Professor Alberto Franco
PhD, MSc, PGCAP, BSc
Expertise
I work with leaders and teams to improve their decision making capabilities through designed interventions.
Current positions
Professor of Decision Sciences
School of Management - Business School
Contact
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Biography
I regularly translate the outcomes of my research into practical engagements with organisations in industry and government. Specifically, I design interventions to support the work of cross-functional and mutli-organisational teams in areas such as collaboration, problem solving, strategy development, decision analysis and resource prioritization. Organisations I have worked for include, among others, Defra, Dstl, NHS, Ministry of Defence, Department for Transport, World Health Association, National Audit Office, Atkins, Network Rail, and several charities/SMEs and local authorities.
Additionally, I have been delivering executive education courses globally for more 20+ years, in locations across Europe, North and South America, and South East Asia
Research interests
I am interested in examining how behaviour and cognition affect, or are affected by, designed decision-supported processes and tools. My research has both a descriptive and a prescriptive orientation, draws on a range of theoretical perspectives from psychology, sociology and human communication, and often adopts a process lens for the analysis of phenomena in the lab or the field.
I also have a long standing interest in the empirical study of the effectiveness of interventions designed and deployed to improve decision-making processes in cross-functional and multi-organisational teams, both in operational and strategic contexts.
PhD supervision:
I welcome PhD applicants interested in pursuing quantitative or qualitative research in any area related to group decision making.
Projects and supervisions
Research projects
REF 2021 Impact Case: Tackling Global Health Threats - Improving Global Risk Management of Emerging Health Threats
Principal Investigator
Role
Co-Investigator
Description
This highly successful REF 4* impact case was focused on emerging health threats such as the Covid-19 pandemic, which create extensive health, economic and social problems. A key challenge for…Managing organisational unit
School of Management - Business SchoolDates
01/01/2014 to 31/12/2020
Publications
Selected publications
01/12/2024How groups manage conflict when using model-driven decision support
Omega
Taking stock of behavioural OR: A review of behavioural studies with an intervention focus
European Journal of Operational Research
Complexity theory and leadership practice: A review, a critique, and some recommendations
The Leadership Quarterly
Examining Group Facilitation In Situ
Group Decision and Negotiation
Making OR practice visible: Using ethnomethodology to analyse facilitated modelling workshops
European Journal of Operational Research
Recent publications
01/12/2024How groups manage conflict when using model-driven decision support
Omega
Engaged decision making
Engaged decision making
Technologies for improving group decision making
The Emerald Handbook of Group and Team Communication Research
Taking stock of behavioural OR: A review of behavioural studies with an intervention focus
European Journal of Operational Research
A Risk Analysis Framework for Prioritizing and Managing Biosecurity Threats
Risk Analysis