Call for Applications for the Doctoral Programme in Business Administration

BLOCKCHAIN – 5 POSITIONS

1. Decentralized Finance (DeFi)
   The third wave of crypto (after the invention of digital money & Bitcoin in 2009 and the creation of programmable smart contracts & Etheruem in 2015) is centered around the creation of open, algorithmic, censorship-resistant applications that enable all financial services (banking, lending, exchanges, insurance, etc) to be implemented without intermediaries. Research proposals in DeFi will focus on studying business model innovation, user adoption, economic and societal implications, and similar aspects of the DeFi phenomenon. The ideal PhD candidate will have a background in Computer Science, Finance/Economics, Business Administration or similar and will already have gained practical experience in using and understanding the prospects and limitations of existing DeFi applications and protocols.
   Research Advisor: George Giaglis, Professor, [email protected]
2. Non-fungible tokens (NFTs) and asset tokenization
   Digital collectibles have emerged as a distinct class of crypto tokens, enabling users to mint, acquire, trade and own unique pieces of digital art or other artifacts. However, the applications of so-called non-fungible tokens (NFTs) extend beyond art to include proof of ownership of real-world assets (e.g. real estate), assets held in metaverses (e.g. virtual worlds) and new types of rights (e.g. right to a share of someone’s future income streams). Research proposals will focus on studying NFT-enabled disruption of the real world and/or new virtual worlds, business model innovation, economic and societal implications, and similar aspects of the NFT phenomenon. The ideal PhD candidate will have a background in Computer Science, Finance/Economics, Business Administration or similar and will already have gained practical experience in using and understanding the prospects and limitations of existing NFT and asset tokenization applications.
   Research Advisor: George Giaglis, Professor, [email protected]
3. Decentralized Autonomous Organizations (DAOs)
   DAOs enable the creation of new forms of organization, sometimes consisting entirely of computer code and being algorithmically governed based on rules by their creators. DAOs represent a departure of the industrial-era paradigm of corporations, enabling ad-hoc organizational arrangements that are based on programmable trust. Research proposals in the DAO space will focus on studying this emerging form of organizational design and understanding its future potential, application areas, but also limitations. The ideal PhD candidate will have a background in Business Administration, Finance/Economics, Social Sciences or similar as well as existing know-how in what DAOs are and how they operate.
   Research Advisor: George Giaglis, Professor, [email protected], new forms of organizational design, personal data markets, etc.
4. Blockchain for Humanity (2 positions)
   The world is continually looking for pioneering, cutting-edge solutions, both in terms of applications and policies in order to promote environmental sustainability, improve quality of life, boost competitiveness and employment, fight hunger and human trafficking, provide health and energy to all, and eradicate poverty. The tech revolution, with pandemic acceleration, has opened up new avenues of employment and socioeconomic growth (SDG9, SDG10). However, it has further exacerbated the inequality gap, abandoning people to further poverty and low-skilled exploitation whilst vast tracts of innovation are taking place without the presence of many people around the globe, missing opportunities to develop appropriate knowledge, skills (SDG4), or access, to benefit from technological trends, requirements and transformation presented in a tech enabled world.  Research proposals in this area, will contribute to the scientific knowledge and applications of blockchain and other emerging technologies that will enable the design and implementation of applications to advance sustainable development and push forward for policies for social good, leaving no one behind, and for preserving a healthy planet for the future generations.
   Research Advisor: Soulla Louca, Professor, [email protected]

FINANCE – 1 POSITION

1. Applied Finance
   This post is for a PhD candidate who is interested in enhancing his/her knowledge, critical and analytical skills, using real-life data analysis. The research could be applied in local or international markets, combining theory and informed decision-making in a trending topic. Topics could be related to Investments/Portfolio Analysis, Financial Risk Management, International Finance, Financial Modelling and Forecasting, Big Data, Business Analytics, Artificial Intelligence, Business/Entrepreneurship. The candidate is expected to have a background in quantitative methods and statistical analysis.
   Research Advisor: Haritini Tsangari, Professor, [email protected]

MARKETING – 2 POSITIONS

1. “Strategic Marketing of Real Estate Development Companies”

Real Estate (R.E.) development is a significant part of the economy and one with unique characteristics, owing to the attributes of the product, the industry structure, the complexity of the process, the size of investments and the fragmentation of the market. Research proposals, of primarily qualitative nature, are thus invited that aim to investigate subjects such as ‘the nature of the market for R.E.’, ‘(strategic) marketing mix designs versus product/segments’, ‘innovative business models for local and/or international R.E. marketing’, ‘strategic marketing partnerships/collaborations in R.E.’, ‘R.E. business internationalisation’, ‘R.E. industry analysis towards [specific/stated] strategic marketing goals’ etc.

The research proposal needs not exceed 2000 words. The candidate, however, must have a strong academic foundation, have an excellent command of the English language, apply for a full-time (or mostly so) Ph.D. student position, and aim at a career in academia and/or research. Potential students shall be interviewed.

Research Advisor: Alkis Thrassou, Professor, [email protected]

2. “Cyprus as the Origin [and/or Stepping Stone] for Professional Services’ Internationalisation – A strategic Marketing Perspective”

Cyprus, through a combination of its geography, its human resource education and competencies, its history and other factors, offers professional services (P.S.), across the typological spectrum, to many countries in its geographical region and beyond. These services (accounting, finance, consulting etc) are exported through both local companies and international ones using Cyprus as a regional base. Research proposals, of primarily qualitative nature, are invited to investigate, through a Strategic Marketing perspective, topics such as ‘international strategic market penetration of CY P.S.’, ‘strategic partnerships/collaborations for internationalization of CY P.S.’, ‘an analysis of Cyprus as a stepping stone for P.S. internationalization to and/or from the EU’, ‘comparative P.S. industry internationalization practices and outcomes’ etc.

The research proposal needs not exceed 2000 words. The candidate, however, must have a strong academic foundation, have an excellent command of the English language, apply for a full-time (or mostly so) Ph.D. student position, and aim at a career in academia and/or research. Potential students shall be interviewed.

Research Advisor: Alkis Thrassou, Professor, [email protected]