A sustainable future requires multiple transitions and will undoubtedly necessitate different ways of working. During the transitioning process, new sets of rules and theories are continuously being formed in the intersection between social and technical systems. Future leaders from both public and private sectors, therefore, need to be able to deal with complexity, find solutions for sustainability and lead in a constantly changing context. This research initiative aims to develop knowledge and skills that are important for entrepreneurs, private industry, and public sectors to build strategic resilience under uncertainty, to innovate for society, and to co-create a sustainable future. 

Key research areas include:

• Sustainability transition management 
• Strategic resilience under uncertainty
• Change management, innovation management and strategy.
• The roles of start-ups, entrepreneurs and change agents in transitions
• Ecosystems studies (including entrepreneurial, innovation and territorial)
• Policy and mechanism analyses
• Techno-economic studies
• Cross-cutting themes for transition management, such as digitalization, responsible innovation, SDGs, etc.

Main activities are:

• PhD projects and research projects across research groups
• Externally funded research applications and projects with domestic and international partners
• Seminars and workshops 
• Development of learning material for existing courses at IØT, and aim of establishment of leading studies on the management of sustainable change

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Green Value Creation | Circular Economy

The world is facing sustainability challenges that will require new knowledge and innovations. The research initiative Green Value Creation/Circular Economy aim to contribute with research on sustainability, circular economy, green value creation and energy transition by pooling all relevant research capabilities at IØT. With close collaboration with the industry, public sector and our research partners domestically and internationally, we aim to make significant contributions to a sustainable future. 

Key research areas include:

• Sustainability innovations
• Sustainability strategies
• Circular economy
• Sustainable finance
• Corporate venture capital for sustainability
• Public procurement for sustainability
• Zero-emission construction/neighbourhoods
• Decarbonization of the energy system
• Energy transition
• Strategic optimization of supply chain for sustainability

Main activities are:

• PhD projects and research projects across research groups
• Externally funded research applications and projects with domestic and international partners
• Seminars and workshops
• Participation in expert panels for policy-making

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Health and the Public Sector

We aim to contribute in cutting edge research on health and public sector, by collaborating with academics and practitioners from different parts of Norway and the world. Our endeavour is to create economic, social, and human value for healthcare and public organizations.

With increasing complexity in the operations and the environment of the mentioned organizations, in addition to political pressure to increase efficiency and reduce costs, innovations are necessary. Through our research, we explore innovative ways of providing services in the future, including digital technologies, and seeks to understand how these innovations affect the organizations and their management.

Our research topics include:

• Change management
• Digitalization
• Entrepreneurship
• Innovative public procurement
• Optimization-based decision support models
• Planning and control

Our research activities fall into four main areas:

• Publication and dissemination of research
• PhD education
• Research centres and projects
• Strategic research initiatives

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We host two research centres of major strategic importance for the department, NTRANS and Engage. The centres are addressing topics on a national and international level related to energy transition to zero-emission and entrepreneurship education. The department supports the centres continuation and integration with other activities at the department.