate Governance in the Context of Emerging Market Firm Internationalization"

Ken Mullane, Associate Professor, Management, Salem State University
“What to do amid Disruption? Ethical Climate and Trust as Determinants of Virtual Team Member Effort”

Elise Perrault, Advisor, Ameriprise Financial Services 
“Refining the Firm-Stakeholder Engagement Model: An Expanded Theory of Salience and Firms’ Responses to Stakeholder Influence”

Dirk Primus, Associate Professor, School of Information Systems and Technology Management, University of New South Wales
“Exploring the Development Chain – An Inquiry into the Linkages between New Product Development and Supply Chain Management”

Craig Randall, Associate Professor, Management, Florida Gulf Coast University
“An Unstable Balance; Exploration, Exploitation and Innovation Decline during Development”

Jessica Zinger, VP Sales, RevOps Leader, SentinelOne and Adjunct Lecturer Assumption College and Clark University
"Corporate Prediction Markets for Business Decisions: New Applications, Challenges and Limitations"

Vasilia Vasiliou, Visiting Assistant Professor, School of Management, Clark University
"Increasing Gender Diversity on Corporate Boards: Voices of Male and Female Directors in the United States"

Tyler Wasson, Assistant Professor of Management, Assumption University 
“Former U.S. Political Figures on S&P 500 Boards: Three Essays” 

MARKETING

Ivan Fedorenko, Assistant Professor, Marketing, California State University -- East Bay
"The Use of Secrets in Marketing and Value Creation"

Michele Jurgens, Associate Professor, Business, New England College
"From Social Media to Social Movements: An investigation of the role of social media in secondary stakeholders' actions - the case of Deep Water Horizon"

Gary Ottley, Associate Professor of Practice, Marketing, Babson College
The Consciousness Awakens! The Expansion of Conscious Capitalism Into The Marketing World: Do Marketing Managers Practice ‘Conscious’ Marketing?”

Ekin Pehlivan, Professor, Marketing, California State University, Channel Islands
“Ironic Advertising: Theory, Evidence and Practice”

Junhong Emma Wang, Associate Professor, Marketing Department, Southern Connecticut State University
"Exploring the Effects of Mindfulness in Marketing: Mindfulness, Ethics, Emotional Labor and Service Quality"

Through our Business Analytics specialization we actively mentor PhD candidates in their research, teaching and networking activities. In particular, business analytics PhD candidates benefit from involvement in the Data Analytics Research Team (DART), and in projects with the Center for Quantitative Analysis. Interdisciplinary applied research that’s relevant to business practice is a strength of the department. Possible projects could include business problems arising in areas such as marketing, finance, health care and economics that can be addressed through the innovative application of quantitative methodologies. Each project leverages expertise in cutting-edge quantitative methods to make a contribution both to the area of business analytics and the specific business area represented by the relevant data. Alumni of the Business Analytics specialization have gone on to successful academic and industry careers.

Bentley has a strong commitment to Information Systems, with two departments — Information and Process Management and Computer Information Systems— specializing in IS research and teaching. Preference will be given to highly qualified PhD applicants with particular interest in conducting research on digital innovation, the management of business analytics, and the future of work. Research aimed at the ways in which IT is transforming business practice, inspiring innovation, shaping knowledge creation, and influencing the complex mechanisms of communication, collaboration and information management.

Download our Information Systems Flyer

Examples of possible IS related research topics include, but is not limited to:

Design and Implementation of Applications and Infrastructures
Examples include the design of collaboration-enabling technology, software and model reuse in an enterprise architecture context, the development of organizational and industry IT architectures, management of globally distributed software development, the development and implementation of technical standards.

Individual User Experience of IT
Examples include the use of IT to enhance creativity, the use of IT for marketing, the effects of online shopping tools on consumer decision-making, the usability of web search systems, the pedagogical use of handheld computing technology, collaboration theory as a foundation for usable enterprise systems.

