Prof. dr. Jaap van Muijen

Leadership: failure is the road to success

Prof. Dr. Jaap van Muijen is a professor of Psychology at Nyenrode Business University. He is part of Nyenrode's Faculty Research Center for Accounting, Auditing & Control. 

Van Muijen has both an academic career and a career as an organizational consultant. After studying labor and organizational psychology at the VU Amsterdam, he obtained his doctorate here in 1994 on the subject of organizational culture. After having worked at this university for a number of years (sponsored by USF), he decided to temporarily leave the university world, because he feels the gap between theory and practice is too big.

As organizational consultant, Van Muijen specialized in translating the strategic choices of national and international organizations into the desired leadership in those organizations, especially in the higher echelons. He was a board member of LTP for eight years, was the director of Sioo and runs Sense of Leadership, his own consultancy firm, since 2007. But everyone’s true colors eventually show. In 2001, he joined Nyenrode University of Business as a professor, where he was chairman of the Center for Leadership and Personal Development for a long time, as well as program director of the Nyenrode Executive Academic Program, director of the Human Cluster, and 'Head of the Faculty'. His research interests lie in the field of leadership, organizational culture, behavioral analysis, and change management. He teaches in executive programs at various (Dutch and international) universities.

Commissioned by de Persgroep Online, he conducts the "Nationale Salarisonderzoek”, the National Salary Survey, every other year (100,000 respondents). In addition, he researches the relationship between personality and leadership in certain contexts. ”My colleagues and the optimism that is dominant within Nyenrode give me energy.” 

He regards leadership as being shaped in the process between the leader as a person, the characteristics of the followers and those of the situation. Leadership development requires, on the one hand, personal development and, on the other hand, the ability to respond actively to social and economic developments. The three elements: person, follower and context are key in his programs. Fields of tension between business, power and ethics are explicitly addressed.

Interests

Reading, Scandinavian crime series, rowing and walking.

Most relevant publications

• Muijen, J.J. van & E. Melse (2019). Het nationale salarisonderzoek 2019. Amsterdam: Intermediair SBN/EAN: 978-90-821666-9-9. 
• Melse, E. K. Montfort en J. van Muijen (2012). Het rendement van selectie aan de poort. Economisch Statistische Berichten, (97), 312-315. 
• Hartog, D.N. den, J.J. van Muijen & P.L. Koopman (1997). Transactional versus transformationeal leadership: an analysis of the MLQ. Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology, 70, 19-34. 
• Muijen, J.J. van, P.L. Koopman, K. De Witte, G. De Cock, Z. Susanj, C. Lemoine, D. Bourantas, N. Papalexandris, I. Branyiczki, E. Spaltro, J. Jesuino, J GonzalvesDas Neves , H. Pitariu, E. Konrad, J. Peiro, V. Gonzalez-Roma, D. Turnipseed (1999). Organizational culture: the FOCUS-questionnaire. The European Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology, 4, 551-570. 
• Muijen, J.J. van & P.L. Koopman (1994). The influence of national culture on organizational culture: a comparative study between 10 countries. The European Work and Organizational Psychologist. 4, 367-380.