Role
Craig Strong has been a senior lecturer for Sport Management for over eleven years. During this period, he has been programme leader and work placement officer. Craig currently leads the level six Entrepreneurship and Enterprise module (SPOR30102), supporting final year students to develop their own business ventures.
In addition, Craig is the leads the Commercialisation and Sales in Sport module (SPOR40003), on the MSc. Sports Management degree programme. The content of the module allow the post-graduate students to work alongside the commercial and marketing departments at Nottingham Panthers Ice Hockey, Nottingham racecourse and Trent Bridge.
In 2022, Craig successfully achieved his Senior Fellowship for the Higher Education Academy (SFHEA) and gained his PhD in Emotional Intelligence in 2024.
Career overview
In relation to his previous academic and industrial experience, Craig was Honorarium and Course Leader in HE of Sport at Heart of Worcestershire College. Prior to this he was Marketing Director at Sweet Causes Ltd for six years. He started his career working in the private health and fitness industry, working in organisations such as Esporta, David Lloyd and Fitness First.
From an entrepreneurial background, Craig has invested and collaborated in several UK businesses over the past ten years.
Research areas
Craig completed his PhD thesis in 2024, researching how Emotional Intelligence for teachers enhance the delivery of primary Physical Education in the UK.
In addition, he has conducted research exploring the benefits of what students gained when studying on a sandwich course pathway. This has been collaborated with Dr. Ellie Nesbitt.
Finally, Craig is a community member of Sport Enterprise & Entrepreneurship for the Institution of Small Businesses and Entrepreneurship (ISBE).
Publications
Presented Conferences
- Strong, C. (2026). Building the Sport Enterprise and Entrepreneurship Research and Practice. EES ISBE Conference: Online, June 2026
- Strong, C. (2026). Sport Science Student Enterprise Support Initiative. TILT Enterprise Conference, Nottingham, UK, May 2026
- Strong, C. (2026). From Higher education to employment. SportsPath Podcast. Online, February 2026 (launch in July 2026)
- Strong, C. (2025). TILT Enterprise Conference: Building entrepreneurship into Higher Education curricular. 21st May 2025
- Strong, C. (2022). Effects of emotional intelligence on school teachers’ success in delivering primary PE in the United Kingdom. PhD Journey. SHAPE Conference: Nottingham, UK, February 2022
- Strong, C. (2020). Discovering the Emotional Intelligence exhibited by primary school teachers while delivering Physical Education in the United Kingdom. STAR Conference: Nottingham, UK, May 2019
Publications
- Strong, C., & Nesbitt, E. (2026). Bite-sized brilliance: mixed-methods approach of unwrapping the benefits of sandwich courses for Sport Science students. Journal of Learning Development in Higher Education. 10.47408/jldhe.vi39.1612
- Strong, C. (2025). The Impact Of Emotional Intelligence On School Teachers’ Effectiveness In Delivering Primary Physical Education In England. PhD Thesis. Nottingham Trent University.
- Strong, C., Hindley, D., Sarkar, M., & Nevill, M. (2020). Discovering the Emotional Intelligence exhibited by primary school teachers while delivering Physical Education in the United Kingdom. International Journal of Emotional Education