I am a member of SERNI, the Social Economy Research Network of Ireland.  SERNI is a research network of established academics and graduate students whose goal is to provide a forum for reserachers in the broad social economy, including the ares of social and solidarity economy, social enterprise, social entrepreneurship, social finance and innovation.  

I am a Lecturer in the School of Business.  I primarily deliver modules in Enterprise, Marketing and Management and teach these modules in the School of Business, School of Humanities and School of Engineering. I also supervise DBA and undergraduate students.

My educational background includes a Master of Business Degree from South East Technological University, Carlow Campus, a PhD from South East Technological University, Waterford Campus and MII Graduateship (The Marketing institute of Ireland).

I have a strong interest in research, particularly in the area of customer service and customer orientation.

I am leading a Erasmus+ project (DIFUCH) on behalf of SETU and working with colleagues in IPB, Portugal and Hanze, Netherlands, the project runs from Feb 2022 to March 2024.

Research

Publications:

Kearney, A; O'Brien, S; Kelliher F, 2025. Crafting regenerative management skills through teaching of enterprise in place: Insights from an emerging Irish university. International Journal of Management Eduction: https://doi.org/10.i.ijme.2025.101268

Botelho Junior, S,; O'Brien, S; Organ, J; O'Gorman, W. 2025. Hackathons a challenge-based learning (CBL) tool in entrepreneurship education: The role of hackathons in fostering entrepreneurship. Irish Journal of Management, 42(1), p.117. https://doi.org/10.2478/ijm-2025-0005

Organ, J; Machado, A.M.; O'Brien, S. 2023. Digital Futures Challenge-Based Learning in Higher Education in Europe: The DIFUCH Erasmus+Project. IFAC PapersOnLine, 56(2), pp9948-9953. https://doi.cor/10.1016/i.facol.2023.10.123

O’Brien, S., and O’Toole, T (2021). ‘The effectiveness of role autonomy in influencing job pursuit intentions of customer-oriented frontline job seekers’. Psychology & Marketing, 38(3), 512-523. http://doi.org/10.1002/mar.21450

Conference Papers:

May 2015: Research poster presented at Research Day,  South East Technology University: ‘Why and when are customer oriented service employees attracted to service organisations?’

July 2015: Research paper presented at the Doctoral Colloquium at the Academy of Marketing, University of Limerick: ‘Why and when are customer oriented service employees attracted to service organisations’. (ISBN.978.1.905952.64.9).

2016: Research paper preened at the Academy of Marketing, Northumbria University: ‘ Service Organisations – Journey to success: attracting customer oriented service workers (ISBN 978.1.906596.29.3).

May 2017: Paper presented at South East Technological University: Research Day: ‘Attracting supe-hero employees’. (winner of 2nd prize).

May 2018: Paper presented at South East Technological University: ‘Why and when are customer oriented employees attracted to service organisations?’

28th August 2024: Paper presented at IAM Conference in MTU with colleague Dr Arthur Kearney: Innovating ways of teaching place: New perspectives from case study research in an emerging TU. 

29th October 2024: Paper presented at 3rd Entrepreneurship Education Share & Learn Symposium, SETU, Waterford: Transforming student perspectives oon regnerative enteprise through teaching of place.

28th August 2025: Paper presented at IAM Conference Maynooth University.  Embedding place as a regenerative enterprise signature pedagogy.