{"id":163940,"date":"2025-12-05T03:00:49","date_gmt":"2025-12-05T02:00:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.cde.ual.es\/?p=163940"},"modified":"2025-12-04T12:03:57","modified_gmt":"2025-12-04T11:03:57","slug":"phd-predoctoral-fellowship-in-business-management-spain","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.cde.ual.es\/en\/phd-predoctoral-fellowship-in-business-management-spain\/","title":{"rendered":"PhD – Predoctoral Fellowship in Business Management – Spain"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Esade Business School, Ramon Llull University offers a predoctoral fellowship as part of the State Plan for Scientific and Technological Research and Innovation of the Ministry for Science Innovation and Universities of the Spanish Government to undertake a PhD thesis in the framework of the funded project: \u201cScaling: Fundamental Trade-offs, Human Capital Dynamics and Performance Outcomes\u201d (Project reference: PID2024-160548NB-I00; PI: Dr. Dimo Ringov\/Dra. Annelore Huyghe).<\/p>\n

Through three mutually reinforcing research lines and a total of eight interrelated studies, this project aims to generate essential knowledge and insights to help address the EU knowledge and execution gap on scale-ups and scaling. Our first research line aims to investigate some of the most fundamental, yet to date largely unexamined and poorly understood, trade-offs in scaling. Through three interrelated studies, this research line aims to generate foundational understanding of scaling as a complex adaptive process that involves the management of critical trade-offs related to the need to balance fast-paced growth with maintaining control over key organizational processes\/standards, standardization with local adaptation, investing in standardized open-source tools to reduce the time it takes a venture to get ready to scale with protecting its ability to differentiate and scale sustainably and profitably.
\nOur second research line aims to investigate critical human capital dynamics in rapidly growing entrepreneurial ventures, in particular how scaling influences compensation, work structures, and employee well-being; how employers address collective employee turnover during scaling, particularly through human capital investments; as well as what triggers loneliness or, conversely, improves well-being among founders during scaling. By examining these areas through three interrelated studies, the research line contributes to a comprehensive understanding of scaling as a human-centric process, emphasizing the need to balance rapid organizational growth and sustainable people practices for both the workforce and leadership.
\nOur third research line aims to develop comprehensive frameworks for measuring and understanding scaling progress and performance, specifically how to systematically measure scaling efficiency (for both demand-side and supply-side scaling) as well as how different patterns of technical debt accumulation during rapid scaling affect organizational innovation capabilities and performance outcomes. Through two interrelated studies, this research line seeks to establish robust quantitative metrics for evaluating scaling potential and progress, while also illuminating the critical role of technical infrastructure decisions in scaling outcomes.
\nThe theory, evidence, and insights generated by our three research lines and a total of eight interrelated studies will inform and provide actionable advice to founders, managers, investors, stakeholders, policymakers, and scholars, thus furthering understanding of the fundamental trade-offs in scaling, the human capital dynamics that enhances the resilience of high-growth entrepreneurial ventures and ecosystems, as well as the metrics and tools that help assess and predict scaling success.<\/p>\n

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Skills\/Qualifications<\/strong><\/div>\n
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We welcome applicants with strong quantitative and analytical skills, and a demonstrated interest in conducting original research. The candidate must have a master\u2019s degree in economics, management or a related field, or relevant research experience.
\nApplicants must have at least 25 ECTS in areas of methodology and topics related to business management. Preference might be given to those candidates possessing a Master of Research degree or previous experience as research assistant in tasks such as data collection, data analysis and writing results.<\/p>\n

Also, applicants are required to have completed a Final Masters Project\/Dissertation (15 ECTS minimum) of one of the three following types:
\n\u2022 Theoretical research contributing to an advance in the state of knowledge in a specific field.
\n\u2022 Applied research involving the use of knowledge and existing research methods in a new application or to resolve a real-world problem.
\n\u2022 Literature review, an in-depth analysis of literature within a specific line of research that identifies gaps in current knowledge.
\nApplicants\u2019 research interests are expected to be aligned with those of the project.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Specific Requirements<\/strong><\/div>\n
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At the time of admission, candidates are to fulfil all Esade PhD in Management program admission criteria among others GMAT\/GRE; proven proficiency in English).<\/p>\n

Benefits<\/strong><\/div>\n
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