The main aim of this blog series was to share my observations and learnings with instructors interested in adopting scientifically sound, systematic and holistic research and business principles – that produce quality results – into their pedagogical toolbox.

The last text in this 3-part series of texts focuses on the benefits of one of the key components for producing the thesis in Metropolia Industrial Management (IM) Master’s Program, namely the Writing Clinics. This text explains in detail the concept of the Writing Clinics centered on one-on-one guidance and on the use of the IM Thesis template.

The first text dealt with the benefits of the overall IM Master’s degree program design. The second text covered the specific benefits of the GATE model utilized for producing the thesis.

The whole program has been built and developed over the years according to Metropolia curriculum and using action research principles (see e.g. Kananen 2013, Saunders et al. 2016) to include the most effective elements from the perspectives of all stakeholders. One such element is the Writing Clinics using the IM Thesis template as a tool. Both are explained below, Writing Clinics first. 

Why writing clinics?

The concept of Writing Clinics is very simple, but efficient. The main idea is for the students to produce text and remain productive during the entire writing process. The clinics consist of:

• Place: Computer lab (currently Zoom)
• Time: 12 days once/week in the spring term (Image 1 below)
• Instruction: Instructor briefings
• Activity: Students producing text for thesis GATE by GATE
• Reporting tool: IM Thesis template
• Instructor support: one-on-one language and thesis process guidance
• Instructor feedback

As far as we know, the concept of Writing Clinics is rather unique to the Metropolia IM Master’s program. Including Writing Clinics in the overall program design is based on recognizing the needs of students, who are typically working full-time during their Master’s studies, for a scheduled time slot in their busy calendars and also the possibility for personal guidance (on needs analysis, see Huhta 2008). 

Image 1 depicts the schedule for the first two study weeks of January. The Writing Clinics continue until the end of April in the same way, amounting to a total of 12 full days. Naturally, the students write their theses in their own time, as well. It is not obligatory to attend the clinics, but most students opt to do so. The biggest benefit of the Writing Clinics is that the students are likely to be more productive each week than if left completely to their own devices. Based on the feedback we collect from the students each year, there is a real need for the clinics and they appreciate this opportunity. 

The text submissions take place through the course workspace after each GATE and the students receive feedback on the structure, logic and language of their texts. The level of feedback is more detailed in the beginning in order to benefit the students later with the rest of the text.

All online enthusiasts will be happy to know that Zoom is performing surprisingly well for organizing the clinics and in some ways even better than classroom settings. For instance, the breakout room feature is perfect for discussing with individual students without disturbing anyone else.

In the Writing Clinics, the IM Thesis template is a central tool.

Why thesis template?

In higher education, universities typically provide a school specific thesis template for their students. Metropolia UAS is no exception. In general, the idea of the thesis template is to ensure students produce well-structured, uniform reports that follow the academic requirements and specifications of the university and degree program in question. Often, the templates specify the required layout and formatting, but not much else.

The IM Master’s program has developed the idea of the thesis template further and made it quite detailed with section-by-section instructions as to general content, structure, logic and even academic reporting English practices. 

This is done for two main reasons: 

1. The GATE model teaching on how to approach the practical business development projects the students carry out in their thesis follows a certain structure and logic described in text 2 and that very same logic should be visible in the report, as well.
2. By following the detailed and quite informative template, the students will not have to waste time on reinventing the wheel again and again, but may concentrate on producing insightful text that is relevant and purposeful in terms of the business challenge they have set out to tackle.

Accordingly, the IM Thesis template matches the teaching by the IM team and provides the students with a framework that allows plenty of room for the students’ personal and professional insights. An example of one part of the template is the quite detailed – but still suggestive only – Table of Contents, which is available here as a PDF. It is not meant to be followed slavishly, but to be applied and personalized according to each specific topic and type of project.

