Professor Qile He, also known as Horace, is Professor of Strategy and Performance Management at the University of Derby (email: q.he@derby.ac.uk). He was previously the Associate Head of School for Research of the School of Strategy and Leadership at Coventry University and a Reader in Operations Management. Horace’s research interests are in the area of interfirm alliances and partnerships and innovation strategies and processes of organizations. He is also interested in sustainable and responsible business, as well as supply chain optimization. He has published over 80 papers in refereed journals, books, and leading international conference proceedings. Including prestigious international journals, such as International Journal of Production Economics, International Journal of Production Research, Supply Chain Management: An International Journal, and Food Control, He has supervised multiple PhD candidates to completion.

Horace is an elected council member of the British Academy of Management. He is also a Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy and a Chartered Member of Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport. He serves in the editorial board of two international journals. He was a selected member of staff for RAE2008, REF2014 and REF2021.

In the past he has led 3 undergraduate/postgraduate courses to successful accreditation or re-accreditation by CILT (Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport) and CIPS (Chartered Institute of Procurement and Supply).

He received his first degree in Economics from the University of Colorado at Denver with Distinction, and then he has got bursaries to study his two other MSc degrees in Management Science and Engineering (from China Agriculture University), and MSc Financial Decision Management with Distinction (University of Luton). He got his PhD degree from Middlesex University, London which was sponsored by a fully funded studentship, where he also received an MSc degree in Research Methods, again with a Distinction.

Inter-firm alliances and partnerships;

Innovation strategies and processes of organizations;

Sustainable and responsible business;

Supply chain optimization;

I believe advances in research with strong theoretical and practical underpinnings are the foundations for better practice and more successful teaching. Successful research and teaching practices are most likely built on strong collaborations. As an active researcher in strategic management, operations management, and inter-firm alliances, I am passionate about collaborative research internally, nationally, and internationally on publications, research projects, and research disseminations, aiming for original impacts on both industry and society.