Salford Business School has appointed Sara Boswell as director of Centre for Sustainable Innovation.
The CSI is a new hub, part of the University of Salford, to help bridge the gap between academia, policy and industry to support businesses on their journey of innovation, particularly in the realms of digital transformation, sustainability and change management.
Boswell will provide strategic direction and drive forward key activity as it looks to expand its network of partners across the North West and beyond.
She joins the team from Manchester Metropolitan University and has a wealth of experience in managing core collaborative projects across multiple disciplines. In her previous role, she held a joint post of both senior lecturer – enterprise practice and SME digital project lead.
Boswell played a key role in large scale consortium projects such as the Greater Manchester AI Foundry, an ERDF funded project between MMU, Lancaster University, University of Salford and the University of Manchester to support the adoption of AI technology within SMEs.
She also led on the Greater Manchester Innovation Accelerator project – Centre for Digital Innovation, another large-scale consortium project which brought together four technology strands to build a digital supercluster to drive R&D activity in the region.
“This is a real opportunity for Salford to do something different,” said Boswell. “I see the Centre for Sustainable Innovation as a crucial driver for increased research and development activity in the region, and for Salford Business School to play a key role in leading future consortiums to drive forward business Innovation.
“Salford Business School already has really strong links with industry, and the CSI offers an opportunity to capitalise on this in a mutually beneficial way, by bringing together businesses and academics to overcome key challenges. The team is already working on some exciting projects, and I encourage any business who is interested in working alongside the CSI to get in touch.”
Dr Francine Morris, associate dean for enterprise and engagement at Salford Business School, added: “We are delighted that Sara is leading the new Centre for Sustainable Innovation at Salford Business School. She brings with her a wealth of experience leading multi-disciplinary projects across the region, and she possesses a real passion for making connections and bringing people together.
“I look forward to Sara and the team further strengthening our existing industry connections and building new ones which will add amazing value to the school and the regional business ecosystem.”