Research Methods in International Business - METH60013A.

H2020
H2020 J01

Presentation
Description

This seminar was conceived to help students to understand qualitative and quantitative research methods
and to select the most appropriate for studying the complex situations we found in the international
business field.
Its first objective is to present the most important tools and principles mobilized to carry out high quality
research. By the end of this course, the students will be able to "read" academic literature in international
business, qualitative and quantitative studies included. Its second objective is to allow students that are
seeking to carry out a dissertation or a supervised project in international business to build a research
project with rigor and confidence. By the end of this course, the students will be able to formulate a
research question and to design a research strategy to address it. Most of the knowledge discussed for a
dissertation are also important for a supervised project or for those who seek to follow a career as experts or
consultants needing to produce high quality reports within their field of expertise.
Themes
Introduction to research in international business
A global vision of qualitative methods
A global vision of quantitative methods
The formulation of a research question
How to structure a literature review
The conceptual model or the theoretical framework
The elaboration of a research protocol
The ethical issues of research
Different techniques to data collection
Different techniques to data analysis

Objectives

Short description : :
This seminar was conceived to help students to understand research methods and to select the most
appropriate tools for studying the complex situations we find in the international business field. It was
conceived to discover the most important qualitative and quantitative research methods applied to
management and more particularly to international management.

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Presentation and objectives of the seminar:
Its first objective is to present the most important tools and principles mobilized to carry out high quality
research. By the end of this course, the students will be able to “read” academic literature in international
business, qualitative and quantitative studies included. Its second objective is to allow students that are
seeking to carry out a dissertation or a supervised project in international business to build a research
project with rigor and confidence. By the end of this course, the students will be able to formulate a
research question and to design a research strategy to address it. Most of the knowledge discussed for a
dissertation are also important for a supervised project or for those who seek to follow a career as experts or
consultants needing to produce high quality reports within their field of expertise.

Deadlines for Deliverables

Assignment Deadline Points
D1 – Research Question 17/01 (S2) 1
D2 = Revised D1 + Initial literature review (table) 24/01 (S3) 1
D3 – Quantitative article exercise 31/01 (S4) 1
D4 – Roundtable Qualitative research 07/02 (S5) 1
D5 – Revised D1+D2+ Conceptual Framework 14/02 (S6) 1
21/02 (S7) - Initial draft for
D6 - Revised D1+D2+D5 + Research Strategy 1
feedback
D7 - Revised D1+D2+D5 +D6+ Interview Guide 06/03 (S8) 1
D8 - Ethics in research exercises March 31st 2
D9 – Transcribed interview + Coding Atlas TI March 31st 2
D10 – Full draft of final individual assignment 07/04 (S12) 1

Contact Information
Lecturer(s)

Natalia Aguilar Delgado

Assistant Professor
Email: natalia.aguilar-delgado@hec.ca
Phone Number: 514-340-6714
Office: 3.201

Administrative Staff

Marjorie Lamarre
Assistant to Academic Activities

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Email: marjorie.lamarre@hec.ca
Phone Number: 514-340-6188
Office: 3.204

Learning Material

Evaluations
IMPORTANT

Evaluation Guidelines
For the evaluation of learning outcomes, certain institutional guidelines have to be respected. For more
information…
Your main duty: attending class
According to the School’s rules, students are expected to attend classes (or course activities). Instructors are
not required to provide any additional help or adapt courses or evaluations due to a student’s absence.
Intellectual integrity: everybody wins!
Note that any evaluation may be run through software analysis to detect similarities. Find out how to avoid
plagiarism and be careful when working on group assignments and co-operating with other students outside
the classroom. For more information on intellectual integrity.
Exams: things to check before the big day
1. Make sure your student card is valid. For more information
2. Check the exam time and location on HEC en ligne.
3. Find out what materials you are allowed to bring into the exam, on your course’s site.
4. Is your calculator the approved type? For more information…

1 - Contribution to discussion and activities of preparation to each class (20 %)

