Chris Hackley

Chris Hackley is Professor of Marketing at Royal Holloway University of London's School of Business and Management, where he established the marketing teaching and research department as founding Chair in Marketing in 2004. His academic career includes previous positions at Birmingham University, Aston Business School, and the Open University. He holds a PhD from Strathclyde University (awarded 1999) focusing on the creative advertising development process in UK advertising agencies.

Professor Hackley's research centers on managerial, cultural and policy issues around marketing and advertising communication. His work spans critical marketing studies, qualitative research methods, product placement regulation, business education, and media ethics. He has published extensively including the Routledge textbook 'Qualitative Research in Marketing and Management' (3rd edition), 'But...How Do You Teach, Business?' (Edward Elgar, 2024), and 'Rethinking Advertising as Paratextual Communication' (co-authored, Edward Elgar, 2022).

His recent scholarly output shows a trajectory toward critical examinations of business education, evolving advertising practices in digital environments, and the sociocultural implications of marketing. His work on product placement regulation has been particularly influential in UK broadcasting policy debates. He has supervised PhD students researching TV product placement, political marketing, children's gaming consumption, and influencer marketing.

• Editorial Board: Marketing Theory, Journal of Marketing Management, European Journal of Marketing
• Media Contributor: BBC TV Breakfast, ITV1, Channel 4 News, BBC Radio 4
• Publications: 133 research outputs including 73 articles, 34 book chapters

Hackley has been active in public discourse through The Conversation, Times Higher Education, and other media outlets. His research has been cited in Harvard Business Review, Times of India, and major UK national newspapers. He maintains active research collaborations across Europe and has appeared on international media discussing advertising psychology and marketing practices.