PhD Scholarship 'Reconfiguring organisational structures for delivering platformised public value'

1 - Working at the VUB

For more than 50 years, the Vrije Universiteit Brussel has stood for freedom, equality and solidarity, and this is very much alive on our campuses among students and staff alike. 

At the VUB, you will find a diverse collection of personalities: innovators pur sang, but above all people who are 100% their authentic selves. With some 4,000 employees, we are the largest Dutch-speaking employer, in the private sector, in Brussels; an international city with which we are only too happy to connect and where (around) our 4 campuses are located. 

Add to this our principle of free research - in which self-reflection, a critical attitude and an open, creative mind around scientific and social issues are central - and you have a university that is fundamentally groundbreaking and pioneering in education and research. In short: the VUB all over again. 

Moreover, the VUB is a member of EUTOPIA, an alliance of like-minded European universities, all ready to reinvent themselves.

2 - Position description

The Faculty Social Sciences & Solvay Business School, Department Communicatiewetenschappen, Research Group Studies in Media, Innovation and Technology is looking for a PhD-student with a doctoral grant. 

More concretely your work package, for the preparation of a doctorate, contains: 

The PhD project is titled: Reconfiguring organisational structures for delivering platformised public value.

The changed media ecosystem requires a change in organisational structures. However, Public Interest Media cannot just imitate big-tech managerial approaches as they reflect other sets of values and another mode of operation. Moreover, they are public sector players with different sets of regulation, a specific historical development path and extensive public as well as political scrutiny. In preparing Public Interest Media for a media ecosystem where technological agency plays a central role, corporate structure, staff/skills portfolios and change management strategies must be developed for delivering platformised public value. Auditing and benchmarking these aspects between existing Public Interest Media, successful digital platforms and other proxy sectors, will help assess which structures, staff and skills are needed.

This project pursues a change management strategy for Public Service Media that builds on public interest, history and the ‘DNA’ of public media to make the ‘platform-logic’ compatible with public service values.

The project investigates how Public Interest Media can reconfigure their organisational structures to operate effectively in a platformised media ecosystem, while safeguarding their public values and mandates. Topics include, but are not limited to:

• Assessment of existing organisational structures within public media institutions, including workflows, governance models, and internal decision-making processes;
• Comparative analysis of management and operational logics between Public Interest Media organisations and digital-native platforms, identifying both transferable and non-transferable practices;
• Skills, staff, and role transformations required to integrate data-driven, automated, and platform-supported production and distribution processes;
• Benchmarking exercises across Public Interest Media organisations, successful digital platforms, and relevant proxy sectors (e.g., cultural institutions, civic tech, public data infrastructures);
• Values-driven organisational design, examining how public service values, editorial independence, inclusivity, accessibility, and accountability can be embedded into platform-ready operational models;
• Scenario-building and strategy development for organisational change, outlining future-oriented, scalable pathways for delivering platformised public value.

The project applies a mixed-methods, interdisciplinary approach combining organisational research, strategic management studies, and media innovation analysis. Methods may include:

• Organisational audits and benchmarking across Public Interest Media institutions, digital platforms, and proxy sectors;
• Semi-structured interviews with executives, managers, strategists, and technical staff within Public Interest Media and platform organisations;
• Ethnographic fieldwork or short-term embedded observations within selected Public Service Media institutions to map workflows, practices, and internal communication structures;
• Document and policy analysis, including internal strategy papers, organisational charts, governance documents, and mission/value frameworks;
• Competence and skills ecosystem mapping, analysing emerging roles related to data, product, platform governance, and audience engagement;
• Comparative case studies of organisational change initiatives in media or adjacent sectors;
• Scenario-building workshops with internal and external stakeholders to co-design future organisational models aligned with public service values.

The position requires relocation to Belgium as the candidate will be enrolled in the Vrije Universiteit Brussel’s PhD programme in Communication Sciences. The project is conducted under the supervision of Karen Donders, Associate Professor at Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB) and Director of Public Value, Talent & Organisation at the Flemish public broadcaster VRT, Catalina Iordache, Senior researcher and Guest Professor at VUB, and Michał Głowacki, Associate Professor at the University of Warsaw, Poland. It will involve close collaboration with other Doctoral Candidates in the RePIM doctoral Network Project, and an academic secondment of approximately 2 months at the University of Warsaw. The candidate will also carry out 3-month internship at the Dutch public broadcaster NPO, located in Hilversum, the Netherlands.

The PhD position is part of RePIM – Revisioning Public Interest Media, a four-year Marie Skłodowska-Curie (MSCA) Doctoral Network dedicated to reimagining the role and future of Public Interest Media in a data-driven, platform-dominated environment. RePIM brings together leading European universities, industry partners, and 12 Doctoral Candidates in an interdisciplinary, cross-sectoral training and research programme. The network investigates how public interest media can remain relevant, sustainable, and impactful by transforming how content is produced, packaged, distributed, and supported organisationally and technologically. Through its focus on strategic innovation, organisational change, and media management, RePIM equips its doctoral researchers with advanced analytical and managerial skills to help reshape Public Interest Media across diverse European contexts.

