Dr Ioannis Christodoulou

I am a Senior Lecturer in Business Strategy with multiple awards on my teaching contribution and an extensive portfolio of impactful research. 

Amongst other posts, I am also the Deputy Research Leader for the School of Management and Marketing, Academic Cooridnator for the CEMS (Global Alliance of Masters in Management)Thought Leadership Initiative. 

In my role as a Senior Lecturer at Westminster Business School, my responsibilities encompass a multifaceted array of academic and administrative duties, all aimed at enhancing the educational experience and strategic development within the institution.

 As the Deputy Research and Knowledge Exchange (RKE) Leader for the school of Management and Marketing I am responsible for the following tasks: Growth in research and KE income above the benchmark for our peer group, Develop research communities to grow UoW research income and profile. Pursue clear plan of activities to support people and culture and Preparation for REF 2029

 As the Case Centre Member and Representative for the Westminster Business School I aim to design dynamic case writing courses and build a case community of practice in our school. Furthermore, I organize and plan to run training sessions on: ‘’teaching in the digital age by modernising case study methodology through technology integration’’, ‘’delivering a real-life case learning experience’’, ‘’case method as a potent tool for coaching startup founders’’, and ‘’explore AI-generated case content innovative applications for faculty’’.

As the Assistant Director of the Service Research & Customer Experience Centre of the University of Westminster, I aim to expand the research capacity of the SRCE centre, by organizing research workshops withing WBS (to

over 30 participants across UoW), applying for research grants, creating a mentoring programme for our ECRs.

I am also an active research member of the Forum for Uzbek and Silk Road Studies  and  active research member of the Cross Cultural and Global Management group

As an SL, I am also tasked with the meticulous design, development, and delivery of lectures and seminars tailored to final year undergraduate and postgraduate students, with a particular focus on MBA cohorts, pertaining to the domains of business strategy and strategic management. At the same time for the last 10 years, I successfully lead the international consultancy module (and its previous versions) taking the MBA students to a transformational experience in working with a client company abroad in solving consultancy cases. My teaching is always research-informed, interactive and engaging encompassing new teaching technologies and methods. Furthermore, I undertake the supervision of dissertations for postgraduate students, alongside mentoring three doctoral candidates within cognate research domains.

Integral to my academic engagement is my involvement in the rigorous processes of institutional assessment and validation, notably as a panel member and internal reviewer for the recent Research Excellence Framework (REF) at Westminster Business School. My scholarly contributions manifest notably through the publication of seven papers within the current academic year, of which three have attained a distinguished 3-star rating within the ABS listing framework. Currently I am an active member of Service Innovation & Customer Experience Centre, I have more than 10 papers to be submitted within 2024 and two research fund applications.

Over the span of a decade, I have assumed the mantle of managing the largest module at WBS, catering to a considerable cohort comprising over a thousand students and supported by a team of twenty-two colleagues annually. This stewardship has been underscored by laudatory commendations from students, culminating in nominations as 'Champion of Educational Experience', 'Outstanding Teacher', and 'Personal Tutor', alongside the prestigious accolade of 'Best Teacher' within the University, a distinction consistently reaffirmed through successive nominations. I feel that my stewardship has been important in augmenting the National Student Survey (NSS) results, impacting positively on student satisfaction and engagement.

In tandem with my pedagogical endeavours, I am actively engaged in fortifying the school's external relations and business development initiatives, orchestrating outreach activities to secure sponsors and funding whilst fostering symbiotic linkages between academia and industry. Noteworthy initiatives include the organisation of alumni events and business meetings in the past, featuring organisations such as BA and BBC, garnering commendable attendance and feedback. Additionally, I play an instrumental role in workshops dedicated to the advancement of the School's and University's strategic imperatives.

Furthermore, working closely with the marketing team of WBS in the past I actively participated in the international expansion initiatives aimed at augmenting the prominence of WBS's postgraduate and MBA offerings, leveraging participation in targeted fairs and forging strategic partnerships both domestically and abroad, resulting in a robust pipeline of prospective students.

Beyond the confines of academic institution, I actively disseminate my research insights as a guest lecturer and invited speaker, championing discourse on Middle Management and Small Medium Enterprises (SMEs) Strategy across diverse platforms and media channels, thereby amplifying the visibility and reputation of both my research endeavours and Westminster Business School as a whole.