IT-Enabled Business Process Management
Examples include process modeling, analysis and redesign; business process management and workflow technology; auditing of systems that support business processes; control issues related to business processes and systems; the role of IT, metrics and change management in business process management.

Policy and Societal Implications of IT
Examples include critical infrastructure protection, privacy, the development of technology and industry standards, the role of telecommunications in economic development and globalization, the social consequences of globally distributed work and digital media, protection of digital intellectual property.

Business Innovation and Information Management
Examples include strategic use of IT, designing and managing IT-enabled organizational transformation, requirements determination for business applications of IT, investing in IT architectures for business value, global IT sourcing, using IT to support globally distributed enterprises, and inter-organizational collaborations, project management and change management.

Bentley’s Management department is an inclusive community committed to producing high-quality research and training PhD students. Departmental research interests include: Diversity and Global Cultures; Entrepreneurship and Innovation; Ethics, Corporate Social Responsibility and Governance; Leadership and Change; Organizational Behavior and Careers; Strategic Management; Supply Chain and Service Operations Management; and Teaching and Learning.

Download our Management Flyer

Faculty members have published in such top academic journals as; Academy of Management Journal, Strategic Management Journal, Organization Science, The Journal of Business Venturing, Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, Academy of Management Learning and Education, Management Science, Journal of Organizational Behavior, Organization Studies, Operations Research, The European Journal of Operational Research, Manufacturing and Service Operations Management, Industrial and Corporate Change, The Journal of World Business, Journal of Management Studies, Human Relations, Long Range Planning, Research Policy, Business and Society, and Business Ethics Quarterly. 

Through our Marketing specialization in the Bentley PhD program in Business, you might take specialized courses in consumer behavior, brand management and then a course related to your specific dissertation area within marketing. The marketing faculty portfolio of research interests, from brand and relationship management to international marketing, represents a wide-ranging perspective of the marketing discipline, a perspective that ultimately benefits, the university, the discipline and society. Marketing Department faculty support the mission of Bentley and contribute to the discipline of marketing by pursuing innovative and insightful research on how organizations produce, deliver and sustain value for consumers, other organizations and society.

Download our Marketing Flyer

A selection of published collaborative research between Bentley Faculty and Business PhD Students and Alumni:

