International Visiting Professor in Organization and Leadership Studies with Methodological Expertise - Emma Bell

Collaboration, as a pathway to the co-production of knowledgeinvolving a diverse range of organizational stakeholders and researchers from diverse disciplines, is a cornerstone of MDU's vision and IEO's research strategy. Development of a distinct methodological approach to collaboration as a route to knowledge co-production is also essential in order to manage stakeholder expectations and ensure delivery of practical and intellectual project outcomes.

The main objective of Professor Bell's visiting period is therefore to contribute to IEO's long-term development and profile by further developing collaborative research in management and business studies. Professor Bell is an internationally leading scholar on methodology, knowledge production and research methods in business studies, and more broadly in social sciences. She is the author of numerous well-cited articles and the books she has authored are used both by students and researchers worldwide. Her innovative approach to the development of new method combined with her experience and competence is therefore crucial for IEO's ambition to further develop collaborative research as a distinctive methodological approach.

The need to develop a coherent approach to collaborative research is also important for companies currently collaborating with IEO or interested in doing that, among others Hitachi Energy and Volvo Construction Equipment.The complex challenges they face, such as digitalization and the climate crisis, require further development of the way they collaborate with academic researchers from different fields. Whereas there has long been a tradition of collaboration with scholars in engineering, collaboration with social sciences researchers is still relatively rare and companies are still rather unfamiliar with how productive collaboration can be organized. A higher level of methodological competence and versatility is thus required, both within IEO and at the companies.

To achieve that,Professor Bell will participate in ongoing collaborative projects, will interview researchers and practitioners about their collaborative practices and organize workshops with companies for knowledge exchange. She will also support doctoral students, teach in programs at advanced level, contribute to the development of a new Masters program and to the process of accreditation of IEO's educational programs with AACSB.