This is year's DPDoR is fully booked. To express your interest in joining the 2024-25 cohort please email enquiries@charteredabs.org

Develop your strategic capabilities to manage research performance, strategy, and funding

The Development Programme for Directors of Research (DPDoR) helps those who are preparing for the role of Director of Research to build leadership capacity; to better understand the complexities of the role; and the nuances of delivering a research strategy and mission in these highly uncertain times.

Facilitated by Professor Natasha Mauthner, Director of Research at Newcastle University Business School, DPDoR is a multi-dimensional development programme designed to nurture professional and leadership development. Each module tackles a range of critical issues led by expert guest speakers and discussions are under the Chatham House Rule giving participants the opportunity for candid and frank discussion.

DPDoR has successfully run for over 15 years as part of a joint initiative between the Chartered Association of Business Schools and the British Academy of Management. During this time, the programme has prepared around 250 senior academics to lead their institutions’ research and navigate the internal and external demands of the day.

In 2023-24, the DPDoR programme will adopt an interactive and participatory format. Participants will be given opportunities to feed in questions to help shape the programme and its focus. Before each of the four sessions, participants will be asked to undertake preparatory work relevant to each session, reflecting on their own situation and context. Sessions will include group work to facilitate peer-to-peer learning. Participants will be encouraged to share relevant experiences and resources. Experienced research leaders from diverse backgrounds and different types of business school will be invited to each session to facilitate group discussions and share insights. The programme will focus on strategic capabilities as well as practical skills and competencies. Participants will be encouraged and supported to create a cohesive cohort for networking and staying in touch between the sessions and after completion of the programme.

Learning Outcomes

By the end of the programme you will have deepened your understanding about the role of Director of Research and about the skills, knowledge and behaviours that are important in the role. You will have had the opportunity to:

  • Build and enhance the skills and competencies required to be an effective Director of Research
  • Understand how the current external research, funding and policy environment affects your strategy for business and management research
  • Gain confidence in managing internal pressures, relationships, faculty performance and HR
  • Explore approaches to managing the REF process from strategy, implementation and the presentation of results

Session outlines 

Session One: Setting the scene for research leadership in UK business schools: Diversity of experiences
30 November - 1 December 2023, 4th Floor, Chartered ABS, 40 Queen Street, London, EC4R 1DD

Participants in the DPDoR programme are a diverse group of academics, at various career stages, and based in different types of UK business schools. This session uses participatory learning exercises to find out about the diversity of experiences, contexts, aspirations and challenges amongst participants. We will also begin the work of building the DPDoR cohort into a supportive group of colleagues who can learn from one another during and outside/beyond the programme sessions.

Session Two: Developing a research strategy
18 - 19 January 2024, MYO Liverpool Street, 69 Old Broad Street, London, EC2M 1QS

Continuing with a participatory learning approach, this session will focus on how to develop a research strategy, what its key elements might be, and the varieties of research strategy, and leadership/management approaches, depending on institutional contexts.

Session Three: Nurturing researchers and an inclusive research culture
14 - 15 March 2024, 4th Floor, Chartered ABS, 40 Queen Street, London, EC4R 1DD

Session 3 will focus on how to nurture a diverse community of researchers, and how to build an inclusive and supportive research culture that values varied research contributions and career pathways. Topics include: developing a mentoring programme and culture; developing and leading diverse research communities; promoting equality, diversity and inclusion; nurturing early career researchers; managing the impact of COVID19; developing postgraduate researchers; supporting and managing research performance; supporting research leadership development.

Session Four: Building a research infrastructure
6 - 7 June 2024, Hotel Du Vin, Cannizaro House, West Side Common, London, SW19 4UE

Session 4 explores how to build a research infrastructure to support excellent research. Topics include: strategies for research grant income generation; the role of research centres; capacity-building; internal allocation of time and funding for research, innovation and impact; research facilities; data capture systems; working with professional services colleagues; and responding to open access and sustainability agendas.

Session format

All modules are 24 hour 'lunch-to-lunch' sessions, the usual format being:

Day One

12:00 Registration & lunch

13:00 Day One session starts

The programme will include break(s)

17:00 Day One session concludes

19:00 Dinner

Day Two

08:30 Refreshments

09:00 Day Two session starts

The programme will include break(s)

13:00 Day Two programme concludes with lunch after which participants depart

 >>The programme fee includes Dinner and accommodation on the evening of Day One<<

Professor Natasha Mauthner
Former Director of Research, Newcastle University Business School

Natasha Mauthner is a Professor of Social Science Philosophy and Method and joined the Newcastle University Business School as Director of Research in September 2018. Prior to this appointment, she worked at the University of Aberdeen’s Business School (2003-2018) where she was Director of Research (2012-2018), led the REF2014 Business and Management submission, and was the Research Lead on the Business School’s Athena SWAN Bronze Award (2016-17). From 2013 to 2018 Natasha was an Associate Director of the Centre for Research on Families and Relationships, a consortium centre based at the University of Edinburgh. Natasha has also held research posts at the University of Aberdeen’s Arkleton Centre for Rural Development Research (1998-2003) and Health Services Research Unit (1995-1996), and the University of Edinburgh’s Research Unit in Health and Behavioural Change (1996-1998). Natasha has an Honorary Chair at the University of Aberdeen's Business School, and has had visiting appointments at the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, Carlton University in Canada, University of Melbourne in Australia, and the University of Canterbury in New Zealand.

