PhD Studentship: 'Accelerating Innovation through Siemens Innovation Centres' Ecosystems'

Project summary: The aim of this PhD is to explore how innovation ecosystems are developed and sustained. The theoretical understanding of how to construct innovation ecosystems remains underdeveloped.  Accordingly, this PhD will empirically explore the mechanisms and processes of building innovation ecosystems.

Deadline: 31^st may

Duration: 36/ months

Funding: Funded

Funding towards: (75 words)

Home fee

Stipend -UKRI stipend rate for UK students.

Assistance with travel and visa costs for mobility period in Berlin.

Funding details: Fully-funded scholarship for 3 years covers all university tuition fees (at UK level) and an annual tax-free stipend. International students are also eligible to apply, but they will need to find other funding sources to cover the difference between the home and international tuition fees. Exceptional international candidates may be provided funding for this difference. 

Number of places: 1

Number of places extra: There will be a shortlisting and interview process.

RCUK eligibility: No

Eligibility:

 For full eligibility criteria, please see advert on Strathclyde University Webpage

Your application must include: 

• A cover letter presenting your academic path, motivation for doing a PhD and fit with the advertised research project. 
• An updated curriculum vitae. 
• Details of two academic referees, including email addresses. 
• Academic transcripts, which must be certified copies. 

Study modes eligibility: Full-time only.

Fee Status: What fee status applies to applicants? Please omit any of the below that do not apply:

• Home
• International

Project Details: The concept of an ecosystem was introduced by the British ecologist A. G. Tansleyin 1935, signifying a natural system formed through the interaction between living organisms and their environment. Moore (1993) brought this concept into the business domain, whereby a network of interdependent networks of autonomous actors jointly create value (Bogers et al., 2019). This has given rise to a series of new concepts such as business ecosystems, innovation ecosystems, and entrepreneurial ecosystems.

Innovation systems fail due to lack of business alignment, poor processes, unsupportive culture and lack of key stakeholder commitment. Actors may have difficulty expanding their ecosystems because of the effort associated with creating technical compatibility and their ability to identify complementary combinations (Borner et al., 2023). Existing studies still do not adequately consider the interactive processes by which firms can protect individual interests while maintaining collective values (Dai et al., 2024). The theoretical understanding of how to construct ecosystems remains underdeveloped. This PhD research will empirically explore the mechanisms and processes of building innovation ecosystems.

This scholarship is offered in conjunction with Siemens Energy (Berlin) one of the University of Strathclyde’s strategic partners. The successful applicant will have an external supervisor based in Germany and will be expected to undertake research visits to Berlin as part of their studies.

Primary Supervisor: : Prof Beverly Wagner Department of Marketing, University of Strathclyde.

Additional Supervisor/s: Dr Marisa Smith, Department of Entrepreneurship, Strategy and Innovation, University of Strathclyde and Dr Jens Dietrich, (TITLE) Siemens Energy, Berlin Germany

Further information:

Contact Details: Professor Beverly Wagner. beverly.wagner@strath.ac.uk 

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