The benefit of using the rather detailed thesis template is that it reinforces the GATE model teaching on how to carry out a business development project in a well-structured, logical way. By using the template, the IM Master’s students learn the following logic and the importance of triangulated data collection:

1. Scoping the project for business context and objective
2. Making a project plan for research stages and data collection
3. Carrying out a Current State Analysis (CSA) to find out what the problem/s is/are
   (Data 1, often interviews with people closely involved in in the day-to-day operations regarding the challenge specified in the thesis)
4. Researching best practice to find ideas on how to tackle the problems revealed by the CSA 
5. Building an initial solution based on the specific problems identified through the CSA and the ideas revealed by the literature research on how to tackle them
   (Data 2, often workshops with team leaders involving co-creation of the initial solution for the challenge)
6. Validating the initial solution
   (Data 3, often by presenting the initial solution to decision makers in the case company and getting feedback for making any final modifications) and then presenting the final solution 
7. Presenting managerial implications through recommendations or, for instance, next steps 

For two recent IM Master’s theses following this logic, see Recommendations to Improve the Product Management Process of the Case Company by Palenius (2020) and Recommendations for Improving the Complaint Management Process of a Biotech Case Company by Teye (2020).  

It’s clear that we evaluate the students mainly on what we have taught them. Therefore the evaluation criteria (enclosed as a PDF) matches the above and includes for instance: 

• Clarity
• Logic
• Research skills
• Grounding
• Fit between the different thesis sections + 
• Practical relevance and value added = student insight

The benefits from the Writing Clinics and the thesis template, particularly for the students, if followed as intended, are thus:

• Time specifically reserved for writing = Productivity
• One-on-one immediate support = No time spent on being stuck = Efficiency
• Detailed instructions = Thesis according to requirements = Excellent thesis

Practicing what we preach

To use IM language, the ambitious objective of the integrated IM instructor team has been, from the very beginning, to provide the students with a program that uses the most suitable research and business methods and tools to ensure the very best final pedagogical outcome. For the IM team, the expected final outcome is a group of IM Master’s of Engineering graduates who have gained systematic problem solving skills for life and who have produced an IM Master’s thesis they can be proud of and which is intended to further their careers. The UAS Master’s degree meets the European EQF-7 criteria and equals science university Master’s degrees (Opetushallitus/Finnish National Agency for Education 2020).

To ensure this kind of program, all of its parts have been carefully designed to feed on each other, and therefore the GATE model teaching is complemented by one-on-one Research Clinics and implemented in practice in the Writing Clinics by utilizing the IM Thesis template to help produce the thesis. This model is highly applicable to other disciplines, as well.

I have not discussed Research Clinics in any of my blog texts as I am not personally involved in them. They are, however, an integral part of the program. This is where the students meet one-on-one with their designated thesis instructor, practically speaking as many times as they wish, to discuss the ins and outs of their thesis for content, structure, logic and business insights. According to student feedback, these meetings with the thesis instructors are the salt of the thesis process.

To finish off this blog series, I would like to leave you with the following thought from one member of the IM team, Dr James Collins, on the role of the IM team: 

Even though the students’ business projects are highly practical, our job is to underline the importance of engaging our students in evidence-based research as opposed to “shooting from the hip”.

Evidence-based research is achieved by guiding the students through the process by providing them with the structure, methods and tools they need to perform in the intended way. If this kind of degree program design described in the three texts sounds like something that could be used in your context, can you perhaps see yourself improving on it?

 

References

Finnish National Agency for Education.( 2020). Qualifications frameworks | Finnish National Agency for Education. 

Huhta, M. (2010). Language and Communication for Professional Purposes: Needs Analysis Methods in Industry and Business and their Yield to Stakeholders. Department of Industrial Engineering and Management. Helsinki University of Technology.

Kananen, J. (2013). Design research (applied action research) as thesis research: A practical guide for thesis research. Jyväskylä: Jyväskylän ammattikorkeakoulu.

Metropolia. (2018). Master’s Degree Programme in Industrial Management – Curricula. 