• Bai, Z. (2021). Does frequent prayer help reduce alcohol use? Heterogeneity in religious contexts and drinking styles. Mental Health, Religion & Culture, 1-13.
• Bai, Z. (2021). Does robo-advisory help reduce the likelihood of carrying a credit card debt? Evidence from an instrumental variable approach. Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Finance, 29, 100461.
• Li, M., Wang, Y., Ndiwane, N., Orner, M. B., Palacios, N., Mittler, B., ... & Xia, W. (2021). The association of COVID-19 occurrence and severity with the use of angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitors or angiotensin-II receptor blockers in patients with hypertension. Plos one, 16(3), e0248652.
• Marabelli, M., Vaast, E., & Li, J. L. (2021). Preventing the digital scars of COVID-19. European Journal of Information Systems, 1-17.
• Bai, Z. (2020). The impact of different drinking habits on marijuana use among college-aged youths. The Social Science Journal, 1-22.
• Bai, Z., & Wallbaum, K. (2020). "Optimizing Pension Outcomes Using Target‐Driven Investment Strategies: Evidence from Three Asian Countries with the Highest Old‐Age Dependency Ratio". Asia‐Pacific Journal of Financial Studies, 49(4), 652-682.
• Biedova, O., & Steblovskaya, V. (2020). Multiplier optimization for constant proportion portfolio insurance (CPPI) strategy. International Journal of Theoretical and Applied Finance, 23(02), 2050011.
• Donnelly, R., Manolova, T. S. (2020). Foreign Location Decisions through an Institutional Lens: A Systematic Review and Future Research Agenda. International Business Review, 29 (4), Article 101619.
• Fedorenko, I., Berthon, P., & Edelman, L. (2020). Hide and uncover: the use of secrets in marketing. Journal of Marketing Management, 36(7-8), 682-704.
• Mentzer, K., Frydenberg, M. E., Yates, D. J. (2020). Teaching Applications and Implications of Blockchain via Project-Based Learning: A Case Study. Information Systems Education Journal, 18 (6), 57-98. (link)
• Mentzer, K., Wang, Y., & Haughton, D. (2020). Interlocking Boards and the Corporate Elite: A 20-Year Analysis of the S&P 500. Issues in Information Systems, 21(4).
• Nan, W. V., Zhu, X., Markus, M. (2020). What We Know and Don’t Know about the Socioeconomic Impacts of Mobile Money in Sub-Saharan Africa: A Systematic Literature Review. Electronic Journal of IS in Developing Countries.
• Steblovskaya, V. R., Biedova, O. (2020). Multiplier Optimization for Constant Proportion Portfolio Insurance (CPPI) Strategy. The International Journal of Theoretical and Applied Finance, 23 (2), 22.
• Sultanow, E., Duane, J., & Chircu, A. (2020). Skills for Sustainable Enterprise Architectures in a VUCA World. WI2020 Community Tracks, 224–239
• Wang, E. J., Berthon, P. R., & Bechwati, N. N. (2020). The effect of mindfulness on service encounter quality. Journal of Services Marketing.
• Awazu Y., Mariano Stefania, Newell Sue, (2019). The Mediating Role of Artifacts in Position Practice at Work: Examples From a Project-based Context, Information and Management, 56 (4) 602-613.
• Bai, Z., Jain, N., Kurdyukov, R., Walton, J., Wang, Y., Wasson, T. K., Zhu, X., Chircu, A. M. (2019). Conducting Systematic Literature Reviews in Information Systems: An Analysis of Guidelines. Issues in Information Systems.20(3), 83-93.
• Berthon, P., Pehlivan, E., Yalcin, T., Rabinovich, T. (2019). True, fake and alternative: a topology of news and its implications for brands. Journal of Product & Brand Management.
• Mentzer, K., Fedorowicz, J., & Williams, C. (2019). Police Use of Social Media: Comparing Classification Methods. Issues in Information Systems, 20(3).
• Stein, M. K., Wagner, E. L., Tierney, P., Newell, S., & Galliers, R. D. (2019). Datification and the Pursuit of Meaningfulness in Work. Journal of Management Studies, 56(3), 685-717.
• Colleen M Ryan, Austin Lee, Frederick J Stoddard, Nien Chen Li, Jeffrey C Schneider, Gabriel D Shapiro, Cornelia L Griggs, Chao Wang, Tina Palmieri, Walter J Meyer, Frank S Pidcock, Debra Reilly, Robert L Sheridan, Lewis E Kazis, Ronald G Tompkins.(2018). Multi-Center Benchmarking Study Group; The Effect of Facial Burns on Long-Term Outcomes in Young Adults: A 5-Year Study, Journal of Burn Care & Research, Volume 39, Issue 4, 13 June 2018, Pages 497–50.
• Edelman, L. F., Donnelly, R., Manolova, T. S., Brush, C. G. (2018). Gender Stereotypes in the Angel Investment Process. International Journal of Gender and Entrepreneurship, 10 (2), 134-157.
