McGill University

PhD Candidate, Strategy and Organization

DISSERTATION TITLE: "The dynamics of organizational learning in technological innovation"

My thesis seeks to explain the roles of experiential, vicarious, and inter-organizational learning in generating technologically innovative products in the biopharmaceutical and medical device sectors. My project asks a fundamental question: Is successful product development best enabled through learning by doing, learning by observation and direct contact, or a combination of these forms? The goal of this research is to further our understanding of different modes of learning in new product development, and to provide insights relevant to both organizational theory and managerial practice.

Suffolk University

Assistant Professor

- Tenure-track faculty member in the Strategy and International Business department at the Sawyer Business School, Suffolk University (Boston, MA)

- Faculty co-lead for graduate travel seminar to Munich and Berlin, Germany (2015 and 2016); San Francisco and Silicon Valley (2017 and 2018); and London and Paris (2019)

- Member of SBS Research Committee (2018) and IT Strategic Planning Committee (2018 to Present)

IBM Canada Ltd.

Financial Controller

- Main IBM contact for issues related to the administration and growth of the multi-year information technology outsourcing contract with National Bank Financial;

- Financial targets and monthly business performance against plan numbers, identifying significant variances and necessary corrective actions;

- Audit readiness and full compliance with internal controls policies for the contract;

- Identify and resolve new and ongoing contractual issues.

SKB Greystone Group

President

- Case study history – including a detailed literature review on organizational centralization and relevant industry trends impacting the design of corporate structures – for a leading global supplier to the commercial, medical, and aerospace industries;

- Comprehensive literature review regarding theoretical and actual governance structures for Biosphere Reserves (which formed the basis for a recommendation on organizational design);

- Recommendation for the institutionalization of links between the McGill MBA program and the Montreal business community;

- Research project on market trends in newsprint usage for a major global paper producer;

- Strategic statement and operational plan for a large American healthcare informatics firm.

Birks & Mayors Inc.

Manager, Business Analysis and Strategic Planning

- Assistance in the development of the corporation’s multi-year strategic plan document, comprising analysis of the global jewelry market and articulation of specific initiatives required to grow revenues and market share in the near term;

- Construction and refinement of financial models to evaluate potential acquisition opportunities;

- Due diligence activities related to primary acquisition targets;

- Comprehensive evaluation of company operations across the various Birks & Mayors departments as part of the Organizational Efficiency initiative.

Making the foreign familiar: The influence of top management team and board of directors characteristics on the adoption of foreign practices

Journal of World Business

This paper examines the firm-level antecedents of Six Sigma adoption in Korea. Our results indicate that firms with top executives and board members having work experience in the foreign country where the focal management practice originated and was popularized are more likely to adopt this practice. Furthermore, firms’ exposure to foreign investors exerts a direct effect and also moderates the impact of foreign work experience on adoption. Prior work experience in the country of practice origin reduces the uncertainty inherent in cross-border adoption by providing executives and board members with greater insight into the presumed benefits of the focal practice.

Making the foreign familiar: The influence of top management team and board of directors characteristics on the adoption of foreign practices

Journal of World Business

This paper examines the firm-level antecedents of Six Sigma adoption in Korea. Our results indicate that firms with top executives and board members having work experience in the foreign country where the focal management practice originated and was popularized are more likely to adopt this practice. Furthermore, firms’ exposure to foreign investors exerts a direct effect and also moderates the impact of foreign work experience on adoption. Prior work experience in the country of practice origin reduces the uncertainty inherent in cross-border adoption by providing executives and board members with greater insight into the presumed benefits of the focal practice.

The degree of technological innovation: A demand heterogeneity perspective

Technological Forecasting and Social Change

A perennial question posed by work in the technology management domain is whether a firm should deploy a technology more advanced than its current one. While past research has provided us with a better understanding of the firm-level decision to invest in new technology, the degree of this advancement (relative to the technology inherent in existing company product offerings) remains a nascent phenomenon that the field has not fully addressed. Data on global flat panel display makers from 1995 through 2011 are analyzed to understand how competitive standing in distinct intra-industry technology segments affects a firm's degree of technological innovation. We adopt a demand heterogeneity perspective to develop hypotheses relating the degree to which more advanced technology is deployed to a firm's competitive share of a particular segment. Our findings demonstrate how segment share (a more refined unit of analysis than overall market share) encourages a firm to advance its technology and how intra-segment competition moderates this direct effect. The current study provides evidence that demand heterogeneity is operative not only at different stages of the technology life cycle, but also in different segments populated by users with divergent technological requirements.

