Technology and Operations Management

Faculty List & Specializations

News & Activities

Ambidexterity no easy balancing act for R&D firms: SFU Beedie study

July 11, 2011

Can ambidexterity, a trait that’s often associated with exceptional athletes, be applied to organizations -- from biotech companies to government agencies -- immersed in research and development? It’s a question recently put forth by researchers Ian McCarthy and Brian Gordon from the Beedie School of Business at Simon Fraser University. ... Read More >>

Is business ready to embrace the power of slow?

January 25, 2011

Managers and scholars have long been interested in how industry dynamics govern the creation and erosion of competitive advantage. As competitive advantages are temporary, especially in fast changing industries, a cover of Business Week asked “Is Your Company Fast Enough?” and we have popular business book and magazines with titles such as Fast Company, “Business @ the Speed of Thought”, and “The Age of Speed”.

A groundbreaking research article from Simon Fraser University, however, dispels the notion that the activities of firms must be uniformly high speed to attain business success. It ... Read More >>

Companies can't turn blind eye to consumers who hack, manipulate products: SFU Business study

December 21, 2010

December 23, 2010

Companies need to face up to a new wave of empowered consumers who are tinkering and altering their products, according to a new, award-winning study from the Faculty of Business Administration at Simon Fraser University.

The assertion comes in the wake of some high-profile hacking of proprietary technology offerings – including the unlocking of Apple’s iPhone 4, and the hacking of Microsoft’s Kinect gaming device.

Entitled "Creative Consumers: Awareness, Attitude & Action - Instrument & Preliminary Results", the article was authored by Colin Campbell, a doctoral student in marketing at Simon Fraser University, Pierre R. Berthon, professor of marketing at ... Read More >>

Stephanie Bertels on embedding sustainability into organizational culture

October 25, 2010

On October 21, 3BL Media caught up with SFU Business Assistant Prof. Stephanie Bertels during the 2010 Canadian Business for Social Responsibility (CBSR) conference in Toronto.

CBSR, a non-profit, member-led organization that mobilizes Canadian companies to make powerful business decisions that improve performance and contribute to a better world and 3BL Media, a leading CSR and sustainability communications company, have partnered to raise awareness about organization's efforts and progress around corporate social responsibility efforts.

Click here to see the interview. ... Read More >>

University Research Parks and Incubators: The Rio Experience

July 13, 2010

The U.S. State Dept and the Fulbright Program have awarded Ian P. McCarthy, Associate Professor and Canada Research Chair in Technology & Operations Management, a grant to study university research parks, incubators, and the associated technology transfer programs run by the Genesis Institute, BIO-RIO and the Technology Park of Rio de Janeiro. ... Read More >>

Ian McCarthy's Canada Research Chair Renewed

October 26, 2009

The Honourable Gary Goodyear, Minister of State (Science and Technology), formally announced 181 Canada Research Chairs newly awarded or renewed in 45 Canadian universities. As part of that announcement, Associate Professor Ian McCarthy's Canada Research Chair in Technology and Operations Research has been renewed for five years.

... Read More >>

Business Prof Has One Foot in Oil Patch

October 23, 2009

From SFU News Online.

By Barry Shell

In April 2009, Alberta oil-sands giant Suncor Energy was fined $675,000 for not installing pollution-control equipment at one of its plants near Fort McMurray.

But in a gratifying turn for academics, the provincial court applied something new called creative sentencing, which in part resulted in a $315,000 research project for SFU Business assistant professor Stephanie Bertels and colleagues at the University of Calgary.

The project will examine the nature of Suncor’s violation in ... Read More >>

Stephanie Bertels Named as Co-investigator on Regulatory Compliance Study

April 16, 2009

SFU Business assistant professor Stephanie Bertels has been named as a co-investigator in an 18-month study on regulatory compliance. As part of an experiment in creative sentencing, Suncor is funding an investigation into the antecedents of regulatory compliance and the creative sentencing process. The research study will housed at the International Resource Industries and Sustainability Centre (IRIS) at the University of Calgary and directed by Prof. Frances Bowen. ... Read More >>

Stephanie Bertels’ Article Accepted by the Journal of Business Ethics

February 16, 2009

Associate Professor Stephanie Bertels’ article titled, “Leaders and Laggards: The Influence of Competing Logics on Corporate Environmental Action” was recently accepted by the Journal of Business Ethics.

... Read More >>

2006/7 Scholarly Activities Report

December 1, 2008

Download a copy of the 2006/7 Scholarly Activities Report. ... Read More >>

Research Kudos

March 1, 2007

Professor Lindsay Meredith has won an Emerald Management Reviews Citation of Excellence for his article "A diagrammatical template for business market demand estimation" which appeared in the Industrial Marketing Management May 2006 (Vol 35, No 4). ... Read More >>

SFU Business Faculty Reap Almost $500,000 in SSHRC/NSERC Grants

October 1, 2006

SFU Business research projects have garnered almost $500,000 in research grants from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) and the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC).

