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University meets Lord Mandelson's drive for distance learning with new degree course

22 December 2009

Sheffield Hallam University has joined forces with leading global company Kimberly-Clark to offer its employees the chance to study while they work on a new distance learning integrated engineering degree course.

Kimberly-Clark has signed up to the 'blended learning' degrees that offer students flexibility to learn with 10 days' study time over the academic year.

It shows Sheffield Hallam is echoing the findings of business secretary Lord Mandelson who called for universities to offer more degrees aimed at mature and part-time students.

Sheffield Hallam has already launched a partnership with Derby College which see students on a two-year foundation degree working with local major engineering companies such as Rolls Royce, Bombardier and Severn Trent and spending one day a week in teaching.

Now Kimberly-Clark, which has four manufacturing sites across the UK, Barton-on-Humber, Flint, Barrow and Northfleet, and makes products for well known brands Kleenex®, Andrex® and Huggies®, along with its business-to-business brand Kimberly-Clark Professional* has signed up to a similar partnership.

The company will sponsor employees to study on the Sheffield Hallam programme, with the course scheduled to start in September 2010.

Dr Mark Thompson, principal lecturer at the Department of Engineering and Mathematics, said: 'We are delighted that Kimberly-Clark is working in partnership with Sheffield Hallam to offer these opportunities to employees. The distance learning programme allows employees to work flexibly and effectively with the support of their company and cements the university's reputation as one of the leading providers of distance learning courses across the UK.'

Tony Darnell, European Engineering Manager for Family Care at Kimberly-Clark remarks, 'The blended learning degree promises to provide excellent opportunities to raise skill levels of existing technicians, equipping them to become engineers of the future as well as improving the professional standards of existing engineers that are interested in adding to their qualifications. Kimberly-Clark is committed to the training and development of its people and to raising the professional engineering standards within the organisation.'

First Nigerian students graduate from Sheffield Business School

December 2009

The first international students to attend the Sheffield Business School, at Sheffield Hallam University, UK, graduated in December.

Among the 327 international students who celebrated completing their studies was Violet Anapusim, from Nigeria, who graduated in International Business and Management.

She said, 'I feel so excited to be one of the first international students from my country to graduate from Sheffield Business School. This is a big achievement to me and it means I have come a long way.

'I studied economics for my undergraduate degree and I want to be a business consultant. During my studies at Sheffield Business School I did so many modules in business consultancy and I know it will help in my future career.'

The Business School was launched in May 2009 and is one of the UK's largest business schools. It has more than 6,000 students, including 1,300 international students from 100 different countries.

The Business School has extensive links with international institutions throughout Europe, India, Malaysia and Hong Kong. Over 90 per cent of Sheffield Business School graduates have gained employment or moved on to further studies within six months of completing their course.

Food innovation courses providing a taster

14 December 2009

Courses that explain healthy eating guidelines and the link between diet and health are being run by Sheffield Hallam University from January 2010.

These one, two and three day courses, run by Sheffield Hallam's Centre for Food Innovation in association with the Royal Society for Public Health, are open to anyone working in the food and drink industry.

The accredited courses on offer include level one to three awards in nutrition and health, healthier food and special diets, and the fundamentals of nutrition. 20 per cent discounts are offered to those booking places for three or more individuals.

John Sorsby, head of the Centre for Food Innovation, said, 'These courses equip food manufacturing and management professionals with the essential skills needed to develop their careers and enable them to have better understanding on a range of dietary and healthy eating issues.'

To book, please visit the Centre for Food Innovation website.

Organisations cash in on David's wealth of anti-money laundering experience

Organisations looking to prevent money laundering were taking notes as a Business School guest speaker tackled the subject.

On 26 November 2009, guest speaker David Swanney shared his expertise in money laundering prevention and explained the distinction between anti-money laundering measures and the wider subjects of anti-terrorism and anti-criminal activity measures.

David spoke about the extent of the 'regulated sector' and what firms outside this area are required to do by way of AML processes.

