Mladen Adamovic Biography: 11 Powerful Career Facts

Introduction

Mladen Adamovic has developed an international academic career focused on leadership, human resource management and social problems within modern workplaces.

He is a Reader in Leadership and Global Management at King’s Business School, part of King’s College London. His research examines how ethnicity, names, cultural differences and artificial intelligence can affect recruitment and career opportunities.

He is particularly recognised for a major field experiment that investigated discrimination against ethnic-minority applicants seeking leadership positions.

His work combines academic research with practical guidance for employers, managers, policymakers and public-sector leaders.

Mladen Adamovic Quick Bio

Detail	Information
Full name	Mladen Adamovic
Professional title	Dr Mladen Adamovic
Gender	Male
Profession	Academic researcher, lecturer and leadership specialist
Current position	Reader in Leadership and Global Management
Institution	King’s Business School, King’s College London
Department	Human Resource Management and Employment Relations
Main fields	Leadership, global management and human resource management
Research methods	Field experiments, surveys and quantitative data analysis
Major research topics	Recruitment discrimination, workplace diversity, cultural differences, artificial intelligence and inclusive leadership
Government role	Programme Director of the Secure Leaders Programme
Additional university role	Student Exchange Coordinator
Known for	Research into name-based and ethnic discrimination in recruitment
Published work	More than 50 peer-reviewed academic articles

Who Is Mladen Adamovic?

Mladen Adamovic is a university academic whose work explores how organisations can become more inclusive, effective and fair.

Unlike a traditional business executive, his influence comes through research, university teaching, leadership programmes and collaboration with organisations.

His studies examine real workplace problems, including biased hiring decisions, barriers facing ethnic minorities and the difficulties involved in managing culturally diverse teams.

His career may interest readers who follow the work of an academic researcher such as Nicola O’Leary, although Adamovic’s main specialist fields are leadership, management and workplace inclusion.

Education and International Academic Training

Mladen Adamovic studied International Management at universities in several European countries.

His bachelor’s and master’s studies included academic experience at the universities of Kiel, Lisbon, Rennes and Belgrade. This international education gave him direct exposure to different cultures and management systems.

He later completed his PhD at the University of Toulouse in France.

Studying in several countries appears closely connected to his later interest in cross-cultural management, multinational teams and cultural differences in the workplace.

His educational path also prepared him to use surveys, field experiments and advanced quantitative methods when examining organisational behaviour.

Career Before King’s College London

Before moving to King’s College London, Adamovic worked at several recognised universities.

His earlier academic experience included positions or work at the University of Toulouse, the University of Melbourne, Monash University and the University of Auckland.

These roles took his career across Europe, Australia and New Zealand before he continued his work in the United Kingdom.

Working in different university systems helped him build an international view of leadership, recruitment and employee management.

It also allowed him to develop research partnerships with academics, businesses and professional organisations in several countries.

Career at King’s Business School

Adamovic currently works as a Reader in Leadership and Global Management at King’s Business School.

A Reader is a senior academic position normally associated with a strong record of original research, university teaching and professional leadership.

According to his official King’s College London profile, he also directs the UK Government’s Secure Leaders Programme.

The programme is designed for senior leaders working within the United Kingdom’s government security profession. His involvement connects academic leadership knowledge with the practical needs of public-sector professionals.

He additionally serves as Student Exchange Coordinator for King’s Business School, supporting international student mobility and academic partnerships.

Main Areas of Research

Adamovic’s research is built around two connected fields: global management and leadership.

Within global management, he studies the inclusion of ethnic minorities, cultural differences at work, name-based discrimination and the possible role of artificial intelligence in unfair recruitment decisions.

His leadership research includes the glass ceiling, the glass cliff, multinational teams, virtual leadership, sports leadership, resilience and self-leadership.

These subjects are important because modern employers increasingly manage international teams, remote workers and recruitment systems supported by technology.

His research asks whether these systems create equal opportunities or continue older forms of workplace bias in less visible ways.

Research on Recruitment and Name Discrimination

One of Adamovic’s best-known projects examined whether an applicant’s perceived ethnic background could affect recruitment outcomes.

The researchers submitted more than 12,000 fictional applications for real jobs advertised in Australia. The qualifications and experience were kept nearly identical, while the applicants’ names were changed.

The experiment covered more than 4,000 job advertisements and included both leadership and non-leadership roles.

The results indicated that applications with English-sounding names received substantially more positive responses for leadership positions than applications carrying non-English names.

This research showed that ethnic minorities may face an additional barrier when attempting to enter management and leadership roles.

Why the Recruitment Study Matters

Hiring discrimination can prevent a qualified person from receiving an interview before an employer has properly considered their ability.

For organisations, biased recruitment also creates a business problem. A company may reject talented candidates and reduce the diversity of its future leadership team.

Adamovic’s research encourages employers to examine the earliest stages of hiring, including CV screening, automated recruitment tools and the assumptions made from a person’s name.

It also supports the use of carefully designed procedures that focus attention on skills, experience and job-related evidence.

The project received wide public attention because it used real vacancies and large-scale experimental evidence rather than relying only on opinions about discrimination.

Financial Times Recognition

Adamovic’s leadership-discrimination research received recognition through the Financial Times Responsible Business Education Awards.

The awards highlight university research that responds to major social, environmental and business challenges.

His work was highly commended because it examined an important source of inequality and offered practical lessons for employers.

King’s College London published details of the Financial Times recognition and recruitment study, including the scale of the experiment and its main findings.

