Dr Ola Thomson
- abthomson at bournemouth dot ac dot uk
- http://orcid.org/0000-0001-9278-0101
- Lecturer in Human Resources and Organisational Behaviour
- Dorset House D135, Talbot Campus, Fern Barrow, Poole, BH12 5BB
Biography
I am a social science academic with an interest in human resource management, qualitative research and participatory methods. My particular research interests relate to equality, diversity and inclusion, and gender equality, knowledge work and scientific careers, and how employees thrive in work organisations.
I have been involved in a Horizon 2020 project, ACT on Gender, a multi-partner consortium working together to create communities of practice to accelerate gender equality in higher education and research careers in EU and beyond. You can read about this project and its outcomes here: https://act-on-gender.eu/.
More recently, I have worked on a project funded by Wellcome Trust at the Elizabeth Blackwell Institute for Health Research, University of Bristol. I co-authored a book about practical ways for nurturing research careers. I also worked to promote equality, diversity and inclusion in health and biomedical research careers at Bristol and more widely with collaborators such as EDIS (Equality, Diversity and Inclusion in Science and Health), and DORA (Declaration on Research Assessment)...
I am a Management Committee Member for COST Action VOICES funded by the EU. I lead the Mentoring subgroup within Working Group on Employment, Career Development and Mobilities, tasked with mapping mentoring programmes and establishing good practice that can be shared. VOICES aims to increase the visibility of inequalities faced by Early Career Researchers and Innovators from a gender perspective. It promotes a sustainable dialogue between researchers and stakeholders in the research ecosystem at the systemic level (European & national policy-makers) and at the institutional level (senior researchers, academic managers). We achieve this by creating a community of gender equality practitioners composed of various stakeholders (researchers, independent researchers, academic managers, organizations) across Europe. You can find more information here: https://gendervoices.eu/.
My PhD focused on the experiences of women knowledge workers, flexible work arrangements, and theories relating to agentic practices, organisational structures, gender, ideal worker norms, and institutional change.
I have a Qualified Teacher Status (QTS) and I am Fellow of the Higher Education Academy.
moreExpertise related to UN Sustainable Development Goals
In 2015, UN member states agreed to 17 global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure prosperity for all. This person's work contributes towards the following SDGs:
Decent work and economic growth
"Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all"
Journal Articles
- Thomson, A., Palmén, R., Reidl, S., Barnard, S., Beranek, S., Dainty, A.R.J. and Hassan, T.M., 2022. Fostering collaborative approaches to gender equality interventions in higher education and research: the case of transnational and multi-institutional communities of practice. Journal of Gender Studies, 31 (1), 36-54.
Books
- Thomson, A. and Gooberman-Hill, R., 2024. Nurturing equality, diversity and inclusion: Support for research careers in health and biomedicine.
Chapters
- Thomson, A., Barnard, S.H., Hassan, T.H. and Dainty, A., 2022. Can a Community of Practice foster institutional change for gender equality? Conceptualising ‘Community of Political Practice’. In: Palmén, R. and Müller, J., eds. A Community of Practice Approach to Improving Gender Equality in Research. Routledge Taylor & Francis Group.
- Thomson, A., Rabsch, K., Barnard, S.H., Hassan, T.M. and Dainty, A., 2022. Co-creation methods for Communities of Practice: Towards institutional change. In: Palmén, R. and Müller, J., eds. A Community of Practice Approach to Improving Gender Equality in Research. Routledge Taylor & Francis group.
Reports
- Fritch, R., Garrard, S., Hatch, A., Hazlett, H., Noone, H., Quinn, L., Strinzel, M., Thomson, A. and Vinkenburg, C., 2024. Using Narrative CVs: Identifying shared objectives and monitoring effectiveness. Zenodo. Available from: https://zenodo.org/records/10845837.
Internet Publications
- Bell, A., Thomson, A. et al., 2023. "If we use the strength of diversity among researchers we can only improve the quality and impact of our research": Issues of equality, diversity, inclusion, and transparency in the process of applying for research funding. Zenodo. Available from: https://zenodo.org/record/8186347.
Artefacts
- Thomson, A. and Rabsch, K., 2021. ACT on Gender: Community of Practice Co-Creation Toolkit, Horizon 2020. Loughborough University.
Grants
- Short-term Scientific Mission "Inclusive Mentoring in Research and Academic Career" (European Cooperation in Science and Technology, 31 Aug 2024). Awarded
Public Engagement & Outreach Activities
- Organisation of summer training event "Inclusive Mentoring" in Bilbao, Basque Country with Deusto University (08 Jul 2024-11 Jul 2024)
Qualifications
- PhD in Flexible Work Experiences: Women Knowldge Workers (Bournemouth University, 2018)
- MSc in Management with Human Resources (Bournemouth University, 2014)
Memberships
- British Academy of Management, Member, https://www.bam.ac.uk/
- COST Action VOICES, Management Committee Member, https://gendervoices.eu/
Social Media Links
- LinkedIn, https://www.linkedin.com/in/ola-aleksandra-thomson-95b61937/
- Twitter, @0la_Thomson
External Media and Press
- How could research assessment recognise the ongoing impact of the pandemic on researchers?, Elizabeth Blackwell Institute, 06 Dec 2022. http://www.bristol.ac.uk/blackwell/news/2022/pandemic-impacts-on-researchers.html
- Celebrating three women trailblazers of modern medicine, Elizabeth Blackwell Institute, 25 Jan 2022. https://www.bristol.ac.uk/blackwell/news/2022/three-women-trailblazers.html
- Résumé for Researchers: the whys and hows of narrative CVs, Elizabeth Blackwell Institute, 15 Sep 2021. https://www.bristol.ac.uk/blackwell/news/2021/narrative-cvs-blog.html
Broadcast Interview
- Podcast – How to create a Narrative CV. https://www.dementiaresearcher.nihr.ac.uk/podcast-how-to-create-a-narrative-cv/