Making the foreign familiar: The influence of top management team and board of directors characteristics on the adoption of foreign practices

Journal of World Business

This paper examines the firm-level antecedents of Six Sigma adoption in Korea. Our results indicate that firms with top executives and board members having work experience in the foreign country where the focal management practice originated and was popularized are more likely to adopt this practice. Furthermore, firms’ exposure to foreign investors exerts a direct effect and also moderates the impact of foreign work experience on adoption. Prior work experience in the country of practice origin reduces the uncertainty inherent in cross-border adoption by providing executives and board members with greater insight into the presumed benefits of the focal practice.

The degree of technological innovation: A demand heterogeneity perspective

Technological Forecasting and Social Change

A perennial question posed by work in the technology management domain is whether a firm should deploy a technology more advanced than its current one. While past research has provided us with a better understanding of the firm-level decision to invest in new technology, the degree of this advancement (relative to the technology inherent in existing company product offerings) remains a nascent phenomenon that the field has not fully addressed. Data on global flat panel display makers from 1995 through 2011 are analyzed to understand how competitive standing in distinct intra-industry technology segments affects a firm's degree of technological innovation. We adopt a demand heterogeneity perspective to develop hypotheses relating the degree to which more advanced technology is deployed to a firm's competitive share of a particular segment. Our findings demonstrate how segment share (a more refined unit of analysis than overall market share) encourages a firm to advance its technology and how intra-segment competition moderates this direct effect. The current study provides evidence that demand heterogeneity is operative not only at different stages of the technology life cycle, but also in different segments populated by users with divergent technological requirements.

Narcissists as consumers: The effects of perceived scarcity on processing of product information

Social Behavior and Personality

We examined how narcissists engage in information processing in a scarcity-related purchase situation. We proposed that narcissists would engage in purchase-related information processing in a way consistent with their conception of themselves as unique and distinctive and would tend to have a strong preference for scarce products that impart unique value. We also predicted that narcissists would tend to purchase scarce products without undertaking deliberate information processing regarding utilitarian product characteristics. We found that narcissists have a stronger preference for scarce products when compared to their non-narcissistic counterparts and that narcissists tend to purchase scarce products without engaging in deliberate information processing regarding utilitarian product characteristics.

Making the foreign familiar: The influence of top management team and board of directors characteristics on the adoption of foreign practices

Journal of World Business

This paper examines the firm-level antecedents of Six Sigma adoption in Korea. Our results indicate that firms with top executives and board members having work experience in the foreign country where the focal management practice originated and was popularized are more likely to adopt this practice. Furthermore, firms’ exposure to foreign investors exerts a direct effect and also moderates the impact of foreign work experience on adoption. Prior work experience in the country of practice origin reduces the uncertainty inherent in cross-border adoption by providing executives and board members with greater insight into the presumed benefits of the focal practice.

The degree of technological innovation: A demand heterogeneity perspective

Technological Forecasting and Social Change

A perennial question posed by work in the technology management domain is whether a firm should deploy a technology more advanced than its current one. While past research has provided us with a better understanding of the firm-level decision to invest in new technology, the degree of this advancement (relative to the technology inherent in existing company product offerings) remains a nascent phenomenon that the field has not fully addressed. Data on global flat panel display makers from 1995 through 2011 are analyzed to understand how competitive standing in distinct intra-industry technology segments affects a firm's degree of technological innovation. We adopt a demand heterogeneity perspective to develop hypotheses relating the degree to which more advanced technology is deployed to a firm's competitive share of a particular segment. Our findings demonstrate how segment share (a more refined unit of analysis than overall market share) encourages a firm to advance its technology and how intra-segment competition moderates this direct effect. The current study provides evidence that demand heterogeneity is operative not only at different stages of the technology life cycle, but also in different segments populated by users with divergent technological requirements.

