The Project in a Nutshell
In this project, we bring novel insights to management studies by considering who are cosmopolitans and how does their life course emerge, how does cosmopolitan disposition affect entrepreneurial behaviour, how is a cosmopolitan identity constructed, and what is the relationship between language skills and a cosmopolitan disposition. This is also a study on international mobility, as cosmopolitan disposition has been identified as a significant driver for voluntary and possibly continuous emigration. In this phenomenon-driven study, embedded in the globalized, virtualised and multicultural environment in which cosmopolitans live today, we provide a contemporary perspective to the discussions on culture, international mobility, entrepreneurship and identity.
Follow our findings in this blog!
- Retention of global talent – this calls for a celebration!Companies in various fields need talent to be able to innovate new services and products, keep up with the competition and succeed in the global business environment. Acquiring such resources is, however, increasingly challenging especially in small western economies characterized by declining birth rates, aging population and decreasing number of inhabitants. It is thus evident,Continue reading “Retention of global talent – this calls for a celebration!”
- On places and boundariesLocation has been a central concept in International Business (IB) research for years as the focus of the field has been on the activities of organisations and individuals crossing cultural and national borders. However, the original research questions – such as ‘how does a firm generate added value by doing business in another location?’ –Continue reading “On places and boundaries”
- “Remigration” of migrants and people with migrant-backgrounds: What does this idea mean for German economy, industry and labour markets?Alternative für Deutschland- party and its call for a “Masterplan for Remigration”[1] triggered a heated reaction in the German Bundestag, i.e. national parliament, where the ruling parties SDP, the Greens and the Free Democrats (FDP) countered it with a debate “Resilient Democracy in a Diverse Country – Taking a Firm Stand Against Enemies of DemocracyContinue reading ““Remigration” of migrants and people with migrant-backgrounds: What does this idea mean for German economy, industry and labour markets?”
Cosmopolitan identity
We are interested in what it means to be cosmopolitan, how does a person become cosmopolitan, and how is this reflected in their identity.
Cosmopolitan career
We are interested in how a cosmopolitan identity is visible in career choices and preferences, and how this may influences cosmoolitans’ working lives.
Cosmopolitan networks
We are interested in how cosmopolitans maintain their relationships via distance, sometimes crossing both spatial and temporal boundaries.
Cosmopolitan or a citizen of the world is a badge of honour for some, while sometimes shamed by others as a form of international elitism. While some define cosmopolitans as “rootless” frequent flyers, in reality cosmopolitans can have multinational families and experience a great sense of responsibility and commitment to multiple local communities, cities, regions and nations. COSMO unveils a new cosmopolitan culture, independent of place and time, and thus provide a contemporary perspective to the discussions on culture, international mobility, entrepreneurship and identity.
Melanie Hassett, UK
A cosmopolitan can have many homes, but home does not need to be a location, especially when families and friends are dispersed around the world.
Maria Elo, DK
Funding
Nordforsk NOS-HS workshop funding funds the COSMO project 1.1.2021-30.6.2023.
Työsuojelurahasto rahoittaa COSMO -projektia 1.1.2023-31.12.2024
The Academy of Finland funds the COSMO project 1.9.2022-31.8.2026
Recent publications and conference presentations
Rosin, A. & Kärkkäinen, K. (2024) Mass influx of people from Ukraine: social entitlements and access to the labour market: Finland. In Florczak, I.; Adamski, J. K. Mass influx of people from Ukraine: social entitlements and access to the labour market. Bologna, Italian Labour Law e-Studies.
Falcao, R., Cruz, E. P., Aman, R., & Elo, M. (2024) Brazilian-Japanese Reverse Diaspora, Labour and Entrepreneurship–Reflections on Sustainable Ethnic Migration Policies. International Journal of Entrepreneurship and Small Business.
Ivanova-Gongne, M., Barner-Rasmussen, W., Torkkeli, L., & Elo, M. (2023) Language in intercultural business interactions: A self-perceived power perspective. Industrial Marketing Management, 115, 312-326.
Barner-Rasmussen W., Gaibrois C. & Wilmot N.W. (2023) Perfection, hybridity or shutting up? A cross-country study of how language ideologies shape participation in international business. International Business Review 102189, available online
Hokkinen, M. & Barner-Rasmussen, W. (2023) Refugees’ language learning and career aspirations: An agentic lens. Journal of International Management 29(5): 101061.
