Emerald Research Awards Part II

It is 2pm and I have had a very focused stint at the library working on this award submission. As expected, it has not been a short undertaking! At this point I have a decent shell for the 2000 word Executive Summary and now I am going to work on the 1-page cover letter. I have to do this in the next 30 minutes as I have errands to do.

Tomorrow, I am travelling for to western Canada tomorrow for work. Fortunately, it is my last business trip for the year. My hope is to tweak both of these award documents next Saturday and submit. I want a quality submission but I am also conscious of not “boiling the ocean” given how many other things that I have on my plate!!

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Application for Emerald Doctoral Research Awards

It is mid-day Saturday and I have had a productive morning. I just completed the keywords and abstract for my JIDR publication which was an oversight from several weeks ago.  I always underestimate all of the details and effort associated with a publication!

I am also spending some time this afternoon working on an application for the Emerald/EFMD Outstanding Doctoral Research Awards. Again, not a small undertaking if I want to submit a quality application, but the sooner I get started the sooner I finish. I hope to have the application, along with a letter of reference from Henley, completed in the next two weeks.

I have three remaining tasks for 2015. First, I plan to connect with some professors at Ryerson and UofT to discuss future opportunities. Second, I would like to contact a US researcher to ascertain her interest in a join publication. Finally, I need to  provide an update to Henley and Rotman contacts about my recent publication and plans on the domestic front.  Time for lunch now and then the final push!

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Update

A quick post before I depart from the library to do some errands. It has been a whirlwind few weeks. Lots happening on the personal front and also work has been challenging in a good way. I am building strategy to enable some important cultural shifts that should not only deliver business value, but also a good deal of profession and personal benefit to employees, if executed and communicated well. This is very engaging stuff!!

In the upcoming weeks I have some meetings with local academics to touch base on their progress as relatively recent DBA graduates and also to get their advice on how I should navigate a part-time university teaching role. I am especially keen to understand the importance of publishing versus the value placed on ongoing industry experience.

I am also looking forward to a mini-vacation with my husband and then planning for Christmas. I am feeling very grateful and enjoying the post-DBA planning activities.

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Publication #3

It is Friday night and I have just completed the final edits for my article that will be published by JIDR in December. I was very happy to press SEND!! I always forget how much time it takes to refine an article, to ensure that it is clear and succinct and typo-free!!

I picked up my framed degree earlier today which was a good experience. I looked at both the DBA and MSc degrees when I returned home and reflected on the amount of time and effort, joy and pain, that defined the path to completion –amazing in a very good way.

Has been a crazy busy week at work, I travelled for 3 days, so I am glad to be home. I am looking forward to sleeping in tomorrow (small pleasures!) and spending time with my husband. Fall is in full effect and it is a beautiful time of year to go for walks, so plan to enjoy some time outside looking at the fall colours as well!

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Photos and Thank-Yous!

It is 245 pm and a rainy day. It is an amazing feeling to be at the library working on post DBA tasks. Two bound copies of my thesis are sitting in my home office and I must say it brings a smile to my face when I look at them.  The underlying emotion is a mixture of pride and amazement that I actually wrote a thesis and now have a doctoral degree!! Speaking of doctoral degrees, mine arrived in the mail yesterday. I am going to get it framed later today. I also finalized my grad photo selection today, my parents are eager to receive them especially given the reality that I was not able to attend the official ceremony. No matter how many grad photos I take, they always look sort of cheesy in my view, but are definitely good for posterity.

My other focus today is to continue my sending out “thank-you” emails and cards to the many individuals that provided guidance and support along the way. First stop is the librarian here at U of T who helped me many years ago on a few items, and was incredibly thorough and kind. Since that initial contact she always took the time to smile when she saw me over the years and this small act was comforting to me whenever I saw her. Another person is a statistics guru at OISE who delivered a series of SPSS workshops that I attended several years ago. She also provided some additional 1-1 tutorials for me. Her teaching laid the foundation for my practical statistics knowledge. I also have a number of emails to send to Henley DBA Graduates, both in Canada and the UK, who provided empathy and advice when I was getting started on my thesis. I am planning to get all of my thank-yous completed this week.

In addition to wrapping up post-DBA tasks, my husband and I are knee deep in renovation plans for our home as well as some other activities. I have a bit more time on my hands these days, but not as much as I thought!  We are also planning a celebratory trip before year end which I am looking forward to.

I am going to give myself until the end of the year before working seriously on my next paper, but hope to set up a few calls with some researchers who I am hoping will want to work with me on a joint publication.  That said, I am going to do my best to continue to post weekly and continue to read articles in my field. This stage of my research life feels great!!!

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Dr Claudette Knight

It is official. I am Dr. Claudette Knight.  What a concept!! It feels great but still a bit unreal. Unfortunately, I was unable to attend graduation in person, but I was able to have my graduation robes shipped to me. Earlier this week I had graduation photos taken which pleased my parents and will be good for posterity!

This week has been focused on getting thank-you cards and gifts to my supervisors and others who played an essential role in my doctoral journey. It is amazing how many people there are to thank. It feels really good to be able to say thank-you.

I have spent the past five hours at the library working on my “On Becoming A DBA: A Short Reflection” paper which will be published in JIDR in early 2016. I also spent some time mapping out my DBA Part II strategy which is essentially a plan to optimize my “dual citizenship” as academic and industry practitioner.  There is more to come on this topic –very exciting times!

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American Seminar

I enjoyed discussing my paper at the American Seminar yesterday. It looks like it is going to result in a journal publication which was unexpected. I am very pleased. I will work on some refinements over the next few weeks and submit the final in mid-October.

Graduation is in 5 days, what a concept!!

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Short Paper for Upcoming American Research Seminar

My thesis is submitted for binding –yeah!! I am awaiting any additional requests from the binder, but if all goes well the process should be complete by Wednesday. I must admit that it was tough to submit because when I did my final review of the PDF documents I noted three very small typos and had several thoughts of how a few sections could be improved. I had to remind myself that no matter what it would not be perfect and then pressed submit!

Next Saturday I am presenting a short paper at an American Research Seminar via Skype. I have been juggling a great deal on the personal and work front over the past week so I was only able to capture some very preliminary thoughts for the paper. Fortunately, this limited preparation in addition to some references that I had been collecting over the past few weeks have come together nicely today as I wrote the paper. I will take another look at it on Monday with fresh eyes and then submit.

I am heading to pick up some “take-out” because it is a cold and grey day so dinner and a movie at home will hit the spot nicely!

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PDF’d and Ready for Binding!

It has been an amazing week. I enjoyed my first real holiday in a very long time. My husband and I went to a cottage in Northern Ontario and it was wonderful!! Upon reflection, I think it is the first time that I have felt truly relaxed in a very long time. I think part of the feeling was the “lack of guilt”. I am finished my thesis and my projects at work are tracking well so my mind could truly be on vacation.

Today was a productive day at Gerstein. My thesis is now PDF’d and ready to submit to the binder. I began to do some research for a paper that I will present at the Wisconsin colloquium. I also received some excellent personal news.

It has been a fantastic week all around!!

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Finish Line

This is another super quick post. My “minor amendments” were approved on Wednesday. This was a huge relief. This means that my thesis is officially complete!!!! What an incredible feeling. I spent a few hours completing one last read of the abstract, into and conclusion and made some very minor wording tweaks. I then took another look at the requirements so I am clear about the process for binding. I will contact the book binder next week and then prepare for graduation in September.

Heading out now to watch my brother’s soccer game and enjoy some sunshine. I will provide an update in my next post about my plans for the rest of the year.

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