Following a global hunt, Newcastle University Business School has welcomed over 20 new scholarly appointments from eight countries, including a director of teaching and learning, in what has been a dynamic period in the School’s development.

The recruitment of a Director of School, three professors, senior lecturers, and research associates, forms part of the Business School’s current drive to attract world-leading academics.  

An ongoing feature of academic recruitment is its international dimension – new faculty members have been attracted from Austria, China, Greece, Iran, India, Mauritius, and Estonia, as well as the UK. 

Dr Colin Ashurst is the new director of teaching and learning, overseeing student recruitment on a local, national and international scale, alongside the management of teaching programmes and academics. Joining from Durham University Business School, Colin has previously worked for Ernst and Young, Asda Stores Limited, and Microsoft, with a background in information systems before his life in academia. 

Colin said: “Newcastle University Business School has a range of strong, distinctive programmes that I intend to build on.  We are a contemporary player in the global business school market, part of the prestigious Russell Group, and with a strong commitment to global communities and industries.

“My priority is to develop a challenging and multicultural learning environment and for us to be regarded around the world, as a great place to teach or be taught. We will focus on sharing good practice and innovation within the Business School and out into the business community at all levels, to help us achieve our aim of being regionally rooted, nationally influential, and globally respected.”

World-class scholar Professor Frank Mueller, from St Andrews, has joined the Business School as Professor of Strategy and International Business Management.  His research interests lie in the strategic issues surrounding the employee organisation relationship, restructuring professional organisations (in particular health and engineering) and the theory and practice of Human Resource Management and team working.

Professor Markus Blut, from TU Dortmund, Germany, took up his new role as Professor of Marketing in October and specialises in services marketing, working closely with many industrial corporations in his research.

Professor Steve Vincent, from the University of Leeds, also joined in October as the Business School’s new Professor of Human Resource Management, and will contribute his research interests around the micro-political economy of work. 

Newcastle University Business School’s Director, John Wilson, said: “It has been a time of transition and investment at the Business School with the current recruitment drive, which led to me joining Business School.  We are delighted to have welcomed leading international thinkers as a result of this ongoing investment and our aim is to be excellent in absolutely everything we do – from research to teaching. We are already making good progress but this new intake of minds will no doubt help us towards that objective.”

A further 16 posts have been confirmed, including two economists: Dr Diemo Dietrich has been appointed Senior Lecturer in Financial Economics, from a research institute in Halle, Germany.  Dr Volodymyr Bilotkach brings specialist knowledge in the economics of the aviation industry.

Professor Chris Brink, Vice-Chancellor, Newcastle University added: “Attracting academics of this calibre is proof of the Business School’s growing reputation and its global ambitions.  It marks a major commitment by the University to provide our students with the very best academic support from some of the international leaders in their fields.”
 

published on: 11 December 2012