Faculty of Economics and Business - University of Groningen

🌟 FEB wishes you happy holidays and a wonderful, healthy and impactful new year. ✨ No updates and announcements for now; simply warmth, joy, and peace from FEB to you! We will be back in January.

👏 Join us in congratulating Endowed Professor Dr. Kim Aplonia Poldner and her team, who have received a grant of €333,928 from the RVO (Netherlands Enterprise Agency ) for their Regenerative Renaissance project. The project is a collaboration with renowned sustainable fashion brand Joline Jolink, Lente Land farmer Gemeenschapsboerderij T’Gagel and communications agency Mumster. The initiative is funded through the KIA-Circular Economy (KIA-CE) 2024 grant program. ♻️ 🍃 The innovative Regenerative Renaissance project aims to revolutionize the Dutch fashion industry by transitioning from sustainable (aiming for less harm) to regenerative (actively creating positive impact) approaches. The project has been recognized for its ambitious goals in reducing environmental impact, fostering biodiversity, and promoting ecological restoration. By leveraging regenerative agricultural practices, biobased materials, and innovative business models, the project seeks to simultaneously create financial, social, and ecological value. 𝐊𝐞𝐲 𝐇𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐣𝐞𝐜𝐭: ✔️ 𝑻𝒓𝒂𝒏𝒔𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒎𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒇𝒂𝒔𝒉𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒊𝒏𝒅𝒖𝒔𝒕𝒓𝒚: The project will establish a regenerative business model for Joline Jolink’s fashion farm, integrating practices like regenerative agriculture, compostable textiles, and local value chains. ✔️𝑪𝒐𝒎𝒎𝒖𝒏𝒊𝒕𝒚 𝒆𝒏𝒈𝒂𝒈𝒆𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒕: Through workshops, educational activities, and co-creation sessions, the project will strengthen connections between people, textiles, and the land. ✔️𝑰𝒏𝒏𝒐𝒗𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒗𝒆 𝒐𝒖𝒕𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒆𝒔: The initiative will result in a capsule collection of biobased, fully compostable fashion items designed to enrich soil quality and reduce reliance on virgin raw materials. ✔️𝑩𝒓𝒐𝒂𝒅𝒆𝒓 𝒊𝒎𝒑𝒂𝒄𝒕: The findings and methodologies developed during the project will serve as a blueprint for other small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the fashion industry, aligning with the European Green Deal and the Dutch Circular Textiles policy program. 𝐒𝐲𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐦𝐢𝐜 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐞 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐅𝐚𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐈𝐧𝐝𝐮𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐲 “This project is an exciting opportunity to redefine sustainability in fashion,” says Dr. Kim Poldner, Endowed Professor of Regional and Circular Economic Development and project lead at the University of Groningen. “By incorporating regenerative principles and engaging local communities, we aim to create a model that not only addresses current challenges but also sets the stage for systemic change in the fashion industry.” The project is set to run from April 1, 2025, to March 30, 2027, with milestones including the development of compostable prototypes, the validation of new business models, and the launch of an innovative capsule collection. Joline Jolink, Ishwari Thopte #ConnectingForImpact #Sustainability #RegenerativeRenaissance

🌍 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐧𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐈𝐦𝐩𝐚𝐜𝐭: 𝐅𝐄𝐁 𝐆𝐮𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐋𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐛𝐲 𝐋𝐚𝐮𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐧 𝐌𝐞𝐮𝐭𝐞𝐫 🌟 This week, FEB students in the 𝘚𝘶𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘪𝘯𝘢𝘣𝘪𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘺 𝘪𝘯 𝘉𝘶𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘌𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘰𝘮𝘪𝘤𝘴  course had the privilege of learning from Laurien Meuter, FEB alumna, founder of Tiny Miracles, and the University of Groningen Alumnus of the Year 2021. Laurien shared her incredible journey of empowering underserved communities in Mumbai through social entrepreneurship while collaborating with global brands like Rituals, The HEINEKEN Company, and Tony's Chocolonely. These brands want their tote bags to be of high quality ánd to solve a global problem (poverty!) at the same time. 𝐊𝐞𝐲 𝐭𝐚𝐤𝐞𝐚𝐰𝐚𝐲𝐬 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐋𝐚𝐮𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐧'𝐬 𝐥𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞: 💡 How businesses can connect with local  underserved communities through innovative social procurement models 💡 Balancing business growth with tackling societal challenges 💡 The importance of cross-sector collaboration to address global challenges like poverty. Thank you, Laurien, for showing our students how businesses can be a force for good and how cross-sector collaboration can address global challenges like poverty alleviation! Check out https://lnkd.in/eFDRNE6C to learn more about Laurien's story. 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐲 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐧𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐅𝐄𝐁 𝐀𝐥𝐮𝐦𝐧𝐢 𝐍𝐞𝐭𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐤 🌟 Laurien’s story is a perfect example of the impact our alumni make worldwide. Want to stay inspired and keep building meaningful connections? Join the FEB Alumni Network and stay updated on exciting initiatives, events, and success stories like Laurien’s. Go to www.febalumninetwork.com #FEB #SocialImpact #Sustainability #Alumni #AlumniLecture