For this function, our Brussels Humanities, Sciences & Engineering Campus (Elsene) will serve as your home base. 

3 - Profile

What do we expect from you?

• Master’s degree in media and communication studies or a related social sciences discipline (political sciences, international studies, economics, management, sociology, urban studies);
• Excellent knowledge of social sciences research methods (qualitative analysis, interviews, document analysis, quantitative analysis); experience with fieldwork and/or digital research methods is an asset;
• Strong academic track record, with particular emphasis on research, analytical, and writing skills;
• Demonstrated knowledge of, or strong interest in, media research, media economics, and European audiovisual markets;
• Strong team orientation, a reliable work ethic, excellent time-management skills, and the ability to take initiative and work independently;
• Proficiency in written and spoken English; knowledge of Dutch is a notable advantage;
• Willingness to engage in international mobility in line with the MSCA-DN framework (meetings, training sessions, research stays, industry stays, etc.).

MSCA eligibility requirements:

• At the time of recruitment, candidates must not already hold a doctoral degree;
• Applicants of any nationality are welcome to apply. However, researchers must not have lived or carried out their main activity (work, studies, etc.) in the host country (in this case: Belgium) for more than 12 months within the 36 months immediately preceding their recruitment date. Candidates must be willing to move to Belgium for the duration of the PhD research.

• You have not performed any works in the execution of a mandate as an assistant, paid from operating resources, over a total (cumulated) period of more than 12 months.

• As a (non-)EEA national, meet the conditions for obtaining a valid permit for VUB and comply with the VUB residence requirements. More info here.

The VUB wants to be a reflection of the society where everyone's talent is valued, regardless of gender, age, religion, skin color, migration background, disability and neurodiversity.

4 - Offer

Are you going to be our new colleague?

You’ll be offered a full-time PhD-scholarship, for 12 months (extendable up to max. 48 months, on condition of the positive evaluation of the PhD activities), with planned starting date 01/05/2026. 

You’ll receive a grant linked to one of the scales set by the government.

IMPORTANT: The effective result of the doctorate scholarship is subject to the condition precedent of your enrolment as a doctorate student at the university.

At the VUB, you’re guaranteed an open, involved and diverse workplace where you are offered opportunities to (further) build on your career.

As well as this, you will also enjoy various other benefits:

• Extensive homeworking options, a telework allowance of 50 euros per month OR an internet fee of 20 euros per month;
• An open and informal working environment where attention is paid to work-life balance, and exceptional holiday arrangements with 35 days of leave (based on a fulltime contract), closure between Christmas and New Year and 3 extra leave days;
• Cost-free hospitalisation insurance;
• Full reimbursement of your home-to-work commute with public transport according to VUB-policy, and/or compensation if you come by bike; 
• A wide selection of meals in our campus restaurants at attractive prices;
• Excellent and affordable facilities for sport and exercise, a range of discounts via Benefits@Work (in  all kinds of shops, on flights, in petrol stations, amusement parks...) and Ecocheques; 
• Nursery near campus, discount on holiday camps; 
• The space to form your job content and to continuously learn through our VUB learning platforms and training courses;
• And finally: great colleagues with a healthy drive.

5 - Interested?

Is this the job you’ve been dreaming of?

Then apply, at the latest on 08/02/2026, via jobs.vub.be, and upload the following documents:

• Certificate of your master’s degree or equivalent (not applicable for VUB alumni);
• Transcripts of records for your Master’s degree;
• A one-page motivation letter indicating why you are applying for this position. If you are interested in other RePIM positions, please clearly indicate them as your second and third choices, adding a half-page motivation for each;
• Curriculum vitae (CV). If applicable, this should also include a list of all publications and/or other documented research activities;
• Proof of English proficiency (for non-native speakers). This can include a language certificate, a higher education diploma stating English was the language of instruction, proof of educational or professional activity in English;
• A one-page reflection on how you would approach this research in terms of
  • questions and methods;
  • the use of your own background and skills;
  • the societal and scientific relevance of the topic.

Additional documentation you are encouraged to send with your application, if available:

If the diploma(s) or transcript of records are not in English, French, or Dutch, you can add a translation by a sworn translator;

• Other relevant certificates or transcripts (e.g., courses completed at the PhD level);
• If the issuing authority of grades and degrees does not use the ECTS grading scale, include an official description of the grading scale used;
• A test score to support your language proficiency, which can include TOEFL iBT, IELTS Academic, Cambridge English, or ITACE.

Our application process is as follows (subject to change):

• step 1: an initial selection based on your application file; 
• step 2: a job interview.

Do you have questions about the job content? Contact repim@vub.be at smit.jobs@vub.be or on 026148540.

Would you like to know what it’s like to work at the VUB? Go to jobs.vub.be, and find all there is to know about our campuses, benefits, strategic goals and your future colleagues.

Would you like more information about EUTOPIA? Go to eutopia-university.eu, and read more about the role of the VUB in the development of the EUTOPIA alliance.