Dr S.M. Ritter (Simone)

‘If you want to see different results, do things differently’. Simone Ritter's expertise lies in how to THINK DIFFERENTLY and how to STIMULATE CHANGE. Her work focuses on understanding and fostering innovative thinking, team creativity, responsible consumer behavior and transitions in the context of sustainability, diversity and well-being.

Simone Ritter received her doctorate from Radboud University in 2012. Subsequently, she was Assistant Professor and thesis- & internship coordinator of the Master’s program Behaviour Change, as well as visiting scholar at University of California, University of Barcelona, and University of Technology Sydney. Since 2019 she is Associate Professor at the IMR, NSM, where she founded the educational program Innoveren door Creatief Denken (Innovation trough Creative Thinking).

Ritter received a prestigious Veni grant (NWO, 2014) for her research project ‘What a Great Idea! Understanding and Improving the Selection of Creative Ideas’. Since 2020 Ritter is co-project lead on a NWO founded multi-stakeholder project on dealing with innovation and uncertainty in sustainable mobility transitions. Ritter has published in top tier journals and her work has been chosen by Science Magazine (2017) as one of the most provocative and influential findings.

Ritter’s work was discussed i.a. in National Geographic, GEO, Psychology Today, and she has contributed to several documentaries. Ritter's work on stimulating creativity by means of virtual reality (see BBC documentary 'The Creative Brain-How Insight Works', from minute 38.38 onwards) has inspired a wide range of organizations and Future Centers.
Ritter is passionate about knowledge dissemination: as a speaker she tries to inspire to be open to change, as a facilitator she enjoys fostering individuals and teams to find novel, effective solutions.
Ritter is chair of the Responsible Organization Seminar Series and member of the Diversity, Equity & Inclusion committee of NSM.