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Ying Zhang

Ying Zhang

Profile

She is a Postgraduate Researcher at Leeds University Business School (LUBS). Before this role, she worked as a Research Assistant and completed a full-time MBA at LUBS, which equipped her with the knowledge and experience to integrate into the UK academic and professional environment.

Prior to her academic journey in the UK, she spent 12 years in China working in the life science and clinical research industry, holding multiple customer-facing positions, including Product Manager, Marketing Manager, Technical Support Sales, and Account Manager. This extensive industry experience, combined with her research experience, gives her a unique blend of practical insight and academic rigor, enabling her to bridge theory and practice effectively.

Research interests

Her research interests centre on migrant labour exploitation in the UK. Her research project examines the making of migrant workers subject to labour exploitation and seeks to answer the question: “How do migrants become exploited in the UK? How do migration journey contribute to accumulating vulnerabilities?” The core concepts underpinning her work include migrants, accumulated vulnerability, continuum of unfreedom, and labour exploitation.

Due to her experience as a Research Assistant on the project “Understanding Human Rights: Implications for Management of Supply Chains”, she contributed to several outputs, including a publication in The Conversation, a published submission to the UK Parliament’s call for evidence on “Forced Labour in UK Supply Chains,” and two research blogs related to Modern Slavery in the UK. In addition, she has been active in attending conferences and events to communicate and nework with peers. To date, she has presented at the 2025 CERIC Doctoral Conference, the 2025 LUBS Doctoral Conference, the CERIC Migration Workshop, the Business and Modern Slavery Conference 2025, the Student Sustainability Research Conference 2026.

Qualifications

  • MBA, University of Leeds
  • MSc, Biology, Northwest A&F University, China
  • BSc, Biology, Northwest A&F University, China

Research groups and institutes

  • Centre for Technology, Operations and Supply Chain Analysis