𝐈𝐧𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐚𝐥 𝐜𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐢𝐬 𝐚𝐬 𝐞𝐱𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐚𝐬 𝐥𝐨𝐧𝐠-𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐦 𝐜𝐚𝐫𝐞 The cost of informal care is equal to that of long-term care. This is the main finding of research by The Netherlands Institute for Social Research (SCP) and the Faculty of Economics and Business - University of Groningen. Because informal care is provided by volunteers, it is often seen as a cheaper form of care. But people are not available for the labour market during the time they are providing informal care. This study shows the economic costs of this. The SCP and the UG have calculated that in 2019, one in three people in the Netherlands provided some form of informal care. Because these informal caregivers are not available for paid work during that time, this commitment costs the economy between 17.5 and 30.1 billion Euros, which is between 2.15 and 3.71 per cent of the gross domestic product (GDP). By comparison, the cost of long-term care is 2.67 per cent of the GDP, and the budget for education 5.20 per cent of the GDP. These figures do not imply that it is desirable for people to provide less informal care, but they do show that informal care is not free. The costs of informal care could be reduced if people were less likely to quit or reduce their working hours when they start to provide care on a voluntary basis. This underlines the importance of supporting informal care, home care, flexible working hours, leave and the possibility of working from home. Researchers Alice de Boer (SCP), Saif Elayan (Utrecht University), Erik Buskens (UG) and Viola Angelini 🟥 (UG, FEB) wrote the article ‘Mantelzorg kost maatschappij en mantelzorger geld’ (in Dutch) in the new edition of ‘Tijdschrift voor Sociale Vraagstukken’: https://lnkd.in/en6bQZd5 You can also find the full (English) research paper online: https://lnkd.in/eYx3hKF5

👏 🏆 Join us in congratulating Melissa Timmerman, who has won FEB's Best MSc Thesis Award, and Stefan Berger and Dr. Jacoba Oedzes, who have won the Best Practice in Teaching and Learning Award. The Thesis Award recognizes FEB students' most innovative and insightful master's theses, and the Best Practices Award honors the year's most innovative educational practices. Melissa Timmerman recently obtained her Master’s degree in Accountancy at FEB and is currently continuing her studies at the University of Groningen Business School, with the Executive Master of Accountancy. Her award-winning thesis, titled ‘𝘈𝘶𝘥𝘪𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘴’ 𝘞𝘰𝘳𝘬𝘭𝘰𝘢𝘥 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘔𝘶𝘭𝘵𝘪𝘱𝘭𝘦 𝘛𝘦𝘢𝘮 𝘔𝘦𝘮𝘣𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘱𝘴: 𝘐𝘯𝘴𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵𝘴 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘐𝘮𝘱𝘭𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘋𝘪𝘧𝘧𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘴 𝘪𝘯 𝘈𝘶𝘥𝘪𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘴’ 𝘗𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘺’ was supervised by Associate Professor Dennis Veltrop. In her thesis, Timmerman delves into the impact of working in multiple teams on accountants' workload and the role personality plays in this. 👏 🥈 Congratulations also to the two other nominees for the Thesis Award. The runner up for the best MSc Thesis Award was Philip Schneider (MSc International Business and Management), who‘s thesis explored how emerging market multinationals adapt to more stringent sustainability standards and overcome biases associated with their origins when expanding into developed countries. The third prize was for Caroline Touzin (MSc Business Administration – Strategic Innovation Management), who’s thesis explored whether Blockchain Governance matters for performance. 𝐁𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐏𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐞𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐓𝐞𝐚𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐋𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐀𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐝 Associate Professor Stefan Berger and Assistant Professor Jacoba Oedzes received the Best Practice in Teaching and Learning Award for the innovative design of their course in HR analytics. In this course, they focus on data-based storytelling in the boardroom. Each block, they also organize an inspiring symposium for their students. As the jury-winners of FEB’s Best Practice Award, Berger and Oedzes are now automatically nominated for the university-wide Best Practice Awards, with nominees from every faculty of the university, which will be presented during the Education Festival next year. 👏 🥈 Congratulations also to the runners-up in FEB’s Best Practice Awards: Assistant Professor Daniël Vullings and a teaching team consisting of Professor Christos Emmanouilidis (course coordinator), Assistant Professor Sabine Waschull & Assistant Professor Jos Bokhorst. Vullings developed a simulation game for the Econometrics and Operational Research (EOR) undergraduate program in which students manage a company. Vullings received the audience award for his innovative teaching methods. Emmanoulidis, Waschull and Bokhorst were nominated for the research-based teaching innovations they implemented in the MSc Technology and Operations Management.

