2 Doctoral Researchers Jyväskylä University School of Business and Economics (JSBE)

 

Jyväskylä University School of Business and Economics (JSBE) is currently seeking to recruit staff to the position of

2 Doctoral Researchers, starting on the 1^st of August 2022 for 29 months (December 2024). The starting date can be negotiated, and there is a possibility for continuation as further funding is secured.

Your and your colleague’s positions are funded by the Emil Aaltonen team project “International tensions, local nationalism, and global business: A historical perspective (NaBus).” The team project aims to study how business actors, concurrent with other societal actors, use and shape national interests and identities to advance their causes. For such an analysis, the team will study Finnish companies and business associations in the context of the development of global markets, international relations, and the Finnish nation state.

The interdisciplinary project combines historical methods and reasoning with management research. It intends to contribute to scholarly debates of business history/historical organization studies, ‘business and society’ research, and/or international business studies.

Tasks

Your primary task will be to pursue your doctoral thesis at the JSBE Doctoral Programme in Business Studies under the supervision of the project’s co-leaders, focusing on some of the main foci of the team project. For your thesis, we encourage you to take the team project’s research plan as a starting point but take over the responsibility and refine the project according to your research interests. However, your dissertation should have a Nordic context in focus, preferably Finland.

Besides the dissertation work and your doctoral education, the position may also include other related duties, such as teaching assistance, and allows for international exchanges, if funding is secured.

As a successful candidate, your thesis will cover one of the following two sub-projects of the larger setup:

1^st sub-project: “Political mobilization for public struggles over national interests and identity” (working title)

The first doctoral thesis will examine the political agency of business actors interacting with national institutions, governments, and other societal actors. The starting point for the thesis is the question of “how and with what effects do business actors (e.g., business associations and leaders) engage in public controversies over national interests and identity in home country settings?” As an example of a fruitful empirical focus is the history of Finnish peak business associations (e.g., Suomen Työnantajain Keskusliitto) and their communicative efforts and practices in the context of national debates. Relevant archival data sources include The Central Archives for Finnish Business Records and media items of relevant news outlets. Conceptually, the scholarship of business and society (like “political CSR”) provides analytical tools for the analysis of political behaviors of business leaders and opportunities for a novel contribution.

2^nd sub-project: “National interests in market dynamics in cross-border settings” (working title)

The doctoral project will focus on the role of national interests and boundary-making in market dynamics, joining efforts of the international business scholarship. The project asks: “How do economic business actors (i.e., multinational companies) manage and/or utilize the tension between the national economic interests of their home country and host countries to advance their business interests?” Empirically, the project may be built on case studies on how traditional Finnish companies (e.g., Rauma-Repola, Wärtsilä, Valmet, Nokia) have managed their relationship with their nation of origin while the business became increasingly international. The study may investigate those developments through archival records or more conventional qualitative approaches (e.g., interviews).

Please reach out to the co-leaders to get a more comprehensive project description.

Qualifications

As a doctoral researcher, you are required to have a Master’s degree (MA/MSc) in business studies, history, or another relevant discipline, completed with excellent grades or otherwise proven competence in independent research.

We a looking for candidates who have a curious nature, interest in interdisciplinary research at the intersection of history and business studies, dedication to acquire state-of-the-art research skills, and commitment to publishing research in top journals. You need the ability to work independently while also being team player. We require fluency in English (both written and oral); Finnish and/or Swedish are considered as an advantage.

Please also note the short study guide for the JSBE Doctoral Programme in Business Studies as well as the duties, eligibility requirements, and language skills of Doctoral Researchers as defined in the University of Jyväskylä Regulations and language skills guidelines.

What do we offer as an employer?

You will be employed by the Jyväskylä University School of Business and Economics. The annual salary for a Doctoral Researcher will be approximately 28,500 EUR (gross income, including holiday bonus). Your staff benefits include occupational health care, flexible working hours, excellent sports facilities, and several restaurants and cafés on campus with staff discounts. With progress of your thesis work, the salary will be revised in accordance with the Collective Agreement of Finnish Universities. A trial period of six months will be used in the beginning of the employment.

You will be part of the Emil Aaltonen project team “NaBus,” embedded in the Strategy and Entrepreneurship research group. The group hosts four other ongoing large-scale projects funded by the Academy of Finland and the Wallenberg Foundation, which all leverage history in management research, and allow for synergies.

You will become a recognized member of our scholarly community with a unique opportunity to create connections to our international research network. Doctoral students do not have to pay tuition fees in Finland.

To find more information about the University of Jyväskylä, the City of Jyväskylä, and living in Finland, see the University’s International Staff Guide.

How to apply?

Please attach the following documents to your online application:

• Letter of motivation (an account of your merits and activities of significance to the position)
• CV, compiled in accordance with good scientific practice and, as far as possible, considering the template for a researcher’s CV
• A 1,000-word (maximum) outline of your research ideas related to the NaBus team project, focusing on the following issues:
  • Indicate your interest in one of the two sub-projects, refine your potential research question
  • Explore the academic literature briefly your project may contribute to, specify the empirical setting for your studies (organizations, time frame, geography), and present preliminary ideas for data/sources and research methods
• Full transcript of grades obtaining your MA/Msc studies
• Two letters of reference (one written by your thesis supervisor)

Please submit your application at the latest on 12th March 2022 by using the online application form.

For further information please contact the co-leaders of the team project, Postdoctoral researcher Christian Stutz (christian.stutz@jyu.fi, tel. +358406484186) and Postdoctoral researcher Saara Matala (matala@chalmers.se).


At the University of Jyväskylä, everyone can find their place in the human-centred environment of 2,600 experts and 14,700 students. Our goal is to create wisdom and wellbeing for us all. It is essential that each member of the community thrives and has opportunities to develop and grow. We cherish openness of thinking as well as the balance between research and education. Our naturally beautiful campus is located at the heart of the city of Jyväskylä. JYU is the third largest employer in Central Finland.

Jyväskylä University School of Business and Economics (JSBE) conducts high-quality research and offers quality degree education and executive education in business and economics. JSBE mission supports Competitive, Digital, and Sustainable Transformation in Business and Economy.  We offer our expertise widely to business, economy and society and contribute our knowledge to promote university-based entrepreneurship and innovation activities.   

JSBE is accredited by AACSB and BGA. JSBE’s Avance Executive Education has AMBA accreditation. JSBE’s research is ranked among top 401-500 in Shanghai’s Academic Ranking of World Universities and 250-300 in Times Higher Education ranking. 

JSBE is an active, international, and cooperative faculty in the dynamic and international University of Jyväskylä. The number of JSBE faculty is around 120, including about 25 professors. 1.500 students study at JSBE. Each year, around 200 students graduate as Masters of Science, and about 10 doctoral dissertations are publicly defended at JSBE.

 

Apply