Description

The quality of a seminar depends on the participation of the students. Attendance, punctuality and active
participation in discussions are required of each student to foster a learning environment for the group as a
whole. Coming to class with questions related to the course objectives and contributing to answering the
questions of other participants represent the basis of excellent class participation. For this reason,
attendance is taken into consideration. One justified absence is tolerated – please use private messaging on
Zonecours to inform the Instructor in advance. Beyond this one-time tolerance, points of participation are to
be lost per absence. Students should be mindful that following HEC's regulations instructors are not obliged
to accomodate absent students. Students are also required to read the mandatory readings for each session.
Based on these readings as well as other sources, the quality and quantity of observations made in every
single class and the assignments made out of class are evaluated. Evaluation Criteria for Participation in
class (10 points) Each student starts at zero and must win his or her participation points: A grade between 0
and 4 indicates an effort below recommended requirements for a graduate-level class; a grade between 4
and 6, an average-level performance; between 7 and 8, important contributions that nevertheless were
inconsistent or lacking depth; and finally, a grade between 9 and 10 points attests that the student highly
and regularly contributed to his own learning as well as that of others throughout the semester Evaluation of
Individual Assignments (10 points) The individual participation will also be evaluated on the basis of a

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series of assignments that are in fact a way to help you in the advancement of your individual project . Each
deliverable is worth 1 point and will be graded. All deliverables have a specific deadline and no late
submissions are accepted. They should be uploaded at zonecours (in the list of assignments section), with
the following format: Name in file: D?.FirstName-LastName.doc Ex: D1.Leo-Cruz.doc Times new roman,
12, simple interligne.

Miscellaneous Resources

Assignment Deadline Points D1 – Research Question 16-01 (S2) 3pm 1 D2 = Revised D1 + Initial
literature review (table) 23-01 (S3) 3pm 1 D3 – Revised D1+D2+ Conceptual Framework 30-01 (S4) 3pm
1 D4 – Roundtable Quali 06-02 (S5) 3pm 1 D5 – Quantitative research – guiding questions 13-02 (S6) 3pm
1 D6 - Revised D1+D2+D5 + Research Strategy – INDIVIDUAL FEEDBACK 20-02 (S7) 3pm 1 D7 -
Revised D1+D2+D5 +D6+ Interview Guide 05-03 (S8) 3pm 1 D8 - Research Ethics exercises March 31st 2
D9 – Transcribed interview + codification exercise March 31st 2 D10 – Full draft of Individual Research
Proposal 07-04 midnight 1

2 - Elaboration of a proposal for a research project (40 %)

Description

Each student should elaborate a preliminary but well-structured proposal of a feasible research project
(ideally with a topic related to its dissertation or supervised project) in international business. The content
of the project will be progressively built during the semester.

Evaluation Criteria

Preparation to Evaluation

3 - Peer review report of a research project of a colleague (10 %)

Description

Each student will review the research project of a colleague. This means that each student will receive a
short description elaborated by a colleague, with recommendations to improve his (her) research project in
progress.
Deadline: April 14th , before 9am

Evaluation Criteria

Criteria Points
QUALITY

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 The report highlights the main strengths and weaknesses, showing the student 3
understand the work;
The report provides recommendations for improvement that are useful and coherent with
the work examined; 3
The proposed analysis appropriately integrates the materials and recommendations
presented and discussed in class and found in other sources (correct citation of sources).
3
TONE AND FORMAT
Constructive and developmental tone in the suggestions. 0,5
Easy to follow format/style.
0,5
TOTAL 10

Preparation to Evaluation

1. The full draft of final individual projects should be sent 1 week before the final session (failure to
comply with the deadline may result in the loss of 20% of the grade). The drafts will be assigned to students
in class by the professor.
2. Each student will write down around two pages highlighting strengths and weaknesses for each section
(if appropriate), providing recommendations to the colleague on how to improve those based on appropriate
materials (use citations).
3. Be ready to justify your recommendations to your colleague. Participation in the feedback session at the
last session (session 13) is MANDATORY! Penalization is 20% off the graded assignment for those who
do not provide oral feedback.

4 - Presentation and critical evaluation of a dissertation (teamwork 25%) + Peer Evaluation

(5%) (30 %)
Work Mode : Team

Description

The students will present and evaluate a research project using one of the methods discussed in the seminar.
The research project could be a dissertation or a doctoral thesis (published at the HEC Montreal library).