👏 Join us in congratulating Professor Iris F.A. Vis, who has been appointed as Fellow of The Netherlands Academy of Engineering (NAE). The NAE brings together leading experts in the areas of technological sciences and applied research and development from various knowledge institutions and the industry. 👩💻 Iris Vis is Professor of Industrial Engineering at FEB’s Department of Operations and Captain of Science of the Top Sector Logistics. Vis is an inspiring and unifying leader who realizes technological innovations and societal impact. She played a crucial role in the building of Northern ecosystems for digitalization and smart mobility. Her research, which focuses on logistics and cross-sector solutions in teaching, healthcare, and energy, is original and often cited. 🚛 🏥 Vis combines mathematical modelling with design-oriented research, especially in logistics processes. She is among the top 2% most-cited scientists in her field. Vis led successful innovation projects, such as the development of logistics networks for LNG and teaching logistics for personalized learning. Her contributions strengthen the societal impact of science and technology. 🎯 Next to Vis, another professor from the UG has been appointed as NAE Fellow: Andre Faaij, Professor of Energy System Analysis at the Faculty of Science and Engineering. NAE Fellows are leading experts from scientific, governmental, and industrial organizations in the Netherlands who are engaged in technological sciences and applied research and development. NAE brings together Fellows from diverse backgrounds, chosen for their prestigious track record in impactful engineering-based innovation, their motivation and ability to make a difference, and for their unbiased, cross-sectoral and integrity-driven attitude. 

📣 🎓 Next week, Monday 16 December, Hagen Kruse will defend his PhD thesis titled '𝘚𝘵𝘳𝘶𝘤𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘢𝘭 𝘊𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘐𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘯𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘭 𝘛𝘳𝘢𝘥𝘦: 𝘌𝘷𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘋𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘭𝘰𝘱𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘊𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘵𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘴'. 👨🌾 ➡️ 👨🏭 As countries grow rich, they first tend to shift their production and employment from agriculture towards manufacturing. Yet, the contemporary structural change literature and policy advice claims that industrialization has become more difficult to achieve amid technological change and globalization. In his thesis, Kruse examines modern patterns of structural change in a globally interconnected world. He provides new evidence on industrialization trends in developing countries and explores the role of international trade as a potential—but not unconditional—driver of industrial development. 🔎 💡 In his thesis, Kruse starts out by investigating recent industrialization trends in Sub-Saharan African countries and finds that they have experienced a ‘manufacturing (re)naissance’, with employment mostly expanding in small, unregistered firms. Next, he turns to the specific role of international trade in driving industrialization. He employs an open economy model of structural change in Sub-Saharan African countries. While international trade increases the pressure of international competition, it also provides developing countries with access to the technology and knowledge involved in more advanced stages of production. Kruse finds that supportive institutions and policies enable a positive relationship between manufacturing value added shares and trade participation in global value chains. Finally, he zooms in on distinct activities in global value chain production performed by workers in different occupations, sectors, and countries. His analysis reveals that the occupational dimension of structural transformation gains importance as countries develop, with export specializations of higher-income countries predominantly shifting across occupations within industries. Find Hagen Kruse's complete dissertation on UG's website: https://lnkd.in/eNdqUJuE 📰 Read more about his research on FEB's website: https://lnkd.in/eKeDhVir

