News
| 24.01.2022

Hanken mourns the passing of Professor Veronica Liljander

In Memoriam Veronica Liljander
Veronica Liljander was a productive and respected professor, researcher, and colleague. She was very involved in teaching and supervised many students on both master's and doctoral level.

Professor Liljander passed away at the age of 61 on 23 January 2022 as a result of a rapidly progressing illness. Liljander held various positions at Hanken since 1985. In 1995, she defended her doctoral thesis at Hanken and became a professor of marketing at Hanken in 2002.

Over the years, Professor Liljander held many university positions, including Head of Department of Marketing and most recently as Head of Subject for marketing. As a teacher and supervisor, she was dedicated to helping students achieve their goals.

"It is with great sadness that we received the news that our long-standing and esteemed colleague and friend has passed away. On behalf of Hanken and myself, I would like to express our warmest condolences", says Hanken's Rector Karen Spens.

Professor Liljander was a leading researcher in consumer behaviour, and service and relationship marketing, especially in research on service quality, customer relations, and e-commerce. She made significant contributions to the understanding of people's buying behaviour and perceptions of services.

"Professor Liljander has for decades actively contributed to marketing research - research that has always followed market development and been modern", says Head of Department, Professor Peter Björk.

Professor Liljander held many academic expert positions in both Finland and Sweden and was a respected member of the editorial board of leading service marketing journals such as the Journal of Service Research, European Journal of Marketing, Journal of Service Management, Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, and European Business Review.

"Veronica contributed to the development of service and relationship marketing research in the 1990s, a research field for which Hanken is still internationally known", says Professor Kristina Heinonen, Director of the CERS Centre for Relationship Marketing and Service Management at Hanken.

The staff and students at Hanken remember professor Veronica Liljander with warmth and our thoughts are with her family and friends.