PhD position International Business (V25.0251)

Since its foundation in 1614, the University of Groningen has enjoyed an international reputation as a dynamic and innovative center of higher education offering high-quality teaching and research. Belonging to the best research universities of Europe and joining forces with prestigious partner universities and networks, the University of Groningen is truly an international place of knowledge.

Faculty of Economics and Business
The Faculty of Economics and Business offers an inspiring study and working environment for students and employees. International accreditation enables the Faculty to assess performance against the highest international standards. It also creates an exciting environment of continuous improvement. FEB's programmes, academic staff and research do well on various excellence ranking lists.

FEBRI, the graduate school and research institute of the Faculty of Economics and Business has one PhD position in the field of International Business available.

Project description
This PhD project seeks a highly motivated candidate who wishes to contribute to the field of international business and international strategy. We are particularly interested in the international strategies of firms with specific types of ownership, like family firms, state-owned firms, or firms with institutional owners. Each of these ownership types comes with specific characteristics that may influence, for example, the goals, risks, and time horizons of global strategic decisions. Candidates can choose to focus on one of these groups of firms, or design comparative studies.

Potential research avenues include, but are not limited to

• International sustainability strategies and corporate social responsibility of multinational companies with specific ownership types.
• The responses of firms with different ownership types to geopolitical changes, navigating the new complexities of international business.
• The role of different types of owners on the formation, evolution, and long-term success of international partnerships.
• The impact of various ownership structures on competitive advantages in international markets.

The research may involve collecting both primary and secondary data and is open to those interested in both quantitative and qualitative research methods. The specific focus of the study can be tailored to align with the candidate's individual interests and expertise; we therefore invite candidates to share their own research interests with us.

The PhD position is embedded in the research programme Global Economics and Management of FEB’s Research Institute. The project will be supervised by Prof. Rian Drogendijk and Dr Maria Cristina Sestu.

The ideal candidate is ambitious, highly motivated and wishes to make a career in academic or applied research. You have a thorough training in research skills, speaks and writes English fluently and has obtained excellent results in the Master phase.
The PhD candidate should have a background (MSc, Research Master) in International Business, Strategic Management, Organizational Behaviour or other relevant discipline.

We offer you in accordance with the Collective Labour Agreement for Dutch Universities:

• Agross monthly salary from a minimum of € 2,901, which increases yearly to a maximum of € 3,707.
• Based on the gross salary you will receive an additional 8% holiday allowance each year in May, and an additional 8.3 % end of year bonus in December.
• A temporary full-time appointment for a period of four years, under the condition of a positive assessment at the end of the first year. PhD candidates contribute 20% of their time to teaching in years 2-4.

Starting date: Preferably per 1 September 2025

The application package consists of the following separate documents:

• A motivation letter (1 A4 max) combined with a short study proposal for the PhD project (1 A4 max).
• Your CV.
• A scan of your diploma including transcripts.
• Proof of English proficiency.
• Other relevant documents.

The documents 1-4 are compulsory and please note that incomplete application packages will not be taken into account.

You may apply for this position until 5 May 11:59pm / before 6 May 2025 Dutch local time (CEST) by means of the application form (click on "Apply" below on the advertisement on the university website).

An assessment may be part of the procedure, consisting of psychological tests and an interview.

The University of Groningen strives to be a university in which students and staff are respected and feel at home, regardless of differences in background, experiences, perspectives, and identities. We believe that working on our core values of inclusion and equality are a joint responsibility and we are constructively working on creating a socially safe environment. Diversity among students and staff members enriches academic debate and contributes to the quality of our teaching and research. We therefore invite applicants from underrepresented groups in particular to apply. For more information, see also our diversity policy webpage: https://www.rug.nl/about-ug/policy-and-strategy/diversity-and-inclusion/

Our selection procedure follows the guidelines of the Recruitment code (NVP): https://www.nvp-hrnetwerk.nl/nl/sollicitatiecode and European Commission's European Code of Conduct for recruitment of researchers: https://euraxess.ec.europa.eu/jobs/charter/code

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