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Iiris Saittakari’s dissertation among the best four dissertations in international business in 2016–2018

Published: 20.12.2018

Iiris Saittakari’s dissertation is entitled "The Location of Headquarters: Why, When and Where are Regional Mandates Located?".

Saittakarin kv liiketoiminnan alan väitöskirja palkittu

D.Sc. Iiris Saittakari’s dissertationwas nominated as one of the four finalists in the Gunnar Hedlund dissertation award. This prestigious award is a prize for the best Ph.D. dissertation in the field of International Business worldwide and it has been established in memory of Swedish Professor who has advanced the field innovatively. The award was granted by the Stockholm School of Economics at the European International Business Academy (EIBA) annual meeting in Poznan, Poland in December. All four finalists were invited to present their dissertation. The winner, and the recipient of the 10,000$ prize, was Yamlaksira Getachew from the Western University, Canada.

Iiris Saittakari defended her dissertation at Aalto University School of Business in May 2018. She examines in her dissertation regional headquarters’ location and its dynamics. The study is largely based on longitudinal data of 375 regional headquarters located in Finland. Only 60 percent of the regional headquarters located in Finland in the 1990s had been able to retain the headquarters responsibilities either fully or partly by 2010. Especially large and sales oriented Finnish subsidiaries were able to retain their responsibilities as regional headquarters. Regional headquarters had often been relocated closer to Russia, Baltics, or Poland. Many regional headquarters had also been relocated from Finland to Sweden.

'Research on headquarters located in Finland continues in upcoming years due to project funding we recently received', says Iiris Saittakari. 'All foreign firms’ headquarters located in Finland will be identified and their role and relocation between different countries will be examined.' Saittakari highlights that the location of headquarters has a significant impact on the country in which it is located. 'Such offices offer well-paid jobs and development contributions. The countries also benefit from a good reputation as a target of investment, which is why there is competition among target countries.'

Iiris Saittakari’s dissertation is available at:http://urn.fi/URN:ISBN:978-952-60-7940-0

Further information:
Iiris Saittakari
[email protected]
tel. +358 45 673 4631