An Inclusive University for a Diverse Society

SSE strives to be a creative and stimulating place for working and studying where people with different backgrounds and experiences are given the same rights and opportunities regardless of their gender, ethnicity, gender identity or expression, social background, disability, sexual orientation, age, or religion or other beliefs. All organizations say that about themselves, but at SSE we really mean it and we actively work to make sure that those beautiful words are backed up by concrete actions. 

Meet Karol Vieker, SSE’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Manager

"I am passionate about diversity, equity, inclusion and human rights! I have dedicated my working life to making the world a better place by striving to create open and inclusive workplaces where everyone is welcome regardless of who they are or where they come from. My best friend is the Swedish Discrimination Act and of course my favorite quote is from article 1 of the United Nation’s Universal Declaration of Human Rights: “All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights.”

Please contact me if you have any questions or concerns about how you may fit in at SSE."

SSE’s overarching educational aims take as their point of departure that a successful decision maker of the future will approach the world with curiosity and confidence and who, as the philosopher Ingemar Hedenius said: “is free and alive in relation to the unknown”. That decision maker may well be outperformed cognitively by artificial intelligence, robots or machines. But the core competence of humans is to be human, and SSE’s educational aims takes this ad notam. A successful decision maker in the future will maximize the potential of being human. Hence, SSE has formulated its overarching educational aims through the acronym FREE. It stands for:

FACT AND SCIENCE BASED MINDSET

We are fundamentally a scientific institution, and facts are the basis for all critical and analytical thinking. An SSE graduate will make decisions based on facts and have the ability to differentiate between types of knowledge. This ability becomes particularly important in a world of alternative facts, "fake news" and filter bubbles.

REFLECTIVE AND SELF AWARE

The future will require more reflection and self-knowledge. SSE-trained individuals will be able to contemplate what role they play in the world, understand the impact they have on others, evaluate their personal preferences, and be aware of how their choices are determined.

EMPATHETIC AND CULTURALLY LITERATE

Empathy and cultural sensitivity are so far, something that artificial intelligence cannot accomplish. We are convinced that an empathetic person becomes a better leader and decision maker; thus we hope our students will be able to consider the perspective of others fully. Cultural literacy is also critical. To interact with someone from another background, expertise, or profession than one's own is a prerequisite for the future.

ENTREPRENEURIAL AND RESPONSIBLE

Students graduated from SSE will have an entrepreneurial and creative approach to the world. They will strive to create change in a responsible manner. They should not accept the status quo but seek improvement for society and the world at large.

What are the main aspects that make this a good place to work?
The most important aspect for me is the people at SSE. While diverse in their backgrounds and perspectives, I feel there is a certain mindset shared by the members of SSE that facilitates collaboration and enables the school’s educational mission of graduating decision-makers who exhibit a fact and science-based mindset, reflection and self-awareness, empathy and cultural literacy, as well as entrepreneurship, and responsibility (FREE).

The variety of theoretical perspectives and research methods our faculty draws on makes working at SSE intellectually exciting and fun. What characterizes the school for me is that methodological multiplicity is not just tolerated but sincerely encouraged and supported at our school. This motivates both junior and senior scholars to constantly challenge seemingly taken-for-granted assumptions and contribute to state-of-the-art research in their respective fields. It also ensures that our students are familiarized with and eventually can draw from different perspectives when making sense of the phenomena we explore in the classroom and what they experience in their work outside the school.

SSE is what I call a “learning organization”. That is an organization where the strive for knowledge is deeply ingrained in its DNA and that is able and willing to adapt to ever-changing circumstances. This ability strongly relies on an enabling environment where everyone is encouraged to contribute their interests, passion, and curiosity. I see SSE as a community where a diverse group of individuals closely interacts and works together in an integrative, complementary, and constructive way and where everyone is keen on learning from each other. At SSE, students, alumni, faculty, and corporate partners closely work together to jointly create new knowledge and generate value for society. This is further facilitated by SSE’s flat organizational structure that enables smooth processes and fast decision-making. This eventually also encourages entrepreneurial thinking and acting among our faculty, professional services, and students.

Would you recommend working here to others? Why?
I would definitely recommend scholars who want to work in an environment that focuses on high-quality research that is both rigorous and relevant and who seriously enjoy working with smart, humble, and highly motivated students to join SSE. The aspects that, in my view, make SSE a great place to work mentioned above, also serve as my main reasons for why I would so strongly recommend our school as an “academic home” to other scholars.

I would also like to emphasize that SSE offers excellent support for professional development in different areas. For example, there are various internal as well as external opportunities offered to SSE faculty on different career levels to further develop their pedagogical skills. Also, since the school is part of a global network of top universities/business schools and the faculty is well-connected to international experts in the different research areas represented at the school, SSE is a fantastic environment from which not only junior scholars can benefit.

Furthermore, SSE enjoys a close connection to practice, which is, for example, facilitated through the school’s corporate partner program or its close collaborations with the public sector (see, for example, the House of Governance and Public Policy). Such close ties to different sectors enable scholars at SSE to ensure that their research is highly relevant from a societal perspective and to closely work with practitioners in their research and teaching activities. In that way, also students can greatly benefit from SSE’s close connection to practice and, for example, experience how their skills can be employed in different sectors and types of organizations.

I worked at many different Universities before joining SSE – and finally I really feel at home and that I am at a place where new opportunities continuously present themselves. SSE, and House of Innovation where I am employed, gives me a lot of freedom. I have never been told ‘no you cannot do that’ although I sometimes have the weirdest ideas. Instead, my colleagues and boss ask, ‘ OK so how could we make that work’?

