CPSF Research

Our focus is on the key themes of leadership and change in professional service firms. Thus we study leading firms as well as leadership at the individual level. We also explore the organisational and strategic challenges that confront these firms. We seek to build academic theory in this field and to gain new insight into how professional service firms can and should respond.

Our approach is collaborative. Professionals make an important contribution - sometimes by participating in events and joining our discussions, sometimes by accepting visiting positions at the Centre. Centre academics also collaborate with other leading academics around the world.

We always aim for relevance. Our research is grounded in theory and empirically rigorous, but it is related to the practice of the professions and the experience of professionals.

Ongoing research interests

Scholars within the Bayes Centre for Professional Service Firms have studied the following issues in a range of professional contexts including the actuarial, accounting, consulting, engineering, investment banking, and legal sectors.

• Professional autonomy and control
• Clients: Relationships and risk
• Ethics and conflicts of interest
• Digital transformation
• Diversity: class, gender, and ethnicity
• Globalisation and globalising firms
• Governance: partnership vs. corporation
• Identity and identification
• Innovation
• Institutional change
• Knowledge management and learning
• Leadership development and selection
• Leadership dynamics
• Leadership elections
• Mergers and acquisitions
• New organisational forms
• Organisational change
• Power and politics
• Professional bodies: development and change
• Professionalisation of management
• Strategic change

See People for more information of expertise of specific centre members.
See centre members' Bayes Expert Profile for details of relevant publications.