People and Organisations

Photo of people in a crowd

We are a diverse group of academics who research many aspects of work and organisations.

These can be broadly understood as centring on organisation studies and organisational psychology; and management and organisational learning, processes, change and innovation. Members of the department also have an interest in academic practices like research ethics and the politics of knowledge production.


Research into Employment and Equitable Futures

We seek to explore and shape the future direction of equitable futures, work and society with dedicated research into this area. In partnership with The People Space, this academic centre of excellence draws on the Department for People and Organisations' scholarly expertise on themes of identity, leadership, gender, bodies, ethics, power and learning to inform policy makers, organisational leaders, social practitioners and people from across contexts to work together to co-create innovative solutions for meeting these coming opportunities and challenges.

Gendered Organisational Practice

This research cluster takes feminist solidarity as a starting point to create a space where feminists of any gender can share insights and knowledge from academic study and practice. The cluster fosters continuous collaboration and exchange between practitioners and academics and provides a hub for those interested in developing equality through their research, but also for practitioners wanting to make their organisations more egalitarian and fairer places. Current areas of expertise include gendered working bodies, feminist organising and gender and sexuality. 


Research interests

Organisation studies and organisational psychology

  • Alternative organisations and organising
  • Civil society organisations
  • Corporate social responsibility
  • Critical approaches to leadership and leadership dilemma
  • Critical management studies
  • Diversity in organisations
  • Emotions in organisations
  • Employee branding
  • Financialisation and political and ethical responses
  • Gender, sexuality, the body in organisations and how bodies are organised
  • Human-animal relations in organisations
  • Individual and group behaviour in organisational contexts
  • The interplay between work and health
  • Organisational democratic practice
  • Organisational and individual identity, subjectivity, selfhood and the meaning of work
  • Organisations, work and social inclusion
  • Post-colonial relations in organisations
  • Power, politics and organisations
  • Professional occupations
  • Precarious work
  • The production, dissemination and contestation of meaning in organisations
  • The psychology of financial behaviour
  • Risk, uncertainty, and resilience
  • Sociological accounts of work
  • Transformations in technological and institutional conditions

Management and organisational learning, processes, change and innovation

  • Change management
  • Cross-cultural differences and self and group regulation in online learning
  • Collective organising and social learning processes
  • Decision-making under radical uncertainty
  • The development of business and management practices
  • Entrepreneurship
  • Formal and informal learning in organisations
  • Green HRM
  • Higher education management
  • Knowledge management
  • Management Information Systems
  • Managing inter-organisational relations in complex services
  • Management practices
  • Operations management
  • Serious games and the contribution of gamification to organisational learning and innovation
  • Strategic change
  • Supply chain management and behaviour
  • Supply chain analytics and modelling
  • Supply chain performance measurement systems
  • Sustainability and resilience in the supply chain 

Academic practices

  • Embodiment and affect in research
  • The politics of academic knowledge production
  • Research ethics
  • Research methods

Academic Publications

Full details of our research publications can be found on Open Research Online and via our staff pages.


Teaching

Members of the Department teach across undergraduate, postgraduate and executive education modules in areas such as organisational behaviour, management of learning and change, professional development, human resource management, creativity, leadership, innovation, organisational culture and organisational development. We also run the CIPD accredited MSc in Human Resource Management.


Contact the Department for People and Organisations

For all department-related enquiries, please email us.

For all other enquiries, including student and alumni, please visit our contact us page.

New External Advisors join OUBS’ Masters Programme Committee

The Open University Business (OUBS) is pleased to announce two new External Advisor appointments. Dr Priya E. Abraham has been appointed as the External Industry Advisor and Professor Colin Beard joins as the External Academic Advisor.

11th April 2016

Working carers: a problem for organisations?

In the West, we are all living longer. While this is undoubtedly a triumph in terms of advances in medicine, nutrition and lifestyle, at the same time, it has thrown up a huge challenge for families, communities and institutions who have to work out how to care for elderly people for much longer periods of time than ever before.

21st March 2016

The ‘always on’ workplace: opportunities, risks and how to make it work

Today there is potentially an “always on workplace”, and this introduces exciting possibilities of better balance between work and leisure with many reporting increased levels of satisfaction. However, a potential increase in work intensification, and people’s struggles to detach from work, reminds us that with the possibilities come the problems.

15th March 2016

With Michigan triumph, Sanders proves the US need not settle for the ‘inevitable’

The media and political establishment have been ready to write off Bernie Sanders for some time. Not so fast.

9th March 2016

OUBS launches Centre of excellence for Voluntary Sector Leadership

The Open University Business School has announced the launch of its first free online course as part of the newly established Centre for Voluntary Sector Leadership.

1st March 2016

OUBS ranked sixth in QS Distance Online MBA Rankings 2016

This year’s edition is QS’s most comprehensive yet, with thirty online MBA’s being ranked. The Open University’s online MBA has risen two places from 2015 to stand sixth in the 2016 rankings.

23rd February 2016

Why are today’s progressive political heroes still old white men?

Left-wing grassroots movements are swelling their ranks and winning elections – but their standard-bearers are same old, same old.

12th February 2016

OUBS ranked sixth in Global Online MBA Rankings 2016

The OUBS is ranked joint sixth in the Global Online MBA Rankings, alongside IE Business School.

8th February 2016

Why leaders need to be systems thinkers

Systems thinking is a highly effective approach to managing organisations.To get the complete picture, leaders need an in-depth knowledge of the entire organisation, its various moving parts, and how each component impacts upon the rest. But there’s more to systems thinking than that.

11th January 2016

Socialism is not a dirty word: Bernie Sanders really is changing US democracy

The irascible, unassuming junior senator from Vermont is riding high – and the effect could echo for years to come.

21st November 2015
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