The conference gives PhD students an opportunity to receive, and give, in-depth and insightful comments to other participants.
Hugo Firmo, a PhD candidate at BIs Department of strategy and entrepreneurship, presented a new conceptualization of the idea of growth and how that can be incorporated in the process of circular business model innovation.
"It’s a great opportunity to present your work in a safe space and get feedback from people who are interested in the same subjects as you. Some are experts in precisely the field that you are studying, others in fields somewhat related. You end up getting very interesting feedback, which I think is exciting", says Firmo.
Hugo Firmo (in the middle in beige shirt) appreciated the feedback from fellow PhDs and innovation researchers (photo: Christoffer Jellum).
Access to peer-to-peer expertise
At the conference co-hosted at BI in Oslo, participants had an opportunity to engage with the latest research within innovation and entrepreneurship.
NORSI's focus is to promote and strengthen research education and the academic environments within innovation and entrepreneurship in Norway.
Bjørn Erik Mørk gets lots out of being active in the NORSI-network. (Photo: Christoffer Jellum)
"For faculty members, NORSI is an excellent way of developing a better understanding of many ongoing PhD-projects at different institutions, and it also offers a unique opportunity to maintain and further develop national and international academic networks, says Bjørn Erik Mørk, Professor at BIs Department of strategy and entrepreneurship.
NORSI strengthens the research
The PhD-student presentations give an interdisciplinary perspective to a wide range of topics within innovation and entrepreneurship research. Prepared feedback is given by one senior and one junior discussant.
"What NORSI gives to the candidates is that they get to receive feedback on what they present, which is fantastic. But it’s also valuable for them to be able to give feedback back to other participants in the conference", says Roger Sørheim, Professor at NTNU and leader of NORSI.
Roger Sørheim was very pleased with the record-high number of participants at this year's NORSI conference. (Photo: Christoffer Jellum)
NORSI contributes to cross-connections, both the graduate school's PhD candidates and academic staff gain access. Alumni can contribute to a larger environment and increase their network of academic sparring partners. This strengthens the research.
"Feedback is the short-term effect of this event, but it’s the networking that gives solid long-term effects. These PhD-candidates are the future, and NORSI gives them a great head start to network with others who are doing a bit of the same thing", Professor Sørheim adds.
The value of networking
In Norway, the expertise within these academic environments has long been quite fragmented and spread throughout the country.
With NORSI celebrating its 10 year anniversary this year, it’s evident that NORSI's activities have been successful in unifying leading university environments within innovation and entrepreneurship over the years.