Business and Law in the time of COVID-19

The Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine received regulatory approval for emergency use from the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) on 3 December. This came only months after a team of researchers led by Professor Zhang Yongzhen in Wuhan in early January made the genome sequence of Covid-19 publicly available.

Following the recent publication of her blog by Wonkhe Dr Hilary Collins, Senior Lecturer in Corporate Programmes with OUBS Executive Education, has been interviewed on ‘The experience of teaching during a pandemic’ as part of the Expert Talks for Cumulus Connects.

Social entrepreneur, MBA alumna and member of The Open University Business School’s Alumni Council Dr Zoe Lawson discusses how to build resilience during the pandemic. 

The current pandemic has forced a lot of people to change patterns of behaviour and how normal activities are approached and carried out. In normal circumstances, change in the legal system is often cumbersome and slow, often reactive, rather than progressive in nature.

Public procurement is a highly regulated government activity, governed by laws or circulars within a state. In the UK, the procurement of goods, works and services is regulated by The Public Contracts Regulations 2015 (PCR), with similar provision for utilities, concessions and defence procurement. 

A team led by Dr Jacqueline Baxter of The Open University Business School has been awarded nearly £300,000 to investigate online learning and strategic planning through, and post, lockdown in English secondary schools.

The Strategic agility and leadership in uncertain times webinar – organised by the Business School's Strategic Management and Leadership cluster - brought together three senior expert panellists on Wednesday 25 November to discuss ideas around ‘strategic agility in uncertain times’.

Why are people’s behaviours not matching their intentions, and what implications does this have for our attempts to tackle COVID-19?

This nine-month project will conduct case studies in two UK police forces and capture interview and archival data at a time when the crisis is still ongoing, and during a period of active early reflection and sensemaking.

Research highlights how the pandemic has brought to the fore pre-existing paradoxical tensions within organisations and offers recommendations on navigating these uncertainties.