“the purpose of a business is to create a customer” (Peter Drucker, 1986)

The importance of attracting customers for new businesses has long been clear. Despite this, little is known in entrepreneurship research on how young firms should attract their customers, how they should manage their portfolios of customers, and how customer portfolios influence firm outcomes, such as survival and acquisition. 

Many questions thus remain, such as whether it is better for a young firm’s continued success to have a few, large customers that they are more dependent on, or to have many, smaller ones? Or whether young firms build their customer portfolios in deliberate ways, or just accept all customers? Under which conditions do young firms choose to diversify their customer portfolios? 

This PhD project aims to address some of these gaps at the intersection of entrepreneurship and marketing by studying the effects of how firms attract customers, manage their customer portfolios, and the consequences thereof. The PhD project is expected to be quantitative and answer questions such as:

• How do young firms attract customers, and to what extent is customer choice deliberate versus serendipitous?
• How do young firms make the trade-off between having more, smaller customers, versus fewer, larger customers?
• How does dependence on customers affect firm outcomes, such as acquisition?
• How do start-ups and scale-ups differ in terms of customer acquisition?

Answering these questions is not only important from an academic point of view, but also for society, as it can help governments to better support entrepreneurs and young firms. 

You will work on this project in close collaboration with and under the supervision of Dr. Lien Denoo and Dr. Joshua Eckblad and you will be enrolled as a PhD candidate in the world-class PhD program of CentER Graduate School of Business, where you will receive extensive training in theory and methods by taking several PhD-level courses (about 36 European credits). The training can be adapted to your previous educational achievements by mutual agreement with the supervisors. 

A PhD dissertation at CentER requires the design and execution of 3 studies. The execution of the research work itself typically involves the conceptualization of the research questions and ideas, data collection, quantitative or qualitative analysis of the data, and writing and presenting of academic papers. The aim is to publish those projects in high-quality academic journals. Two advisors will be assigned for supervising your PhD research. Upon successful completion of your courses and your research work, as demonstrated by a submitted and approved PhD dissertation and the subsequent defense, you will be awarded a doctoral degree by Tilburg University. 

1. An academic Master’s or MPhil/Research Master’s degree in management, strategy, entrepreneurship, business studies, or another relevant discipline. 
2. Completed the previous degree with an excellent GPA (top 10% of class as guideline).
3. You are passionate about entrepreneurship and creating a better understanding of the role and impact of customers in entrepreneurial ventures.
4. Proficiency in English to be proven by means of an IELTS score of at least 7.0, with no sub scores below 6.5, a TOEFL score of at least 100 (internet based) or 600 (paper based), a Cambridge CAE (at least B) or a Cambridge CPE. Exemptions can be provided upon request to native English speakers or to candidates who have obtained their bachelor’s and master’s degree in English in Europe, Canada, USA, Australia, or New Zealand. 
5. Proficiency in Dutch, besides English, is a plus. 
6. A solid quantitative background, to be proven in one of the following ways is required:
   1. candidates with a MSc or MPhil degree from a Research University in the European Union need to have at least 24 ECTS credits in quantitative and research methods courses during their BSc and/or MSc or MPhil programs. If this is not the case, but you would still like to be considered for admission, you are welcome to hand in a GRE or GMAT test score to show your quantitative competences.
   2. candidates with a MSc or MPhil degree from a university outside the European Union: please provide a recent GRE or GMAT test score.

Tilburg University offers excellent benefits in a pleasant working environment: 

