Organization and Management
Main subject – Organization and Management
Creating successful companies and organizations requires the ability to both organize the business and lead people in an efficient and sustainable way. Organization and management is a subject that combines these perspectives and provides you with a broad understanding of how organizations function, develop and adapt in a rapidly changing world.
During your studies, you will gain insights into strategy, organizational structure, and leadership, with a focus on the whole as well as the individual in the organization. You will also learn how teams and individuals can be led to promote success, well-being and long-term development – while also developing your ability to analyze and manage organizational culture, diversity and change processes. A central theme in the program is leadership, where you will delve into various leadership styles, change management, conflict management and diversity.
Today’s working life is constantly changing, hence we also consider current societal issues and future challenges, such as AI, sustainability and change management. Through a strong practical foundation such as guest lectures and business cases, you will gain insight into how theory is applied in real organizations. The studies thereby provide space for critical and analytical thinking, creativity and communication, which are important skills for working strategically and solution-oriented in different activities.
Early on in the program, you have the opportunity to shape your own study path to match your future plans. Our alumni work as consultants, lecturers, salespeople or in leadership positions including strategic leadership, organizational analysis, HR & personnel development and innovation as key responsibilities. With minors and elective courses, you can tailor the skills profile you need to strengthen your position in the workforce.
Organization and management is a popular major and minor subject for students of business administration, but we also have many students from other disciplines. Whether you are aiming for a future as a leader, consultant, entrepreneur, analyst, lecturer or strategist, the subject gives you the tools and insights to understand, develop and run successful organizations.
Research
Researchers in management and organization have a broad area of interest that can be summarized into three overlapping themes:
Relationships, emotions and power
The research is directed towards everyday interactions within the organization. This includes studies on friendship, affect and emotions, identity, leadership, conflicts and power relations. Together, we are particularly interested in how these dimensions interact and constitute the reality of the workplace.
Sustainable and inclusive working conditions
The area of interest encompasses how work can be organized in ways that are more inclusive, fair and sustainable in the long term. We do this, for example, by examining workplace conditions and their potential limitations and opportunities. Recurring themes include gender, age, equality, migration, burnout, opting-out and work-life balance.
Entrepreneurship, strategy and learning
Research in this area focuses on how organizations, companies and individuals create value, formulate strategies and develop knowledge in different contexts. Central themes can be described as strategy and business development, circular economy, coopetition, competition between companies, the role of AI, B2B negotiations and the construction of knowledge.
Our research is mainly based on qualitative methods, but also includes quantitative elements. Analytical perspectives vary, but common approaches consist of narrative, postcolonial, discursive and practice-based lenses.
Our research projects include both national and international collaborations. Current projects include social and human sustainability, gender equality, burnout, work-life balance and the organization of elderly care. Other projects examine collaboration and knowledge production in hybrid learning environments, how emotions, power and AI interact in business relationships, and how structural barriers affect career development and entrepreneurial opportunities for highly educated immigrants in Finland.
What particularly unites us is the ambition to develop organizational theory and contribute to both academic and other current discussions. With our research, we want to together create impact and change at a societal, organizational and individual level.
