Academic Positions - Innovation And Entrepreneurship at Durban University of Technology

Position purpose

• The appointee will strengthen the Institute's research programme in enterprise life courses, survival and scaling. The role requires a scholar able to generate theoretically significant and practically useful evidence for African enterprise futures, develop postgraduate capacity and work across disciplinary and institutional boundaries.

Minimum requirements

• A doctoral degree (NQF 10) in Entrepreneurship or Small-business Development or Development Economics or Enterprise Development or Business Management or Economic Sociology or Public Policy, or a closely related qualification to the theme.
• A strong record of research and/or academic leadership, with demonstrated leadership in enterprise life courses, survival and scaling research.
• Substantial and sustained period of distinguished academic experience in research and/or professional experience in higher education or a research environment, with recognised standing in the field.
• A sustained record of high-quality, cited research; competitive grant awards; international recognition; and leadership of substantial externally funded programmes.
• Evidence of excellent teaching, postgraduate mentorship, curriculum contribution and academic citizenship appropriate to appointment rank.
• A minimum of ten (10) DHET-accredited research outputs/creative outputs over the preceding three years, relevant to the discipline, with evidence of research quality and impact.
• Evidence of substantial record of successful supervision to completion of Master’s and Doctoral students.
• Demonstrated success in securing competitive research funding (grants, contracts or commissioned research).
• Evidence of leading multidisciplinary teams and building national/international research collaborations.

Theme-specific expertise

• Longitudinal enterprise research; survival, failure and recovery; productivity and managerial capability; enterprise finance; informal-formal pathways; responsible scaling and employment quality.

Key responsibilities

• Provide senior intellectual leadership for the KwaZulu-Natal Enterprise Life-Course Observatory and establish a rigorous longitudinal panel of township, rural, informal, student and innovation-driven ventures.
• Advance comparative African scholarship on necessity- and opportunity-driven entrepreneurship, enterprise resilience, household-enterprise interdependence, finance across the enterprise lifecycle and pathways to productive scale.
• Design and lead robust evaluations of enterprise-support interventions, including appropriate comparison strategies and mixed-method longitudinal analysis.
• Develop and sustain a focused programme of original, high-quality research within the designated Institute theme.
• Build ethical, mutually beneficial research partnerships with entrepreneurs, communities, government, industry and African or international universities.
• Translate research into evidence briefs, decision tools and demonstrable policy, enterprise or ecosystem use while maintaining academic independence.
• Comply with DUT requirements for research ethics, data governance, intellectual property, financial management, reporting and audit readiness.
• Contribute to interdisciplinary Institute seminars, postgraduate training, limited teaching where required, and the collegial life of DUT.

Ideal / additional recommendations

• An NRF rating or demonstrable eligibility for rating, or equivalent recognised research standing.
• Advanced competence in quantitative, qualitative and/or mixed research methods relevant to enterprise research, including ethical use of administrative, platform or longitudinal data.
• A record of engaged scholarship and credible knowledge translation for policy, industry, entrepreneurs or communities.
• Demonstrated commitment to inclusive development, with research addressing youth entrepreneurship, women-owned enterprises, informal economies, rural enterprise development, sustainability, or social innovation.
• Experience in translating research into decision-support tools, policy frameworks, enterprise-development models, diagnostic instruments, or other practical outputs with measurable external impact.
• Demonstrated contribution to entrepreneurship education, curriculum innovation, entrepreneurial learning, or the advancement of entrepreneurial university practices

Position 2

Associate Professor: Inclusive Entrepreneurship, Enterprise Finance and Resilience

• Theme 1: Inclusive Enterprise Formation, Survival and Scaling
• Reference Number: 30002767
• Status of Position: Permanent
• Campus: Durban / Pietermaritzburg, as determined by DUT

Position purpose

• The appointee will strengthen the Institute's research programme in inclusive entrepreneurship, enterprise finance and resilience. The role requires a scholar able to generate theoretically rigorous and practically relevant evidence on enterprise formation, survival, productivity, resilience and scaling within diverse African contexts.

Minimum requirements

• A doctoral degree (NQF 10) in entrepreneurship or finance or development studies or economics or business management or behavioural science, or a closely related qualification to the theme.
• A good record of research and/or academic leadership, with demonstrated engagement in inclusive entrepreneurship, enterprise finance and resilience.
• A significant period of sustained academic experience in research and/or professional experience in higher education or a research environment, with demonstrable expertise in inclusive entrepreneurship, enterprise finance and resilience.
• Evidence of research quality through appropriate bibliometrics, grant awards, academic leadership, very good teaching and meaningful disciplinary or community engagement.
• A minimum of seven (7) DHET-accredited research outputs/creative outputs over the preceding three years, relevant to the discipline, with evidence of research quality and impact.
• Successful supervision to completion of Master’s and Doctoral students.
• Evidence of success in securing competitive research funding (grants, contracts or commissioned research).
• Evidence of leading or contributing to multidisciplinary teams and building national/international research collaborations.

