Singapore's student group to visit Middle East for business opportunities - Xinhua News Agency

SINGAPORE, May 5 (Xinhua) -- In an encouraging sign of growing interest in the Middle East markets, the Singapore Management University (SMU) will be sending its largest ever group of undergraduates to the Middle East on the bi-annual Business Study Mission (BSM) to the Middle East, which is in its fifth year.

The delegation of 68 students will travel from May 7 to May 20, shuttling between United Arab Emirates, Qatar and Oman. At the close of the study mission, 28 students will embark on their 11- week internships in Middle Eastern companies as well as Singapore companies with business interests in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries, according to SMU's press release on Saturday.

The large size of the student delegation indicates a growing interest to explore emerging markets, such as the Middle East, for business opportunities. The fervent passion towards the GCC region was underscored by the fact that the entire BSM was a student-run initiative. Interestingly, the logistical demands that come with a ground-breaking delegation size of 68 did not deter the undergraduates every single one of them took ownership of the planning and execution of the programme.

Sofia Moiz Tyebally, a second year business student said: "With the Middle East becoming increasingly significant on the global stage, it is no surprise that my classmates and I relish this opportunity to understand the intricacies of Arabian culture and more significantly, the importance of building relationships through our networking sessions with executives based in the Middle East."

During this overseas field trip, the 68 SMU student participants from various degree programs will be studying the rapidly changing business structures in the member-nations of the GCC. As the concluding component of the 14-week "Business Study Mission", the trip to the Middle East comes after an intensive curriculum of company case studies, student projects and guest lectures.

Additionally, the 14-day itinerary, initiated by the SMU undergraduates themselves with facilitation from industry players and government agencies, includes meetings and networking dinners with government officials, diplomats, and the movers and shakers of the Middle Eastern business world.

Feeling glad for the exposure BSM has given him, second year business student Pierre Peh finds the forthcoming BSM an excellent conclusion to a semester of fruitful learning. "BSM Middle East has been an enriching experience overall due to the multiple facets of learning opportunities provided. It is definitely a stepping stone in my pursuit to work in an oil company in the GCC region," he said.

Official site visits include trips to established institutions such as the Qatar Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Abu Dhabi Council for Economic Development and Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry and commercial sites such as Lusail City and Capitala. Beyond the plethora of onsite activities planned, the SMU students will also be given the opportunity to interact with Singaporean entrepreneurs and business executives based in the member-nations of the Gulf Cooperation Council.

At the same time, this BSM is also visiting some of the universities in the Middle East such as Sultan Qaboos University and Dubai Women College to foster ties with their counterparts.

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Student entrepreneurs expand opportunities - Daily Free Press

Boston University School of Management senior Paul Hlatky had been working for Greenhorn Connect, a website that connects entrepreneurs in the Boston area, when he realized he could create a similar resource for college-aged entrepreneurs.

“People are doing a lot of really awesome things, but it’s fragmented,” Hlatky, the director of community and student relations at Greenhorn Connect, said.

While Hlatky said the environment for entrepreneurs is great in Boston, the major problem within the community is the lack of communication.

Hlatky said the problem is no one knows about the great entrepreneurial environment and college students feel like they have nothing to contribute, which is just not the case.

“Even if it’s just a discussion or a networking event you can just hang out and meet people with similar interests,” he said.

A few months ago, Hlatky contacted the student leaders of business and entrepreneur groups at most of the city’s major universities. After connecting with the leaders individually, Hlatky organized a meeting at the Cambridge Innovation Center.

This was the beginning of the Student Tech Startup Group, comprised of college entrepreneurs from BU, Brandeis University, Northeastern University and other institutions.

“Our goal is to connect the students leading entrepreneurial efforts on their respective campuses in one organization,” said Cory Bolotsky, a Northeastern sophomore concentrating in business administration, and an executive board member of Northeastern’s Entrepreneurs Club, in an email. “The students all want to know each other and learn from each other, but because there are so many schools in the Boston-area each working on dozens of different projects it’s hard for them to connect.”

Brandeis junior Todd Kirkland, who is concentrating in computer science, said the group centralizes its goal around entrepreneurship, and Boston is a blooming area for that field.

The group feels that students do want to have input and get involved, so it seeks to tell members about business opportunities, Kirkland said.

“It’s an incredible place for a student to be involved and something that people definitely want at the university level and beyond,” Hlatky said.

Northeastern senior Greg Skloot, president of the school’s Entrepreneurs Club, said Boston is probably one of the best places a college entrepreneur can be.

