Call for proposals

The National Bank Initiative in Entrepreneurship and Family Business is funded by a generous endowment from National Bank. One of its objectives is to provide funding to contribute to knowledge creation in the field of entrepreneurship and family business.

Deadline for submission: Friday, May 10, 2019 at 5 p.m.

The Initiative encourages research that leads to articles in academic journals and is relevant to practitioners (business owners and managers, banks, investors, advisors, etc.). All funding is subject to John Molson and university rules and regulations in terms of allowable expenses.

For the purpose of this call, entrepreneurship encompasses start-ups and entrepreneurial businesses, and family business denotes businesses that are family-owned and/or -managed.

The National Bank Initiative in Entrepreneurship and Family Business will fund the following:

Three research projects (Funding A) focusing on entrepreneurship and family business (see list of relevant topics below) applied to privately owned firms in North America (preferably Quebec and/or Canada). Each of the three projects will be funded for an amount of up to $15,000.
Two research projects (Funding B) focusing on entrepreneurship and family business (see list of relevant topics below) more generally. Each of the two projects will be funded for an amount of up to $11,500.

Proposals should focus on applied research. Relevant topics include:

Challenges faced in creating and/or managing a small/medium sized enterprise (SME) (Small business management; Growing the business and delegating; Hiring; Financing; Sales and marketing);
Strategy in entrepreneurial businesses (Long term strategies, growth vs. survival; Processes and outcomes of corporate entrepreneurship; Internationalization and global sourcing);
Financing the business (Analyzing needs; Identifying alternative financing solutions including debt or equity financing; Understanding the role of cash; Bringing in equity partners);
Human resource management (Hiring and retaining employees; Successful HR practices and strategies);
Gender diversity (Presence, role, and effects of women in ownership/management/ governance);
Accountancy and taxation (Financial and management accounting in entrepreneurial/ family businesses;
Tax implications in business transfer/sale);
Family/business issues (Avoiding and dealing with conflict amongst family members; Establishing rules of entry and managing expectations of the next generation);
Transferring the business (Transferring ownership, and being able to cash out at the same time;
Identifying the right timing for succession; Understanding the perspective of the successor; Bridging across generations through trust and communication; Understanding the role of outsiders in advising and facilitating transition; Managing the wealth of the family);
Selling the business (Preparing a family business for possible sale and identifying suitable buyers);
Long term sustainability (Identifying the long term sustainability of a family business; Understanding how to sustain local businesses in Québec);
Human resource management (Retention of key non-family human resources);
Marketing (Marketing strategies and practices in family firms; Developing and promoting a family based brand identity).

Applicants

All John Molson faculty members are invited to submit proposals for research projects. Interdisciplinary research teams are encouraged (with Concordia University faculty members outside John Molson).

General Guidelines

Please use 12 font and 1-inch margins.
Include the affiliations, addresses, and e-mail contacts of all researchers.
Please submit your proposal as a single Word document or PDF file.
Indicate if you are applying for Funding A or Funding B.
The Initiative may consider projects already funded by another granting agency. Such application should include full disclosure and justification for the additional funding request.

Proposal Content

Proposals must be no more than 3 single-spaced pages. The bios and any appendices/supporting documents will not be counted toward the page limit. Submissions should include:

Title of the proposed research project;
A half page summary of your proposal written for a lay audience;
Research objectives;
Proposed research design and methodology;
Intended deliverables;
Expected contributions to the literature and practice of entrepreneurship and family business;
Timetable with dates of key milestones, and expected completion date;
Detailed funding needs (itemized budget with explanations).
One-page bio for each researcher, with a list of recent and relevant publications, work in progress, and funded projects.

Rules and regulations

Eligible expenses are costs directly related to conducting the research, including:

Salaries for undergraduate and graduate students, and postdoctoral fellows, (priority should be given to hiring John Molson graduate students);
Purchase of data; research participant incentives;
Conference travel, if presenting a paper directly related to the research project;
Travel for field work/data collection up to a maximum of $2,000 may be considered, if fully justified. Travel to collaborate with coauthors is not an eligible expense.
Non-Eligible Expenses include the following:
Computer purchases or computer related items;
Fees for conference and journal submission, and editorial assistance.

Research projects must comply with University policies governing research. Expense reports and purchases must be approved by the Associate Dean, Research and Research Programs. If the research involves human participants (including interviews and online surveys), you must submit a Summary Protocol Form request to the Ethics Unit, Office of Research (via ConRAD) before the funds will be released.

E‐mail your proposal to:

Ehsan Derayati, Director, National Bank Initiative in Entrepreneurship and Family Business (ehsan.derayati@concordia.ca). Please indicate “Application for NB Initiative funding 2019” in the email subject.

Evaluation

Proposals will be evaluated by the Scientific Committee of the National Bank Initiative in Entrepreneurship and Family Business. Criteria for evaluation will be:

1. Fit with the criteria and topics of the Call for proposals;
2. Relevance and usefulness to the field of entrepreneurship and family business;
3. Originality of the proposed research;
4. Ability of the researcher(s) to complete the research within a realistic timeframe.

Conditions

Funding will typically be for a year. Recipients are required to submit a final report to the Advisory Board of the National Bank Initiative in Entrepreneurship and Family Business once the project is completed (and after the first year of work if it extends beyond a year). Key results may be disseminated electronically, for example through the webpage of the National Bank Initiative in Entrepreneurship and Family Business or the webpage of the donor, National Bank. Recipients are also expected to disseminate their results within the community, and must acknowledge the financial contribution of the National Bank Initiative in Entrepreneurship and Family Business in their oral or written communications. Recipients may be asked to make a brief oral presentation to the Advisory Board.

John Molson School of Business