Richard Thorpe is Professor of Management Development and Pro Dean for Research and Innovation at Leeds University Business School. His research interests have included: performance, entrepreneurship, knowledge and leadership as well as research methods in management research.

His early career as a management trainee on a Clarks programme informed the way his ethos has developed. Following a period in industry his first academic appointment was as a researcher at the Pay and Reward Research Centre at the University of Strathclyde. There, he developed close links with practitioners, intermediaries and policy makers, something he has strived to maintain as his career progressed.

Common themes in his work are: a strong commitment to conducting research in collaboration with practitioners; a focus on action and change; an interest in and commitment to the development of doctoral students and the development of capacity within the sector.

Richard has been past president and chair of the British Academy of Management (BAM) and member of the ESRC Training and Development Board. He currently chairs the Society for the Advancement of Management Studies (SAMS). In this latter role he initiated the ESRC/SAMS/UKCES management and Business Fellowship Scheme- a scheme designed to attract experienced practitioners into academia.

In 2013, he was a member of two task forces; one constituted by ABS to examine innovative practices within business schools and the other constituted by AACSB to examine innovation within doctoral programs.