Dr Richard Tunstall

Profile

Richard is Associate Professor of Enterprise for the Centre for Enterprise and Entrepreneurship Studies where he leads interactive undergraduate discovery and postgraduate courses. He is Academic Director of Enterprise at Leeds through which he supports student enterprise activities across the University of Leeds in the curriculum. He is Cohort Facilitator for the UK Government Help to Grow small business high growth programme.  He is a member of Leeds University Business School and leads courses for MSc Enterprise and Entrepreneurship.

Before joining the University of Leeds he was Lecturer in Enterprise at the Welsh Enterprise Institute, University of Glamorgan, where the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor for Wales was conducted. In industry, Richard was project implementation and user engagement manager at a small fast-growth digital HR-solutions startup based in London, during its flotation on the Alternative Investment Market (AIM).

Dissertation Proposals
Richard particularly welcomes dissertation proposals for doctoral and masters level study which show potential for the advancement of entrepreneurship education and entrepreneurship studies, including proposals which draw on organisational theory, social theory and humanities approaches. 

Research questions which investigate social and process issues in the development of ventures, including those operating in institutional contexts such as incubators, existing firms and universities are particularly welcome. Equally welcome are proposals which take a critical and innovative approach to investigating both venture development and enterprise education.

Recent Successful PhD Students:

Dr Kautsar Ramil – Entrepreneurship, institutions and policy in Malaysia: An examination of perceptions and impact

Responsibilities

• Academic Director of Enterprise at Leeds

Research interests

Richard has published in international journals in relation to new movements in entrepreneurship theory, new venture creation processes and innovations in enterprise education, as part of an entrepreneurship studies approach which seeks to develop new insights into enterprise phenomena through contextualised research drawing on diverse methods and research philosophies. He is a Director of Enterprise Educators UK and Associate Editor at the International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behaviour and Research.

Current research interests include social dimensions of entrepreneurship, new venture creation processes, open innovation and enterprise education. Additional interests include interpretive and critical approaches to enterprise research.

Richards doctoral studies involved an investigation of social processes in the practice of internal corporate venturing in multinational firms using techniques such as qualitative case methods, participant observation and thematic analysis. This involved research with over 30 multinational firms and high-tech ventures in various stages of development.

Editorial and Reviewer Roles
Associate Editor, International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behaviour and Research
Editorial Review Board Member, Small Enterprise Research Journal

Qualifications

• PhD (Management and Entrepreneurship)
• MA (Entrepreneurial Studies)
• PGCert (Educational Development)
• BA(Hons) (English Literature)

Professional memberships

• Fellow of the Higher Education Academy
• Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts
• Member of the Institute of Small Business and Entrepreneurship
• Member of the British Academy of Management
• Member of the European Council of Small Business
• Member of the United States Association of Small Business and Entrepreneurship

Student education

Richard has successfully designed and delivered a number of innovative programmes in entrepreneurship and innovation management. He is passionate about developing engaging entrepreneurial education experiences and has been invited to lead enterprise workshops as guest lecturer at the University of Applied Science, Munich; Ecole de Management de Normandie; Hong Kong University of Science and Technology and Cardiff University. 

Research groups and institutes

• Centre for Enterprise and Entrepreneurship Studies

Current postgraduate researchers

• Muhammad