Dr David Littlewood

PhD MA BSc (Hons), SFHEA

Management School

Senior Lecturer in Strategic Management

David Littlewood wearing a white shirt and dark grey jacket.

David.Littlewood@sheffield.ac.uk
+44 114 222 3493

Room E017, Sheffield University Management School

Full contact details

Dr David Littlewood
Management School
Room E017
Sheffield University Management School
Conduit Road
Sheffield
S10 1FL

Profile

I am a Senior Lecturer in Strategic Management. I joined Sheffield University Management School in 2015 as a Lecturer in Strategic Management and was promoted to Senior Lecturer in 2018. I teach on undergraduate and postgraduate programmes and supervise PhD students.

Prior to my appointment at Sheffield, I was a Lecturer in Reputation and Responsibility at the Henley Business School, the University of Reading. Before that I was a research fellow at Queen’s University Belfast Management School, working on the Trickle Out Africa Project: www.trickleout.net which examined social and environmental enterprises in East and Southern Africa and their role in sustainable development. I completed my PhD at the University of Sheffield in Geography, with my research examining corporate social responsibility (CSR) and development in the context of the mining industry in Namibia.

I am a Fellow of the Institute for Global Sustainable Development at the University of Sheffield, and member of the Centre for Regional Economic and Enterprise Development (CREED).

I am an Associate Editor for the Africa Journal of Management and The Social Enterprise Journal, a Visiting Professor at ALTIS – Graduate School Business & Society, the Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore in Milan, Italy, and currently serve as an external examiner at Newcastle Business School, Northumbria University.

Qualifications: PhD MA BSc (Hons), FHEA

Research interests

I conduct research in the field of business and society, and more specifically on social entrepreneurship, corporate social responsibility (CSR), stakeholder management, and the informal economy. By geography, my work focusses particularly on sub-Saharan Africa.

My research has been published in various academic journals, including the Academy of Management Perspectives, Business & Society, the California Management Review, Business Strategy and the Environment, European Journal of Marketing, International Small Business Journal, the Journal of Business Ethics, the Service Industries Journal and Technological Forecasting and Social Change amongst others.

I am a former Marie Curie Fellow and was seconded to the EU funded GREY research project examining the informal economy in Southeast Europe. I chaired the 2020 International Social Innovation Research Conference (ISIRC 2020) and continue to lead streams on social innovation and entrepreneurship in Africa and the wider majority world.

I have led special issues in the Social Enterprise Journal and Africa Journal of Management. I am an Associate Editor for the Africa Journal of Management, and sit on the editorial review boards of the Social Enterprise Journal and Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management. I am a regular speaker at international conferences, and my research has won various prizes. I collaborate with academics and practitioners in Africa, Asia, North America, and Europe – including the UK and Sheffield.