Theme-specific expertise

• Inclusive entrepreneurial pathways; youth, women and community entrepreneurship; alternative finance; entrepreneur wellbeing; business continuity; informal enterprise development and second-chance entrepreneurship.

Key responsibilities

• Lead research on differentiated enterprise pathways in unequal and resource-constrained settings, with particular attention to township, rural and informal economies.
• Develop and validate diagnostics of survival, resilience, productivity, finance readiness and scaling constraints for distinct enterprise types.
• Build participatory studies with entrepreneurs and ecosystem partners that preserve research independence and produce actionable evidence.
• Lead or contribute to competitive grant proposals, commissioned research and multi-partner research programmes.
• Build ethical, mutually beneficial research partnerships with entrepreneurs, communities, government, industry and African or international universities.
• Translate research into evidence briefs, decision tools and demonstrable policy, enterprise or ecosystem use while maintaining academic independence.
• Comply with DUT requirements for research ethics, data governance, intellectual property, financial management, reporting and audit readiness.
• Contribute to interdisciplinary Institute seminars, postgraduate training, limited teaching where required, and the collegial life of DUT.

Ideal / additional recommendations

• An NRF rating or demonstrable eligibility for rating, or equivalent recognised research standing.
• Advanced competence in quantitative, qualitative and/or mixed research methods relevant to enterprise research, including ethical use of administrative, platform or longitudinal data.
• A record of engaged scholarship and credible knowledge translation for policy, industry, entrepreneurs or communities.
• Evidence of collaboration with African and international researchers working on inclusive growth, entrepreneurship, enterprise development, or economic inclusion.
• Demonstrated contribution to entrepreneurship education, entrepreneurial mindset development, experiential learning initiatives.

Position 3

Professor: Value Chains, Procurement and Digital Trade

• Theme 2: Market Access, Value Chains and Digital Trade
• Reference Number: 30002766
• Status of Position: Permanent
• Campus: Durban / Pietermaritzburg, as determined by DUT

Position purpose

• The appointee will strengthen the Institute's research programme in value chains, procurement and digital trade. The role requires a scholar able to generate theoretically significant and practically useful evidence for African enterprise futures, develop postgraduate capacity and work across disciplinary and institutional boundaries.

Minimum requirements

• A doctoral degree (NQF 10) in supply-chain management or economics or international trade or marketing or logistics or entrepreneurship or information systems or public procurement, or a closely related qualification to the theme.
• A strong record of research and/or academic leadership, with demonstrated leadership in value chains, procurement and digital trade.
• Substantial and sustained period of distinguished academic experience in research and/or professional experience in higher education or a research environment, with recognised standing in the field.
• A sustained record of high-quality, cited research; competitive grant awards; international recognition; and leadership of substantial externally funded programmes.
• Evidence of excellent teaching, postgraduate mentorship, curriculum contribution and academic citizenship appropriate to appointment rank.
• A minimum of ten (10) DHET-accredited research outputs/creative outputs over the preceding three years, relevant to the discipline, with evidence of research quality and impact.
• Evidence of substantial record of successful supervision to completion of Master’s and Doctoral students.
• Demonstrated success in securing competitive research funding (grants, contracts or commissioned research).
• Evidence of leading multidisciplinary teams and building national/international research collaborations.

Theme-specific expertise

• Public procurement and localisation; corporate supplier development; digital platforms and commerce; export readiness; port-linked opportunity; clusters, local value chains and market intelligence.

Key responsibilities

• Provide senior intellectual leadership for the Durban Market Access and Value Chain Lab, including a KZN market-access and value-chain atlas.
• Lead research on how small enterprises enter, compete and retain value in public, corporate, digital and export markets, including port-linked logistics and manufacturing corridors.
• Develop measures of durable market access based on repeat sales, margins, contract performance, bargaining power and resilience rather than event participation alone.
• Examine the implications of artificial intelligence, data analytics, platform governance and digital technologies for enterprise growth and trade participation.
• Build ethical, mutually beneficial research partnerships with entrepreneurs, communities, government, industry and African or international universities.
• Translate research into evidence briefs, decision tools and demonstrable policy, enterprise or ecosystem use while maintaining academic independence.
• Comply with DUT requirements for research ethics, data governance, intellectual property, financial management, reporting and audit readiness.
• Contribute to interdisciplinary Institute seminars, postgraduate training, limited teaching where required, and the collegial life of DUT.

