Management Practice Associate Professor
Fellow of Wolfson College
MBA (London Business School), MSc, PhD (London School of Economics)
My research interests include collaborative innovation, top management teams in ventures, networks and innovation ecosystems. I was an entrepreneur in the 1990s, before becoming an academic in entrepreneurship and strategy, and enjoy engaging with the ‘practical’ side of entrepreneurship alongside continuing my work at Cambridge Judge Business School and Wolfson College.
I’m a member of the Strategy and International Business subject group, and actively contribute to both academic and business communities.
Professional experience
Chris was an entrepreneur as a young man in the 1990s, became an academic in entrepreneurship and strategy after exiting his business, and engages with the ‘practical’ side of entrepreneurship alongside his continuing work at Cambridge Judge Business School (CJBS). He is a Fellow at Wolfson College, where he chairs the Entrepreneurship Hub.
There are 2 streams to Chris’ professional work: entrepreneurship teaching and advisory work, and strategy/innovation management teaching and consulting:
Chris has taught entrepreneurship inside academia (Cambridge Judge Business School, UCL, ESCP Europe, London Business School, University of St Andrews) and outside it (Goldman Sachs 10ksb, London Stock Exchange ELITE in London, Milan and Beirut, New Entrepreneurs Foundation, European Institute of Innovation and Technology, UK Business Growth Builder, ConceptionX, MiSK Foundation, UK-Lebanon Tech Hub). He was formerly programme director of the MSc in Technology Entrepreneurship at UCL, and founded the Cambridge Judge Launchpad (now simply known as the Master of Studies in Entrepreneurship). He has been a board advisor to several startups.
In May 2019, Chris cofounded Carbon13, a Cambridge-based, talent-first accelerator developing startups to attack CO2e emissions. It has been supported by, among others, Barclays, EY, Volkswagen, the European Investment Bank, BP Ventures, DLA Piper, and ARM. Chris served as Carbon13’s CEO until July 2023. Having built and launched over 60 impactful startups during this period, he then handed Carbon13’s mission over to a new CEO.
Chris has taught strategy, strategic management and innovation management inside academia (Cambridge Judge Business School, UCL, Imperial College, London Business School in London and Dubai, LSE, Beijing Central University of Finance and Economics) and for many organisations outside it (Omnicom, FPE Capital, JLL, Sberbank, Lloyds Banking Group, Santander, Porsche, the UK Ministry of Defence, BAE Systems, IBM, the UAE Prime Minister’s Office, Invesco, AstraZeneca, the Sanger Institute.) He has also supported open executive programmes at London Business School, including Executing Strategy for Results, Making Innovation Happen and Exploiting Digital Disruption. He has a particular specialism in strategy in ecosystems (eg technology partnering strategy), as well as a love of teaching pricing strategy and strategy execution.
Teaching
In 2023/24 he will be teaching the following courses for the University of Cambridge:
- Entrepreneurship (core module, MBA)
- Concentration in Strategy (MBA)
- Entrepreneurship (quasi-core module, EMBA)
- Net Zero Entrepreneurship (elective module, MBA and EMBA)
- Strategic Management (on 2 programmes, the MPhil in Management and the MPhil in Technology Policy)
Previous appointments
Prior to coming to Cambridge, Dr Coleridge was a Senior Teaching Fellow and Senior Research Associate at University College London. He was also Director of the MSc in Technology Entrepreneurship.
Awards and honours
- Best Lecturer, UCL School of Management, 2015
- Best Lecturer on the MSc Technology Entrepreneurship, UCL School of Management, 2013 and 2014
News and insight
Research centre news
Competition to identify Ukraine startups for VC investment
A competition and conference designed to promote post-war venture capital investment in Ukraine startups is organised by the Centre for Business Research at Cambridge Judge Business School.
Programme news
Sustainability boost from Global PhD Course and alumni
Business Schools for Climate Leadership, a consortium that includes Cambridge Judge Business School, offers a new online Global PhD course open to doctoral students at business schools.
Combining the CEO and board chairman role can boost new venture development in tech startups, finds new study co-authored by Chris Coleridge of Cambridge Judge Business School.