Ermal Hetemi
Senior lecturerI am Ermal Hetemi, Assistant Professor in Organizing and Innovation within the Department of Management at the School of Business, Linnaeus University. My international engagement is extensive, having studied and worked in esteemed institutions across the world, including the University of Eastern Michigan in the USA, Politecnica de Madrid (UPM) in Spain, KTH Royal University in Sweden, and the University of Pristina in Kosovo. During my Postdoctoral at KTH Royal Institute of Technology's Department of Industrial Management and Computer Science, I specialized in developing and instructing project and program management curricula focused on innovation context.
My engagement within the academic community is substantial. I serve on the international Editorial Board for the prestigious International Journal of Project Management, a publication that recently achieved Level 2 status in the Norwegian Register for Scientific Journals. I also contribute as a reviewer to other influential journals, such as Long Range Planning, Knowledge Management Research and Practice, the Project Management Journal, and the International Journal of Managing Projects in Business.
I am also actively involved in industry and policy initiatives. I've led and participated in various projects that have led to co-authored book chapters and white papers. A notable example is my involvement in the High-Capacity Transport (HCT) transformational project within the Swedish innovation policy framework, which spans the Transportation Sector and Forest Industry and involves collaborations with business organizations and governmental autonomous agencies.
Teaching
Research
My research interests are centred on impactful, interdisciplinary, and collaborative research around organizing for innovation (mostly revolving around forming Innovation Ecosystems). I've explored various settings, such as rail, infrastructure, and technology development, in my empirical work. My research spans multiple implementation scales, from medium-sized projects to extensive large-scale infrastructure initiatives. The complex challenges inherent in designing, constructing lie at the intersection of policy decisions, strategic and organizational realms, professional practices, and user experiences.
I advocate for solutions underpinning the social and cross-disciplinary dimensions of the problems. My approach involves integrating research designs from social sciences with problem-search philosophies. This enables me to gain insights into complex phenomena like innovation, capabilities, transitions, and leadership within digitalization and sustainability transitions.
As a Principal Investigator, I've led projects supported by the Swedish Government (HCT) and other Swedish institute-related research grants. I strongly advocate for engaged scholarship, which involves collaborating with industry and policy practitioners to address our world societal challenges. I work closely with leading capital equipment firms that develop their digital strategy, such as Trafikverket, Siemens, Scania, and Volvo (in Sweden), ProRail (in the Netherlands), and Adif (in Spain). These collaborations allowed me to examine strategic, organizational and technological challenges across diverse organizational contexts. I employ a variety of research methods, predominantly qualitative empirical but also quantitative, such as SQL analysis and database research (see research publications). The multiple methods I have used in my research include (i) ethnographies and in-depth case studies, (ii) semi-structured and group interviews, and (iii) social network analysis. These methods have allowed me to tackle relevant questions in strategy and management, particularly in contexts of innovation and digital transformation.
My notable industry and policy-related contributions include my collaboration on a policy contribution for the HCT Swedish national initiative, focusing on the transition towards sustainable modes of high-capacity transport. As part of the impactful HCT project initiative, I chaired the Program work package session with the Infrastructure and Projects Authority experts.
I've achieved recognition for my contributions, including the Best Reviewer Award at the 2023 European Academy of Management (EURAM) conference in Dublin, Ireland. Also, I've received Donald S. Barrie Best Paper Award from PMI Foundation, Project Management Institute Global Conference, in Orlando, Florida [October 2015], and the Editor's Choice Best Paper honourable mention from the Journal of Management in Engineering (ASCE), [June 2020].
We are accredited
The School of Business and Economics at Linnaeus University is accredited by The Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business, AACSB.
Publications
Selected publications
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Korotkova, N., Austin, J.R., Hetemi, E. (2024). Do you know your people? : Situated expertise and permeable expertise boundaries in complex project work. International Journal of Project Management. 42 (3).
Status: Published - Hetemi, E., Ritala, P., Jerbrant, A., Magnusson, M. (2023). Knowledge Ecosystem Emergence : Organizing Participation, Identity and Actorhood. Academy of Management Proceedings, Vol. 2023, No. 1.
- Hetemi, E., Jerbrant, A. (2022). Multi-organisational Collaboration : Practices and Processes of Knowledge Work. Academy of Management Proceedings.
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Hetemi, E., Van Marrewijk, A., Jerbrant, A., Bosch-Rekveldt, M. (2021). The recursive interaction of institutional fields and managerial legitimation in large-scale projects. International Journal of Project Management. 39 (3). 295-307.
