Bienvenida

¡GRACIAS POR SU INTERÉS!

Bienvenido/a a este blog, que nace, con el año 2012, como vehículo para la transferencia y divulgación del conocimiento, particularmente en materia de turismo. Como complemento:

-He aquí el documento resultado de casi cinco años (2010 a 2014, 55 artículos) escribiendo cada mes en HECONOMIA, con análisis y propuestas para el turismo provincial: https://www.dropbox.com/s/oblyls2fi3tov7g/HEconomia_2010_2014_55_articulos.pdf?dl=0

-Los 12 artículos de la sección EL MURO del diario Huelva Información (año 2015): https://www.dropbox.com/s/sqlyhbqu1hc7if1/ElMuro_HI_2015.pdf?dl=0

-Y las múltiples colaboraciones en Hosteltur: https://www.hosteltur.com/comunidad/usuario/vargas

Además, en la siguiente URLs encontrará más, mucho más, sobre mi actividad académica (mi legado): https://padlet.com/alfonsovargassanchez/cvm56nauhvrhsnua

Y lo más importante: ¿aún no conoce Huelva? Descúbrala en el siguiente enlace y en la presentación que sigue: http://www.turismohuelva.org - https://www.dropbox.com/s/8ada1ku91qtoknc/AunNoConocesHuelva.pps?dl=0

miércoles, 23 de agosto de 2023

BUILDING TOMOROW'S MINDS - DIT Ph.D COMMENCEMENT LECTURE

The text of my speech is reproduced below. 
Its recording can be found at:  https://youtu.be/9KObnuaTvbk

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Hello. My name is Alfonso Vargas, a Spanish Full Professor of Business Administration, with a specialization in Strategic Management as well as in Tourism Management as the main research area.

Firstly, I would like to send a warm greeting to all the authorities present at this event (his Excellency Minister of Higher Education, Science and Culture, DIT Rector, and others), and, of course, to the whole audience. I consider a genuine honor the opportunity to participate in this event by addressing a few words to all of you and, in this manner, renew my academic and emotional bonds with East Timor and Dili Institute of Technology, which began to be forged 5 years ago during my unforgettable visit. Thanks, therefore, for this kind invitation, particularly to Dr Manuel Vong, and for the hospitality and affection that you showed me on every occasion.

Having said that let me start with a historical parallelism. The image you see in the background of the screen is not accidental. It was chosen because it corresponds to an iconic place in the city where I was born, Huelva, where the connection between the West and the East, the connection with a new world, began. What you see on the right-hand side is a monumental statue dedicated to Christopher Columbus looking at the infinite horizon in a very close place from which his three ships left in 1492. That is, dedicated to his faith, and that of the sailors who accompanied him. That faith made possible what seemed impossible: to discover what we know nowadays as America.

You all, today, are showing great faith in academic training at the highest level, as a way to contribute decisively to the development of your country through new knowledge generation. For this purpose, there is no better investment than education, and the last stage in this process is the training of doctors. Therefore, for the courage you show in assuming this not minor challenge, my most sincere congratulations.

Last year I had also the chance to address the audience, perhaps some or many of you were present, at an event in support of Dili Institute of Technology’s initiative to launch a Ph.D. program in Business Administration for the first time in East Timor.

Last year DIT was planning this program as part of its academic offer, with evident complementarities with its already-in-operation Master in Business Administration. Now it is ready and about to start, an achievement that I have received with great satisfaction, particularly for a young, private, and not-for-profit higher education institution established in 2002: only 21 years old. Again, what seemed impossible has been made real. This is your merit.

Although I consider the establishment of a Ph.D. program as the natural and, therefore, right step forward to consolidate the institutional positioning of DIT in the domain of business studies and serve the educational needs of East Timor in this field, at the same time it is fair to recognize that this is an enormous challenge. Moving from the application of the existing stock of knowledge to the generation of new knowledge will demand a very significant institutional effort, with the application of human and material resources to train researchers and to provide them with the necessary means to produce scientific dissertations, particularly in the form of publishable papers.

The combination of senior researchers from different parts of the globe together with the implication of the business and institutional fabric of East Timor will be essential to match academic excellence and the country's requirements, through an effective bridge that channels the transfer of the newly generated knowledge. In other words, the combination of academic and social relevance.

In short, it is my pleasure to declare again my commitment to helping DIT in its endeavor to build a reputable Ph.D. program. Receive, thus, my heartfelt congratulations for assuming this great challenge with enthusiasm, and my very best wishes to all the participants: students, facilitators, supervisors, administrative staff, and institutional authorities. Be sure that you all will contribute to East Timor's prosperity, and this is a mission as fascinating as rewarding.

After 38 years of experience in the university world, after having supervised 19 Ph.D. dissertations and having served as examiner of 90 dissertations in various countries, as well as 12 years of experience as editor-in-chief of a Scopus journal in the scientific area of tourism, and, humbly, an extensive record of publications, I would like to convey a message particularly addressed to those who have decided to start this adventure of pursuing a Ph.D. degree, it doesn’t matter what of the five concentrations you have chosen (Finance, Marketing, Human Resources, Tourism or Public Management).

Dear doctoral students, let’s start by acknowledging that this is a long and hard way. Likely, on some occasions, when you suffer more difficulties, you will look in the mirror trying to convince yourself that making this decision was a good idea. You will devote a lot of effort, energy and many hours to reaching your goal. As it is a long process, during these years is critical not to feel alone. Thus, please share your concerns with your facilitators and supervisors, who will be always there to offer his/her hand in the form of experienced guidance. Create a community with other Ph.D. students for mutual support: you can help each other. To sum up, loneliness must be overcome.

Since today Ph.D. dissertations are usually a compendium of articles, the same will happen to you when writing and publishing scientific papers. In this line, let me share with you, very briefly, part of my experience in this field, with some suggestions about common mistakes to avoid. So, please:

*Choose a relevant research question based on a deep literature review.

*Design a sound study from a methodological point of view.

*Perform the work with impeccable integrity and attention to detail.

*Write an excellent manuscript (in English, I am afraid).

*Submit it to the right journal: consider carefully its focus and scope and if your paper fits them.

*Respond to reviewers’ comments fully.

*Complete the standard post-acceptance checks of the journal.

*Don’t get discouraged if there are rejections: we have all had them, but this is a valuable source of learning and improvement.

Not a minor task, as you can realize.

I do not want to take longer. Just start “Building tomorrow’s minds”. That is brilliant.

Bye for now and thank you for your attention. Please receive my kindest regards and best wishes to all.

 Huelva (Spain), 24 August 2023

(Post n° 447 in this blog)


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