Publications

Journal articles

Garnelo-Gomez I, Money K & Littlewood D (2022) From holistically to accidentally sustainable: a study of motivations and identity expression in sustainable living. European Journal of Marketing. View this article in WRRO
Littlewood D, Ciambotti G, Holt D & Steinfield L (2022) Special issue editorial: Social innovation and entrepreneurship in Africa. Africa Journal of Management, 8(3), 259-270. View this article in WRRO
Sottini A, Ciambotti G & Littlewood D (2022) Engaging symbiotic ecosystems to build community centred business models for the BoP: Evidence from small social enterprises in East Africa. International Small Business Journal. View this article in WRRO
Littlewood D, Rogers P & Williams C (2020) Experiences, causes and measures to tackle institutional incongruence and informal economic activity in South-East Europe. Current Sociology, 68(7), 950-971. View this article in WRRO
Littlewood DC, Decelis R, Hillenbrand C & Holt D (2018) Examining the Drivers and Outcomes of Corporate Commitment to Climate Change Action in European High Emitting Industry. Business Strategy and the Environment, 27(8), 1437-1449. View this article in WRRO
Littlewood DC & Khan Z (2018) Insights from a systematic review of literature on social enterprise and networks: Where, how and what next?. Social Enterprise Journal, 14(4), 390-409. View this article in WRRO
Littlewood DC & Kiyumbu W (2018) “Hub” organisations in Kenya: What are they? What do they do? And what is their potential?. Technological Forecasting and Social Change, 131, 276-285. View this article in WRRO
Littlewood DC, Rogers P & Junhong Y (2018) “The price is different depending on whether you want a receipt or not”: Examining the Purchasing of Goods and Services from the Informal Economy in South-East Europe. The Service Industries Journal, 38(11-12), 688-707. View this article in WRRO
Littlewood DC & Holt D (2018) Social Entrepreneurship in South Africa: Exploring the Influence of Environment. Business and Society, 57(3), 525-561. View this article in WRRO
Littlewood DC & Holt D (2018) Social enterprise resilience in sub-Saharan Africa. Business Strategy and Development. View this article in WRRO
Holt D & Littlewood DC (2017) Waste Livelihoods Amongst the Poor – Through the Lens of Bricolage. Business Strategy and the Environment, 26(2), 253-264. View this article in WRRO
Holt D & Littlewood DC (2015) Identifying, Mapping, and Monitoring the Impact of Hybrid Firms. California Management Review, 57(3), 107-125.
Littlewood DC (2015) Corporate social responsibility, mining and sustainable development in Namibia: Critical reflections through a relational lens. Development Southern Africa, 32(2), 240-257. View this article in WRRO
Rivera-Santos M, Holt D, Littlewood D & Kolk A (2015) Social Entrepreneurship in Sub-Saharan Africa. Academy of Management Perspectives, 29(1), 72-91. View this article in WRRO
Littlewood D & Holt D (2015) Conceptualizing Resilience & Social Entrepreneurship Relationships in Complex & Chaotic Environments. Academy of Management Proceedings, 2015(1), 11738-11738.
Holt D & Littlewood D (2014) Financial services for the poor within the formal/informal nexus in Sub-Saharan Africa. Academy of Management Proceedings, 2014(1), 10985-10985.
Littlewood D (2014) ‘Cursed’ Communities? Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), Company Towns and the Mining Industry in Namibia. Journal of Business Ethics, 120(1), 39-63. View this article in WRRO
Holt D & Littlewood D (2013) The Jua Kali and the Mali-Mali: The Informal/Formal Nexus amongst Kenyan Micro Enterprises. Academy of Management Proceedings, 1(1), aomafr.2012.015-aomafr.2012.015.
Littlewood D & Holt D (2013) Impact evaluation of a Kenyan ecobusiness: a pilot framework. Academy of Management Proceedings, 2013(1), 10701-10701.