... Read More >>

Featured Faculty

Ian McCarthy Awarded Fulbright New Century Scholar

February 12, 2009

SFU Business is proud to announce Dr. Ian McCarthy as a Fulbright New Century Scholar (NCS) for the May 2009 to April 2010 term. ... Read More >>

Awards & Achievements

• NSERC Discovery Grant: Issues in Preference Calibration under Multiple Criteria. (2005-2009)

• United States Association for Small Business and Entrepreneurship: 2006 Journal of Small Business Strategy Editor’s Choice Award for “Stakeholder Theory and the Entreprenurial Firm” presented at the 2005 USASBE conference.

• NSERC Discovery Grant: Sustainable Operations: Design and Management of Environmentally Conscious Products and Production. (2006-2011)

• SSHRC Standard Research Grant: Opportunity Creation from the Confluence of Technologies. (2006-2010)
• SSHRC Initiative on the New Economy: Disseminating Results from INE Research Study on Commercializing Advanced Materials. (2006-2008)
• Community Trust Endowment Fund: Advanced Materials and Nanotechnology for Medical Application. (2006-2011)
• SSHRC Initiative on the New Economy Grant: Growth of New Technology Based Firms in the Advanced Materials Industry. (2003-2006)

• SSHRC Special Call in Management Business and Finance: How Do University Research Parks Help Their Firms? (2008-2011, with Tom Lawrence)
• SSHRC Standard Research Grant: Performance Measurement and Benchmarking of Biotechnology Firms. (2004-2007)
• Canada Research Chair (2004-2009)

• Soh, PH, Roberts, E. (2005). Technology Alliances and Networks: An External Link to Research Capability. IEEE Transactions on Engineering Management, 52(4), November, pp. 419-428. (Best Paper Award, honorable mention)

Recent Faculty Books

• McCarthy I. P. and Gordon B. (Forthcoming). Leveraging Dynamic Capabilities: A Contingent Management Control System Approach. In Wall, S., Zimmerman, C., Klingebiel, R. and Lange, D. (Eds.), Strategic Reconfigurations: Developing Dynamic Capabilities in Rapid-Innovation Based Industries. Cheltenham, UK: Edward Elgar.

• Calinescu A., Efstathiou A., MacCarthy B., McCarthy I. P., Deshmukh A., Parmee I., and Machwe A. (Forthcoming). Agent-based Modelling in Manufacturing Supply Networks: Potential Benefits and Open Questions. In Coping with Complexity: Understanding and Managing Complex Agent-Based Dynamic Networks Series Title - Complex Systems and Interdisciplinary Science. World Scientific.

Research Papers

For full papers, please contact the authors.

Journal Articles Published

·         Kietzmann, J. H., Hermkens, K., McCarthy, I. P. and Silvestre, B. S. (2011). Social Media? Get Serious! Understanding the Functional Building Blocks of Social Media. Business Horizons, 54:241-251. (Download PDF of the Paper)

·         McCarthy, I. P. and Gordon, B. R. (2011). Achieving Contextual Ambidexterity in R&D Organizations: A Management Control System Approach. R&D Management, 41.3:240-258. (Download PDF of the Paper)

·         Gupta, S., Subramanian, R. and Talbot, B. (2010). An Approach to Integrating Environmental Considerations within Managerial Decision Making. Journal of Industrial Ecology, 14.3:378-398. [Journal Abstract]

·         Maine, E., Shapiro, D. and Vining, A. (2010). The Role of Clustering in the Growth of New Technology-based Firms. Small Business Economics, 34.1:127-146. [Journal Abstract]

·         McCarthy, I. P., Pitt, L. F. and Berthon, P. R. (2010). Service Customization Through Dramaturgy. In Flavio S. Fogliatto and Giovani J.C. da Silveria (Eds.) Mass Customization - Engineering and Managing Global Operations (p.43-64). Spinger, London. (Download PDF of the Chapter)

·         McCarthy, I. P., Lawrence, T. B., Wixted, B. and Gordon, B. R. (2010). A Multidimensional Conceptualization of Environmental Velocity. Academy of Management Review, 35.4:604-626. (Download PDF of the Paper)

·         Soh, P., Zhang, J. and Wong, P. K. (2010). Entrepreneurial Resource Acquisition through Indirect Ties: Compensatory Effects of Prior Knowledge. Journal of Management, 36.2:511-536. [Journal Abstract]

·         Gupta, S., Greenberg, J. and Luo, X. (2009). Mutually Acceptable Courses of Action. Economic Theory, 40.1:91-112.

·         Gupta, S., Subramanian, R. and Talbot, B. (2009). Product Design and Supply Chain Coordination under Extended Producer Responsibility. Production and Operations Management, 18.3:259-277.

·         Herremans, I., Herschovis, S. and Bertels, S. (2009). Leaders and Laggards: The Influence of Competing Logics on Corporate Environmental Action. Journal of Business Ethics, 89.3:449-472. [Journal Abstract]

·         Soh, P. and Subramanian, A. (2009). Contributing Knowledge to Knowledge Repositories: Dual Role of Inducement and Opportunity Factors. Information Resources Management Journal, 22.1:45-62.