Group 1 Group 2 Group 3 Group 4

Alexis A. Lilia Xuemei Eva
sarah Miles Shireen Rutuja
Alexis S. Catherine Ghazal Victor,
Pushkin Nooran Solaleh Samantha

Evaluation Criteria

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Preparation to Evaluation

FORMAT : 15’ to 20’ oral presentation followed by 10’ Q&A from audience Present the problem, research
question, literature/ key concepts (if available conceptual framework) and main findings briefly. Spend
more time to present the research design (what the person did, including relevant appendix such as
interview protocols if available, and how it justified its choices); FOCUS should be given to the analysis of
research design’ weaknesses and strengths, providing recommendations for improvement based on our
materials (citing them correctly throughout the presentation); Analyze as well the coherence of the different
parts of the dissertation and evaluate the overall quality of the methodology (using the appropriate set of
criteria); No need to write a report, only printed slides delivered to me on the day of the presentation are
enough with a final slide where you describe the bibliography utilized for recommendations. Utilize
annotations/comments if necessary to avoid overloading the slides with information.

Course Organization
S1 – Introduction to research in international business: qualitative and quantitative methods

Description

· Seminar’s objectives and students’ presentation

· Qualitative and quantitative research in management and in international business
· The constitutive blocks of a research project : the substantive, the conceptual and the
methodological domains
· The formulation of an initial research question

Activities/Resources before session

Activities/Resources during session

Complementary Resources

S2- The research question and the literature review

Description

Discussion of the students’ research questions

How to structure a literature review
How to explore the databases

Deliverable 1:

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D1 Research question
Write down your initial research question
Write a short paragraph to explain what you want to understand, explain or discover.
Explain in what terms your question is relevant.
These three elements should fit in 1 page (Times New Roman 12, simple interline)!

vDon't forget to print your research question and bring it to class (Ex: Times New Roman 48) and
also your laptop to be able to perform exercises with the librarian!

Activities/Resources before session

Readings:

Activities/Resources during session

Activities/Resources after session

Complementary Resources

S3 - The conceptual framework

Description

The role of theory in a research project : inductive, deductive, mixed

The nature of theoretical models
Building a theoretical positioning in a research project or a supervised project: conceptual framework,
theoretical model, propositions, hypothesis, concepts, and analytical frame.
Deliverable 2 :
D2= D1+Initial literature review
•Select at least 10 articles in peer reviewed publications related to your research question.
•Read articles and develop a table with the synthesis.
•Write one or two paragraphs where you classify these articles according to a theoretical dimension
(concepts, theories, research tradition) or chronology (historical study).
•Try to identify a gap in the understanding previous literature brings us (1 paragraph)
•Provide a complete list of the bibliographical references.

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D1 = revise your research question+ explanation + relevance with references
These two elements should fit in 2 pages (Times New Roman 12, simple interline)!

Activities/Resources before session

Readings :

Miles, M.B., and Huberman, A.M. (2014) . «Qualitative Data Analysis: a Sourcebook of New Methods,»
[]
Other link
Chapter 2 – Focusing and bounding the collection of data. (parts A and B only)

Complementary Resources

S4 – The case study

Description

- Different types of case study

- theoretical sampling
- triangulation
- replication
- generalization in case studies
•Deliverable 3:
•D3 = Revised D1+ D2 + Conceptual Framework
•Revisit your research question and align your preliminary literature review (adding or excluding articles if
you wish)
•Create your conceptual framework through a graphic design (in around 1 page), presenting the main
concepts that help to understand your phenomenon (dimensions, constructs, factors, variables, processes,
parametres, etc.) of your framework, lens or theory.
Do not forget to provide a complete list of your references.

Activities/Resources before session

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Activities/Resources during session

Miscellaneous Resources

Complementary Resources

Eisenhardt, Kathleen M (1989-10-01) . «Building Theories From Case Study Research» , Academy of
Management. The Academy of Management Review , vol. 14 , no. 4
ISSN: 0363-7425
[]

S5 – Overview of qualitative methods

Description

An overview of qualitative methods:

Ethnography,
Action research
Archival Research
Grounded theory
Discourse analysis
Deliverable 4: Roundtable on Qualitative Methods
Each student will be assigned a specific method. Answer the following questions (providing appropriate
citations):
Questions :
•What is this method about? Give central definitions using academic readings.
•How would you put it in place ?– steps, phases, concepts, stages.
•Look for an example of published research in our field that utilizes the methods.
•Include the PDF of the article .
Be ready to discuss it in class.

