Jane Christie

Qualifications

• MA Economics and Management (Oxford)
• MSc Operational Research (LSE)
• Extra Mural Diploma Applied Psychology (Birkbeck)
• BSc (Hons) Psychology (Open) (BPS Accredited)

Scholarships

• ESRC CASE Studentship in partnership with the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (2015-2022)
• EPSRC Advanced Course Studentship (1998-1999)
• Michel Scholarship (1996-1998)

The use of multi-methodology in OR/MS/Systems practice: Supporting strategic decision-making in government.

Jane is investigating the use of multi-methodology – choosing and combining Operational Research (OR) and other methodologies, techniques and tools – to address complex ‘real-world’ issues in strategy and policy.
When OR practitioners address complex strategic issues with organizations, they often use more than one method. It has been argued that this mixing of methods, or multi-methodology, is needed to address dynamic, multi-dimensional and uncertain 'real-world' issues across different intervention phases, and to enhance and corroborate findings. Popular examples include combining problem structuring methods (PSMs) such as soft systems methodology (SSM) with other OR approaches, such as simulation or multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA). However, empirical evidence of how OR practitioners make methodological decisions and of the effectiveness of multi-methodological practice is sparse.
This collaborative research project was initiated to explore executive decision-making in complex and dynamic environments by considering examples of government operational analysis projects. Jane's empirical research is designed to respond to practitioners’ questions about how to ‘do’ and achieve benefits from the use of multi-methodology in OR-supported interventions, and to the need in Behavioural OR to understand the role of the OR practitioner in intervention design and intervention outcomes.
Project aims include understanding how methodology choices can impact ability to support evidence-based executive decision-making, and how a multi-methodology approach can be applied. The outcome of the work should inform thinking on options for positioning government operational analysis to support future decisions. 

Supervisors

• Professor John Mingers        
• Professor Kathy Kotiadis
• Professor Maria Paola Scaparra

1st Supervisor's Research Group

Department of Analytics, Operations and Systems

Jane is a former Director in the UK member firm of one of the leading global professional services providers. She has extensive international experience of consulting with executives in multinational organizations, and has successfully directed and managed large-scale strategic global business transformation programmes. More recently, she served as Trustee and Deputy Chair of the Board of a large UK charity in Kent.

• Fellow: The Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales
• Member: British Academy of Management (BAM), The British Psychological Society (BPS), Mixed Methods International Research Association (MMIRA), The OR Society, SCiO (Systems and Complexity in Organisation)
• Peer reviewer: European Journal of Operational Research, Systems Research and Behavioral Science, Sentio (inter-disciplinary social sciences journal)

Outreach Projects

Postgraduate Academic Ambassador, Kent Business School (2016-2017)