Business School eBiz - November 2007
Our undergraduate degree programs provide the springboard for successful careers and our postgraduate, research and executive education programs provide the opportunity for further skills development in both general and specialised areas for more experienced students and business people. Our postgraduate coursework degree programs include programs such as our MCom for students with no or limited business experience and our MBA and Executive MBA for more experienced managers. We draw upon our close linkages with the business community to ensure that our customised and flexible executive education programs, offered in conjunction with the Australian Institute of Management, are always cutting edge, practical and relevant. Presenters for our executive programs include our own highly-qualified faculty, faculty from other Business Schools including Harvard and London Business School, prominent members of the business community including our own Business School Board members and industry practitioners. Please contact us if you would like to explore business education opportunities – either for you personally or for your organisation.
World and Local Trends Identify Growth in Executive Education With our professional lives becoming even faster paced, competitive and global, Director of the AIM-UWA Business School Alliance, Suellen Tapsall, says executives and organisations are searching for ways to keep up with the latest information and trends – with many turning to Executive Education programs for the solution. According to writer for the Journal of Banking and Financial Services, John Unkles, the growing demand for customised programs and shorter, niche courses also reflects the increasing need for businesses to maximise the returns on their investment in education for time-poor executives. “Enlightened employers now understand the quality of the services they provide and the level of their value-added is directly related to the investments they make in their human capital. Executive education and development is fast becoming a key element of corporate strategy and one that is fundamental to the long-term survival of a business,” he said. Suellen says that for organisations that are aware and want to create a sustainable long-term business, investing in individual and organisational development provides tremendous opportunities and space to be innovative and sustainable. “We are witnessing an emphasis on ensuring the life of a senior executive is sustainable. Issues such as stress management, work life balance, strategic thinking and decision making, and commercial acumen are crucial in maintaining and growing executive peak performance,” she said. “Organisations are now recognising that in order for their executives to perform in a growing global economy, they need them to be physically and emotionally healthy so they have the best opportunity to apply their commercial, technical and leadership skills,” Suellen added. “We need to provide organisations and individuals with the support tools and opportunities to ensure they stretch themselves in the face of challenges and crisis but do so in safe and sustainable ways,” she said. For more information on the AIM-UWA Business School Alliance’s Executive Programs and organisational development activities, please view the website at www.aimuwaalliance.com Executive Education Excelling on all Levels Since joining the AIM-UWA Business School Alliance as its Director more than 18 months ago, Suellen Tapsall has witnessed significant growth in executive education with interest from corporate, government and non-profit sectors. We touch base with Suellen who provides an update on what is happening with the Alliance programs. About Executive Education with UWA’s Business School The AIM-UWA Business School Alliance unites the intellectual power of one of Australia’s leading Business Schools with Western Australia’s leading training and development institute, providing research and business (i.e. real world) based, globally relevant frameworks for addressing the issues of today’s business leaders. The programs offered provide a selected range of leading edge development opportunities for participants and are specifically designed to cater for the busy senior manager. Flexible, customised leadership and management development programs are offered as both open programs or delivered into clients’ own workplaces. For more information regarding these programs please visit www.aimuwaalliance.com Update on the Alliance Executive Programs Rio Tinto Asset Management Program UN Leadership Program to Commence State Government Programs Advanced Management Program New Suite of Open Programs Available Senior Executive Forum a Success
