Management of technology provides ‘the missing link’ between the disciplines of engineering, science, and management. MOT professionals plan, develop, and implement technological capabilities in order to shape and accomplish the strategic and operational objectives of an organization. In the world of today organizations rely above all in Management of Technology to sustain their competitive advantage, making MOT an integral part of general management.
Why choose the MOT doctoral programme at LUT?
“I am a Director and the Secretary General of ISPIM. I also work as a Research Officer for Enterprizer Technologies Ltd. I hold a Masters in International Business from ESC Rennes, France and a Doctor of Science (Innovation and Alliances) from LUT, Finland. For where I am today, I have much to thank my international studies at the MOT doctoral programme at Lappeenranta University of Technology.”
– Steffen Conn
Unique research training
The Department has been actively developing the processes and practices concerning research training to continually improve on the quality and the amount of postgraduate and postdoctoral research in the Management of technology research areas. The Department of Industrial Management is committed to active research training and supervision of postgraduate research that is evident in the strong support to PhD students from highly qualified academic instructors. It arranges best possible circumstances for postgraduate researchers to help them carry out research of highest quality. The Management of Technology researchers arrange 2-3 internal research symposiums annually, where Ph.D. students present their research and professors/senior fellows give constructive feedback. Research symposiums are also used for brainstorming new research ideas and they also contribute to developing an immediate positive atmosphere among the researchers in the department. In addition, postgraduate researchers are encouraged to utilize research courses arranged by the university and external institutions. Systematic work has lead to outstanding results, including over 15 graduated doctors, strong participation to both national and international graduate schools, over ten internal research symposiums arranged, and several opponent/examiner appointments.
The traditional and highly effective method to supervise the post-graduate studies by master–apprentice relationship is widely used. Personal contact with the professors and peer researchers is one of the essential building blocks of a supportive and productive research environment. The peer support from colleagues in the research group has proven to be effective; many of the numerous academic publications from the MOT research institution are the direct result of this collaborative environment. The majority of the PhD students work in externally funded research projects taking on responsible and demanding roles. Experience shows that our research training approach has been the most successful way to organize the post-graduate education.
Internationally oriented and multicultural environment
The Department of Industrial Management is an internationally recognized research institution that integrates several research disciplines of Management of Technology. The main fields of the research are innovation management, knowledge management and decision support systems. The Department of Industrial Management has wide and well-established co-operation with several research institutes both in Finland and abroad. In addition, the MOT group has arranged several international conferences on the research area. The candidate selection for the MOT doctoral programme has no national bias or quotas, resulting in a truly multicultural environment.
The Department of Industrial Management takes advantage of e.g. the following graduate schools:
• Industrial Engineering and Management Doctoral Programme in Finland
• KATAJA Finnish Doctoral Program in Business Studies
• Aleksanteri Institute - the Finnish Graduate School for Russian and East European Studies
• European Doctoral Summer School in Technology Management (EIASM)
• The European Doctoral Programme in Entrepreneurship and Small Business Management
• Young Scientist Summer Program at International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis
Research institute with a strong identity and research tradition
The strategic focus areas of Management of technology are technology management, innovation management, knowledge management and decision support systems. These areas (which are not mutually exclusive) incorporate both research and teaching initiatives; undergraduate and graduate programs were either created or expanded around these areas. The research focus of MOT is rather unique and thus very important from science and industry point of view. The Finnish Higher Education Evaluation Council nominated the Department of Industrial Management as a national centre of excellence in university education in 2010-2012.
The research group has established several applied research projects since the early 1990’s, and it has acquired extensive knowledge on the area. Postgraduate studies have been successfully performed during the research projects: 15 doctoral dissertations have been completed under the MOT group after the year 2000. The MOT group has experienced significant growth over the years. The number of researchers in the group is almost 40 persons today. This growth reflects largely our strong competitive participation in new research investment opportunities through the Finnish Funding Agency for Technology and Innovation (Tekes), Academy of Finland, the European Commission Framework Programmes, regional funds and major Finnish companies in partnership with key stakeholders.
