Dr. Alison Watson is the Head of School of Leadership and Management. Having taught at Arden for 18 years, she has supported many students on various management courses at all levels of study. Prior to this, Alison was an operations and project manager for a number of large retailers, and therefore has a wealth of experience in the field of business and management. Alison is also Director for her own training company. The company offers bespoke teaching and learning packages. Through her passion for innovation and business development she has grown her School significantly over the last three years and made it a profitable contributor towards Arden University’s financial success. Her strengths lie in being creative, not being scared to do something new and different, to lead collaboratively and develop the people as well as the products and services around her. Alison is interested in advancements in technology and business transformation. She embraces the likes of AI and uses this to her and her Schools advantage to make processes and services better for the end-user. In addition, Alison builds stakeholder relationships easily and can see opportunities when dealing with networks. She has been most successful in adding fifteen professional body endorsements/accreditation to her School. Alison’s focus on research lies with developing sustainable leaders of the future, ensuring that people and organisations are developed for the betterment of society, the economy and the planet.

If you want Alison to be your mentor, please send an email to aei@arden.ac.uk

Dr. Alfred M’beteh is an educator, a practicing entrepreneur, business consultant, researcher, and author.

He has over 10 years combined experience in corporate training, teaching, and developing course contents on entrepreneurship, change management, leadership and strategy across different organisations and universities in the UK and around the world. Alfred has also worked as a consultant and mentor for the World Bank projects, the Yali Leadership Centre and SeedStars; a Swiz based entrepreneurial firm.

He is currently a Senior Lecturer and plays a leading role in the development, launching and running of the Arden Enterprise Incubator (AEI). He has delivered corporate trainings to public institutions in Africa including the Nigerian National Petroleum Organisation (NNPC), Electricity Generation and Transmission Company, Sierra Leone, Petroleum Regulatory industry Sierra Leone, Creative Hub Africa etc.

Alfred holds a PhD in business with specific reference to entrepreneurship education. He is an active researcher and a practicing entrepreneur involved in both the publication and creation of a few enterprises. His research focus is on entrepreneurship education, strategy, change and leadership. He has written and co-authored academic and non-academic books and articles on entrepreneurship.

Alfred is a Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy, U.K., a member of the Chattered Management Institute UK and the European Management Academy. He has also co-founded several ventures and have help in ideating and accelerating many others.

He believes that with the ever-changing world, meeting the needs of current and future challenges facing our students and young people requires an exemplary leadership style that is rooted in Mentorship. He also believes that the greatest achievement lies not in the number of infrastructural facilities leaders build, but rather the number of followers they have impacted.

If you want Alfred M’beteh to be your mentor, please send an email to aei@arden.ac.uk

Dr. Syed is a highly accomplished British academic with an illustrious career spanning over 15 years within the realm of UK Higher Education Institutes. His expertise encompasses a rich tapestry of teaching, program management, and the development of multidisciplinary undergraduate and postgraduate curricula. Dr. Syed's distinguished leadership has been pivotal in the inception and execution of multimillion-pound-generating academic initiatives, thus making him an indispensable contributor to the triumphant narrative of UK Higher Education Institutions.

Currently, Dr. Syed holds the esteemed position of overseeing academic programs at Arden University's School of Leadership and Management, presiding over a substantial school budget of £98 million. He has also been entrusted with the role of a discerning member of the Quality Investigations Committee, a select committee tasked with the meticulous assessment of the educational quality provided by UK universities, as appointed by the Office for Students (OFS).

Dr. Syed's far-reaching contributions extend well beyond academia into the realm of policymaking. As a respected advisor to the Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education (QAA), he played a pivotal role on the panel responsible for the formulation of the 2023 UG and PG Subject Benchmark Statement for Business and Management. He holds the distinction of being a senior fellow of AdvanceHE and a fellow of RSA, RAS, and SET. His ground-breaking research has been disseminated on a global scale, reaching audiences within UK universities, learned societies, scholarly conferences, and international organizations such as the UN. Recent years have witnessed his active participation in 20 conference presentations and the authorship of eight peer-reviewed journal articles and reports.

Dr. Syed's stature as an influential academic has garnered him prestigious invitations, including one to present his findings on the UK government's progress towards Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 9 and 16 at the House of Lords in 2022. His expertise in disseminating research and catalysing positive influences on the development of sustainable practices and education is second to none.

In 2023, he was honoured with the prestigious Fellowship bestowed by the Institute of Enterprise and Entrepreneurs (IOEE). This accolade serves as a testament to his unwavering commitment to academic and professional excellence in Enterprise and Entrepreneurship which includes:

• Serving as a registered e-mentor for Employability Skills with the Prince’s Trust since 2018.
• Contributing as a registered mentor in the University of East London CfSS Professional Mentoring Scheme since 2016.
• Offering mentorship and guidance as a registered MOSAIC mentor for BAME GCSE pupils since 2015.

If you want Syed Ali Tarek to be your mentor, please send an email to aei@arden.ac.uk