Leading ‘Human Factors’ expert appointed Visiting Professor

A leading Human Factors expert has been awarded a Royal Academy of Engineering Visiting Professor role at Cardiff University.

Professor Alex Stedmon takes up his chair in Future Human Systems: Experience-led Engineering this autumn, based in the School of Psychology.

Currently President-Elect of the Chartered institute of Ergonomics and Human Factors, Professor Stedmon has pioneered research in many areas of transport, defence/security and advanced interfaces.

Alex specialises in complex systems, VR/simulation, speech input, user behaviour, human performance methods, and user requirements elicitation.

His role at Cardiff will cut across three schools and embrace the Centre for Artificial Intelligence, Robotics and Human-Machine Systems (IROHMS) and Human Factors Excellence (HuFEx).

“I’m delighted to be joining IROHMS and HuFEx which promotes exciting interdisciplinary initiatives between the Schools of Psychology, Engineering, and Computer Science and Informatics,” said Professor Stedmon.

“I will be an industrial ambassador supporting student learning and employability.  With a focus on experience-led engineering, I’m looking forward to developing new teaching content to support graduates in becoming sociotechnical engineering professionals.”

Professor Stedmon’s academic career spans Coventry University, where he developed the MSc Aviation Human factors Course; Nottingham University, where he was Academic Lead for the MSc Human Factors course, Sheffield Hallam University and visiting fellow at the Auckland University of Technology.

He has worked with industry, including DERA and QinetiQ, and has won more than £31m in collaborative research funding. He has published widely in peer reviewed journals, and has held a large number of contracts with industry, research councils and public bodies, along with significant European Commission funding.

His chair has been championed by Phillip Morgan, Professor in Human Factors and Cognitive Science, School of Psychology, Director of HuFEx and IROHMS Director of Research.

“We are delighted to welcome Professor Stedmon to the School of Psychology at Cardiff University,” said Professor Morgan.

“Thanks to the RAEng award, Alex will bring decades of experience as a world leading human factors expert giving invaluable insights from industry and academia to students within Psychology, Engineering and Computer Science. We will work together to develop even more cutting edge taught provision cross cutting of future human systems; further enhancing the curriculum and career aspirations and opportunities for many our students.”

Professor Stedmon will deliver his inaugural lecture, ‘Future Human Systems: Symbiotic Engineering,’ later this year, exploring how engineering can augment human capacities, identify where our capacities have yet to be matched and where humans must always be involved.