Business School research and PhD programmes

Research activities within the Business School at Brunel cover a wide ranging and diverse field of topics from accounting, through HR, to strategy. Academic staff involved within these programmes investigate corporate governance and social responsibility, employment relations, information systems, corporate brands, marketplace cultures, international business and entrepreneurship and much more. Our research drives forward global business and societal transformation, and is applied to many areas, such as NASA’s mission to Mars, humanitarian relief in Iran, biobank network across Europe, British Monarchy brand in the UK, to innovating the public sector in Saudi Arabia. 

Research opportunities for students 

Research students are welcomed to Brunel as valued members of our thriving, research-intensive community. Browse PhD opportunities below and find out about the funding available for students.

Research in the Business School

Find people, projects, groups and publications in the Business School and read more about related research to this area. 

Browse research projects

Meet our experts

Brunel Hive

Through our range of partnership programmes and strategic collaborations, we connect high-impact academic research with high-growth businesses.

Independent assessment of our research quality (REF 2021)

View REF 2021 details for Business and Management Studies (UoA 17)

Business brains helping Uganda dairy farmers milk it

REF 2021

Research groups and centres

Accounting and Auditing

Investigating current issues in accounting that include financial reporting, assurance, corporate governance, corporate social responsibility and business models in large and small business entities

AI Social and Digital Innovation

Social, economic and strategic effects of AI and associated technologies. Impact of AI and related technologies on societies, organisations and individuals.

Arts Health and Social Change

This Research Group is dedicated to fostering art-based initiatives that drive social change towards inclusivity and equality in healthcare.

Brunel Education Research and Guidance Hub

Focusing on investigating current issues in higher education including leadership and management, knowledge-behaviour gap, student and staff information literacy, building inclusive pedagogies, coaching and mentoring, community building, E-learning in Accounting Education and curriculum development.

Circular Food Forum

Leads discussions across the “food chain” with the aim to improve resource management, through working with industries and Government to respond to global pressures of growing resource scarcity and food waste.

Entrepreneurship and Sustainability

Our focus is on how individuals, businesses and societies can tap into creative and entrepreneurial flair to develop innovative solutions, in order to not only create economic value, but also solve social and environmental problems.

Healthcare Management, Culture and Leadership Group

We focus on the intersection among healthcare management, culture and leadership from an interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary approach.

Human Resource Management and Organization Behaviour

The group's five main themes of research include excellence in workplace innovation, diversity, team work, social inclusion, and employee selection.

Institute of Communities and Society

The Institute focuses on the social, community, and cultural aspects of pressing contemporary issues including migration and movement, social unrest, intersectional inequalities, and institutionalised poverty.

Marketing and Corporate Brand Management

Our research-active faculty are engaged in cutting-edge applied scholarship across a broad spectrum of marketing areas.

Marketing and Corporate Brand Management - copy

Our research-active faculty are engaged in cutting-edge applied scholarship across a broad spectrum of marketing areas.

Operations and Information Systems Management

We specialize in responsible and sustainable operation management exploring information systems, operations research, management science, and general management and strategic management knowledge and approaches across public and private industry sectors

South Asia Studies

We provide a research base for the development of new South Asia specific programmes and teaching, and bring together scholars from across the University working on South Asia from different disciplinary perspectives.

Strategy Entrepreneurship and International Business

Our themes of research range from entrepreneurial and internationalisation strategies of small-to-medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to inward and outward investment by large enterprises and supra-national governance.