The recognition strengthened the project’s reach beyond universities and brought its conclusions to business leaders, policymakers and recruitment professionals.

Work on Refugee Employment

Another important part of Adamovic’s research concerns the workplace integration of refugees and people seeking asylum.

Working with Diarmuid Cooney-O’Donoghue, he investigated the management practices that can help refugee employees find meaningful and sustainable work.

The researchers interviewed 37 refugees and people seeking asylum, along with 35 managers and professionals involved in employment programmes.

Their findings identified five broad areas: workforce planning, training and development, inclusive practices, meaningful work and management that supports employee well-being.

This project shows that his research does not only identify discrimination. It also looks for practical ways organisations can improve inclusion.

Research Methods and Professional Partnerships

Adamovic uses field experiments, survey studies and quantitative data analysis.

A field experiment allows researchers to examine behaviour in a real-life environment. This can reveal differences between what people say they believe and how decisions are actually made.

His work has involved collaboration with organisations including Cisco, Hudson RPO, Sapia, the UK Cabinet Office and the UK Government Security Profession.

Other collaborators have included WorkSafe Victoria, Talent Beyond Boundaries, Diversity Council Australia and police unions.

These partnerships help connect academic ideas with recruitment, employee management and leadership practices used by real organisations.

Publications and Written Contributions

Adamovic has published more than 50 peer-reviewed articles in recognised academic journals.

His work has appeared in publications including The Leadership Quarterly, Industrial Relations and the Human Resource Management Journal.

He has also written for wider professional audiences through outlets such as Harvard Business Review and The Conversation.

His published subjects include global virtual teams, cultural diversity, organisational justice, ethnic-minority leadership and the employment integration of refugees.

In 2024, he contributed a reference chapter titled “Cultural Diversity at Work” to the Elgar Encyclopedia of Cross-Cultural Management.

Major Awards and Achievements

One of Adamovic’s notable honours is The Leadership Quarterly Best Article Award.

He has also received the King’s Business School Impact Prize, recognising research with value beyond the university environment.

His recruitment-discrimination research earned Financial Times recognition for addressing an important social and organisational challenge.

In the 2025 Stanford–Elsevier global ranking, he was listed among the world’s top two per cent of most-cited scientists.

These achievements reflect both the academic quality of his work and its usefulness for employers, public organisations and policymakers.

Professional Style and Public Image

Adamovic’s professional image is evidence-based, international and focused on practical workplace improvement.

He discusses difficult subjects such as ethnic discrimination by using data, controlled research and comparisons between recruitment outcomes.

His approach does not present diversity as only a public-relations issue. It treats fair employment as a question of organisational performance, leadership quality and equal opportunity.

He also communicates his findings beyond academic journals, making the research easier for employers and general readers to understand.

Readers interested in comparable professional profiles can explore more academic biographies covering researchers and public contributors from different fields.

11 Interesting Facts About Mladen Adamovic

1. He is a Reader in Leadership and Global Management at King’s Business School.
2. He directs the UK Government’s Secure Leaders Programme.
3. He serves as Student Exchange Coordinator for King’s Business School.
4. He studied International Management at universities in Kiel, Lisbon, Rennes and Belgrade.
5. He completed his PhD at the University of Toulouse.
6. His academic experience includes work in France, Australia, New Zealand and the United Kingdom.
7. He has published more than 50 peer-reviewed academic articles.
8. One of his major experiments used more than 12,000 applications for real vacancies.
9. His research covers both traditional recruitment and artificial intelligence in hiring.
10. He has collaborated with government bodies, international companies and workplace organisations.
11. He was included among the world’s top two per cent of most-cited scientists in the 2025 Stanford–Elsevier ranking.

Current Status in June 2026

As of June 2026, Mladen Adamovic remains a Reader in Leadership and Global Management at King’s College London.

His current responsibilities include research, university teaching, leadership development and international academic coordination.

He continues to study inclusive hiring, ethnic-minority leadership, cultural differences, artificial intelligence and the management of diverse teams.

His position within the Secure Leaders Programme also keeps his work connected to the development of senior public-sector leaders.

His research remains relevant as employers increase their use of remote teams, international recruitment and automated hiring technology.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who is Mladen Adamovic?

He is an academic researcher and Reader in Leadership and Global Management at King’s College London.

What is Mladen Adamovic famous for?

He is best known for research into ethnic discrimination, name bias and unequal recruitment outcomes.

Where does Mladen Adamovic work?

He works at King’s Business School, part of King’s College London.

What did he study?

He completed bachelor’s and master’s studies in International Management and later gained a PhD.

Where did he complete his PhD?

He completed his doctoral studies at the University of Toulouse in France.

What does Mladen Adamovic research?

He studies leadership, cross-cultural management, workplace diversity, recruitment discrimination, artificial intelligence and virtual teams.

What was his major recruitment experiment?

It was a field study involving more than 12,000 applications for real jobs to examine discrimination associated with applicants’ names.

What government programme does he direct?

He is Programme Director of the UK Government’s Secure Leaders Programme.

Conclusion

Mladen Adamovic has built an international academic career around the study of leadership, workplace inclusion and global management.

His education across several European universities and his professional experience in multiple countries have helped shape a broad understanding of cultural differences at work.

His most prominent recruitment experiment provided strong evidence that an applicant’s perceived ethnic background can affect access to leadership opportunities.

Beyond identifying unfair treatment, his work offers practical ideas for inclusive recruitment, refugee employment, employee well-being and the management of diverse teams.

His current position at King’s College London allows him to combine research, teaching and leadership development while contributing to important discussions about the future of work.