Shai is Director for the Centre for Entrepreneurial Learning. He started his working career in small companies, leaving to complete his MBA and PhD at Cranfield School of Management, where he stayed on the faculty for ten years, before taking up a Chair in Enterprise at Nottingham Business School. In 1990 he co-founded Transitions, combining his academic interests with the practical how-to for businesses. As a result of this he has worked with over 400 businesses in workshops, consulting assignments through his business Transitions and as coach, mentor and non-executive director. He is on the editorial board of the International Small Business Journal and the Journal of Strategic Change. He is Visiting Professor at Nottingham Business School and at the University of Reading.