Research leadership is when an individual has “influence over one or more people on the research-related behaviour, attitudes or intellectual capacity of others” (Evans, 2014). Effective research leadership skills can help foster a happy and successful career, and the PhD provides an excellent opportunity to develop leadership skills.

This workshop provides doctorate researchers with the space to reflect on, consider and develop their personal research leadership development plan. Drawing on a range of experiential and interactive activities, the workshop adopts a values- and strengths-based approach to help researchers identify how developing effective research leadership can benefit them within their personal research environment.

After attending the workshop, attendees will:

• Understand they are not alone in the concerns and challenges they face in developing effective research leadership
• Identify opportunities for attendees to lead based on their unique circumstances (their role, their team, their strengths, their values, etc).
• Identify opportunities to begin to develop key leadership skills (such as vision + goal setting, incorporating core values, communication, networking, strength-based approaches)
• Develop confidence in themselves as a leader
• Start creating their own research leadership development plan
• Collaboratively network with peers to facilitate their leadership development

This workshop is being provided as part of Lancaster University’s continued commitment to support its doctorate students by cultivating and refining the skills necessary to facilitate research excellence. The workshop will be hosted by Dr Neil McLatchie, who has a PhD in Psychology and a Level 5 ILM-accredited Certificate in Coaching and Mentoring. He draws on core psychological concepts and coaching principles throughout his workshops. Any handouts and slides will be made available to attendees upon completion of the workshop.