BYU Researchers in Top Five for Organizational Behavior and Strategy

PROVO, Utah – Apr 28, 2010 – Organizational behavior and strategy faculty at Brigham Young University were ranked fourth in the nation for their 2009 publications in the top academic journals of their field, according to a list published by the University of Texas at Dallas.

The faculty group has been in the top 25 in previous years and was ranked 23rd overall for 2000 to 2009, but this is the first time BYU has broken into the top five.

"I am very proud of this group for its example and leadership," says Gary Cornia, dean of BYU's Marriott School of Management. "They have hired the right people and have adopted a culture that rewards both teaching and research."

Cornia notes that the Department of Organizational Leadership and Strategy has flourished under the direction of department chair Jeff Dyer, who joined the Marriott School in 1999. Dyer worked for six years at the Wharton School of Business, which has consistently been listed at the top of the faculty research rankings, and has sought to foster a similar productive research culture at BYU.

"We've come a long way, and we've done so pretty quickly," says Dyer. "We have hired people from some of the best schools in the country, and we've looked for people who are not only great teachers, but great scholars as well."

Dyer says the growth in publishing is significant because of the quality as well as the quantity. In 2009 department faculty published more than two dozen scholarly articles in some of the most-cited journals: Organization Science, Administrative Science Quarterly, Academy of Management Review, Academy of Management Journal and Strategic Management Journal.

Assistant professor Teppo Felin, for example, published eight articles last year. Felin says that when he joined the Marriott School in 2005, he was impressed with the strong support of faculty publication.

"When I came to the Marriott School it was clear there was an emphasis on world-class research, and I think we're seeing the fruits of that," Felin says. "BYU's mission statement asserts that academic research is essential, and I think there's more recognition in the field now that what we're doing is having a real impact."

In addition to his publications in academic journals, Felin maintains a Web site, orgtheory.net, where he and several colleagues provide commentary on current research in organizational behavior. He says he's found that his research efforts not only benefit the academics and professionals who read his work, but also his students.

"For me, teaching and research go hand in hand," he explains. "Being an effective teacher depends on being able to generate knowledge, and I want everything I teach to be based on solid scientific findings."

The Marriott School was preceded in the top five by the University of Pennsylvania, the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor, and followed by Duke University. The rankings can be viewed at som.utdallas.edu/top100Ranking/.

The Marriott School is located at Brigham Young University, the largest privately owned, church-sponsored university in the United States. The school has nationally recognized programs in accounting, business management, public management, information systems, entrepreneurship, and recreation management and youth leadership. The school's mission is to prepare men and women of faith, character and professional ability for positions of leadership throughout the world. Approximately 3,300 students are enrolled in the Marriott School's graduate and undergraduate programs.