Vice-Chancellor and the University Executive Team

The University Executive Team are individually responsible for developing different aspects of the University's work

About the Vice-Chancellor

Professor Nic Beech

Nic joined Middlesex in February 2020 from the University of Dundee where he was Vice-Principal (Provost).

He previously held the roles of Vice-Principal & Head, College of Arts and Social Sciences at the University of Dundee and Vice Principal, Dean of Arts and Head of the School of Management at the University of St Andrews. He has also been the Lead Fellow of the ESRC Advanced Institute of Management and Professor of Management at the University of Strathclyde.

His research interests are in change management and leadership and the construction of identity in the music industry, health, financial services and creative industries. His research has been funded by the ESRC, AHRC, EU, NESTA and industry partners. He is co-director of InGAME, the AHRC centre for innovation in games and media enterprise and is the President of the British Academy of Management.

Nic is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, the British Academy of Management, the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development, the Australia and New Zealand Academy of Management and the Academy of Social Sciences.

About the Executive

Our Executive is made up of eight leading individuals who report to and support our Vice-Chancellor to carry out our mission to transform potential into success.

Professor Andrea Dlaska

Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Learning and Innovation

Andrea started at Middlesex University in April 2016 coming from the University of Surrey where she held the position of Pro Vice-Chancellor Learning and Teaching.

Previous positions include Director of the Joint Language Centre of the University of Zurich and the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, which she established in 2002, and lecturer in German at Warwick University. Andrea provides executive leadership to student success and the student experience and leads on the University’s submission to the Teaching Excellence Framework. She also has responsibility for the University’s three international campuses in Dubai, Mauritius and Malta.

Katie Bell

Chief Commercial Officer

Katie Bell came to Middlesex University London in 2009 following a career in brand marketing, innovation and strategic planning for Nestlé UK and GlaxoSmithKline Consumer Healthcare. Her role before joining Middlesex was Vice-President of Global Digital Marketing. She has also worked for several years in Portugal and Spain, and was the Dean of the European University Business School in Barcelona and Madrid.

As a member of the University’s Executive team, Katie is accountable to the Vice-Chancellor for strategic leadership, management and development of the University in relation to home and international student recruitment, marketing and communications, alumni and external relations, international development, and academic and corporate partnerships. She is also a Non-Executive Director for UCAS Media.

Sophie Bowen

Chief Operating Officer

Sophie Bowen joined Middlesex University in 2016. Prior to this, she worked at St George’s University of London as University Secretary and Director of Academic Administration and Quality. She also held a variety of roles at the University of Birmingham including Director of Student Services. Sophie graduated from the University of Oxford with a BA and MPhil (Research) in Sociology as well as an MBA from the Open University.

At Middlesex, Sophie is responsible for the management and leadership of the Planning Unit, Academic Registry, Computing and Communications Systems Services (CCSS), Student and Legal Affairs and Governance. With interim measures in place whilst we search for a new Vice-Chancellor, Sophie is also responsible for Estates and Facilities Management and the Project Management Office.

Sophie is Honorary Treasurer and Chair of the Development Committee of the Association of Heads of University Administration and a Director of the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA).

Mark Holton

Chief People Officer

Mark Holton joined Middlesex University, as Chief People Officer, in August 2019. Previously, Mark worked at Coventry University where, as a member of the Group Leadership Team, he held the role of Director, Group Organisation Development. Within this role, his portfolio included Leadership, Professional, Academic and Organisation Development across the University Group. Mark was also Executive Director of the University Research Centre for Global Learning, Education and Attainment, a Centre with global reach focussing on international, intercultural and equity arenas in education.

Prior to joining Coventry University, Mark held positions in Consulting, Retail and the Financial Services sector. This included key roles at organisations including Waterstones, Kingfisher Group and Nationwide Building Society. Mark has an MA in Human Resource Management He has extensive international experience including, within Higher Education, delivery of programmes in China, South East Asia, The Middle East, West and South Africa.

Mark’s role is to lead the organisational and workforce development needed to achieve the University’s strategic and financial objectives over the next 5-7 years. He is responsible for enhancing staff wellbeing and engagement across the University. Mark’s responsibilities also include executive leadership of the University’s HR and business enhancement functions.

James Kennedy

Chief Financial Officer

As Chief Financial Officer at Middlesex, James is responsible for the overall financial sustainability, strategy and financial control of the University. He also has Executive responsibility for the Procurement and Insurance team.

James has worked in a variety of different sectors, most recently as Chief Operating Officer with an NHS Foundation Trust. Prior to this, James worked for 10 years at Thermo Fisher Scientific, a US quoted company, where he held a number of UK and European director level positions. James is also a member of the Institute of
Chartered Accountants of Scotland and holds a master’s degree from the University of Oxford in Engineering Science.

Professor Carole-Anne Upton

Pro Vice-Chancellor and Executive Dean

Carole-Anne Upton is the Executive Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Creative Industries and she is responsible for grouping together the former School of Art and Design and the School of Media and Performing Arts. Carole-Anne joined the University in 2012 as Dean of the School of Media and Performing Arts and Professor of Theatre. Prior to joining the University, she was Chair in Drama at the University of Ulster.

Carole-Anne has 20 years’ teaching experience spanning directing, space and performance, liveness and documentation, modern Irish theatre, French classical theatre, Beckett, avant-garde performance and African and Caribbean theatre.

Anna Kyprianou

Pro Vice-Chancellor and Executive Dean

Anna Kyprianou is Pro Vice-Chancellor and Executive Dean of the Faculty of Professional and Social Sciences, which comprises the Business School, the School of Health and Education and the School of Law. Anna also has University-wide responsibility for promoting diversity.

Anna’s areas of specialism are organisational behaviour and leading and managing people with a particular emphasis on the virtual organisation. She has worked with the strategic development of organisations and their leadership and management teams for more than 35 years.

Anna was the elected the Vice-President for the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development’s Membership and Professional Development Committee and also sat on the CIPD Board from 2011 to 2018. She continues to work closely with the CIPD as a Chartered Companion.

Professor Sean Wellington

Pro Vice-Chancellor and Executive Dean

Sean Wellington joined Middlesex University in April 2019 as Pro Vice-Chancellor and Executive Dean of the Faculty of Science and Technology.

Sean, in addition to his Executive Dean duties, is Pro Vice-Chancellor for the wider campus experience, also a new cross-cutting coordination role. It includes Executive responsibility for Sport & Recreation and chairing the University’s Environmental Steering Group.

Since beginning his career in the engineering industry, initially as an Apprentice, Sean has held teaching, research and leadership positions in three universities. He will join Middlesex from Oxford Brookes University where he holds various senior leadership roles.

Sean has taught a range of subjects in engineering and computing over more than thirty years. He is a Chartered Engineer, Fellow of the Institution of Engineering and Technology and Principal Fellow of the Higher Education Academy. Research interests include higher education policy and practice, digital signal processing and information fusion.