Activities/Resources before session

Assignments for roundtable:

Ethnography Action-research Grounded theory Archival Research Critical Discours

Analysis
Historical methods

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Eva Lilia Miles Ghazal Samantha

Alexis A Rutuja Nooran Alexis S Shireen

Catherine Victor Sarah Xuemei Pushkin

Solaleh

Complementary Resources

S6 – Overview of quantitative methods

Description

An overview of quantitative methods:

Sampling techniques
Survey
Challenges in IB research

Activities/Resources before session

Mandatory:

Complementary Readings :

Examples of interesting quantitative readings:

Erkko Autio (2000-10-01) . «Effects of age at entry, knowledge intensity, and imitability on international
growth» , Academy of Management Journal , vol. 43 , no. 5
ISSN: 0001-4273
[]

Herrmann, Pol (2002) . «CEO Successor Characteristics and the Choice of Foreign Market Entry Mode: An
Empirical Study» , Journal of International Business Studies , vol. 33 , no. 3
ISSN: 0047-2506
[]

Hofstede, G (2006) . «What did GLOBE really measure? Researchers' minds versus respondents' minds» ,
Journal of International Business Studies , vol. 37 , no. 6

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ISSN: 0047-2506
[]

Activities/Resources during session

S7 – Building a Research Design

Description

Building a research design

Quality criteria

Activities/Resources before session

Readings :

Activities/Resources during session

Miscellaneous Resources

Complementary Resources

S8 – A research project in practice: data collection

Description

- The different techniques for data collection

· Interviews (planning, doing, transcribing, etc.)
· Observation (participant, non-participant, the field notes, etc.)
· Documents (types, sources, types of analyse, etc.)
- The concept of triangulation
D7: Interview Guide
Based on your research question and your conceptual framework, formulate a preliminary interview
guide with 6 to questions based on your topic of research.

Activities/Resources before session

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Readings :

Activities/Resources during session

Complementary Resources

S9- Interview practice (Office hours)

Description

•For Session 9, we do not have a formal class !

•Office hours on March 13th (office 3.201 CSC Building)
•D8 (transcribed interview + list of preliminary codes – only due on March 20th!)

Activities/Resources before session

Readings :

Complementary Resources

Vaara, E. et Tienari, J. (2005) . «Handbook of Qualitative Research Methods for International

Business»
[]
Other link
INTERESTING CHAPTERS FROM THIS BOOK FOR INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS ISSUES
Marschan-Piekkari, R., Welch, C., Penttinen, H. Tahvanainen, M. (2005) Interviewing in the
Multinational Corporation: Challenges of the organizational context, chap. 12, p. 244-263, dans Marschan-
Piekkari, R. and Welch, C. Handbook of Qualitative Research Methods for International Business,
Cheltenham, UK, Edward Elgar Pub.

de Geer, Hans Tommy Borglund et Magnus Frostenson, «Interpreting the International Firm: Going
Beyond Interviews», chap. 16, p. 324-341, dans Marschan-Piekkari, R. and Welch, C. Handbook of
Qualitative Research Methods for International Business, Cheltenham, UK, Edward Elgar Pub.

Daniels, John D. and Mark V. Cannice, «Interview Studies in International Business Research», chap. 9,
p. 185-206 dans Marschan-Piekkari, R. and Welch, C. Handbook of Qualitative Research Methods for
International Business, Cheltenham, UK, Edward Elgar Pub.

Wilkinson, Ian et Young, Louise «Improvisation and Adaptation in International Business Research
Interviews », chap. 10, p. 207223, dans Marschan-Piekkari, R. and Welch, C. Handbook of Qualitative
Research Methods for International Business, Cheltenham, UK, Edward Elgar Pub.

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 Marschan-Piekkari, R. et Reis, C. (2005) Language and Languages in Cross-cultural Interviewing, chap.
11, p. 224-244, dans Marschan-Piekkari, R. Welch, C. Handbook of Qualitative Research Methods for
International Business, Cheltenham, UK, Edward Elgar Pub.

S10 – Research Ethics (NEW)

Description

STATA LABORATORY SUSPENDED!

New topic is Ethical considerations in research.
Check new mandatory reading below, the slides and the mandatory video (necessary to complete D8).
There is also a quiz waiting for you on this topic.
*Don't forget to Consult tegrity for additional material for this session (video already uploaded as of March
16th)*
We have Zoom meeting this Friday (March 20th from 11 to noon), where we'll talk about the interview
assignment. We can also take a look at the complementary exercises on research ethics together. At the end
I'll open for questions on the assignments/materials.
For those of you unable to attend the meeting, I'll be recording it. We'll do our best to accommodate
everyone.

CLICK ON THE LINK BELOW TO JOIN THE MEETING:

https://zoom.us/j/147814627
*I'll be at room a few minutes before the meeting, so for those of you who is the first time using Zoom, be
sure to test the link prior to the beginning of the session.