Natasha holds an undergraduate degree in the natural sciences from the University of Cambridge (awarded 1989), in which she studied biology, history and philosophy of science, and experimental psychology. She moved into the Social and Political Sciences Faculty at the University of Cambridge for her PhD (awarded 1994), funded by a Medical Research Council studentship. Her doctoral thesis explored women's experiences of motherhood and was published as The Darkest Days of my Life: Stories of Postpartum Depression (Harvard University Press, 2002). In 1994 she took up a postdoctoral fellowship at the Harvard University Graduate School of Education to work with Professor Carol Gilligan funded by scholarships from the Fulbright Commission, the Harold Hyam Wingate Foundation, and the American Association of University Women Educational Foundation.

In 2017 Natasha was elected Fellow of the Academy of Social Sciences in recognition of her international expertise and contribution to the development of a critical social science and methodological innovation in qualitative research.

Natasha has published over 60 peer reviewed journal articles and book chapters, and a book by Harvard University Press. She has contributed to leading journals such as SociologyGender, Work and Organisation; and Work, Employment and Society, and to benchmark edited collections (most recently a piece on research ethics for the Sage Handbook of Qualitative Research Ethics, 2018) and encyclopaedia entries (most recently on ‘Data Sharing Methods’ in the Wiley-Blackwell's Encyclopedia of Sociology, 2017).

Natasha is an Editorial Board Member of Qualitative Research and sits on the Chartered Association of Business Schools Research Committee. She has acted as an External Reviewer of Research Excellence Framework preparations for several universities.

Funding sources for Natasha's research have included the Economic and Social Research Council, the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council, the European Union, the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, the Society for Research Into Higher Education, the Carnegie Trust, the Royal Society of Edinburgh and the Scottish Universities Insight Institute.

Natasha has been engaged in a programme of knowledge exchange activities through contributions to the media, public events, blogs, practitioner conferences, collaborative projects with artists, and the development of academic-policy-practitioner networks.

Natasha has undertaken extensive undergraduate and postgraduate teaching over the past 30 years, and she has a passion for teaching courses on research philosophies and methods; and gender, work and organisation.

Professor Mark NK Saunders - University of Birmingham 

Mark NK Saunders is the Professor of Business Research Methods and Director of Global Engagement at Birmingham Business School.

His research interests include:

  • Research methods, in particular participants selection, methods for understanding organizational relationships;
  • Trust and human resource aspects of the management of change, in particular trust within and between organizations and organizational learning;
  • Small and medium sized enterprise (SME) success.

Mark’s work has been recognised by a number awards including a Fellowship of the Academy of Social Sciences in recognition of contribution to methods and human resource management research and social science researcher development; the British Academy of Management Medal for Leadership in recognition of his contribution to capacity building and a Fellowship of the British academy of Management. In 2021 his textbook Research Methods for Business Students was ranked the World’s most influential business and economics textbook by the “FT (Financial Times) Teaching Power” league table. He is a founding panel member and fellow of the British Academy of management’s Peer Review College. He holds visiting professorships at Birkbeck, University of London and the Universities of Surrey and Worcester.

Professor Anne-Wil Harzing - Middlesex University, London 

Anne-Wil Harzings' role at Middlesex University focuses on developing MDX research culture and capabilities through a wide range of individual, departmental, School and Faculty-wide initiatives as well as University-wide advice on international research rankings and MDX reputation management. Originally from the Netherlands, Anne-Wil has more than 30 years of experience in academia, and before joining Middlesex has worked at six different universities in three countries. Most recently, Anne-Wil was Associate Dean Research at the University of Melbourne, Australia.

In the last 30+ years Anne-Wil has worked in the area of international management, with a focus on HQ-subsidiary relationships, international HRM and expatriate management. Anne-Wil has also studied topics in what is called the "Science of Science", i.e. the mechanisms underlying the "doing of Science", including gender bias in Science, evaluation of research performance, and disciplinary differences in publication and citation practices. At present Anne-Wils' main academic passions are twofold.

