Areas of expertise
Biography
I am a Professor in entrepreneurship and a head of Entrepreneurship research group at the Department of Management and Entrepreneurship at the University of Turku. Between 2009-2019 I was appointed as a Research Director at the unit, while during 2010-2011 and 2012-2016 I acted as a Professor of Entrepreneurship in the Campus in Pori.
I have been working in the entrepreneurship research unit since 1996. I took my PhD in the Turku School of Economics in 2003 (thesis title: Stories of Entrepreneurs: Narrative Construction of Entrepreneurial Identities) and was awarded 'Doctor Primus' in the Conferment of Degrees in 2005. I was awarded the Title of Docent in the Turku School of Economics in 2007 (special area: Research on entrepreneurs). In 2019, I was given the European Entrepreneurship Education Award.I am an Associate Editor at 'Entrepreneurship & Regional Development' (ERD) a Research Editor at 'Entrepreneurship Education & Pedagogy' (EE&P). I'm also the Past-President of the European Council for Small Business and Entrepreneurship (ECSB, www.ecsb.org).
Teaching
I have taught entrepreneurship at B.Sc., M.Sc. and post-graduate levels. I'm currently responsible for the PhD studies in entrepreneurship at the Turku School of Economics.
Research
My research focuses on entrepreneurship and particularly on researching entrepreneurship at the individual level. I have studied entrepreneurial identity construction and identity work in new ventures and family businesses. I am also interested in understanding gender in different entrepreneurial contexts. My research has also investigated policies supporting entrepreneurship development, most notably entrepreneurship education and incubators. Currently, I'm leading a research team in Turku investigating how to make Finland a more attractive country for highly-skilled internationals to work and do business in (www.hiwe.fi). The project is led by the University of Eastern Finland. I'm also the team leader for an Erasmus + project aiming at developing new pedagogical models, approaches and materials for transforming entrepreneurship education to enact the ongoing crises and societal challenges. (transformingee.eu/) Recently, I was also involved in a European Horizon2020 -research project DISCE (Developing Inclusive and Sustainable Creative Economies), www.disce.eu (2019-2022) as a Work-package leader.
I have over 25 years of experience from policy, practice-oriented and academic research projects that are conducted in continuous and active engagement with firms and other stakeholders, including European Commission and DGs, OECD, Ministries and regional authorities and decision-makers.