Karla Sayegh

Dr Karla Sayegh

BA BS MBA PhD

Karla is a social scientist and ethnographer of work. She studies how experts change their ways of working in response to radical change, with an interest in healthcare organisations. In particular, her research examines how emerging technologies, novel spaces and new tools transform how experts collaborate with one another to perform their work.

Karla Sayegh

Karla holds a BS in Economics, summa cum laude, from the Wharton School, a BA in Asian and Middle Eastern Studies, summa cum laude, from the College of Arts and Sciences at the University of Pennsylvania, an MBA with distinction from Yale University and a PhD in Management (Strategy and Organization) from McGill University. Her recent fieldwork followed two of Canada’s largest tertiary care hospitals as they merged their specialty units and relocated onto a newly built and equipped CAN$ 3 billion super hospital facility. The papers emerging from this ethnography have won multiple awards: the sole finalist for the William H. Newman prize at the Academy of Management (AOM), two best paper awards at AOM's healthcare division, one best dissertation award at AOM's healthcare division, two best student paper awards and a paper of merit award at the Organisational Behaviour in Health Care (OBHC) conference and the Administrative Science Association of Canada (ASAC). Her co-authored paper in Information and Organization entitled ‘Working and organizing in the age of the learning algorithm’, is among the journal’s most cited papers.

 

Karla’s current research examines how experts coordinate their work under conditions of uncertainty, rapid change and complexity. She studies how emerging technologies and novel spaces are transforming work and cross-disciplinary collaboration in organizations.

 

What's on

A close-up of a purple allium flower with a spherical cluster of tiny blossoms on a tall stem, set against a softly blurred garden background.

Wolfson Bulb Trail

11/04/2026 at 10.00

Our new bulb trail allows you to enjoy our thoughtfully planted displays and explore our beautiful College Gardens at your own pace.

A vibrant abstract collage filled with layered cut-paper shapes, symbols, and text fragments in bright reds, oranges, blues, and purples, radiating outward from a glowing central area.

Art Exhibition: 'Epic Journeys'

11/04/2026 at 10.00

Visit Wolfson's latest exhibition 'Epic Journeys' featuring work by distinguished artist Hassan Aliyu.

An older woman in a red striped shirt and glasses stretches her arms out while standing on a sandy beach with waves in the background.

Lessons from WHO Non-Communicable Disease Initiative about Chronic Disease

21/04/2026 at 17.30

What links osteoporosis and heart disease? Dr Gordon Klein reveals surprising connections between two of ageing's biggest health challenges, and what they mean for prevention.

Alumni

Wolfson Alumni Reunion Dinner

25/04/2026 at 19.00

Celebrating 10, 20, 30 (and more) years since matriculation!

A pair of red, white, and blue patterned knitted gloves in progress with knitting needles and yarn rest on top of two books, one featuring a colorful bird and floral illustration on the cover.

Making the Past: Historical Recreation and Material Culture

29/04/2026 at 13.00

How do recreations of clothes, food, and objects generate new questions and knowledge about historical practices and lived experience?

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