Opetushallitus. (2020). Tutkintojen viitekehykset. 

Palenius, J. (2020). Master’s Thesis. Recommendations to Improve the Product Management Process of the Case Company. (Theseus) 

Saunders, M., Lewis, P. & Thornhill, A. (2016). Research methods for business students. 7th ed. Harlow: Pearson Education.

Teye, M. (2020). Master’s Thesis. Recommendations for Improving the Complaint Management Process of a Biotech Case Company. (Theseus)

Text 2 in this 3-part series of texts focuses on the benefits of the GATE model utilized in Metropolia Industrial Management (IM) Master’s Program for producing the thesis. The model is also used in the IM Bachelor level thesis process. The model centers on a structured thesis process for teaching the methodology and research skills needed for carrying out a business project for a case company and producing the thesis.

The first text dealt with the benefits of the overall degree program, which is designed to make each component work in favor of the students and the projects they have undertaken to complete in one academic year. Text 3 will take a closer look at the specific benefits of one key component of the GATE model, i.e. the Writing Clinics providing one-on-one guidance and using the IM Thesis template as a key tool.

The main aim of this blog series is to share my observations and learnings with instructors interested in adopting scientifically sound, systematic and holistic research and business principles – that produce quality results – into their pedagogical toolbox. Moreover, to quote Dr. Juha Haimala, the Head of IM Degree Program, “the principles are highly applicable to any real business case, not merely higher education Master’s studies.”

Components of GATE Model

The Metropolia IM Master’s thesis is typically a real-life, practical development project carried out for the Master’s student’s employer organization. To tackle the development project, the Master’s Thesis GATE model is based on the idea of dividing the thesis process into 7 well-defined and logical stages called GATES that help the students put together the thesis chapters one by one. The 7 GATEs and their corresponding thesis chapters are shown in Table 1:

Table 1. The seven gates and corresponding thesis chapters.

Number of Gate	Content of Gate	Corresponding thesis chapter
1	Scoping	Introduction
2	Project planning	Methods and Materials
3	Current State Analysis	Current State Analysis on Case Company Problem x
4	Literature	Conceptual Framework on Thesis topic x
5	Solution development	Initial Proposal for Problem x
6	Validating solution	Validation of Initial Proposal
7	Putting it together	Conclusions

The names of the thesis chapters naturally vary somewhat between students but the above provides a middle-of-the-road idea of what the headings of the main chapters could look like. Image 1 further down in the text depicts the entire GATE model in detail, but first a quick reminder is perhaps needed of what an individual Gate is.

GATE = Instructor Input and Student Output

As described briefly in Text 1 of this series, a GATE is a preparation to allow the student to create one key component of the Master’s Thesis at a time, ensuring timely completion. Each of the 7 GATES includes both instructor input and student output and consists of five elements A-E, as illustrated in Table 2:

Table 2. What is a GATE?

GATE Instructor input A-C	GATE Student output D-E
A. Focused methodology class (Applied Research and Development Skills) B. Research clinic: one-on-one meeting with thesis supervisor C. Writing Clinic: one-on-one guidance with language supervisor	D. GATE presentation in class E. GATE text delivery

The 7-gate model has its foundation in the Gate model developed originally by Robert Cooper (2008), Professor of marketing, for new product innovation and development. In Cooper’s model new products go through various stages and steps from idea to launch and the ultimate objective is to achieve improved cycle times and commercially successful final products.

For the Master’s Thesis GATE model, the ultimate objective is to help the Master’s students carry out a real-life, highly practical development project for their employer organization that provides evidence-based solutions to enable management level decision making. This is done by following a scientifically sound (see e.g. Reimann, Järvinen 2007) thesis process the outcome of which is the triangulated thesis report that meets Metropolia criteria. Image 1 illustrates in detail the 7 Master’s thesis GATEs, which are explained in detail below the Image.

