EDBA Dissertation Defense – Rachel Gandy

You are invited to attend the public defense of an Executive Doctor of Business Administration dissertation on Monday, April 20th (11:00 am) in Raburn 305.

Rachel Gandy will present her work titled: The Role of Broadband Access in Enhancing Organizational Resilience, Corporate Adaptability, and Performance. She will answer any questions the audience/committee has following the presentation.

Here is a summary of the work:
This paper examines how Corporate Affinity to Technology (CAT) affects organizational resilience among U.S. managers. Based on survey data from 364 managers in the retail, finance, and healthcare industries, this research indicates that the degree of technology use in a firm does not relate to the firm’s level of broadband availability or technology intensity, but rather to the extent to which technology is woven into the fabric of skills development, organizational culture, and the decision-making process. High-CAT firms are resilient under stress; low-CAT firms are fragile, irrespective of the level of technology they have invested in. Recommendations for managers who want to turn a firm with broadband into a firm with capability are outlined. Broadband is the infrastructure; CAT is the fuel.

Dissertation Chair: Dr. John Parnell
Dissertation Committee: Dr. Wes Davenport and Dr. Diane Kutz