Ph.D. position in Corporate Finance

IESEG School of Management and LEM (UMR CNRS 9221), a research unit of the University of Lille, invite applications for a fully funded PhD position in Corporate Finance, with an emphasis on Corporate Governance and Cybersecurity Risk.

PROJECT DESCRIPTION

In an increasingly digitalized economy, firms are exposed to growing cybersecurity threats that can affect their operations, reputation, and access to capital. At the same time, corporate governance mechanisms, such as board compositions, ownership structures, and monitoring by key stakeholders, play a central role in how firms anticipate, manage, and communicate about such risks.

Within this broad theme, the PhD project will examine how governance and digital risk interact in modern corporations, for example by looking at how firms organize oversight of technology-related risks, how different stakeholders may influence strategic responses to a changing risk environment, or how cybersecurity considerations can be integrated into broader corporate and financial decision-making. These examples are purely illustrative; the precise angles and topics to be studied will be defined and refined jointly with the supervisor.

The project is empirical in nature and will rely on large-scale corporate and financial data, combined with modern quantitative methods in corporate finance. The exact datasets and methodological choices will be determined during the PhD and are not fixed ex ante, leaving room for originality and adaptation to data availability.

SUPERVISION & RESEARCH ENVIRONMENT

The PhD student will be supervised by Dr. Mohammed Zakriya (Associate Professor of Finance, IÉSEG School of Management) and will be based in Lille, France. The student will join the Finance Department at IÉSEG School of Management and be affiliated with LEM (Lille Economics and Management, UMR CNRS 9221). They will interact with researchers working on corporate finance, governance, sustainable finance, and risk, and will benefit from a structured doctoral training program and regular research seminars, while also having generous research funding to attend international conferences. The working language for research and supervision will be English.

ABOUT IÉSEG SCHOOL OF MANAGEMENT

• IÉSEG is AACSB, EQUIS and AMBA accredited and is a member of the “Conférence des Grandes Écoles”.
• IÉSEG is member of a CNRS (French National Center for Scientific Research) research lab: LEM.
• IÉSEG’s faculty is very diverse with over 45 different nationalities represented.

ABOUT LILLE ECONOMICS AND MANAGEMENT (LEM)

• LEM is a research unit that comprises the CNRS, associating the University of Lille and IÉSEG School of Management.
• LEM comprises about 200 researchers and 100 doctoral students in economics and management.
• LEM is a young, internationally oriented, and dynamic laboratory with a strong scientific ambition.

QUALIFICATIONS

We are looking for highly motivated candidates who:

• Hold (or are close to completing) a Master’s degree in Finance, Economics, Econometrics, or a closely related quantitative discipline.
• Have a solid background in corporate finance and empirical methods (econometrics) with strong interest in corporate governance, risk management, and/or cybersecurity-related topics.
• Are keen to explore empirical data analysis and textual analysis, to work with large financial datasets, and are comfortable using statistical software (e.g., Stata, R, or Python).
• Have an excellent command of written and spoken English.
• Demonstrate research potential, for example through a high-quality Master’s thesis or research project.
• Can work both independently and as part of a research team.

Prior exposure to corporate governance or risk-related topics is an asset but not strictly required. Additionally, any experience with financial databases or textual data analysis will be considered an advantage.

WORKING CONDITIONS

The successful candidate is expected to start either in September/October 2026 or January 2027 (with some flexibility within this period) and will be based at the Lille Campus of IÉSEG School of Management. The PhD student will work full time under a 3-year fixed-term research contract, with the possibility of extension by one or two years. Gross salary will be competitive with other European research and academic institutions (2300€/month). The PhD student will have access to university facilities, libraries, and restaurants. They will be enrolled in the University of Lille’s PhD program and will participate in doctoral training activities organized by LEM and the SESAM Doctoral School.

APPLICATION PROCEDURE

Interested applicants should submit the following documents:

• Curriculum vitae (CV),
• Transcripts of grades at Bachelor’s and Master’s level,
• Two letters of recommendation from academic referees (with contact details),
• A sample of previous research work, such as a Master’s thesis or research paper, and
• A motivation letter explaining:
  • Why they wish to pursue a PhD in this area,
  • How their background fits the project, and
  • Their medium-term academic or professional goals.

Applications must be submitted through the IÉSEG online recruitment platform here.

For any further questions about the position, please contact: m.zakriya@ieseg.fr

For general questions about the PhD recruitment process: phd.recruitment@ieseg.fr

Deadline for sending complete applications: May 1, 2026