The top row of boxes in Image 1 indicates the Instructor input for each GATE, namely GATE teaching and clinics with one-on-one supervision. The second row of boxes illustrates the GATE names. The white boxes in the middle describe the focus of each GATE and below the white boxes are the outcomes for each GATE. The boxes at the bottom indicate Student output for each GATE, namely GATE presentation and GATE text delivery. The text in red in Image 1 indicates the triangulated data collection points, i.e. data collected at three different stages of the thesis process and (often) from three different sets of stakeholders.

Since the Metropolia IM Master’s thesis is a real-life, practical development project, the idea in GATE 1 is to first introduce the business context and the problem in the employer organization and then formulate the objective for the thesis. This becomes the first chapter of the thesis report: Introduction.

GATE 2 defines the steps needed to reach the objective and describes the data collection and analysis plan, with Research Design as outcome. This becomes chapter 2 of the thesis report: Methods and Material. 

As shown by the black arrows in Image 1, the order of GATEs 3 and 4 is interchangeable, depending on what the best approach for solving the thesis problem is. For clarity’s sake, let’s follow the order shown in Image 1. GATE 3 is then the current state analysis where data is collected for the first time, typically through interviews (DATA 1), followed by an in-depth analysis of the situation and problem at hand. As an outcome, the analysis typically reveals both strengths and weaknesses related to the situation. From the weaknesses thus identified, the student typically selects one or several crucial weaknesses for tackling in order to develop a solution. This becomes chapter 3 of the report: Current State Analysis on case company problem x.

GATE 4 is about problem-focused search in relevant literature for ideas, tools and practices to tackle the weaknesses and help reach the objective. The outcome is the conceptual framework, and the thesis chapter is often also called Conceptual Framework on thesis topic x. 

GATE 5 is for collecting data for the second time (DATA 2)  and for building a co-created initial proposal to tackle the problem, often through workshops in the employer organization. The initial proposal is based on the objective, the strengths and weaknesses revealed by the current state analysis and best practice suggested by relevant literature. The thesis chapter is called Initial Proposal for problem x.

GATE 6 is the third data collection point (DATA 3). Here, the initial proposal is validated, i.e. piloted, tested or feedback is given by for example management-level stakeholders. The outcome is the validated solution, typically with slight fine-tunings to the initial proposal. The corresponding thesis chapter is Validation of Initial Proposal.

GATE 7 is where all the different parts of the report are put together, including abstract, appendices, reference list and such. The last thesis chapter is called Conclusions and it provides an executive summary of the thesis and an evaluation of the trustworthiness of the thesis project.

Once the thesis project and the report is complete, the students give their final GATE presentations, which have been built up ever since the first GATE.

Benefits of GATE model

Text 1 listed many benefits (such as on-time graduation) of the overall degree programme design for all three stakeholders, i.e. Master’s students, Industry and Metropolia. In addition to the benefits mentioned in text 1, we can see the following benefits from utilizing the GATE model: 

• Students
  • well-defined and logical process that is “easy” to understand and adopt
  • clarity of process allows efficient use of time and effort on the actual thesis topic
  • clear and consistent tasks that keep building up to the final presentation and the thesis report gate-by-gate
  • gate-by-gate supervisor feedback helping to stay on track and sharpen message

• Employer organizations

• • evidence-based solutions to enable management level decision making

• Faculty

• • clear roles and responsibilities
  • well-defined and logical process that is “easy” to explain
  • scientifically sound process that produces positive results

I believe that adding value to each and every class/meeting with the students is the intent of any instructor who is committed to excellence. If this is you, implementing the principles of the GATE model to your professional context is certainly a valuable option as it is easily applicable to other disciplines. Alternatively, can you see this model working in your context slightly modified?

This text provided an in-depth look into the IM Master’s thesis Gate model and its benefits. The last text in this series, Text 3, will follow shortly focusing on the specific benefits of the Writing Clinics providing one-on-one guidance and using the IM Thesis template as a key tool.

