Post-doc or junior researcher position on Interorganizational Collaboration & Boundary Work in NWO-funded project ‘Learning communities as innovation accelerators’
Post-doc or junior researcher position on Interorganizational Collaboration & Boundary Work in NWO-funded project ‘Learning communities as innovation accelerators’
Research and industry have advocated for setting up Learning Communities as a new form of organizing and a creative space in which professionals from various organizations and with different backgrounds can work, collaborate, and innovate together. However, insights into how learning communities function and contribute to accelerated innovation remain lacking. In this NWO-funded project, we study 13 learning communities (of different sizes, maturities, focus points, etc.) in which professionals experiment and collaborate to push forward matters related to the digital transformation. The Post-doc project uses a boundary work perspective to better comprehend how members of learning communities organize their joint work, coordinate and communicate across organizational and disciplinary differences, make sense of often broad and vague questions around digital transformation, and so forth. The project constitutes an excellent opportunity to conduct (independent) scientific research on novel forms of organizing and interorganizational collaboration, with numerous committed fieldwork sites to tap into. In addition, this project includes the possibility to directly contribute to pressing questions on how to transform work practices and organize work in the future.
As a Post-doc researcher* (or junior researcher) in this project, your job is to
- Design and conduct longitudinal qualitative case studies (ideally of ethnographic nature) to better understand how organization, collaboration, and innovation processes unfold and can be best facilitated in spaces where professionals from various backgrounds and organizations come together.
- Work independently on your own research while remaining in close relation with other researchers in the project team as well as with stakeholders and professionals of the involved learning communities.
- Report and present your findings for both scientific and non-scientific audiences (e.g., at scientific conferences, in journal publications, or during workshops with practitioners).
The Post-doc position is funded by NWO and is part of the project CLIC-IT: Communities of Learning and Innovation in ICT to accelerate digital transformation. Besides the Post-doc (or junior researcher), a PhD-student and multiple other (junior and senior) researchers are working on this project. Several partners collaborate in the project, including Saxion Hogeschool, Hanzehogeschool Groningen, Fontys Hogeschool and Hogeschool Windesheim. The 13 involved learning communities are located across the Netherlands and represent in total more than 500 firms, stakeholders, and educational institutions (including the Dutch AI coalition and the Centre for Safety and Digitalization). The large consortium of learning communities is committed to the research project and provides excellent sites for data collection and/or more impact-directed research approaches. More information can be found here: https://www.linkedin.com/company/clic-it-learning-communities/
Information and application
For additional information about this position, or to receive the full text of the research proposal funded by NWO, you can contact dr. Ellen Nathues (e.nathues@utwente.nl / +31534891115).
More information about the department of Professional Learning & Technology can be found on the following website: https://www.utwente.nl/en/bms/plt/
Applications should be uploaded via the ‘Apply now’ button. Since only three documents can be uploaded per application, please combine documents if needed.
The application deadline is October 15. Interviews will be held end of October and beginning of November. The starting date for the position is as soon as possible but at the latest by February 2024.
About the department
The department of Professional Learning & Technology is specialised in research on professional learning in and across organisations. Researchers at our department study formal and informal learning of (future) employees, including the use of technology to measure and support professional learning. Our studies often take place in the high-tech, health, and educational sector with the intention to understand, evaluate and optimize professional learning in these various contexts. We aim to understand the interactions between learning processes on the individual, team, and organizational level and design (technology based) interventions to optimize these processes. In our research group, we combine expertise from a range of disciplines (e.g., educational sciences, psychology, business administration). Staff members participate in the ICO research school (the Interuniversity Centre of Educational Sciences) and the Twente Graduate School.Our department is responsible for the courses of the Human Resource Development track of the Master Educational Science and Technology, and the corresponding pre-Master program.
About the organisation
The Faculty of Behavioral, Management and Social sciences (BMS) aims to play a key role in understanding, jointly developing and evaluating innovations in society. Technological developments are the engine of innovation. As a technical university that puts people first, we tailor them to human needs and behavior and use social engineering to integrate them into society. We also ensure adequate governance at public and private level, and robust, inclusive and fair organizational structures. We do this by developing, sharing and applying high-quality knowledge in Psychology, Business Administration, Public Administration, Communication Sciences, Philosophy, Educational Sciences and Health Sciences. Our research and education in these disciplines revolves around tackling and solving societal challenges. The research programs of BMS are closely linked to the research of the UT institutes Mesa+ Institute for Nanotechnology, TechMed Center and Digital Society Institute.
As an employer, the Faculty of BMS offers work that matters. We equip you to create new possibilities for yourself and for our society. With us, you will become part of a leading technical university with increasing, positive social impact. We offer an open, inclusive and entrepreneurial atmosphere, in which we encourage you to make healthy choices, for example through our flexible, adaptable benefits.
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