Critical Management Studies
The Critical Management Studies (CMS) SIG is a key platform for fostering dialogue among emerging and established Critical Management Studies scholars as well as colleagues who want to learn more about CMS work. We seek to advance on-going critical debates, help start new conversations and inspire novel questions that interrogate and advance our understanding of managing, organising, organisations and society at large.
About the SIG:
The Critical Management Studies SIG was formed in 2026 out of a decade long track featuring in the BAM Conference, with 10 consecutive streams since 2016 and a range of PDWs and workshops. Becoming a SIG in this anniversary year reflects our ambition to build on that track record to raise the visibility and impact of critical scholarship within BAM, to widen participation in CMS debates and to create new opportunities for collaboration across BAM communities.
The SIG offers a dedicated space in which to debate the political and societal forces shaping organisations, including universities and business schools, and to support colleagues navigating an increasingly difficult sector. CMS scholarship is closely aligned with BAM’s commitment and strategic priorities of Equality, Diversity, Inclusion, and Respect, creating sustainable futures, wellbeing and positive mental health, as well as to academic career development and support for doctoral students.
Objectives:
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Act as a forum for the discussion of contemporary corporate governance (CG) issues, and to stimulate innovative and high quality research into corporate governance
- Advance on-going critical debates, help start new conversations and inspire novel questions that interrogate and advance our understanding of managing, organising, organisations and society at large.
- Amplify marginalised voices that expose and critically examine the “dark side” of organising, and develop alternative ways forward.
- Promote deep critical engagement with (un)ethical management practices and exploitative as well as enriching social and organisational orders.
- Encourage scholarship that draws on theories and frameworks from a range of social sciences disciplines.
- Help develop and promote rich empirical studies illustrative of positive societal impact.
- Create a safe space for exploring alternative research approaches, writing and researching differently and research directions outside of mainstream theorising and practice.
- Critically examine the changing role of universities, business schools and academic labour.
- Support the development and wellbeing of doctoral students and academics across all career stages.
- Foster a safe space for colleagues to test their ideas, develop their papers and affirmatively engage with each other’s critical scholarship.
SIG Events 2026:
SIG Committee Members 2026
Dr Sylwia Ciuk
Dr Sylwia Ciuk is a Reader in Organisation Studies and the Deputy Head of OBBS Doctoral Programmes. She has a background in sociology and applied linguistics and holds a PhD in Business from Oxford Brookes University.
Sylwia has carried out multiple qualitative research projects in multinational organisations and in the public sector, across a range of national contexts. To more effectively explore complex research questions, she often builds in innovative research methods into her research designs.
In her work, she has not only used existing novel methods, such as participant generated photo-elicitation, but has also developed a range of methodological innovations, such as narrative photo collages and experiential maps.
Dr Victoria Pagan
Dr Victoria Pagan is a Senior Lecturer in Strategic Management at Newcastle University Business School
Before joining the Business School in May 2011, Victoria worked for 9 years in commercial research and consultancy for the public sector, local government and non-departmental public bodies. Prior to this, she worked as a researcher for an audience development agency and as a learning support assistant within a local comprehensive school.
Her current research interests are focused around knowledge generation, uses, and violations (epistemic violence, epistemic injustice); morality and ethics and the expression / suppression of moral emotions; and social justice's equality, equity, diversities, inclusion / exclusion.
Prof Sarah Robinson
Sarah Robinson is a Co- Vice chair for the British Academy of Management with a responsibility for Academic Career Development (ACD). She is also leading on the academic wellbeing initiative, which is one of BAM’s current strategic priorities, and will be designing and facilitating this webinar series.
Sarah is currently Professor in People and Organisations at IÉSEG School of Management (Paris). She has research interests in professional careers, professional learning and development and has conducted several projects on academic careers including studies of: early career academics; academic wellbeing; academic doubt and failure; and doing academic careers differently.
Professor Martyna Śliwa
Martyna Śliwa is Professor of Business Ethics and Associate Dean for Ethics, Responsibility and Sustainability at Durham University Business School UK.
Her research focuses on diversity, inclusivity and intersectionality in organizations, language differences and their effects on organizational hierarchies and power relations.
She is Co-Editor-in-Chief of Management Learning and the Vice-Chair for Equality, Diversity and Inclusivity for BAM.