Meet Dr Adrian Monaghan, Senior Lecturer and Programme Leader for MSc International Business here at Salford Business School. Having worked at a French multinational firm, he became inspired to pursue a career in academia and apply his knowledge to teaching students about international business.
Adrian not only supports students embarking on a career in business but also researches how international business can draw upon insights from both international relations and global studies.
We caught up with Adrian to discuss his journey to academia and why he chose to work at the University of Salford.
How did you get into academia as a career?
I always wanted to pursue academia as a career after being inspired by the passion and knowledge of my lecturers during my undergraduate degree in French. After graduating, I decided to study a master’s degree in business and get some commercial experience, so I combined my two degrees to work as a strategic buyer for a French multinational company. I was then offered a PhD scholarship which was the entry point into my academic career.
Why did you choose to work at the University of Salford?
I was very impressed by the community focus of the university and the academic atmosphere, as well as the emphasis placed on student-centred teaching and learning. I am also from Manchester originally, so it was great to come back home after previously working in London.
What’s the best thing about being an academic at Salford?
That there’s no two days the same. I can go from teaching new students on their first module one day to supporting students on their final project the next day. In between, I could be responding to postgraduate taught admission enquiries while contributing to the redesign of a programme offered through an international partner. This can all be summed up in the saying that ‘variety is the spice of life!’
Can you tell us about any of your career highlights to-date?
I have two recent highlights. My first highlight was being invited to sit as a judge at the 7th China Jinan New Growth Drivers Innovation and Entrepreneurship Competition at Media City UK (MCUK), where entrepreneurs pitched for investment in a cross-cultural online and offline environment. This was a fascinating Dragons Den-style event and at the end, I was made an ambassador for the Science and Technology Cooperation by the Jinan government.
My second highlight was representing the University at recruitment fairs in Bangkok in October 2024. This gave me an opportunity to explain how wonderful our University is to many Thai and international students while enabling me to practice my Thai speaking and make some fantastic friends.
What’s your current research focused on?
I predominantly focus on research-informed teaching that supports the continuous improvement of our MSc International Business degree. I am particularly interested in how international business can draw insights from both international relations (where emphasis is often placed on individual nation states as the unit of analysis) and global studies (which considers, in more interdisciplinary terms, broader issues such as globalisation).
Do you have any published papers we can read?
The publications I’m most proud of came about during my PhD when I spent six weeks researching at the Centre for Sociology of Innovation at the École Nationale Supérieure des Mines de Paris. I had the honour to collaborate with the sociologist Michel Callon and world-renowned philosopher Bruno Latour, where I translated two of their journal articles from French to English and had them republished in an English language journal:
- ‘The Key to Success in Innovation Part 1: The Art of Interessement.’ International Journal of Innovation Management
- ‘The Key to Success in Innovation Part 2: The Art of Choosing Good Spokespersons.’ International Journal of Innovation Management
And finally, the all important question, where in Manchester or Salford is best to grab a coffee?
Without question, my dear friend and colleague Dr Yiannis Polychronakis makes the best coffee, hands down!