Sprott PhD candidate wins management research thesis competition
Lucille Perreault, Sprott PhD in Management candidate, won first place in the oral thesis competition at a graduate research thesis and poster competition among the National Capital Region’s three universities. The Two Cities, Curious Minds: Management Thesis and Poster Competition was held at the Université du Québec en Outaouais on Oct. 5. This annual event brings together graduate students from the Sprott School of Business (Carleton University), Telfer School of Management (University of Ottawa) and the Université du Québec en Outaouais (UQO) to compete in oral thesis and poster competitions.
A total of nine students had 10 minutes to present in the oral thesis competition. Lucille’s thesis entitled Scientific Research and Experimental Development (SR&ED) Engagement and Management by Small Canadian Controlled Private Corporation (CCPCs) looks at small to medium enterprises in Canada and how Scientific Research and Experimental Development (SR&ED) tax incentives has an impact on their decisions to engage and manage research and development. Her interest in this topic comes from her background as the CFO of a high tech company, where she had gone through the SR&ED process.
“There was a significant amount of interest in my research. I had a number of people approach me after the presentation and some other colleagues were saying they’d like to speak to me about it. In that respect it made me feel good that other people are interested, and I also formed some connections with people that I can bounce ideas off of,” said Lucille.
As the first place winner of the oral thesis competition, Lucille won a $3,000 cash prize. The students were judged by a panel of Sprott, Telfer and UQO professors on the impact of their projects rather than looking at it from purely an academic aspect. This focus on impact gave students the opportunity to frame their research in a way that highlighted its importance to their respective fields and allowed audience members to appreciate the value their work is adding beyond academia.
“Lucille performed exceptionally well, and made a compelling case for the impact of her research,” said Professor François Brouard, Lucille’s supervisor. “Her topic on SR&ED and taxation for small business is not an easy topic for those not necessarily interested by taxation.”
Lucille said it was a valuable experience to present her research on stage in an open space rather than in a seminar room.
“I think this is a really good event and I hope it continues,” Lucille expressed. “Not only does it give Sprott and other university students opportunities to speak about their research, I think it’s great to form the connections with other universities as well.”
Sprott was also represented by PhD students Marc Pilon (The Role of Governance and Information in Non-Profit Accountability Management) and Dora Wang (Consumers and dietary supplements: An investigation of the motivations and impacts).
