Date & Time: 28 March 2024 | 16:00-17:00
Getting organised and good planning – managing your doctoral studies. Dr Geoff Parkes, himself a DBA graduate will chair a discussion on how professional doctoral students can successfully complete their research whilst also coping with personal and professional life. Geoff will be joined by current Aston DBA students who will also discuss their own experience and the wider requirements of practical doctoral research – acquiring new skills and identifying the balance of professional and academic doctoral endeavour.
Aston Business School is proud to a part of an elite group of global business schools that hold the gold standard of ‘triple-crown’ accreditation from AACSB, AMBA and EQUIS. This reputation is deep rooted in its dedication to research-informed teaching and first-class guidance, delivered by expert academics and business practitioners. It has professionals that specialise in accounting, economics, entrepreneurship, human resources finance, marketing and strategy.
Aston Business School’s departments and research centres work together to further its understanding of key business disciplines and issues, with a focus on innovation and impact. In the latest Research Excellence Framework, 77% of its research outputs were rated world-leading (4*) or internationally excellent (3*).
Dr Geoff Parkes
Dr Geoff Parkes is a Principal Fellow of Advanced HE and Associate Professor in Marketing & Strategy. His interests are in the application of marketing strategy, and how evidence-based decision making can improve marketing practice. He has taught extensively on Aston’s practitioner-focused teaching schemes including Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Business Programme. In 2017, he was seconded to Aston University Hong Kong where he established the first university international subsidiary incorporating several strategic partnerships in Asia.
Geoff’s published work includes the use of language as a source of competitive advantage in small firms, consumer behaviour and green marketing strategies in Asia and entrepreneurial behavioural traits and sources of funding in small firms. In 2022, he published an Instruction Manual in Science Commercialisation. Prior to his academic career, Geoff worked in practice and was the Sales & Marketing Director for Aga Cooker and Armitage Shanks. He now works with several businesses as part of Aston University’s Knowledge Transfer Partnerships (KTP’s) and is an Executive Director of a UK Childcare business.
Matthew Dunne
Matthew has twenty-four years of experience at board / executive level management in the asset finance, capital equipment, and agriculture sectors. He spent twenty-one years as an expat in senior management in the Middle East and Africa, including postings in Saudi Arabia, Iraq, UAE, Kenya, Uganda, Nigeria, and Ghana.
He is currently based in Kenya, as the Group Chief Operating Officer of BaltonCP Group, a British-owned group of companies with nine subsidiaries operating in eight African countries. Employing 775 people, BaltonCP has operated in Africa since 1957 and provides high-quality agricultural chemicals, seeds, and irrigation systems.
His research is investigating the effectiveness of performance management interventions and factors that moderate their effectiveness, including uncertainty, power distance and management style.
Paul Burgess
Paul Burgess is an entrepreneur and the Founder and Managing Director of In2Focus business consultancy based in Australia. He first started business consultancy work in 1992, working with many different types of multinationals.
He has worked in corporate for over thirty years (including national and global leadership roles), before focusing on consultancy in 2018, and eventually creating In2Focus during 2022. His DBA goals include making In2Focus the most successful business consultancy in the healthcare sector that it can be, creating an applied leadership model, and achieving an academic position.
Shanna Singleton-Deitsch
Shanna Singleton-Deitsch is an accomplished project procurement professional at Entergy Services, a leading electric utility provider serving the United States Gulf Coast region. Her pivotal role in project procurement emphasizes a resolute commitment to improving sustainability and efficiency in power generation projects. Beyond her significant contributions at Entergy, Shanna also enriches the academic community as an adjunct instructor at Southern Arkansas University. There, she imparts her invaluable expertise and knowledge to students, nurturing the next generation of professionals. Her commitment to education and research extends further into her studies at Aston University, where she is deeply involved in exploring the integration of Industry 4.0 technologies with Circular Supply Chain Management principles. Through her work, Shanna exemplifies an unwavering dedication to advancing sustainable practices, bridging the gap between the energy industry and academia, and contributing to the development of a more sustainable future.