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The position is hosted by the Faculty of Management and Business at Tampere University, a multidisciplinary academic community with strong international research in administrative sciences, business sciences, politics, information and knowledge management, and industrial engineering and management. The Faculty’s strength is in crossing disciplinary boundaries and generating new research-based perspectives on societal and organizational challenges.
We are inviting applications for a Postdoctoral Researcher position in the NordForsk funded research project “Organizing Across Boundaries for Responsible Use of AI: Towards Interconnected Smart Grids in the Nordic Energy Sector” (ORBIT). The position will be situated in Tampere University’s Faculty of Management and Business and supervised by one of ORBIT’s principal investigators Professor Elina I. Mäkinen.
The ORBIT consortium engages with the profound transformation that the energy sector is undergoing as Nordic countries pursue the green transition and integration of secure, interconnected smart grids. In this context, energy sector organizations are turning to AI to forecast, balance, and manage critical infrastructure, while also responding to new regulatory frameworks such as the EU AI Act.
In the ORBIT project, we examine how regulation, organizational practices, and professional expertise come together as organizations build the capacity to use AI responsibly and securely, and how this reshapes expert work, accountability, and collaboration across organizational and national boundaries. The project combines in-depth qualitative fieldwork across the four Nordic transmission system operators with comparative analysis, contributing to debates in organization studies and the sociology of expertise on responsible AI, professional work, and organizing across boundaries.
The ORBIT project brings together a consortium of management and organization researchers from Tampere University (Finland), Aalborg University (Denmark), University of Gothenburg (Sweden), and BI Norwegian Business School (Norway). Their shared research interest is to advance in-depth qualitative research concerning how AI in a broad sense is transforming expert work and how.
Job Description
The postdoctoral researcher will contribute to research activities and stakeholder interactions as part of the ORBIT Consortium. Work duties (e.g., data collection) will take place mainly in Finland but may also include data collection and participation in meetings in Sweden, Denmark, and Norway.
The successful candidate is expected to:
- carry out qualitative fieldwork, including interviews, observations, and document analysis
- contribute to comparative analyses across Nordic countries and across organizational settings
- collaborate with consortium members in designing and carrying out workshops, stakeholder engagement, and dissemination activities
- contribute to the development of international academic publications and other project outputs directed at both scholarly and practitioner audiences
- participate in the research communities at Tampere University
At the start of the position, the postdoctoral researcher will become familiar with the ORBIT Consortium’s conceptual and empirical framework and prepare the data collection together with the team. The researcher will take increasing responsibility for fieldwork, comparative analysis, the co-authoring of journal articles and reports, and active participation in international consortium collaboration. The position offers an excellent opportunity to further develop an international research profile and academic networks in organization studies, organizational sociology, or adjacent fields.
Requirements
The postdoctoral researcher candidate must have:
- a doctoral degree in management and organization, organization studies, sociology, or another relevant social science discipline. The doctoral degree must be completed by the end of the application period.
- the ability to conduct independent scientific research
- strong methodological competence in qualitative or ethnographic research methods
- track record or clear potential for publishing in international peer-reviewed journals
- excellent written and spoken English language skills
The postdoctoral researcher position requires a doctoral degree and evidence of publication activities. The position requires strong qualitative research skills and fluency in English. Previous experience in studying the energy sector will be considered additional merit. Additionally, prior work experience in an international and interdisciplinary research team is appreciated.
We offer
We offer a stimulating and international research environment in one of the most multidisciplinary universities in Finland. Tampere University combines strong disciplinary expertise with boundary-crossing research in technology, health, and society, and the University’s international community includes members from over 80 countries. Read more about working at Tampere University.
The postdoctoral researcher is expected to start on 1 November 2026 or as soon as possible thereafter. The postdoctoral researcher position is for three years. A trial period of six (6) months applies to all new employees.
The salary is based on the Finnish university salary system for teaching and research staff. The position is expected to be placed at demand level 5–6. The typical starting salary for a postdoctoral researcher is approximately 3 900–4 200 EUR per month.
In addition, Tampere University offers a wide range of staff benefits, including support for occupational health care, sports facilities on campus, and access to campus restaurants and cafés with staff discounts.
The city of Tampere is a Nordic academic hub and offers a dynamic and attractive living environment. Finland provides a family-friendly working environment with generous parental leaves, affordable daycare for all children, world-renowned free primary and secondary education as well as public healthcare.
For more information on Tampere and Finland, please visit:
How to apply
Please submit your application through Tampere University’s electronic recruitment system (link below this announcement). The closing date for applications is 21.09.2026 at 23:59 at Finnish time / UTC+3.
Please write your application and all accompanying documentation in English and attach them in PDF format.
Please attach the following documents to your application:
- a cover letter that describes why you would be a good fit for the ORBIT Consortium, including your motivation to apply for the position and relevant qualifications (max. 2 pages)
- a curriculum vitae
- a list of publications
- one writing sample (for example, published article, dissertation chapter, or working paper)
- contact details for two referees (references may be included as part of the curriculum vitae)
The recruitment process may include interviews and, where relevant, other assessment methods in line with Tampere University’s recruitment principles.
For further information, please contact:
Professor Elina I. Mäkinen
Faculty of Management and Business, Tampere University
[email protected]
Tel. +358 44 237 0982
Possible HR contact:
HR Specialist Anni Zilliacus, [email protected]
Application period starts: 2026-08-11 11:10. Application period ends: 2026-09-21 23:59
