New Head of School appointed at Alliance Manchester Business School

Ken McPhail to succeed Fiona Devine in August 2023

Professor Ken McPhail has been announced as the successor to Professor Fiona Devine as Head of Alliance Manchester Business School (AMBS) following a rigorous selection process.

Currently Professor of Accounting in AMBS, Ken will move to his new role on 1 August 2023, when current Head of AMBS Professor Fiona Devine becomes the Vice-President and Dean of Humanities at The University of Manchester.

Ken joined the University of Manchester from Melbourne in 2014 in the role of Vice Dean of Social Responsibility in the Faculty of Humanities. From 2017 to 2021, Ken was Director of Research, and Deputy Head of AMBS where he led the business school’s 2021 Research Excellence Framework (REF) submission and was involved in bringing the £32 million ESRC Productivity Institute to Manchester.

His research focusses around the symbiosis of financial and ethical success in business, addressing the role of accounting in helping business be successful in generating profits for shareholders as well as contributing value for the environment and society. Ken was made an honorary member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Australia and New Zealand in 2012 and his seminal work on business and human rights was recognised in 2018 when he was elected a fellow of the Academy of Social Sciences.

Professor Ken McPhail said, “I am humbled and excited to be the new Head of this incredible business school. I would like to thank my predecessor, Fiona Devine, for her 10 years of service and leadership that has transformed the School.

“These are hugely significant times for the business world and business schools. I am looking forward to working with my outstanding colleagues to step up to the challenges ahead and ensure that AMBS is recognised as the benchmark against which other schools will be judged.”

Current Vice-President and Dean of Humanities at the University of Manchester, Professor Keith Brown, said, “I am delighted that Professor Ken McPhail been appointed as the new Vice-Dean and Head of Alliance Manchester Business School.

“Ken has been an impressive member of our academic community since joining the University and, as current Professor of Accounting at AMBS, has taken leadership roles both within the School and through his industry relationships.

“I know his experience and skills will ensure great success as Head of School.”