HOST Policy Research: The Team
Sue Ottley
Sue is a psychologist and ergonomist who has spent most of her career working on human performance and systems issues. She joined HOST as an Associate in November 2009. She specialises in risk perception and risk management and in the use of systems.
She began her career with ITT working on the use of, and the design of interfaces to, large telecommunications systems before moving to ICL where she both developed and ran the Human Computer Interaction (HCI) Laboratory. She provided HCI and management guidance for IT developers and junior HCI staff as well as working with IT staff and customers on developing both immediate and long term user requirements models and technical strategy. She was also a member of the first IT skills agency working groups and its’ executive committee.
She has been involved in a number of large research projects including the UK based Alvey program and the EU funded Esprit program. She was also involved in the British Library research programme IT2000 looking at the domestic and educational use of computer based technology. She has been involved in a number of projects aimed at skill development using technology infrastructures including computer supported co-operative working, remote learning and the re-skilling of disadvantaged or disabled population groups. Sue has also refereed proposals for DTI and SERC on computer assisted co-operative working.
She has also worked extensively on policy issues particularly with respect of technology requirements, IT skills needs and skills development and technical futures. She was senior researcher for, and a member of, the British Computer Society Strategy Review Panel (SRP) researching and evaluating the possible effects of computer based technology on organisations, skills requirements, social structures, education and individuals. Sue was also involved in both the development of the 'hybrid' technology based MBA at Henley management college and Sheffield University and was a contributor to the specification of the BCS professional development scheme. She was also involved in a number of initiatives aimed at increasing the role of women in the technology based professions and on protecting individual rights and privacy in an information based society.
Her risk management work includes both consultancy and training and focuses understanding risk perception and risk taking, issues of human performance and the successful management of occupational health. Recently she has been working on a large project on adopting risk management techniques for reducing and managing stress. She has particular interest in the link between organisation resilience and employee well being. She has worked with several insurance companies and provides expert witness services on related issues.
Sue also writes on her areas of work and research and has been an extensive contributor to various publications in the UK and US on health and safety, technology and human resources policy and practice as well as education, disability and elder issues. She is a member of the Parliamentary Information Technology Committee.
› John Barry › Alan Bloomfield › Stefan Burkey › Simon Bysshe › Frances Chinemana › Peter Duschinsky › Peter Foster › Claire Harris › Inge Hill › Jane Holland › Jacqueline Hughes › Wayne Isaac › Alyson Jenkins › Alison Kennedy › Susan Lanz › Sue Ottley › David Parsons › Valerie Rowe › Jo Verrill › Jenny Wall › Kenneth Walsh › Dick Willis