Postdoctoral Researcher

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TURKU SCHOOL OF ECONOMICS, UNIVERSITY OF TURKU, INVITES APPLICATIONS FOR THE FIXED-TERM POSITION OF POSTDOCTORAL RESEARCHER FOR THE PERIOD 1 June 2023 to 31 December 2025.


The start of employments is negotiable, preferably as soon as possible.

The vacancy is positioned at the Finland Futures Research Centre (FFRC) at the Turku School of Economics. FFRC is one of the few university departments devoted to futures research in the world. Jointly founded by three universities in Turku in 1992, the FFRC is a department within the Turku School of Economics at the University of Turku, Finland. The cornerstones of its activities are on developing academic futures studies, critical interdisciplinary research, high quality education, strategic and business foresight and insightfully produced futures knowledge. FFRC has offices in three Finnish cities. The main facilities are in Turku School of Economics, but FFRC has also offices in Helsinki and in Tampere. The amount of personnel is 50+. From 2013, FFRC has been running an academic Master’s programme and a Doctoral programme in Futures Studies. There is ca. 70–80 Master’s students and 26 Doctoral researchers.

The position of postdoctoral researcher is connected to a research project entitled “GYROSCOPE: Scenarios, risks and opportunities of digital solutions in transition towards green andsustainable marine logistics” (Academy of Finland decision number 353056) funded by the Academy of Finland. The project produces a comprehensive picture of sustainable transition to green and sustainable logistics environment in Finland, and future policy pathways to achieve it. This will be realized by bringing together researchers, national authorities, and operational actors of the Finnish maritime cluster, to create collective future scenarios in Digital Foresight Platform (DFP) constructed and tested during the project. The DFP will be utilized to support alternative scenario building, risk identification, imagining potential and unforeseen future events, evaluation of their controllability, and creative development of explorative future policy pathways. In the long run, the project builds competences and improved capabilities of the marine stakeholder community in (a) collective scenario planning, (b) making sense of complex management problems and (c) perceiving short-term to long-term transitions as key parts of the strategic planning processes.

Job description

The duties of the Postdoctoral Researcher comprise following:

• Based on academic research literature in futures studies and strategic foresight, construction of a conceptual frame and an approach for the project together with the project research team
• Planning, testing and realisation of the Digital Foresight Platform
• Development of relevant theoretical and methodological approaches in foresight research, and building of new future-oriented concepts, prosesses and approaches based on scenario planning and Bayesian network analysis
• Planning, realisation and empirical analysis of future-oriented case studies together with the project research team
• Research for identification of strategic future pathways to low-carbon and sustainable logistic environment based on materials produced in the preceding research steps

What we expect from you

By opening the position of Postdoctoral Researcher, we aim to promote the research career of persons who have recently completed their doctoral degree. We expect a proven track record and academic research experience in futures research and/or strategic foresight. Person selected for the position of Postdoctoral Researcher shall have an appropriate doctoral degree, successfully completed by the end of the application period, but no more than five (5) years having passed since the completion of the degree. While counting the five-year period, maternity/paternal leaves and military service will not be taken into account.

We expect you to have a doctoral degree, for example, in following fields: Social Sciences (e.g. Futures Studies, Human Geography, Sociology, Political Science), Engineering (e.g. Systems Analysis, Industrial Engineering and Management), and Economics and Business Administration (e.g. Logistics, Economic Geography, Economic Sociology).

Person selected for the position of Postdoctoral Researcher is required to have ability to perform independent research and to give research-based teaching in the field of futures studies, especially strategic and technology foresight. Successful applicants have strong research orientation and fluency in English. Applicants with good methodological knowledge, previous experience on teaching in methodological courses and experience on supervision are favored.

What we appreciate

We appreciate a solid track record of research publications that show the research capabilities of the applicant. We appreciate an independent, creative and determined research approach and capabilities of working in a research group but also as capabilities for individual research work e.g. in developing theoretical, methodological and empirical aspects of the project. We also appreciate good communication skills and curious attitude coupled with empathical interaction skills and good sense of humour.

We value equality and diversity in our working community and encourage qualified applicants from all backgrounds to apply for our open positions.

What we offer

We offer our personnel interesting duties and an opportunity to develop your own work, and a work community that invests in well-being and the diverse services of the unique Study and Work Well-being Services unit. Please read more: Come Work with Us!

The European Commission has granted the University of Turku the right to use the HR Excellence in Research logo as a sign of the University's commitment to the continuous improvement of the status and working conditions of researchers in line with the objectives of the European Charter for Researchers.

Compensation

The salary for the position is determined in accordance with the university salary system for teaching and research personnel. The task specific salary component for the Postdoctoral Researcher is 3 044,00–3 549,72 euros per month (according to level 5–6 of the job demands chart). In addition, a personal work performance component will be paid. The personal work performance component is 6%–50% of the task specific salary component.

The position is subject to a six months trial period.

How to apply

Applications must be submitted by through the online application system on April 26th 2023 (23:59) at latest. The link to the online application system is in the beginning of this Call for Application (”Apply for the job”).

The application should include CV, publication list, academic portfolio, research plan, motivation letter and copie(s) of degree certificate(s). The academic portfolio should follow the guidelines of the University of Turku.

For further information, please do not hesitate to contact PI, Professor Toni Ahlqvist toni.ahlqvist (at)utu.fi. For practical matters concerning the application process and electronic application system, please contact HR Specialist Taina Karjalainen, taikar(at)utu.fi.