Dr Jennifer Susan Lees-Marshment

Biography

Dr Jennifer Lees-Marshment was lecturer and senior lecturer in the UK at Keele University and Aberdeen University before joining Auckland in November 2005 as a senior lecturer, then senior lecturer over the bar, then Associate Professor in 2012.

Research | Current

Dr Lees-Marshment is a research-led but practice-oriented academic who researches the relationship between politicians, government and public opinion, mainly through the field of political marketing which she has established international expertise in, but more recently, political leadership. She is author/editor of 13 books. Her forthcoming book The Ministry of Public Input considers how public input through different forms (market research, consultation and deliberation) can be integrated into political leadership, and draws on 51 interviews with ministers in the UK, Canada, New Zealand, Australia and the US about public input in government. 

Jennifer also aims to support the work of other scholars through research organisation and nurturing leadership, and engage in transfer knowledge through involving practitioners in academic life and applying research to practice.

In her teaching she seeks to embed transferrable skills and applied work alongside a philosophy of collaborative teaching using peer tutors and online resources and in particular a new course The Practice of Politics. She also teaches courses on Political Marketing and Political Management in Government. See www.lees-marshment.org for further details.

Teaching | Current

Politics and International Relations

Postgraduate supervision

Dr Lees-Marshment currently has an active group of research students who meet socially and attend events such as campaign launches and TVNZ debates in the 2014 NZ election. Her students work on topics such as market-oriented communication of leaders, political public relations, branding government departments, using e-marketing to stimulate party participation, and e-consultation. Jennifer can supervise suitable topics in political leadership, consultation, deliberation, parties, elections, interest-groups and political marketing.

Distinctions/Honours

Chair of the Magna Carta 800th Committee for New Zealand

Academic advisor to TVNZ's Vote Compass for the 2014 New Zealand Election

CLeaR Fellow in Teaching and Learning for 2015 on the theme Student engagement and achievement 

Fellow of the Political Management Programme at Carleton University in Canada

President of the NZPSA (New Zealand Political Studies Association) 2011-2012

Responsibilities

Politics representative for the School of Social Sciences Research Committee

Areas of expertise

Political marketing, political leadership, consultation, deliberation and public input

Committees/Professional groups/Services

Recent activities (since 2012) include:

• Communications officer for the PSA Political Marketing Group
• Member of the Reference Group on the University Graduate Profile
• Political Science Keynote at the Contested Democracy Conference, University Paris Sobonne Nouvelle, Paris
• Member of the internal social sciences committee for the PBRF research exercise
• Member of IAP2 Auckland branch organising committee
• Training on the Practice of Political Marketing delivered to Carleton University political management graduate students
• Training day on Political Marketing delivered to Auckland University Labour students
• Invited trainer for the Government of Macedonia’s Training for Young Leaders, to teach Political Marketing and Leadership
• Chair of the Departmental Research Committee