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Faculty of Management, Economics and Social SciencesSeminar for Cooperative Research

Simon Micken, born in 1991, studied social sciences (B.Sc.) and sociology and empirical social research (Sociology and Social Research, M.Sc.) at the Faculty of Economics and Social Sciences at the University of Cologne.

He is involved in the project AdvancementS in Social Economy through Technological Solutions (ASSETS) (GA ID: 101177874), funded by the Horizon Europe research framework program,  which aims to drive innovation in the field of Social Economy (SE).  

The ASSETS project was created to address the specific challenges faced by SE organizations (SEOs). They account for over 10% of enterprises in the EU and provide 13.6 million jobs. Yet they face significant hurdles when it comes to scaling their activities, securing funding and effectively measuring their social impact. ASSETS brings together universities, research institutes and non-governmental organizations from across Europe to develop innovative tools and strategies. 

The ASSETS project is focused on four core objectives:

  1. Understand challenges: Cross-regional research and case studies will explore the policy, legal and operational barriers faced by SEOs. This helps to identify opportunities to improve social inclusion and job quality in different contexts.
  2. Improve evaluation tools: Advanced evaluation tools are being developed that integrate local perspectives and technology. With these tools, SEOs can effectively measure their social impact with a focus on community needs and employee wellbeing.
  3. Conduct case studies: ASSETS tests innovative solutions in six living labs that address challenges such as housing, rural marginalization, community care, and environmental sustainability. The research focus for the Seminar for Cooperative Researchis in the district of Görlitz, in close cooperation with the Social Network Lausitz.
  4. Building a digital platform: A cooperative digital platform will connect stakeholders and provide tools for collaboration, policy debate and capacity building.

Since February 2018, Simon Micken has been doing his doctorate at the Seminar for Cooperative Studies on corporate cultures of cooperative banks in the context of merger processes. The doctoral project, which is funded by the Verein zur Förderung der genossenschaftswissenschaftlichen Forschung an der Universität zu Köln e.V. (FgF), focuses on the possibilities and limits of empirical-quantitative analyses of corporate cultures.

In addition, Simon Micken has been a lecturer in the Sustainable Social Policy (B.A.) programme at the chair of Prof. Dr Remi Maier-Rigaud at Bonn-Rhein-Sieg University of Applied Sciences (HBRS) since the 2017/18 winter semester.

As the successor to Dr Ingrid Schmale, Simon Micken is also the contact person for FgF matters at the chair of Prof Dr Frank Schulz-Nieswandt.