·         Soh, P. (2009). Network Patterns and a Firm's Competitive Advantage before the Emergence of a Dominant Design. Strategic Management Journal, 31.4:438-461.

·         Bliemel, M. J. and McCarthy, I. P. (2008). Networks of Dedicated Biotechnology and Service Firms in Vancouver. Journal of Commercial Biotechnology, 14.3:265-273. [Journal Abstract]

·         Bliemel. M. J. and Maine, E. (2008). Network Embeddedness as a Predictor of Performance for New Technology-Based Firms. International Journal of Technoentrepreneurship, 1.3:313-341. [Journal Abstract]

·         Cohen, B., Smith, B. and Mitchell, R. (2008). Toward a Sustainable Conceptualization of Dependent Variables in Entrepreneurship Research. Business Strategy and the Environment, 17:107-119. [Journal Abstract]

·         Graham, R. and Bertels, S. (2008). Achieving Sustainable Value. Greener Management International, 54:57-67. [Journal Abstract]

·         Greenberg, J., Gupta, S. and Luo, X. (2008). Mutually Acceptable Courses of Action. Economic Theory, 40.1:91-112. [Journal Abstract]

·         Gupta, S. (2008). Channel Structure with Knowledge Spillovers. Marketing Science, 27.2:247-261. [Journal Abstract]

·         Maine, E. (2008). Radical Innovation Through Internal Corporate Venturing: Degussa's Commercialization of Nanomaterials. R&D Management, 38.4:359-371. [Journal Abstract]

·         Maine, E., Shapiro, D. M. and Vining, A. R. (2008). The Role of Clustering in the Growth of New Technology-Based Firms. Small Business Economics, 34.2:127-146. [Journal Abstract]

·         Soh, P. and Subramanian, A. M. (2008). Is Usage a Missing Link in Explaining the Perceived Learning Outcome of Technology-Mediated Learning? IEEE Transactions on Engineering Management, 50.1:50-66. [Journal Abstract]

·         Soh, P. and Yu, J. (2008). Institutional Environment and Complementary Assets: Business Strategy in China's 3G Development. Asia Pacific Journal of Management, 27.4:647-675. [Journal Abstract]

·         Zhang, J., Souitaris, V., Soh, P. and Wong, P. (2008). A Contingent Model of Network Utilization in Early Financing of Technology Ventures. Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, 32.4:593-613. [Journal Abstract]

·         Berthon, P. R., Pitt, L. F., McCarthy, I. P. and Kates, S. M. (2007). When Customers Get Clever: Managerial Approaches to Dealing with Creative Consumers. Business Horizons, 50:39-47. [Journal Abstract]

·         Cohen, B. and Winn, M. I. (2007). Market Imperfections, Opportunity and Sustainable Entrepreneurship. Journal of Business Venturing, 22.1:29-49. [Journal Abstract]

·         Maine, E. and Garnsey, E. (2007). The Commercialization Environment of Advanced Materials Ventures. International Journal of Technology Management, 39.1/2:49-71. [Journal Abstract]

·         McCarthy, I. P., Pitt, L. F., Campbell, C., van der Merwe, R. and Salehi-Sangeri, E. (2007). Exploiting the Business Opportunities in Biotech Connections: The Power of Social Networks. Journal of Commercial Biotechnology, 13.4:245-257. [Journal Abstract]

·         Jula, P. and Leachman, R. C. (2006). Coordinating Decentralized Local Schedulers in Complex Supply Chain Manufacturing. Annals of Operations Research, 161.1:123-147. [Journal Abstract]

·         McCarthy, I. P., Tsinopoulos, C., Allen, P. M. and Rose-Anderssen, C. (2006). New Product Development as a Complex Adaptive System of Decisions. Journal of Product Innovation Management, 23.5:437-456. (Download PDF of the paper)

Conference Papers

·         Bliemel, M. J. and McCarthy, I. P. (2008). A Q-Analysis Approach to Entrepreneurial Networks. [Conference Abstract]

·          Drori, I. and McCarthy, I.P. (2008). Organizational Tracks: A Case Study. [Conference Abstract]

·          McCarthy, I. P., Lawrence, T. B., Wixted, B. and Gordon B. R. (2008). Environmental Velocity: A Theoretical Assessment and Typology. [Conference Abstract]

·         Choo, E. U. and Wedley, W. C. (2007). Separate Criteria Weights from Outlier Cases in MCDM. [Conference Abstract]

·          Bajwa, G., Choo, E. U. and Wedley, W. C. (2007). Effectiveness Analysis of Deriving Priority Vectors from Reciprocal Pairwise Comparison Matrices. [Conference Abstract]

·          Gupta, S. (2007). Channel Structure for Durable Products Under Extended Producer Responsibility. [Conference Abstract]

Research Seminars & Events