Role
Jim Devlin is Professor Emeritus of Financial Services in the Centre for Finance, Technology and Society at the Nottingham Business School.
Career overview
Jim spent some time working in private client and investment banking before joining what is now Nottingham University Business School, where he completed a PhD in marketing strategy and consumer decision making in financial services in 1996. Jim spent a number of years at the University of Nottingham, including a three-year posting at the University of Nottingham, Malaysia. During his time at Nottingham, Jim fulfilled a variety of leadership and management roles, culminating with a period as Dean of the Business School. Jim has also worked at what is now Bayes Business School in the City of London and more recently at the University of Leicester where he was Dean of the School of Business. In November 2021 Jim left Leicester to join Nottingham Trent University as Director of the Centre for Finance, Technology and Society. In October 2024 Jim retired from his post at NTU and was appointed Professor Emeritus.
Jim's research interests are detailed below but throughout his career Jim has always been committed to educational excellence and has a broad range of teaching and supervisory experience including:
- Design of the MSc course: Digital Business and Data Analytics
- Design and production of a Micro-credential Fundamentals of Fintech and Financial Innovation
- Successful supervision of 12 PhD students
- Successful supervision of numerous Masters and Post Experience level projects and dissertations, both more consultancy-focused and more research-orientated
- Teaching Global Developments in FinTech module on the Executive MSc. in Strategic FinTech offered by the University of Strathclyde in conjunction with the Bahrain Institute of Banking and Finance
- Contributing to Introduction of FinTech module on MSc. FinTech and Financial Markets
- Contributing to the "Managing Finances and Strategic Decision-Making" module on the Leicester MBA by Distance Learning
- Design and delivery of the "Financial Services: Context Consumers and Markets" module on the MSc. Banking and Finance accredited by the Chartered Banker Institute at the University of Nottingham
- Other modules taught previously (not exhaustive): Elements of Bank Theory and Operations (M.Sc.), Quantitative Research Methods (M.Sc.), Marketing (MBA) Contemporary Themes in Marketing (MBA), Managing the Global Firm, (MBA), Advanced Marketing Management (MBA), Strategic Management (MBA), Services Marketing (MBA), Marketing Strategy (UG), Services Marketing (UG), Strategic Management (UG), Marketing for Investment Management (MSc), Marketing for Insurance (MSc), Introduction to Marketing (UG)
Research areas
Jim’s research interests focus on the interface between consumers, firms and policymakers in financial services. He has a long-standing interest in the conceptualisation and measurement of trust and fairness in financial services as well as the antecedents and consequences thereof.
Jim is also interested in aspects of consumer attitudes and decision-making in financial services and the impact of technology and innovation on consumers and their interactions with firms. He has also carried out several policy-orientated investigations focusing on issues such as financial exclusion, the fair treatment of customers and how product simplification may increase levels of engagement.
Finally, Jim’s research has also focussed on marketing and branding in financial services more broadly, as well as some other aspects of marketing and strategy.
External activity
Jim acts in a Non-Executive Director capacity as a member of the Board of Trustees of the Chartered Banker Institute and he is also a member of both the International Advisory Committee and the Quality and Standards Committee of the same institution.
Jim is also a member of the Advisory Board of the Financial Markets and Institutions SIG of the British Accounting and Finance Association. By virtue of professional qualifications, Jim is a Member of the Chartered Institute for Securities and Investment, a Certified Member of the Chartered Banker Institute and a Certified Green and Sustainable Finance Professional.
Jim recently served as a Member of the Peer Assessment Panel for the Higher Education Authority of Ireland North-South Research Programme which is a unique funding call that aims to support the deepening of links between higher education institutions, researchers, and research communities on the island of Ireland. The programme is a collaborative scheme arising from the Government’s Shared Island Initiative and will distribute Euro 40 million over five years.
Jim has served as a judge and panel member for the Financial Innovation Awards by the London Institute of Banking and Finance since 2013 and in 2019 was a member of the judging panel for the Best Challenger Bank award at the Growth Finance Awards.
