A native of Germany, he has joined WU from Erasmus University Rotterdam and will strengthen WU’s research and teaching activities in fields related to management and strategic change processes. His research examines how organizations can design change processes that are effective and successful in the long run. 

Rouven Kanitz, aged 39, earned a master’s degree in business research and, in 2019, completed his PhD at Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich (LMU Munich), where he subsequently also worked as a postdoctoral researcher. He later served as an assistant professor of organizational change at Rotterdam School of Management, Erasmus University. Prior to his academic career, he gained professional experience in the medical technology industry and at a management consulting firm, advising companies on strategic change projects. 

The human side of strategic change 

Kanitz’s research focuses on how organizations can navigate change successfully. He places particular emphasis on the human dimension of transformation processes: What assumptions do leaders hold about how strategic change unfolds? How can they steer change processes? And how can people’s human responses to organizational change, for example resistance, be measured, understood, and addressed constructively? He also investigates how digital technologies are reshaping change management and the new opportunities and risks this creates for organizations. 

“Humanity’s success has been driven by our ability to adapt. Yet organizations often struggle to change. Why is that? And what approaches can make a difference for leaders when it comes to making change work? At WU, we aim to generate fresh insights for leading change and to bring these insights to the classroom in innovative ways. I’m very much looking forward to this new academic environment and a stimulating exchange of ideas with my new colleagues,” says Rouven Kanitz. 

Kanitz’s research has been published in leading international journals, including the Academy of Management Journal, Organization Science, the Journal of Applied Psychology, and the Journal of International Business Studies.