First female Dean

Cardiff Business School has appointed its first female Dean.

Rachel Ashworth, a Professor of Public Services Management, will lead the School from September 2018 succeeding Professor Martin Kitchener following the completion of his six year term.

The appointment reflects the School’s commitment to gender equality which saw it become one of the first three UK Business Schools to achieve the Athena Swan Bronze Award.

“Proud and delighted”

A long-term ambassador, Professor Ashworth gained her PhD from Cardiff Business School in 2000 and has spent her career researching accountability, equality and organisational change in public services.

Professor Ashworth said: “Having worked at Cardiff Business School for 23 years, I’m proud and delighted to be taking this step into School leadership.

“I look forward to working side-by-side with my colleagues as we continue to make a difference by delivering public value through our excellent research, teaching and engagement.”

Grand challenges

In 2015, Cardiff Business School became the world’s first to put public value at the heart of its operations.

Introduced by former Dean, Professor Kitchener, the public value business school is a commitment to deliver social improvement alongside economic development, recognising the role that business and management has to play in tackling some of the grand challenges in contemporary society.

Professor Ashworth chaired the institution’s inaugural Shadow Management Board (SMB), an innovative governance mechanism established as part of Public Value in order to widen participation in decision-making.

Next steps

In readiness for the next phase of the School's development, Professor Ashworth has created new roles across the School’s key areas of activity.

Professor Calvin Jones succeeds Mohamed Naim as Deputy Dean, with a remit focused on Public Value and External Relations. 

Supporting Research and Innovation, Professor Luigi de Luca will take up the role of Associate Dean for Doctoral Studies and Professor Malcolm Beynon as Associate Dean for Technology and Data.

Dr Sarah Hurlow and Professor Julian Gould-Williams will support the School’s Learning and Teaching provision as Directors of Postgraduate and Undergraduate Programmes.

Commenting on the next steps for the School, Professor Ashworth added: “Building on the work of previous Deans, my priorities will be to enhance the student and staff experience; create space for agency and innovation; and, as the first female Dean of the School, actively promote equality and inclusion, as I have throughout my career.”