Presented by the AIM∙UWA Business School Alliance, the Senior Executive Forum has developed a reputation for exposing senior managers from around Australia and the region, to the most contemporary and challenging thinking on strategy and leadership available. Two outstanding presenters, Professor Jay Conger from London Business AIM∙UWA Business School Alliance Director Suellen Tapsall said it was rare to have access to just one of these distinguished experts, let alone two over a three day period. “To have both of these leaders in their field available in the one program ensured the forum delivered a world class teaching and learning experience for all participants. The feedback received thus far confirms how successful the forum was for all participants,” she said. Leadership - a Core Philosophy at Hawaiian The unity of business and people is Hawaiian’s core philosophy, a privately owned WA property investment and development group. Armed with this belief and a strong practice of staff development, Hawaiian selected the Leadership Development Program with AIM-UWA Business School Alliance as its training program for staff development. With a diverse investment portfolio including retail, commercial, hospitality and industrial assets as well as residential and commercial interests in property development, Hawaiian’s Chief Executive Officer, Mr Russell Gibbs, said Hawaiian needed a leadership course that matched the organisation’s future direction and key performance areas. “After a detailed review of the options available and the needs of Hawaiian’s senior management, the AIM-UWA program presented a range of targeted outcomes that aligned with our development KPIs,” Russell commented. Russell said the choice was clear as AIM-UWA complemented Hawaiian’s strong commitment to staff development and training. He added the program provided immediate and direct results that were both empowering for the team and had bottom-line improvements. “The senior management team are now all aligned in their leadership thinking and expectations while still allowing each leader to operate effectively within their own style.” Russell added an integral part of the program was the intensive role plays and personal analysis each manager underwent. “Each participant was called to closely examine their own style, allowing each person to consider fundamental leadership changes in becoming more effective,” he said. “Overall, our senior managers have gained a valuable insight into practical and effective leadership, which supports their personal development as career-minded individuals and professional development as a leadership team pursuing Hawaiian’s goals,” Russell said.
Research Indicates Current Leaders Not Rated Highly
Shaun’s research tackled the analysis of leadership from a different angle - using a new technique applied to the study of leadership which focused on the perspective of the follower (or subordinate). Through a series of questions Shaun was able to isolate which leadership characteristics were considered more attractive (or important) to subordinates. “Using this technique we were able to isolate characteristics to determine precisely which leadership attributes are most valued or attractive to followers,” Shaun said. This technique is more often associated with the marketing field. He added, “For example, you may ask a series of questions of the buyer about the attributes of a car, such as ‘Would you rather a four cylinder car, with leather seats, four doors and a six-stack CD player, OR, would you like a six cylinder car, with cloth seats, four doors and a single CD player’. By analysing a series of combinations such as this, we can determine which specific attributes are key to the buying decision. The eight leadership attributes chosen were; inspiration, vision, trust, communication, alignment, self knowledge, change, and role model. Initially, subordinates were asked to rate their current leader against each of the eight attributes. Shaun said he was surprised with the end results. “The average score for the subordinates’ current leader was only 4.5 out of 10. It was disappointing that the average was so low,” he said. Shaun also tested the attributes the subordinate least liked to trade-off, that is, which attributes were the most valuable or attractive in a leader. “The top three attributes, that people were least willing to trade-off, were inspiration, trust and communication,” he said. Shaun said the business implication of his research is intriguing. “There is obviously lots of room for improvement, because people currently don't rate their leaders highly. The results indicate that current leaders can definitely improve their leadership skills,” he said. He added that although we all have an opinion about leadership - we generally don't actually have an agreed view on what it is. “Leadership tends to be seen as one single concept, but in reality it is a combination of several factors - some of which are more important than others,” he said. “The research does indicate that inspiration, trust and communication are essential ingredients for every leader which should not be underestimated,” Shaun said. When reflecting on how his research impacts on Executive Education programs Shaun said the application is very interesting. “If the research can be replicated and we can discover which leader attributes are critical to leadership through the eyes of subordinates, then leadership development programs can focus on these attributes,” he said. “Leaders will then be able to hone their skills and behaviours to maximise their ability to influence change and lead their teams and business units. Until that time, inspiration, trust and communication are three attributes each leader should personally review in themselves,” he stated.
