Research Interests

• Data Disclosure Processes
• Consumers’ and Firms’ Privacy-related Decision-Making
• Artificial Entities (e.g., AI-based systems, Avatars, Digital Twins)
• Consumer Journeys and Experiences

Curriculum Vitae

Johanna Zimmermann is an Assistant Professor of Marketing at the University of Cologne since April 2025. Previously, she worked as a Postdoctoral Researcher at the Chair of Marketing and Innovation and within the DFG-funded Research Training Group “Digital Platform Ecosystems” at the University of Passau, where she also earned her doctoral degree (summa cum laude). Her dissertation was honored with the Helmut-Schmalen Award for Outstanding Dissertations and the Kulturpreis Bayern 2024.

Johanna Zimmermann’s research focuses on data disclosure, consumers’ and firms’ privacy-related decision-making, artificial entities (e.g., AI-based systems, avatars, digital twins), as well as consumer journeys and experiences. She applies multi-method approaches that include both quantitative methods (e.g., field and online experiments) and qualitative methods to study these research topics. Her research has been published in leading international journals, including the International Journal of Research in Marketing, the Journal of Retailing, and the Journal of Business Research. She regularly presents her work at major academic conferences such as the European Association of Marketing Conference (EMAC) and the Winter American Marketing Association (AMA) Conference, and actively contributes to the academic community, for instance, by organizing conference sessions and interdisciplinary events like the DPE Forum 2024. 

She complements her academic expertise with practical experience, including roles at Strenesse AG in eCommerce and online marketing, as well as her work on the practice-oriented research projects “Bidirectional Charging Management (BDL)” and “unIT-e² – Real-World Laboratory for Connected E-Mobility”, both funded by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action.

At the University of Cologne, Johanna Zimmermann teaches the undergraduate courses “Introduction to Marketing” and the “Bachelor Seminar,” and the graduate-level courses “Master Business Project” and “Customer Relationship Management”. In her teaching, she encourages critical reflection on current marketing topics and fosters a respectful and inclusive learning environment.

Teaching Responsibilities

• Introduction to Marketing (Summer Term)
• Bachelor Seminar (Summer Term)
• Business Project (Summer Term)
• Customer Relationship Management (Winter Term)