Business and Management

The Open University’s (OU) accounting and finance, people and organisations, public leadership and social enterprise, and strategy and marketing experts undertake rigorous research with social impact.

OU Business and management researchers have enhanced public sector leadership in the UK, Australia and New Zealand. They are combatting blame culture in UK policing to encourage officers to make challenging decisions and developing novel methods to help forces manage demand and provide an efficient public service. Their work empowers small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to embrace environmental sustainability and grow greener. It also breaks taboos around menopause to enhance support for women in UK workplaces and is helping millions make better financial decisions.

Learn more about OU Business and Management research impact

Giving SMEs the tools they need to grow greener

Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) have a vital role in our efforts to tackle the Climate Emergency. Their combined environmental impact is more significant than the big corporations, but they are much more varied, less well-resourced and often harder to reach. So how can governments, and other agencies, ensure that such a large and diverse population of organisations can become more sustainable? Professor Richard Blundel and his colleagues have drawn on cross-disciplinary research insights to create new tools and techniques that will enable SMEs to ‘grow greener’.

It’s time to talk about menopause in the workplace

Professor Jo Brewis discusses her work to remove workplace taboos around menopause and encourage employers to recognise and support people experiencing this normal but sometimes challenging transition.

Why we need to pay attention to our financial attitudes and emotions

Professor Mark Fenton-O’Creevy wants to help people manage their money better. During the past 25 years, his research has given us a new understanding of how attitudes and emotions influence our financial decisions.