Bolotsky also said entrepreneurialism coincides with the concentration of colleges in one area.

“It’s not a coincidence that we have the most densely concentrated entrepreneurial communities in the world,” he said. “The innovative work in Boston is a byproduct of the [more than] 65 outstanding colleges and universities in the area and the community understands that and supports and embraces student entrepreneurs.”

Hlatky said while there were between 10 and 13 students at the first meeting, the group has been receiving more than 15 requests a week on Facebook.

The group has committed leaders and some defined goals, but they also have a lot to figure out in order to be an organized and connected group. Skloot said some things to consider are whether every student entrepreneur in Boston will be involved or only people heading off the organization at each school.

“Do they want it to be a real organization with a brand or is it just kind of an informal thing?” Skloot said. “I think these are all challenges that somebody’s going to have to figure out in the next couple months.”

In the near future, the group will try to answer some of these questions and better define the group’s purpose.

“Right now we are working to develop a name, mission, leadership structure and legitimize ourselves as a formal association,” Bolotsky said.

Bolotsky said when the fall comes, the group will probably host monthly or bi-monthly board meetings.

“The main thing is that we’re trying to address issues at each respective school and seeing how we can better solve those issues and collaborate more,” Kirkland said.

Hlatky said that the members want this to be a very supportive, open group.

“This group’s main purpose is to build relationships,” he said. “We’re trying to just keep as many people involved in startups in Massachusetts as possible, and if anything, just raise awareness for it. So we’re all just very excited for what’s going to come of it.”

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Anand Balu, current student at Strathclyde SKIL Business School (MiM Programme) shares his Industry - PRLog (free press release)

PRLog (Press Release) - Feb 11, 2012 -
On a hot, sunny day in the first week of 2012, I got an opportunity to visit the Ford manufacturing plant located on a 350-acre plot near Chennai.

I could easily relate to widely-known social theories, often referred to asFordism and Taylorism and based on production and related socio-economic phenomena during my visit. It was more a first-hand learning experience than a theoretical one.

I was guided through my tour by a senior person from supply chain management. The factory visit started at the stamping section where sheet metal is pressed to form various body parts and progressed through the body shop, the paint shop, through the trims, chassis and final line, widely known as TCF. It is an assembly line manufacturing process, where parts are fed in a sequential manner and finally a brand new Ford emerges out of the line after stringent quality testing. The line is so flexible, different variants of a car – different product models – were assembled in a random manner. I was able to speak with my guide regarding their logistics and inventory management, and discuss their plans for their upcoming new launch, the EcoSport.

I also visited their engine plant and learned throughout Ford around the globe this is the only plant which makes both diesel and petrol engines on the same line.

Overall it was really an amazing industrial experience in ably assisted by a senior official in the middle of his busy schedule.

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Business school tributes student lost in accident - Surrey Leader

On December 16, Kwantlen’s School of Business hosted a holiday reception to close the semester as well as pay tribute to a special young man, Dylan Reichelt.

Dylan, a Kwantlen business student, was tragically lost in a car accident last month. Bill Reichelt, Head Trainer for the BC Lions and Dylan’s father, along with the School of Business, and the Kwantlen Foundation, have set up the Dylan Reichelt Memorial Award. The event provided a unique opportunity to grow the fund while attendees had their picture taken with the Grey Cup.

BC Lions head coach Mike Benevides introduced the Grey Cup to attendees and defensive backs coach, Mark Washington commented “The Grey Cup really belongs to everyone. It’s great when people have a chance to see it and touch it. You can really see how they light up.”

Both Lions mingled with and chatted with the attendees and they were both very gracious in posing for numerous photographs.

“We were delighted to welcome faculty and staff from across the University. What made it even more special was the presence of the Grey Cup and the opportunity to honor a student’s memory,” commented Arthur Coren, Dean of the School of Business. “The folks that attended had a great time and they really showed their support.”

Overall the event raised more than $7000 for the Dylan Reichelt Memorial Award. Early in 2012, Kwantlen will meet with the Reichelt family to discuss the criteria for selecting award winners.

Kwantlen Polytechnic University has been serving the Metro Vancouver region for more than 30 years, and has opened doors to success for more than 250,000 people. Four campuses—Richmond, Surrey, Cloverdale and Langley—offer a comprehensive range of sought-after programs, including business, liberal arts and science, design, health, trades and technology, apprenticeships, horticulture, and academic and career advancement. Over 17,500 students annually have a choice from over 200 programs, including bachelor’s degrees, associate degrees, diplomas, certificates and citations.

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