New Board Appointments for UWA Business School Mr Adrian Fini, Executive Director Development, Mirvac WA Ltd, and Mr Jimmy UWA Vice-Chancellor Professor Alan Robson said: “I am pleased that both Mr Fini and Mr Wilson have accepted the invitation to join the Board. They bring substantial individual qualities to an important component of the University’s activities. I also wish to thank Mr Browning and Mr Roberts for their contribution over recent years,” he said.
“I am delighted that both Adrian Fini and Jimmy Wilson have agreed to join the Board. We are fortunate to benefit from the considerable business experience that they offer. Both Adrian and Jimmy are very enthusiastic about contributing to the Business School’s goal of leading in the field of business education and developing tomorrow’s leaders in business, industry and commerce,” Mr Barnaba said. Mr Fini is Executive Director Development of Mirvac WA Ltd and is the former Chief Executive Officer of Mirvac Fini (WA) Pty Limited. He was appointed to the Mirvac Board in January 2006. He has been involved in the property development industry for more than 20 years and was appointed Managing Director of Fini Group in 1994. He has also been involved in industry groups such as Housing Industry Association, Urban Development Institute of Australia, and Chairman of the Australian Housing and Urban Research Industry of WA. He is also a founding shareholder and director of Little World Beverages Ltd (Little Creatures Beer). Mr Wilson is President of BHP Billiton’s Stainless Steel Materials customer sector group and has been in this position since the beginning of 2007. He has worked with BHP Billiton for more than 15 years. Prior to his current appointment he was President and Chief Operating Officer of BHP Billiton’s Nickel West asset group where he successfully managed the integration of the former WMC Resources nickel assets into BHP Billiton. Previously, he held several senior roles in the resources industry in South Africa. The Dean of the UWA Business School, Tracey Horton said the new Board members were joining during an exciting period for the School. More than 80 graduates attended the Singapore Presentation Ceremony held in August at the Raffles City Convention Centre including 52 Bachelor of Commerce students, 27 Master of Business Administration students, three Master of Business Research students and 1 Doctor of Business Administration student. MC for the event and UWA Business School Deputy Dean - Operations, A/Prof. Iain Watson welcomed the students and introduced UWA Vice Chancellor, Prof Alan Robson to formally address the 4th presentation ceremony in Singapore. “I am pleased to see family members, partners and friends here to share in the celebrations. While academic results are owned by the students, in many instances it would have been difficult to achieve those results without the support and encouragement of all of you,” Prof. Robson said. UWA Business School Dean, Tracey Horton said the ceremony was a visible example of how our School is committed to education in the Australasian region. “It is an exciting time for us as we make significant progress on our strategic initiatives. Investing in our students is a key ingredient to the overall success of our School as we strive to achieve our ambitious goal of being amongst the best business schools in the world. Congratulations to all graduands,” Tracey said. Successful Open Day at UWA Albany Over 200 school students and other members of the community streamed through the UWA Albany Centre recently and discovered just what might be involved if they chose to study at university in Albany. Student advisers were kept busy throughout the day answering questions and giving advice to prospective students and their parents. There was a lot of interest in the many different degrees and options available in Albany. Of particular interest were the areas in which students are able to study for the whole degree. Degrees in business attracted a lot of attention. The UWA Albany Centre has available a new brochure that outlines the options for study at Albany in 2008. For a copy of the brochure, please contact the Albany Centre. Scholarships available
Ray da Silva Rosa was promoted to Professor within the Financial Studies discipline. Ray is Director of the WA Centre for Capital Markets Research. He is on the editorial Board of the Australian Accounting Review and on the Scientific Committee of the Portuguese Finance Network. He is also President of the UWA Academic Staff Association. • James Fogarty was promoted to Lecturer
Corporate Circle Program The Business School Corporate Circle Program is a membership style program providing companies with information, networking, training, hospitality and acknowledgement benefits. The program will appeal to the broader business community wishing to be a part of the Business School’s external activities. Membership categories include Gold ($20,000) and Silver ($10,000). If you are interested in finding out more about the Business School Corporate Circle Program, please contact Kylie Aitkenhead on (08) 6488 8538.
