Dr Philip Berners

Biography

Dr Philip Berners is Senior Lecturer of the Edge Hotel School at the University of Essex. He is Postgraduate Director for the MSc International Hospitality Management program, and Course Coordinator of the BA Event Management programs, and is principal investigator for a Knowledge Transfer Partnership research project - "Aspiring to diminish labour shortages in hospitality, events, and tourism" (https://www.essex.ac.uk/research-projects/aspiring-to-diminish-labour-shortages). Philip joined in January 2017 from his previous appointment as lecturer and module leader of event and hospitality modules at the University of West London. He holds a Postgraduate Certificate in Higher Education (PGCE) and was accepted as a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (FHEA). Philip has authored the first book on events management in the Polish market (Priorytet 2013), four textbooks outside Poland (Routledge 2017, 2019, 2022, 2024), and edited a fifth in his role as editor for the Routledge series "The Practical Guide to Events and Hotel Management Series": https://www.routledge.com/The-Practical-Guide-to-Events-and-Hotel-Management-Series/book-series/PGE Philip's PhD ("An Events Industry Takes Shape: A Study of the UK and Poland") is in the field of Sociology and researches the causes of gaps in events industries that are at different stages of development. His research themes include event tourism, attitude to risk, and qualifications versus experience. An event manager himself, Philip has held posts as the head of events at Thorpe Park, the London Hippodrome, and Camden Palace. He has worked with London Fashion Week, the MOBO Awards, and the launch of the acclaimed film "Notting Hill". He was a senior manager at the BRIT Awards for three years. His client portfolio includes Her Majesty the late Queen Elizabeth II, the former Prince of Wales now King Charles III, and global music stars including Bon Jovi, Jennifer Lopez, and Shania Twain. Philip relocated to Poland for 10 years where he was an event consultant and director of his own school of event management before returning to the UK to embark on his career in academia. Philip is a founding trustee of the Colchester Museums Development Foundation (CMDF).

Qualifications

• PhD University of Essex, (2023)

• PG Cert Ed University of West London,

• BA Hospitality Management University of West London,