Previously, Jim spent six years as a member of the Board of Governors of London Institute of Banking and Finance (formally ifs University College) acting in a Trustee/Non-Executive Director capacity and also served on the REMCO Committee for LiBF.
Jim’s work has also prompted a large amount of media interest and coverage including; interviews for Moneybox (Radio 4), BBC local radio stations, Yorkshire Coast Radio, Waves Radio, Siren FM and coverage in Money Mail, the Financial Advisor Magazine, Financial World Magazine, Chartered Banker Magazine, Money Marketing and the Australian Financial Review amongst others.
Jim has served on EQUIS and AMBA accreditation and re-accreditation panels as well as validating numerous programmes at all levels.
Jim is also a retained External Assessor for academic appointments in the Department of Finance and Banking, University of Malaya, Malaysia and from 2014-2021 served as an External Research Assessor for University of Sussex. He has also been an External Examiner for taught courses at the Universities of Exeter, Strathclyde and Edinburgh and an External Examiner for PhD and DBA candidates both nationally and internationally.
Away from work, Jim is a qualified age-grade rugby union coach and referee and a member at his local club West Bridgford RFC, a Nottingham RFC season ticket holder and a debenture holder at Murrayfield.
Sponsors and collaborators
Jim has been involved in a number of research projects and collaborations with organisations such as HM Treasury, the Thoresen Review (on behalf of HM Treasury), the Financial Services Authority (now the FCA), the Office of Fair Trading, the Financial Services Institute of Australia and Toynbee Hall focusing on policy related issues, both in a consultative capacity and as a member of expert panels. Jim has also worked with the Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association and Willis Towers Watson PLC on research related to pensions and consumer behaviour. Jim was also co-organiser of an ESRC seminar series entitled Financial Services and Consumers: Issues and Challenges in a Context of Change with a total of six seminars being held in London, Edinburgh and Nottingham.
Jim has collaborated on a number of occasions with the Chartered Banker Institute both as a member of roundtable discussion on professionalism and standards in banking and to produce a major report on Professional Pride in Banking.
Publications
Selected and recent publications include:
S. M. A. Moin, James Devlin & Sally McKechnie (2023) Introducing a composite measure of trust in financial services, The Service Industries Journal, 43 (11-12) , pp 896-922 DOI: 10.1080/02642069.2021.1969366
Nath, P, Devlin, J and Reid, V (2019) “The effects of online reviews on service expectations: Do cultural value orientations matter?” Journal of Business Research, 90 (September), pp 123-133 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2018.05.001
Chen, T, Ma, K, Bian, X, Zheng C and Devlin, J F (2018) “Is High Recovery More Effective than Expected Recovery in Addressing Service Failure? – A Moral Judgment Perspective” Journal of Business Research, 82 (January), pp 1-9 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2017.08.025
Moin, S., Devlin, J.F. & McKechnie, S. (2017) “Trust in financial services: the influence of demographics and dispositional characteristics.” Journal of Financial Services Marketing, 22, 64–76. https://doi.org/10.1057/s41264-017-0023-8
Moin, S., Devlin, J. & McKechnie, S. (2016) “The magic of branding: The role of ‘pledge’, ‘turn’ and ‘prestige’ in fostering consumer trust in financial services”. Journal of Financial Services Marketing 21, 113–126 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1057/fsm.2016.8 (25%)
Sekhon, H.S., Roy, S.K. and Devlin, J. (2016), "Perceptions of fairness in financial services: an analysis of distribution channels", International Journal of Bank Marketing, Vol. 34 No. 2, pp. 171-190 https://doi.org/10.1108/IJBM-10-2014-0140
Reid, V, Devlin, J F and Nath, P (2016) “Expectation Formation in the Case of Newer Hotels: The Role of Advertising, Price and Culture” Journal of Travel Research, 52(2), pp261-275 https://doi.org/10.1177/0047287514541003
