Alaa Garad is a Senior Teaching Fellow at the University of Portsmouth and a Visiting Professor at the Arab Academy for Science and Technology. He is a trustee of the Institute of Commercial Management and a Fellow at The Learning and Performance Institute. Alongside his academic experience, Alaa is an award-winning executive with over 20 years of experience in designing, leading and managing projects in various sectors.

Jeff Gold is co-founder of the HRD and Leadership Research Unit at Leeds Business School and the Director of the DBA programme at Leeds Beckett University. He is also the Professor of Organisation Learning at York Business School. He has worked as a consultant with organizations such as the NHS, Hallmark Cards and the Police Service, and is the co-author of Human Resource Management, now in its 6th edition.