UWA Attendance at Exclusive World HSBC Financial Literacy Forum
SIFE’s mandate is to simply ‘change the world by helping students to make a worthwhile difference in their communities’. Student teams are established at universities worldwide, and each of these student teams implements projects, in order to achieve this goal. The SIFE UWA team was formed two years ago and membership comprises of students from commerce, law and health sciences discipline areas. A SIFE UWA representative was selected to attend the World Forum and according to the SIFE UWA team President Ms Jade Winterton, being invited to participate in this forum was a great honour. “The invitation is extended from SIFE World Headquarters and the HSBC Global Education Trust and Corporate, Investment Banking and Markets division and only 100 student representatives from 27 countries, each representing their University, will be attending,” Jade said. Jade said one of the key UWA SIFE projects has been the development of a financial literacy skills program aimed at year 10 students entitled Finance for Life (FFL). “FFL consists of a short presentation covering the basics of personal financial management skills, followed by an interactive game that provides students the opportunity to make saving/spending/investing decisions in a simulated ‘real world setting,” she said. In addition to running this as an interactive game, this year the UWA team has begun developing it as a web-based game, which allows an increase in concepts covered and the ability to sell it to schools as a stand-alone kit. This development has been supported by two grants from HSBC, and is also directly supported by Marsh Civil, a WA family business company encountered via the Easy Entry Option of the WA Family Business Awards, another SIFE UWA project. UWA Business School students take top honours in the Reserve Bank of Australia Economics Competition The Reserve Bank has announced the winners of the inaugural RBA Economics Competition. This competition is run by the Bank in conjunction with the UNSW Economics Society. First prize went to Callum Jones and second prize went to Virginia Grogan, both Business School students in their third year of double degrees in Law and Economics. The winning students’ essays – which addressed the consequences of an ageing population for Australia’s future productivity and economic growth, and the associated economic policy challenges – stood out among a number of good entries. Essays were submitted by students from 12 different universities in Australia. Prizes were presented to the winning students by the Governor at a ceremony at the Reserve Bank of Australia in Sydney in October. The Reserve Bank is pleased to announce it will be sponsoring a similar essay competition next year, with the question, and other details, to be announced in May 2008. Flour Mill No Longer a Silo for MBA Jakarta Student
“I’m working and living in Makassar, which is on the island Sulawesi. It’s about a two-hour flight from the capital Jakarta. I fly nearly every Friday evening to Jakarta to attend classes and tutorials and return Saturday evening or Sunday,” Martin said. Unfortunately for Martin, Indonesian flight schedules are not very accurate. On many occasions he experiences delays of up to three hours for one flight. “On the good side, the delays do give me time to catch up on some readings,” he admits. With a technical and processing background in flour milling, Martin currently leads a team of 370 working in production, maintenance, quality assurance, logistics with vessel fleet, port operation and silo facilities. Having previously worked in Europe, Africa and Central America in the flour milling industry, Martin decided to complete an MBA to take his career to the next level. “In all of these places, I have filled the role of technical manager but I have wanted to contribute to the business even further. The MBA also helps build my confidence and knowledge,” he said. Martin said the most beneficial element of his study was being able to communicate to the CEO and President Director on operation issues and opportunities. “It has helped me to present new technical ideas to people without technical backgrounds which I have always found challenging. It has also helped me improve the financial standing of the mill operations through the implementation of new controlling tools/methods, Martin said. “Importantly, I have also found I have improved my communication to my team which has in turn improved effectiveness and team spirit,” he said. As ECOMS rolled into a new semester, many exciting events have already been held. Despite the poor weather, hundreds of people lined up for tickets to our annual ECOMS Ball that was held on 25th August and was sponsored by Pitcher Partners. With 1,320 tickets selling out in a record 34 minutes, we feel a sense of achievement in continuing to organise such an anticipated event. With a Venetian Carnivale theme, the ball was bigger and better than ever. On the careers side, we also hosted the ECOMS Business Breakfast, sponsored by KPMG, at the Parmelia Hilton. Over a gourmet breakfast nearly 100 students had the chance to discuss career advice, vacation work and employment opportunities with representatives from a range of accounting, finance and marketing firms. Also attending was successful WA business person and executive chairman of Azure Capital, John Poynton who passed on his advice to undergraduates. Hayley Parker - ECOMS President
