As a student at HSG, you have the opportunity to write your bachelor’s- or master’s thesis at CCTT. For this, you will be assigned a contact who guides you through the process of creating an academically relevant thesis. Further, you will have the opportunity to regularly align with Prof. Dr. Winfried Ruigrok, who will serve as the official thesis supervisor.
Teams are modes of organizations. In the future you might wish to work for a Team rather than for a Firm. Teams can have capabilities that individuals cannot possess. Our assumption is that there are synergies among individuals in Teams. At CCTT we are pursuing two research approaches. First, we try to achieve a deeper and grounded understanding of Teams and their Performance. Then we bridge theory and practice to build a normative approach to form and manage teams.
- At CCTT we define Top Teams as top management teams (TMT), top venture teams (TVT), boards, military teams, sports teams, science and art teams and teams from other areas such as medical teams or movie production teams. Within this broad definition the common characteristic is that the teams we research are top teams.
- The top of Top Teams has a dual meaning. First from a taxonomical perspective, we look at the hierarchy and at responsibility levels. The apex and the key tasks of the organization, from a strategic value creation perspective, are considered to be the mandate of top teams. The second perspective is high, or top, performance. That is, teams achieving and exceeding the objectives of the high-responsibility task for which they were constituted.
- A thesis in Top Teams will combine an empirical and a theoretical perspective, on the one hand by discussing the relevant literature, and on the other hand by collecting new data or by interpreting existing data in a novel manner.
- Actual supervision will take place by a FIM assistant, who is in direct touch with the professor in charge for your thesis at FIM. Students typically have three meetings with a FIM assistant: (1) to discuss and finalise the topic; (2) to discuss the table of content, research model, and methodological approach; and (3) to provide further feedback approximately halfway through the process. For more details about the supervision please contact us.
- As a rule, the thesis will be written in English. At FIM the working language is English, since most FIM staff originate from outside the German-speaking area.
- The thesis should have the potential for derivate works, which might be completed and co-authored with the thesis supervisor. Derivate works might include academic papers, practitioner papers or case studies.
