Personal profile
Personal information
Prof. dr. Svetlana Khapova is Associate Dean of Business and Public Engagement and Full Professor of Organisational Behaviour and Leadership at the School of Business and Economics (SBE) of the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, The Netherlands. She is a Programme Director of the (Executive) PhD programme in management and business studies at the School of Business and Economics (SBE) of the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam. Between 2009-2017, she served as Director of Doctoral Education and a founding Director of Amsterdam Business Research Institute (ABRI) of the School of Business and Economics (SBE), Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam.
She is a passionate organizational behavior scholar who believes that science has an important role in making human life better. Her research puts human cognition and human behaviors in organizations in the spotlight. Trained as an interdisciplinary career scholar and initially interested in career success and star performance, currently she studies top management teams and boards. Among her current research topics are strategic leadership, leadership development, executive career paths, cognitive biases in decision making, emotions in organizations, and board dynamics. She authored more than 100 refereed papers, and is author (together with M. B. Arthur and J. Richardson) of the book “An Intelligent Career: Taking Ownership of Your Work and Your Life” published by Oxford University Press in 2017. Her research papers are published in such top tier journals as Academy of Management Learning and Education, Human Relations, International Journal of Management Reviews, Journal of Business Venturing, Journal of Management Studies, Journal of Organizational Behavior, Personnel Psychology, and many other.
She is active in both academic and business domains.
Within the academic domain, she is a long-standing member of the Academy of Management and European Group for Organizational Studies. Between 2009-2013, Professor Khapova served as Division Chair and Program Chair of Careers Division of the Academy of Management for which she received Award for Outstanding Leadership and Service, from Careers division of the Academy of Management, Orlando, 2013, and Award for Outstanding Leadership and Service from the Academy of Management, Montreal, 2010. At the European Group for Organizational Studies (EGOS), she regularly convens scientific research tracks on board dynamics. In 2021, she was one of the lead organizers of the 37th EGOS Colloquium in Amsterdam.
Within the business domain, Professor Khapova regularly gives keynote speeches, delivers corporate training programmes and advises organizations on leadership and management related topics. Her favorite programme is the (Executive) PhD, in which she has a privilege to work with executives on most pressing topics that concern contemporary “C-suite” executives. This programme is her most impactful project through which she supports executives in shaping the future of management practice.
Next to her passion for engaged scholarship, Professor Khapova loves to teach. She is an educational innovator and has a track record in developing and delivering new educational programmes, including Research Master Business in Society, Doctoral Education (broadly), Executive PhD programme, and Executive MBA “Leading with Purpose”. She can be found delivering lectures and interactive seminars on the topics of strategic leadership development, diversity and inclusion, well-being and mental health at work, business and peace, career management, HRM, and academic writing in various parts of the world, including Antilles, China, Germany, Italy, Japan, Oman, Russian Federation and South Africa.
Her current teaching includes:
- Executive MBA “Leading with Purpose”: Module 1 “Leader Identity and Purpose”.
- PhD level courses “Writing a Systematic Literature Review” and “Advanced seminars in Organizational Behavior”.
- MSc Business Administration course: Leadership: Advanced Perspectives.
Ancillary activities
- Kobe University | Kobe | Adviseur | 2025-06-02 - 2025-06-06
Ancillary activities are updated daily
Expertise related to UN Sustainable Development Goals
In 2015, UN member states agreed to 17 global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure prosperity for all. This person’s work contributes towards the following SDG(s):
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SDG 3 Good Health and Well-being
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SDG 5 Gender Equality
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SDG 8 Decent Work and Economic Growth
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SDG 10 Reduced Inequalities
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SDG 11 Sustainable Cities and Communities
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Collaborations and top research areas from the last five years
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How does a career decision become a career regret? A qualitative exploration
Schulze Schleithoff, D. C., Lysova, E. I., Khapova, S. & Korotov, K., 24 Feb 2026, In: Career Development International. 31, 8, p. 57-81Research output: Contribution to Journal › Article › Academic › peer-review
Open Access -
How coworker proactive behavior drives employee bootlegging: The roles of goal orientation and self-construal
Qu, J., Shao, Y., Tims, M. & Khapova, S., Feb 2026, In: Applied Psychology. 75, 1, p. 1-34 34 p., e70065.Research output: Contribution to Journal › Article › Academic › peer-review
