Research
With nearly twenty years experience in higher education, I am experienced in conducting commissioned research,
particularly in the areas of management, professional development and the arts. For example, a consortium in five
European countries, developed a sophisticated method to test how adaptable companies across Europe were to changing
business conditions. At the end of a trial period the consortium needed to know how effective the method was and
whether similar instruments existed else where in the business world. The consortium commissioned me to:
analyse the aggregated data from 542 questionnaires about the effectiveness of the
instrument;
do case studies on six of the participating companies;
interview consortium partners;
conduct a comparative study, benchmarking the instrument against similar tools for
organisational development.
The research was then submitted to the EU which funded the research.
Analysis
We can offer an objective perspective a second opinion a comprehensive balanced survey - on an aspect of your work,
based on an agreed framework of analysis. For example a regional healthcare client was considering the introduction of a
new layer of quality control but:
Would it duplicate existing practice?
What would managers think of it?
How did similar organisations carry out this function?
What were the practical considerations?
We undertook a feasibility study, interviewing key personnel, outlining the full practical implications, and
describing how similar work was carried out in parallel Canadian health care settings. Subsequently the client contracted
us to co-ordinate the drafting of their new quality control regulations.
Reporting
Sometimes organisations need to survey complex or wide ranging information but dont have staff readily available to
undertake this work. This is when our reporting services can be invaluable. For example, a government department wanted
to find out how fully schools in England were taking up some of its guidance materials. As part of a team we selected a
balanced sample of schools across the country and:
devised a questionnaire and sent it to over a hundred schools;
visited a sample of schools to interview managers, teachers and pupils;
analysed the guidance materials;
ran a consultation seminar in London;
reported on take up and:
Advised on how to develop and deploy the guidance.
Professional Development
While at Oxford Brookes University I ran two of the largest professional development programmes for serving teachers in
the country. So we are experienced in devising and running programmes of professional development for professional groups.
For example, I am currently running a postgraduate programme in teaching for consultants in a range of medical
specialties across the South Thames region.
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