Dr Helen Benton
Director of CIBE
Centre for Innovation in Business Education
Faculty:Faculty of Business and Law
School:Economics, Finance and Law
Location: Cambridge
Areas of Expertise: Business, management and leadership , International Business , Business Management
Dr Helen Benton is an active researcher in the field of supply chain management. She also has a passion for learning and teaching and co-leads the Centre for Innovation in Business Education for the Business School.
Background
Helen has been involved in numerous research and consultancy projects. She recently successfully completed a Knowledge Transfer Partnership with Hexcel Composites Ltd. which focused on supply chain improvement. This project was rated “Outstanding” by Innovate UK. She has also worked on a Low-Carbon KEEP knowledge transfer project and with Russian Railways developing their project management programme.
Helen is the Co-Director of the Centre for Innovation in Business Education (CIBE) which focuses on developing research, innovation, ideas and tools in business and management education. The centre acts as a hub within the Business School for business education research and professional practice.
Research interests
- Supply chain management
- Sustainable supply chains
- Project management
- Active learning
- Business education
- Technology-enhanced education
Helen’s research interests focus on managing and improving supply chains from an efficiency and effectiveness point of view. She has conducted projects that explore how IT can improve supply chain co-ordination. She has successfully collaborated with Hexcel Composites Ltd. to improve their supply chain processes. She has also been involved in knowledge transfer work to reduce carbon, working with a SMEs. She has a particular interest in sustainable operations and supply chains. Alongside this interest in supply chains, Helen has also been involved in pedagogical research, having been awarded funds from HEFCE to innovate the team based learning approach.
Areas of research supervision
• PhD First supervision in progress. Ioannis Dermitzakis: Supply Chain Risk Management Frameworks in Food & Drink SME’s.
• Part of the supervisory team. Romas Malevicius: Education for sustainable development in business and management studies: learning history of the GoGreen Pilot'12.
• Completed PhD supervision. Dr Basim Al-Jabhan: Supply chain risk management: A case study on the maritime transport firms in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
• Completed PhD supervision. Dr Stephen Nwanchor Elem: Transformation towards Sustainable Living under Global Education System - International Students' Experience.
• Completed PhD supervision. Dr Eze Ogbonnia Eze: Exploring international students’ experiences of studying in UK universities: a narrative inquiry of Nigerian students.
• Completed PhD supervision. Dr Brynn Deprey: The Internationalisation Process of Small and Medium Sized Management Consultancies in the UK.
• Supervised numerous Bachelors and Masters level dissertations in the areas of: e-business, general business, logistics, supply chain management and sustainability.
Teaching
Helen has taught undergraduates, postgraduates and professionals in the areas of: supply chain management, project management and operations management. She has lead BSc and Masters courses and large international modules. She is a Principal Fellow of the Higher Education Academy and a University Teaching Fellow. She co-directs the Faculty’s Centre for Innovation in Business Education.
Qualifications
- PhD in Management Research, Aston Business School. Title of PhD thesis: A Process Framework For Selecting Supply System Architecture In Manufacturing Supply Chains And Networks
- Postgraduate Certificate in Teaching and Learning, Aston University
- BSc in Managerial and Administrative Studies 2.1, Aston Business School.
Memberships, editorial boards
- Principal Fellow, Higher Education Academy
- Affiliate, Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply
- Member, Project Management Institute
Research grants, consultancy, knowledge exchange
• Principal Investigator, Knowledge Transfer Partnership with Hexcel Corporation, project funded: £185,000 by Innovate UK and Hexcel, Jul, 2015-Jan, 2018.
• Academic Co-Leader, Low-Carbon KEEP with Llewellyn Smith, project funded: £79,253.36, Sept, 2014 - Sept, 2015.
• Project Manager, Poll Everywhere: engaging students with in-class response activities and formative assessment, project funded: £6,000, Sept, 2014 - Jun, 2015.
