Ingo Oswald Karpen, professor in business administration

Ingo Oswald Karpen was born in Europe with Luxemburgish as his mother tongue. He moved to Australia to pursue his studies and complete his PhD, followed by ten years of working as an academic in the Australian higher education system. After living nearly two decades in Australia, he is looking forward to joining the Swedish community and facilitating connections across these countries for their mutual benefit. Ingo is nowadays a full Professor at CTF–Service Research Center at Karlstad University, Sweden.

"Focusing on the nexus of business and design, my interdisciplinary research revolves around designerly ways of thinking, working and being, and how this enables organisations to better serve people and their (eco)systems alike. My research seeks to help managers understand and facilitate design-driven innovation and transformation."

Both Ingo Oswald Karpen’s research and pedagogy have been internationally awarded, including university level, national government level and international academy level awards. His publications have appeared in leading international journals that seek to advance business and design schools of thought in general, as well as strategic and service design domains specifically (e.g., Journal of Service Research, Journal of Product Innovation Management). Ingo Oswald Karpen is also working with international colleagues on legal and therapeutic design frameworks, connecting different research domains. For his ongoing work on service innovation and advancing societal wellbeing, Ingo Oswald Karpen has won prestigious government research council and industry funding. While beingan editorial board member across journals, Ingo has also co-edited several special issues across disciplines.

In addition, Ingo Oswald Karpen works as a Strategic Designer and consults with private and public organisations, leading innovation and transformation projects.

"I have worked with various legal institutions in Australia to support a transition towards becoming service-oriented organizations that put human beings and their experiences in the centre. My research continues to focus on the wellbeing of people and their surrounding ecosystems, having recently won a reputable Discovery Grant by the Australian Research Council together with an international team of experts and the University of Adelaide Business School, designing collective engagement strategies to achieve positive societal impact. In my academic role I have always collaborated with industry or government institutions to both share my knowledge, generate new research questions and joint initiatives."

On a personal note, Ingo Oswald Karpen is a passionate triathlete and lover of the outdoors, whether on foot, bicycle or the back of a horse.