Unexpected Rewards

It’s not often you get the opportunity to seriously kick-start your future career while still engaged with postgraduate study.

Master of Commerce and Master of Logistics Management student - Amit Majumder

But thanks to the PG Industry Placement Program, that’s exactly what happened. It all started when I commenced my Master of Commerce and Master of Logistics Management last July. Having heard about the placement program early on, I decided to take a look at it and quickly heard about the types of great experiences and benefits that being part of it would entail. Believing that it would be a great way to establish the foundations of my future success, I decided to apply.

Thankfully I was accepted and was assigned to Computershare for a nine-week placement. While financial services wasn’t exactly the area I was looking to work in, I kept an open mind and decided to learn all I could. I wasn’t disappointed. The experience was both unique and invaluable, giving me a perspective of how things work in a large organisation and what it feels like to be a part of one. The placement also enabled me to apply my theoretical classroom knowledge via a series of academic tasks that involved analysing some of the issues actually facing the workplace I was assigned to.

In hindsight, getting the chance to work in an industry that I wasn’t quite familiar with was definitely one of the best aspects of the program. It expanded my horizons, opened new doors, and forced me to extend myself well beyond my comfort zone. But it gets even better than that. As a result of my placement I’ve been offered a permanent position with the company. My future career direction is now assured and I can’t wait to complete my studies next year.

It goes without saying that the program represents a fantastic opportunity and it’s something I’d definitely recommend to anyone with the chance to experience it.

Ignite Your Career
Join the University of Sydney Business School for our Postgraduate Information Session to talk with our leading academics and learning support staff for detailed advice on postgraduate study options.
Date: Wednesday 9th May 2012
Time: 6-8pm Establishment Hotel, 252 George Street, Sydney
Register now: http://bit.ly/IpiKgg

Unleashing The Entrepreneur Within

When it comes to the process of self-assessment, it’s only natural for us to examine the career paths of our peers and compare our own trajectory with theirs.

While it might work for most people, it’s a benchmarking model that any budding entrepreneur must studiously avoid. That’s because achieving success along the path less trodden requires an acceptance that things no longer progress according to a linear fashion. It requires a high degree of self-trust and an acknowledgement that the challenges will be significant.

Success also depends on being equipped with the necessary tools to turn vision into reality. That’s where my University of Sydney Masters of Commerce degree has proven invaluable. Undertaken in conjunction with a computer science degree back in 2000, the course enabled me to shift my thinking from a solely tech-based frame of reference to the area I was really interested in - commercial technology. In fact, there’s no doubt that the innovation subjects within my commerce degree were absolutely crucial in fuelling my desire to experience and experiment with entrepreneurship.

The lessons learned have proven vital, particularly when it came to establishing my latest start-up idea, Beat the Q. In this instance, inspiration struck when driving past my local café. There was a long line-up and I also had no cash, so I kept driving. As a result, the café owner missed out on a $10 sale and I missed out on my coffee. I quickly decided to develop a website and iPhone app that enables consumers to not only search for a coffee vendor, but also to pre-order and pay for their beverages. Current feedback suggests it’s proving to be an excellent timesaving convenience tool.

It’s no secret that I’m an absolute advocate for doing your own thing. Whether you’re looking to utilise your innovative potential within a small tech start-up or a large corporate, your inner entrepreneur is something that definitely needs to be fostered.

Author: Adam Theobald, CEO, Beat the Q Pty Ltd

Innovation and the Philanthropic Dollar

While the fusing of philanthropy and investment always poses difficult challenges, the emerging concept of social impact bonds is shaping as one possible way of generating profound change.

Put simply, a social impact bond is a set of financial arrangements that allow institutional investors to invest in activities that solely focus on achieving a positive social impact in the community. In the case of such a bond involving, say, a drug and alcohol rehabilitation program, the heart of the arrangement would constitute detailed costings of the harmful effects that drug and alcohol abuse have on society. These factors could be things like higher health care costs, teenage pregnancy, levels of theft, the additional burden on the court system, or higher incarceration levels. Any program of activity that reduces these likely costs has a social and financial benefit to the community.

A social impact bond would subsequently enable a philanthropic investor to put money directly into a program with very clear KPIs. That investor, along with the not-for-profit agency that delivers the program within the community, will then get to share in any value that is represented by the societal cost savings generated as a result of their work. As part of the arrangement, governments that would traditionally fully fund that service in advance of its delivery would now commence their financial commitment after the foundations of the program have been laid. It’s a whole new paradigm in the way that social services could be funded and may even represent a whole new class of investing for philanthropic investors.

Appropriately, the question of how such arrangements can be designed and applied represents a significant area of thought for us here at the Business School. To that end, we’ve recently been working with Australian NGO and Business School partner Life Without Barriers and the NSW Treasury to help them deliver the first social impact bond to be offered in Australia. It’s been a highly rewarding experience for us all, as there is nothing more important or pressing than helping stimulate the sorts of innovations that can better society.

Author: Dr Nigel Finch - Academic Program Director, Master of Management / CEMS MIM

The Ties That Bind

Real world experience: it’s the only thing that truly enables the application of knowledge and the demonstration of potential.

No surprise, then, that our links with leading organisations from the government, private, public, NGO and SME sectors remain such a vital part of our overall educational agenda. These associations enable our Masters of Management students to access these groups to work on actual business projects, thus creating something of a win-win situation. While students gain invaluable experience and workplace visibility, partner organisations reap the benefits of having some of their challenging issues worked on, or in some cases, completely solved.

When it comes to our list of partner organisations, I think you’d be hard-pressed to find better. For instance, we’ve just concluded projects with Lend Lease, Nielsen and The Smith Family, and have just commended an involvement with the CSIRO. Throughout 2012 we’ll also be continuing our work with principal partners Deloitte while also welcoming newcomers QBE. We’re also hopeful of linking up with the NSW Department of Treasury, and look set to continue our involvement with NGO Life Without Barriers.

For additional benefits of our partnerships, look no further than the graduate recruitment aspect. For organisations and companies, it provides an opportunity to promote their brand as an employer of choice. For students, it’s a chance to not only meet some of the decision-makers from these organisations, but to also assess whether they’re places they may want to work.

Further to this recruitment aspect, on April 18 I’ll be hosting a campus panel discussion featuring representatives from some of our key business partners. At the conclusion of the discussion (to be based around the challenges of doing business in uncertain times), attending students will be able to either continue a conversation with a panel member, or discuss their potential future with a graduate recruiter.

A Master of Management (CEMS) Networking Event and Panel Discussion - Doing Business in Uncertain Times: http://sydney.edu.au/business/mmgt/corporate_event


Author: Dr Nigel Finch - Academic Program Director, Master of Management / CEMS MIM