Hello again! I am thinking seriously about doing a research doctorate, probably at UNISA or Pretoria. Anyway, my question is about a possible case study I would like to investigate. I recently took a position as General Manager of a private country club where the previous GM embezzled nearly $1.5 Million over approximately 5 years. Now, in the big corporate world, this might not seem like a big deal, but in this industry, it is unprecedented! The plot is intricate and multi-faceted. There was collusion, etc. etc. It really was the 'perfect storm' of theft. So, the situation is that I think the case will be resolved within the next 10 months or so but I could start writing now. Second, I have access to thousands of documents from lawyers, accountants, the FBI ( perhaps even Homeland Security eventually), checks, payroll records, etc. etc. and I am very certain that I will never see a situation like this again during my career. I would like to take advantage of this! What are your thoughts? It may be that this subject is already over-analyzed? I do know however, that it is an extreme event in the private club industry and that it is unique in its scope, methods employed, etc. and I think that managers and boards of directors at other clubs might benefit by the exposure of what happened and what could have been done to prevent it. Sorry for the length. I am very excited about this.....cheers! John
Hi John, Your thread title says it all: What's your research question? It sounds like you have the material for a great case study, but does that mean it would work well as a doctoral thesis? Also, have you spoken with potential supervisors at Unisa or Pretoria? It's their opinion that will matter.... -=Steve=-
No, I haven't spoken with anyone yet In fact, the idea only just came to me a couple of days ago; hence my post here and apparent lack of preparation. I don't know how the research question should be stated just yet, but I think that the investigation should highlight: 1. the unique situation in that there was a great amount (too much) of trust in the gm from previous boards and the membership in general. This occurs more in the club industry than in similar segments of the hospitality industry due to the close relationship with the members (owners). At least, I think so....this could be part of the question as I know of no proof of this. 2. Could it have been prevented? The accounting procedures were fairly lax but even so, they were fairly brilliant in their approach and this helped to evade getting caught. The 'trust factor' played heavily. I did research for my masters but did not do a case study. To be honest, I really need to read up on how they should be structured before I contact a school with the idea. Up until now, I had an entirely different research interest but this situation cannot be missed I think! thanks
I think you have a great foundation for a dissertation. However, as Steven said, you would have to come up with the specific research questions/problems you are going to address. So much that goes on at a private club is related to sports (golf, tennis, swimming, etc.) so I would strongly recommend looking at the US Sports Academy's online DSM (Doctor of Sports Management.) http://www.ussa.edu/doctorate.asp They have an applied dissertation project option where the requirement is that it "must be related to a documented problem or issue." I would say your club's problem fits that bill. Your dissertation could address causes and contributing factors to the embezzlement, ways to prevent from happening in the future, impact on club image or club membership, etc. So many things you could do with this!
Everything others have said. Plus.... An important aspect of doing sociological dissertations in "real time" is continued access to people and materials. You run a big risk of losing them during your dissertation, sending you back to square one. Another stumbling block is the "significant contribution to new knowledge" aspect of a traditional dissertation. Relaxed somewhat for some programs offering the EdD, DBA, or similar "profession-related" doctorates, it holds very true for most other doctoral programs. Your results might not add new knowledge to the field by being applicable to a wider scope. If I was asking the questions, I'd want to know what your research question was, what the new knowledge to be gained was, and then its significant impact on the field of study. I'm not judging here, nor am I giving advice. But I would note that the sexy and/or interesting topics are often the most difficult to turn into doctoral dissertations. I'm not saying it can't be done, but you might want to ensure the topic you select can be researched, can be completed, and will be acceptable to your committee and university. If that sounds stifling, uninteresting, and utterly void of creativity, fine. Welcome to the world of dissertation research. Good luck, and I hope whatever you choose will be something that both interests you and you can complete. (But ensure the latter while hoping for the former.)
Tailgating on Rich's comment, I would add that you could examine the research literature along several themes that relate to your topic to refine it. The challenge will be to find a hook in the research literature that links what you are proposing to an obvious need and thereby be able to make your case that what you propose is indeed a significant contribution to knowledge in a discipline. I suspect that any professor you ask about whether your topic idea has "legs" will ask you about what you have found in the research literature. Dave
And tailgating on Dave's, take it further and look for dissertations related to your topic and see if what you are about to do is suggested under "Areas for Further Research" or similar section. The "hook" will be all that more easily demonstrated to your advisor. While a preliminary proposal might be asked from you near the outset of your doctoral program, it is the proposal itself that will contain the literature review and establish Dave's "hook." But a preliminary literature review for your preliminary proposal might suggest one.
And tailgating a bit further - I can't emphasize enough of getting with your advisor in your program early and running your idea by him/her. I did that with my research idea and received some good advice. I was also able to have my course papers tie into my reseach area in order to save time and to learn more about my topic. Best of luck... Shawn
Thus confirming my decision to post here! Thanks everyone! You have given me some direction; just what I was seeking. I will let you know how I get on and thanks for the school lead, I hadn't considered them yet and it looks interesting although the SA schools are a lot cheaper! cheers....
John this is a very rich issue: -Entitlement theory in ethics -Internal Control issues in Auditing/operations/finance -Oversight and responsiblity for directors but this is one case, your research will envolve a large survey of other similar cases which are not that unprecidented even in the small world. The trick will be showing how its unique to your discipline: Good artists create, great artists steal. Good luck!