Narcissists as consumers: The effects of perceived scarcity on processing of product information

Social Behavior and Personality

We examined how narcissists engage in information processing in a scarcity-related purchase situation. We proposed that narcissists would engage in purchase-related information processing in a way consistent with their conception of themselves as unique and distinctive and would tend to have a strong preference for scarce products that impart unique value. We also predicted that narcissists would tend to purchase scarce products without undertaking deliberate information processing regarding utilitarian product characteristics. We found that narcissists have a stronger preference for scarce products when compared to their non-narcissistic counterparts and that narcissists tend to purchase scarce products without engaging in deliberate information processing regarding utilitarian product characteristics.

Sequences of learning types for organizational ambidexterity

The Learning Organization

This paper aims to examine how distinct sequences of organizational learning types (experiential and vicarious) underpin processes of exploratory versus exploitative innovation. Data collection consists of 16 interviews conducted with senior personnel at two firms in the biopharmaceutical sector, with sequences of organizational learning types derived from the associated innovation projects. These sequences and their differential emphases on experiential or vicarious learning are used to construct a conceptual model. Propositions describe the structural differentiation and integration mechanisms useful to foster organizational ambidexterity.

Making the foreign familiar: The influence of top management team and board of directors characteristics on the adoption of foreign practices

Journal of World Business

This paper examines the firm-level antecedents of Six Sigma adoption in Korea. Our results indicate that firms with top executives and board members having work experience in the foreign country where the focal management practice originated and was popularized are more likely to adopt this practice. Furthermore, firms’ exposure to foreign investors exerts a direct effect and also moderates the impact of foreign work experience on adoption. Prior work experience in the country of practice origin reduces the uncertainty inherent in cross-border adoption by providing executives and board members with greater insight into the presumed benefits of the focal practice.

The degree of technological innovation: A demand heterogeneity perspective

Technological Forecasting and Social Change

A perennial question posed by work in the technology management domain is whether a firm should deploy a technology more advanced than its current one. While past research has provided us with a better understanding of the firm-level decision to invest in new technology, the degree of this advancement (relative to the technology inherent in existing company product offerings) remains a nascent phenomenon that the field has not fully addressed. Data on global flat panel display makers from 1995 through 2011 are analyzed to understand how competitive standing in distinct intra-industry technology segments affects a firm's degree of technological innovation. We adopt a demand heterogeneity perspective to develop hypotheses relating the degree to which more advanced technology is deployed to a firm's competitive share of a particular segment. Our findings demonstrate how segment share (a more refined unit of analysis than overall market share) encourages a firm to advance its technology and how intra-segment competition moderates this direct effect. The current study provides evidence that demand heterogeneity is operative not only at different stages of the technology life cycle, but also in different segments populated by users with divergent technological requirements.

Narcissists as consumers: The effects of perceived scarcity on processing of product information

Social Behavior and Personality

We examined how narcissists engage in information processing in a scarcity-related purchase situation. We proposed that narcissists would engage in purchase-related information processing in a way consistent with their conception of themselves as unique and distinctive and would tend to have a strong preference for scarce products that impart unique value. We also predicted that narcissists would tend to purchase scarce products without undertaking deliberate information processing regarding utilitarian product characteristics. We found that narcissists have a stronger preference for scarce products when compared to their non-narcissistic counterparts and that narcissists tend to purchase scarce products without engaging in deliberate information processing regarding utilitarian product characteristics.

Sequences of learning types for organizational ambidexterity

The Learning Organization

This paper aims to examine how distinct sequences of organizational learning types (experiential and vicarious) underpin processes of exploratory versus exploitative innovation. Data collection consists of 16 interviews conducted with senior personnel at two firms in the biopharmaceutical sector, with sequences of organizational learning types derived from the associated innovation projects. These sequences and their differential emphases on experiential or vicarious learning are used to construct a conceptual model. Propositions describe the structural differentiation and integration mechanisms useful to foster organizational ambidexterity.

Organisational Learning Sequences in Technological Innovation: Evidence from the Biopharmaceutical and Medical Device Sectors

International Journal of Innovation Management

Organisations engage in various activities designed to foster effective learning. Three forms of learning with important implications for the innovation process are experiential (whereby firms gain relevant insights through direct experience with patterns of action), vicarious (observation of external activities, with inference and other attributions being employed to reconstruct the underlying processes) and inter-organisational (direct contact with outside entities). This paper examines the influence of these forms of learning throughout the process of technological innovation. Using interview and archival data from 11 innovation projects in biopharmaceuticals and medical devices, I uncover evidence of three distinct learning sequences: (1) intensive-externalising (IE); (2) intensive-internalising (II); and (3) expansive-internalising (EI). The sequences vary both in the breadth of learning forms utilised and in the degree to which resultant knowledge is internalised as subsequent innovations are pursued. These findings offer useful insights into the locus and sources of learning for innovation processes in technologically complex settings.

