Tõnis Mets is Associate Professor and has been Head of the Centre for Entrepreneurship at the University of Tartu, Estonia, since 2003. He has worked as a management consultant and trainer, and as an entrepreneur, engineer and manager in various high-tech companies in Estonia. He holds degrees from Tallinn Technical University (engineer of electronics) and a Ph.D. (Technical Sciences, diagnostics of mechanisms, awarded in 1987) from St. Petersburg Agricultural University. His main research interests are in the field of entrepreneurship, knowledge management, organisational learning and innovation.
Ms Anne Kovalainen, is professor of entrepreneurship at Turku School of Economics, Finland. She has earlier held professorial posts at the Swedish School of Economics, Helsinki and in sociology at the Abo Academy University, Turku, both in Finland. She has been visiting fellow at Stanford University (2004), and visiting fellow at London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) (2000, 1996) and at University of Bradford (1993), UK.
Economic sociologist by training, her research interests are on economic sociology, economic activities of entrepreneurship, paid employment and atypical work relations as well as gender studies and sociology of work. More generally both research methodology and social theory are among her interest areas. She has led and participated to several research projects on issues of economic change and restructuring, quasi-markets and entrepreneurship on public sector, women’s employment and comparative studies. She is in charge of Global Entrepreneurship Monitor project for Finland, and in charge of research projects for Ministry of Labour on transfers between paid employment and self-employment, and for Ministry of Trade and Industry on entrepreneurship policy study. She is presently leading Finnish part in EU FP6 Strep project on Knowledge, Institution and Gender (Knowing), where the interests are in STS and epistemic communities of universities, formation and changes in them, as well as comparison between East and West. She is also in charge of the Finnish network in EU FP6 Network of Excellence on Citizenship in Knowledge Society (Cinefogo).
Professor Kovalainen has edited, authored and co-authored several articles, books and publications, most recent ones including forthcoming research method book by SAGE (2007). She has been chair of the national sociological association (the Westermarck Society) and Board member and treasurer of the European sociological association (ESA). Professor Kovalainen is presently member and vice-chair of the Research Council for Culture and Society at the Academy of Finland for second three-year-period.
http://www.tukkk.fi/english/
Scientfic Director, Ph.D, Aard J. Groen, University of Twente, Netherlands
Aard Groen is scientific director of Nikos, the Dutch Institute for Knowledge Intensive Entrepreneurship at the University of Twente, the Netherlands. Groen’s research interest is focusing on knowledge intensive entrepreneurship in networks. He published in journals & books on entrepreneurship, marketing, university-industry interaction and innovation & technology dynamics. Groen is also head of department NIKOS from the faculty of management and governance, in which the chairs of entrepreneurship strategic management, marketing, and international management are positioned.
Groen received his master in public administration from the University of Twente, and his Ph-D on business administration from the University of Groningen.
http://www.utwente.nl/nikos/about/scientificstaff/groen.doc/
Professor Vesa Puhakka, University of Oulu, Finland
Director, Timo Kekkonen, Confederation of Finnish Industries EK,
Innovation Environment and Competences.
http://www.ek.fi/ek_englanti/index.php
Keijo Anttila, President and CEO, Mecanova Oy
Mecanova is a Finnish contract manufacturer specialized in the manufacture of mechanics and the production of comprehensive mechanical solutions.
http://www.mecanova.com/eng/index.asp
Director, Professor, Torben Bager, Danish International Entrepreneur Academy, IDEA
Torben comes from a professorial level academic background and was Head of the Institute for Organisation and Management, the University of Southern Denmark, prior to taking up his current post of Director. He has extensive experience in teaching and research in the field of entrepreneurship provided within the institutes of higher education, and was one of the initiators of the IDEA Consortium.
www.entrepreneurshipacademy.dk/
Kimmo Hyrskyis a Senior Adviser at Ministry of Trade and Industry. He has a Ph.D in Entrepreneurship and is responsible for enterprise policy planning and analysis in the Industries Department of the Ministry. He also takes part in the administration of enterprise and competion policy issues of European Union at the Ministry.
http://www.ktm.fi/index.phtml?l=en&s=1
Rector, Lauri Lajunen, University of Oulu
Professor Lauri Lajunen, born in 1950, graduated with Ph.D. in 1976 from the University of Helsinki. Ever since he has worked as Professor of inorganic chemistry in the University of Oulu and as Rector since 1993. In 1985 he worked as a visiting professor in the Florida State University.
Rector Lauri Lajunen is a member of several national and international organisations in his field. As Rector he has participated actively in the discussion of Finnish science and university policy.
Publishing activities : 330 scientic articles on inorganic and analytical chemistry; 430 joint articles and general articles on natural science and university policy; 3 textbooks on chemistry.
Rector Lajunen is Honorary Doctor of Arkhangelsk State Engineering University (1999); Honorary Professor of the University of Hainan, China (2002); Honorary Professor of Moscow State University of Food Production (2005); Member of Finnish Academy of Technology (1996); Member of Finnish Academy of Science and Letters (2001).
http://www.oulu.fi/english/
Jaakko Okkonen, MSc (Eng.), managing director, 1995-, Oulu Chamber of
Commerce
http://www.oulu.chamber.fi/
R&D Manager, Jorma Hintikka, RFMPolis, Ylivieska, Finland
http://www.rfmpolis.fi/index.php?80
Cases:
Keijo Anttila, President and CEO, Mecanova Oy
Mecanova is a Finnish contract manufacturer specialized in the manufacture of mechanics and the production of comprehensive mechanical solutions.
http://www.mecanova.com/eng/index.asp
