The University of Nanterre and ESCE International business school invite applicants for a 3-years fully funded Ph.D. position. The successful applicant will work with Professors Céline Barrédy and Alfredo Valentino on the following topic:
THEMATIC : International strategic responses of family businesses in contexts of uncertainty, institutional influences, heterogeneity and economic/non-economic goals.
Topic
Nowadays, the increasingly uncertain business environment (e.g., the global COVID pandemic, RussiaUkraine conflict, the tech cold war, and the decoupling US-China) generates relevant challenges for entrepreneurs and managers often forcing them to take strategic decisions to preserve their long-term sustainability. Moreover, the complexity in the decision-making process is further exacerbated when entrepreneurs and managers seek non-economic goals in addition to economic ones, like in family businesses. For those firms, this might involve a “mixed gamble” with the risk of gains and losses in
wealth due to the presence of multiple and often contrasting goals, leading to differences in their strategic choices. However, the perception of this mixed gamble vary across family firms due to their inherent heterogeneity in goals, governance, and resources. In contexts where uncertainty, institutional influences, heterogeneity and mixed gamble overlap, strategic decisions might depend on multiple antecedents with different impacts on performance. On
the one hand, family owners may undertake distinctive strategic responses related to internationalization, growth, sustainability, diversification, innovation, and exit to face uncertainty and to preserve a trade-offs among financial and SEW gains and losses. On the other, they may focus their
attention to achieve different types of performance, like sustainability, with their strong impact on a diverse array of stakeholders.
The present project aims to:
- Understand how family businesses take strategic decisions when they cope with uncertainty and competing goals that go beyond pure profit maximization.
- Investigate different strategic responses like internationalization, diversification, exit, innovation, and so on, and understand how family business heterogeneity could offer some additional nuances on the set of triggers that push family businesses through different strategic paths.
- Investigate the effects on different dimensions of performance.
Methodology
The identified themes will be analyzed through conceptual and empirical lenses. In fact, the research will be both theoretical (development of research framework based on academic literature) and empirical (collecting primary and secondary data). Advanced statistic and econometric techniques will
be applied in order to test research hypotheses. Some qualitative analysis (e.g. based on case studies) could be also considered to enrich the evidence and strengthen the development of managerial and eventually policy implications.
For questions about this position and how to apply, please contact Prof. Celine Barredy (c.barredy@parisnanterre.fr) and Prof. Alfredo Valentino (avalentino@esce.fr).
The PhD scholarship is part of the partnership between the two schools. We offer a stimulating environment, which provides opportunities to present at national and international conferences, connections with scholars and practitioners.
PhD courses: The successful applicant will attend PhD courses to develop skills in advanced research methods, theory of the firm, data analysis and writing. The PhD Candidate must earn 180 ECTS duringthe three years of the doctorate program. 150 ECTS are earned by the defense of the doctoral thesis and the 30 ECTS are earned by courses dedicated to doctoral education.
Teaching load: 96 hours face-to-face teaching per year Financial assistance to attend scientific conferences for presenting research papers.
