Michael Butler is Professor of Management at Bangor Business School, UK, and Visiting Professor at Shanghai Lixin University of Accounting and Finance, China. Prior to Bangor Business School I worked at Aston Business School and Cranfield School of Management.

Michael is Founder/Director of The TRANSFORMATION Project (www.thetransformationproject.co.uk). The Project captures his research interests in understanding the process and practice of change from a multi-disciplinary perspective (institutional, biological and historical).

He is on the Editorial Board of Complexity, Governance and Networks and formerly on the Editorial Board of Asia Pacific Journal of Business Administration. He publishes in leading management and organization journals (British Journal of Management, Human Relations, International Journal of Operations and Production Management, Journal of Management, Journal of Management Studies, The Leadership Quarterly, Organization Science and Public Management Review - all rated 4* [out of 4] internationally excellent).

He has co-authored one book and co-edited three. One of the books is a textbook about ‘Organisational Behaviour’ (CIPD) and the most recent is titled ‘Embedding Sustainability, Corporate Social Responsibility and Ethics in Business Education’ (Edward Elgar).

His engaged scholarship (funded to c£2.6m) has been recognized (CMI and ESRC), and the OECD used his research to evaluate international policy implementation. An ERDF project facilitated measurable growth across 38 SMEs, and in 2019 knowledge was transferred about measuring growth evidencing US$13,925,474.60 (£11,406,000) Gross Value added to the Nairobi economy, and 357 jobs created.

In 2015, he became Fellow, RSA (Royal Society for Arts). In 2017, Senior Fellow, HEA (Higher Education Academy), and Fellow, CMI (Chartered Management Institute).

Professor Michael Butler

Subject Group:  Business, Management and Marketing

Location:  Room 0.02, Hen Goleg

Telephone:  +44 1248 382665

Email:  m.butler@bangor.ac.uk

  • MA: MSt. in the History of Design (Pass with Distinction)
    University of Oxford, 2013–2016
  • PhD: The Rise and Rise of the New Public Management
    University of Warwick, 1995–2000
  • BA: History (Hons)
    University of Durham, 1985–1988
  • BA: Certificate in Field Archaeology
    University of London , 1984–1985

Postgraduate (Semester 1):

- ABJ-ASB-4413 Int'l Strategic Management (the biggest module in the university (and business school), currently over 400 students)

Undergraduate (Semester 2):

- ASB-2605 Experience of HRM at Work (I organise the innovative site visit to enhance employability)

- ASB-2021 Commercial Awareness & Insight of Work (I organise the innovative site visit to enhance employability)

Past Teaching (Executive Education):

- Corporate Strategy 2023/24

I supervise projects at all levels.

Current Research Students

PhD Students:

- 2025 to date, Afshan Shaheen, Full Time, 50 % co-supervisor, student based Bangor Business School

- 2020 to date, Yifeng Liao, Full Time, associate supervisor, student and first supervisor based in Birmingham City University

DBA Students:

- 2021 to date, Yusra Anas, Part Time, associate supervisor, student and first supervisor based in Aston Business School

- 2019 to date, Xiaohao Dai, Part Time, associate supervisor, student and first supervisor based in Aston Business School

Completions

I have 12 research student completions - this includes PhD and DBA students.

Future Research Students

1. I can supervise widely within Business and Management.

2. My research interests focus on organisational change, taking a multi-disciplinary perspective (transformational, biological and historical).

3. I have a specific project called The TRANSFORMATION Project (www.thetransformationproject.co.uk) and I'm looking for research students to contribute to this research agenda.

4. I have some live projects, again, I'm looking for research students:

- Investigating Future Prosperity - How Management Skills can Boost Growth in the Regions and Beyond 

This project is an extension of the supervisory team’s contribution to the CMI's latest policy paper which focused on the West Midlands Future Prosperity. The new project will address the important topic of boosting growth through management skills by comparing and contrasting three regions including Wales, the North East and the West Midlands. There are wider implications by addressing the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals. Qualitative methods will be used to reveal key themes and build towards new theory, especially related to place leadership. There is a practice dimension which delivers impact by helping regional organisations such as SMEs to grow.

