Heriot-Watt academic secures RSE grant to study AI’s impact on managers
Heriot-Watt University Associate Professor Dr Pedro Mendonça has been awarded a Royal Society of Edinburgh (RSE) research collaboration grant to investigate how artificial intelligence (AI) is transforming the work of managers.
Working alongside Dr Pille Strauss from the Karolinska Institutet in Sweden, Dr Mendonça’s research, MANAGE-AI, will explore how AI and algorithmic management are transforming the work of managers.
The project aims to develop evidence-based resources through co-designed workshops to produce a Responsible AI Management Toolkit, as well as policy recommendations.
Existing research has focused on how these technologies affect frontline workers, but there remains to be limited knowledge on their impact on managers and how AI is implemented in management.
Dr Mendonça, Associate Professor of Work and Employment from Heriot-Watt's Edinburgh Business School, said: “AI is increasingly involved in allocating work, monitoring performance, supporting decision-making and implementing organisational policies, fundamentally changing how managers carry out their roles.
“During this collaborative research with colleagues at Karolinska Institute, in Sweden, we will work with managers and organisations in both countries to co-produce practical guidance on the responsible implementation of AI in workplaces.
“The project aims to develop evidence-based resources through co-designed workshops to produce a Responsible AI Management Toolkit, as well as policy recommendations. This will then help organisations harness the benefits of AI through the promotion of fair and equitable managerial work.”
A key strength of the project is the Scotland–Sweden collaboration. Sweden has extensive experience of participatory approaches to technological change, while Scotland has established itself as an international leader through its Fair Work agenda.
By bringing these perspectives together, Dr Mendonça and colleagues hope to identify good practices that can support responsible AI adoption across different organisational contexts.
Dr Mendonça’s collaboration grant with the Karolinska Institutet is one of 61 research projects which were selected as part of the RSE’s spring 2026 Research Awards open call.
The Research Awards Programme opens in spring and autumn each year and aims to support Scotland’s research sector by nurturing promising talent, stimulating research in Scotland, and promoting international collaboration.