phd in management in netherlands

Take the first step in your Business & Management research career

PhD in Business and Management

The ABRI PhD Program in Business and Management is a challenging program that will help you leverage your talent for doing research. Our program, along with the mentorship of a dedicated supervisory team, will support your development into a leading scholar, teacher, and influential thinker in international business and management research. During the 4-year rigorous training trajectory, you will acquire the academic foundations of business and management research, learn theoretical knowledge and methodological skills for conducting independent research in your field of choice, and develop 3+ academic papers that will form the body of your PhD dissertation. What does this PhD programme deliver?

Through this PhD program in Business and Management we support you in:

• Learning to conduct high quality research
• Publishing research in international peer-reviewed scientific journals
• Becoming a valuable member of, and a contributor to a vibrant academic community

The PhD program in Business and Management at a glance:

• The starting date for externally funded PhD positions is flexible.
• Duration: 4 years
• The PhD in Business and Management is a full-time program
• Most courses and training activities will take place at the campus of Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam (during Covid also online)
• Fully-funded PhD positions (including a generous salary and financial support for conferences, international research visits, data collection and other research expenses) are available on a competitive basis
• Tuition fees for 2025 will be announced shortly.

View all admission requirements, costs & practical information 

Accreditations

Discover your PhD program in Business and Management

The PhD programme is a structured four-year training programme. The learning process will follow a curriculum that ensures you acquire the academic foundations, theoretical knowledge, and methodological skills relevant for conducting high-quality research in your field of choice.

Throughout your trajectory, you will be mentored by team of supervisors who are experts in your desired field of research. Right at the beginning, they will help you develop a training and supervision plan entailing the course work and other training activities necessary to become an expert in your field. In the first year, you will focus on your course work and the development of a research proposal, which will be reviewed before you advance to the second year. In the remaining three years, you will focus on the development of scientific papers, which will eventually become part of the PhD dissertation and can be submitted for publication in international peer-reviewed journals.

In addition, you will get the opportunity participate in ABRI research seminars, present your work at international conferences, and acquire skills regarding other aspects of an academic career such as teaching and project management.

Drive innovation and change, with a PhD in Business and Management!

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Related study programmes

Part-time PhD programme in Business

Would you like a word of advice?

Please contact the ABRI Director of Doctoral Education Dr. Maria Tims.

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• Dr. David Kroon
• Associate Professor of Strategy & Organization
• Scientific Director ABRI
• [email protected]

• Prof. dr. Maria Tims
• Full Professor
• Director Doctoral Education ABRI
• [email protected]

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PhD in Strategic Management & Entrepreneurship

ERIM FT PhD vacancy form

Visible since

Friday, 1 November 2024

Wednesday, 15 January 2025

Our doctoral program is designed to develop world-class researchers in Strategic Management and Entrepreneurship. We combine in-depth knowledge of key topics with strong training in research methods and analytical skills. By joining our PhD program, you'll become part of a collaborative, cutting-edge research community. Our group covers a wide range of topics, with faculty and PhD candidates working across nearly all areas of strategic management and entrepreneurship.

The initial coursework will provide you with an in-depth exposure to different areas of the field before choosing your specific focus for your doctoral work. In addition to coursework, you will become part of the department’s research culture from the start on by joining research seminars and engaging in conversations with faculty about their research interests. These interactions will help you to identify

your specific focus for your doctoral work that aligns with your intellectual interests and your skill set.

Alumni of the PhD programme hold academic positions in renowned academic institutes around the world, including Cambridge, Copenhagen Business School, ETH Zurich, HEC Paris, INSEAD, Kellogg, McGill, University of Georgia, the University of South Carolina, Renmin University, and WHU. 

More information is on the “PhD in Strategic Management” website: https://www.erim.eur.nl/doctoral-programme/phd-in-management/specialisations/strategy-entrepreneurship/ .

Strategic management, corporate entrepreneurship, inclusive entrepreneurship, corporate governance, global strategy, strategy and organization, behavioral strategy, innovation strategy, corporate strategy, collaborative strategies

The field of Strategic Management and Entrepreneurship focuses on understanding why some firms perform better than others, how firms behave, and what determines success in international competition. Given its broad scope, the field is highly integrative and multi-disciplinary, and feeds on insights from a wide range of disciplines, such as sociology, psychology, law, finance, and economics. The field focuses on actions associated with changing the firm's scope and profile of business lines. It also addresses questions of how decision-makers can best leverage knowledge and innovation to foster competitive advantage for their firms as well as how external forces influence firms and entrepreneurs in a global context and in societies expecting more sustainable strategies. Other topics include entrepreneurial behavior in new ventures, scale-ups, and established organizations. Moreover, the field focuses on how strategic leadership and governance shape firms, firm behavior, and outcomes.

