De­part­ment of Man­age­ment, So­ci­ety and Com­mu­nic­a­tion

MSC brings together more than 100 full-time staff engaged in cutting-edge research and teaching, alongside around 100 part-time lecturers who enrich the classroom with valuable professional experience. A dynamic PhD community continuously feed into the research environment, as new projects begin and graduates move on to new opportunities. Our 12 dedicated administrative staff ensure smooth daily operations and provide essential support to both faculty and students. 

MSC has a vibrant research and teaching environment and is characterized by collaboration across CBS as well as nationally and internationally, with visiting researchers from all over the world regularly hosted by the department. Externally funded projects enhance the exploration and dissemination of new research ideas, and collaboration with external stakeholders ensures channels for its impact in society. 

MSC’s Leadership Group as per 1 December 2025 consists of 

• Head of Department Dorte Salskov-Iversen
• Head of Secretariat Annika Dilling
• Vice Head of Department Professor Hans Krause Hansen
• VIP Teaching Coordinator Associate Professor Rasmus Koss Hartmann
• External Funding Coordinator Professor Janine Leschke
• PhD Coordinator Associate Professor Thilde Langevang 

The Leadership Group regularly consults with the MSC Department Forum which consists of representatives of the various position categories in the department.

Today’s Department of Management, Society and Communication is the result of the merger, in 2017, of the then Department of Intercultural Communication and Management and the Department of International Business Communication. 

Both these departments had, in very different ways, roots in CBS’ early efforts in the 1980s and 1990s at embracing interdisciplinarity, establishing environments that were tasked with adopting a more problem oriented approach to research and teaching, leveraging the potential of bringing on board perspectives from the broader social sciences and humanities to explore business in society. 

Multi- and interdisciplinary by design, our research and teaching are informed by management and business studies as well as the broader social sciences and humanities. 

Our researchers are affiliated with at least one of four research environments (two centres and two clusters with a number of subgroups). The environments constitute the primary internal anchorages for our researchers and their projects, addressing responsible management of business in society: 

It is MSC’s mission to generate novel and impactful research on the dynamic relations between business and society and the responsible management thereof. 

Moving forward, we aim to further develop and demonstrate the (trans)formative potential of operating in precisely this space, being the one department that explores it, research and teaching wise, at the interface between sustainability, digitalisation, inequality and global developments. 

Information for external lecturers can be found by following this link.

The project:  
The PlantTip project aims to investigate societal tipping points in consumer behaviour in Denmark, with a focus on accelerating the green transition towards a sustainable food system.  

The aim of PlantTip is to experiment and predict how policy instruments, marketing measures, consumer-oriented innovations, and social dynamics can be combined to trigger societal tipping points. The project employs an innovative approach of developing (a) agent-based models based on (b) social-behavioural experimentation data. 

Large-scale and accelerated dietary change could crucially contribute to GHG emission reduction in Denmark. However, the current rate of change towards more sustainable diets is far too slow and restricted to niches. Societal tipping points must be reached to accelerate the needed changes, but we lack knowledge on how to predict and foster large scale behaviour change.  

Current approaches overemphasise solutions that change food, but not the food-eaters. We argue that a complex systems change is necessary, which this project initiates, by identifying actionable insights about instruments, innovations and social dynamics that can trigger societal tipping points. 

Collaborative partners: 
PlantTip is a joint project of Copenhagen Business School, Aarhus University and Democracy X, and collaborates with, amongst others, the Stockholm Resilience Centre and the chair of International Political Economy and Environmental Politics, ETH Zurich. 

MSC project team:  
The project team at MSC consists of Associate Professor Meike Janssen and the postdoctoral researchers Alice Pizzo and Giulia Priolo. 

The grant: 
The project is funded by the Novo Nordisk Foundation (9.8 mio DKK), and runs from April 2025 – June 2028 

For further information, please contact Meike Janssen, mj.msc@cbs.dk.   

The project: 
The European furniture industry is transitioning towards sustainability and circular practices, driven by the need for regulatory alignment and standardisation. The EU-funded Cir4Fun project will enhance furniture sustainability by introducing digital product passports (DPP) and promoting eco-labelling. It will create a circular economy roadmap, develop eco-design guidelines and establish innovative business models. The project will also devise new methodologies for assessing maintenance, reparability, refurbishment, remanufacturing and recyclability. These insights will be integrated into an interoperable furniture assessment system (FAS), featuring a sustainable index system, developed with the support of life cycle assessment, life cycle costing and social life cycle assessment under a Furniture Data Space. Cir4Fun will actively engage stakeholders to foster sustainable behaviours, advancing the industry’s shift to circularity. 

