CSI under new leadership

Monday, September 2, Tor Wallin Andreassen took over as the new leader for the Center for Service Innovation (CSI).

04.09.2013 - Shreya Nagothu

Tor Wallin Andreassen has received his Economist-title from NHH, and is now returning as the leader for CSI. In addition, he has joined the Department of Strategy and Management as a marketing professor.

- I have been working with services and innovation in the past years, and find it an interesting field to learn more about. I have recently completed a project with the Research Council of Norway, which was also a kind of a forerunner to the CSI. This is a fantastic opportunity to continue with that work, says Andreassen.

According to Andreassen, the CSI is a national matter and NHH as a host institution can contribute to the further development of Norway through this project.

- I am personally motivated by the excellent research community at NHH, but also by the opportunity to contribute to a national elevation of service innovation through CSI, shares Andreassen.

As the leader, Andreassen will coordinate the activities required to reach the goal of the center. It will also be important to gather the academic departments at NHH around innovation, through CSI, to distinguish NHH internationally in this field.

From BI to NHH

Andreassen has also been a marketing professor at BI Business School, as well as head of a department. He is a doctor of economics from Stockholms Universitet, and has pedagogical education and training from the Vanderbilt University and the Harvard Business School in the US, as well as guesting international universities for research purposes.

Several research awards have honored his work, which has also been published in leading economic journals. Andreassen is the founder of "Norsk Kundebarometer", a research program and database collecting information about Norwegian customers' preferences, and the annual "Johan Arndt marketing conference".

Andreassen will, in addition to his work with the CSI, teach and develop a new master degree course in service innovation. He believes he can contribute to CSI with his solid academic background, his experience with innovation and his international experience.

- I have also coordinated big research projects in the past, where different partners have been involved, and I believe I can use my knowledge and experience from that in my work with the CSI, Andreassen adds.

The Center for Service Innovation

The CSI is a coordinated effort by NHH to increase the focus on innovation as a research field in general, and innovation in the service sector in detail. The goal is to increase the quality, efficiency and the commercial success of innovation activities by Norwegian service businesses. The center is also part of the "NHH 2021"-program, aiming to make NHH one of the top business schools in Europe before 2021.

The center is one out of 21 in Norway, established to do research based innovation, financed by the Research Council of Norway. The CSI is receiving 164 million kr over a period of 8 years to develop solutions for the future in the service innovation field. NHH is cooperating with a total of 19 partners in business, academics and research.

Bergen - the city of innovation

- There has been a lot of attention recently, on how to stimulate innovation in the Norwegian economy. What part will CSI play in this?

- It will be important to gather all the relevant partners. CSI needs to work actively and take the leap, so that others will follow. Trondheim has the technology, Stavanger the oil and Oslo the medicine. We can use the CSI and NHH to make Bergen the city of innovation. CSI needs to be the driver, get the momentum going, and then it will evolve naturally, thinks Andreassen.

- Bergen will become Norway's San Fransisco or Boston - known for being high tech and offering high services. NHH, with their academic communities, will be a hub for research in this Bergen. We will create activity which reaches out to an international audience, says an enthusiastic Andreassen.

Tor Wallin Andreassen is the new leader for the Center for Service Innovation (CSI).

Foto: Hallvard Lyssand