Research Fellow

Digital Economy, Entrepreneurship & Innovation

Postdoctoral Research Fellow (Product Returns and Circular Business Models in Omnichannel Retail)

Surrey Business School is a mid-sized business school with over 120 academic staff members from around the globe, and a highly cohesive and collegial atmosphere. The school is accredited by AACSB, AMBA and holds the Advance HE Athena SWAN bronze award. We inspire positive change in business and society, individuals and organisations, locally and globally by blending the rigour of high-quality impactful research with excellent teaching and the strengths of a technology-led university. We are ranked in the top 10 for business and economics in the United Kingdom by the Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2023 by subject. Our results in the Research Excellence Framework 2021 place us 19th overall in the UK, 10th in the UK for research outputs and 16th in the UK for research impact.

The School’s strengths are in digital innovation and technological transformation, international trade, leadership and organizational psychology and sustainability. Set in the beautiful countryside of Surrey with the convenience of bustling Guildford on your doorstep and London just 34 minutes away by train, the University of Surrey is an outstanding international University with an enterprising spirit. The school runs a full range of programmes including undergraduate, postgraduate and MBA programmes, as well as a PhD programme. The School works closely with a network of business partners and other stakeholders, boasting strong links with many technology-oriented start-ups and established firms in London, and the South-East of England. For further information, please visit the SBS website.

This position is funded full-time for 6 months, with a desired start date of 1st October or as soon as possible thereafter. An office at the University of Surrey in Guildford is available, but this role can also be executed entirely remotely. Residence in the UK and the right to work in the UK is required.

The successful candidate will be part of a team of academics from the Product Returns Research Group (https://www.surrey.ac.uk/product-returns-research-group). Our research examines the effects of returns policy changes and other interventions on product returns rates and related fraud rates. Product returns significantly affect the bottom line of retailers, especially due to the very high returns rates in eCommerce. Additionally, product returns are very wasteful, due to the additional need for transportation, packaging and many items being destroyed rather than resold due their condition or operational / financial constraints. Therefore, we explore the viability of more circular business models, in terms of environmental, economic and social sustainability. We assess the acceptance by consumers, and the implications on supply chain partners and other stakeholders.

Please consult the attached document for specific requirements. If you would like to further information, please contact Regina (Gina) Frei ([email protected]) for an informal chat.