Shaping the future of decentralized energy solutions as a postdoctoral researcher

The transition to a climate-neutral energy system requires fundamental shifts in how we reorganize our energy infrastructure. More decentralized energy solutions (e.g., in neighbourhoods) allow producing, storing and distributing energy more efficiently, alleviating grid congestion and promoting affordable and reliable energy. These solutions do require new forms of collaboration between the various stakeholders involved. For example: traditional bilateral relationships and contracts between governments, energy suppliers, grid operators and users no longer work here, as users will have much more influence on how they collectively produce and use energy. Hence, we need to rethink how to organize such multi-stakeholder collaborations, and what kind of governance mechanisms and contracts effectively support these collaborations in achieving a fair distribution of costs and benefits.

We are looking for a talented and motivated postdoctoral researcher to explore how such new forms of collaborations could take shape and how they should be organized. Your research will focus on rethinking the relationships and interdependencies between the various stakeholders involved in these emerging energy solutions, and how different types of governance mechanisms and contracts can support this transition. Are you passionate about the energy transition, network governance and novel forms of collaboration? Do you want to contribute to cutting edge research that will help shape solutions for the energy system of the future? Then we invite you to apply! 

Your position
As a postdoctoral researcher, you will join the Joule4Joule project, which is an industry-led consortium which focuses on the energy system of the future. It encompasses a diverse set of stakeholders such as grid operators, governments, energy communities, technology providers and knowledge/research institutes. Together, they work to radically innovate how we produce, store and distribute energy by combining both electricity and heat networks, requiring us to rethink and redevelop existing energy solutions, and the new forms of collaboration through which they can be shaped.  

In this project, Tilburg University is involved in a work package related to collaboration and governance of innovative decentralized energy solutions. As a postdoctoral researcher you will be involved in exploring business and management-related questions such as:

• What forms of organizing are desirable for fostering collaboration in decentralized energy solutions?
• How can different types of governance mechanisms (e.g., contracts, trust, cooperative norms) be used to foster collaboration, monitor the process and results thereof, and stimulate alignment and risk sharing, between the multiple and diverse stakeholders involved? 
• How can these insights be scaled to other and larger settings?  

The focus will be on the self-organization of the stakeholder network by its members. Through empirical research you will play a key role in designing and developing new ways of collaborating in decentralized energy solutions. The candidate is open to shape their research in line with the project objectives using a variety of methodological approaches. Collaboration and alignment with the industry partners involved in Joule4Joule project will be an important element in shaping your research.

This position is embedded within the Department of Information Systems and Operations Management at Tilburg University, a growing high-quality high-impact research group in Tilburg University’s School of Economics and Management. The group consists of faculty, lecturers, postdoctoral fellows, and PhD candidates, and covers a wide range of research topics and methods (see Faculty). Recently, we have grown substantially in size and in research output, with in particular an outstanding group of junior and mid-career faculty. Our leading faculty publish in premier outlets such as those in the FT50 journal list. In addition, a subset of our PhD projects are sponsored by industry and science council funding, and address directly impactful societal challenges. 

Furthermore, the successful candidate will be part of the University-Wide Academic Collaborative Center on Climate and Energy (ACC), where the Joule4Joule project itself is embedded. The ACC brings together various disciplines across the university as well as societal partners to contribute with theoretical knowledge and practical solutions to a socially just energy transition. Being part of such a large network of scholars and practitioners offers a unique opportunity to combine high-level cutting-edge academic research with tangible societal impact, helping to shape the governance of a sustainable energy future. Therefore, a large part of this position is close collaboration with both fellow researchers and diverse societal partners and external stakeholders across different work packages, bridging the gap between academia and practice.