Rate My Professor William Vuk Despotovic

Dr. William Vuk Despotovic is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Management within Griffith Business School at Griffith University, located on the Gold Coast campus. He earned his BBus (Hons) and PhD from Griffith University. His academic career at Griffith includes progression from PhD candidature to lecturer and subsequently to Senior Lecturer roles in human resource management. Despotovic's research specializations encompass human resource management, with a particular emphasis on self-initiated expatriates, their motivations for international mobility, cross-cultural and logistical training for expatriates working internationally, and peer-assisted study sessions (PASS) programs to enhance employability and student performance. His work addresses key challenges in international human resources, such as preparation for living and working abroad, repatriation retention in developing countries, and the impact of peer leadership on self-efficacy.

Despotovic has authored several influential publications. Notable among them is 'Business, pleasure or both?: motivations and changing motivation of self-initiated expatriates' (2025, Journal of Management & Organization, cited by 39), co-authored with Kate Hutchings and Ruth McPhail. Another key paper is 'Cross-cultural self-preparation of Australian self-initiated expatriates for working and living in South Korea: Stumped like a bonsai: A show of what could have been' (2015, Asia Pacific Journal of Human Resources, cited by 37). Recent contributions include 'Building employability in PASS leaders through peer-assisted study sessions (PASS) programs' (2024, Education + Training, with Ruth McPhail and David Schmidtke) and 'Retaining the repatriate by organisation in developing countries (in Africa): understanding the decision-making point (stay or leave) of the expatriate' (2024, Employee Relations: The International Journal, cited by 6). Earlier work features 'Follow the Leader: Understanding the Impact Being a P.A.S.S Leader has on Self Efficacy' (2012). He holds Senior Fellow status of the Higher Education Academy (SFHEA). Despotovic contributes to teaching HRM courses, leads international study tours such as the Fiji Human Resources Study Tour, and engages in professional activities including presentations at conferences like ANZAM and involvement with the Australasian PASS Alliance. His scholarship impacts international HRM practices and peer learning pedagogies.