Dutch goods exports to Russia fell sharply after the European Union scaled up sanctions in 2022. At the same time, Dutch exports of sanctioned goods increased to seven countries with an increased risk of sanction circumvention. A striking number of small, young companies that did not export these sanctioned products before 2022 started exporting to these countries. This is what Statistics Netherlands (Centraal Bureau voor de Statistiek) and the Faculty of Economics and Business - University of Groningen found in new research, commissioned by the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The authors of the research report are Marcel van den Berg, Loe Franssen,Tristan Kohl (Associate professor at the Faculty of Economics and Business, University of Groningen), Roger Voncken, and Stef Weijers. Read more about the research results on FEB's website: https://lnkd.in/gCAsPrSC Or you can also find the executive summary of the report (in English) or the complete report on the CBS website: https://lnkd.in/g_gbV3MH

📣 🎓 This week, Thursday 12 December, ibrahim shaheen and Tom Wielheesen will defend their PhD thesis. Shaheen's thesis focuses on the implications of spatial and digital interconnectedness between regions for resilience both at the regional and the firm levels.  Wielheesen's thesis focuses on local marketing in grocery retailing. 𝐑𝐞𝐠𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐧𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐞𝐝𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬 🌍 🌐 With his dissertation, Shaheen contributes to the ongoing discussion on the impact of globalization on regional development and growth. Globalization can be understood in terms of increasing interconnectedness and interdependence among regions and countries mainly through the movements of capital, goods and services, workers, and information. Such interconnectedness not only creates opportunities for regional growth but also increases the region’s exposure to adverse shocks. 𝐦𝐚𝐢𝐧 𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬: - Geography matters for regions’ ability to recover after shocks. And since geography matters for trade, trade boosts regional resilience. - The findings suggest that multinational enterprises (MNEs) enjoy several advantages and are more resilient than their local counterparts. - The findings suggest that firms that use information and communication technology (ICT) are better equipped and prepared to survive and thrive during shocks. More information: https://lnkd.in/eWF7kaer 𝐔𝐧𝐯𝐞𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐫 𝐨𝐟 𝐥𝐨𝐜𝐚𝐥 𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐤𝐞𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐢𝐧 𝐠𝐫𝐨𝐜𝐞𝐫𝐲 𝐫𝐞𝐭𝐚𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠 🛒🥦🥐 Wielheesen's dissertation provides insights into the effectiveness of local marketing strategies within the grocery retailing context for three marketing mix elements; product, price and promotion. The research projects address the central research question “How does local differentiation of the marketing mix influence the performance of independent grocery stores?". This dissertation highlights that granting local stores a degree of autonomy to tailor their assortments, price promotions, and social media content to local preferences can enhance stores’ performance in different ways. 𝐦𝐚𝐢𝐧 𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬: - Regional products positively affect consumers’ perception of assortment variety and community engagement, leading to higher emotional attachments and share-of-wallets of a store. - Flyers with the right balance of product types and discounts effectively boost store traffic and sales, and that minor local adjustments can further enhance promotional effectiveness when facing more competition. - This dissertation underscores the value of personalized social media strategies, where less standardized and personalized content fosters stronger customer engagement. More information: https://lnkd.in/e6JCv62A

📣 🎓 Next week, Monday 9 December, Frederick Amon-Armah will defend his PhD thesis on the intergenerational dynamics in smallholder farmers’ aspirations and savings decisions. 👨🌾 🍫 Smallholder cocoa farmers face persistent poverty, with limited financial security threatening both present and future livelihoods. Intergenerational dynamics in aspirations and savings behavior emerge as critical yet understudied factors for improving economic decisions and sustainability of farming communities. 🔎 In his thesis, Amon-Armah examines these two aspects using four interconnected studies. In the first study, he explores young farmers' attitudes and aspirations regarding farming. Two groups of young farmers are identified: 'positive' farmers, who are inspired by successful elderly farmers and are willing to stay in agriculture; and 'resigned' farmers, who lack such aspirations. His second study involves a randomized controlled trial (RCT) that tests a video intervention to raise old-age welfare aspirations and savings. The video intervention significantly boosts short-term aspirations, especially among men, and increases old-age savings, particularly among those with higher baseline savings. 💡 Amon-Armah's third study involves a lab-in-the-field experiment that investigates whether intergenerational contracts affect pension savings. His findings show that intergenerational contracts do not crowd out retirement savings. Lastly, Amon-Armah examines the relationship between cognitive abilities and savings behavior among smallholders using observational household-level data. His results reveal both significant and positive direct and indirect links between smallholders' cognitive ability and their savings. Amon-Armah's findings offer insights for developing more effective interventions to enhance savings and economic well-being among smallholder farmers. You can find the complete dissertation on the UG's website: https://lnkd.in/enZvSxMT #PhdResearch #SmallholderFarmers #Aspirations #SavingBehavior