Status: Published
Article in journal (Refereed)
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Korotkova, N., Austin, J.R., Hetemi, E. (2024). Do you know your people? : Situated expertise and permeable expertise boundaries in complex project work. International Journal of Project Management. 42 (3).
Status: Published -
Korotkova, N., Lilliesköld, J., Hetemi, E. (2024). Pursuing openness in the digital age : Insights from client–contractor knowledge collaboration at the project front end. International Journal of Project Management. 42 (1). 102564-102564.
Status: Published -
Frederiksen, N., Hetemi, E., Gottlieb, S.C. (2024). Dynamics of routine creation and transfer in strategic programs. International Journal of Project Management. 42 (5).
Status: Published -
Hetemi, E., Ordieres, J., Nuur, C. (2022). Inter-organisational collaboration and knowledge-work: a contingency framework and evidence from a megaproject in Spain. Knowledge Management Research & Practice. 20 (4). 641-653.
Status: Published -
Hetemi, E., Pushkina, O., Zerjav, V. (2022). Collaborative practices of knowledge work in IT projects. International Journal of Project Management. 40 (8). 906-920.
Status: Published -
Hetemi, E., Van Marrewijk, A., Jerbrant, A., Bosch-Rekveldt, M. (2021). The recursive interaction of institutional fields and managerial legitimation in large-scale projects. International Journal of Project Management. 39 (3). 295-307.
Status: Published -
Hetemi, E., Gemünden, H.G., Meré, J.O. (2020). Embeddedness and Actors’ Behaviors in Large-Scale Project Life Cycle : Lessons Learned from a High-Speed Rail Project in Spain. Journal of Management in Engineering. 36 (6).
Status: Published -
Hetemi, E., Jerbrant, A., Mere, J.O. (2020). Exploring the emergence of lock-in in large-scale projects : A process view. International Journal of Project Management. 38 (1). 47-63.
Status: Published -
Hetemi, E., Ordieres-Meré, J., Nuur, C. (2020). An Institutional Approach to Digitalization in Sustainability-Oriented Infrastructure Projects : The Limits of the Building Information Model. Sustainability. 12 (9).
Status: Published
Doctoral thesis, comprehensive summary (Other academic)
- Hetemi, E. (2020). Path Dependence and Path Shaping : Unearthing institutional dynamics in large-scale project organizing. Doctoral Thesis. Stockholm, Sweden, KTH Royal Institute of Technology. 83.
Chapter in book (Refereed)
- González, V., Hetemi, E., Bosch-Rekveldt, M., Ordieres-Meré, J. (2021). Program and Project Management Articulation : Evidences from the Infrastructure Sector. Project Management and Engineering Research : AEIPRO 2019. Springer. 205-219.
Conference paper (Refereed)
- Hetemi, E., Pemsel, S., Söderlund, J., Jerbrant, A., Zerjav, V. (2023). Value Pathways in System Transformation Projects. 9th International Megaprojects ‘Theory Meets Practice’ Workshop.
- Korotkova, N., Lilliesköld, J., Hetemi, E. (2023). Chasing the Openness Ghost in the Digital Age : Insights from Client–Contractor Knowledge Collaboration at the Project Front End. Presented at the European Academy of Management Conference (EURAM 2023), Dublin, Ireland, June 14-16, 2023.
- Liljeblad, F., Lilliesköld, J., Hetemi, E. (2023). Digitalization in an academic organization : Insights from a case study at a Swedish University. Presented at European Academy of Management Conference (EURAM), 14-16 June, 2023, Dublin, Ireland.
- Hetemi, E., Ritala, P., Jerbrant, A., Magnusson, M. (2023). Knowledge Ecosystem Emergence : Organizing Participation, Identity and Actorhood. Academy of Management Proceedings, Vol. 2023, No. 1.
- Hetemi, E., Jerbrant, A. (2022). Multi-organisational Collaboration : Practices and Processes of Knowledge Work. Academy of Management Proceedings.
- Hetemi, E., Merea, J.O., Nuur, C., Engwall, M. (2017). Exploring mechanisms underlying lock-in in large infrastructure projects : A management perspective. CENTERIS 2017 - International Conference on ENTERprise Information Systems / ProjMAN 2017 - International Conference on Project MANagement / HCist 2017 - International Conference on Health and Social Care Information Systems and Technologies, CENTERIS/ProjMAN/HCist 2017 : 8-10 November 2017, Barcelona, Spain. 681-691.