Rankings vs professor focus areas if I have specific research interests?

Explorer

7 13

Posted Jul 19, 2021 18:43

Suppose I had a specific area of interest I wanted to research about, but the few professors who currently work on it are NOT at top-ranking universities - would that make the business school's ranking a less important factor to worry about?

One of the paths I'm considering is, rather than working to rise the ranks to C-level, to establish myself as an expert within my current company/niche, as well as develop new theories and knowledge based on my experiences, and research/write books on the side, e.g. by seeking the possibility to do a strong/original Masters dissertation, and maybe DBA a few years later?

Does this make sense or could I be missing something?

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Duncan

14.007 15.473

Posted Jul 19, 2021 23:21

You are missing something: few MBAs have the time or design to allow a seriously scholarly research project. Take the best MBA for your goal, ignoring where the specialists in your topic are. Read their papers and their co-authors' papers. Collect data in your professional life that will be useful to them, and then co-author with those academics.

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Explorer

7 13

Posted Jul 21, 2021 11:03

You are missing something: few MBAs have the time or design to allow a seriously scholarly research project. Take the best MBA for your goal, ignoring where the specialists in your topic are. Read their papers and their co-authors' papers. Collect data in your professional life that will be useful to them, and then co-author with those academics.

Thank you, appreciate and agree with your point, yet if my goal is to position myself as a strong subject matter expert, wouldn't it make sense to surround myself with the best research counterparts in the field?

Or is the b-schools ranking/reputation still more important?

For example, if I want to be seen as a go-to person for e-commerce strategies, I thought I should identify and connect with the top researchers in the field to broaden my ideas, as well as discuss my professional experiences/achievements in the context of their theories, help create new theories, etc.?

A few notes on my career reflection: I've gained good experience in my sector/field (12+ years) with several promotions, but feel that I could get more out of bringing my experiences to a wider audience than aiming higher for the C-suite at one firm. If asked for my ideal goal for the next five years, it's likely to be a published author in my field, speaking at many conferences (I do this already at a smaller scale), whom other businesses come to for advice.

[quote]You are missing something: few MBAs have the time or design to allow a seriously scholarly research project. Take the best MBA for your goal, ignoring where the specialists in your topic are. Read their papers and their co-authors' papers. Collect data in your professional life that will be useful to them, and then co-author with those academics.  [/quote] Thank you, appreciate and agree with your point, yet if my goal is to position myself as a strong subject matter expert, wouldn't it make sense to surround myself with the best research counterparts in the field?  Or is the b-schools ranking/reputation still more important? For example, if I want to be seen as a go-to person for e-commerce strategies, I thought I should identify and connect with the top researchers in the field to broaden my ideas, as well as discuss my professional experiences/achievements in the context of their theories, help create new theories, etc.? A few notes on my career reflection: I've gained good experience in my sector/field (12+ years) with several promotions, but feel that I could get more out of bringing my experiences to a wider audience than aiming higher for the C-suite at one firm. If asked for my ideal goal for the next five years, it's likely to be a published author in my field, speaking at many conferences (I do this already at a smaller scale), whom other businesses come to for advice.

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Duncan

14.007 15.473

Posted Jul 21, 2021 12:30

Other things being equal, be close to thought leaders. However, other things are not equal. Choosing an interior school for your goals simply to be close to people who are easy to contact if approached thoughtfully makes no sense.

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