I am an interdisciplinary political economist who writes, researches, teaches and advises about the futures of work produced by the digital and green transitions, and how governments, politicians and policymakers shape these futures through place-based industrial policies.

I am a Senior Lecturer in Politics and Director of Business Engagement & Innovation for Humanities & Social Sciences on the University of Exeter’s Cornwall Campus in my hometown of Penryn, where I am part of the Institute of Cornish Studies and lead the South West Doctoral Training Partnership pathway Global Challenges & Transformations: Geopolitics, Mobilities & Inequalities. I have held previous research and teaching positions at the universities of Bath, Bristol, the West of England and Erasmus University Rotterdam.

Much of my current research and consultancy centres on how what I call ‘workplace geopolitics’ are playing out in strategically important industries and infrastructures in the UK and Europe, from critical minerals to telecommunications. A particular focus is on my homeland of Cornwall in the far west of the British Isles, and the potential for green and digital reindustrialisation to guarantee the workforce good, skilled jobs and our communities broad-based economic growth.

Investigating these themes, I am a Co-Investigator of two major research council investments in collaboration with industrial partners ranging from BT to the South West Trades Union Congress: the Economic & Social Research Council Centre for Sociodigital Futures and the UKRI Critical Minerals Accelerating the Green Economy Centre. I am also a Fellow of the Institute for the Future of Work, University of Bristol Business School and the ESRC Digital Futures at Work Research Centre, and Secretary of the British Universities Industrial Relations Association.

My most recent book is the Handbook for the Future of Work, coedited with Julie MacLeavy as part of the Routledge International Handbooks series. My five previous books, such as Value (2020), have promoted new conceptual approaches to the critique of political economy applied to key issues in contemporary capitalism. Spanning 50+ articles and chapters in academic publications and 100+ pieces for popular media, my work has been translated into Farsi, Chinese, Spanish, French, Polish and Italian.

In recent years I have worked closely with the Foundation for European Progressive Studies and Progressive Britain, as well as partners including Demos Helsinki and trade unions Prospect and Community, to develop social democratic strategies on ‘cybersecuronomics’ and a progressive politics of work for the age of unpeace. Supported by major funders such as the Shared Prosperity Fund, Research England and the Economic & Social Research Council, previous funded projects have explored regional strategies for good work, the politics of automation risk, and coworking spaces in the COVID-19 pandemic.

My commentary on policymaking, political economy and the politics of work has been frequently featured and covered in media including the Guardian, the Times, the Economist and the Financial Times. I regularly collaborate with and consult for companies, organisations and other actors across the public and private sectors, including large corporations, local authorities, trade unions, business associations, thinktanks and politicians.

You can find out more about me and my story in this recent profile published to celebrate 20 years of the University of Exeter’s campus in Penryn, Cornwall.