Executive MBA Part of Life-long Learning
“I’ve done some form of formal study every three to five years, so the timing was good and I was looking forward to the intellectual challenge,” Lindsay said. “I’m also at the age and stage of my career where I’m keen to make a larger scale impact, and the EMBA was a way of getting some additional formal foundation in leadership and management theory and its application in different contexts.” An avid reader, Lindsay made the tough decision to switch from reading for pleasure to the many academic readings required for the EMBA. “The EMBA coincided with a really busy couple of years at work and at home. After I finished, I took some leave and spent more time with my family (I have a young son and baby daughter) and started getting fit. Then I renewed my love of reading novels, which I’d given up while I completed the EMBA, knowing the academic reading load was high.” Lindsay said. “Since then I’ve been working to blend more of what I learnt into my work with Freehills,” he said. Lindsay said the EMBA did make him reassess his career and be more self-aware of his leadership style and affect on others. “Initially, by giving me some insight into what kind of leader I am, and want to be, it allowed me to understand the impact my style and behaviour has on others. It has also helped me be clearer on what my skills are and what sort of work I want to do in the future,” he said. “The units of the EMBA are very well designed and target people in more senior roles. I felt the content was designed to help you make better decisions, as opposed to simply being task oriented,” he said. “The value of the Cohort approach (where you start and finish the course with a single group of people) can not be underestimated. We got to know each other very well, and I learnt as much, if not more, from those around me as I did from the Professors, with the added benefit of making some life-long friends,” Lindsay added. At Freehills, Lindsay’s role covers a range of activities from strategic planning and project development - to the establishment of internal systems, coaching of partners in the execution of plans and project managing pursuits. “Essentially I help the partnership generate more sustainable and profitable work from its clients, making sure we deeply understand our clients,” he said. “All the work I’ve done over the last 10 years has focused on generating more long-term profitable revenue by aligning what people actually do with strategy at the enterprise level. But my most important achievement has probably been continuing to have fun while still learning something new everyday – a terrible cliché I know,” he said. “The EMBA provided me with a number of frameworks to understand our strategy and the strategy of our clients. This helps me identify opportunities for new work and improving our efficiency,” he said. Lindsay says his next career step will involve making a difference leading a larger team. Business School graduate named a Humane Studies Fellow Business School graduate and inaugural winner of the Sir John Monash Award, Jean-Paul Carvalho, currently pursuing his PhD in Oxford, was recently named a Humane Studies Fellow by the Institute for Human Studies in Virginia, and invited to present his work at at a Colloquium in Washington D.C. The other winners included some of the top students from Harvard, Stanford and MIT. Manila
Singapore The Vice-Chancellor spoke about the strategic importance of our Singapore graduates as the gateway to Asia and the ongoing commitment of the University to developing our presence in Singapore. Dean, UWA Business School, Tracey Horton built on this theme, outlining her vision to position the School as provider of excellence in business education in Australia and the Asia-Pacific region. Alumni Sundowner Hosted by the Business School and the Faculty of Life and Physical Sciences the evening stimulated conversations about commercialisation of biotechnology ventures and brought together graduates from all disciplines. The newly established 501(C)3 charitable entity, UWA in America Inc was launched this month at an alumni dinner with Vice-Chancellor, Professor Alan Robson and Dean, Tracey Horton at the Harvard Club in New York. All graduates in the US were invited to attend. The following week, the Vice–Chancellor hosted a cocktail party for alumni living in the UK at Australia House in London. All graduates in the UK or Europe were invited to attend.
