BAM Leadership and Leadership Development SIG Committee Elections

Collaborative and out-of-the-box thinking is vital to the success and sustainability of any group or committee. Olanrewaju is a creative professional, coupled with his leadership and management skills, I believe he can bring innovative and meaningful perspective to the SIG Leadership committee. 

I am putting myself forward for the Deputy Chair role within the Leadership and Leadership Development SIG because it is a community where I have found great peers, honest critique, and practical ideas I can take back to my students and partners.   I currently lead two postgraduate programmes at the University of the West of Scotland (UWS). This involves managing the full annual cycle: coordinating multiple teams (including an international partnership with a Ukrainian university), overseeing quality assurance, running a teaching and events calendar which aligns with internal and external stakeholders, and reporting against milestones. These skills, structured planning, governance, and transparent decision making, map onto the Deputy Chair role, and will help the SIG deliver a programme of activities, support the committee and add value to the community. That is the kind of service I want to bring to the SIG. My approach is simple: to listen carefully, convene thoughtfully, and follow through. 
In my current role as Treasurer of the LLD SIG, I work closely with the Chair and committee members. This has shown me what works: early planning, clear communication, transparent metrics and where we can improve. If elected to this role, I will support the Executive team, honour our commitments, and help make the SIG a welcoming, developmental space where colleagues at every career stage can strengthen their research, teaching, and leadership practice.
 

I am a senior lecturer (FHEA, CMBE) in leadership and management teaching on executive education programmes at Manchester Metropolitan University with a research interest in identity studies, working lives and career development, especially leadership development and work-integrated learning. 

Prior to joining academia, I held management roles in public sector and charities, including state schools, with a focus on business and financial management. After entering higher education, I became a charity trustee and have served several years as Vice-Chair - Finance & Risk for the British Educational Leadership, Management and Administration Society (BELMAS). As I approach the end of my final term of office, I am keen to continue to offer my skillset and experience in a similar capacity within BAM as a member, with the recently advertised SIG treasurer position aligning well with my early career researcher development goals to take on leadership role within an well-established and regarded leadership research group. 

As SIG treasurer, I can bring considerable experience of budgeting, financial reporting and monitoring to the role, including the formulation of budgets that drive the strategic and operational goals of the SIG, the curation of detailed accounts and records and reporting and liaison with the academy accountants and auditors. I am also experienced in financial governance given my time with BELMAS, and as Honorary Treasurer of Disability Rights UK,  including Charities Commission recommendations for internal financial controls and the various financial policies that charities are expected to maintain in their day-to-day activities. 

Thank you for your consideration. 

As a Senior Lecturer in Human Resource Management with extensive experience in teaching, research, and academic administration across several UK universities, I bring both financial prudence and strategic insight to the Treasurer role. My academic and professional background in leadership and human resource management has equipped me with strong analytical, organizational, and decision-making skills essential for effective financial stewardship.
I have successfully managed budgets, coordinated academic events, and overseen resource allocations at organisations, ensuring transparency and alignment with institutional objectives. These experiences have strengthened my ability to plan, monitor, and report financial activities with accuracy and accountability.
Beyond financial management, I am deeply committed to leadership development and capacity building. My research and teaching centre on developing responsible, inclusive, and values-driven leaders—principles that align closely with the SIG’s mission. I have also collaborated on interdisciplinary research and professional networks that promote leadership excellence and innovation, which I hope to extend through this role.
As Treasurer, I will contribute to ensuring sound financial governance, supporting event planning and funding decisions, and fostering collaboration among SIG members. I aim to help the committee achieve its goals efficiently while enhancing the visibility and impact of leadership scholarship within the British Academy of Management.
It will be an honour to serve and support the SIG’s continued growth and influence.

As a Senior Lecturer in Organisation Studies at Bristol Business School with over twelve years of academic and research experience, I bring a strong record of leadership, collaboration, and scholarly engagement to the SIG Committee. My research focuses on leadership, diversity, and organizational change, themes that closely align with the objectives of the SIG. I have led and contributed to numerous international research projects—including work supported by the British Academy of Management (WellCome) and the Charles Wallace Fellowship—and presented my research at global forums such as Harvard and Oxford Universities.
As a researcher and consultant, I have worked with organizations such as USAID and The World Bank, experiences that have strengthened my ability to bridge academic research with practice. I have also served in leadership roles within academic and professional settings, where I successfully coordinated multi-disciplinary teams, organized conferences, and mentored early-career researchers.
As Track Chair, I would aim to foster inclusive, research-driven discussions within the SIG, promote interdisciplinary collaboration, and create opportunities for early-career scholars to engage meaningfully with our themes. I am particularly committed to advancing scholarly conversations on leadership and change across global and cultural contexts.
My goal is to contribute to the SIG’s growth by strengthening engagement, supporting knowledge exchange, and ensuring our track remains innovative, inclusive, and impactful.

I bring to the SIG a combination of academic leadership, pedagogical innovation, and practitioner engagement grounded in over a decade of experience developing leaders across sectors. My work integrates leadership theory, responsible business, and cross-cultural practice within executive and postgraduate education. I currently lead the Executive MBA at Birmingham Business School, embedding leadership development through reflective practice, adaptive learning design, and interdisciplinary collaboration.

My research explores how leadership capacity is shaped through cognition, context, and coaching—linking elite sport, military, and corporate domains. This translational approach aligns with the SIG’s aim of bridging academic and practitioner perspectives. I am particularly committed to fostering dialogue between researchers and those developing leadership capability in complex, multicultural environments.