He also provided a summary of the status and content of the Joint Money Laundering Steering Group's guidance, and an overview of current and future issues in these fields.

David, a chartered accountant, has worked for KPMG, the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales, the Bank of England, the Financial Services Authority and the Royal Bank of Scotland Group where he was Director of Group Compliance, until he took early retirement in 2002.

Since then, David has worked with the British Bankers' Association on money laundering prevention issues.

You can download David's presentation here (PDF 48KB).

Building a new network to discuss the state of schools

4 November 2009

A new University-spearheaded network that has given pupils a say on the state of their school buildings has held its first workshop.

The Facilities Management Network for Schools met on 3 November in London for a workshop to discuss how school buildings can be improved with two of the country's leading authorities on learning environments leading the discussions.

It follows a research project carried out by Sheffield Hallam University's Centre for Facilities Management Development (CFMD) that has investigated school pupils' opinions of their facilities and environments and how they affect their learning experience.

Sheffield Schools have piloted the Pupil Quality Indicator survey administered by the CFMD and funded by the CfBT Education Trust, and further schools in London and Milton Keynes are now participating.

The network, for local authorities, local education partnerships and Building Schools for the Future providers, will use the results of the survey as the main focus of regular meetings in London and Sheffield.

The CFMD, part of Sheffield Business School, hosts a number of public sector networks looking into facilities management issues in areas like education, health and local and central government.

The first workshop featured keynote speakers Alexi Marmot, an expert on space management and design for offices and educational buildings, and John Worthington, an architect and strategic consultant.

From India to Steel City in new exchange

26 October 2009

Postgraduate students will be swapping Silicon Valley India for the UK's 'Steel City' of Sheffield as part of a unique business school partnership.

The student exchange between Sheffield Hallam University and prestigious private Manipal business school T A Pai Management Institute (TAPMI) will see students from both countries travel between the two cities to carry out a range of consultancy projects with private companies.

Five PgDip (Postgraduate Diploma in Management) / MBA postgraduate students from India are currently at Sheffield Hallam for one semester studying finance or marketing,. They will carry out consultancy projects with South Yorkshire companies, and in return, Sheffield Hallam students will undertake a two-month supervised internship with leading companies in Bangalore from June to September.

Sheffield Hallam's Business School has joined forces with TAPMI to create the unique student exchange programme.

The Indian students, from Manipal, Karnataka, will gain 60 credits from Sheffield Hallam upon completion and their degree will be awarded by TAPMI.

Bangalore, also in Karnataka, is known as the Silicon Valley of India because of its position as the nation's leading IT exporter. It is a major economic hub and the fastest growing major metropolis in India.

Meanwhile, Sheffield has grown from largely industrial roots to encompass a wider economic base with a population of more than half a million.

Tony Fowler, leader of the Intenational Business Postgraduate Programme, said, 'We are very pleased to be working with our colleagues at TAPMI to provide our students with a unique and invaluable experience.

'The TAPMI students get the chance to study in multicultural groups in the UK and to advise British companies as a part of their international consultancy project.'

£3m to boost businesses in the region

20 August 2009

Businesses in the Sheffield City Region are to benefit from a £3m leadership and executive management programme aimed at promoting innovation during the credit crunch.

Called Innovation Leaders, the three year project is being managed by Sheffield Business School at Sheffield Hallam University and the Management School at the University of Sheffield with the funding coming from the Higher Education Funding Council for England.

The main aim is to build regional competitiveness through developing future leaders - with small and medium-sized businesses to benefit the most.

Professor Mike Smith, Pro-Vice Chancellor for Research and Knowledge Transfer at Sheffield Hallam, said, 'Innovation Leaders is about the two Universities in our city working together to meet the demands from business for improved skills and business innovation.

'With the demand being led by business, the project provides an exciting opportunity for a real step change in the relationship between higher education and industry to benefit the region's economy and its future development.'

John Cullen, associate dean at the University of Sheffield's Management School, said, 'This is a great opportunity for the two Universities in Sheffield to build on their complementary skills for the benefit of the region's organisations.'