Open Access -
How proactively building personal brand equity can help employees’ marketability
Cai, W., El Baroudi, S., Gorbatov, S., Khapova, S. & Fan, X., 10 Jan 2026, In: International Journal of Human Resource Management.Research output: Contribution to Journal › Article › Academic › peer-review
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Bottom-up innovation under uncertainty: the role of face concerns in shaping overt and covert innovation across cultures
Qu, J., Khapova, S. N. & Tang, Y., 2026, (Accepted/In press) In: Journal of International Business Studies.Research output: Contribution to Journal › Article › Academic › peer-review
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Chapter 6: Uncoupling the Private Equity-backed Buy-and-Build Strategy
Linder, N., Kroon, D. P. & Khapova, S. N., 2026, In: Advances in Mergers and Acquisitions. 26, 2, p. 99-115 17 p.Research output: Contribution to Journal › Article › Academic › peer-review
Courses
Projects
- 1 Active
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From VU to Work: The School-to-Work Transition in the Contemporary Career
Blokker, R. (PhD candidate), Akkermans, J. (Principal Investigator), Khapova, S. (Principal Investigator) & Jansen, P. (Principal Investigator)
1/02/16 → …
Project: Research
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Board gender composition and the gender pay gap among employees
Ai, X. (Speaker), Oostrom, J. (Speaker), Sieweke, J. (Speaker) & Khapova, S. (Speaker)
6 Jul 2023Activity: Lecture / Presentation › Academic
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Tough love in the ecosystem of the gig economy - An ethnographic study on gig workers’ social exchange experiences
Retkowsky, J. (Speaker), Akkermans, J. (Speaker), Nijs, S. (Speaker), Khapova, S. (Speaker) & Jansen, P. (Speaker)
2 Jun 2022Activity: Lecture / Presentation › Academic
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Seeking stability in unstable employment? A qualitative study on agency workers’ career self-management
Retkowsky, J. (Speaker), Nijs, S. (Speaker), Akkermans, J. (Speaker), Khapova, S. (Speaker) & Jansen, P. (Speaker)
5 Aug 2022Activity: Lecture / Presentation › Academic
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Human Relations (Journal)
Khapova, S. N. (Member of editorial board)
2020 → …Activity: Peer review and Editorial work › Editorial work › Academic
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Critical Review on Flexible Workers in the New Economy
Retkowsky, J. (Speaker), Nijs, D. S. (Speaker), Akkermans, J. (Speaker) & Khapova, S. N. (Speaker)
14 Feb 2020Activity: Lecture / Presentation › Academic
Prizes / Grants
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2022 CAR Best Published Paper Award
Khapova, S. (Recipient) & Lysova, E. I. (Recipient), 2022
Prize / Grant: Prize › Academic
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AbbVie Research Contract (Grant)
Khapova, S. N. (Recipient), Stephenson, K. (Recipient), Tims, M. (Recipient), Graamans, E. P. (Recipient) & Oostrom, J. (Recipient), 2020
Prize / Grant: Grant › Academic
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AOM 2022 Best CAR division paper nomination
Schulze Schleithoff, C. (Recipient), Lysova, E. I. (Recipient), Khapova, S. (Recipient) & Korotov, K. (Recipient), 2022
Prize / Grant: Prize › Academic
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AOM 2022 Best HRM division paper nomination
Mockeviciute, A. (Recipient), El Baroudi, S. (Recipient), Gorbatov, S. (Recipient) & Khapova, S. (Recipient), 2022
Prize / Grant: Prize › Academic
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Award for Outstanding Leadership and Service
Khapova, S. N. (Recipient), 9 Aug 2010
Prize / Grant: Prize › Academic
Datasets
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Supervisor Reactions to Avoidance Job Crafting: The Role of Political Skill and Approach Job Crafting
Fong, C. (Creator), Beijer, S. (Contributor), Tims, M. (Supervisor) & Khapova, S. N. (Supervisor), Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, 15 Dec 2020
Dataset / Software: Dataset
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Exploratory study of temporary agency workers' career self-management
Retkowsky, J. (Creator), Nijs , D. S. (Supervisor), Akkermans, J. (Supervisor), Khapova, S. (Supervisor) & Jansen, P. (Supervisor), YODA, 28 Jun 2023
DOI: 10.48338/VU01-FA79YH
Dataset / Software: Dataset
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Exploratory study of temporary agency workers' career self-management
Retkowsky , J. (Creator), Nijs, S. (Contributor), Akkermans, J. (Contributor), Khapova, S. (Contributor) & Jansen, P. (Contributor), VU, 2023
DOI: 10.48338/vu01-fa79yh, https://publication.yoda.vu.nl/full/VU01/FA79YH.html
Dataset / Software: Dataset
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Dataset on young dutch professionals' employability
Blokker, R. (Creator), Tims, M. (Contributor), Akkermans, J. (Contributor), Khapova, S. N. (Contributor) & Jansen, P. (Creator), YODA, 3 Dec 2020
Dataset / Software: Dataset
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A process model of peer reactions to team member proactivity
Twemlow, M. (Creator), Tims, M. (Creator) & Khapova, S. N. (Creator), SAGE Journals, 2022
DOI: 10.25384/sage.c.6041591, https://sage.figshare.com/collections/A_process_model_of_peer_reactions_to_team_member_proactivity/6041591
Dataset / Software: Dataset