Make a donation
You maybe looking for
admission
Master
donation
About HEC About HEC Faculty & Research Faculty & Research Master’s programs Master’s programs MBA Programs MBA Programs PhD Program PhD Program Executive Education Executive Education Summer School Summer School HEC Online HEC Online
Make a donation
About HEC Overview Overview Who We Are Who We Are Egalité des chances Egalité des chances Career Center Career Center International International Campus Life Campus Life Stories Stories The HEC Foundation The HEC Foundation Faculty & Research Overview Overview Faculty Directory Faculty Directory Departments Departments Centers Centers Chairs Chairs Knowledge Knowledge Master’s programs Master in
Management Master in
Management Dual-Degree
programs Dual-Degree
programs MSc International
Finance MSc International
Finance Specialized
Masters Specialized
Masters Student Life Student Life Certificates Certificates MBA Programs MBA MBA EMBA EMBA TRIUM EMBA TRIUM EMBA PhD Program Overview Overview HEC Difference HEC Difference Program details Program details Research areas Research areas HEC Community HEC Community Placement Placement Job Market Job Market Admissions Admissions Financing Financing Summer School Youth Leadership Initiative Youth Leadership Initiative Summer programs Summer programs Admissions Admissions FAQ FAQ HEC Online Overview Overview Degree Program Degree Program Executive certificates Executive certificates MOOCs MOOCs

Svenja SOMMER

Associate Professor

Information Systems & Operations Management

sommers@hec.fr
Profile picture

Biography

Svenja Sommer received her Ph.D. in Management from INSEAD (France).

Her research interests cover the areas of project management and new product development (NPD) focusing on management of highly uncertain projects, idea generation in NPD, and technology choice in product rollover decisions. Her research has been published in journals such as Management Science, Organization Science and POM. She serves as a Senior Editor for the "New Product Development, R&D, and Project Management" department of POMS. She is also an ad-hoc reviewer for a number of journals, including Management Science, Operations Research, MSOM, and POMS.
She teaches in the MBA and Grande Ecole programs, including supply chain management (operations management core course) and a project management elective. Prior to joining HEC, she was on the faculty at the Krannert School of Management, Purdue University.
She received her PhD in Management from INSEAD, France.

Scientific articles

Collaborative Prototyping of Alternative Designs Under a Target Costing Scheme

Production and Operations Management, March 2018, vol. 27, n° 3, pp 496–515, (in coll. with T. SHALPEGIN, Z. WAN)

Supervising Projects You Don’t (Fully) Understand: Lessons for Effective Project Governance by Steering Committees

California Management Review, February 2017, vol. 59, n° 2, pp 45-67, (in coll. with C. LOCH, M. MÄHRING)

Incentive Contracts in Projects with Unforeseeable Uncertainty

Production and Operations Management, March-April 2009, vol. 18, n° 2, pp 185-196, (in coll. with C. Loch)

Managing Complexity and Unforeseeable Uncertainty in Startup Companies: an Empirical Study

Organization Science, January-February 2009, vol. 20, n° 1, pp 118-133, (in coll. with C.H. Loch, J. Dong)

The Effects of Problem Structure and Team Diversity on Brainstorming Effectiveness

Management Science, December 2009, n° 12, pp 1899-1913, (in coll. with S. Kavadias)

Selectionism and Learning in Projects with Complexity and Unforeseeable Uncertainty

Management Science, 2004, vol. 50, n° 10, pp 1334-1347, (in coll. with C. Loch)

Chapters edited in books

Project Management Under High Uncertainty

Encyclopedia Of Technology And Innovation Management, V. K. Narayanan, G. C. O'Connor (eds), John Wiley & Sons

Project Risk Management in New Product Development

Handbook Of New Product Development And Management, C. H. Loch, S. Kavadias (eds), Elsevier Limited, Oxford

Working papers

Impact of Regulatory Changes on New Product Design Choice and End-of-Life Inventory Buildup

Mimeo , 2011

Supervising Projects you Don't Understand -- Do your Major Projects Receive the Leadership they Need?