As well as developing leadership and management skills, the project will improve participants' problem solving and job skills.

Businesses must change to succeed in the recession

Thursday 30 April 2009

Business leaders should re-think their approach to how they work and reap the rewards, claims the man responsible for achieving a world land speed record.

Richard Noble OBE said he 'had issues with hierarchal structures' and preferred 'flat structures where people are empowered to make decisions of real importance' to boost productivity. He was speaking at the annual Sheffield Management Lecture at Sheffield Hallam University - a popular event staged in conjunction with the University of Sheffield. The lecture also coincided with the launch of the Sheffield Business School (SBS) at Sheffield Hallam University, formerly the Faculty of Organisation and Management.

Professor Chris Booth, Dean of the Sheffield Business School, said that Mr Noble 'characterises precisely what we are aiming to produce here at the business school'. Chris added, 'We want to develop innovative and entrepreneurial leaders who can challenge and change organisations and make a real difference to the strategic capability and competitiveness of the organisation. It's important to challenge the traditional business school model and turn it on its head and develop a relationship-based business school, where we have a free flow of ideas and skills between businesses, employers and academics.'

Centre named Food Innovation Champion

The Centre for Food Innovation at Sheffield Business School has been selected to lead a training network charged with driving innovation in the food and drink industry.

They have been accredited as champion of the National Skills Academy (NSA) for Food and Drink Manufacturing's innovation network, and will be responsible for establishing a national network of providers offering specialist training in innovation to food companies.

Transferring knowledge to - and from - Derbyshire company, IdeaGen

The Centre for Individual and Organisational Development at Sheffield Business School has agreed a Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP) with Matlock-based IdeaGen.

IdeaGen is a software company which develops and distributes a range of quality management software mostly within the UK. The aim of this new KTP is to help IdeaGen develop its offerings, and transform it into a supplier of Corporate Social Responsibility solutions via big channel partners such as Microsoft.

Obesity under the spotlight

Researchers from Sheffield Business School will be evaluating Sheffield's successful multi-million pound bid to address obesity in the city as part of the Government's Healthy Communities Challenge Fund initiative.

The evaluation is being led by Max Moullin and Dr Tracey Coule from the Centre for Individual and Organisational Development at Business School, together with Rachel Rundle from the Business School's food subject group and Dr Rob Copeland from the Faculty of Health and Wellbeing.

Coaching and mentoring - read all about it!

Launched at a well-attended party at Blackwell's University bookshop, 'Coaching and Mentoring: Theory and Practice', is the first major research-based text book on the subject and provides a critical insight into the complexities of the topic.

The book has been co-written by Professors Bob Garvey and Dave Megginson and also Senior Lecturer Paul Stokes, all from Sheffield Business School.

BIFM Award for If Price

Professor If Price from the Facilities Management Graduate Centre at Sheffield Business School has been selected as one of 20 pioneers in the facilities management sector.

FM World received almost 50 nominations from across the industry which were narrowed down to a top 20. These 20 industry pioneers were then individually profiled and photographed in the December issue of FM World and celebrated their achievement at a party held in the Globe Theatre on London's South Bank.

Launch of Visitor Economy Research Unit

A new Visitor Economy Research Unit has been established at Sheffield Business School.

Co-directed by Dr Nicola Palmer from the Centre for International Tourism Research and Dave Egan from the Centre for International Hospitality Management Research both at Sheffield Business School, the Visitor Economy Research Unit will provide a home for visitor-economy related studies and research themes, incorporating a focus on both established and non-traditional visitor areas and the socio-cultural and environmental aspects of the economy.

For further information on the work of the unit, please contact Dave Egan or Dr Nicola Palmer.

Hospitality Alumni Network launched

The network has been created in response to Sheffield Business School Hospitality alumni and is designed to meet the specific needs of our graduates working in the hospitality industry.

Our aim is to provide them with an opportunity to access hospitality expertise through key speakers, involvement in research projects and preferential rates for further study and business services.

For further information please visit the Hospitality Alumni Network website.

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