Projects and activities

Our focus in CBES research is working on the following themes:

1) Environmental sustainability

2) Societal/social impact

3) Economic sustainability

4) People and culture

5) Business ethics and education

There are eight sub-areas of research that CBES focuses on. These are:

• Business ethics
• Business education for a more ethical, sustainable and fairer world
• Work, individuals and human growth, practices and flourishing
• Ethical, sustainable and inclusive institutions and governance
• Sustainable and ethical professional practice
• Sustainability-oriented strategy and innovation
• Sustainable development and Sustainable Development Goals
• Mitigating sustainability and climate crises via green capitalism and triple bottom line (people, planet, profit)

Projects that CBES has led are listed below.

Summer-Autumn 2025

Professor Kleio Akrivou has new work under review associated with the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals 4 (ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all), 16 (promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels) and 17 (strengthen the means of implementation and revitalize the Global Partnership for Sustainable Development). She had an article accepted presenting new philosophical insights leading new ethical decision making research, titled 'Making Wiser Decisions in Organisations: Insights From Inter-Processual Self Theory and Transcendental Anthropology' (Akrivou, K, Martínez, M, Luis, E O, Scalzo, G and Aoiz, M, Humanistic Management Journal, ISSN 2366-6048 doi 10.1007/s41463-025-00208-z). She presented new research which are now current papers under review in the European Business Ethics Network conference, the Philosophy of Management Conference and in leading academic symposia in Europe.

Working together with David Stannard, Dr Lisa Schopohl, James Turpin and Dr Filipe Morais, Professor Akrivou co-led Henley Business School's Principles for Responsible Management Education (PRME) Sharing Information on Progress integrated new report, published in September 2025. She also put together the new Responsible Education Summary Report 2024-25 and created a new Responsible Business Education section on the Henley Business School website and continued to serve in the Editorial Board of the Academy of Management Learning and Education and Ethics in Social and Environmental Policy, along with being a peer reviewer in a number of leading academic journals in the field.

Dr Mona Ashok had an article accepted: Making Sense of Artificial Intelligence Benefits: a Mixed-Method Study in Canadian Public Administration (Madan, R and Ashok, M, Information Systems Frontiers, 27. pp. 889-923. ISSN 1572-9419 doi: 10.1007/s10796-024-10475-0). She also has an other article in the review pipeline, including one article on the topic of Business School Education to Address Environmental/Climate Change and Sustainability (with Professor Akrivou as part of the author team).

Professor Chris Brewster had articles and chapters accepted in Academic Journal Guide 2, 3 and 4 journals, among which was 'Advancing Inclusive Recruitment: a Practice Lens on Navigating Barriers to Refugee Employment' (Lee, E S, Szkudlarek, B, Johnson, S and Brewster, C, Human Relations). He continued to serve on the Editorial Boards of seven journals (the Thunderbird International Business Review, the International Journal of Human Resource Management, the Japan Journal of Human Resource Management, the Journal of World Business, Management International Review, Management Review, the European Journal of International Management and the Joural of General Management), reviewing submissions for them and many others. He holds other advisory roles in academic and social policy roles in the UK and Europe, such as being an advisory board member of the 'Migration, Business and Society' initiative.

Dr Irina Heim had work accepted associated with the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goal 16 (promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels), titled 'Organisational Wrongdoing Within the Context of the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals: an Integrative Review' (Heim, I and Mergaliyeva, L, Journal of Business Ethics, 198. pp. 615-635. ISSN 1573-0697 doi: 10.1007/s10551-024-05806-9). Dr Heim and Professor Akrivou completed the full content design of a new Degree Apprenticeship course in the new entry-level apprenticeship programme, with a focus on contemporary issues of sustainability, business ethics and responsible management; this course is now offered to the first cohort of new apprenticeship students.

