Dr Anastasia Kynighou is MBA Director and Academic Coordinator for Global Online Programmes at Manchester Metropolitan University’s Department of People and Performance. A Reader (Associate Professor) in HRM, she led the design of the Manchester Met MBA and its award-commended HyFlex suite. She is co-author of CIPD’s HRM at Work: the Definitive Guide, a Chartered CIPD Member, and holds a PhD from Alliance Manchester Business School.
A business school built for impact
When asked why prospective students should consider Manchester Metropolitan Business School (UK), Dr Anastasia Kynighou points to a combination of ambition and accessibility that she believes sets the school apart. The business school sits within the elite 1% of institutions worldwide to hold triple accreditation from EQUIS, AACSB, and AMBA. Yet its mission has nothing to do with exclusivity. Instead, it focuses on widening access to transformative education.
For Dr Kynighou, living and getting immersed in the city of Manchester itself is part of what gives the school its character. It’s an innovative and highly international city, and the school is too. Manchester Met is driven by a real commitment to research and teaching excellence.
More than a degree: an MBA built on partnership
On what distinguishes the Manchester Met MBA specifically, Dr Kynighou describes the programme as a partnership rather than simply a qualification. Students engage with industry experts and leaders across core disciplines like strategy, marketing, and finance. At the same time, they tackle contemporary themes together, including sustainability, digitalisation, ethics, and wellbeing – all through a global perspective.
Experiential learning is central to the design as well. The use of real case studies and an applied approach intend to create impact not just for the individual graduate, but for their teams, organisations, and wider communities.
Looking ahead
With a programme built on academic excellence and relevance in the real world, the Manchester Met MBA reflects Dr Kynighou’s conviction that business education should be as far-reaching in its outcomes as it is demanding in its standards.