Activities/Resources before session

Mandatory Reading:

Mandatory video:
Professor ZIMBARDO’S STANFORD PRISON experiment
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DsWJPNhLCUU

Activities/Resources during session

Complementary Resources

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S11 – Laboratory of qualitative methods:ATLAS TI

Description

Codification Pre-existing and emergent labels Using Atlas TI INSTRUCTIONS FOR THE SESSION 1- To
prepare, you will need your transcribed interview (either interview conducted by you in person or via Skype
OR Transcript of an interview on related topic for those unable to find interviewee - at least 2 to 3 pages) +
list of preliminary codes (6 to 8 key concepts stemming from your conceptual framework) to be able to
complete the Exercise of Codification at ATLAS TI (which will complement your new D9)* *Precise
instructions on the exercise are available at the Tegrity video Part B). 2-Read the mandatory reading Miles
and Saldana 2014 and Watch the Tegrity video (part A) 3- Download the free trial version of Atlas TI
(there are two versions available : Windows and Mac) https://atlasti.com/free-trial-version/ 4-Watch the
Atlas TI Demos - Demonstration on creating a list of codes (around 5') https://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=lX9mrReWspI Demonstration about how to code on Atlas TI (around 9') https://www.youtube.com
/watch?v=nVoVQEvK7OM Coloring and grouping codes (around 5') https://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=Aui51LRdKEk Additional fonctionalities (around 5') https://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=RUXCDD1DIKw 5- Watch the TEGRITY Video (still unavailable) to see details of the assignment and
complete a first draft from your side. 6-Don't forget our online meeting via Zoom: S11 –– Topic: Atlas TI
exercise (this session is about issue solving - please try to do the exercise by yourself before our meeting)
Schedule: 27/03 11 to noon Meeting : https://zoom.us/j/651224258

Activities/Resources before session

Activities/Resources during session

Complementary Resources

Elliott, V. (2018). Thinking about the Coding Process in Qualitative Data Analysis. The Qualitative Report,
23(11), 2850-2861. Retrieved from https://nsuworks.nova.edu/tqr/vol23/iss11/14/

Good tips on how to create codes in ATLAS TI.

https://atlasti.com/2017/03/16/make-best-codes-atlas-ti/

S12 – Group presentations

Description

Format of Presentation: 15’ oral presentation RECORDED (slides +voice using the tool of your choice:
Tegrity, Power Point, Zoom, etc). I request the submission at ZC of the PPT presentation + the link to the
presentation by the deadline April 3rd (noon). - Q&A section will take place at the Forum from April 3rd to
10th. You are expected to post relevant questions to other groups and to answer to all the questions
addressed to your group with professionalism. In that sense, there will be a minor readjustment in the
evaluation criteria to accommodate 5 points to assess your exchanges at the Forum. The peer review
evaluation deadline is also April 3rd (if you do not complete the available form at ZC by this deadline, I’ll

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assume that all your teammates get 5 points each). Please consider our current circumstances when doing
the evaluation.

Group 1 Group 2 Group 3 Group 4

Alexis A. Lilia Xuemei Eva
sarah Miles Shireen Rutuja
Alexis S. Catherine Ghazal Victor,
Pushkin Nooran Solaleh Samantha
Factors enhancing the
internationalization process of
born-globals : a comparative
case study of the role of theControversies around CSR
The impact of talent Green Practices and thegovernmental support in thesustainable development : the
management transparencyResilience of SupplyMontreal cleantech sector.stakeholders in the spir
on employee’s outcomes Chains. Tabish Mohd. Ivanova, Bazhena, 2017 hypocrisy. Susana Esper

Activities/Resources during session

Below you will find the presentations of the group critique assignment. Please watch all of them and go to
the Forum session to raise to your colleagues from April 3rd to April 10 th (5 points of the evaluation will
be tied to the quality of interventions - more details in the Evaluation session).

Complementary Resources

S13 – Feedback and Conclusion

Description

For session 13, I’ll be preparing a recap quiz that we should be constructing together in the next weeks. I’
ll open a new assignment for you (Deliverable 11) in which you should send me questions and answers
pertaining to specific topics (more instructions will follow).
I’ll send you an invitation for the online meeting on April 14th from 11am to noon and we’ll play the
final game together online.
We’ll also give some time for questions on the feedback for the final assignment and closing reflections
on the class.

Activities/Resources during session

Complementary Resources

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