Dr Haider Ali

Professional biography

Following a B.Sc. from the LSE, Haider worked in publishing before freelancing as a small business trainer, during this time he also completed his M.Phil at the Cranfield School of Management and a Ph.D. at Imperial College. Both pieces of research focused on start-up businesses. Haider then taught on the M.Sc. programmes at Cranfield before moving to the Open University in 1999.

Haider has undertaken consulting, training and teaching work in a range of countries including, India, Kazakhstan, Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia. He has undertaken work for Open University Validation Services in the UK, Greece and various countries in the middle east.

Research interests

Since 2002 Haider's research has focused on social marketing. He has carried out a series of evaluation projects related to smoking and the training of health service staff. Recent work has focused on social marketing programmes for cardiac patients and members of their social networks. His work on social networks draws on the literature in health, management and entrepreneurship. Amongst other journals his work has been published in the Journal of Marketing Management. He contributes to OpenLearn. He has successfully bid for funding from organisations such as the British Heart Foundation, QUIT (a national smoking cessation charity) and has also contributed to a research project funded by Communities and Local Government. 

Teaching interests

Haider is currently Director of Microcredentials and Short Courses for FBL. Where he looks after this portfolio of courses:

https://www.open.ac.uk/courses/short-courses

He has authored a microcredential on marketing:

https://www.futurelearn.com/microcredentials/marketing-principles-and-practice

Between 2020 and 2021, Haider oversaw the production of six undergraduate microcredentials. He has contributed to courses ranging from the commercially successful Certificate in Accounting (B680) programme to the Certificate in Management (B629) course and the marketing and entrepreneurship electives on the current MBA programme. He co-authored the marketing material on the undergraduate modules B203 and B207. He has also collaborated with the Arts faculty's production of LB160, Professional Communication Skills for Business Studies.

Impact and engagement

Haider's innovative work in the area of online teaching is reported on the Open University's SciLab blog:

The following article deals with the design and delivery of an 18 hour synchronous online school.

http://www.open.ac.uk/blogs/scilab/index.php/2020/10/08/i-want-my-weekend-back/

External collaborations

Since 2013 Haider has been a guest lecturer at the London School of Economics for the Dept. of Management and the Dept. of Health Policy.

International links

Haider is an Academic Reviewer for the Arab Open University.