Completing a PhD in business and management: A brief guide to doctoral students and universities

Purpose Despite the ever-growing number of PhD students all over the world, there remain significant doubts about whether entering students in business and management disciplines fully understand the process of producing a PhD thesis, defending it and developing a coherent publication strategy. Hence, this viewpoint article aims to offer some guidance on what it takes to successfully complete a doctoral research thesis. Design/methodology/approach The arguments and guidance presented in this viewpoint article are drawn on the authors’ collective supervision and doctoral examination experiences. Findings The article presents guidelines about three key issues related to the completion of doctoral research: (1) Choosing a research problem; (2) Demonstrating rigour and quality; (3) Developing a publication strategy. Originality/value The content presented in this article will be a valuable source for students pursuing doctoral research and for universities offering doctoral programs.