Project team: 
Isabel Froes and Sebastian Olsson 

Collaborative partners: 
•    INSTITUTO TECNOLOGICO METALMECANICO, MUEBLE, MADERA, EMBALAJE Y AFINES-AIDIMME 
•    ETHNIKO KENTRO EREVNAS KAI TECHNOLOGIKIS ANAPTYXIS 
•    UNINOVA-INSTITUTO DE DESENVOLVIMENTO DE NOVAS TECNOLOGIAS-ASSOCIACAO 
•    POLITECNICO DI MILANO 
•    FRAUNHOFER GESELLSCHAFT ZUR FORDERUNG DER ANGEWANDTEN FORSCHUNG EV 
•    COMMISSARIAT A L ENERGIE ATOMIQUE ET AUX ENERGIES ALTERNATIVES 
•    XGILITY LIMITED 
•    F6S EU TECH INNOVATION NETWORK DESIGNATED ACTIVITY COMPANY 
•    F6S NETWORK LIMITED 
•    KENTRO IKANOTITON GIA TIN VIOMICHANIA 4.0 APO TO SCHEDIASMO STIN YLOPOIISI IDIOTIKI KEFALAIOUCHIKI ETAIREIA 
•    SONAE ARAUCO PORTUGAL SA 
•    MICUNA FAMILY BRANDS S.L.U. 
•    Kave Home SL 
•    OPENDOT SRL 
•    CENTRO PARA A VALORIZACAO DE RESIDUOS ASSOCIACAO 
•    Pozzi Arturo S.p.A. TESSITURA JACQUARD 
•    ELLINIKI DIAHEIRISI APPRIMATON ANONYMI ETAIRIA - ELDIA 
•    MUNICIPIO DE GUIMARAES 
•    FEDERACION EMPRESARIAL DE LA MADERAY MUEBLE DE LA COMUNIDAD VALENCIANA - (FEVAMA) 
•    ENOSI KATANALOTON POIOTITA TIS ZOIS 
•    SARA SA 
•    SCUOLA UNIVERSITARIA PROFESSIONALE DELLA SVIZZERA ITALIANA 

The grant:
EU, Grant agreement ID: 101182081. Start date: 1. January. 2025. End date: 31. December 2027. 

For more information, please contact Sebastian Olsson at seo.msc@cbs.dk 

The project:
The VISION4FOOD project is envisioning an integrated quadruple helix and RRI framework for food system transformation and regional innovation ecosystem enhancement. It brings together 13 partners from 8 countries, united by a shared mission: to transform and strengthen the sustainability and resilience of EU food systems. 

The project is collaborating across 5 diverse regions - Finland, Spain, Italy, Greece, and Poland - to develop innovative governance models that empower local food systems. By uniting Quadruple Helix stakeholders, we're enabling the creation of Food Innovation Platforms (FIPs) designed to scale innovations and drive transformative change in food systems. 

Vision4Food approach focuses on co-creating research and innovation strategies, promoting open science, and ensuring Responsible Research Innovation (RRI). Each region will receive tailored support for knowledge exchange, networking, and priority setting, accelerating the transition to more inclusive, innovative, and sustainable food systems.

MSC project team:
Isabel Froes, Albina Dioba

The grant:
The European Research Executive Agency (REA) under grant agreement No° 101183145. Funded by the European Union, 01.01.2025 - 31.12.2027.

For more information, please visit the project's website.

The project:
The seizmic Doctoral Network is a project funded by the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) with the aim of advancing the understanding and practice of scaling social entrepreneurship.
To address this challenge, seizmic integrates research and practitioner expertise in impact investing, business models, education, and Digital Ecosystems and AI, bringing together universities and industry partners to train a new generation of scholars.

MSC project team:
Kai Hockerts (Principal Investigator), Ricky Celenta (Project Manager), Esben Rahbek Gjerdrum Pedersen, Liana Razmerita, Kristian Roed Nielsen and Anne-Karen Hüske

Collaborative partners:
The beneficiaries of the seizmic Doctoral Network include Aalborg University, ESCP Business School Berlin, Karazin University, Université Paris-Est Créteil (UPEC), University Federico II Naples, University of Iceland, University of Innsbruck, and University Rovira i Virgili in Catalonia.
The network also includes several associate partners, such as Aurora, Babele, Den Sociale Kapitalfond, Eranos, the Executive Committee of Boiarka City Council, the Iceland Ministry of Education, Impact Hub Berlin, KLAK, Ship2B, and the Società per l’Innovazione, la Cooperazione e l’Internazionalizzazione (SPICI srl).

Grantor:

This project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under the Marie Skłodowska-Curie grant agreement No 101169098.

