Lecturer: Social Innovation and Social Entrepreneurship 70 - 80 %

About the job

Lecturer: Social Innovation and Social Entrepreneurship 70 - 80 %

With entrepreneurial ambition, you develop the focus area Social Innovation and Social Entrepreneurship: You build up the research portfolio, acquire relevant projects, and excel in teaching and continuing education.

Department: Social Work

Start of work: As of September 1, 2026, or by arrangement. The position is permanent.

At the Institute for Social Management (ISM), we are establishing the new focus area "Social Innovation and Social Entrepreneurship" – for this, you take on lead responsibility:

Research & Development

• You design practice-relevant research and development projects on Social Innovation and Social Entrepreneurship and are responsible for corresponding submissions to funding bodies
• You lead the implementation of the projects (including financial and quality responsibility)

Teaching and Continuing Education

• You integrate the topic "Social Innovation and Social Entrepreneurship" into the teaching offerings of our Bachelor's and Master's degree programs in Social Work and supervise Bachelor's theses and (with appropriate) qualifications, Master's theses
• You work closely with program directors and module coordinators within our laterally managed degree programs
• You design practice-relevant continuing education offerings and conduct them together with colleagues from academia and practice

Positioning and Networking

• You are present in the professional community with publications and at events
• You maintain and develop diverse networks with professional organizations and other universities

Your previous professional and academic development qualifies you for this demanding and fulfilling design and development task:

• Master's degree in Social Work or in an economic/social science related discipline; a doctorate and/or additional qualifications relevant to the field are an advantage
• Solid scientific expertise in the fields of Social Innovation and Social Entrepreneurship (including several years of research and project management experience)
• Practical experience in social entrepreneurial ecosystems

In addition, you bring important personal competencies to successfully shape work at a university:

• Initiative, determination, and creativity
• Reliability, diligence, persistence, and foresight
• Collaborative working style: team-oriented, appreciative, and integrative
• Strong and reliable in communication and relationship building

The ZHAW Zurich University of Applied Sciences, with over 14,000 students and over 11,000 continuing education participants as well as around 3,700 employees, is one of the largest multi-disciplinary universities of applied sciences in Switzerland.

The Department of Social Work is one of the eight departments of the ZHAW Zurich University of Applied Sciences and is among the leading Swiss educational institutions in Social Work.

At the Institute for Social Management, we are committed to the future viability of social organizations: How can they effectively and sustainably solve social problems and meet the needs of the target groups – today and tomorrow?

We are a transdisciplinary team with strong practical relevance, innovative power, and scientific-academic expertise. We offer committed colleagues interesting development opportunities for their academic careers and also, in our competitive products, for implementation-oriented profiles.

ZHAW is committed to gender-mixed and diverse teams to promote equality, diversity, and innovation. We also advocate for a barrier-free university. We encourage people with disabilities to apply.

We offer university-appropriate working and employment conditions and actively promote the personnel development of our employees and managers. A detailed description of the benefits can be found on the "Working at ZHAW" website. Here are the main points:

Tobias Lengsfeld

Team Leader and Deputy Head of the Institute for Social Management

Tanja Bucher

Recruiting Manager