Lunteren – Nevi annually awards thesis prizes for the best theses in the fields of procurement, contract management and supply management. There are two categories — higher professional education (HBO) theses and university (WO) theses — and within each category a top three is selected. Submissions are made by the supervising lecturers and concern theses completed in the previous academic year. Each educational institution may submit a maximum of two theses.
Submissions are assessed on the relevance and clarity of the problem definition, the depth and coherence of the analysis, and the effectiveness and substantiation of the recommendations. The evaluation is carried out by a jury consisting of the five members of the Nevi Research Committee, representing higher education, industry and government.
Winners
HBO category The third prize goes to Thijs van den Berg (Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences) for his thesis for the Rijksinkoopsamenwerking on reducing workload by using single‑tender procedures compared to mini‑competitions. The second prize is awarded to Amy Heier (The Hague University of Applied Sciences) for her thesis on the procurement competencies needed to continue performing (future) procurement roles successfully, conducted on behalf of In2Talent.
The first prize in this category goes to Maaike de Vreede (also The Hague University of Applied Sciences), who, in collaboration with NIC, examined how municipalities can successfully apply ‘social return’ to provide meaningful work for people distanced from the labour market and ease labour market pressures. Her recommendations include deploying social‑return expertise early in the process, emphasising both effort and results, and creating greater uniformity among municipalities regarding what contractors may count as social return.
WO category
The third prize goes to Joeri Boereboom (University of Twente) for his thesis on how municipalities can design tenders and contracts for social services in ways that enable suppliers to respond more effectively. The second prize is awarded to Marleen Habes (Tilburg University) for her thesis on the barriers to shaping markets through circular procurement, specifically for geotextiles used in civil engineering and infrastructure projects. The first prize in this category goes to Simon Hoek (Maastricht University) for his thesis on the impact of Artificial Intelligence (AI) within procurement. Based on extensive field research, the thesis demonstrates that AI can influence a wide range of operational, tactical and strategic procurement processes. The research also focuses on the competencies organisations need to successfully implement different levels of AI applications, such as digital scenario planning and digital mindset crafting.
The prizes consist of a monetary award (varying per category), a certificate and one year of free Nevi membership. In addition, the first‑prize winners receive support in publishing an article based on their thesis in the professional magazine Deal!.
The award ceremony took place on Tuesday evening, 21 January, at Parkhotel Hugo de Vries in Lunteren.