• Project Leader and Manager, Small Module Feel: Using Digital Technology for Engagement in Large Modules in LAIBS, project funded: £3,498, Sept, 2014 - Jun, 2015.
• Developer, Project Management Course for Russian Railways, Aug - Dec, 2013.
• Consultant, Go Green, 18 month project for the Higher Education Academy, project funded £92,330.00 Jul, 2012 - May, 2014.
Selected recent publications
Benton, H.M., Wilding, B., Bailey, K., Blance, M. and Holly, D., 2016. Aligning Manufacturing Strategies with Complexity Factors in The Aerospace Supply Chain. In: 5th World Conference on Production and Operations Management: Joining P&OM forces worldwide: Present and future of Operations Management. Havana, Cuba, 6-10 September 2016.
Benton, H.M., Wilding, B., Bailey, K., Blance, M., 2016. Manufacturing strategy decisions in a complex aerospace supply chain. In: 23rd EurOMA (European Operations Management Association): Interactions. Trondheim, Norway, 17-22 June 2016
Benton, H.M., 2009. Archival Case Study Analysis of the Issues in Selecting Information and ICT Systems for Supply Chains. In: APMS (Advances in Production Management Systems), International IFIP WG 5.7 Conference: New Challenges, New Approaches. Bordeaux, France, 21-23 September 2009. Bordeaux: Springer.
Benton, H.M., Binder, M. and Wolfgang Egel-Hess, W., 2007. Benchmarking to promote learning in supply chains. International Journal of Learning and Change, 2(2) pp. 149-165.
Albores, P., Love, D.M., Weaver, M. Stone, J. and Benton, H., 2006. An evaluation of SCOR modelling techniques and tools. In: EuroMOT (European Conference on the Management of Technology), 2nd European Conference on Technology and Global Integration. Birmingham, UK, 10-12 September 2006, Vol. 1, pp. 16-24.
Benton, H.M. Binder, M. and Egel-Hess, W., 2006. Benchmarking operations: a means to organisational learning in supply chain management? In: EurOMA European Operations Management Association, 13th International Annual EurOMA Conference: Moving up the Value Chain, Glasgow, Scotland, 18-21 June 2006, Vol. 1 pp. 111-120.
Benton, H.M. and Love, D.M., 2006. Supply Chain Systems: A Framework for Selection. In: EurOMA European Operations Management Association, 13th International Annual EurOMA Conference: Moving up the Value Chain, Glasgow, Scotland, 18-21 June 2006, pp. 121-130.
Benton, H.M. and Love, D.M., 2006. Holistic Supply Chain Systems Framework, IPSERA (International Purchasing and Supply Education and Research Association) 15th Annual IPSERA Conference, San Diego, CA, 6-8 April 2006. CD ISBN: 0-9779673-0-1.
Al-Kilani, M., Benton, H.M. and McDonald, S., 2006. Assessment as a facilitator of autonomous learning. UCLT (University Centre for Learning and Teaching), Annual Learning and Teaching Conference, Chelmsford, UK, 12 September 2006. Chelmsford: Anglia Ruskin University.
Tang, N., Benton, H.M., Love, D., Albores, P., Ball, P., MacBryde, J. Boughton, N. and Drake, P., 2004. Developing an enterprise simulator to support electronic supply chain management for B2B electronic business. International Journal of Production Planning and Control, 16 (5), pp. 572-583.
Recent presentations and conferences
Benton, H., 2018. Delivering enhanced skills for postgraduate through team-based learning (TBL) In: CABS Learning, Teaching and Student Experience Conference 2018, 24-25 April 2018, Glasgow.
Benton, H.M., Everett, S. and Hunt, A., 2015. Raising levels of student satisfaction with assessment and feedback: reflecting on the staff experience of an ambitious change management programme. In: CABS Learning, Teaching and Student Experience Conference and Broadcast 2015, 28-29 April 2015, York.