Professor Nicolas Forsans

Biography

Nicolas joined the University of Essex in 2018 as Professor of Management and MBA Director. An economist and expert in corporate strategy and business models, his research interests revolve around Latin American economies and societies, and business models, in particular at the bottom of the pyramid (BOP). He has published in academic journals, online and professional publications, as well as book chapters. Nicolas is also co-director of the Centre for Latin American & Caribbean Studies (CLACS) at the University. Current projects involve a project on the commercialisation of innovation for an AI startup and a series of articles assessing the legacy of Covid-19 across Latin America and Colombia. An entrepreneurial senior academic Nicolas also leads and manages highly committed teams, strategic projects and ventures at ambitious, university-based business schools. He has designed, developed and repositioned various Master, MBA and dual degree programmes at leading university-based business schools, embedding innovation in programme design, delivery and assessment, securing world class academic and professional accreditations at programme and institutional levels, and collaborated with business and the third sector to create experiential learning opportunities to secure enviable positions for those programmes in global leading league tables (Financial Times, The Economist, etc,.) Nicolas has 20+ years experience teaching international business, responsible management and business strategy at Undergraduate, Postgraduate and MBA levels. Prior to joining Essex he held academic appointments at the University of Exeter (2013-1018) where he repositioned and led the growth of the One Planet MBA (later known as the Exeter MBA). Prior to that he worked as an FME Research Fellow, Lecturer then Associate Professor at the Centre for International Business, University of Leeds (CIBUL) where he worked for 15 years. Nicolas is a member of various Latin American societies and think tanks, in particular Canning House, the leading think tank on Latin America, the Business Association of Latin American Studies (BALAS), and the Society for Latin American Studies (SLAS).

Qualifications

• Diplome d'Etudes Approfondies (DEA) Pantheon-Sorbonne University, (1996)

Appointments

University of Essex

• Professor in Management, Essex Business School, University of Essex (3/9/2018 - present)

• MBA Director, The Essex MBA, Essex Business School, University of Essex (3/9/2018 - present)

• Co-director, Centre for Latin American & Caribbean Studies (CLACS), School of Philosophy & Art History, University of Essex (4/7/2022 - present)

• Deputy Dean (Colchester), EBS, University of Essex (1/12/2020 - present)

Other academic

• Associate Professor in International Strategic Management and MBA Director, Business School, University of Exeter (2/9/2013 - 2/9/2018)