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Dr. Anna Stöber

Portrait
21335 Lüneburg, Universitätsallee 1, C6.123
Fon 04131.677-2171 (Sekr.), anna.stoeber@leuphana.de
Research associate, Professorship of Business Administration, in particular Business in Society
Associated member, Leuphana Center for Organization & Social Transformation

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Vita

I am a postdoctoral researcher at the Chair of Business in Society at Leuphana University of Lüneburg. 

From 2019-2023, I was a PhD fellow at the department for Management, Society and Communication at Copenhagen Business School. My PhD thesis empirically explored how self-managing modes of organizing can emerge and be sustained when embedded within established organizational settings.

Originally trained in the humanities and in ethnographic methods, my MSc in Sustainability & Management (University of Bath, UK) led me to the field of organization and management studies. Building on this foundation, I use qualitative methodologies to study phenomena around new and alternative forms of organizing as well as employee activism.

At the Chair of Business in  Society I am also engaged in strengthening Leuphana University’s commitment to the United Nations Principles for Responsible Management (PRME). 

Teaching

  • New and Alternative Forms of Organizing
  • Employee Activism
  • Qualitative Research Methods

Research Interests


My current research interests center around two main areas.  Firstly, I am interested new forms of organizing, specifically self-managing forms of organizing, in the digital context (specifically, Decentralized, Autonomous Organisations (DAOs)). Secondly,  I seek to expand my research on employee activism with a specific focus on inter-organizational communities of activists.

Publications

Books and anthologies

  1. Embedded Self-Managing Modes of Organizing: Empirical Inquiries into Boundaries, Momentum, and Collectivity
    Anna Stöber (Author) , 2024 Copenhagen , 170 p.

    Research output: Books and anthologies › Monographs › Research › peer-review

View all publications

Journal contributions

  1. Guest editorial: Queer troublemakers and intersectional solidarity in times of anti-queer backlash
    Elo L.K. Reiss (Author) , Anna Stöber (Author) , Alison Pullen (Author) , 04.12.2025 , in: Qualitative Research in Organizations and Management, 20, 3 , p. 249-256 , 8 p.

    Research output: Journal contributions › Other (editorial matter etc.) › Research

  2. Cultivating dispersed collectivity: How communities between organizations sustain employee activism
    Anna Stöber (Author) , Verena Girschik (Author) , 01.09.2025 , in: Human Relations, 78, 9 , p. 1093-1122 , 30 p.

    Research output: Journal contributions › Journal articles › Research › peer-review

  3. From Fleeting Enchantment to Embodied Commitment: How Bottom-up Momentum can Emerge and Persist
    Anna Stöber (Author) , 01.08.2024 , in: Academy of Management Proceedings, 2024, 1 , 1 p.

    Research output: Journal contributions › Conference abstract in journal › Research › peer-review

  4. Balancing the Boundary: Sustaining Self-Managing Modes of Work Within Hierarchical Organizations
    Anna Stöber (Author) , Dennis Schöneborn (Author) , 01.08.2022 , in: Academy of Management Proceedings, 2022, 1 , 1 p.

    Research output: Journal contributions › Conference abstract in journal › Research › peer-review

View all publications

Activities

Prizes

  1. Best Paper Award 2024
    (Recipient) ,

    Prize: Leuphana internal Prize, Scholaships, distinctions, appointments › Research

  2. Teaching Award 2024
    (Recipient) (Recipient) ,

    Prize: Leuphana internal Prize, Scholaships, distinctions, appointments › Education

View all prizes

Courses

Qualitative Research Methods
Steffen Farny, Anna Stöber
This course offers students a more advanced introduction to qualitative research methods. Qualitative research is a research strategy that emphasizes large bodies of unstructured data (textual, graphical, audio, and video data) that cannot be meaningfully analyzed by formal, statistical approaches. Students will learn how to set up a qualitative research project and will be informed about different qualitative research approaches such as case study research, grounded theory, ethnography or design science. The course gives students the opportunity to learn how to construct a research question, craft a qualitative research design, collect and rigorously analyze data with the help of qualitative data analysis methodologies and procedures, as well as evaluating the quality of qualitative research.

Please make sure to carefully read through the syllabus as it entails key information about the structure of this course. Also, make sure to register for the Moodle course (tab: Onlinelehre) where you can find the lecture videos and further important course materials.
Next appointment:
Monday, 2026-12-14 at 10:00
Room: C 40.501 Seminarraum
Qualitative Research Methods - Exploring Insider Social Change
Anna Stöber
This course offers students a basic introduction to qualitative research methods. In this tutorial, students come together at Leuphana and discuss the online lecture's content in more detail. The students will conduct their qualitative research projects, and we will have time to answer questions and look at published studies as examples of how to conduct qualitative research.

A primary goal of this tutorial is advancing students' research projects, which will make up 70% of the final grade. The research projects are group-based projects of about three students. The students will conduct their qualitative study and present interim results within this tutorial (30% of final grade).
Next appointment:
Tuesday, 2026-10-20 at 12:15
Room: C 12.101 Seminarraum
Qualitative Research Methods – Tutorial 2
Anna Stöber
The course will be taught in two different modes in which the tutorials fulfill distinct tasks. When selecting a tutorial, please be aware that the tutorials differ in the thematic focus of the research projects that you will undertake. This particular tutorial will address the topic of "Employee Activism."

Mode 1 – October 16th to December 4th
Mode 1 takes place during the first half of the semester. Please note that it is of utmost importance to prepare your attendance of the tutorials. Details will be provided in the first tutorial session. Mode 1 concludes with a test of your knowledge of the course subjects covered in lectures 1 to 12.

Mode 2 – December 5th to March 15th
Mode 2 stretches throughout the second half of the semester; it kicks off with the tutorial session on December 14th and concludes with the submission of your research reports. During mode 2, you apply your knowledge of qualitative research methods by conducting your own research projects in groups. The tutorial sessions in this mode have two objectives. First, we will discuss particular topics that will help you navigate the process of your research projects. Second, we will use the tutorials to discuss your questions and give collective feedback on your emerging research projects. Be advised that hearing the feedback both on your own as well as on others’ projects is absolutely necessary to develop a research project that meets our expectations.

Please make sure to carefully read through the syllabus as it entails key information about the structure of this course.
Objective


Next appointment:
Tuesday, 2026-10-20 at 08:15
Room: C 12.111 Seminarraum