Mervi Hasu is a Senior Researcher at the Finnish Institute of Occupational Health and also a Docent both at the Aalto University faculty of Management and at the Lappeenranta University of Technology in the faculty of Industrial Engineering and Management. She is also working as associated professor in the University of Oslo in the department of education. Mervi Hasu is an experienced researcher in adult education and innovation. She has over 25 years’ experience of work in multidisciplinary research as well as a leader of research projects. SWiPE benefits from her knowledge of service innovation, innovation culture, innovation in the workplace, employee innovation, the link between innovation and wellbeing at work, leadership and interaction in innovation activity as well as learning through innovation.
What are your strengths as a SWiPE researcher?
“My particular strengths in the SWiPE-project are my versatility and experience. My research has always been done in highly multidisciplinary teams looking at a variety of very different contexts from large high-tech firms to, more recently, service development and change in public services. I have long-term experience of starting and leading large research consortia. I also believe strongly that my sensitive researchers intuition will benefit SWiPE. Indeed, identifying new and emerging phenomena early is one of my hallmarks!”
“humane, relevant, research is close to my heart. Before all else I am a passionate ethnographer and observer of interaction and activity: I see bigger societal questions in the everyday livers of people and workers. Transitions, phenomena that are only just emerging do not reveal themselves to statistical analysis. As an ethnographer I aim to make sure that generally held knowledge is enriched through knowledge gained from in depth case research.”
What conversations would you like to see SWiPE raise in society?
“I am interested in – and concerned about – people’s ability to survive in the rapidly transforming global labour market. People form the backbone of companies; indeed entrepreneurs are people too! The danger is that as times get harder, sources of information become fewer and perspectives become ever narrower. The SWiPE project can help stimulate the creation of new alternatives for labour markets in transition. There is a need to create realistic, but also positive and encouraging visions and models of how people can build new professionalism, careers and good lives in changing circumstances.”
