Tell us a little bit about yourself and your professional background:
“I’m from the Netherlands and I attended the University of Amsterdam where I studied my undergraduate and postgraduate degrees in the field of economics. Whilst there I branched out into the topic of environmental sustainability and this is now the driver for my research.
“My PhD looked at the issues of climate change, green energy and renewable energy. This led me to Grenoble Ecole de Management where I was an associate professor looking at economics and management. By working and researching in the innovation community, this led me to MIOIR here in Manchester. My research is about looking at different topics and perspectives on sustainability, such as technological and societal issues.”
The Academy of Management is the biggest organisation of its kind, with 20,000 members and 10,000 participants are expected to attend the Annual Meeting in Atlanta this summer. What is your role in this and how did you get involved?
“I have been active in the Academy’s ONE Division (Organisations and the Natural Environment) for some time and won the Best Dissertation Award in 2006 and the Emerging Scholar Award in 2011. This recognition brought me to the Program Team where I chaired the Doctoral Consortium and also the Professional Development Workshop.
“I was nominated to be the Program Chair for this year by fellow colleagues which is really pleasing but will not be easy. We are expecting more than 7,000 papers and symposia proposals to be submitted for possible presentation during the Annual Meeting as a whole.”
Lastly, what does the future hold both in terms of the Academy and your own research?
“I think we’re at an exciting yet challenging time in modern history where businesses can’t develop without considering their environmental footprint yet at the same time they still have shareholders to keep happy by making a profit. I’m currently looking at what the future of electric vehicles and mobility could look like but again, as this is so new, in two or five years’ time our research now may be completely incorrect – that is the challenge.
“There are emerging social issues around technology which are fascinating, such as the future of television and how we consume this industry. Others include how countries such as the UK are having issues because of obesity – how will food companies enter the debate about sugar? There is lots of uncertainty in all of these subjects but that is what makes it so interesting.”
Source: Greg Holmes for AMBS E-Bulletin
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