References

Cooper, R. (2008). “The Stage-Gate Idea-to-Launch Process–Update, What’s New and NexGen Systems,” in Journal of Product Innovation Management, Volume 25, Number 3, May 2008, pp 213-232

Järvinen, P. (2007). Action research is similar to design science. Quality & Quantity, 41, 37-54.

Reimann, P. (2011). Design-Based Research. Methodological Choice and Design, 37-50.

Rohweder, T. (2020). Applied Research and Development Skills. Gate 1 Teaching slides. Metropolia University of Applied Sciences. Delivered 18 September, 2020.

This is Text 1 in a 3-part series of texts focusing on the benefits of the Metropolia Industrial Management (IM) Master’s Program’s overall design aimed at catering to professionals, often engineers or team leaders, looking to make a career leap from engineering toward management positions. The other two texts will take a closer look at two key components in the program. Text 2 will focus on the benefits of the Gate model utilized in the IM Thesis process and Text 3 on the specific benefits of the Writing Clinics providing one-on-one guidance and using IM Thesis template as a key tool.

I have been part of this program for almost 10 years and for the past few years I have been mainly providing language and communication instruction and language guidance during the thesis process. The main aim of this blog series is to share my observations and learnings with instructors interested in adopting scientifically sound, systematic and holistic research and business principles – that produce quality results – into their pedagogical toolbox.

Industrial Management Master’s Program

The 1-year IM Master’s program is worth 60 cu altogether with one half of the credits earned from the common, specialization and optional courses (blue boxes) and the other half from the Thesis (orange boxes), as shown in Image 1 below. The substance teaching taking place in the fall term includes literature readings on several current management topics such as strategy and leadership, process development, supply chain management and performance management plus students’ specialization related topics. All of these are feeding particularly the theoretical section of the thesis, written and completed in the spring.

Importantly, the program has been developed further every year ever since its inception in 2006. The development has been done using action research principles thus ensuring pedagogically and methodologically sound teaching and learning experiences for professional adult learners, for instance through learner empowerment and authenticity of material and activities (see Huhta 2010).

Gate Model in Brief

In practice, the students complete their studies in 9 months only, from September to May. This is why a systematic 7-Gate model has been designed to ensure timely graduation and a quality final product, i.e. a practical, logical and well-grounded Master’s thesis in Industrial Management.

To guarantee a systematic approach to the thesis studies, the program applies key concepts and methods from design research/applied action research (see e.g. Saunders et al. 2016; Kananen 2013) as well as from product innovation and development through the application of a system called the Gate model (see Cooper 2008). Cooper, a Professor of marketing, originally created the gate system for moving new product development projects through the various stages and steps from idea to launch to achieve improved cycle times and commercially successful final products. Cooper’s system consists of gates, each with its own set of metrics and criteria for passing the gates, similar to quality-control checks in production. In the context of the IM Master’s thesis studies, the idea of gates has been harnessed to serve both the thesis instruction and writing process

WHAT IS A GATE? As shown in Image 2, it is a preparation to allow the student to create one key component of the Master’s Thesis at a time, from Introduction to Conclusions. Each gate must be completed before moving on to the next Gate. 

As Image 2 depicts, each Gate consists of Faculty input and student output and needs to be passed before moving to the next Gate. Let’s take Gate 1 as an example:

• Gate 1 faculty input is about Scoping the thesis project and thus the methodology class focuses on three key points: introducing the business context, identifying practical business problem and setting project objective.
• The first Gate 1 student output is a simple presentation slide explaining the business context, thesis objective and expected outcome of their thesis project and presenting it in class with immediate feedback from both peers and IM team in order to finetune the logic.
• The second Gate 1 student output is the Thesis Chapter 1 Introduction. It introduces the thesis topic to the reader from the perspective of the points mentioned above. 

The Gate model proceeds in this fashion Gate by Gate until Gate 7, which completes the Thesis project. The 7 gates provide a blueprint for successfully producing and completing the different steps in the thesis process resulting in a quality outcome for all stakeholders, i.e. the student, the university and employer organization. The complete Gate model and how design research principles have been implemented to the Gate model will be explained in detail in text 2 of this series. 

