Here's to 2018!

As 2018 gets under way, Executive Dean of Strathclyde Business School, Professor David Hillier takes time to reflect on the 2017 Strathclyde success stories.

It’s that time of year where we take some time to reflect on the past 12 months that has just been and look forward to the new one. 2017 was a great year for Strathclyde Business School and it’s my pleasure to be able to reflect on the last 12 months here on the blog.

Awards

We kicked off by celebrating our award of THE Business School of the Year at the end of 2016 with the Great Big Business School Challenge in February. This drew together friends from our external partners, colleagues and students to work in teams where Shaf Rasul – University Entrepreneur in residence - acted as a very able quiz master. A great night was had by all. We’re absolutely delighted to congratulate Oxford Said Business School on taking on the mantle of Business School of the Year 2017.

We were also delighted when AACSB International (AACSB), the world’s largest global education network, recognised SBS for its commitment to creating and incubating cutting-edge business innovations and fostering entrepreneurship in the next generation of business leaders. We were one of just 35 business schools around the globe to earn this distinction. 

Students

Our students have been racking up award wins this year. Kirsten Alexander-McGarry was named Management Undergraduate of the Year in the Target Jobs Undergraduate of the Year awards in April.

SBS Dubai 2016 graduate Alaa Al Amiry (Class of 2016) was awarded the Conti Research Prize for Systems Thinking and Organisational Capability for her MBA thesis, and four SBS students were successful in receiving vacation study scholarships awarded by the Carnegie Trust. Four of our students were also the recipients of BP Achievement Awards.

Connor Wilson, a Management Science alumnus, was selected by the OR Society, the UK-wide learned society in the field of Operational Research, as one of the joint winners of the May Hicks award for the year 2016. With this achievement, it is now the fourth time over the last six years that a Strathclyde graduate has won this award.

We were delighted with Maxmilian Tichy who was Highly Commended in the Business Category of The Undergraduate Awards (UA) Programme 2017 and was also a regional winner. To put it into perspective, this year the Undergraduate Awards received 6,472 submissions from students in 299 institutions across 47 countries. Maxmilian’s submissions were ranked in the top 10% of all submissions to the Business category.

Partnerships

Our business partnerships continue to grow and strengthen. Last year we were delighted to work in partnership with ScottishPower-Iberdrola on an Entrepreneurial Challenge open to all University of Strathclyde graduates with an innovative business idea in the energy sector. And ScottishPower-Iberdrola have again backed the challenge this year. It would be fantastic to see another Strathclyde Business School winner this year!

Deloitte and the University of Strathclyde’s Fraser of Allander Institute have agreed a partnership to provide businesses with enhanced insights into the Scottish economy. Deloitte will support the independent research institute’s closely-watched quarterly Economic Commentary report.

Following the Babson Global Symposia for Entrepreneurship Educators (SEE) programme, held in the Autumn this year world-class Scottish entrepreneurs, social enterprise leaders and business advisers have become Founding Entrepreneurs at Strathclyde Business School.

Finally, we’re delighted to welcome the Scottish Chambers of Commerce who have relocated their offices to the Business School, allowing us to work more closely together for the benefit of all Scottish businesses.

Research

Over 1000 academics from around the world descended on Strathclyde for the 17th European Academy of Management conference. We were delighted to be hosting this hugely successful research event in June.

In terms of our own research, one highlight was a report on wave energy in the UK by Matt Hannon – the report launch generated publicity across the whole of the UK.

Our Fraser of Allander Institute is increasingly being commissioned to undertake independent analysis of business and economic issues by public and private sector bodies and most recently has teamed up with the Scottish Policy Foundation.

This year has been a busy one for another of our research centres, with the Scottish Centre for Employment Research (SCER) doing sterling research on fair work which is having positive impacts in the business world and society as a whole. SCER’s Director Professor Patricia Findlay was recently invited to be a fellow of the RSA (Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce) for her “leading research in work and employment relations, and role in driving FITwork in Scotland”.

During 2017 the Strathclyde Institute for Operations Management has been reaching out to small manufacturers, to assess their understanding of how Advanced Manufacturing (including the Internet of Things and Industry 4.0) can transform their business models. The team has been working with the Scottish Textiles sector to explore the application of Digital Manufacturing techniques.

Programmes

Strathclyde continued to excel in rankings this year. The Financial Times produced new data which listed the top 50 MBAs in the world for entrepreneurship and Strathclyde was included, recognising our focus on entrepreneurship and innovation.

The FT also ranked us in the top 40 of European business schools, placing us 34th overall, in the top 10 of UK schools and number 1 Scottish Business School.

The QS TopMBA.com Return on Investment report 2018 had various highlights for us. It ranked Strathclyde's Full-Time MBA number 1 in the world in its Payback Period category and also 1st in the UK for Salary Uplift.

The Department of Accounting and Finance did exceptionally well in The Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide 2018, ranking 1st in the UK. 

Meanwhile, our Growth Advantage Programme (GAP) has been endorsed by the Scale Up Institute. GAP is now listed as ‘One to Watch’ on the Scale Up Institute’s website.

There is much I can’t report here due to lack of space but I do hope you keep track of Strathclyde’s news via our website or signing up to our newsletter. Here’s to a healthy and wealthy 2018 for all Strathclyde Business School friends and families!

About David Hillier

David Hillier is Executive Dean and Professor of Finance at the University of Strathclyde Business School. He is the author of the largest franchise of Finance textbooks outside of the US and his specialist areas include insider trading, corporate governance, corporate finance and pensions.