• Fedorowicz, J., Sawyer, S., Tomasino, A. (2018). Governance Patterns of U.S. Public Safety Networks: A Fuzzy Set Qualitative Comparative Analysis. Journal of Information Technology, 33 (4), 326-344.
• Galliers, R. D., Stein, M. (2018). Information Systems: To Be, or Not To Be, a Science? Is that the Question? Communications of the Association for Information Systems, 43 (12), 197-204. (link)
• McLaughlin, M. D., & Gogan, J. (2018). Challenges and best practices in information security management. MIS Quarterly Executive, 17(3), 237-262.
• Perrault, E. and Quinn, M. (2018).  "What firms have been doing?  Exploring what the KLD data report about firms' corporate social performance (CSP) in the period 2000-2010", Business & Society, 57(5), 890-928.
• Primus, D., Stavrulaki, E. (2018). Connecting Product Development and Supply Chain sub-processes to improve New Product Introductions: The impact of connection intensity and timing. Supply Chain Forum: An International Journal (19(2)), 142-159.
• Quinn, M. A., Perrault, E. (2018). A Descriptive Approach to Corporate Social Performance: Not Slack Investments Nor Good Management, but a Virtuous Cycle. Business and Society.
• Williams, C. B., Fedorowicz, J., Kavanaugh, A., Mentzer, K., Thatcher, J. B., Xu, J. (2018). Leveraging Social Media to Achieve a Community Policing Agenda. Government Information Quarterly, 35 (2), 210-222.
• Fedorenko, I. & Berthon, P. (2017). Beyond the expected benefits: unpacking value co-creation in crowdsourcing business models. AMS Review. December 2017. Vol. 7, Issue 3-4, pp.183-194.
• Fedorenko, I., Berthon, P., & Rabinovich, T. (2017). Crowded identity: Managing crowdsourcing initiatives to maximize value for participants through identity creation. Business Horizons. March 2017. Vol.60, Issue 2, pp.155–165.
• Larson, B., Leung, O., & Mullane, K. (2017). Tools for teaching virtual teams: a comparative resource review. Management Teaching Review, 2(4), 333-347.
• Ottley, G., Nasr, N. I. (2017). Teaching an Elevated View of Marketing: Marketing with Customers. Marketing Education Review, 28 (3), 217-229.
• Pololi, L. H., Evans, A. T., Nickell, L., Reboli, A., Coplit, L. D., Stuber, M., Vasiliou, V., Civian, J. T., Brennan, R. T. (2017).  Assessing the learning environment for medical students: an evaluation of a novel survey instrument in four medical schools. Academic Psychiatry,41(3), 354-359.
• Primus, D.,Stavrulaki, E., (2017). A product centric examination of alignment decisions at the nexus of product development and supply chains, International Journal of Logistics ManagemenT.
• Rabinovich, T., Berthon, P., Fedorenko, I. (2017).  Reducing the distance: financial services education in web-extended learning environments . Journal of Financial Services Marketing, 22 (3), 126-131.
• Todd P. Semla, Austin F Lee, Ronald Gurrera, Laura Bajor, Mingfei Li, Donald R. Miller, Eric G. Smith, Chao Wang, Yun Wan, Lewis E. Kazis Mark S. Bauer (2017),  Off-Label Prescribing of second-Generation Antipsychotics to Elderly Veterans with Posttraumatic Stress Disorder and Dementia. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, 08/2017.
• Wong, W., Pepe, J. T., Englander, I. S. (2017). Raising the Bar: Challenging Students in a Capstone Project Course With an Android and Mobile Web Parallel Development Team Project. ISEDJ, 15 (6), 27
• Jurgens, M., Berthon, P., Edleman, L. (2016). Social Media Revolutions: The Influence Of Secondary Stakeholders. Business Horizons, 59 (2), 129–136.
• Lutafali, S., Pogvara, Q., & Khoja, F. (2016). Expanding Role of Microfinance Institutions to Combat Multidimensional Poverty. International Journal of Ecological Economics and Statistics, 37(2), 1-10.
• Perrault, E. and Clark, C. (2016). “Environmental shareholder activism: Considering status and reputation in firm responsiveness”, Organization & Environment, 29(2), 194-211.
• Skaletsky, M. ., Galliers, R. D., Haughton, D. M., Soremekun, O. (2016). Exploring the Predictors of the International Digital Divide . Journal of Global Information Technology Management, 19 (1), 44-67. b
• Stein, M., Galliers, R. D., Whitley, E. (2016). Twenty years of the European Information Systems academy at ECIS: Emergent trends and research topics. European Journal of Information Systems, 25 (1), 1-15. b
• Wang, E. J., Berthon, P., Leyland, P., McCarthy, I. (2016). Service, emotional labor, and mindfulness. Business Horizon, 59 (6), 655-661.