Professor Helene Friis Ratner joins DTU Management

Professor Helene Friis Ratner joins DTU Management.

We are delighted to welcome Professor Helene Friis Ratner to DTU Management.

Helene Ratner joins DTU with a strong background in organizational studies and STS – science and technology studies, bringing valuable expertise on how data-driven technologies - from predictive algorithms to data visualizations - transform organizations and decision-making.

Throughout her career, Helene has studied how technologies are not only developed, but also how they are used, and what consequences they have for professionals, organizations and society at large. Most recently, she has examined predictive systems designed to assess children’s risk of severe distress, raising important questions: What happens when citizens are seen as probabilities? How do algorithms reshape professional expertise and daily routines?

Her work addresses some of the most pressing issues around ‘responsible AI’. For Helene, responsibility goes far beyond governance and compliance. The responsible implementation of AI must include the voices of those it affects continuously - citizens, customers, and professionals who are expected to use it in practice. Without that perspective, even the most technically compliant systems risk creating negative rather than positive change.

At DTU, Helene looks forward to meeting the students and working closely with colleagues across disciplines - especially those developing new technologies. She also brings her experience as Chief Scientist at the National Centre for AI in Society (CAISA), where she researches generative AI applications in the welfare state and advises decision-makers on how AI can be implemented responsibly in real-world contexts.

Looking ahead, she is excited about becoming part of everyday life at DTU Management and the opportunity to build new directions in organizational studies. With her professorship, Helene aims to deepen our understanding of how AI transforms organizations - and how society can ensure that these transformations create value for the users and people at their centre.

Head of Division Professor Brit Ross Winterheik is also looking forward to the collaboration with Helene:

“I am extremely pleased that Helene Ratner is joining us. Not only is Helene on the cutting edge of research on digitalized society, but she is also an experienced research leader and public voice on AI, ethics and accountability. These topics are all crucial to develop at a technical university. Helene is a chief scientist at the Centre for AI in Society and co-PI at the prestigious project Algorithms, Data and Democracy funded by Velux Foundation. I look forward to collaborating with her.”