Julia Grimm

Title of Dissertation:
Private Governance as an Institutional Response to Wicked Problems: A Study of the German Partnership for Sustainable Textiles

Supervisor: Prof. Dr. Philipp Schreck
University: Martin-Luther-University Halle-Wittenberg
Scholarship: KSG Scholarship
Cohort: 2. Cohort, 2015-2018

• Short Abstract

  The wicked problems of our time – e.g. environmental destruction or human rights violations – can endanger the legitimacy of firms, given that their global supply chain activities often cause these problems. While wicked problems transcend national borders and so limit the change-making capacity of legislative powers, corporate sustainability practices on an individual level also often fail. Hence the role of private governance on a collective level has become central as a response. This work discusses how private governance emerges and why firms are willing to engage in it by drawing on the case of the German Partnership for Sustainable Textiles. The findings of this work generate in-depth insight on the formation and functionality of private governance institutions.

• PhD Related Publications

  • Grimm, J. (2019): Private Governance as an Institutional Response to Wicked Problems: A Study of the German Partnership for Sustainable Textiles. Baden-Baden: Nomos Verlag.
  • Grimm, J. & Schreck, P. (2019): Zur erfolgreichen Etablierung von effektiven Multi-Stakeholder Initiativen. In: WCGE Policy Brief Series.
  • Grimm, J.: When Can Collective Action Serve as an Effective Form of CSR? A Selective Review of Literature from the Vantage of Institutional Economics. Manuscript in preparation.
  • Ruehle, R. C., Grimm, J., Thakhathi, A. and Schreck, P. (2017): Bitter Sweet: Child labor in the chocolate industry - a clear case of double standards? In: Case Centre (https://www.thecasecentre.org/main/products/view?id=151153)
  • de Biasi, K., Grimm, J., Piest, S. and Schreck, P. (2017): Rana Plaza and the Partnership for Sustainable Textiles: Collective Action in the Name of Human Rights. In: Case Centre (https://www.thecasecentre.org/educators/products/view?id=145705)

• Awards

  • 2020, Academy of Management, Social Issues in Management Division Winner of the “SIM Best Book Award 2020” (http://sim.aom.org/new-item1)

  • 2020, Case Centre, Subject Category Ethics and Social Responsibility Listed among the “2020 Best Selling Case Prize” (https://www.thecasecentre.org/educators/ordering/selecting/popularcollections/b estsellers/2020eth)

  • 2017-2018, Mathilde-Planck-Lecturer Program Lectureship Funding (1.275€)

  • 2015, University of Applied Sciences Konstanz Emma-Herwegh Award for Extraordinary Social Engagement (500€)