Associate Professor in Sustainable Logistics

Contract type: Full time, open ended

Interviews are expected to take place week commencing 16^th September

Purpose of role

We are seeking to fill one post at the level of Associate Professor in Sustainable Logistics to be a leading member of the world-leading research Centre for Sustainable Logistics (CLS) within the Department of Marketing and Operations, Edinburgh Business School.

The successful candidate will also make a significant contribution to the University’s Global Research Institute (GRI) for Net Zero. The GRI focuses on pivotal areas of research and industry collaboration that will make a profound impact on the global shift towards a carbon-neutral future. This will involve being a Co-investigator in the UK Digital twinning Hub for decarbonising Transport (TransiT). TransiT is the biggest single investment in the digitalisation of decarbonising transport made by EPSRC (£20M) and has attracted a further investment from industry of £26M. It sits alongside other similar investments in resilient transport infrastructure (DARe) and energy (ENSIGN). The successful candidate will play an important role in the coordination of the 3 hubs.

CLS has an internationally recognised freight transport decarbonisation capability. We are seeking to extend this work into emerging areas of digitalisation and artificial intelligence. We are interested in the broader areas of multi-modal and hybrid movement of people and freight as well as the components of a resilient supply chain. The centre provides an environment that encourages academics to apply theory to generate industry solutions.

We welcome applications from individuals with experience of attracting grant funding, working with industry partners, writing high-quality, multi-disciplinary publications and generating impact case studies. We are expecting candidates to have contemporary publications (from 2020 onwards) in leading journals. We are interested to hear from candidates who have had experience of working within a research centre and of mentoring individual researchers (both early career and PhD researchers). Applicants should demonstrate the capacity to build an external international network of research collaborators.

It is essential that applicants are PhD holders - ie. beyond first degree. They should have experience of postgraduate and undergraduate teaching and relevant managerial industry experience. Experience with MBA students and online or distance-learning programmes would be an advantage.

As part of this role, you will undertake teaching and learning activity within the Marketing and Operations Department. We currently offer a range of MSc programmes on-campus and online including MSc Logistics and Supply Chain Management and MSc Business Analytics and Consultancy.

This is a permanent teaching and research role with workload divided as 40% Research, 40% teaching and 20% administration. However initially the workload will be in the region of 80% research and 20% teaching. All teaching is delivered on campus, and it is expected that the successful applicant will attend campus regularly to work as part of the TransIT Team.

About the Team

Heriot-Watt’s Edinburgh Business School (EBS) is a global leader in high-quality, accessible, practice-oriented business education and research. With campuses in the United Kingdom, Dubai, and Malaysia, we inspire and empower a diverse, inclusive community of students. We partner with businesses and governments to translate knowledge into practice and deliver innovative solutions that improve the world. Our industry-leading research projects in logistics, supply chain management, industrial decarbonisation, inclusive workplaces, and sustainable capitalism connect across disciplines to address society’s most pressing challenges.

At EBS, we are practical, engaged, connected, and inspired. We foster a community that nurtures collaboration and ambition, and we aim to transform lives and organisations through our innovative approach to education and research. We pursue excellence through relevance, providing transformative lifelong skills and outcomes for our students. We leverage our vibrant research community, our strategic partnerships, and our talented network of faculty and staff to make a difference and create lasting global change.

Who we are looking for

At Edinburgh Business School, we envision a future where our contributions improve the world and leave a meaningful legacy for generations to come. We are eager to welcome faculty and staff who will help us forge the future through groundbreaking research, innovative pedagogy, and dynamic professional services. We are looking for colleagues who: 

• Understand and embrace the value of accessible, practice-oriented learning and research.
• Pursue excellence both individually and collectively.
• Know the value of collaboration.
• Embrace our inclusive, global community.
• Are passionate about making a difference.

We anticipate a start date of late 2024 or Jan 2025 for this role.

What we provide

At EBS, our pursuit of fairness and inclusivity make us a destination of choice for academic talent. Our global network, engaged community, receptive leadership, and flexible management allow our people to thrive. We freely foster ambition. We are agile and open-minded. We listen, and we adapt. Through opportunities, support, resources, and recognition, we strive to ensure that every member of staff feels a genuine sense of fulfilment, belonging, and potential. Our collaborative efforts are geared towards our fundamental purpose and drive: at EBS, we make difference. And we are committed to supporting our people every step of the way.

Our industry-leading research projects in logistics, supply chain management, industrial decarbonisation, inclusive workplaces, and sustainable capitalism connect across disciplines to address society’s most pressing challenges.

Key Duties and Responsibilities

• Co-Investigator in the TransiT Hub (contributing to academic direction to the research team of 6 PDRAs and 6 PhD students at Heriot Watt)
• To contribute to the broader leadership of both TransiT and DARe Hubs
• To contribute to a timely publication and funding pipeline for the CLS that is aligned with grant projects
• To conduct, publish and disseminate outstanding research of international standing
• To manage and contribute to activities to maximise the impact of research
• To secure external funding through research grants or consultancy contracts that meets University funding targets
• To design and deliver a range of knowledge exchange activity amongst a range of stakeholders
• To deliver teaching aligned with research centre activity and own research interests
• To supervise PhD, Post Graduate and DBA students

Education, Qualifications and Experience

Essential Criteria

• A Phd in the appropriate discipline 
• Possess sufficient breadth and depth of specialist knowledge in the discipline to provide leadership learning, research, portfolio development and industry engagement
• Recognised professional standing; as demonstrated by knowledge exchange work ;membership at a senior level or significant contributions to professional bodies; or other high profile scholarly activity
• A sustained current record of published research of internationally-leading quality in relevant field
• A proven track record in obtaining research funding
• Experience of administration at a level commensurate with current stage of career
• Experience of working with international partners in higher education
• Experience of supervision of PhD students to completion as a main supervisor/Director of Studies 
• Senior membership of an appropriate professional body 

How to apply

Applications can be submitted up to midnight (UK time) on Monday 26^th August 2024

Applications from candidates who require sponsorship to work in the UK will be considered alongside other applications. For further information on this please visit the UK Visas & Immigration website: www.gov.uk/browse/visas-immigration/work-visas  

About Heriot-Watt University

At Heriot Watt we are passionate about our values and look to them to connect our people globally and to help us collaborate and celebrate our success through working together. Our research programmes can deliver real world impact which is achieved through the diversity of our international community and the recognition of creative talent that connects our global team. 

Our flourishing community will give you the freedom to challenge and to bring your enterprising mind and to help our partners with solutions that can be applied now and in the future. Join us and Heriot Watt will provide you with a platform to thrive and work in a way that also helps you live your life in balance with well-being and inclusiveness at the heart of our global community.  

Heriot-Watt University is committed to securing equality of opportunity in employment and to the creation of an environment in which individuals are selected, trained, promoted, appraised and otherwise treated on the sole basis of their relevant merits and abilities. Equality and diversity are all about maximising potential and creating a culture of inclusion for all. Heriot-Watt University values diversity across our university community and welcomes applications from all sectors of society, particularly from underrepresented groups. For more information, please see our website www.hw.ac.uk/uk/services/equalitydiversity.htm and also our award-winning work in Disability Inclusive Science Careers disc.hw.ac.uk. We welcome and will consider flexible working patterns e.g. part-time working and job share options.  

Use our total rewards calculator: www.hw.ac.uk/about/work/total-rewardscalculator.htm to see the value of benefits provided by Heriot-Watt University.