Industrial PhD Student

Are you passionate about leveraging AI to enhance manufacturing control? We are seeking an Industrial PhD student to join our manufacturing team at Novo Nordisk in Kalundborg and collaborate with the IT University of Copenhagen (ITU) with the aim of exploring how AI can automate manufacturing processes. Join our growing manufacturing hub in Kalundborg and be part of a dynamic team dedicated to making a difference every day for more than 41 million people living with diabetes and other chronic diseases.

Apply today for a life-changing career!

The Position

As an Industrial PhD student, your key responsibilities will include:

• Research: Design and execute the research project. The research project explores how organizations in highly regulated industries can augment and automate a set of related work processes with artificial intelligence (AI). The project will be based on Action Design Research and will focus on augmenting and automating the work of manufacturing control teams in Novo Nordisk’s premises in Kalundborg. Your activities in the research project  include analysing work and information flows of manufacturing control teams, designing machine learning systems to augment or automate their work, and evaluating implemented systems.
• Publications & Presentations: Publish scientific papers and present them at international venues.
• Academic Development: Attend courses for academic development and assist in teaching.
• Collaboration: Work with international project partners and contribute to the research community at ITU and Novo Nordisk.
• PhD Dissertation: Complete a PhD dissertation.

Your primary work location will be Kalundborg. You will distribute your time between the Novo Nordisk facilities in Kalundborg and the university about equally over the course of the project. The project is expected to take approximately 3 years, during which you are expected to spend 3 months studying at another university, preferably abroad.

Qualifications

The Industrial PhD candidate must meet the following criteria based on the needs of the project and the requirements set by the Innovation Fund Denmark (Read more on requirement from Innovation Fund Denmark on their website: Forside | Innovationsfonden):

• Have a Master's degree in digital innovation & management, digitalization, information systems, computer science, data science or related fields.
• Have a socio-technical profile combining IT skills and basic machine learning with organizational analysis, including knowledge of business process analysis and automation.
• Have a grade of at least 10 (or equivalent for foreign education) in the thesis/final project.
• Have grades that meet the following requirements for Master’s and Bachelor's degree combined: Weighted average of at least 8.2 on the 7-point scale or 9 on the 13-point scale. For a two-year master's degree alone: Weighted average of at least 9.5 on the 7-point scale or 9.4 on the 13-point scale.
• Be proficient in English and Danish.

As a person, you are motivated and enthusiastic about research related to process automation and AI. You excel at independent thinking, novelty, originality, and are familiar with the state-of-the-art research relevant to the project.

About the Department

The successful applicant will be employed at Novo Nordisk, Product Supply, Quality and IT API, Kalundborg, in the Future Operation section, a team driving changes needed to meet Novo Nordisk´s future operations strategic ambitions. Our ambition is to support a more sustainable work life for the workforce and, if the project is successful, we will be able to lower the risk of developing chronic diseases like diabetes, heart disease, and obesity among employees working night shifts. Thus, the project will focus on mapping and eliminating manual interventions or automating them to facilitate fully automated operations during nighttime.

The PhD student will be enrolled at the ITU PhD school for three years, be part of the Digital Business Innovation Section at ITU ( https://itu.dk/Forskning/Sektioner-paa-ITU/Digital-Business-Innovation), and be supervised by Associate Professor Oliver Krancher (https://pure.itu.dk/en/persons/oliver-krancher). ITU’s Digital Business Innovation regularly ranks among the top 20 information systems research sections in Europe. It emphasizes high-quality research and relevance to the industry. The IT University of Copenhagen (ITU) is a teaching and research-based tertiary institution concerned with information technology (IT) and the opportunities it offers. The IT University has more than 160 full-time faculty members. Research and teaching in information technology span all academic activities, which involve computers, including computer science, information and media sciences, humanities and social sciences, business and the commercialization of IT.

Working at Novo Nordisk

Novo Nordisk is a leading global healthcare company with a 100-year legacy of driving change to defeat serious chronic diseases. Building on our strong legacy within diabetes, we are expanding our commitment, reaching millions around the world and impacting daily more than 40 million patient lives. Our success relies on the collaboration of more than 63,000 employees worldwide. We value the unique skills and perspectives our people bring and continuously work to bring out the best in them. At Novo Nordisk, we’re working toward something bigger than ourselves. Join us! Together, we go further. Together, we’re life-changing.

Contact

Questions about the position can be directed to Thomas Søby Eriksen, Project Director, PS API BS Future Operation at [email protected], or Associate Professor Oliver Krancher, IT University of Copenhagen, at [email protected].

Deadline

25 February 2025.

The application must be written in English and include:

• A cover letter (max. 1 page) explaining why you are interested in the position and how your profile fits the position.
• Documentation of academic degree(s) including grade transcripts that document academic achievement.
• Curriculum Vitae, which must include two professional/academic references.
• A statement of purpose (max. 2 pages), providing evidence of independent thinking, novelty, originality, and a state-of-the-art grasp of the targeted research field matching the project.

Optional documents:

• Relevant scientific publications.
• A copy of the MSc thesis (or a working draft).
• Letters of recommendation.

Applications without the required documents will not be assessed. Early contact with our contact at IT University of Copenhagen  is strongly encouraged. Applications will be processed as they are received, so do not hesitate to apply.

We commit to an inclusive recruitment process and equality of opportunity for all our job applicants. 

At Novo Nordisk we recognize that it is no longer good enough to aspire to be the best company in the world. We need to aspire to be the best company for the world and we know that this is only possible with talented employees with diverse perspectives, backgrounds and cultures. We are therefore committed to creating an inclusive culture that celebrates the diversity of our employees, the patients we serve and communities we operate in. Together, we’re life changing.