Research

This page gives an overview of my academic research projects.

Organizational Ethics in the Age of AI

The focus of my research efforts at NYU Stern has been on pragmatist and existentialist philosophies and their application in the areas of business ethics scholarship, moral engagement in organizations, and the role of human work in the age of AI.

This work has yielded working papers presented at the 39th European Group of Organization Studies conference in Cagliari and the 4th PHILOS (Philosophy in Organization Studies) Colloquium in Cyprus. I was also part of a consortium developing a plenary session for the 18th Organization Studies Workshop with the title “Practising democracy to make better futures: A Pragmatist perspective”.

Less Hierarchical Organizing

I conducted a multiyear qualitative study of leading and pioneering Nordic software consultancies that attempt to radically decentralize authority and empower employees. The research explored the organizations from multiple angles, focusing on the practices that enable self-management, regulation of authority relations between formal managers and employees, and their shared principles of action and collective dialogue about them.

Pietinalho, L., & Martela, F. (2024). Keeping the Iron Cage from Closing: How clashes over shared principles elicit collective authoring. Organization Studies, 45(8), 1161-1190. Link to the article.

Pietinalho, L. "Shepherding Situational Authority: Dealing with the Paradox of Radical Delegation in Hierarchies." Academy of Management Proceedings. Vol. 2020. No. 1.

Phelpsian Theory of The Economy and Human Flourishing

The Phelpsian theory (Edmund Phelps, a Nobel laureate in economics) emphasizes the importance of individual creativity and engagement in driving economic dynamism and societal flourishing. He argues that true flourishing arises not from material wealth but from individuals actively pursuing their innate drives for creation, self-expression, and exploration. Phelps asserts that when societies cultivate an environment that values and supports these drives, grassroots innovation emerges, leading to a vibrant economy. Ultimately, the essence of a flourishing economy lies in the opportunities it creates for exploration and personal growth, rather than merely focusing on efficiency or material gain.

My contribution to this theory was to argue that it is not any specific societal values that enable such dynamism but the opening of such values, incorporating and integrating new values.

Pietinalho, L. (2023). Phelpsian Dynamism: A New Perspective. Capitalism & Society, 17(1). Link to the article.

Pietinalho, L. (2017). From mass flourishing to vested interests: A conceptual model for the evolution of organizational institutions. Journal of Economic Issues, 51(2), 511-519. Link to the article.