Students at SSE are very bright and talented – and that of course makes teaching demanding. You are constantly challenged and need to be able to motivate your choices. I think that is fantastic. Students keep me on my toes!

Finally, SSE and House of Innovation has exceptionally good relationships with firms and public sector actors beyond academia. There are huge opportunities to ‘meet’ practitioners to test your ideas, get input and sense the problems people are struggling with, and thus, stay relevant not only to academic societies but also the general public. That is important to me and my colleagues, something I really appreciate.

I joined SSE in August 2022, after nearly a decade in New Zealand’s leading university, University of Auckland. There are several great business schools in the Nordic region, but to me SSE’s star shone the brightest. I was especially attracted by the close contacts that SSE has with the local business community. Building bridges between academia and practice is my passion, and SSE is a perfect place for that!

I knew some of my current colleagues already before I joined the faculty, and hence I knew about SSE’s high-quality research, collegial culture, and vibrant research environment with frequent international visitors. However, there were some things that took me by a positive surprise. Our teaching technology and pedagogical support are impressive – and the SSE students are nothing short of amazing: talented, motivated, and eager to make a difference.

I would whole-heartedly recommend SSE to anyone who wants to achieve excellence in both research and teaching. It strikes the delicate balance between world-class ambition and being flexible and fun. And when a school like that exists in a city like Stockholm, what is there not to love?

I joined SSE just a few days after finishing my doctoral studies and I have been here since late 2016. One of the main things which made me apply to SSE was the strong emphasis on teaching and the prospects for me to develop as a teacher. I have always been passionate about pedagogy and, at least within my field, SSE has a long reputation of having devoted teachers and strong pedagogical methods.

Today I feel fortunate to have worked with some great pedagogues both in educational courses and in peer-teaching. I feel that I continuously develop my skills in interactions with our students and I also find that we have many benefits from our close collaborations with industry professionals. This provides opportunities to both contextualize and problematize the contents we teach and provide our students with a sense of relevance for advanced and abstract theories.

I also enjoy that SSE is a balanced environment where I can pursue my teaching interests whilst simultaneously working with leading researchers within our field. The SSE accounting department has carefully worked to attract skilled researchers as colleagues, as guests, and through our seminar series, and this makes for a quite exciting research environment today. Importantly, I feel that I am given both the freedom and the support to conduct research I find interesting and rewarding.

My journey at SSE started when I moved back from abroad in 2007. I had been living in France for twelve years and was looking to move back to Stockholm. I knew I wanted to keep working in an international setting and contacted SSE to find out if they by any chance had a position for me. The answer was yes, and I started as a Program Coordinator for the International Graduate Program, SSE’s first international master program, at the Institute for International Business.

Since, I’ve been an Exchange Coordinator, a CEMS Corporate Relations Manager, a Program Manager for tailormade leadership trainings, and the Program Manager for our ranked Masters in Management, the MSc in International Business. Each one of these roles allowed me to work with students in an international setting, but most of all they gave my professional life a purpose: I got to work with education. I was part of building the future.

I have gotten to travel and see the world through our wide international networks, and I have been challenged by new positions and new objectives along the way. My present position at SSE is that of Group Manager of the Course & Department Support team. Now, I enjoy working with our amazing course administrators and department coordinators at the very heart of our organization. Once again, SSE has come up with a challenge that keeps me motivated and excited. I have to say what I always have, throughout my complete journey at SSE: I love my job!

I work as an accountant at the Office of Finance & Accounting (OFA). I am responsible for two companies within the SSE family. My work duties include everything from preparing financial statements to handling ledger accounts. Besides that, I am also in charge of student rent and tuition fee controlling. I really appreciate that I am encouraged to contribute with my skills and experience to optimize our work processes constantly.

In our office, all the employees have opportunities to improve their competence through different courses and seminars. We have also flexible working hours which is perfect for me as a parent of small children. It is also enjoyable to work here because we have so many nice and skilled fellow colleagues.

SSE is one of Europe's leading business schools. It is also a small school where community is important. The school has a friendly and open atmosphere and units work closely together. We have many talented researchers and colleagues from all over the world and you always get the latest news and inspiration about economics and finance.

More than eight years ago, I saw that the Stockholm School of Economics was looking for a Digital Program Marketing Specialist in the External Relations department. Since I have always been very interested in business and economics, specialized in marketing during my Master’s, and enjoy the international, inspiring, and vibrant atmosphere of a university, I felt that this position was made for me.

One of the greatest aspects of SSE is the freedom to realize your own ideas and projects. Whether it’s your manager or your colleagues – everyone is highly supportive and willing to help you reach your goals.

I really enjoy my department’s virtual and in-person check-ins and coffee chats, as well as the cross-functional collaborations and projects with other units, departments or stakeholders, such as the Education Office, our Program Directors or partner schools.

In my current position as Senior Marketing & Student Recruitment Manager, I define the strategic goals and KPIs for MSc and PhD student recruitment and work hard - together with the Marketing & Student Recruitment team as well as the admissions teams - to attract top talent from around the world to our Master and PhD programs. I like the fact that no two days are the same. The world of student recruitment and marketing is constantly evolving, challenging us to stay up-to-date with the latest trends, innovations, and changes in higher education.

SSE supports me in attending the most relevant conferences worldwide, allowing me to exchange experiences and network with managers from other universities to bring back new ideas that can be implemented in or added to our student recruitment processes. Furthermore, working with and involving our current students in our marketing activities gives me a lot of energy. The students at SSE come from all over the world, with approximately 50% having an international background. This diversity not only enhances SSE’s academic environment but also makes it a much more enjoyable workplace.