Project duration: October 2024 - October 2028 

For more information, please contact rc.msc@cbs.dk

The project:
The SENSOPAD project aims to transform women’s health by tackling the challenges of early Endometriosis (ED) detection, a condition often underdiagnosed. By introducing innovative, user-friendly devices that monitor ED indicators during the menstrual cycle, SENSOPAD offers a seamless combination of at-home convenience and clinical accuracy. Through a mobile app and AI-enhanced cloud platform, the project aims to reduce the typical ED diagnosis time from years to days, enabling earlier treatment and improving women’s health outcomes. This initiative promotes proactive, informed, and accessible healthcare for women worldwide.
As a task leader, CBS will guide the qualitative research process, conducting interviews with clinicians and menstruators and gathering user stories. CBS will also lead a large-scale European study to identify drivers and barriers to product adoption, ensuring the product meets the needs and preferences of diverse user groups.

MSC project team:
Angelos Stamos, Isabel Froes, and Amalia Giannakopoulou.

The grant:
The project is funded by the EU Horizon Europe Research and Innovation Program with a total budget of €6.8 million. It started in September 2024 and will run until August 2028.

Grant agreement ID: 101130516

For more information, please contact Angelos Stamos (asta.msc@cbs.dk)

The project:
Advancing knowledge for a just transition involving and respecting those at risk or in practice adversely affected by transition minerals mining, the FRONTIERS project explores practices in the mining industry and how institutional investors can shape that industry and its impact. Looking at land-based and potential deep-sea mining (DSM), we focus on effects and synergy of risk-based due diligence demands and Rights of Nature claims.
 
With the aim of developing knowledge that can serve towards a just and fair transition, FRONTIERS aims at developing novel insights into good practices that may serve as inspiration or guidance for various types of actors and stakeholders (human individuals and communities, organisations, and ‘more-than-human’ stakeholders, such as the environment and nature). As part of this, we explore how due diligence and forms of engagement in diverse organizational, normative and regulatory settings can contribute to giving a voice to affected stakeholders, whether human or ‘more-than-human’.

For more details, please see https://frontiers.cbs.dk/

Project team:
For details, please see https://frontiers.cbs.dk/en/core-team/
PI: Professor Karin Buhmann
Jakob Lutz, PhD candidate
Helga Askgaard Estrup, PhD candidate
Postdocs: currently being recruited.

Collaborative partners:
VISITING SCHOLARS
FRONTIERS will involve collaboration with several visiting scholars. These include Dr. Samantha Goethals, SKEMA Business School, France, and expert in risk-based due diligence; Professor Kristina Siig, University of Southern Denmark, an expert in maritime and private law; and Dr Kevin Lo, an expert in Environmental Politics, Environmental Governance, Political Geography, Urban Geography, China;
 
ACADEMIC ADVISORY BOARD
FRONTIERS will benefit from the expertise and suggestions from an interdisciplinary Academic Advisory Board:
 
Prof. Björn Fasterling, Professor in Law and Business Ethics, EDHEC Business School, France. Expertise in corporate sustainability due diligence in soft and hard law, business governance, and business ethics.
 
Dr. Claire Bright, Associate Professor, founder and director of the Centre for Business, Human Rights and the Environment (BHRE) at NOVA University, Lisbon. Expertise in EU law on corporate sustainability due diligence, just transitions, legal method including doctrinal studies. 
 
Prof. Ola Mestad is Professor in public law and Director of the Scandinavian Institute of Maritime Law, University of Oslo. Expertise in international law including Law of the Sea; energy and natural resource extraction law; sustainable investing; Indigenous and community rights. 
 
Prof. Mark Stoddart, Professor in Sociology, Memorial University, Canada. Expertise in
eco-politics, social movements, and environmental governance in relation to climate change and energy, including methodology for field work and interdisciplinary research.
 
OTHER PARTNERS
The FRONTIERS research team will collaborate closely with several national and international partners. These include:
 
AkademikerPension, a Danish pension fund which is globally leading in sustainable finance.
 
Professor Claudia Marconi, is a political scientist and international relations scholar and lead of the Jean Monnet Centre of Excellence on Business and Human Rights at FECAP Business School, Sao Paolo, Brazil. Established in 2023 with funding from the European Commission, the centre is the first-ever Centre of Excellence on Business and Human Rights.
 
Dr. Alberto Fonseca, Associate Professor at the Federal University of Ouro Preto, Brazil. Fonseca is an expert in environmental and social impact assessment, with a back-ground in engineering and planning and a social science methods leaning, and a former president and scientific director of the Brazilian Association for Impact Assessment.

Project start and end year, and funding sources:
The project runs April 2024-March 2029. The project budget of DKK 9,996,438 is funded by the Semper Ardens Accomplish modality (Carlsberg Foundation). The Office of the CBS Dean of Research contributes another 10 % of that amount towards internal administrative costs etc. 

For more information, please contact the PI, Professor Karin Buhmann (kbu.msc@cbs.dk) and visit https://frontiers.cbs.dk/en/ 

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