Management and Marketing

Dr James Fowler, Lecturer at Essex Business School, has recently published research into the ways that commuting on the London Underground has, or hasn’t, changed in over the past century.

By digging into the available data he has focused on understanding how the customer experience, rather than the organisation’s internal operations, has been affected by change. Analysis like this helps organisations to understand their customers and to compete against the competition.

Professor Peter Bloom critically examines how technology can redefine and transform contemporary work and society. His focus on the human dimensions of organisational life sheds light on the “dark side” of workplace empowerment and how economic marketisation may co-exist with political authoritarianism. In exploring these themes, he reveals new ways of shaping cultures for more just and participatory economic and political structures.

Professor Bloom has published widely, both in leading academic journals and in media such as the Washington Post and The New Statesman. His books include Authoritarian Capitalism in the Age of Globalization, The Ethics of Neoliberalism, and The CEO Society (co-authored with Carl Rhodes), among others.

Professor Phoebe V. Moore's current research examines “affective computing” – the use of algorithms and surveillance technologies to track and interpret emotional and behavioural data in the workplace. By exploring how these systems can lead to both productivity gains and privacy concerns, her work sheds light on the significant regulatory and ethical implications of algorithmic management.

Professor Moore’s publications, including her recent report Data on our minds: affective computing at work, call for a reappraisal of corporate and policy standards to ensure employees are treated fairly as AI reshapes modern working environments.

Dr James Muldoon work investigates how new technologies—including artificial intelligence and digital platforms—can generate public value and advance the common good. In particular, Dr Muldoon’s latest research uncovers the global production networks that underpin AI development, highlighting how modern digital labour spans ridesharing, food delivery, domestic work, childcare, and beyond.

By illuminating the hidden human labour behind AI in his last book with Prof Mark Graham (Oxford Internet Institute)  and Dr Callum Cant (University of Essex)  he explores how we might transform notions of freedom, power, and democracy in a digital age to create more equitable, inclusive outcomes.

Dr Erik Jacobi leads the Consumer Neuroscience Group and innovative Neuromarketing Lab, which investigates the cognitive and emotional drivers behind consumer decision-making.

Using cutting-edge biometric and neurophysiological tools—such as eye-tracking, facial expression analysis, and brainwave monitoring—his research reveals how people respond to marketing stimuli in real-time. This work offers vital insights for developing more effective, ethical, and inclusive communication strategies in a rapidly evolving media and digital landscape.

Dr Jordon Lazell leads work on the cultural, political, and environmental dimensions of food sustainability. In 2023 and 2021, he organised the Future of Food Symposium, a major international event that brought together academics, practitioners, community leaders, and policy experts to address the challenges of food poverty, surplus food distribution, and sustainable consumption.

The symposium positions food not only as a basic need but as a powerful medium for societal transformation, highlighting community-led solutions, rights-based approaches, and resilient alternatives to the dominant food system.

Dr Camila Vergara’s research explores how legal, democratic, and economic structures can be reimagined to empower marginalised communities and revive democratic life. Her work draws on constitutional theory and institutional design to propose practical mechanisms for civic engagement, anti-corruption, and democratic renewal from the ground up.

As the organiser of the Venice World Multidisciplinary Conference on Republics and Republicanism, she convenes global scholars to examine how historical and contemporary ideas can inform urgent efforts to rebuild trust, participation, and justice in political systems worldwide.