Eriikka Paavilainen-Mäntymäki, Niina Nummela, Riikka Harikkala-Laihinen & Johanna Raitis (2023) Global talent marketplace – A Finnish perspective on recruitment and onboarding, Vaasa International Business Conference, August 16 -17, 2023
Niina Nummela (2023) Problematizing research on global mobility – focus on individuals with cosmopolitan identity, 8th EMIC Conference, May 25-26, 2023
Niina Nummela (2023) Cosmopolitans and global mobility, Meeting of the Turku Chamber of Commerce, May 24, 2023
Eriikka Paavilainen-Mäntymäki, Niina Nummela, Riikka Harikkala-Laihinen & Johanna Raitis (2023) Settling in and inclusion of returnees and global talent – preliminary findings from company perspective, The 5th Odense IE Workshop, May 16-17, 2023
Niina Nummela (2023) Cosmopolitan individuals and sense of place, The 5th Odense IE Workshop, May 16-17, 2023
Paavilainen-Mäntymäki, E., Nummela, N., Harikkala-Laihinen, R. & Raitis, J. (2023). COSMO – Cosmopolitan management – a must for international businesses? NOS-HS Workshop, Linnaeus University, Kalmar, 17-18.4.2023.
Nummela, N., Harikkala-Laihinen, R., Paavilainen-Mäntymäki, E. & Raitis, J. (2022). Wherever I lay my hat, that’s my home. Re-construction of home among Finnish-born cosmopolitans. NOS-HS Workshop, Turku, 15-16.11.2022.
Elo, M., Silva, S. C., & Vlačić, B. (2022). The role of satisfaction in labor diaspora dynamics: An analysis of BREXIT effects. Thunderbird International Business Review.
Elo, M., Ermolaeva, L., Ivanova-Gongne, M., & Klishevich, D. (2022). Resilience and business model adaptation in turbulent times: experiences of Russophone migrant entrepreneurs in Germany during Covid-pandemic. Small Enterprise Research, 1-23.
Elo, M., Kothari, T., & Ivanova-Gongne, M. (2022). Language Diversity–Multi-Ethnic Migrant and Diaspora Resources for International Business and Entrepreneurship. In Diversity in Action (pp. 123-150). Emerald Publishing Limited.
Kothari, T., Elo, M., & Wiese, N. (2022). Born as a Citizen and Reborn as an Alien: Migrant Superdiversity in Global Business. AIB Insights.
lo, M., Zubair, M., & Zhang, X. (2022). Disadvantaged Migrant Entrepreneurs and Their Selection of Location: Entrepreneurial Settlement and Making a “Home” Abroad. In Disadvantaged Minorities in Business (pp. 35-72). Springer, Cham.
Terstriep, J., David, A., Ruthemeier, A., & Elo, M. (2022). The role of local embeddedness of transnational migrant start-ups in the COVID-19 crises: Examples from the Berlin start-up ecosystem (No. 22/05). IAT Discussion Paper.
Elo, M., Täube, F. A., & Servais, P. (2022). Who is doing “transnational diaspora entrepreneurship”? Understanding formal identity and status. Journal of World Business, 57(1), 101-240.
Ivanova-Gongne, M., Lång, S., Brännback, M. & Carsrud, A. (2021). Sensemaking by minority entrepreneurs: role identities and linguistic embeddedness. Journal of Small Business and Entrepreneurship. https://doi.org/10.1080/08276331.2021.1952499
Nummela, N., Paavilainen-Mäntymäki, E., Raitis, J. and Harikkala-Laihinen, R. (2021) Cosmopolitans as migrant entrepreneurs. In: Vershinina, N., Rodgers, P., Xheneti, M., Brzozowski, J. and Lassalle, P. (Eds.) Migration and Entrepreneurship, Emerald Group Publishing Limited.
Nummela, N., Paavilainen-Mäntymäki, E., Harikkala-Laihinen, R. & Raitis, J. (2021) Cosmopolitans as migrant entrepreneurs. Presentation at the fourth Odense International Entrepreneurship Workshop, May 20-21, 2021.
Nummela, N., Harikkala-Laihinen, R., Paavilainen-Mäntymäki, E. and Raitis, J. (2021, forthcoming) In-between worlds – Liminal experiences of Finnish-born cosmopolitans. AIB 2021 online conference, 26.–27.6.2021.
Nummela, N., Paavilainen-Mäntymäki, E., Harikkala-Laihinen, R. and Raitis, J. (2020) When all doors close: Implications of COVID-19 for cosmopolitan entrepreneurs. International Small Business Journal, open access.
Subscribe to hear our latest first!
cosmoresearchproject.wordpress.com 