Modern research facilities and laboratories
Primary sites for research are the Department of Industrial Management at Lappeenranta and Kouvola research unit. The Department of Industrial Management at LUT is the oldest in its field in Finland and the biggest in the Nordic countries. The Kouvola Research Unit is located in the IT-Campus in Kasarminmäki. The Research Unit represents LUT in Kouvola region, executes high level research and offers education. The MOT group has two research facilities for strategic decision-making, creativity and technology management research: GDSS-laboratory at Lappeenranta and InnoStudio at Kouvola. For more information on the facilities see links below.
The GDSS-laboratory (Group decision support system laboratory) of the Department of Industrial Management will be in notable role in the research. The laboratory is a PC-equipped LAN-based meeting room designed especially for decision-making, and various decision support software have been installed. The laboratory is the only one of its kind in Finnish technological universities.
The next generation collaborative working environments are communications-driven, thereby increasing creativity and boosting innovation and productivity. InnoStudio at Kouvola is a type of decision support system that emphasizes communications, collaboration and shared decision-making support. The system can be defined as "software and hardware for shared interactive environments" intended to support and augment group activity. Concept of InnoStudio is fully designed by the MOT group and collaboration on layout with Kymenlaakso Polytechnic industrial design group.
How to apply?
Eligibility
The following basic criteria are necessary for all applicants to be eligible to apply for admission to postgraduate studies at LUT:
• Applicants who have completed a higher university or comparable degree in engineering or in business administration and economics or an equivalent field that the Faculty Council regards as providing an adequate basis for further studies. The applicant is required to have completed advanced studies in the research field or obtained the requisite knowledge in another way.
• If the applicant has not completed the required Master’s level (advanced) courses, the Faculty Council can stipulate possible requirements for each case on an individual basis. This also applies to applicants who have already obtained a doctoral or licentiate degree from another field of study.
• Applicants who have completed a licentiate degree in the same field are only required to complete a doctoral dissertation that has been published in the field of research in question.
• Applicants with a higher university degree obtained abroad are required to submit information on the scope and the level of the degree(s) obtained when applying to LUT in English (e.g. a Diploma Supplement). The scope of the relevant degree(s) must be equivalent to the Finnish Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees.
Once these basic eligibility criteria are met, all applicants will be selected solely on the basis of their applications: no prerequisite GMT scores are required.
Application process
At the first stage of the application process, the applicant should prepare a preliminary description of the Doctoral thesis subject to be researched along with a concise research plan (1-2 A4 pages in length). The applicant should then write a free-form application letter (max 1 page) and send it together with documentation verifying former academic credentials (a copy of the M.Sc. degree or equivalent) and the preliminary research plan to professor Torkkeli (marko.torkkeli@lut.fi). If the initial application is accepted, the applicant then settles the basic issues concerning the postgraduate studies (such as their supervisor, subject, and funding) with professor Torkkeli or professor Tuominen. The postgraduate application, prepared on the basis of the discussion, is then submitted to the faculty’s student affairs office. The applicant should, together with their supervisor, prepare a preliminary postgraduate study plan (1-2 A4s), which also includes an outline of the planned postgraduate studies, to be enclosed with the application.
Curriculum and course introductions
The objective of postgraduate studies is to complete a Doctor of Science (Technology) degree. The doctoral degree generally requires approximately four years’ full-time study. The studies comprise courses organised by a graduate school or an equivalent institution, university courses, literature exams or other science courses. Students must also prepare a doctoral dissertation that is defended in a public examination on a Technology Management topic of their choosing.
Examples of our postgraduate course offering
Normal offering relating to the post-graduate studies contains research seminars for the post-graduate students organized by the professors and post-graduate courses on research methodology arranged by the Department of Industrial Management. The majority of post-graduate students work in research projects and the Department of Industrial Management also has some assistant vacancies. National post-graduate schools are often combined with the research group type of working.
Personnel
Prof. Markku Tuominen (Dean, Faculty of Technology Management)
Work phone: +358 5 6212604
Mobile phone: +358 400 555 426
Email: markku.tuominen@lut.fi
Prof. Marko Torkkeli
Mobile phone: +358 40 761 1223
Email: Marko.Torkkeli@lut.fi