040088 FK Empirical Methods in Strategy Research I (2015S)

In most professional fields data-driven analyses for business decision-making is required. To develop and implement a business strategy, managers must make sense of massive amounts of information. Yet, evidence-based management requires valid empirical research. This course focuses on enabling students to design, implement, and evaluate empirical research. Basics of study design in view of external and internal validity and fundamentals of data collection are presented. This is the first part of a two semester course and covers the required tools and stages to collecting empirical data (e.g. research design, measurement, methods of data collection), with a special focus on data relevant to our field (e.g. firm-level data). The second part, planned for next semester, focuses on data analysis using descriptive and inferential statistics. Knowledge gained in this course is applied in a class project where students will actively develop the necessary steps for conducting their own empirical research projects. Thus, students are expected to design and conduct an empirical study on a management-related topic of their own choice.