A key element of the DM program involves learning to conduct research and write research articles that meet academic demands of rigor and theory while at the same time addressing the relevant problems of practice. Over the course of the program, each student writes three articles: one to report the results of the initial theoretical inquiry; one to communicate the outcomes of a qualitative study; and one to report the findings of a quantitative study. Students are expected to send those articles to relevant academic conferences for review and presentation.
This work is aimed at major academic events with stringent acceptance and quality criteria, which include the Academy of Management's Annual Meeting, the premier conference for management scholars from around the world. In January, 2010 twenty DM students submitted to the Academy of Management's Annual Meeting and the results are just in. These submissions were peer-reviewed and held to a strict academic standard for rigor, relevancy and interest-value. Results of the review process have been delivered, and 17 of these articles have been accepted - 8 quantitative papers and 9 qualitative papers. Overall our acceptance rate is over 85%, which is well beyond the average acceptance rate of roughly 40%.
The DM program presents the largest single group presenting research at the meeting. We are very proud of this achievement as it shows that DM students regularly meet the standards of high quality research. Another aspect is the amazing variety of the papers presented. The papers are presented in multiple major divisions of the Academy of Management including: Entrepreneurship, Managerial and Organizational Cognition, Organization and Management Theory, Organization Development and Change, Organizational Behavior, Organizational Communication & Information Systems, Public and Nonprofit Organizations, Technology & Innovation Management, and Business Policy and Strategy. Overall it shows that this program - with excellent students, careful and continued guidance by the faculty, and inspiring intellectual environment - can produce outstanding results.
Author: Kalle Lyytinen
Director of the DM Program