Devlin, J., Ennew, C., Sekhon, H. et al. Trust in financial services: Retrospect and prospect. J Financ Serv Mark 20, 234–245 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1057/fsm.2015.21
Moin, S., Devlin, J. & McKechnie, S. Trust in financial services: Impact of institutional trust and dispositional trust on trusting belief. J Financ Serv Mark 20, 91–106 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1057/fsm.2015.6
Sanjit Kumar Roy, James F. Devlin & Harjit Sekhon (2015) The impact of fairness on trustworthiness and trust in banking, Journal of Marketing Management, 31:9-10, 996-1017, DOI: 10.1080/0267257X.2015.1036101
Harjit Sekhon, Christine Ennew, Husni Kharouf & James Devlin (2014)
Trustworthiness and trust: influences and implications, Journal of Marketing Management, 30:3-4, 409-430, DOI: 10.1080/0267257X.2013.842609
Ashby, S, Peters, L and Devlin, J F (2014) “When an Irresistible Force Meets an Immovable Object: The Interplay of Agency and Structure in the UK Financial Crisis”, Journal of Business Research, 67(1), pp 2671-2683 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2013.03.015
F. Devlin, J., Kumar Roy, S. and Sekhon, H. (2014), "Perceptions of fair treatment in financial services: Development, validation and application of a fairness measurement scale", European Journal of Marketing, Vol. 48 No. 7/8, pp. 1315-1332. https://doi.org/10.1108/EJM-08-2012-0469
McKechnie, S, Devlin, J, Smith, A and Ennew, C (2012) “Effects of discount framing in comparative price advertising” European Journal of Marketing, 46 (11/12), pp 1501-1522 https://doi.org/10.1108/03090561211259952
Devlin, J F (2011) “Evaluative Cues and Financial Services: The Effect of Consumer Knowledge” Journal of Marketing Management, 27(13-14), pp 1366-1377 DOI: 10.1080/0267257X.2011.624533
Chuah, S H and Devlin, J F (2011) “Behavioural Economics and Financial Services Marketing: A Review” International Journal of Bank Marketing, 29(6) pp 456-469 https://doi.org/10.1108/02652321111165257
Devlin, J F (2010) “The Stakeholder Product Brand and Decision Making in Retail Financial Services” Service Industries Journal, 30(4), pp 567-582 DOI: 10.1080/02642060903079139
Devlin, J F (2009) “An Analysis of Influences on Total Financial Exclusion” Service Industries Journal, 29(8), pp 1021-1036 DOI: 10.1080/02642060902764160
Gerrard, P Cunningham, J B and Devlin, J F (2006) “Why Consumers are not Using Internet Banking: A Qualitative Study” Journal of Services Marketing, Vol 20, No 2/3, pp1 60-168 https://doi.org/10.1108/08876040610665616
Devlin, J F (2005) “A Detailed Study of Financial Exclusion in the UK” Journal of Consumer Policy, Vol 28, pp 75-108
Devlin, J F and Yeung, M (2003) “Insights into Customer Motivations for Switching to Internet Banking” International Review of Retail, Distribution and Consumer Services, Vol 13, No 4, pp 375-392
Devlin, J F (2003) “Monitoring the Success of Policy Initiatives to Increase Consumer Understanding of Financial Services” Journal of Financial Regulation and Compliance, Vol 11, No 2, pp 151-163 https://doi.org/10.1108/13581980310810471
Devlin J F (1998) “Adding Value to Service Offerings: The Case of Financial Services” European Journal of Marketing, Vol 32, No 11/12, pp 1091-1109 MCB UP Awards for Excellence Award Winner: Hans B Thorelli Award for the Best Paper Published in 1998 Edition of the European Journal of Marketing https://doi.org/10.1108/03090569810243730
Devlin, J F (1995) "Technology and Innovation in Retail Banking Distribution" International Journal of Bank Marketing Vol 13, No 4, pp19-29 https://doi.org/10.1108/02652329510082915
Ennew, C T & Devlin, J F (1993) "The Financial Services Act; How Well Has It Served the Customer" Marketing, Intelligence and Planning 1993 Vol 11, No 6, pp 8-10
Devlin, J F & Ennew, C T (1993) "Regulating the Distribution of Savings and Investment Products: Retrospect and Prospect" International Journal of Bank Marketing, Vol 11, No 7, pp 3-10 https://doi.org/10.1108/02652329310046241
Press expertise
Consumers and Financial Services