Undergraduate Students' Corner
Did you know that you can earn 3 credits of ADM electives in your program by helping a professor with their current research project?
ADM 3998 Applied Research in Management allows you to work with a professor for 45-60 hours per term, allowing you to gain meaningful academic research experience, while participating in an exciting venture that will help us make a greener, healthier, happier and wealthier Canada.
This special course allows you to evaluate your aptitude and interest for graduate research work. You could even potentially be nominated for one of Telfer’s Undergraduate Research Prizes (monetary prize and digital badge).
To apply for one of these research projects, you must send a short letter of interest to
Fall 2024 Research Opportunities:
Keri Kettle’s The Healthy Consumer Podcast
This project is ideal for a Marketing major.
In 2024, Dr. Kettle founded the Healthier Consumption Research Unit (HCRU) at the Telfer School of Management. The mission of the HCRU is to support research that helps people make healthier consumption choices.
As part of this mission, Dr. Kettle is creating the Healthy Consumer Podcast. The objective of this podcast is to help Canadian consumers by sharing expert opinions and research outcomes. The format will be a short (15 minutes or less) interview with a special guest. We will ask each guest the same set of questions. Most guests will be academic researchers, but we will also consult with experts and leaders in health-related fields.
In the Summer of 2024, two Telfer students (Angela Taborek and Lauren Jowett) started the Healthy Consumer Podcast. They recorded three episodes, which are available on Spotify.
Your task will be to continue the podcast, creating four new episodes – one per month. This includes:
- Understanding the technical requirements for creating, editing, hosting, and sharing the podcast.
- Identifying, selecting, contacting, scheduling, and organizing the interviews.
- Recording, editing, and uploading to Spotify.
- Promotiong the podcast.
This is a very hands-on project that will lead to future projects for Telfer students. You need to be fully committed to this project for the summer.
Qualifications Required:
- Advanced Writing Ability (in English)
- Ability to work independently and collaboratively (to research Podcast development, technical production, and marketing)
- Marketing knowledge (Required: ADM 2320 Marketing Fundamentals: Recommended: ADM 4326 Digital Marketing Technologies)
Keri Kettle’s The Power and Peril of Identity
I am writing a book about identity. I need a set of powerful examples of where identities have had positive, powerful impacts on the world (e.g., Olympic athletes competing for their nation, countries forming an identity in times of conflict) and where they have caused peril (e.g., the Rwandan genocide, racism).
Your task will be to search for, summarize, and provide references for historical examples of the positive power and peril of identities.
This project is ideal if you are considering doing a research-based Masters or PhD program. This will give you the opportunity to read and understand academic research.
Definitions:
Self-Concept – People’s overall sense of who they are. They are aware that they exist, that they exist separately from other people, and that they have characteristics that define their similarities to and differences from others. Children are not born with a sense of self, and it is thus central to human development to understand the process by which the sense of self is established and evolves over time.
Identity – A category label with which a person self-associates. Each person’s self-concept includes different aspects (Kettle and Häubl 2011), which include individual characteristics, real or perceived (Aquino and Reed 2002; Markus and Wurf 1987), as well as identities (Oyserman et al. 2012; Verrochi Coleman and Williams 2013), such as social or group identities (Verrochi Coleman and Williams 2013; White and Dahl 2007). Identities are associated with particular characteristics – accountants are detail-oriented and analytical, for example.
Types of Identities (not a complete list):
- Vocational / Avocational (e.g., accountant, musician, runner)
- Family (e.g., son, daughter, parent, sibling)
- Social (e.g., Hipster, band member)
- Political
- Religious
- National / Regional (e.g., Canadian, Albertan, Torontonian)
Qualifications Required:
- Ability to work independently (to search for, read, and interpret academic research)
- Advanced Writing Ability (in English)
A.J. Corner’s The Impact of Personality on Negotiation Outcomes
This research project will study the impact of personality on negotiation outcomes. In particular, we will assess differences in both behaviours and expressed emotions of both parties in a dyadic negotiation (i.e., seller and buyer), as well as their choice of words and the flow of the conversation. We are interested in determining whether personality plays a key role in an individual's choice of utilizing different communication tactics to achieve their ultimate end goal. Furthermore, we will be assessing both parties' satisfaction with the negotiation. The research will be conducted in Telfer’s exciting new Triple-I Lab. The lab uses state-of-the-art observational technology, along with recent advancements in AI emotion recognition software to study human behaviour.