Current themes that have the focus of our faculty and PhD candidates are:

1. Strategy, Organization, and Governance. This line aims to explain and identify the mechanisms through which modern firms shape and align their organizational structures, governance and ownership with the strategies, resource dependencies, and business models through which they create and capture value.

2. Strategic Entrepreneurship. This strand is concerned with understanding how organizations link entrepreneurial behaviour and strategic advantage-seeking actions to create and capture wealth.

3. Strategy, Knowledge, and Innovation. This theme focuses on how managers and entrepreneurs build and renew the technological, social, and relational capital to leverage new technologies and business models.

4. Global Strategy. This branch aims to enrich our understanding of how internationally operating firms form and implement their strategies, and how firms shape, and are shaped by, their global context and societies expecting sustainable practices.

5. Behavioural Strategy and Entrepreneurial Behaviour. This branch informs us about the psychology behind high-impact and complex strategic and entrepreneurial decisions.

During the first 18 months, PhD candidates follow an intensive trajectory of courses to build the theoretical knowledge and develop methodological skills needed to become successful researchers. Through a series of content-oriented courses, PhD candidates are exposed to foundational works and current debates in different areas of strategic management. Methods courses include quantitative techniques, qualitative methods, as well as critical analytical techniques. After 3 months of coursework and socialization, candidates choose a supervising team among the SME faculty. Within 15 months, candidates submit their research proposal in collaboration with their supervising team. The research proposal describes research question(s), intended contributions, positioning in the field, and methodological approach of the research they will carry out during the remainder of the trajectory.

This second stage will build on the research proposal with a focus on implementing and writing up the studies that together make up the dissertation. Progress of candidates is assessed through coursework, research papers, and presentations of their work. The complete PhD programme in Strategic Management and Entrepreneurship typically takes five years.

Required profile

We welcome applications from outstanding candidates of diverse disciplinary and national backgrounds who are passionate about academic research in strategy. Ideal candidates have strong academic credentials and a demonstrated ability to conduct high-quality research. This includes excellent analytical skills, as demonstrated in the motivation letter, and proficiency in empirical research methods, evidenced by an MSc thesis or relevant research papers (co-)authored by the applicant. While not required, a high GMAT or GRE score is an advantage. Applications that indicate how the applicant’s research interests overlap with those of our faculty are highly valued.

Required by ERIM

All application documents required by ERIM can be found here .

Expected output

In the Strategy and Entrepreneurship group, a Ph.D. thesis will typically consist of a number of high quality papers that have either been published or that aim for publication in the field’s leading journals. We have a strong focus on publications in the field’s top journals, such as the Academy of Management Journal , Academy of Management Review , Administrative Science Quarterly , Journal of International Business Studies , Journal of Management , Journal of Management Studies , Organization Science, Organization Studies, and Strategic Management Journal.

Cooperation

Researchers in the Strategy and Entrepreneurship group regularly attend major conferences and collaborate with renowned scholars from leading business schools around the world. We also encourage PhD candidates to build an international network by attending conferences and other research events, which often lead to collaborative projects with, and research visits to, leading scholars in the field. Generous funding is available for these activities.

Societal relevance

The Strategy and Entrepreneurship group has a strong ambition to develop and carry out research that matters to managers, practitioners, firms, and (global) society at large. The group actively encourages valorization of research findings through various research-related outreach activities, including publications and seminars for practitioners, executive education, media interventions, and the development of cases and other teaching materials that translate academic knowledge into actionable insights.

Scientific relevance

The Strategy and Entrepreneurship group aims to contribute to ongoing research streams in the fields of strategic management and entrepreneurship as well as to pioneer and define new research areas in these fields.

Employment conditions

ERIM offers fully-funded and salaried PhD positions, which means that accepted PhD candidates become employees (promovendi) of Erasmus University Rotterdam. Salary and benefits are in accordance with the  Collective Labour Agreement for Dutch Universities (CAO) .

Erasmus University Rotterdam aspires to be an equitable and inclusive community. We nurture an open culture, where everyone is supported to fulfil their full potential. We see inclusivity of talent as the basis of our successes, and the diversity of perspectives and people as a highly valued outcome. EUR provides equal opportunities to all employees and applicants regardless of gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, religion, ethnicity, age, neurodiversity, functional impairment, citizenship, or any other aspect which makes them unique. We look forward to welcoming you to our community.

Contact information

For questions regarding the PhD application and selection procedure, please check the Admissions or send us an e-mail via [email protected] .

About Rotterdam School of Management, Erasmus University

Rotterdam School of Management, Erasmus University (RSM) is one of Europe’s top-ranked business schools. RSM provides ground-breaking research and education furthering excellence in all aspects of management and is based in the international port city of Rotterdam – a vital nexus of business, logistics and trade. RSM’s primary focus is on developing business leaders with international careers who can become a force for positive change by carrying their innovative mindset into a sustainable future. Our first-class range of bachelor, master, MBA, PhD and executive programmes encourage them to become critical, creative, caring and collaborative thinkers and doers. 