Chapters

Ciambotti G, Sottini A, Littlewood D & Meru AK (2021) Business Models for Sustainable Development: The Case of a Kenyan Sustainable Enterprise, Responsible Management in Emerging Markets (pp. 215-242). Springer International Publishing
Mayasari D, Littlewood D & Kedir A (2021) Women’s entrepreneurship in the context of a matriarchal society in Indonesia In McAdam M & Cunningham J (Ed.), Women and Global Entrepreneurship: Contextualising Everyday Experiences New York: Routledge.
Ciambotti G, Littlewood D, Sottini A & Nkatha E (2020) Building and scaling social enterprise business models for BoP markets in Kenya In Muthuri J, Arnold M, Stefan G & Ximena F (Ed.), Base of the Pyramid Markets in Africa: Innovation and Challenges to Sustainability
Littlewood D & Holt D (2020) Hybrid organisations in sub-Saharan Africa In Billis D & Rochester C (Ed.), Handbook on Hybrid Organisations (pp. 448-467). Edward Elgar Publishing View this article in WRRO
Littlewood D (2020) Corporate Responsibilities In Kobayashi A & Maharaj B (Ed.), International Encyclopedia of Human Geography, 2e Elsevier
Littlewood DC & Holt D (2020) Hybrid Organizations in Sub-Saharan Africa: Insights for Research, Policy and Practice In Billis D & Rochester C (Ed.), International Handbook on Hybrid Organisations Edward Elgar View this article in WRRO
Littlewood DC & Holt D (2018) How social enterprises can contribute to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) – A conceptual framework In Apostolopoulos N, Al-Dajani H, Holt D, Jones P & Newbery R (Ed.), Entrepreneurship and the Sustainable Development Goals (pp. 33-46). Emerald View this article in WRRO
Holt D & Littlewood DC (2018) Social Entrepreneurship and Africapitalism–Exploring the Connections In Amaeshi K, Idemudia I & Okupe A (Ed.), Africapitalism: Rethinking the Role of Business in Africa Cambridge University Press
Littlewood DC & Holt D (2018) Social Entrepreneurship and CSR Theory: Insights, Application and Value In Spence LJ, Frynas GJ, Muthuri JG & Navare JA (Ed.), Handbook of Research on Small Business Social Responsibility: Global Perspectives (pp. 292-319). Edward Elgar Publishing View this article in WRRO
Littlewood D & Russon J-A (2015) CSR, mining and development in Namibia, Development-Oriented Corporate Social Responsibility Volume 1: Multinational Co (pp. 116-133). Taylor & Francis
Littlewood D & Holt D (2015) Social and Environmental Enterprises in Africa: Context, Convergence and Characteristics, The Business of Social and Environmental Innovation (pp. 27-47). Springer International Publishing
Littlewood DC & Holt D (2015) The informal economy as a route to market in Sub-Saharan Africa – observations amongst Kenyan informal economy entrepreneurs In Nwankwo S & Nwankwo K (Ed.), The Routledge Companion to Business in Africa
Holt D & Littlewood D (2015) Informal economy entrepreneurs from sub-Saharan Africa Observations from Kenya, ROUTLEDGE COMPANION TO BUSINESS IN AFRICA (pp. 198-217).
Littlewood D & Holt D (2014) Addressing Rural Social Exclusion in the Developing World: Exploring the Role of African Social Purpose Ventures, Exploring Rural Enterprise: New Perspectives on Research, Policy & Practice (pp. 105-131). Emerald Group Publishing Limited
(2014) Informal economy entrepreneurs from sub-Saharan Africa: observations from Kenya, The Routledge Companion to Business in Africa (pp. 226-245). Routledge
Littlewood D & Holt D (2014) Addressing Rural Social Exclusion in the Developing World: Exploring the Role of African Social Purpose Ventures, Exploring Rural Enterprise: New Perspectives on Research, Policy & Practice (pp. 105-131). Emerald Group Publishing Limited

Conference proceedings papers

Littlewood D, Ciambotti G & Negri G (2023) Social entrepreneurial ecosystems for sustainable development: evidence from an African resource-constrained context. INNODAYS Proceedings, 4 November 2022 - 8 November 2022.
Littlewood D, Ciambotti G & Sottini A (2023) How women entrepreneurs create social change by filling institutional voids: Evidence from sub-Saharan Africa. Africa Academy of Management Conference Proceedings, 8 January 2023 - 10 January 2023.
Littlewood D, Sottini A, Ciambotti G & Lashitew A (2023) Spaces of inclusion: How women use social enterprising to advance gender inclusion in Africa. Social Entrepreneurship Annual Conference Proceedings, 11 November 2022 - 12 November 2022.
Littlewood D, Negri G, Ciambotti G & Theodoraki C (2023) How Entrepreneurial Support Organizations Navigate Constraints In Nascent Ecosystems. Academy of Management Proceedings, 4 August 2023 - 8 August 2023.
Littlewood D, Leger M, O'Donnell P & Holt D (2023) Prosocial growth in the informal economy: A study of microentrepreneurs in South Africa. Academy of Management Proceedings, 4 August 2023 - 8 September 2023.
Littlewood D, Ljubownikow S & Rizaldy M (2023) Faith and hybridity in Indonesian sui generis Islamic microfinance organizations. International Social Innovation Research Conference Proceedings, 6 September 2023 - 8 September 2023.
Littlewood D, Ljubownikow S, Mirfin-Bourkouris H & Sepulveda IP (2023) Assessing the state, impact, and potential of Sheffield's social enterprise community. International Social Innovation Research Conference Proceedings, 6 September 2023 - 8 September 2023.
Littlewood D (2022) Social enterprise internationalisation: How, why and the challenges South African social entrepreneurs face when going global. Academy of Management Proceedings, 5 August 2022 - 9 August 2022.
Littlewood D & Ciambotti G (2022) Art for social change: Exploring creative social entrepreneurship in Africa. International Social Innovation Research Conference Proceedings, 16 September 2022 - 18 September 2022.
Littlewood D, Leger M, O'Donnell P & Holt D (2022) Exploring divergent notions of ‘Growth’: A study of informal micro-entrepreneurs in Sub-Saharan Africa. International Social Innovation Research Conference Proceedings, 16 September 2022 - 18 September 2022.
Littlewood D (2021) Social enterprise internationalisation: Insights from South Africa. International Social Innovation Research Proceedings, 8 September 2021 - 10 September 2021.
Littlewood D, Mayasari D & Kedir A (2021) Women’s entrepreneurship in a matriarchal society: Insights from the Minangkabau in Indonesia. ISBE Conference Proceedings, 14 November 2021 - 15 November 2021.
Sottini A, Littlewood D & Ciambotti G (2020) Building Sustainable Business Models in the BoP: Evidence from Social Enterprises in East Africa. Academy of Management Proceedings, Vol. 2020(1) (pp 20654-20654) View this article in WRRO
Littlewood D (2019) Informal entrepreneurship in Windhoek Namibia: A configurational perspective. Academy of Management Proceedings
Garnelo-Gomez I, Money K & Littlewood D (2019) “I Live Sustainably”: Exploring Sustainable Living Narratives Through Identity and Motivation. Academy of Management Proceedings

