Dean Fiona Devine

Alliance Manchester Business School, The University of Manchester

“My younger self was much more timid than the person I am today. I have had setbacks like anyone which seemed harder to handle then. Life’s experiences shape who we become and our resilience too. I was preoccupied with succeeding in my academic career first and then management and leadership opportunities came along later. I wish I had known how much I would enjoy working alongside people doing amazing things”

Where you’re from/place of origin:


U.K.

Where you previously studied
:

Degrees, master’s and doctorate were all gained from the University of Essex, U.K.

Previous roles:

I have been Head of Alliance MBS since 2013 and a Professor of Sociology since 2001. 
Head of the School of Social Sciences, The University of Manchester, 2009-2013
Head of Department of Sociology, The University of Manchester, 2004-2007

How has your business school adapted to the Covid-19 crisis, and what initiatives and innovations have you implemented?

The pandemic has meant that more of our teaching has been undertaken online than in previous years. We transitioned quickly to online learning at all levels of study during the first UK lockdown, utilising expertise and platforms from our Global Part-time MBA. We have 30 years’ experience of delivering the Global MBA in a ‘blended’ online and face-to-face format.
We launched an exciting suite of new short online executive courses, in partnership with Emeritus, an online education provider. Those courses, on topics like data and digital transformation, are about leaders ‘topping up’ their existing skillset and ensuring they’re at the cutting-edge of the latest business thinking.

Since the pandemic struck, academics from across the School have turned their attention to researching the impact of Covid-19 on their own specific research areas, with colleagues working closely with government and industry from the outset, supporting them with plans for ensuring recovery. We continue to issue fortnightly briefings to a wide international audience on Covid-recovery and have recently received almost £1million in funding to continue this work. We also launched our new £32million national Productivity Institute, headquartered at Alliance MBS, which will look at how productivity is central to driving forward our long-term economic recovery post pandemic.

What do you feel are the most important skills needed for managing a business school through a crisis?


Managing a business school through the crisis has been about agility and responding at pace to a fast-moving situation.

Like all business schools, we have had to deal with changing circumstances and guidelines in the last year. As a leader, I have worked with my colleagues to adapt our ways of working and communicated them to staff and students. Maintaining morale in difficult times and sustaining confidence for the future have been critical.

What do you see as the greatest challenges and opportunities for business education in the coming years and what is your business school strategy to tackle this?

One of the biggest challenges for business schools will be getting the balance right between face-to-face and online teaching and navigating the best hybrid model or models across our wide portfolio of activity as a full-service business school.
The current geopolitical climate will be a challenging one to watch especially given a significant proportion of business school students are international students. We will continue to collaborate with our international partnerships for teaching and research.

From a research perspective, fieldwork, including face-to-face interviews, company visits and so forth have been curtailed and means the way in which research is carried out has changed for the time being. That said, there is now a huge research agenda ahead of us as countries around the globe look to make a strong economic recovery, and for all citizens to be part of more sustainable and equal societies.

We also plan to adapt our research and curricula to meet the demand for new skills and insights that the post-Covid world requires. If we look specifically at our full-time MBA, global business has always been a core focus and the pandemic has underlined how interconnected the business world is now. Our students undertake three live client consultancy projects that cover commercial, not-for-profit and international business. For the most prestigious and demanding business qualification there is, business leaders expect, and need, more than just theory. We live by our strap-line of Original Thinking Applied.

How has your career helped to shape your leadership capabilities, and your priorities for your role as Dean? Can you share an anecdote about a previous instance/moment in your career that you feel has left a lasting impact on you?

As a student of Sociology and Politics, I would like to think I am attuned to the wider context in which I operate as a Dean of a large Business School. It is important to be cognisant of the local, regional, national and international environments in which we research and teach. As an academic committed to top-quality research and teaching, and with a sense of social responsibility, I hope this infuses literally everything we do everyday.

A move from leading a School of Social Sciences to leading a Business School has most certainly had a lasting impact on me! I very quickly had to learn about MBA programmes and Executive Education. In addition, I had to develop a deeper understanding about the high expectations on the Business School both in terms of interdisciplinary collaborations inside my university and having an external presence in the wider city region of Manchester and the North West of England. I understand rumours abounded about my lack of experience in business and management education on my arrival on the scene. That was eight years ago now of course so something must be going right.

What would you say is your biggest achievement in your career so far?

Being Dean of Alliance Business School of course! I mean that. I hope I am a good leader although that is for others to say.

I have been fortunate to be asked to undertake external roles. Most recently, I was very proud to Chair some citizens panels for the Bank of England. Professional success has been the source of much private joy as I was able to take my mother to Buckingham Palace when I was awarded an OBE and then an MBE for services to social sciences.

If you could give one life lesson/piece of advice to your younger self/young female leaders, what would it be?

This sounds like a cliche but I would emphasise the importance of confidence and believing in yourself.

My younger self was much more timid than the person I am today. I have had setbacks like anyone which seemed harder to handle then. Life’s experiences shape who we become and our resilience too. I was preoccupied with succeeding in my academic career first and then management and leadership opportunities came along later. I wish I had known how much I would enjoy working alongside people doing amazing things. Academia can be solitary while leadership is very sociable. I spend most of my day having great conversations with really interesting people about keeping the show on the road and improving everything as we go along. I have a hugely enjoyable time.