RSM is an equal opportunity employer and explicitly encourages applications from candidates of all genders, ethnicities, and nationalities.

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Becoming a PhD student at Amsterdam Business School?

The Amsterdam Business School aims to conduct and high-quality international research and offers teaching that meets international standards at a high-level. We regularly offer PhD positions for outstanding candidates who want to pursue an academic career in the inspiring and challenging academic environment of our school and who are willing to contribute to its lively community. Currently about 60 PhD candidates are working on their PhD research at Amsterdam Business School, running the gamut of business and management disciplines.

At the University of Amsterdam Business School there are two main ways to start a PhD trajectory: through the Tinbergen Institute and on a vacant project. Furthermore, we sometimes accept open applications. Most PhD students are employed by faculty as PhD researcher in a full-time position with all the benefits of employment, including a good salary. The entry into such a position is either through one of the research master programmes of the Tinbergen Institute (see below) or directly in an open vacancy. Another route is by submitting a research proposal either as a student on a scholarship (such as the China Scholarship Council Programme) or e.g. with employer funding for those working in a R&D department in another organisation.

The Amsterdam-Rotterdam Consortium for Graduate Education (ARC), a joint initiative by t he University of Amsterdam (UvA), Erasmus University Rotterdam (EUR) and Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam (VU) provides 2 important PhD programmes that prepare for a research trajectory at Amsterdam Business School. 

• An intensive 2-year research master in Economics, Econometrics and Finance. Students who pursue a PhD in finance are selected from this research master at the Tinbergen Institute.
• The research master in Business Data Science has a strong focus on data science related to multiple business fields. Students who pursue a PhD in e.g. Operations Management are selected from this research master. 

Both Master's programmes prepare students for a subsequent 3-year PhD trajectory with a state of the art course programme with rigorous training in the core subjects and tools of economics, econometrics and finance in the first year and specialisation in one of the many fields of research through field course work and the research master thesis in the second year. At the end of the programme, students are matched with a supervisor based on their research interests. Students who are assigned a supervisor from ABS have the opportunity to start the PhD trajectory at our school. 

• Read more about the Research Master in Economics, Econometrics and Finance
• Read more about the Research Master in Business Data Science

Most PhD positions will be published on the vacancy website of the UvA. Requirements, which vary by position, will be published in each vacancy. The educational programme for these PhD candidates at our school consists of an individualised course trajectory that each PhD candidate shapes, in consultation with his or her supervisor and the Research Institute director. This approach enables education tailored to the needs of each individual candidate and project. This model is in place as we have PhD candidates from very different backgrounds in different research sections as well as many different research topics, ranging from leadership and accounting to marketing and entrepreneurship, and the methods and disciplines they need to be trained in are too different to combine in one single programme. Many interesting and excellent course options are available for PhD candidates and since the programme is highly individualised, even very specific courses as well as summer schools from other top-institutions, even those abroad, can be selected.

• Read more about our vacant positions
• Read more about our tailor-made educational programme

Candidates who wish to pursue a PhD on a specific topic (usually related to their work environment) and who are financially self-supporting (e.g. with company funding or a formal external scholarship) can apply for an external PhD trajectory. The first step is to match the candidate and proposal with a supervisor at Amsterdam Business School in the relevant field. If a supervisor has been found, a similar trajectory as for those on a vacant position is followed and a tailor-made educational programme will be compiled.

• Learn more about our PhD trajectory for external PhD candidates
• Read more about the tailor-made educational programme
• Find vacancies for PhD candidates in the overview of UvA vacancies

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PhD in Management

Strategy & entrepreneurship.

We are eager to help jumpstart the careers of promising PhD candidates pursuing high-impact research in strategic management and entrepreneurship! Our doctoral programme combines gaining an in-depth understanding of core strategy topics , developing a thorough command of different research methods and skills , and hands-on training of getting high-impact research published. Joining the PhD programme means joining a department with a highly collaborative and cutting-edge research culture in which faculty members and PhD candidates work on topics that cover nearly all domains of the wider strategic management and entrepreneurship fields.

Every academic year, we admit about three internally and several externally funded, promising doctoral candidates, who follow a range of doctoral courses, work on joint and supervised papers, and hold conference or workshop presentations. The Department welcomes excellent candidates from diverse disciplinary and national backgrounds. We look for highly motivated candidates with a strong research orientation, as evidenced, for example, by an intriguing master thesis or research article. For more information, you may contact PhD Coordinator Dr. Korcan Kavusan .

Current vacancies at Rotterdam School of Management

• Addressing the gendered odds of new venture founding and funding Deadline: Saturday, 30 November 2024
• PhD in Strategic Management & Entrepreneurship Deadline: Wednesday, 15 January 2025

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