Richard Wilkinson
Head of the Department of Computing & Senior Lecturer in Computing
Worcester Business School
Senior Management Team
email: r.wilkinson@worc.ac.uk
tel: 01905 54 2918
Richard leads the Department of Computing at the University of Worcester, where he brings together two things he cares about: technology that solves real problems for organisations, and teaching that gets students genuinely excited about it.
His route into academia wasn't a straight line, and he sees that as a strength. After graduating in Management and Media from the University of Leeds, he spent the late 1990s and early 2000s as a Consultant in the telecoms and IT industry, becoming a National Sales Manager and leading voice and data projects for clients ranging from small local firms to the Premier League. Those years spent scoping problems with customers and designing solutions still shape how he teaches: computing is as much about people and businesses as it is about code.
In 2004 he moved into education. He trained as a teacher and spent several years in further education in Birmingham, rising to Assistant Director at South & City College and working with national agencies to improve skills provision. Alongside that he completed an MSc in Computing at Birmingham City University, then lectured at Coventry University and Birmingham City University before joining Worcester in 2016.
As Head of Department and a member of the Senior Management Team, Richard has overseen a period of growth for computing at Worcester, including the launch of the University's cyber security degree and its new Cyber Lab in 2024. He is a Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy and a member of BCS, The Chartered Institute for IT.
Teaching Interests
Richard teaches across the University's Computing, Business IT and Business degrees. His classes lean on real tools, real data and real business scenarios, so students leave able to do the work, not just describe it. His teaching areas include:
- Web technologies and e-commerce
- Programming, scripting and software development
- Data analytics and business intelligence
- IT and information systems
- Business and IT consultancy
- IT strategy and management
- Research and professional practice
He supervises undergraduate final-year projects every year as well as Master's projects in Business Computing and Business Intelligence.
Research and Expertise
Richard's research looks at how technology and data can make learning more engaging and more effective. His interests include:
- Student engagement and motivation, particularly how technology-enhanced learning can motivate students in STEM and business subjects
- Learning analytics, using data about how students learn to support them better; he has been part of the JISC Learning Analytics Research Group
- Data skills for business, and closing the gap between what employers need and what graduates can do
- Artificial intelligence in organisations. Richard was appointed Extraordinary Professor (ad honorem) at the University of Congress in Mendoza, Argentina, for an international project testing the resilience of organisational and team leadership when companies adopt AI tools
He is also regularly asked to comment on cyber security and AI-enabled fraud, and on what businesses and the public can do to protect themselves.
Qualifications
- MSc Computing (with Commendation), Birmingham City University
- PGCE Post-Compulsory Education, University of Central England (now Birmingham City University)
- PG Cert Adult Literacy / English Language, University of Leicester
- BA Management and Media, University of Leeds
Publications
- Wilkinson, R. (2020) Equipping students with essential data skills to meet business demand. Education Technology.
- Wilkinson, R. and Lancaster, T. (2016) How technology can be used to engage higher education learners in business, management and law disciplines. Chartered Association of Business Schools Teaching and Learning Conference.
- Wilkinson, R. and Lancaster, T. (2014) Improving student motivation using technology within the STEM disciplines. Higher Education Academy STEM Conference.
Industry Partnerships
Richard believes students should graduate fluent in the platforms employers actually use. He has led the University's academic partnerships with Microsoft and Qlik, bringing tools such as Microsoft Dynamics 365 and Qlik's data analytics software into the curriculum. This work was featured as a Microsoft customer success story, and in 2021 Richard was named a Qlik Professor Ambassador, one of a small international group of academics recognised for championing data literacy.
Industry Partnerships
Richard believes students should graduate fluent in the platforms employers actually use. He has led the University's academic partnerships with Microsoft and Qlik, bringing tools such as Microsoft Dynamics 365 and Qlik's data analytics software into the curriculum. This work was featured as a Microsoft customer success story, and in 2021 Richard was named a Qlik Professor Ambassador, one of a small international group of academics recognised for championing data literacy.
Professional Body Associations
- Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (SFHEA)
- Member of BCS, The Chartered Institute for IT (MBCS)
Leadership and Wider Contributions
- Head of the Department of Computing and member of the Worcester Business School Senior Management Team
- Worcester Business School Apprenticeship Lead, and member of the Academic Quality Assurance Governance Committee
- Former Learning and Teaching Coordinator for Worcester Business School
- Past member of the University's Learning, Teaching and Quality Enhancement Committee, VLE Steering Group, and Learning and Teaching conference organising committee
- Regular panel member for course approval and review across the University
- Former external examiner for computing and digital technology programmes at the University of Roehampton and Ravensbourne University London