Prof. Karin Sanders | Strategic HR Management | Best Researcher Award

Prof. Karin Sanders is a distinguished scholar in Human Resource Management and Organisational Psychology, currently serving as Senior Deputy Dean Research & Enterprise and Interim Director of the UNSW Business Insights Institute at UNSW Sydney. With an international career spanning multiple continents, she has held professorships in the Netherlands at leading universities including Groningen, Utrecht, Tilburg, and Twente, as well as visiting appointments in China, the United Kingdom, Finland, and Jordan. Her academic influence is reflected in her extensive publication record, comprising 156 documents with 5,137 citations by 4,330 documents and an h-index of 40, underscoring her global impact on the field. Prof. Sanders’s research addresses the dynamics of HRM systems and HR process theory, focusing on how perceptions of HR practices influence employee behavior, commitment, innovation, and resilience. She is equally recognized for her contributions to workplace diversity, employee well-being, leadership effectiveness, and the challenges and opportunities presented by hybrid work arrangements. Her work often adopts advanced multilevel modeling and cross-cultural comparative approaches, enabling her to generate insights that resonate across diverse organizational and national contexts. She has secured substantial competitive funding from agencies in Australia, the Netherlands, and Canada to support her pioneering research. In addition to her scholarship, Prof. Sanders has demonstrated exceptional leadership through mentoring numerous doctoral and postdoctoral researchers, managing interdisciplinary projects, and contributing actively to editorial boards of leading HR journals. She plays a vital role in shaping the international HRM research community through her service to the Academy of Management and her organization of global conferences. Her achievements have been recognized through awards for her publications, peer review excellence, and research leadership. Prof. Sanders’s career reflects a combination of rigorous scholarship, institutional leadership, and a strong commitment to inclusive and impactful HRM research, marking her as a leading figure in the field worldwide.