The Department of Organisation, Strategy and Entrepreneurship at Maastricht University School of Business and Economics (SBE) offers a 4-year PhD position for students with a (Research) Master degree or equivalent. Candidates are expected to start September 1st, 2022.

We offer a dynamic and challenging job in an internationally oriented organisation where students receive an advanced education and scholars conduct exciting research. The PhD candidates will have the unique opportunity to carry out research within the Research Themes and Centres of Expertise within the research programme at the Graduate School of Business and Economics (GSBE) and will contribute to the development and outreach of its research. The candidate will be part of an international network of top universities and renowned scholars within the field.

PROJECT DESCRIPTION:

What are the implications for business and business owners of the growing awareness that relentless economic growth comes at a cost; a cost that brings dramatic climate change, biodiversity loss, and growing inequality. What alternative growth models are being considered by companies to redress the impact of economic growth on the environment and well-being of people? The proposed PhD project is interested in developing insights into these bigger questions by investigating sustainable growth and sustainable innovations in the context of family firms. Family firms represent a dominant organizational form across the globe characterized by unique family and business intersections and specific growth-related questions, such as how family decision making steers their growth and the types of growth.

The research project will focus on the "how" and "why" of the development and implementation of environmental/social sustainability initiatives of families in business. The project is interested in exploring both the individual, the family and the firm level with respect to perceptions of ‘growth’ and therefore will take a qualitative and/or mixed-methods research approach.

Since family firms are a heterogenous group and have unique internal dynamics, this research project will investigate how different characteristics might play a role in the beliefs on and pursuit of sustainable growth. Specific characteristics of interest in this project are women’s leadership and transgenerational succession. It has been argued that women tend to attach greater importance to firm continuity, ensuring job security for employees, and sustainability; this project will therefore consider how women leaders of families in business shape sustainable growth. Transgenerational succession is another important dimension to study as it is well-known that new generations often bring new ideas and perspectives; so how do younger generation family members who have grown up in a context where sustainability issues are receiving a more prominent position, forge ideas towards sustainable innovation.

The project will allow theoretical contributions to the debates on the so-called long-term orientation of family firms and socioeconomic wealth models. Quantitative studies have illustrated that the direct relationship between long-term orientation and sustainability is often insignificant, as other family characteristics or processes will affect sustainability strategies. Our qualitative and mixed-method approach will allow us to explore these factors and processes more in-depth. Moreover, the PhD student will contribute to a better understanding of growth-oriented women entrepreneurship and illustrate how the specific family firm context supports and/or hinders women’s strategic growth and innovation behaviour in sustainability initiatives.

Are you self-motivated, curious and interested in research? Do you have a record of high academic achievement (e.g. good grades and/or involvement in other academic activities) and the skills required to become an excellent researcher in the field of your choice? If so, than a PhD position at SBE might be the challenge you are looking for.

Fixed-term contract: Temporary, maximum 4 years.

Remuneration will be according to standard salary levels for PhD students starting with a salary of € 2.443,00 with a yearly growth to € 3.122,00 gross a month (based on a full-time appointment). Each year the standard salary is supplemented with a holiday allowance of 8% and an end-of-year bonus of 8.3%.

You have to be willing to move to (the vicinity of) Maastricht. If you do not already live in Maastricht (or its direct surroundings), you will be eligible for an allowance for moving costs. If you do not already live in Maastricht (or its direct surroundings), you might be eligible for an allowance for alternative housing. Other secondary conditions include a pension scheme and partially paid parental leave.

The terms of employment of Maastricht University are set out in the Collective Labour Agreement of Dutch Universities (CAO). Furthermore, local UM provisions also apply. For more information look at the website www.maastrichtuniversity.nl > About UM > Working at UM.

Maastricht University

Maastricht University is renowned for its unique, innovative, problem-based learning system, which is characterized by a small-scale and student-oriented approach. Research at UM is characterized by a multidisciplinary and thematic approach, and is concentrated in research institutes and schools. Maastricht University has around 20,000 students and 4,700 employees. Reflecting the university's strong international profile, a fair amount of both students and staff are from abroad. The university hosts 6 faculties: Faculty of Health, Medicine and Life Sciences, Faculty of Law, School of Business and Economics, Faculty of Science and Engineering, Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, Faculty of Psychology and Neuroscience.

School of Business and Economics, Department of Organization, Strategy, and Entrepreneurship

The OSE department is an integral Centre of Excellence of the Maastricht University School of Business and Economics. The department has gained a strong reputation in both research and research-led education. The variety of expertise available allows us to provide excellent education at the Bachelor, Master, MBA, and PhD level in the broad area of organization, strategy, and entrepreneurship. OSE currently houses over 50 faculty members, in addition to around 15 PhD students, postdoctoral researchers, and affiliated faculty. OSE also includes the Centre of Entrepreneurship and Innovation at Maastricht University. Research spans the fields of Industrial Organization and Entrepreneurship, International Business and Strategic Management, Organizational Behavior and HRM, as well as the interrelationships between these disciplines. OSE is pursuing high quality research and its members have published in renowned international scholarly journals, such as the Academy of Management Journal, Journal of Applied Psychology, Journal of Management, Human Resource Management, The Leadership Quarterly, Organization Science, Human Resource Management Journal, Journal of Business Venturing, Journal of Management Studies, Human Relations, and the Strategic Management Journal.