We are looking for two undergraduate research assistants enrolled in ADM 3998 who will help with the following tasks:
- Setting up the lab technology, including connecting cameras and microphones
- Helping the Principal Investigator collect data, including ushering participants into the lab space, helping monitor camera connectivity during negotiation exercises, and properly saving and storing data collected
- Helping the Principal Investigator code for communication behaviours and analyze emotional displays, including analyzing the data using iMotions and ObserverXT
Students will learn transferable skills important for both a potential career in academia and industry, such as careers in Entrepreneurship, or general management.
Qualifications:
- A CGPA of 8 or higher
- Good time management and communication skills
- Strong technology skills
- Hours per week are flexible and will be coordinated with the Principal Investigator, but interested students must have the ability to work in the Triple-I Lab during those agreed upon business hours
- Dependable and self-motivated
- Previous experience conducting lab research or using emotion detection software such as iMotions or FaceReader is not required but considered an asset
Wadid Lamine’s Emotion-Driven Success in Entrepreneurship: Artificial Intelligence’s Role in Decoding Pitch Sentiments
Job Description: Research Assistant for Video Editing and Database Creation
We are seeking two enthusiastic undergraduate students to join our research team for an entrepreneurship project focused on emotion analysis within the context of business communication. Each Research Assistant will be responsible for editing approximately 55 videos using Adobe Premiere Pro, a professional video and audio editing software, followed by creating and organizing a comprehensive database using basic Excel functions.
Requirements:
- Strong focus and attention to details.
- Interest in working with video editing tools; training will be provided.
- Sound knowledge of Microsoft Excel.
- Successfully completed ADM2313/ADM2713 The Entrepreneurial Society and/or ADM 2381/2781 Business Communication Skills with a minimum grade of A-.
- Language: English
This position offers a unique opportunity to gain hands-on experience with cutting-edge technology in an entrepreneurship research setting, enhancing both your technical and analytical skills.
- Number of Positions: 2
- Total hours of work: 50-60
- Start Date: September 15th
- End Date: November 30th
Imed Chkir’s Corporate Innovation and Biodiversity
Biodiversity refers to the diversity within and between species and ecosystems.
There is a connection between companies and nature. The global reporting initiative notes that organizations make direct and indirect use of biodiversity resources and hence contribute to changes in biodiversity.
Companies that invest in environmental innovation activities can decrease their impact on biodiversity.
Also, The manager can engage in corporate innovation due to biodiversity losses caused by firm’s annual activities, in order to promote biodiversity conservation and reduce the negative impacts.
Qualifications:
- data collection and analysis
Daina Mazutis’s Stakeholder Networks and Corporate Social Performance
Supervisors: Dr. Oleksandr Shymanskyi and Dr. Daina Mazutis
Much has been written about the importance of stakeholder management to a firm’s social, environmental, and financial performance. And yet, the lines between stakeholder management and corporate social responsibility/performance (CSR/CSP) have blurred, resulting in a great deal of ambiguity in how the two theories interact. In this study, we move away from dyadic conceptualizations of stakeholder management and examine the structural characteristics of stakeholder networks and their relationship to corporate sustainability. We hypothesize that firms with greater stakeholder network strength and degree centrality can improve communication and collaboration about sustainability issues in such a way that promotes more environmentally sustainable corporate performance. We have already conducted a formal content analysis on the annual reports of 60 firms in the Construction & Development (C&D) industry and are currently looking for two or three students to help validate the reliability of our existing code book and to apply our coding process to a separate sample of annual reports. By working on this research project, you will learn about applied research methods in content analysis and the importance of construct validity and reliability to rigorous and relevant strategic management research.
List of Qualifications:
- Familiarity with the concepts of stakeholder management and corporate social/environmental performance.
- Fluent in English and proficient in excel. Ability to work independently and follow precise directions. Remote work.
Daina Mazutis’s Micro-dynamics of Social Enterprise Formation
Supervisor: Dr. Daina Mazutis
Social enterprises are organizations that use a combination of innovative resources to pursue revenue-generating opportunities to address a social or environmental need. Dr. Mazutis is seeking a highly-motivated student to help write a case study on a nascent social enterprise in the used goods market. The project would involve researching and writing a typical “business case study” and a teaching note for potential future use in Social Entrepreneurship courses. This would include: 1) researching the social entrepreneurship context and used goods market in Canada; 2) interviewing the Social Entrepreneur and identifying critical dilemmas in social enterprise formation; 3) contextualizing the specific social and environmental issue of the case with facts and data, 4) identifying relevant social enterprise theories related to case; and, 5) writing the case and teaching note under the supervision of Dr. Mazutis. By engaging in this project, you will be exposed to applied qualitative research methods such as: conducting semi-structured interviews, data collection, data synthesis and case analysis.
