Strategy and Business Policy

The HEC Paris PhD program brought me 3 things - open-mindedness, a network and credibility. I met students, managers, and entrepreneurs from all four corners of the world which challenged my vision of business.

Anicet Fangwa, PhD 2022, Assistant Professor, McGill University

The Strategy and Business Policy specialization addresses why and how firms garner and sustain a competitive advantage, and how they can benefit from adapting to and leading societal and technological change.

Topics covered include innovation, organization, competition, and institutional problems. Particular emphasis was recently placed on alliances, M&A, integration strategies, institutional changes, social responsibility, entrepreneurship and technology strategy.

The program maintains close ties with the interdisciplinary Sustainability & Organizations Institute, which supports research on Purposeful Leadership, on the Inclusive Economy, on Climate, and provides a platform for field experiments through the Impact Company Lab.

A state-of-the-art research

Research professors of the department regularly publish in Top Academic journals. In 2020, the Strategy and Business Policy department would have ranked #4 among all US Management Departments in number of publications in the 5 main Strategy journals (Strategic Management Journal, Academy of Management Review, Academy of Management Journal, Organization Science, Administrative Science Quarterly.

Main specialization field courses (non-exhaustive list)

Competitive Strategy and Firm Heterogeneity
Corporate Strategy
Corporate Purpose: Defining and Researching it
Foundations of Strategy
Innovation Strategy
Institutional Theory and Analysis
Non-market Strategy
Sociological & Organizational Perspectives on Entrepreneurship
Value-based Strategy and Formal Modeling
See global course examples here

Students may join courses from other specializations to broaden their knowledge.

Research Seminars

Most academic departments organize research seminars on a regular basis as well as many other academic events, which are available to all PhD students from all specializations. Students are encouraged to join these seminars already from the first year of studies. They give students a good idea of what they are expected to produce. They are also a good way to socialize with the professors of the departments and the other PhD students.