Through open competition, the membership of the British Academy of Management (BAM), has elected Regent’s lecturer Dr Simon O'Leary as the next Chair of its Entrepreneurship Group.
A prominent Special Interest Group of BAM, the appointment complements Dr O’Leary’s current position as Director of the Regent’s University Research Centre for Entrepreneurship & Family Business.
“Chairing this prestigious and international group of academics and entrepreneurs will give me, and my colleagues in the Research Centre and across the University, opportunities to both learn and share expertise and experiences of entrepreneurship across its many facets, at a time when enterprise-related matters are at the forefront of almost every major and emerging economy around the world,” commented Dr O’Leary.
Professor Michael Luger, Dean of the Faculty of Business and Management at Regent’s, added: "The appointment of Dr Simon O'Leary to chair the BAM's Entrepreneurship group recognises the esteem in which Simon is held by his fellow Academy members.
“It also reflects well on what we are doing here at Regent's in the area of entrepreneurship and family business. In the past year alone, not only has one of our own been elected to this prestigious post, but we have launched the Entrepreneurship Hive, hosted an international partners' conference on universities roles in fostering entrepreneurship, seen many of our students and alumni launch their own businesses, and more."
The activities of the Entrepreneurship group are supported by the team at the Academy of Management and will help further enhance the reputation of Regent's within the international academic community.
The aim of these Special Interest Groups is to encourage greater member participation, and to provide a more diverse range of activities for Academy members. One of the original groups formed twenty years, Entrepreneurship plays a key role in the Academy’s Annual Conference, as well as providing a platform for experiences and upcoming academics to play active roles in the Academy.
Jonathan Liu, Professor of Global Business Management at Regent’s, also commented: “Dr Simon O’Leary’s election as Chair of the British Academy of Management’s Entrepreneurship Group is testament to the in-roads that he has made in gaining recognition as a leading scholar in an important academic field of research.
“The Entrepreneurship Group is the Academy’s second largest cognate area and is the fastest growing research area for the last few years. This achievement is a feather to the University’s cap, along with the recent creation of the Centre for Entrepreneurship and Family Business as a University Research Centre under the direction of Dr O’Leary.
“This allows the Faculty and University to further its endeavors in supporting the majority of our students who come from entrepreneurial and family businesses. In addition, this adds value to the university’s Entrepreneurship Hub and allows for greater traction to be made in bridging research and enterprise.”
