Sarah Jack is the Jacob and Marcus Wallenberg Professor of Innovative and Sustainable Business Development at the Department of Entrepreneurship, Innovation and Technology and leads the Jacob and Marcus Wallenberg Center for Innovative and Sustainable Business Development. Sarah’s primary interests relate to social aspects of entrepreneurship, where she draws on social capital and social network theory to extend understanding about the relationship between the entrepreneur and the social context in which they are embedded, using qualitative techniques. Her work is of a theoretical, conceptual and policy nature. Current interests also include social innovation, sustainable business development and entrepreneurship within a historical context. 

Sarah’s current research projects include, the Public Procurement of Functions – A Stepping Stone Towards A More Sustainable Future! This transdisciplinary project supported by the Marianne and Marcus Wallenberg Foundation, draws together world-leading researchers from the Stockholm School of Economics (SSE) and Linköping University (LiU) in the areas of law, economic, social, and technology sciences. The project is designed to look at how functional selling (FS) business models support more sustainable public procurement and the global issue of how to support sustainable growth and prosperity; Targeted-MPI (Transparent And Resilient Gender Equality Through Integrated Monitoring Planning and Implementation) supported by Horizon 2020 which brings together partners from Europe (Greece (PI), Sweden, Belgium, UK) and Lebanon to address gender inequality in Business and Management (B&M) schools through the development and effective implementation of Gender Equality Plans (GEPs). She is also engaged with Recirculate (a £7mn UK global challenge project aimed at building capacity within Africa to solve the continent’s water crisis). Previous projects include engagement with the Wave 2 Growth Hub project, a £32mn project funded through the UK’s Regional Growth Fund aimed at developing growth hubs tailored to the needs of local SMEs; SIMRA (Social Innovation in Marginalised Rural Areas, a Euro5.5mn Horizon 2020 project led by Professor Maria Nijnik, James Hutton Institute) leading work on Innovation Actions through the delivery of social innovation on the ground.

Sarah’s research outputs have been published in highly rated international journals such as Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, Journal of Business Venturing, Journal of Management Studies, Academy of Management Learning and Education, Entrepreneurship and Regional Development, Journal of Management Inquiry, Technovation and Regional Studies. She serves as an Editor for Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, Associate Editor for Entrepreneurship and Regional Development and is an editorial board member for the Journal of Management Studies, Journal of Business Venturing, Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice. Sarah also holds a leadership role with the ENT Division of the Academy of Management (AoM).