Guest Professor Frans Greidanus Engages in Academic Exchange at Jiangnan University

Recently, Guest Professor Frans Greidanus of Jiangnan University—former President of Philips Research Asia and Advisory Board Member of Tilburg University—visited the School of Business for academic exchange.

In the morning, Professor Greidanus held a meeting with the School’s leadership. During the discussion, Dean Xujin Pu extended a warm welcome and engaged in in-depth exchanges on key topics including joint undergraduate–postgraduate training programs, international summer schools, and research collaboration. He noted that the successful launch of the 2025 International Summer School marked a significant achievement in promoting faculty and student exchange between the two institutions. Looking ahead, the School will take this opportunity to not only continue hosting high-quality summer programs but also deepen research collaboration with Tilburg University and further promote mutual faculty exchange and visits.

Professor Greidanus remarked that the School of Business, Jiangnan University has become Tilburg University’s second key partner in China, with close ties already established between faculty and students of both institutions. Tilburg University places great importance on this partnership. The official launch of undergraduate and postgraduate exchange programs, as well as master’s progression pathways, signifies a new stage in bilateral cooperation. He expressed his expectation for more landmark research achievements in the future.

In the afternoon, the 288th session of the “Business Lecture Series” was held, featuring Professor Greidanus as the keynote speaker. He delivered a lecture titled “Human Resource and Organizational Aspects of Innovation and R&D.” Drawing on his extensive experience in managing R&D organizations at Philips, he emphasized that innovation capability is central to a firm’s core competitiveness. Effective management of innovative organizations, he argued, requires a balance between human-centered considerations and structural optimization. He compared competence-based versus application-based organizational structures, as well as flat versus hierarchical models, and discussed how fostering an innovation-friendly environment, alongside optimizing recruitment, incentives, talent management, and career development processes, can help unlock strategic value creation. He also briefly analyzed the profound impact of cultural differences between Eastern and Western contexts on organizational management.

In addition, Professor Greidanus introduced Tilburg University’s disciplinary development, global rankings, campus culture, and the advantages of its exchange programs. Dr. Zhengyang Wu from the School shared his personal experiences from a joint PhD training program in the Netherlands. During the Q&A session, faculty and students actively engaged in discussion, creating a lively and interactive atmosphere.

Cooperation between the School of Business, Jiangnan University and Tilburg University began in 2023 with the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding. In 2025, the two institutions formally signed a student exchange agreement. In recent years, fruitful progress has been made in areas such as student mobility and faculty exchange. Moving forward, the School will build on these achievements, leverage high-quality international educational and research resources, and focus on advancing joint international research projects and co-developing high-quality courses, with the aim of further enhancing its global engagement and academic influence.

Group Photo

Discussion Scene

Professor Greidanus Delivering the Speech