Introducing the Doctoral Candidates of the seizmic Doctoral Network

The seizmic Doctoral Network Candidates and their projects

Social Business Models
Work Package 2, “Shifting Paradigms to Social Business Model Design,” examines how innovative and sustainable business models can enable social enterprises to grow while maintaining their social mission. This work package investigates design practices, foresight approaches, and collaborative frameworks that facilitate scaling in diverse contexts.

• Frederik Hovmark Pedersen
  ESCP Business School, Germany — Supervisor: Florian Lüdeke
  Frederik studies business model design and cross-sector collaboration, classifying design patterns and collaborations to understand their effect on scaling social entrepreneurship.
• Eugenia Santoro
  University of Iceland — Supervisor: Lára Jóhannsdóttir
  Eugenia uses qualitative, case-based methods to explore how transparency and impact measurement influence the design and scalability of social business models, and to understand their interplay in social entrepreneurship scaling.
• Valentina Alcalde Gómez
  University of Naples Federico II, Italy — Supervisor: Ramon Rispoli
  Valentina researches alternative design practices that support healing and regeneration in communities undergoing socio-ecological transition, with a focus on the Global South.
• Anika Keils
  Université Paris-Est Créteil, France — Supervisor: Felipe Koch
  Anika investigates social foresight methods supporting the design and scaling of social business models, using participatory, future-oriented approaches.

Impact Investing
Work Package 3, “Impact Investing for Social Entrepreneurship Scaling,” explores financial mechanisms that sustain and accelerate the growth of social enterprises. It examines interactions between impact investors and social enterprises, the role of hybrid financing instruments, and the management of tensions between financial returns and mission fidelity throughout the investment cycle.

• Lisa Pramann
  Copenhagen Business School, Denmark — Supervisor: Kai Hockerts
  Lisa examines how impact investors can drive systemic change and scale social entrepreneurship by analysing how financial actors serve as catalysts for societal transformation.
• Elizaveta Petroskaja
  University of Iceland — Supervisor: Magnus Torfason
  Elizaveta investigates how social enterprises maintain mission throughout the investment lifecycle, focusing on the tension between scaling ambitions and social fidelity.
• Zhihui Chen
  Universitat Rovira i Virgili, Spain — Supervisor: Xiaoni Li
  Zhihui examines the role of impact investment in social enterprise scaling, aiming to identify financing strategies that balance the needs of enterprises and investors.
• Bao Toan Le
  University of Aalborg, Denmark — Supervisor: Svenja Damberg
  Bao Toan investigates financial instruments driving social enterprise growth, with a focus on the effectiveness of hybrid and impact finance mechanisms in scaling.

Education & Competencies
Work Package 4, “Competencies and Education for SE Scaling,” looks at the human and educational dimensions of scaling. It studies the role of educators, mentoring structures, and competency frameworks in preparing social entrepreneurs to navigate complexity. Special attention is given to inclusive education practices and to the integration of emerging tools, such as AI tutors, into pedagogical settings.

• Anne Schlieker
  Copenhagen Business School, Denmark — Supervisor: Kristian Roed Nielsen
  Anne researches social entrepreneurship education, integrating futures thinking and systems thinking to strengthen teaching practices that prepare students for complex entrepreneurial challenges.
• Pelin Sürmeli
  Copenhagen Business School, Denmark — Supervisor: Kai Hockerts
  Pelin examines the macro-level impact of social entrepreneurship through Institutional Theory, focusing on FemTech and how social ventures drive systemic change in gender-specific sectors.

Digital Ecosystems & AI
Work Package 5, “Digital Ecosystems and Artificial Intelligence Use,” investigates how digital platforms, ecosystems, and artificial intelligence tools foster the scaling of social enterprises. It addresses topics such as AI-driven mentoring systems and the role of digital ecosystems in marginalised or conflict-affected regions, aiming to develop technological solutions that are socially inclusive and mission-oriented.

• Michail Skalistiris Pikis
  Copenhagen Business School, Denmark — Supervisor: Torkil Clemmensen
  Michail examines how GPT-based AI mentors can support creativity and learning among social entrepreneurs, helping them identify social issues and design innovative business models.
• David Melubo Kisotu
  University of Naples Federico II, Italy — Supervisors: Vincenzo Rispoli
  David investigates digital ecosystems in marginalised contexts, focusing on how AI and social media platforms shape social enterprise innovation in Kenyan startups and contribute to innovation at the margins.
• Sophie Schierle
  University of Innsbruck, Austria — Supervisor: Johann Füller
  Sophie explores how AI-driven tools can support social entrepreneurship and sustainable innovation, with applications in resource allocation, impact measurement, and stakeholder engagement.
• Sarbinaz Nagyzkhan
  University of Innsbruck, Austria — Supervisor: Johann Füller
  Sarbinaz analyses how communities in conflict zones create digital ecosystems of self-organised networks and develops practical recommendations for municipalities supporting local resilience.

The seizmic Doctoral Network is funded by the European Union through Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions, project number 101169098. For further information, visit seizmic.eu and follow the project on LinkedIn. Direct inquiries may be addressed to the project manager, Ricky Celenta, at rc.msc@cbs.dk.