PostDoc in Consumer and Stakeholder Studies

An enthusiastic postdoc to examine (end) users response to the new concept of ‘Regenerative plastic’, part of the NOW project ‘Dynamic Branching for Circularity (DYNABRANCH)’.

What you are going to do
The work is embedded in a work package that assesses the societal short- and long-term opportunities and barriers of the proposed innovation (based on dynamically branched polycarbonates) along the value chain, obtain design requirements, and feed the input into the development phase to raise chances of a successful implementation.

In this 1 year position you will 1) perform a combination of literature review and interviews with producers, OEMs and consumers on key motivations (with an emphasis on health, sustainability, safety and convenience), perceptions, ambivalence and various types of trade-offs will be identified; 2) co-design workshops with stakeholders from the plastic industry and end users); and a 3) socio-economic and commercialization assessment.

The project and the group
Our consortium brings together polymer chemists, material engineers, a plastics manufacturer, a consumer behavioural scientist and a strategic business expert, to design and prepare these re-processable plastics, study and compare their properties and ascertain their compatibility with current industrial processes, and to assess their ultimate acceptance by converters, users and consumers.

The work in this work package will be primarily conducted by a postdoctoral researcher in the Marketing and Consumer Behaviour group (WUR2) under supervision of Betina Piqueras Fiszman. The postdoc will create and engage the network group of stakeholders. We will collaborate with Emiel Wubben (Business Management and Organisations) who will guide you for the socio-economic and commercialization assessments. A close collaboration is expected with the two PhD students in other work packages to enable these feedback loops in the innovation development.

On a daily basis you will be embedded in the Marketing and Consumer Behaviour group of Wageningen University. We have a vibrant group with multiple PhD and postdocs next to a staff of 12 assistant, associate and full professors.

Wageningen University & Research offers excellent terms of employment. A few highlights from our Collective Labour Agreement include:

• sabbatical leave, study leave, and partially paid parental leave;
• working hours that can be discussed and arranged so that they allow for the best possible work-life balance;
• there is a strong focus on vitality and you can make use of the sports facilities available on campus for a small fee;
• a fixed year-end bonus of 8.3%;
• excellent pension scheme.

In addition to these first-rate employee benefits, you will of course receive a good salary. Depending on your experience, we offer a competitive gross salary of between € 3.378,- and € 5.331,- for a full-time working week of 38 hours, in accordance with the Collective Labour Agreements for Dutch Universities (CAO-NU) (scale 10). Additionally, a contract for 0,8 FTE can be discussed. As for your contract, we initially offer a one-year contract that can be extended - if possible within (company) organizational circumstances - on good performance, for the duration of the project. Of course, we are happy to have a conversation with you if you have any questions about this.

Wageningen University & Research offers plenty of opportunities for growth and development, with a strong internal recruitment policy and excellent training programmes.

You will work on the greenest and most innovative campus in the Netherlands, in an international and open working environment. For 20 consecutive years, we have been voted the "best university" in the Netherlands! A place to be proud of.

The mission of Wageningen University & Research is “To explore the potential of nature to improve the quality of life”. Under the banner Wageningen University & Research, Wageningen University and the specialised research institutes of the Wageningen Research Foundation have joined forces in contributing to finding solutions to important questions in the domain of healthy food and living environment. With its roughly 30 branches, 7,600 employees (6,700 fte) and 13,100 students and over 150,000 participants to WUR’s Life Long Learning, Wageningen University & Research is one of the leading organisations in its domain. The unique Wageningen approach lies in its integrated approach to issues and the collaboration between different disciplines.

Read the 5 reasons why your future colleagues enjoy working at WUR and watch the video below to get an idea of our green campus!

We will recruit for the vacancy ourselves, so no employment agencies please. However, sharing in your network is appreciated.

Wageningen University & Research is the university and research centre for life sciences. The themes we deal with are relevant to everyone around the world and Wageningen, therefore, has a large international community and a lot to offer to international employees.

Because we expect you to work and live in the Netherlands our team of advisors on Dutch immigration procedures will help you with the visa application procedures for yourself and, if applicable, for your family.

Feeling welcome also has everything to do with being well informed. Wageningen University & Research's International Community page contains practical information about what we can do to support international employees coming to Wageningen. Furthermore, our Welcome Center can assist you with any additional advice and information about for example housing, opening a bank account, dual career programs or schooling. Finally, certain categories of international staff may be eligible for a tax exemption on a part of their salary during the first five years in the Netherlands.