As Track Chair, I would aim to strengthen the SIG’s scholarly community by:
• curating inclusive conference tracks that showcase both conceptual and practice-informed work;
• supporting early-career scholars and doctoral researchers through developmental feedback and mentoring; and
• building partnerships that extend the SIG’s reach into executive education, consulting, and policy.
I believe the future of leadership research lies in connecting disciplines, contexts, and lived experiences. My contribution would be to facilitate that integration—creating spaces where leadership is examined not only as a set of competencies but as a socially constructed, ethically grounded practice.

I have been an active member of the British Academy of Management since 2021 and bring extensive academic and professional experience that aligns with the goals of the Leadership and Leadership Development SIG. As a reviewer for top-ranking journals such as Project Leadership & Society, and prior experience as a guest editor for a special issue, I have gained valuable expertise in managing submissions, overseeing peer review processes, and ensuring fairness, quality, and relevance. These experiences provide a strong foundation for contributing as a track chair for the SIG.

In this role, I can support the dissemination of calls for papers, conference abstracts, and symposium proposals, as well as systematically select and organise accepted submissions into coherent, engaging sessions. My professional online presence, particularly on LinkedIn, can also be leveraged to promote SIG activities across academic and practitioner networks. In addition, my role as Lead for Student Matters in my faculty’s EDI unit positions me to champion inclusivity and circulate the LLD SIG initiatives at the institutional level and more widely. 

Beyond academic contributions, my personal and professional journey has equipped me with resilience, adaptability, and excellent organisational skills. As both an academic and a single parent, I have developed strong time management abilities that are critical for a track chair role. My experience in organising community events has further strengthened my ability to respond to participant feedback and refine initiatives. I am committed to ensuring effective follow-up after events (for example SIG annual committee meetings) and to gathering feedback that can enhance future SIG activities.

In general, I have a strong desire to advance inclusivity and champion collaboration across national borders, increasing the visibility and impact of the SIG.
 

If selected as Track Chair, I will bring a combination of subject expertise, reviewing experience, and organisational skills to the role. Specifically:

1. Expertise in Leadership and Leadership Development: My main research focus is Leadership, and I have published on the subject in world-leading and internationally excellent journals as well as scholarly books. Selected publications include:
Lianidou, T. (2024). Leaders appointed in times of crisis and leader and leadership development. In C. Harrison (Ed.), Leadership During a Crisis (pp. 29-45). Routledge.
Lianidou, T., & Zheng, W. (2023). Leader diffuse status and leadership outcomes: towards an integrative framework. International Journal of Management Reviews, 25(3), 443-466.
Lianidou, T. (2021). The role of status and power inequalities in leader-member exchange. Leadership, 17(6), 654-673.

2. Reviewing experience: I regularly serve as a reviewer for leading journals, such as the Journal of Managerial Psychology and Journal of Business Research. I have also reviewed submissions for major conferences including BAM and AOM.

3. Organisational skills: Prior to my academic career, I held business executive roles, which helped me develop robust organisational and project management skills. These enable me to work efficiently, meet deadlines, and maintain high standards of quality in all tasks.

Finally, I am a highly engaged member of BAM and the Leadership and Leadership Development SIG. Since I became a member in 2020, I have presented my work at the BAM conferences and attended several LLD SIG annual meetings. Furthermore, my work has been published in both BAM-affiliated journals: the British Journal of Management and the International Journal of Management Reviews.
 

As an academic deeply committed to leadership development, I offer a unique blend of scholarly insight, interdisciplinary perspective, and hands-on leadership experience to the British Academy of Management's Leadership SIG Committee. My interests focus on how institutional dynamics shape leadership legitimacy, resilience, and trust within digitally mediated contexts.

As Co-Chair of the Organisational Behaviour SIG within the Academy for African Studies (AFAS), I have led initiatives that foster cross-institutional collaboration, support early-career researchers, and promote inclusive scholarly dialogue. As a member of the ABEATS Symposium Organising Committee and session chair, I have helped curate intellectually rich and diverse discussions that bridge disciplines and inspire critical engagement with research on leadership, technology, and management.

I aim to contribute to the Leadership SIG's mission by championing initiatives that bridge theory and practice—such as thematic workshops, practitioner-academic dialogues, and interdisciplinary panels on digital leadership, trust in AI, and institutional transformation. I am equally committed to advancing diversity, equity, and inclusion in leadership research and practice.

By joining the Leadership SIG Committee, I look forward to collaborating with colleagues to foster community engagement, amplify diverse voices, and develop innovative, contextually grounded approaches to leadership in a rapidly evolving world.

As an Assistant Professor of Leadership at the University of Birmingham, I am committed to advancing leadership scholarship and contributing to the continued success of the BAM Leadership and Leadership Development SIG. My research explores leadership processes, leader identity, and the darker and more complex dimensions of leadership within organisations. This work informs both my teaching and my engagement with the broader leadership community.

I have recently organised a Leadership SIG event on “Dark Leadership,” taking place on 5th November at the University of Birmingham, which brings together scholars to explore critical and emerging perspectives on leadership. This initiative reflects my enthusiasm for fostering academic dialogue and building collaborative spaces that encourage innovative and inclusive research conversations.

As a member of the SIG Committee, I would bring strong organisational skills, academic rigour, and a proactive approach to supporting the SIG’s activities. In the Track Chair role, I would ensure a fair, developmental, and transparent review process, curate an engaging conference track, and promote dialogue that reflects the diversity and richness of contemporary leadership research.

More broadly, I am keen to contribute to initiatives that strengthen member engagement and create meaningful opportunities for collaboration across the leadership community. I would be delighted to play a part in supporting the SIG’s growth and impact within BAM.

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