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Categories: Blog
Blog
The HR-ification of Cambridge University
This week, the growth of Human Resources (HR) has been in the news because of a publication from the centre-right think tank Policy Exchange. Its report on the growth of HR has received widespread attention, Read more…
7 Comments
SPARTACUS · 13 March 2026 at 17:38
In the meanwhile the University is announcing the investiture of the Chancellor Lord Smith! He like Nero is just enjoying the burning of Rome!
MUSKETEER · 13 March 2026 at 17:41
Nigel Peake now. Richard G before. How low can the place descend?? American Queen looks away. Lord Smith has already lost the plot. Deep rot!
TheResearcher · 13 March 2026 at 18:29
I sent the following email earlier today:
“Dear Nigel,
It just came to my attention that you were elected Master of Darwin College. Congratulations. I am writing to ask you if you mentioned in your application to Darwin the upcoming tribunal cases of members of your School against the University of Cambridge, namely for retaliation against whistleblowers and your involvement in these cases? For example, did you mention this particular story (https://21percent.org/?p=1608)?
It is not sensible to think that the University will be able to gag these cases so that the general public and the press do not attend the trials because these stories will be known regardless of how much the University tries otherwise. You should all be ashamed about the lives you damaged, including my own, but I give you my word that no one silences me. People who do not assume their faults will make the same mistakes with others and it is my responsibility to make sure that what I experienced does not happen with others. I trust you read my email to the University Council and the General Board today? Note that I only mentioned the name of Louise Akroyd in that email and not yours to avoid causing you even more embarrassment. I can assure you, however, that if your Fellow colleague of Emmanuel College Ms Sarah d’Ambrumenil tries to silence me with more “precautionary measures” and threats, I will make sure the Fellowship of Emmanuel knows her behaviour and what happened in the School of Physical Sciences with me and others. This person should not be a Fellow of any Cambridge College and the fact she interacts with students is very concerning. You may want to discuss the matter with the Master Mr Doug Chalmers because he is already aware of it.
See you soon,”
Rules · 13 March 2026 at 19:27
Failure to act on bullying and safeguarding concerns is generally considered to be a serious disciplinary offence in most workplaces
Such failures can breach an employer’s duty of care, legal regulations, and internal company policies, often resulting in disciplinary action ranging up to summary dismissal for gross misconduct.
TheResearcher · 13 March 2026 at 19:33
True. Unfortunately, that does not seem to apply in UCam. Ask Prof. Kamal Munir! Seriously, the fact they think that people will simply forget what they have done and carry on is simply mind blowing. They chose the wrong person to attempt to cover up misconduct this time.
MetaStatic · 13 March 2026 at 23:00
Oh wow, PoorNigel, you’ve done really well for yourself, congrats!
Great timing too, after a second term, keeping things under wraps.
Do you remember those cautioning comments that were made, you know, the ones you thought were really really good, about the Head of Department who would turn a wonderful thriving department into a pile of shit.
What did you do about those, PoorNigel? Nothing, nothing!
Do you remember those cautioning comments that were made, you know, about the one who’d made the comments about the Head of Department (who was now busy turning a wonderful thriving place into a pile of shit.)
She’d been retaliated against violently. She was on the brink.
What did you do about those, PoorNigel? Nothing, nothing!
What happened, PoorNigel? Did you change your mind? Or did you just defer to those who now make all the decisions, on confidentiality, on propriety, on freedom of speech?
Since you’re now ready to sashay into the sunset, sipping a glass of port as you proceed, do us a favour, PoorNigel, do take Louise with you. We all need to breathe.
Eileen Nugent · 14 March 2026 at 00:09
HR in Cambridge should look to history to get a sense of the academic community HR is likely to encounter in Cambridge. HR should take a figure from history – Srinivasa Ramanujan – and give some thought as to what it would mean to put pressure on a person like Srinivasa Ramanujan to sign an Non Disclosure Agreement (NDA) and stop speaking about a situation where they thought something was wrong in exchange for financial compensation.
HR in Cambridge should give some thought as to how much thought it is possible for a Cambridge mathematician to give to whether zero probability means impossibility. The long pause in the case of a Cambridge mathematician might not then be a sign that there is a high or even a non-zero probability of an NDA being signed in exchange for financial compensation but rather a sign that a deep search for the answers to some quite difficult mathematical questions has been unwittingly triggered by the actions of HR in Cambridge.