Student survey results are in! Of the 135 responses received, there was a considerable variety of useful feedback about what students would like to see in events they attend. One comment made was “All GMA events have been extremely well organised and lots of fun.” We hope this encourages the rest of you to check out the variety of GMA events! See our calendar below for more info. New student representative on board Membership alert Benefits of lifetime GMA membership include discounts on our events, online networking for those outside of Perth, and lifelong connections to UWA Business School and the wider business community. To find out more, visit our website at www.gma.asn.au or email us at info@gma.asn.au. Join us for some fun End of Year (Student) Party: Friday 30 November, Royal Perth Yacht Club Brenna Pavey, GMA President
The Teaching and Learning (T&L) Committee meets monthly - the following is a summary of some of the significant highlights. Business School Board - Presentation Tutor training and CEQ grant The Business School has developed new resources for tutors. These are now available on the T&L web site at: www.biz.uwa.edu.au/home/teaching_and_learning2/teaching_and_learning Focus interviews were held with tutors to gain feedback on the use of the online resources and the value of the training session. Feedback was positive and various suggestions for improvement have been noted. One significant suggestion included the establishment of a discussion board so tutors could maintain contact and exchange ideas and share experiences with other tutors. Teaching and Learning Panel Excellence in Teaching Awards Teaching and Learning Research Grants Visits to UK Universities Tip of the Month Associate Professor Phil Hancock
Boardroom Lunches Two recent lunches were held at Mermaid Marine, co-hosted by Dr Tony Howarth, Chairman of the Board, and also at Woodside by Mr Don Voelte, Managing Director and CEO. Shann Memorial Lecture Professor McKibbin is internationally renowned for his contributions to the global debate on how to tackle climate change. He is a leading world expert on greenhouse gas emission trading schemes and carbon taxes. Professor McKibbins address discussed some of the key problems of the Kyoto Protocol for reducing greenhouse gas emissions. It also outlined an alternative strategy for reducing greenhouse gas emissions, known as the McKibbin Wilcoxen Blueprint. This model has formed the basis of a new Australian approach to a domestic permit trading system for emissions, proposed by the Prime Minister’s Task Group on Emissions Trading. A specialist in virtual teams and strategic human resource management, Professor Ben Rosen delivered two educational seminars during his time at the UWA Business School as the Alcoa Visiting Professor. He worked intensively with Professor John Cordery of the UWA Business School researching evolving forms of virtual organisations. More than 60 people attended a seminar sundowner on “virtual teams” on 13 September at The University Club. The seminar explored his ground-breaking research on the practical aspects of managing people and productivity in virtual teamwork environments. Participants included representatives from the resource sector, finance, energy and utilities, health care, accounting, law, architecture, recruitment, science and the public sector; all keen to hear about managing virtual global teams. During his visit Professor Rosen also conducted a full day workshop for Alcoa’s staff operating in virtual teams nationally and globally. The Alcoa Visiting Professor Program enables the UWA Business School to attract a range of leading academics from Australia and around the globe for select periods of time. This partnership fits with Alcoa’s broader partnership strategy of building community capacity. Each Visiting Professor’s visit incorporates a public program at the University such as corporate events, CEO Forums and public lectures. The 20th PhD Conference in Economics and Business The goal of the 2007 Conference was to help students with their research and give them valuable professional interaction and exposure. All major Australian universities were invited to send their best PhD students and some of Australia’s leading economists will act as discussants of the papers. Senior representatives from business, government and other universities also attended, and many organisations agreed to sponsor the event. For further information, please see the website Program Information Evening Schedule For time and location details of the following events please view the UWA Business School website at http://www.biz.uwa.edu.au/home/events
For a full list of programs and workshops presented by the AIM-UWA Alliance, please access: http://www.aimuwaalliance.com/calendar.cfm |
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