Making the foreign familiar: The influence of top management team and board of directors characteristics on the adoption of foreign practices

Journal of World Business

This paper examines the firm-level antecedents of Six Sigma adoption in Korea. Our results indicate that firms with top executives and board members having work experience in the foreign country where the focal management practice originated and was popularized are more likely to adopt this practice. Furthermore, firms’ exposure to foreign investors exerts a direct effect and also moderates the impact of foreign work experience on adoption. Prior work experience in the country of practice origin reduces the uncertainty inherent in cross-border adoption by providing executives and board members with greater insight into the presumed benefits of the focal practice.

The degree of technological innovation: A demand heterogeneity perspective

Technological Forecasting and Social Change

A perennial question posed by work in the technology management domain is whether a firm should deploy a technology more advanced than its current one. While past research has provided us with a better understanding of the firm-level decision to invest in new technology, the degree of this advancement (relative to the technology inherent in existing company product offerings) remains a nascent phenomenon that the field has not fully addressed. Data on global flat panel display makers from 1995 through 2011 are analyzed to understand how competitive standing in distinct intra-industry technology segments affects a firm's degree of technological innovation. We adopt a demand heterogeneity perspective to develop hypotheses relating the degree to which more advanced technology is deployed to a firm's competitive share of a particular segment. Our findings demonstrate how segment share (a more refined unit of analysis than overall market share) encourages a firm to advance its technology and how intra-segment competition moderates this direct effect. The current study provides evidence that demand heterogeneity is operative not only at different stages of the technology life cycle, but also in different segments populated by users with divergent technological requirements.

Narcissists as consumers: The effects of perceived scarcity on processing of product information

Social Behavior and Personality

We examined how narcissists engage in information processing in a scarcity-related purchase situation. We proposed that narcissists would engage in purchase-related information processing in a way consistent with their conception of themselves as unique and distinctive and would tend to have a strong preference for scarce products that impart unique value. We also predicted that narcissists would tend to purchase scarce products without undertaking deliberate information processing regarding utilitarian product characteristics. We found that narcissists have a stronger preference for scarce products when compared to their non-narcissistic counterparts and that narcissists tend to purchase scarce products without engaging in deliberate information processing regarding utilitarian product characteristics.

Sequences of learning types for organizational ambidexterity

The Learning Organization

This paper aims to examine how distinct sequences of organizational learning types (experiential and vicarious) underpin processes of exploratory versus exploitative innovation. Data collection consists of 16 interviews conducted with senior personnel at two firms in the biopharmaceutical sector, with sequences of organizational learning types derived from the associated innovation projects. These sequences and their differential emphases on experiential or vicarious learning are used to construct a conceptual model. Propositions describe the structural differentiation and integration mechanisms useful to foster organizational ambidexterity.

Organisational Learning Sequences in Technological Innovation: Evidence from the Biopharmaceutical and Medical Device Sectors

International Journal of Innovation Management

Organisations engage in various activities designed to foster effective learning. Three forms of learning with important implications for the innovation process are experiential (whereby firms gain relevant insights through direct experience with patterns of action), vicarious (observation of external activities, with inference and other attributions being employed to reconstruct the underlying processes) and inter-organisational (direct contact with outside entities). This paper examines the influence of these forms of learning throughout the process of technological innovation. Using interview and archival data from 11 innovation projects in biopharmaceuticals and medical devices, I uncover evidence of three distinct learning sequences: (1) intensive-externalising (IE); (2) intensive-internalising (II); and (3) expansive-internalising (EI). The sequences vary both in the breadth of learning forms utilised and in the degree to which resultant knowledge is internalised as subsequent innovations are pursued. These findings offer useful insights into the locus and sources of learning for innovation processes in technologically complex settings.

Innovative tension for present and future success: Encouraging corporate entrepreneurship in the modern organization

ESADE MBA Business Review