Welcome!

Yes, I know it’s rather late to extend this welcome to the new MBA class. The Induction programme started today and I’ve very much enjoyed meeting all the new students. We had an excellent talk by Hilary Sears this morning, very inspiring I must say, and we’ve only just finished the buffet after the “Kissing with Confidence” event, so it’s been a long day. A day that I’ve enjoyed certainly. Ohhh and before you get any wrong ideas, Kissing with Confidence is networking training with Russell Wardrop and his team.

So now I’m a tad tired and want to go home and see it I’ve still got a roof – remnants of hurricane Katia has battered Scotland today. Time to go out and get the full blast of the elements.

Mounting excitement

This is, of course, because the new MBA class will be here in just over a week. I’ve met  a few of them already and it looks to be a great bunch of people. We had our first Early Bird reception Tuesday and we’ll have another one on Thursday next week. A lot of information is begin exchanged in the Google group for the incoming class so they are all getting up to speed. I can’t wait to meet them all.

At the same time my writing is tinged with sadness as the 2010-11 FT MBA class submitted their final piece of work yesterday, well most of them as some have chosen to take internships and so have delayed their Capstone projects. The MBA IB class of 2010-11 are still working away so I’ll get to keep them for a little while longer.

We have made some exciting changes to the first semester of our MBA programme, the one that has traditionally been the most stressful so while it will still be a lot of hard work I expect it will be slightly easier. The one-year MBA will always be more intense than the two-year MBA – for obvious reason as we all have to achieve the same.

Around us the Festival is packing their bags until next year. It is actually rather spectacular the change from one day to another. On the last day the Festival (or festivals I should write as more are taking place at the same time) the streets are packed with people, thronging to get to shows, and the next day they are all but deserted. But Edinburgh is a party city so come December Winter Wonderland will be here so more exciting stuff happening.

Such fun!

This post is kind of personal because it’s about two Edinburgh fringe shows so do not expect intelligent comments about the MBA world or indeed the world economy.

Sarah Millican, a laugh a minute. Sarah, thank you for Optimistic Mondays, hairy toes in the bath, and the joys of (mis)communication with your boyfriend. If you didn’t have a chance to see her in Edinburgh then check if she’s coming to a venue near you soon. And then last night The Magnets. Wow! How do they do that? And do they breathe like normal people? A must see if like music and fun.

A dilemma

If this is not your first visit then you will have seen that I’m a fan of Danny Bhoy, the Scottish stand-up comedian. I saw his show during the Edinburgh Festival last year, and once before that, but this year he’s not formally on the programme. You can find him doing guest spots though. If you also like Danny Bhoy then look for the tweet.  So what does one do when Danny is not to be found? Well I’m going to see Ed Byrne tonight. That should be something. And next week I shall see Sarah Millican. Equally bonkers.

Having thus exposed my preferences when it comes to stand-up I’m sure I have completely lost any respect that my MBAs might have had for me.

OK, so now were are four weeks away from MBA Induction Week. As always we are busy planning and preparing everything for the new class. I know for a fact that Alfredo is here already, from Mexico, and others will be here for the pre-sessional English course. I can’t wait to meet them all in person.

But this is of course also a sign that soon I shall have to say goodbye to the full-time MBA class – Hyunseok has left already and before we know it they will all have moved back/moved on to their new jobs. Incidentally, you can as always check the MBA profiles via our website. You will find some very clever people there.

i-everywhere

I suppose that’s a fitting term for the iCloud as introduced by Steve Jobs yesterday. Apart from everything being “i-something” (A rather clever branding me thinks! Is it “i” as in “I” so I am at the centre, as in “information”, “interaction”, or what?) Apple proposes to link everything we do so that we don’t even have to think about where we bookmarked/saved/downloaded something. Steve Jobs said that Apple is demoting the PC/Mac to being simply another device and not the hub of everything “i” that you do.

Whether you are pro or con iCloud probably depends on whether you like to compartmentalise or not. If you like to have EVERYTHING you do available at your fingertips then iCloud is for you.  If not then well, it’s not. I’m still to read more about ICloud so I’m just guessing here.

Interestingly, Business Insider reported that Apple stock dropped while Jobs unveiled the new concept. Is that because they don’t believe in iCloud, or because of the way Steve Jobs looked?

Related articles

• Apple’s Stock Drops After Steve Jobs Appears On Stage (AAPL) (businessinsider.com)
  

Get that new suit now

OK, the headline is partly fun but also in part serious. The prices of commodities is increasing and the most recent one to follow suit (pardon the pun) is the price of wool. The largest wool producer, Australia has been hit by extreme weather conditions. This, coupled with the fact that China (as is the case with any commodity) is a strong buyer, has doubled the price on wool. This of course will be passed down the supply chain so maybe it’s time to get that new suit you’ve been thinking about lately?