Website content

Surmeier A, Littlewood D, Holt D, Bignotti A, Awor P, Hamann R & Kwakye T (2023) Global university rankings now include social impact: African universities are off to a strong start.
Littlewood DC, Holt D, Kolk A & Rivera-Santos M (2015) African data can bring fresh insights to management and social entrepreneurship studies. Retrieved from http://blogs.lse.ac.uk/businessreview/2015/12/14/african-data-can-bring-fresh-insights-to-management-and-social-entrepreneurship-studies/ View this article in WRRO
Littlewood D, Donkor F, Mdiniso J & Ibrahim S Circular economy and the puzzle of formalization: Insights from circular waste picking in South Africa.

Grants

Assessing the state, impact, and potential of Sheffield's social enterprise sector. Sheffield Innovation Programme [£8906].
The ecosystem for impact entrepreneurship in Kampala, Uganda'. QR GCRF - Pump priming [£3500].
Social entrepreneurship in South Africa: Internationalisation, Institutional Work, and Partnerships for Sustainable Development. Development Higher Education Funding Council for England, Global Challenges Research Fund [£2370].
The Role of Innovation Hubs in Promoting Social Entrepreneurship in Kenya University of Sheffield, GLOSS Research Associate Scheme. Co-researcher Ms Wilkister Kiyumbu (GLOSS Research Associate) [£2300].
Motivations, Agglomeration, and the Formal/Informal Economy Nexus – A Study of Informal Economy Entrepreneurship in Windhoek, Namibia. Sheffield University Management School Research Stimulation Fund [£2500].
ESRC 1+3 Scholarship, University of Sheffield Department of Geography. [£64,000].
African universities as enablers of social innovation and sustainable development, WUN Research development fund 2022 [£9919]. PI Dr Annika Surmeier, University of Cape Town.

Teaching activities

Responsibility and sustainability are key themes that I embed across all of my teaching. I see my role as a facilitator of student learning and seek to help students develop as critical and reflective thinkers and responsible future business leaders.

I am an advocate of collaborative group-based learning and encourage active student participation in the classroom.

I also believe in research-led teaching, providing opportunities for student inquiry, and drawing upon current research and thinking in the field including my own research on CSR, social entrepreneurship, stakeholder management, and wider relationships between business and society.

At Sheffield University Management School, I contribute to teaching at undergraduate and postgraduate levels in the area of strategy. I have also taught internationally in Denmark, Finland, Hong Kong, Italy, and Spain. I am a Visiting Professor at ALTIS – Graduate School Business & Society, the Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore in Milan, Italy, and a visiting member of faculty at IE University, Madrid Spain.

I believe in reflective teaching practice and continuing professional development. I am a Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy.

PhD Supervision

I have supervised four PhD students to completion:

Linda Stretz (PhD awarded 31st July 2023)
Bala Auwalu (PhD awarded 22nd February 2021)
Naeem Albihany (PhD awarded 21st November 2019)
Irene Garnelo Gomez (PhD at Henley Business School, PhD awarded 21st September 2017).
Yiren Wu (PhD award 25th October 2024)

I currently supervise:

PhD student Muhamad Rizky Rizaldy
PhD student Yiqun Han

I have examined more than 20 PhDs in the UK, Australia, Italy, South Africa, and Switzerland.