INSEAD Working Paper , 2011

Managing Risk and Responding to Uncertainty: How Entrepreneurs and VCs Can Improve Their Effectiveness. A Comparison of Three Countries

Mimeo , 2010

Scientific articles

Collaborative Prototyping of Alternative Designs Under a Target Costing Scheme

Production and Operations Management, March 2018, vol. 27, n° 3, pp 496–515, (in coll. with T. SHALPEGIN, Z. WAN)

Supervising Projects You Don’t (Fully) Understand: Lessons for Effective Project Governance by Steering Committees

California Management Review, February 2017, vol. 59, n° 2, pp 45-67, (in coll. with C. LOCH, M. MÄHRING)

Incentive Contracts in Projects with Unforeseeable Uncertainty

Production and Operations Management, March-April 2009, vol. 18, n° 2, pp 185-196, (in coll. with C. Loch)

Managing Complexity and Unforeseeable Uncertainty in Startup Companies: an Empirical Study

Organization Science, January-February 2009, vol. 20, n° 1, pp 118-133, (in coll. with C.H. Loch, J. Dong)

Chapters edited in books

Project Management Under High Uncertainty

Encyclopedia Of Technology And Innovation Management, V. K. Narayanan, G. C. O'Connor (eds), John Wiley & Sons

Project Risk Management in New Product Development

Handbook Of New Product Development And Management, C. H. Loch, S. Kavadias (eds), Elsevier Limited, Oxford

Working papers

Impact of Regulatory Changes on New Product Design Choice and End-of-Life Inventory Buildup

Mimeo , 2011

Supervising Projects you Don't Understand -- Do your Major Projects Receive the Leadership they Need?

INSEAD Working Paper , 2011

Managing Risk and Responding to Uncertainty: How Entrepreneurs and VCs Can Improve Their Effectiveness. A Comparison of Three Countries

Mimeo , 2010

Education

  • Ph.D. in Management, INSEAD - France
  • M.Sc. in Management, INSEAD - France
  • Diploma in Business Administration (Diplomkauffrau), WHU Otto Beisheim School of Management - Germany

Academic appointments

Academic responsabilities at HEC

  • 2008-2014 Member, GREGHEC (CNRS) HEC Paris
  • 2008- Associate Professor HEC Paris

Scientific Activities

Membership in Academic or Professional Organisation

  • Member of INFORMS, MSOM, and POMS

Editorial activities

  • Refereed papers for Management Science, Operations Research, Manufacturing and Service Operations Management, Production and Operations Management, IIE Transactions, IEEE Transactions on Engineering Management, Journal of Operations Management, Organization Studies, and Operations Management Review
  • Senior editor for POM journal (New Product Development, RD, and Project Management department, since 2008)
  • 2011 Area Editor for MSOM, special issue on Sustainable Operations
  • 2011 Evaluator for NSF (National Science Foundation) grant proposal
  • 2011 Evaluator for research proposal of the University of Leuven
  • 2009 Referee for MSOM student paper competition
  • 2006 Referee for PDMA dissertation competition

    • Conference organisation

  • Co-organized 2001 LBS-INSEAD Doctoral Seminar and the 2001 HEC-INSEAD Doctoral Symposium (60 and 50 participants respectively)
  • 2005-2008 Organized OM lecture series (workshops) at Krannert School of Management

    • Awards & honors

    Membership in Academic or Professional Organisation

    • Ph.D. Fellowship awarded by INSEAD (1999-2000; 2002-2003)
    • 2010 2010 Management Science Meritorious Services Award
    • 2009 Syntec Management Consulting Best article award in the category "Operations, Gestion, controle/Systeme d'information et Technologies, "Managing complexity and unforeseeable uncertainty in startup companies : an empirical study", Organization Science
    • 2006 Dean's MBA core teaching award for Mgmt 664
    • 2000 The Sasakawa Young Leader Fellowship Award
    • 1992 Congress-Bundestag scholarship for Youth Exchange