Students

At the very center of the IM degree program are the students representing a number of leading industrial companies such as Kone, Outotec, Vaisala, Fortum and ABB, to mention only a few. The students have on average 5-6 years of work experience and so they bring with them their professional expertise for the benefit of all program participants.

The students tend to quickly form quite a strong and active peer community of learners thanks to their varied competences and skills. Since the studies have been integrated into real-life, practical business projects from their employer organizations, the students are able to continue working while studying. In this sense, the nature of the IM Master’s program is quite exceptional, if compared for instance with Master’s programs in science universities where the IM Master’s students typically are 20 something students with no or very little industry expertise.

Faculty

On the faculty side, the three main instructors all have doctorate degrees and decades of work experience in expert and managerial positions in industrial organizations. The common, specialization and optional courses are taught individually by these instructors, whereas the Gate model Thesis instruction is organized around the concept of genuine integration of having all instructors in the IM team present in the classroom, including me as the language expert, with each instructor bringing their own expertise on the table.

Teaching and guidance

Tuition in the IM Master’s program is in English. In normal circumstances, the courses are heavily centered around contact teaching in the form of interactive lectures and class discussions, but due to the Covid-19 pandemic teaching has recently gone online. However, contact teaching will make a comeback the minute the recommendations for distance studies are removed as face-to-face contact teaching is the heart of the program. Other methods of studying include teamwork, class discussions, business simulations, self-study, workshops and seminars.

The soul of the program is the amount of face-to-face consultancy and guidance from faculty members which provides the students with numerous opportunities for receiving individual advice, development and help in their learning process. Instead of exams, the students are given practical assignments that are graded individually. For grading the thesis, the grading committee consisting of the IM team members utilizes a comprehensive set of evaluation criteria as shown in the PDF document behind this link.

Benefits in Nutshell

The objective of the program design that is continuously developed based on best practise has been all along to produce a truly integrated, inspiring entity that brings value to all stakeholders. The benefits (Rohweder, 2020) of this systematic program design for all stakeholders are significant including:

• STUDENT
  • On-time graduation
  • Thesis quality
  • Business development concept ”for life”
• INDUSTRY
  • Professionals with systematic evidence-based problem solving skills
• METROPOLIA
  • On-time graduating students
  • Thesis quality
  • Positive student feedback

This here is obviously a win-win-win situation and the fruit of consistent and systematic development work. 

This first text provided an overall view of the benefits of systematic program design in Metropolia Industrial Management Master’s Program. Text 2 of this 3-part series will continue from here in October by providing an in-depth look into the Gate model, the brains of the program. Text 3 will follow shortly after focusing on the specific benefits of the Writing Clinics providing one-on-one guidance and using IM Thesis template as a key tool.

References

Cooper, R. (2008) “The Stage-Gate Idea-to-Launch Process–Update, What’s New and NexGen Systems,” in Journal of Product Innovation Management, Volume 25, Number 3, May 2008, pp 213-232

Haimala, J. (2020). Industrial Management Studies 2020-21. Orientation Day slides. Metropolia University of Applied Sciences. Delivered 10 September, 2020.

Huhta, M. (2010). Language and Communication for Professional Purposes: Needs Analysis Methods in Industry and Business and their Yield to Stakeholders. Department of Industrial Engineering and Management. Helsinki University of Technology.

Kananen, J. (2013). Design research (applied action research) as thesis research: A practical guide for thesis research. Jyväskylä: Jyväskylän ammattikorkeakoulu

Rohweder, T. (2020) Gate 1 Teaching slides. Metropolia University of Applied Sciences. Delivered 18 September, 2020.

Saunders, M., Lewis, P. & Thornhill, A. (2016). Research methods for business students. 7th ed. Harlow: Pearson Education.