Ideal / additional recommendations

• An NRF rating or demonstrable eligibility for rating, or equivalent recognised research standing.
• Advanced competence in quantitative, qualitative and/or mixed research methods relevant to enterprise research, including ethical use of administrative, platform or longitudinal data.
• A record of engaged scholarship and credible knowledge translation for policy, industry, entrepreneurs or communities.
• Demonstrated ability to build and lead multidisciplinary research teams involving economics, business, logistics, technology, entrepreneurship, industrial development, and public policy.

Position 4

Senior Lecturer: Digital Markets, Supplier Development and Market Intelligence

• Theme 2: Market Access, Value Chains and Digital Trade
• Reference Number: 30002769
• Status of Position: Permanent
• Campus: Durban / Pietermaritzburg, as determined by DUT

Position purpose

• The appointee will strengthen the Institute's research programme in digital markets, supplier development and market intelligence. The role requires a scholar able to generate theoretically significant and practically useful evidence for African enterprise futures, develop postgraduate capacity and work across disciplinary and institutional boundaries.

Minimum requirements

• A doctoral degree (NQF 10) in digital business or marketing or information systems or supply-chain management or entrepreneurship or business analytics, or a closely related qualification to the theme.
• A developing record of research and/or academic leadership in digital markets, supplier development and market intelligence.
• Evidence of excellent teaching, innovative assessment or curriculum practice, effective academic advising and a developing independent research programme.
• An appropriate period of relevant academic experience in research and/or professional experience in higher education or a research environment.
• A minimum of three (3) DHET-accredited research outputs/creative outputs over the preceding three years, relevant to the discipline.
• Evidence of participation in supervision of Master’s students.
• Evidence of participation in grants writing.
• Evidence of participation in multidisciplinary teams and research collaborations.

Theme-specific expertise

• Platform participation; digital payments; discoverability; algorithmic exclusion; buyer behaviour; product-market fit; supplier onboarding; standards; customer retention and collective market access.

Key responsibilities

• Undertake applied research on digital-commerce participation, platform power, data rights, trust, logistics and algorithmic exclusion affecting small enterprises.
• Design sector studies and field experiments concerning supplier onboarding, buyer matching, standards compliance, digital trade and customer retention.
• Contribute to the procurement and supplier-development friction index and translate findings into usable instruments for enterprises and buyers.
• Build ethical, mutually beneficial research partnerships with entrepreneurs, communities, government, industry and African or international universities.
• Comply with DUT requirements for research ethics, data governance, intellectual property, financial management, reporting and audit readiness.
• Contribute to interdisciplinary Institute seminars, postgraduate training, limited teaching where required, and the collegial life of DUT.

Ideal / additional recommendations

• An emerging national research profile and evidence of readiness to apply for an NRF rating or equivalent recognition.
• Competence in quantitative, qualitative and/or mixed research methods relevant to enterprise research, including ethical use of administrative, platform or longitudinal data.
• A record of engaged scholarship and credible knowledge translation for policy, industry, entrepreneurs or communities.

Position 5

Associate Professor: Research Commercialisation and Venture Evidence

• Theme 3: Innovation Commercialisation and Sustainable Business Models
• Reference Number: 30002768
• Status of Position: Permanent
• Campus: Durban / Pietermaritzburg, as determined by DUT

Position purpose

• The appointee will strengthen the Institute's research programme in research commercialisation and venture evidence through internationally recognised scholarship that advances understanding of how innovations move from discovery to societal and economic impact.
• The role requires a scholar capable of generating theoretically significant and practically useful evidence for African enterprise futures, develop postgraduate capacity and work across disciplinary and institutional boundaries.

Minimum requirements

• A doctoral degree (NQF 10) in innovation management or entrepreneurship or technology management or commercialization or strategic management or intellectual property studies or economics, or a closely related qualification to the theme.
• A good record of research and/or academic leadership, with demonstrated engagement in research commercialisation and venture evidence through internationally recognised scholarship that advances understanding of how innovations move from discovery to societal and economic impact.
• A significant period of sustained academic experience in research and/or professional experience in higher education or a research environment, with demonstrable expertise in research commercialisation and venture evidence.
• Evidence of research quality through appropriate bibliometrics, grant awards, academic leadership, very good teaching and meaningful disciplinary or community engagement.
• A minimum of seven (7) DHET-accredited research outputs/creative outputs over the preceding three years, relevant to the discipline, with evidence of research quality and impact.
• Successful supervision to completion of Master’s and Doctoral students.
• Evidence of success in securing competitive research funding (grants, contracts or commissioned research).
• Evidence of leading or contributing to multidisciplinary teams and building national/international research collaborations.

Theme-specific expertise

• University spinouts; research commercialisation; proof of concept; IP strategy; licensing and venture pathways; founder teams; customer validation; investment readiness and commercialisation evidence.

