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Birke Otto

Part-time Lecturer

Subjects
Organisation Innovation Creativity Technology Knowledge work Qualitative methods

Primary research areas

Fail­ure and time in cre­ativ­ity and in­nov­a­tion dis­courses and prac­tices
Trans­par­ency, secrecy, ig­nor­ance as or­gan­ising prin­ciples
On­line com­munit­ies and di­git­al me­dia
Grand chal­lenges (wa­ter gov­ernance, an­ti­mi­cro­bi­al res­ist­ance) and al­tern­at­ive or­gan­iz­ing
Or­gan­isa­tion the­ory
Cul­tur­al so­ci­ology

Pro­file De­scrip­tion

As a cultural sociologist, I am concerned with how societal discourses are reflected, created, and challenged in the everyday practices of organisations. Currently, I work as a postdoctoral researcher in the "Organised Creativity" research group, funded by the German Research Council and based at Free University Berlin and Leuphana University Lüneburg. In this role, I explore how notions of failure, time, and secrecy shape creativity and innovation processes. My research spans various organisational contexts, including digital media, scientific laboratories, and the healthcare industry, which I study through processual and practice-based lenses. I serve on the editorial team of Ephemera: Theory and Politics in Organisation and teach courses on organisational theory, innovation, alternative organisations, and sustainable futures.