 

 

 

 

Dr Nigel L. Williams - University of Portsmouth

Dr Nigel L. Williams, PMP is the Reader in Project Management and Associate Head for Research and Innovation in the School of Organizations, Systems and People at the University of Portsmouth.

Before joining academia, Nigel worked for 15 years as a Manager and Business Consultant for enterprises in the Caribbean Region. While holding a PhD in Engineering from the University of Cambridge, Nigel also hold a BSc in Mechanical Engineering and an MSc in Marketing from the University of the West Indies. Since joining academia, Nigel has linked education, research and professional practice. His research has utilised systems approaches to examine the evolution of organisational and inter-organisational capabilities in a variety of contexts, including projects and networks. This work has underpinned knowledge exchange, innovation and impact activities in the area of operational efficiency, organisational capability development and organisational adaptation to changing contexts.

 

 

Professor Jemina Napier - Heriott Watt University 

Professor Jemina Napier is Chair of Intercultural Communication and is currently the Associate Principal for Research Culture & People for Heriot-Watt University. She previously served as the Director of Research for the School of Social Sciences (2019-2022), the Director of the Centre for Translation & Interpreting Studies in Scotland (CTISS)(2018-2021) and Head of the Department of Languages & Intercultural Studies (2014-2018).

After completing an MA in BSL/ English Interpreting at Durham University in the UK in 1998, Jemina moved to Australia to undertake her PhD in Linguistics at Macquarie University, which she completed in 2001. She then established the Postgraduate Diploma/Masters programme in Auslan/ English Interpreting in the Department of Linguistics at Macquarie University in Sydney in 2002, and subsequently became Head of Translation & Interpreting programmes and Director of the Centre for Translation & Interpreting Research from 2007-2012, where she is now an Adjunct Professor. Jemina took up her Chair position at Heriot-Watt Univeristy in February 2013. She is also a Visiting Professor at the Centre for Deaf Studies at Trinity College Dublin and a Corresponding Fellow of the Australian Academy of the Humanities. In 2022 she completed a Postgraduate Certificate in Gender, Sexuality & Society from Birkbeck University London.

 

Professor Annie Wei - University of Leeds

Before joining the Business School in December 2013, Yingqi (Annie) Wei had held a chair position at the University of York since July 2008. Her main research areas of interest are foreign direct investment (FDI), international trade and economic development, with a focus on the determinants and impact of inward FDI in China and the internationalization of Chinese multinationals. She has published in various journals including Journal of International Business Studies, Journal of World Business, Research Policy, Regional Studies, Cambridge Journal of Economics and World Development. She is also the recipient of best paper award in Academy of International Business (UK&Ireland) and Academy of Marketing Conference and International Journal of the Economics of Business, Highly Commended paper in European Journal of Marketing in the 2017 Emerald Literati Network Awards for Excellence and the 2020 CEIBS Best Paper Award Finalist for the IM Division, Academy of Management.

Yingqi has taught a range of subjects at various levels, including International Business, Foreign Direct Investment, Economics, Economies of China and India, Emerging Economies, Mathematical Economics, Statistics, and Econometrics. She previously worked at Rutgers, Bradford, Sheffield, Lancaster and Aston University. She also taught at Helsinki School of Economics, Sun Yat-sun University, Hunan University and Southwest University of Finance and Economics. Yingqi is currently Book Series Editor, Palgrave and Macmillan Asian Business Series and serves as a member of the Editorial Board of the Journal of Chinese Economic and Business Studies and Management and Organization Review.

Professor Stuart Roper - Huddersfield Business School

Stuart Roper currently works at the Huddersfield Business School, University of Huddersfield where he is Professor of Marketing and Associate Dean (Research).. Stuart conducts research in Marketing, specifically in Branding and Brand Management Current projects include 'Branded Litter' and 'Temporal Aspects of Branding'.

 

 

 

 

 

Professor Crispin Coombs - Loughborough Business School 

Professor Crispin Coombs is an experienced and successful leader within the Business School environment, undertaking various senior management roles. His research expertise is located in the information systems domain and concerns the effective management of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and robotics to deliver business benefits. He is a member of the Business and Management Studies sub-panel for the assessment phase of the Research Excellence Framework (REF) 2021.

Crispin has published over 85 outputs including 36 refereed journal papers (including three at ABS 4*), 39 conference papers and 10 official reports and book chapters. He is a Senior Editor for the European Journal of Information Systems, one of the AIS Basket of Eight top Information Systems journals. He is also a Senior Editor at the journal Information Technology and People. Crispin an Editorial Board member of the International Journal of Information Management and the International Journal of Project Management.

Professor Coombs was elected to the Board of the UK Academy of Information Systems (UKAIS) in 2015 and served as Vice-President of UKAIS between 2018-2020. Professor Coombs has served on 31 international conference committees. In 2017 Professor Coombs was appointed as a Visiting Professor at the University of Sao Paulo, Brazil.