Education

PhD Strategic Management, Athens University of Economics and Business 

MBA, Athens University of Economics and Business - Budapest University of Economics and Public Administration 

BSc Marketing and Management Science, Athens University of Economics and Business

Professional memberships

Strategic Management Society, Member

Academy of Management, Member

European Academy of Management, Reviewer 

British Academy of Management, Reviewer, Member 

EURODOC, Member 

Cognitive Edge, Accredited Practitioner and Member 

Presencing Institute, Member 

Hellenic Association of Doctoral Researchers, Public Relations Representative (2004-2007), Member 

MBA Alumni of Athens University of Economics and Business, Member 

Greek Marketing Academy, Member 

JADE HELLAS (Greek Federation of Junior Enterprises member of JADE EU), Programmes Developer (2005-2007), Member 

Hellenic Institute of Marketing, Member 

Hellenic Management Association, Member 

Economic Chamber of Greece, Member 

Consultancy and professional practice

ADMINISTRATIVE DUTIES

Ioannis has worked as a Coordinator of Strategic Management and Business Policy Laboratory (Research Centre) for Athens University of Economics and Business 

As Head of Corporate Development in his earlier academic UK post he proposed, developed and managed the following activities:

• "Career Days" events (linking students with companies, through organising days of interviews within the campus),
• "Business Symposium" event, (a three-day event that the best academic projects both from students and professors of the college were presented in workshops that related companies participated through panel discussions),
• "Modus Vivendi" Business Student Competition, (a real-life business game for students with Business Sponsors, linking academia with industry),
• "On Site" and "Business Trip" events (visits of groups of students inside the companies along with tours and speeches by CEO's), and finally the
• "Business Voice" events (seminars and tutorials by top executives that accepted the invitation to visit the campus and deliver a speech, seminar or tutorial of a topic from the contemporary business life to students and guests.

Ioannis also worked as a Programme Leader for Executive Consulting and Training programmes and was a member of Total Quality Team (TQT) for validations, reviews, exam boards, academic panels, in his previous University post. 

He has also served as Communication and Promotion Representative for Hellenic Association of Doctorates Researchers - Hel.As.D.R. with the following responsibilities:

• Promotion and Marketing of the work of Hel.As.D.R. to Greek doctorate researchers both in Greek and Foreign Universities.
• Organisation of mini conferences and events to promote the work of young researchers and develop the newsletter of the association.
• Representation of the Greek Doctorate Researchers and Greece in European Conferences organised by the EU and EURODOC (The European Council of PhD Candidates and Junior Researchers): "Bologna Seminar on Doctoral Programs for the European Knowledge Society" in Salzburg/Austria 3-5 Feb 2005 by EU, "EURODOC's Annual Meeting" Bologna/Italy 9-12 Mar 2006, "Doctoral Programmes in Europe" Nice/France 7/9 Dec 2006 by EU

ORGANISATION OF CONFERENCES

Executive member in the organising committees of:

• '4th Annual Conference of European Doctoral Researchers - EURODOC (The European Council of PhD Candidates and Junior Researchers)', Athens University of Economics and Business, 18-21 March 2004.
• 'Career Show', Athens University of Economics and Business, 2003-2006.
• 'Expressions of Managerial Thought', Delphi & Patra, 2003 - 2006.
• 'Money Show', Various Institutions and Greek Universities - representative of Athens University of Economics and Business, 2006-2008.
• 'Career Days', University of Hertfordshire - Campus of IST College, 2006-2011.
• 'Business Symposium', University of Hertfordshire - Campus of IST College, 2010-today.

Ioannis is currently developing heavily his research portfolio. His research areas deal with Middle Management, Blue Ocean Strategy, SMEs and Strategy as Practice.

He has served as track co-chair for the Strategy as Practice track for the British Academy of Management for 3 years and he is quite active in research networking.

At the same time, Ioannis is serving as a reviewer for various prestigious academic journals and conferences such as European Journal of Management and BAM conference. He is part of the 'Service Research and Customer Experience Research Group '' at Westminster Business School.

He is currently working on publications such as : 

 - Blue Ocean Strategy and development pathways, 

 - Middle Managers strategic roles in a digital environment, 

 - SMEs digital strategizing.

Finally, Ioannis, has 4 PhD completions so far and currently he  is happily supervising PhD students on areas that cover Strategy, Strategic Decision Making, Sustainable Business Models, Blue Ocean and Innovation. 

For details of all my research outputs, visit my WestminsterResearch profile.