Professor Nada Kakabadse has had a number of articles accepted associated with the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals 5 (achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls) and 10 (reduce inequality within and among countries). These included 'Navigating Ethical Tensions in Social Enterprises: a Business Ethics as Practice Perspective' (Horak, S, Kakabadse, N and Clegg, S, European Management Review. ISSN 1740-4762 doi: 10.1111/emre.70024), 'Seven Mantras for Board Chair Effectiveness: an Enlightened Approach for the 21st Century' (Goyal, R, Kakabadse, N, Kakabadse, A and Talbot, D, Journal of Management Inquiry, 34, 1. pp. 57-77. ISSN 1552-6542 doi: 10.1177/10564926231224213) and 'Institutional Context Matters: Board Diversity and Environmental, Social and Governance Outcomes in the United Arab Emirates' (Alawadi, A, Kakabadse, N, Khan, N and Bodolica, V, Corporate Governance, 25, 6. pp. 1324-1341. ISSN 1472-0701 doi: 10.1108/CG-03-2024-0135).

Professor Kevin Money had two articles published which address the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goal 1 (end poverty in all its forms everywhere). The first was titled 'Charity Starts at Home: Understanding What Drives Children From Economically Disadvantaged Communities to Engage in Social Action' (Garnelo-Gomez, I and Money, K, Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly, 54, 4. pp. 885-911. ISSN 1552-7395 doi: 10.1177/08997640241278640) and 'E-commerce Development, Poverty Reduction and Income Growth in Rural China' (Zhang, H, Millan, E, Money, K and Guo, P, Journal of Strategy and Management, 18, 1. pp. 148-176. ISSN 1755-425X doi: 10.1108/JSMA-06-2023-0148).

Professor Gavin Parker had various articles published associated with urban planning in the UK and the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals 9 (build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialisation and foster innovation) and 11 (make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable). These included 'Planning Education and the Field of Practice: a Bourdieusian Analysis' (Parker, G and Maidment, C, Town Planning Review, 97, 1. ISSN 1478-341X doi: 10.3828/tpr.2025.20) 'Towards Everyday Conceptions of Justice in Community-Led Planning' (Lynn, T, Sturzaker, J, Parker, G and Wargent, M, Planning Practice and Research, ISSN 1360-0583, oi: 10.1080/02697459.2025.2511693), 'The Temporal Governance of Planning in England: Planning Reform, Uchronia and Proper Time' (Dobson, M and Parker, G, Planning Theory, 24, 1. pp. 21-42. ISSN 1741-3052 doi: 10.1177/14730952241226570) and 'The Moral Economy of Localism in England: Neighbourhood Planning as Neoliberal Apprentice Piece' (Dobson, M and Parker, G, Territory Politics Governance, 13, 4. pp. 488-504. ISSN 2162-2671; oi: 10.1080/21622671.2023.2184856).

Dr Tatiana Rowson had articles accepted associated with the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals 3 (ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages), 5 (achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls) and 8 (promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all). The three articles in question were 'With or Without You: Career Capital Development as Experienced by MBA Alumni' (Houldsworth, E, Tresidder, A and Rowson, T, Management Learning, 56 (2). pp. 284-304. ISSN 1461-7307 doi: 10.1177/13505076241236337), 'Making the Invisible Visible: Why Menopause is a Workplace Issue We Can't Ignore (Laker, B and Rowson, T, the British Medical Journal Leader, 9. pp. 67-71. ISSN 2398-631X doi: 10.1136/leader-2023-000943) and 'Understanding the Subjective Experience of Menopause at Work: a Systematic Review and Conceptual Model' (Rowson, T S and Jones, R J, Journal of Constructivist Psychology, ISSN 1521-0650 doi: 10.1080/10720537.2025.2465611).

Dr Lisa Schopohl had an article published related to the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals 5 (achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls) and 9 (build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialisation and foster innovation), titled 'The Female Finance Penalty: Why are Women Less Successful in Academic Finance than Related Fields?' (Brooks, C, Schopohl, L, Tao, R, Walker, J and Zhu, M, Research Policy, 54, 4. 105207. ISSN 0048-7333 doi: 10.1016/j.respol.2025.105207).