He is committed to generating research income and has secured over £0.5million from funding bodies including STFC, CIPD, British Academy, EPSRC, ESRC, NIHR SDO Programme, Department of Health and Department of Business, Innovation and Skills.

Crispin is an experienced teacher and facilitator, teaching on undergraduate, postgraduate and MBA programmes. He has been a Fellow of the HEA since 2007 and is a member of the Association of Information Systems, and UK Academy of Information Systems. Professor Coombs holds external examining positions at the University of Leeds and University of Sheffield and is a regular external PhD examiner.

Professor Tim Vorley - Oxford Brookes Business School

Professor Tim Vorley is Pro Vice-Chancellor and Dean of Oxford Brookes Business School, and is the lead for Entrepreneurship and Enterprise within the Vice-Chancellor’s Group.

Prior to his role at Oxford Brookes, Tim held positions at the Universities of Sheffield and Cambridge, and at the Saïd Business School (University of Oxford). He currently leads the Innovation Caucus, co-funded by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) and Innovate UK, and has previously led several projects funded under the Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund, Horizon Europe and ESRC.

Tim is an economic geographer by training and his research focuses on entrepreneurship, enterprise and regional economic development. He works extensively with a number of central government departments and agencies, as well as with Local Enterprise Partnerships and local government bodies. He is a member of the ESRC Strategic Advisory Network, the UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) Skills and Talent Advisory Group, and chairs the ESRC's Transforming Business through Social Science advisory group.

Tim is also the Vice-Chair of the Small Business Charter, created by Lord Young, which is leading the delivery of the Help to Grow Management programme through business schools across the UK.

Dr Nikolay Mehandjiev - The University of Manchester 

Dr Mehandjiev is the Academic Director for the Data Visualisation Observatory at Alliance Manchester Business School.

Dr Mehandjiev is a Professor of Enterprise Information Systems at the Alliance Manchester Business School. He has initiated and managed projects worth €8m of which € 5.3m to the University of Manchester. The most recent project in which he participates is DIGICOR, a €10m  project involving Airbus and Comau.

Nikolay's visiting appointments include:

  • Visiting Academic to SAP Research Labs, Karlsruhe, Germany in 2007.
  • Visiting Senior Lecturer with Dept Informatics, University of Sussex, UK in 2007.
  • Visiting Academic to Atos Origin SAE, Barcelona, Spain.
  • Short-Term Fellowship with BT Research Labs, Ipswich in 1998.
  • Visiting Fellow at the University of New South Wales, Australia, in 2001 and 2019.

Before joining The University of Manchester, he was a lecturer in Information Systems in the School of Management at the University of Hull, from 1995 to 1998.

I am text block. Click edit button to change this text. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Ut elit tellus, luctus nec ullamcorper mattis, pulvinar dapibus leo.

I am text block. Click edit button to change this text. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Ut elit tellus, luctus nec ullamcorper mattis, pulvinar dapibus leo.

Who should apply?

  • Directors of Research
  • Those working towards the role of Director of Research

Participants on DPDoR, once accepted, are encouraged to discuss with their Dean or Head of Department their learning objectives and prospective actions for research strategy from the programme. Reflections upon this and discussion about realising prospective learning and actions will form a central component of the DPDoR.

Testimonials

“I really valued the community of Research Directors that this programme enabled me to connect with. Sharing experiences in candid conversations made this totally worthwhile.”

Professor Katy Mason, Research Enhancement Director, Lancaster University Management School

 

“This has been an excellent experience. A good balance of interesting guest speakers and discussion within the group. I am going away with a more strategic focus and lots of good ideas I can implement within my institution.”

Dr Marian Iszatt-White, Lecturer in Department of Leadership and Management and LUMS Doctoral Director, Lancaster University Management School

 

“The programme has been excellent and the input and discussion thought provoking”

Professor Helen Shipton, Professor of International Human Resource Management and Co-Director of the Centre of People, Work and Organisational Practice, Nottingham Business School

 

“This was an excellent programme”

Will Harvey, Associate Dean (Research & Impact), University of Exeter

 

“This was an extraordinary experience, better than my best expectations!”

Alcino Azevedo, Senior Lecturer in Finance, Aston Business School

Programme fee: £4,150

Please note: Due to the nature of the programme which focuses on personal development and encourages frank and open discussion, it may not always be suitable for two participants to attend from the same institution. If we receive two registrations from individuals at the same institution we will notify the institution and the participants, taking account of when the registrations were received, and ask for guidance on whether one or both can attend on the same programme.

If you have any queries, please contact us on enquiries@charteredabs.org or 020 7634 9582.

To register, please visit the BAM website.