Nikolina Dragičević
Nikolina Dragičević is a postdoctoral researcher at the Faculty of Economics and Business (University of Zagreb) working on the research project on the topic of multilevel design of digital work under the mentorship of Prof Tomislav Hernaus.
Nikolina holds a PhD from the Knowledge Management and Innovation Research Center at The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU, 75th on the QS World University Rankings) which she obtained under the mentorship of Prof WB Lee, Prof Eric Tsui and Prof Eng Chew. Her doctoral research focused on applying theories of practice and design thinking to modelling and innovating smart services. At PolyU, she also gained four years of professional experience in teaching and coordinating higher education projects that have received multiple international awards.
Her research interests, in addition to service innovation, include design thinking, digital work, knowledge management in the 4th Industrial Revolution, innovative learning methods, and social innovation. She is particularly passionate about promoting a human-centred approach to innovation and (digital)work in business and educational contexts. Nikolina’s research has been published with international publishers such as Taylor & Francis and Routledge.
Positions at Weizenbaum Institut
Associated Researcher:
Research Group "Education and Training in the Digital Society"
1 April 2022 - 14 September 2022
Research Fellow:
Research Group "Education and Training in the Digital Society "
3 September - 3 October 2018
Projects
Designing Digital Work: Using the Design Thinking Approach in Engaging Employees in Digital Transformation
Recent literature highlights the potential value of design thinking (i.e. an approach inspired by how designers think and work) in responding to the challenge of developing methods that would take into account human factors, in addition to technological ones, in developing digital transformation skills. This project addresses the research call by aiming to develop and implement a method (online and offline prototype) based on the design thinking principles that will enable employee engagement and understanding of their needs in implementing digital transformation. To achieve the project aim, we will follow a method based on design science research, a research approach that is focused on solving problems in specific contexts, organizational and others. The methodology will include iterative development and testing of the method, using a mix of different research techniques - literature reviews, interviews with practitioners, tool development workshops combined with rigorous testing and improvements, and questionnaires examining the effectiveness of the method. The applied value of the project is reflected in providing managers, consultants and experts for digital transformation with detailed descriptions of methods and tools that they can apply and modify in achieving their business goals.