I am an Assistant Professor of Entrepreneurship at the Aalto University School of Business, and serve as an Academy of Finland Fellow. I received my MA and BA in Sociology from the University of Graz in Austria, and my PhD in Economic Geography from the University of Turku in Finland. I have held research and teaching positions in Finland, Austria and the UK.

My research is pronouncedly multi-disciplinary, applying theories from (social) psychology, (organizational) sociology and (human) geography. Combining quantitative and qualitative methods, my current research interests include entrepreneurial imagination and new venture legitimation, place-based identities and prosocial business venturing, everyday community organizing and collective emotions, institutional work practices and regional development, and late-career entrepreneurship and societal wellbeing.

My research has been published in outlets such as the Academy of Management Journal, Journal of Business Venturing, Entrepreneurship Theory & Practice, Harvard Business Review, Journal of World Business, Journal of Economic Geography, and Environment & Planning A. My work has also been featured at the Best Papers proceedings of the Academy of Management Conference, ISBE Conference and the Frontiers for Entrepreneurship at the Babson Conference for Entrepreneurship.

I am an Editorial Review Board Member of Entrepreneurship Theory & Practice and the International Small Business Journal. I also act as peer-reviewer for academic outlets such as the Academy of Management Journal, Journal of Business Venturing, Small Business Economics, Entrepreneurship & Regional Development, Journal of Small Business Management and Regional Studies (see overview of review contributions).

In 2017, I have been selected as an Outstanding Reviewer for Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice. Further, I am on the Advisory Board of the Amway Global Entrepreneurship Report and I am acting as Reviewer of Social Entrepreneurship Teaching Cases for Oikos International. I also regularly collaborate with policy-makers and practitioners, including advising ILO, the OECD, the European Commission and Eurostat on entrepreneurship matters.