Wanda Orlikowski

Wanda Orlikowski

she/her
Sloan School of Management
Shaping research, supporting researchers

Generating ideas that impact the world positively is of course important, but Wanda Orlikowski goes above and beyond, caring strongly about the people in her orbit who do that work.

Orlikowski is the Alfred P. Sloan Professor of Information Technology and Organization Studies at MIT’s Sloan School of Management. Her research examines technologies in the workplace, with a particular focus on how digital reconfigurations generate significant shifts in organizing, coordination, and accountability. She is currently exploring the digital transformation of work.

Growing through moments of doubt

Through times of uncertainty, students always find support in Orlikowski. One of her nominators shared that they have encountered many moments of doubt during the research development phase of their dissertation. “I had concerns… that I’m not making progress. I do all this work, and it’s not going anywhere, I keep returning back to where I started,” the mentee reflected. 

Prof. Orlikowski has talked this advisee through those moments patiently and with great empathy, connecting her own experiences with those of her students. She often talks about the research process not being a straight line of progress, but rather a spiral. “This metaphor… suggests that coming back to ideas again and again is in fact progress,” rather than a failure. “Every time I come back to it, I’m at a higher plane, and I’m refining the same idea further and further,” the nominator shared.

Students share that Orlikowski makes an effort to support them through moments of doubt, turning these moments into opportunities for growth. “It has… been such a benefit for me to have her near-constant availability,” the student said. “She listens to my thoughts and lets me just talk and spitball ideas, without her interrupting.” 

Orlikowski pushes and prods her students to elaborate, clarify, and expand their thoughts. She does this proactively, spending many hours every week talking to her students, reading their writing, and making scrupulous comments on their work. “She emails me back within a day, for every single email I send no matter how short or inconsequential. She responds to phone messages I send when I have a silly comment, or an urgent request,” the advisee added.

Perceptive, accepting, and affirming

Orlikowski has been remarkably perceptive when her students need support. One of the nominators struggled during their first holiday season in the PhD program, unable to visit their family. Orlikowski noticed the student’s isolation and reached out, inviting the student to her family’s Christmas dinner, a gesture that turned into a heartwarming tradition. 

“I gave her an orchid that first year, and to this day, it continues to bloom each year. Wanda regularly sends me pictures of it, and the joy she expresses in keeping it alive means so much to me. I feel that in her care, both the orchid and our connection have flourished,” the mentee remarks.

“One of the things I’ve appreciated most about Wanda is that she has never tried to change who I am,” the nominator adds. They go on to describe themselves as not a very strategic or extroverted person by nature, and for a long time, they struggled with the idea that these qualities might hinder their success in academia. 

“Wanda has helped me embrace my true self. She tells me stories about others who have found success not by conforming to expectations, but by being authentic—traits I can relate to,” the nominator explains. 

“It’s not about fitting into a mold,” Orlikowski reminded the student, “It’s about being true to who you are and doing great work.” Her support has made the student comfortable with their approach to both research and life.

The student says that their moral compass aligns with Orlikowski’s, and they feel like her influence has reinforced their own values. Orlikowski often tells the student, “Don’t worry about having to game the system. If you keep your head down, do your work, and focus on the quality of what you do, it will get noticed.”

The academic world often feels like it rewards self-promotion and strategic maneuvering, but Prof. Orlikowski has alleviated much of her students’ anxiety about whether they can be competitive without it. “You don’t have to pretend to be something you’re not,” she assures them. “The work will speak for itself.” 

Wanda’s support for her students extends beyond encouragement; she advocates for their work, helping them gain visibility and traction in the broader academic community. “It’s not just words – she has actively supported me, promoting my work through her network of students and peers,” the nominator articulated. Her belief in her mentees, and her willingness to support their work, has had a profound impact on their academic journey.

Overall, her nominators note that Wanda is not only an authentic advisor but also a dedicated scholar who genuinely cares about both the research and the people striving to do it well.