Spanning the Academy-Practice Divide with Doctoral Education in Business

The economy has always been a knowledge economy. We accept as a premise of this paper that phenomena such as the explosion of information, information technology, intellectual capital, knowledge workers and firms as knowledge systems are real, while reserving space elsewhere for the critique of such phenomena. To date, doctoral education in business has focused almost exclusively on the needs of future academic staff. One response to the growing demand for a practitioner-oriented doctoral education is the rise of Doctorate of Business and Administration (DBA) programmes. The DBA differs from a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) because of its increased focus on the application of knowledge, in addition to the development of that knowledge. While PhD research needs to make a significant contribution to theory, DBA research is expected to contribute to both theory and practice. This paper provides a brief history of doctoral education in business. We discuss the choices that have been taken in the design and content of the Massey DBA in relation to the academic/practice divide. An interim report of experiences by both academics and students is provided. The implications for doctoral education in areas that span the research/practice divide are then identified.