Sabrina Schell

Professor Sabrina Schell serves as Institute Director at the Bern University of Applied Sciences (BFH) within the Business Institute, leading the Institute for New Work (INW). With a distinguished academic background including a PhD and Habilitation from German universities, she has established herself as a leading researcher in New Work concepts, self-organization models like Holacracy, and family business studies.

Her research interests focus on transformative workplace approaches, particularly self-organization systems, strengths-based leadership, and family business dynamics. Professor Schell examines how radically self-organized team structures function in volatile business environments and develops practical applications for improving workplace engagement and well-being.

Her recent publications demonstrate consistent high-impact research in top management conferences, with a particular focus on family business governance, Holacracy implementation challenges, and innovation partnerships. Professor Schell's work bridges theoretical rigor with practical application, as evidenced by her current research project developing a strengths-based leadership prototype for Swiss knowledge workers.

Notable awards include:

• Academy of Management Best Paper Proceedings (2021)
• Best Reviewer Award from EURAM Family Business Research group
• Best Paper Award at EURAM Lisbon (2019)
• Most Inspirational Paper Award runner-up at EURAM Reykjavik (2018)
• Best Paper Award at German-speaking Family Business Research Conference (2015)

As Institute Director, Professor Schell oversees research projects addressing critical workplace challenges, including the current 'Strengths-based Caring Institution' project that tackles Switzerland's low workplace engagement rate (only 11% according to Gallup, 2023) through evidence-based leadership approaches. She teaches Human Resource Management, New Work Forms, and Entrepreneurial Organizational Design at both Bachelor and Master levels.

The Institute for New Work under her leadership focuses on developing practical solutions for modern workplace challenges, with particular emphasis on self-organization models and strengths-based approaches that improve both organizational performance and employee well-being.