Research clusters

• Organisations in Transition
• Sustainability & Circular Economy

Research interests

My research is based in the field of Operations & Supply Management and includes elements of innovation and information systems. It is grounded in the Theory of the Firm (e.g. RBV, NRBV, Dynamic capabilities) and explores the inter-organizational challenges around process implementation, policy innovation and strategies for change. I am currently engaged in the following research themes and would welcome quality research proposals from prospective doctoral students:

• Procuring complex performance – I study the long-term dynamics around governance mechanisms between private manufacturing contractors and public buyer organizations as they adopt a through-life approach to managing the procurement and support of complex platforms (e.g. warships). My 2011 edited book (with Caldwell) and 2014 IJOPM special issue on ‘PCP’ explored how buyers and suppliers co-evolve using a combination of contracts and trustful relationships to govern in-service support, maintenance and up-grades on complex platforms over extended lifecycles. My work on triadic dynamics explores how the role or function of contractors and government agents changes as the relationship develops over time.
• Circular economy implementation - I co-founded the circular economy business forum in 2014 with Julie Whittaker (UEBS) and Paul McCutchion (CEMPS) to assist local firms in moving away from the ‘doing less harm’ approach and towards capturing & co-creating value from recycling, re-use, sharing, services and product life extension, which are all part of circular business advantage. In 2016, I started as a co-investigator with Professor Steffen Boehm (Pi), Dr Navonil Mustafee, Professor Dragan Savic, and Dr Matt Lobley on EPSRC project EP/P008941/1 Modelling supply chain optimisation in the food and beverages industry: Helping SMEs in South West England work towards the circular economy. Total value: £483,000. This two-year interdisciplinary research project explores how SMEs in the food and beverage manufacturing industry of SW England can move towards the circular economy, the benefits of the transition, and enablers and barriers to progress. As a core group member of the Centre for Circular Economy, I am currently participating in a number of forthcoming events and research grant bids.
• Sustainable supply chain management – my introduction to sustainability in 2009 was examining how purchasing and supply management practices could stimulate a cleaner and more sustainable environment. My role in the EU funded ‘Clear about Carbon’ project in Cornwall (2009-13), for example, was to develop supply chain tools including lean mapping workshops with which to identify carbon hotspots and support the implementation of new information technology systems. My ACA-Bruel award winning 2014 textbook (with Johnsen & Miemczyk) was the first to introduce a sustainability perspective across all aspects of international purchasing and supply chain management, including sourcing, supplier relationships, supply strategy and risk. A second edition is planned to be released shortly.

Key publications | Publications by category | Publications by year

External positions

• External advisor for MSc Engineering Management programs, University of Bath, (2017)
• External examiner (PhD) for Universities of Lancaster (2012), Surrey (2015), Bath (2016), and Aalto (2017)
• Chairman for the Disruptive Innovation Festival live presentation and panel session held simultaneously between Exeter and Yokohama University, Japan (2015)
• Chairman for the advisory board of the ESF ‘Clear About Carbon’ project (2011)
• Advisor to the Chartered Institute of Purchasing & Supply Education Executive
• Reviewer for the Journal of Supply Chain Management, International Journal of Operations & Production Management, and Supply Chain Management: An International Journal.

Modules

2017/18

• BEM3022 - Purchasing and Supply Management
• BEMM126 - Purchasing and Supply Chain Management