Key responsibilities

• Lead a major workstream within the DUT Venture and Business Model Evidence Lab, tracing university, student and community innovations from concept or disclosure through validation, commercialisation, adoption and impact.
• Produce comparative evidence on licensing, spinout, social-enterprise and partnership pathways without assuming responsibility for operational incubation or technology-transfer transactions.
• Develop and validate commercialisation-readiness, venture-evidence and valuation instruments that connect technical promise to market demand and societal value.
• Examine the factors that influence venture survival, sustainability and long-term impact in African and emerging economy contexts.
• Build ethical, mutually beneficial research partnerships with entrepreneurs, communities, government, industry and African or international universities.
• Translate research into evidence briefs, decision tools and demonstrable policy, enterprise or ecosystem use while maintaining academic independence.
• Comply with DUT requirements for research ethics, data governance, intellectual property, financial management, reporting and audit readiness.
• Contribute to interdisciplinary Institute seminars, postgraduate training, limited teaching where required, and the collegial life of DUT.

Ideal / additional recommendations

• An NRF rating or demonstrable eligibility for rating, or equivalent recognised research standing.
• Advanced competence in quantitative, qualitative and/or mixed research methods relevant to enterprise research, including ethical use of administrative, platform or longitudinal data.
• A record of engaged scholarship and credible knowledge translation for policy, industry, entrepreneurs or communities.
• Evidence of working with technology transfer offices, innovation agencies, incubators, accelerators, science parks, venture builders, investors, or commercialisation support organisations.

Position 6

Senior Lecturer: Sustainable, Circular and Social Business Models

• Theme 3: Innovation Commercialisation and Sustainable Business Models
• Reference Number: 30002770
• Status of Position: Permanent
• Campus: Durban / Pietermaritzburg, as determined by DUT

Position purpose

• The appointee will strengthen the Institute's research programme in sustainable, circular and social business models. The role requires a scholar capable of generating theoretically significant and practically useful evidence for African enterprise futures, develop postgraduate capacity and work across disciplinary and institutional boundaries.

Minimum requirements

• A doctoral degree (NQF 10) in sustainable business or circular economy or innovation management or entrepreneurship or environmental economics or industrial ecology or social innovation, or a closely related qualification to the theme.
• A developing record of research and/or academic leadership in sustainable, circular and social business models.
• Evidence of excellent teaching, innovative assessment or curriculum practice, effective academic advising and a developing independent research programme.
• An appropriate period of relevant academic experience in research and/or professional experience in higher education or a research environment.
• A minimum of three (3) DHET-accredited research outputs/creative outputs over the preceding three years, relevant to the discipline.
• Evidence of participation in supervision of Master’s students.
• Evidence of participation in grants writing.
• Evidence of participation in multidisciplinary teams and research collaborations.

Theme-specific expertise

• Green, circular and regenerative enterprise; social and community innovation; frugal innovation; business-model experimentation; technology diffusion; AI adoption and just-transition enterprise opportunities.

Key responsibilities

• Conduct research on resource productivity, repair, reuse, waste valorisation, low-carbon enterprise and business-model renewal in climate- and infrastructure-disrupted settings.
• Evaluate hybrid-value, cooperative, community-ownership and social-enterprise models, including their financial, environmental and societal sustainability.
• Co-design and assess green and circular business-model demonstrators with implementation partners using credible baselines and adoption measures.
• Investigate the drivers and barriers influencing adoption of circular economy practices, resource-efficient production systems and sustainable enterprise models.
• Examine the role of entrepreneurship and innovation in addressing societal challenges, including climate change, unemployment, inequality, poverty and community resilience.
• Build ethical, mutually beneficial research partnerships with entrepreneurs, communities, government, industry and African or international universities.
• Translate research into evidence briefs, decision tools and demonstrable policy, enterprise or ecosystem use while maintaining academic independence.
• Comply with DUT requirements for research ethics, data governance, intellectual property, financial management, reporting and audit readiness.
• Contribute to interdisciplinary Institute seminars, postgraduate training, limited teaching where required, and the collegial life of DUT.

Ideal / additional recommendations

• An emerging national research profile and evidence of readiness to apply for an NRF rating or equivalent recognition.
• Knowledge in evaluating social, environmental and economic impacts of enterprises, programmes, technologies, or business-model interventions.
• A record of engaged scholarship and credible knowledge translation for policy, industry, entrepreneurs or communities.

Application Information applies to all six positions:

Application requirements

• A fully completed prescribed DUT application for employment form, obtainable from www.dut.ac.za under Quick Links / Careers.
• A detailed curriculum vitae explicitly demonstrating how the applicant meets the rank and theme-specific requirements.
• A covering letter identifying the exact position, rank and research theme applied for.
• Copies of all relevant academic records and certificates.
• A copy of an identity document or passport, and current contact details for referees.

 Closing Date 02 October 2026