"2 Postdocs in Public Administration & Digital Governance"

Are you a scholar in public administration or management with qualitative research skills and expertise in AI or value-based governance? Interested in fair and responsible AI use in public administration? Apply now!

The positions are offered as a postdoc researcher position (0.75/0.8 FTE). The option of adding teaching activities (Master thesis supervision) as a lecturer in public administration (up to a full 1.0 FTE) can be explored.

The first postdoc position (0.8 FTE) is part of the NWA-funded project “Exploring the Promises and Pitfalls of AI Technology in Civil Service Provision (VALUE-AI)”, lead by dr. Kristina S. Weißmüller, in collaboration with prof. dr. Gjalt de Graaf and the Amsterdam Intelligence, the AI-thinktank of the City Amsterdam.

The overall objective of the project is to gain a deeper understanding of the risk involved in using AI technology in citizen-state interactions. How can we design fair algorithms, and how can we govern AI-related risks? The position is funded for a period of 18 months, preferably starting on 1 December 2025, or by mutual agreement.

The second postdoc position (0.75 FTE) is part of the NWO-funded project “AI4ALL: Value-aligned AI for Public Organizations”. This work package the postdoc is part of, revolves around the actual and intended use of AI in public organizations, researching the intended reasons and expected impact of AI in the public sector, and empirically measuring public values affected by the use of AI in public governance. More specifically, the postdoc focuses on understanding the reasons given by public organizations for using AI technology and identifying which public values are considered to be affected. The research hypothesizes that efficiency and effectiveness are important values for introduction, but aims to verify this and explore other potential values and their relationships. The position is funded for a period of 24 months, preferably starting on 1 January 2026, or by mutual agreement.

Requirements: PhD in Public Administration, Business Ethics, Political Science, Management Studies, Organization Studies or related fields. Advanced qualitative research skills and preferably experience in conducting expert interviews and fieldwork independently. Proven track record in publishing in high-quality international peer-reviewed journals. Willingness to work in a team. Excellent English and Dutch language skills.

Conditions of employment: Fixed-term contract for 1 year. A challenging position in a socially engaged organisation. Salary of minimum €4,728.00 and maximum €6,433.00 gross per month on a full-time basis. Position for at least 0.75/0.8 FTE.