- Sustainable Heritage and Social Innovation as Enablers of UN’s Sustainable Development Goals 

In 2015, UNESCO published a policy document for the integration of a sustainable development perspective into the processes of the World Heritage Convention. In other words, for the first time, the role of heritage and creativity is seen as an enabler of sustainable development across the Sustainable Development Goals. In order to develop and test new approaches, this project will compare and contrast two live projects which are in the process of bringing heritage sites into re-use with an emphasis on community involvement. Action research will surface concepts and practices about sustainable heritage. There will be a wider contribution to social innovation and emergent theory in this field.

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  • BU-IIA Funded Project: The TRANSFORMATION Project – Lighting SME Beacons of Hope

    The TRANSFORMATION Project (see www.thetransformationproject.co.uk) is part of the regional growth solution having had historic impact in this area. The Project helps organisations to re-think their overall, operational or project management strategies in response to the pressures from outside and inside their organisation. It achieves this principally through deploying a prototype Receptivity for Change Toolset developed by the PI in a previous ESRC project (RES- 189-25- 0025). The Toolset measures capability in management, leadership and other key areas eg innovation. However, after user feedback, to fulfil our aim of helping SMEs in (North) Wales identify their readiness for growth and propensity for innovation, we need to update the prototype of The Receptivity for Change Toolset to re-align it with current organisational expectations, such as the drive to digitisation.

    Funding awarded through the Bangor University Innovation and Impact Award (Research Wales Innovation Funding). Value = £34,612

    1 Aug 2024 – 31 Jul 2025

    Activity: Other (Contributor)

Total Grant Income

£2,620,450.70 (personal share = £1,605,039.99)

Since Joining Bangor Business School (July 2023)

- 2024-2025 (PI) £34,612.00, Welsh Government, Bangor University - Innovation and Impact Award:  The TRANSFORMATION Project.

- 2024-2025 (PI) £9,910.70, Shared Prosperity Fund, Anglesey Column Trust.

- 2024-2025 (PI, Work Package 9) £1,136,865 (with £109,592 coming to Bangor University), Innovate UK, the NEWID (Northeast Wales Industrial Decarbonisation) project.

- 2024-2025 (CI) £50,000 (with £11,912.29 coming to Bangor University), Pan Wales CEIC: Development of an Innovation Plan to explore and scope an all-Wales Circular Economy Innovation Programme – Clean Growth.

- 2024-2025 (CI) £18,000.00, Development Bank Wales, Communities “Are Doin’ It For Themselves”.

Before Joining Bangor

I generated both individually and as part of a team £1,421,013, most as Principal Investigator (PI).

Underpinning Philosophy

I am passinate about civic engagement. I contribute to the economic, environmental, cultural and social well-being of the area I live and work in. This commitment extends beyond my immediate location to international exchanges of ideas.

External Positions

Visiting Professor, Shanghai Lixin University of Accounting and Finance (May 2023 - onwards)

Member Board of Trustees, Anglesey Column Trust (January 2024 - onwards)

Member Board of Trustees, The Chamberlain Highbury Trust (December 2021 - June 2023)

Member Board of Trustees, The Birmingham Civic Society (July 2015 - June 2023)

Research-related Awards

2017: Fellow, CMI (Chartered Management Institute)

2015: Fellow, RSA (Royal Society for Arts)

2013: The TRANSFORMATION Project became an ESRC Good Practice Case Study for co-production action research, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8lp9nQTpbus (3.1K YouTube views)

2012: CMI awarded myself (with Sweeney & Crundwell) one of the Top Five Management Articles at its annual event

Teaching-related Awards

2024:  Nominated, Undeb Bangor (the Students' Union of Bangor University) Academic Awards (university level award)

2018:  Nominated, Aston University Students' Union Academic Awards, Engaging Teaching (university level award)

2017:  Senior Fellow, HEA (Higher Education Academy) (national level award)

2009: Beta Gamma Sigma, Aston University Chapter (international level award)

2008 – 2010: CAMPUS Teaching and Learning Fellowship, Salford University, UK (national level award)

2007: Aston Business School Excellence in Teaching Award (school level award)

2005: Aston Excellence in Teaching Award (university level award)