Zihan Wang

Zihan is Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the Science Policy Research Unit (SPRU), University of Sussex Business School.

Her research examines skills as a core regional capability shaping innovation, productivity, labour market dynamics, and structural transformation. Using large-scale quantitative data including online job postings, LinkedIn data, and questionnaires, she investigates how skills are developed, deployed, and transformed across places. With a sectoral focus on manufacturing and the creative industries, she aims to bridge theoretical analysis and policy development, particularly in informing place-based skills policy and industrial strategy.