The doctoral researcher will contribute to a project that aims to examine how the internal communication of alternative organizations prioritizing social goals over profit both shapes and is shaped by the political context in which these organizations operate. Despite existing research on how alternative organizations engage in societal transformation, limited attention has been paid to the mechanisms and conditions through which internal communication enables or constrains member involvement in these processes. To shed light on how interactions among members and between members and staff members shape and are shaped by an organization’s political positioning, the project intends to examine a selected set of case studies, including the “Park Slope Food Coop” in New York. The doctoral researcher will receive continued mentorship from the professors and will be expected to disseminate research by submitting academic manuscripts to conferences and top journals in the field of management and organization studies.

The doctoral researcher will join a dedicated research team to conduct high-quality research under the supervision of Professors Benjamin HUYBRECHTS (IÉSEG) and Frédéric DUFAYS (HEC Liège / KU Leuven) and Joost LUYCKX (IÉSEG). These professors have several research projects on “alternative organizations”, i.e., organizations such as cooperatives and social enterprises that exhibit values, modes of exchange, work, ownership and practices that do not follow the logic of capitalist accumulation and profit maximization concentrated in private ends. They have published their research in international journals such as Academy of Management Annals, Academy of Management Discoveries, Journal of Management, Organization Studies, Journal of Management Studies, Organization, and Journal of Business Ethics, among others.