Derek Main

Strategy, communications and research impact adviser for higher education

PROFILE

A strategic adviser with more than a decade’s experience working inside and alongside universities, helping institutions navigate change, strengthen their reputation and turn complex research and organisational priorities into clear strategy and action. Works at the intersection of institutional strategy, communications and research impact: bringing structure to ambiguous problems, challenging assumptions and building alignment between senior leaders and academic teams to move from ideas to delivery.

Most recently, Interim Head of Communications and senior adviser to the leadership of the newly formed University of St Andrews Business School, brought in on a three-month contract and retained for three years. Co-founder of Excellence Frameworks, whose first product, ICS Studio, is a secure, AI-supported platform that helps universities develop and review REF impact case studies at scale.

Areas of expertise: Strategy and organisational change  ·  Senior leadership advisory  ·  Research impact and REF  ·  Reputation and positioning  ·  Stakeholder engagement  ·  Responsible AI

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

Interim Head of Communications and Senior Adviser

July 2023 – July 2026                                      

University of St Andrews Business School

Brought in on a three-month contract to support the creation of a new Business School, formed by bringing together the School of Management and the School of Economics and Finance. Retained for three years, progressing to Interim Head of Communications and senior adviser to the School’s leadership team.

•    Advised the senior leadership team on strategy, positioning and key messages, and developed the School’s inaugural 2024–2029 strategy, building alignment around a shared vision for the new School

•    Built agreement and alignment across a complex stakeholder environment through a period of significant change, working with senior colleagues beyond the Business School and across the wider University

•    Stepped into recruitment marketing at a critical point for postgraduate recruitment, taking short-term ownership of the process and engaging and empowering colleagues to deliver it. The School significantly enhanced its postgraduate recruitment performance against targets across all Management, Economics and Finance programmes compared to previous years

•    Built the School’s communications function from the ground up, establishing its strategy, priorities, processes and external voice through to its official launch in September 2024, and shaped the permanent role to carry that capability forward

•    Designed and led the School’s LinkedIn channel strategy with clear objectives and measures, exceeding launch targets for follower growth, engagement and cadence

•    Worked with academics across disciplines to translate complex research into compelling narratives for media, policymakers, business and the wider public

•    Wrote the successful submission recognising the School in the AACSB 2026 Global Impact Awards (Research Impact).

Co-founder  

July 2026 – present                                                                                                                   

Excellence Frameworks

•    Co-founded Excellence Frameworks to build specialist, AI-supported tools that help universities strengthen their research excellence submissions. Launched its first product, ICS Studio: a secure platform for developing and reviewing REF impact case studies, built for university impact teams

•    Translated first-hand experience of developing close to 100 impact case studies into a specialist product that helps teams move from incomplete source material to stronger, evidence-led case studies while retaining human academic and professional judgement

•    Built responsible use and data security into the proposition, giving universities an alternative to putting sensitive research and impact material into consumer AI tools

•    Leading the company’s strategy, positioning and institutional partnerships, working with UK university research and impact teams on adopting ICS Studio for REF 2029

 Independent strategy, communications and impact adviser                 

January 2019 – present

Universities, funders and research programmes

Advising universities, research organisations and funders on strategy, research impact, positioning and stakeholder communications. Selected work:

•    Research impact and REF: coached academics through strategic storytelling and evidence-gathering to develop a broad portfolio of REF 2021 impact case studies for the Open University and the University of Edinburgh, contributing to units ranked joint 5th/6th in the UK for impact (Edinburgh, Sport and Exercise Sciences, Leisure and Tourism: 87.5% at 4*) and to several units achieving 100% 4*/3* for impact

•    University of St Andrews Business School: designed and delivered a 20-day impact case study development programme (2026), developing seven case studies for one unit of assessment; recommissioned for 2026–27 to develop further case studies and deliver impact training

•    EDI+ Fellowship Programme, Durham University (UKRI-funded): since February 2026, leading content strategy for a fellowship programme on equality, diversity and inclusion in energy research, including fellow features, case studies, thought leadership, LinkedIn amplification, an impact report and an impact film

•    University of Westminster: content strategy and web refresh across four Research Communities for the Research, Knowledge and Enterprise Office (2026)

•    University of Edinburgh Business School (2025): consultant research communications support during maternity cover, January–November 2025. Working alongside the School's communications team, wrote more than 40 research and impact stories with LinkedIn packages, advised on research communications strategy, and worked with academics and stakeholders across the School and the wider University.

•    REDEFINE (ERC-funded): led final dissemination and policy engagement for an EU research programme on Chinese investment in Europe, authoring closing report sections and coordinating LinkedIn engagement

•    Strategy and institutional advisory: guided senior academic leaders in developing UCL Institute for Innovation and Public Purpose’s research and impact strategy; devised a strategic communications plan for UK Research and Innovation on the benefits of academic–industry engagement

•    Award submissions: wrote winning and shortlisted entries for leading international business school awards, including the University of Edinburgh Business School and NatWest Group's Best Business School Partnership win at the AMBA & BGA Excellence Awards 2025, and Oxford Saïd Business School and the Financial Conduct Authority's submission to EFMD's 2020 Excellence in Practice Awards.

Research Communications Consultant         

March 2021 – April 2023                                                            

The Open University

•    Developed, delivered and evaluated a communications strategy to enhance the University’s reputation for research and academic excellence, raising its research profile through events, digital and stakeholder engagement

•    Designed and delivered a refreshed, storytelling-led web presence for OU research, and built a library of more than 50 case studies of impactful research, supporting the Open Societal Challenges programme

•    Coached and mentored research communications teams to take an insight-led approach to collaborating with stakeholders on shared objectives

PR and Communications Manager                                  

October 2014 – January 2019                                   

University of Edinburgh Business School

•        Built the School's reputation as a centre of research, teaching and learning excellence through corporate storytelling and public and media relations, overseeing a £150k annual budget and appointing and managing PR and creative agencies

•        Created the School's first strategic PR and communications function, developing the processes and frameworks for effective external and internal communications, including a new internal communications system embedded through change storytelling

•        Increased media coverage by 900% to more than 500 pieces in year one, sustaining strong national and international coverage year on year

•        Brought a renewed focus to the School's research reputation through a reader-centred content strategy, and coached academic colleagues to take an audience-focused approach to storytelling in funding applications, white papers and impact case studies

Earlier career                            

2011 – 2014                                                                                                 

Citypress; The BIG Partnership

Account Manager and Senior Account Executive delivering corporate, consumer and B2B communications for clients including KPMG, Lloyds Banking Group, Bank of Scotland, British Gas and Strathclyde Business School. Led a team of three, directed KPMG’s PR in the Aberdeen oil and gas market and delivered media training for senior client contacts.

QUALIFICATIONS AND LANGUAGES

BA Humanities and Social Science (Politics), The University of Edinburgh, 2011

Advanced Certificate in Public Relations, CIPR, 2013

Leading Strategic Change Masterclass, University of Edinburgh Business School, 2016

English – native

Spanish – competent conversational (B2)

Spanish resident and registered self-employed; works across the UK and EU