ZEW Economist Boris Ivanov Receives Research Award
Dates and NewsVolksbank Weinheim Stiftung and ZEW Mannheim Honour Excellent Research
Every year, the Volksbank Weinheim Stiftung and ZEW Mannheim honour outstanding dissertations and master’s theses in economics with the research award “Future of the Working World”. This is the tenth time that the award has been presented. The award for the best Masterthesis went to Asia-Kim Francavilla. The award for the best dissertation went to Boris Ivanov.
"I am delighted and honored by the recognition of my work. In my dissertation, I look at the structural change of our labor markets from the employee perspective. The demand for labor is changing qualitatively and quantitatively. Many workers manage to adapt successfully - however, an unexpected layoff can disrupt this process in the long term. I would like to thank everyone who has supported me along the way. his award encourages me to delve deeper into that matter in the future," says award winner Boris Ivanov.
“For the tenth anniversary of the research award ‘Future of the Working World’, we could not have wished for a more fitting topic. Boris Ivanov’s outstanding academic work looks at the two key topics ‘New skills for new jobs’ and ‘Integration of disadvantaged groups’, which are more important than ever in the age of continuous transformation processes,” emphasises Carsten Müller, spokesperson of the board of Volksbank Kurpfalz eG and chairman of the board of the Volksbank Weinheim Stiftung.
“The award for the best dissertation comes with a €3,000 prize. In this way, Volksbank Kurpfalz and ZEW would like to promote young talent, strengthen the Rhine-Neckar metropolitan region as a science hub and increase the visibility of top-class research in our region,” says ZEW Managing Director Prof. Thomas Kohl, describing the intention of the award. “On behalf of the jury and ZEW, I wish Dr. Ivanov that he will use his work results and scientific skills both for his own success and for the benefit of society.” Author and digital expert Sascha Lobo, who gave a speech on digitization in Germany at Volksbank Kurpfalz's New Year's event, also offered his congratulations and emphasized the relevance of the prize for science: "The science prize increases the visibility of research work in Germany."
In the award-winning dissertation, Boris Ivanov deals with the structural change of the labour market due to globalisation and automation processes, how employees can adapt to this change in labour demand and how disadvantaged groups can be integrated into the labour market. His dissertation, entitled “Essays on Structural Change and Social Integration”, fully lives up to the award’s claim of honouring theses that combine academic excellence with practical relevance. The work provides important impulses for an inclusive design of structural change and for a better integration of disadvantaged groups into society.
Boris Ivanov studied business administration at RWTH Aachen University and earned his master’s degree in economics at Heidelberg University. He has been working at ZEW’s Research Unit “Labour Markets and Social Insurance” since January 2017, where he focuses on applied microeconometrics and empirical labour market research.