During my recent absence from my blog I was away attending the Association of MBAs International Conference for Deans and Directors in Geneva. I was delayed in my travels (because of that ash cloud) but I was lucky enough to get there in time for an excellent talk by Professor Klaus Schwab, the Founder and Executive Chairman of the World Economic Forum. As always when he talks Professor Schwab raised a number of issues that just make you stop and think; issues that are relevant to MBA providers and I look forward to mulling it over in peace.

And this date is a bit of a milestone for the current full-time MBA class. Today is the deadline for the second last piece of work to be submitted. Yes, just think about it. They joined us mid-September and now only the Capstone Project remains. Good going guys!

New Chancellor for the University of Edinburgh

HRH The Princess Royal will take over from her dad, the Duke of Edinburgh, as Chancellor for the University of Edinburgh. Princess Anne is also the Patron of the University’s Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies so HRH has intimate knowledge about the workings of the University. I’m sure the gown with the gold trimmings will suit HRH.

I was away for a break (annual leave of absence) and in the meantime my students on the MBA in International Business (with the exception of Angelena who leaves later) have departed for their exchange. To me this marks an important milestone in the academic calendar because I know for a fact that I won’t see some of these people again. We do keep in contact with the IB students by calling them on a regular basis to ensure that everything is well. At the same time the students on the Full-time MBA is having a very short break before the last term begins next week. They are also working on their consultancy projects so it’s not all free time. Yes, the one-year model is rewarding but a bit hectic.

11th consecutive year in the FT Rankings

Maybe you saw that the MBA Rankings from the Financial Times were released today. In a year that might be considered tough for UK schools, and with a number of new schools entering the rankings, we were pleased to see that we had improved slightly. We are now 13th in the UK, 24th in Europe and 88th in the world. One could argue that with an estimated 10,000 MBA programmes in the world a position as #88 ought to be considered excellent – a dream position. Those in the know will tell you that this is not quite the case. And so while we are happy to have improved, albeit slightly, we will keep refining our offering to ensure a worthwhile MBA experience.

If you want to hear more about our programme offering you will have the opportunity to meet us at a number of the MBA fairs. In the QS World MBA Tour we will be attending the fairs in:

• New York
• Washington
• Boston
• Toronto
• Almaty
• Moscow
• Geneva
• Frankfurt
• Paris
• Accra
• Lagos

You can also meet us at the postgradireland Further Study Fair in Dublin on 16 February and the British Council Fairs in Thessalonica (13 April) and Athens (16 & 17 April).

So come and join us!

Bank bonuses back in the spot light

With 2011 upon us the continuing issue of bankers bonuses have resurfaced amidst news that even the banks that you and I “own” through tax payer bail-outs are planning to pay bumper bonuses again. A little restraint has been show but this comes amidst pay rises of up to 40% to compensate. Having strongly criticised the then government in 2009 for not doing enough, the Chancellor George Osborne is now showing little inclination to do something. The Guardian reports that “Downing Street admitted it had backed away from a confrontation over bank bonuses.”

Should we be so critical? After all, we don’t seem to get all worked up about other industries paying big bonuses. There is an argument for a yes to that question. After all, other industries have not brought the UK to the brink of bankruptcy.

Another problem is of course that the banking industry now consider bonuses as a right no matter the performance of the bank, so much so that bonuses were paid even when banks had to be bailed out. It is no longer a reward for good performance for the bank as a whole. This leads to a second issue that has to be addressed when it comes to any kind of bonuses. They have to be related to the over-all performance of the organisation rather than the performance of the individual. Otherwise, how would you avoid deals being cut simply to boost an individual’s bonus with no regard for how it influences the wider scheme? Short-selling spring to mind.

It is rather depressing.

On a more cheerful note – “my” MBAs are back in town. It was great catching up with them yesterday when we had a welcome back session. At the same time we say welcome to exchange students from EADA (Veronica), ESSEC (Anne) and Fisher College of Business (Katherine and Ryan). MBA time really flies from now on.

Pudsey day!

If you don’t know what that is then you’ve never dyed your hair purple. Or had a cake sale. Or had a Sponsored Silence Day (recommended for parents and school teachers). Or had your beard shaved off. Or whatever people get up to, all in help of the charity called Children in Need.  Here at the University of Edinburgh Business School we have a book sale and a cake raffle today so let’s hope we raise lots of money.

On the MBA side, we have the last day of the weekly classes. Next week we have a week-long course in Strategic Management to cap it all off. It’s taught by my Director colleague, Dr Brad MacKay. That’s going to be fun. And of course more hard work but it all pays off. I know that when we get into the next semester then the class is so well prepared. Next semester is of course very different. The semester the class is taking all the same courses, have the same assignments and the same programme. After Christmas it will be very different when the only shared class is Corporate Strategy. That’s when you see individuality beginning to develop.