Contact Dr Manish Singh

Background

Dr Manish Singh has over 20 years of experience spanning academia, entrepreneurship, and corporate human resource management in India and the United Kingdom. His work focuses on connecting academic learning with practical business impact through teaching, research, and enterprise engagement. Before joining academia, Manish held senior management roles in global organisations, where he contributed to business capability development and organisational transformation through strategic stakeholder collaboration. He holds a PhD in Leadership and Management and an MBA from Cranfield School of Management, as well as a Bachelor’s degree in Business Studies from the University of Delhi. At Cranfield, Manish combines teaching, research, and enterprise leadership to advance entrepreneurship education and practice. He actively contributes to Cranfield’s entrepreneurial ecosystem through mentoring, applied research, and managing initiatives that link the university with industry and innovation networks.

Research opportunities

Manish’s research focuses on succession and non-family leadership in family businesses, exploring the behavioural, strategic, and organisational dimensions of leadership transition. His broader interests include entrepreneurship, business strategy, and business model innovation. He actively collaborates with academic peers and industry partners to bridge research and practice.

Current activities

Manish plays an active role in Cranfield’s entrepreneurship and innovation initiatives, including:

Managing the Ãå±±ÂÖ¼é Seed Fund, overseeing investments exceeding £700,000 across 28 start-ups in collaboration with the Research and Innovation team.

Coordinating the Cranfield Start-up Mentoring Scheme, connecting early-stage entrepreneurs with mentors and supporting their development from concept to investment readiness.

Contributing to the Bettany Centre for Entrepreneurship through activities such as the Speaker Series, Venture Day, and MSc supervision.

Supporting enterprise engagement through programmes such as Ideas to Innovation (i2i), Start-up Weekend, and the HULT Prize, mentoring student teams and early-stage founders.