2017 Approved Student Dissertations*

*All dissertation defenses are overseen and also approved by Professor César Baena, Dean and Director of Doctoral Research.

• Ronald Jean Degen (PhD), “Cognitive Framework of High-Growth Entrepreneurs and Reasons for the Almost Complete Absence of High-Growth Ambition of Early-Stage Entrepreneurs in Brazil” | Jury: Professor Nicholas Harkiolakis (adviser) and Professor Christian Adendorff (second examiner)

• Dillis Viney (DBA), “Developing Innovative Fundraising Strategies for Residential Care of Autistic Adults in the United Kingdom” | Jury: Professor Nicholas Harkiolakis (adviser) and Professor Kimberly Reeve (second examiner)

• Grant Groves (PhD), “Developing a Digital Communication Strategy for the Pharmaceutical Industry” | Jury: Professor Daphne Halkias (adviser) and Professor Philippe Salphati (second examiner)

• Ivonne Ranisch (DBA), “Women’s Leadership in Maritime Law Firms: The Australian Case” | Jury: Professor Daphne Halkias (adviser) and Professor Wendy Wan (second examiner)

• Bradley Cousins (PhD), “Merging Design Thinking, Absorptive Capacity and Dynamic Capability for Competitive Advantage” | Jury: Professor Daphne Halkias (adviser) and Professor Chris Jeffs (second examiner)

• Paul Thomason (DBA), “Organizational Readiness to Assimilate, Internalize and Use New Knowledge to Drive Change Initiatives: A Single Case Study” | Jury: Professor Daphne Halkias (adviser) and Professor Joachim Bauer (second examiner)

• Conrad Fernandes (PhD, Hons.), “Challenges to Long-Term Sustainability of Chinese Outward Foreign Direct Investment” | Jury: Professor Daphne Halkias (adviser) and Professor Jack Hampton (second examiner)
  

• Ray Li (PhD), “Study on the Wealth Effects of Mergers and Acquisitions” | Jury: Professor Gianfranco Gianfrate (adviser) and Professor Ivo Pezzuto (second examiner)
  

• Onyeka Uche Ofili (PhD), “Novice Entrepreneurs’ Experiences with the Coach-Protégé Relationship in Developing Economies: A Multiple Case Study from Nigeria” | Jury: Professor Daphne Halkias (adviser) and Professor Michael Neubert (second examiner)
  

• Amal Khlat (PhD), “The Moderating Role of Servant Leadership in the Relationship between Shared Governance and Faculty Satisfaction and Engagement in Lebanese Universities” | Jury: Professor Konstantinos Tasoulis and Areti Krepapa (advisers), and Professor Jack Hampton (second examiner)
  

• Michael James (PhD), “Succession Planning in Religious Organizations: A Qualitative Study of Succession Planning in Small French Churches” | Jury: Professor Joseph Santora (adviser) and Professor Gil Bozer (second examiner)
  

• Simon Akpa (PhD), “Participants, Roles, and Governance in Open Air Marketing Channels in Nigeria” | Jury: Professor Vincent Onyemah (adviser) and Professor Areti Krepapa (second examiner)

• Manal Naboulsi (PhD), “The Interface between Gender Processes and Family Business Succession in Family-Owned Businesses in Lebanon and the United States: A Comparative Case Study” | Jury:  Professor Daphne Halkias (adviser) and Professor Michael Neubert (second examiner)

• Troy Troublefield (DBA), “Gaps in Cross-Cultural Training in the US Military: Building Cross-Cultural Competence in Service Members Assigned to South Korea” | Jury: Professor Nicholas Harkiolakis (adviser) and Professor Andrew Thomas (second examiner)

• Dorothy McAleer (PhD), “A Global Meta-Data Analysis of Factors Influencing Sustainability Report External Assurance” | Jury: Professor Manomita Nandy (adviser) and Professor Michael Wynne (second examiner)

• Tewelde Mezgobo (PhD), “New Public Management and Path Dependence in Public Organizations in Ethiopia: A Multiple Case Study” | Jury: Professor Daphne Halkias (adviser) and Professor Chris Adendorff (second examiner)

• Vara Kuppam (DBA, Hons.), “Cloud Adoption: Factors Influencing Small and Medium Businesses in the United States” | Jury: Professor Nicholas Harkiolakis (adviser) and Professor Michael Wynne (second examiner)

• Essien Efana-Okon (PhD), “Graduate Employability: Generic Competency Requirements by Multinational Oil and Gas Companies in Nigeria” | Jury: Professor Joseph Santora (adviser) and Professor Tobias De Coning (second examiner)

• Ali Al-Mana (DBA), “Measuring Efficiencies and Value Creation of National Oil Companies: A Case Study of Qatar Petroleum” | Jury: Professor Muammer Koç (dissertation adviser) and Professor Michael Wynne (second examiner)

• Randa Saadeh (PhD), “The Nature of Career Counseling Programs at Private Universities in Lebanon: A Multiple Case Study” | Jury: Professor Daphne Halkias (adviser) and Professor Chris Adendorff (second examiner)

• Rampersad Motilal (DBA), “Natural Resources and Economic Performance: A Look at Trinidad and Tobago” | Jury: Mark Esposito (adviser) and Professor Ivo Pezzuto (second examiner)

• Marion Endter (PhD), “Mandated Economic Measures in France Applied to Balance the Labour Market: Do They Achieve their Objectives, or Do They Rather Inhibit the Labour Market’s Natural Balance?” | Jury: Professor Patrick O'Sullivan (adviser) and Professor Ivo Pezzuto (second examiner)

• Benson Iroabuchi Nwoji (DBA), “Infusing Multiculturalism into the Management Studies Curriculum of Nigerian Tertiary Institutions to Achieve Workplace Social Harmony” | Jury: Professor Tobias de Coning (adviser) and Professor Chris Adendorff (second reader)

• Sani Ahmed (DBA), “Fiscal Policies and the Performance of the Stock Market in Nigeria” | Jury: Professor George Iatridis (adviser) and Professor Ivo Pezzuto (second reader)