List of qualifications:
- Fluent in English;
- Exemplary writing skills;
- Experience using library databases to collect industry and socio-economic data;
- Advanced critical thinking and information assimilation skills;
- Active listening and communication skills;
- Demonstrable professionalism.
Ramzi Fathallah’s Towards and Inclusive Entrepreneurial Ecosystem: Understanding Entrepreneurial Journeys of Historically Underrepresented Groups
Entrepreneurial journeys of historically underrepresented groups, including first-generation immigrants, refugees, and 2SLGBTQI+ individuals, often confront unique challenges and opportunities. Despite their significant contributions, these entrepreneurs' experiences remain under-researched. This project aims to explore the parallel and divergent paths taken by these entrepreneurs, examining their shared challenges and unique strategies for overcoming obstacles. This project also seeks to elucidate the factors that contribute to their integration into new societies.
We will contribute to developing theories of non-conventional entrepreneurship that promote equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) in entrepreneurial ecosystems, fostering a more inclusive entrepreneurial landscape in Canada.
List of tasks to be performed by the student(s):
- Compile public resources and data on entrepreneurship among historically underrepresented groups in Canada
- Identify potential organizations that support these entrepreneurs
- Conduct exploratory interviews with entrepreneurs from these groups
- Assist in preliminary data analysis
Requirements:
- Have completed one of the courses: ADM2313, ADM 2713, ADM 3315, ADM 3317, ADM 3715, or ADM3717 with a minimum grade of A-
- Interest in entrepreneurship, diversity, and inclusion.
Leigh Ellen Walsh’s Are we Poor? Understanding Municipal Finances
This project contributes to a larger research project that aims to understand (perceptions of) municipal finance as expressed in municipal financial indicator reports. Data will be drawn from the Municipal Statistics Annual Reports of approximately 50 municipalities over a multi-year period. The research will consist of (1) summarizing the Financial Condition Indicator (FCI) model; compiling a database of municipal finance data s for the municipalities selected; and (3) conducting a comparative analysis to summarize and contrast the municipal financial positions and trends. Optionally, the research may also include a literature review to identify published work on related topics.
Qualifications:
- Intermediate proficiency in MS Excel.
José Carlos Marques and Tommaso Ferretti’s Mapping the organization of global sustainability standards: A network-systems perspective
A challenge relating to the effective governance of transnational supply chains is the proliferation and fragmentation of voluntary standards dealing with social and environmental issues. Non-state actors, including non-government organizations (NGOs) and multinational corporations, have formed coalitions to develop voluntary standards to address these challenges. An ever-growing number of these coalitions, referred to as “voluntary standard-setting organizations” (VSSOs) have developed a veritable explosion of new standards governing most major economic sectors (Abbott & Snidal, 2009; Brunsson & Jacobsson, 2000; Fransen, 2011; Marx & Wouters, 2014; Vogel, 2008), now numbering in the hundreds (de Bakker et al., 2019; Eberlein et al., 2014; Reinecke et al., 2012). Despite its importance and considerable scholarly attention, scholars and policymakers suggest that insufficient progress has been made on understanding this phenomenon. Studies to date have mostly focused on a limited number of VSSO initiatives and have for the most part used qualitative, single case study approaches. This present research project significantly broadens the analytical lens to focus on the entire landscape of voluntary standard-setting organizations at the global level. We adopt what has been referred to as an interorganizational, “whole network” perspective (Provan et al., 2007). This type of system-level study of VSSOs has never been empirically undertaken, likely due to the cumbersome nature of this type of analysis. Yet it has been suggested as an important approach that would contribute significant insight to understanding the “bigger picture” of sustainability governance on a global scale (Albareda & Waddock, 2016). The student RA will be joining a team of Telfer professors (Marques and Ferretti) and University of Ottawa PhD students (Mohammadrezaei and Manivannan) that has been working on this project for over a year, collecting a significant amount of data and analyzing it using machine learning and network analysis tools. The student RA’s main tasks will involve conducting a literature review and some data collection/ preparation for analysis.
Qualifications required:
- Having completed ADM3318/ADM3718 International Business, and being enrolled in ADM4319/ADM4719 is desirable but not required.