• A position based on 1.0 FTE (40 hours per week). 
• A salary of €2872 gross per month in the first year, up to €3670 gross per month in the fourth year for full-time employment, based on UFO profile Promovendus and salary scale P. 
• This is a vacancy for a temporary position in accordance with Article 2.3 paragraph 8 under b of the CLA DU. You will initially receive a temporary contract for the duration of 18 months to assess your suitability. The evaluation will take place after about 14 months. If suitable, this contract will be followed by a new fixed-term contract of 30 months. (N.B. program is 4 years, full-time).
• Vacation pay of 8% and a year-end bonus of 8.3%. 
• Over 8 weeks of vacation leave. 
• The opportunity to work partly on campus and partly from home with a home office allowance of €2 per day.
• Reimbursement for sustainable commuting: walking, cycling, and public transportation. 
• A monthly internet fee of €25.
• An Options Model in which you exchange benefits for things such as additional leave, more pension, a bicycle or personal training at our Sports Center. 
• A moving allowance (subject to conditions). 
• Employees from outside the Netherlands may be eligible for the 30/20/10% tax facility.
• A pension with ABP; the most sustainable Dutch pension fund.
• Training in personal development, career development, leadership, education, and research or a language course at our Language Center. 
• A work culture in which we embrace differences, everyone is welcome and given equal opportunities. 
• A vibrant campus in green surroundings that is easily accessible by public transport. 

For more information, see our website and the Collective Labour Agreement of Dutch Universities. 

Tilburg University

Tilburg University is an academic, inclusive, and engaged community. Together with nearly 3,000 employees, we are committed to broad prosperity, sustainably, and inclusion. For current and future generations. We develop and share knowledge for the requirements of people and our society. This is how we contribute to solving complex social issues and help society move forward.

We educate our 19,500 students of 110 nationalities to become responsible leaders with knowledge, skills, and character. With our education and research for broad prosperity, we exceedingly focus on themes such as mental and preventive care, an inclusive labor market, the energy transition, and digitalization.

Tilburg School of Economics and Management
Tilburg School of Economics and Management (TiSEM) is the university largest faculty.  TiSEM offers well reputed academic research and education. Its research belongs to the European top. The education programs, of which the majority are offered completely in English, are on the international map with the AACSB accreditation awarded in 2002. Employees and students form an ambitious international community.
Tilburg School of Economics and Management

Increasing your value 
Tilburg University is rated among the top Dutch employers and has excellent terms of employment. With us, you will find everything you need to maximize your potential and development. We offer excellent facilities and support for research, education, and making societal impact. In all three of these areas, we “recognize and reward” you in line with national university aspirations. With great opportunities such as obtaining a senior teaching qualification, collaborating in an academic collaborative center, or participating in our Connected Leading program. We attach great importance to team spirit and have a clear, shared vision of (personal) leadership (Connected Leading). Developing qualities such as self-reflection, dialogue, and transparency are central to this. We expect managers to embrace this and continue developing in this respect. Read more about careers at Tilburg University and personal development here. 

About the department Strategy and Entrepreneurship
Within Tilburg University the PhD-position is embedded in the Department of Strategy and Entrepreneurship of the Tilburg School of Economics and Management. The department has a very strong research orientation with a focus on high-quality and impactful research. The members of the department are listed here. Department members come from leading universities in North America, Asia, and Europe. We are a diverse and collegial group of research-oriented colleagues, including a terrific group of junior and recently hired scholars. The PhD candidate will also be enrolled in the world-class CentER Graduate School of Business, where they will take about 36 European credits of courses in theory and methods (as well as academic integrity and academic writing) as part of working towards the PhD degree.

Would you like to know more before applying? Feel free to contact dr. Lien Denoo via l.c.i.denoo@tilburguniversity.edu, or dr. Joshua Eckblad via j.g.eckblad@tilburguniversity.edu.

We cordially invite you to apply September 15, 2024 the latest; this can only be done online. In order to make a good selection, we also ask you to provide the following documents: 

1. Letter of motivation, including research area/topics of interest.
2. Curriculum vitae.
3. Official copy of your university degree and grades (full transcripts of BSc and MSc, including course list and grades).
4. A pdf copy of your master thesis or other research-oriented output (such as a Bachelor Thesis or a term paper).  This work must be single- or first-authored.  If you are currently working on your master thesis, feel free to submit your thesis draft.
5. The exact contact details of at least two references.
6. Proof of proficiency in English, or a request for exemption  
7. If applicable, a recent GRE or GMAT score.  
8. Course list and grades of your BSc and MSc programs.