SGSM - Newsletter October 2012
SGSM - A growing network of Success
Time has flown by and we are nearing the end of another year. Caught up in the day to day pursuit of our goals and delivering on our promises, it is again time to reflect on our achievements and celebrate our successes.
This edition of the SGSM e-News celebrates the success of SGSM Alumni Dr Yi-chen Lan, now Director of UWS International, as well as sharing a few of the SGSM Alumni success stories. By celebrating our Alumni’s success, we can all learn a little from their journey, but importantly, take pride that we are all part of a growing network of Success.
We hope you have achieved your goals for 2012, and we are eager to know what 2013 has in store for you. You can share your news and views with your fellow Alumni through the newsletter or on our new Facebook (opens in a new window) page.
- Dr Yi-chen Lan, a passion for engaged learning
- Save the Date – Alumni Dinners in China
- Alumni Award Winner – Australia China Alumni Association
- Alumni Profile
- Research Update
Dr Yi-chen Lan, a passion for engaged learning
Now Director of UWS International and Associate Pro Vice-Chancellor (Engagement & International) at UWS, Dr Yi-Chen Lan’s journey with the university started as a first-year undergraduate student back in 1994.
“My own career here at UWS is proof that this university is committed to education and ‘Bringing Knowledge to Life’. I have remained involved with the university over many years because UWS has given me so many opportunities,” Yi-Chen says. “Now as an ambassador of UWS, I can draw on my experiences and the career aspirations I had and how I achieved my goals to inspire others to be whatever they want to be.”
After completing a Bachelor of Commerce in Computing and Information Systems, Yi-Chen was invited to complete an additional Honours year.
With industry engagement always a strong feature of UWS’s educational model, Yi-Chen had the opportunity to work with aircraft manufacturer Hawker de Havilland, based at Bankstown Airport, on his Honours thesis, which explored how an enterprise model in a workgroup environment could be facilitated by information systems. His research had a long-lasting impact on the company, as Yi-Chen found when he met up again with the former CEO of Hawker de Havilland, Ron Beckett, at a UWS graduation ceremony. “Ron told me my thesis was still in practice in the organisation,” Yi-Chen says.
His success led to a passion for further study, and Yi-Chen completed a PhD on Management of Information Technology Issues in Enterprise Globalisation in 2004.
“In my thesis, I was talking about managing transactions, business operations through the internet and e-commerce. It was quite pioneering for the time,” he says.
Yi-Chen joined the academic staff of UWS as a lecturer in 2001, a position he says enabled him to “give back” to the university by teaching and supervising research students. Yi-Chen was appointed as the Associate Dean (International) for 2006, adding to his portfolio responsibility for promoting UWS programs internationally to “attract international students, as well as establishing and maintaining relationships with our partner organisations overseas”. Then earlier this year, Yi-Chen was appointed as the Associate Pro-Vice Chancellor (Engagement & International), and most recently, Director, UWS International, which has enabled him the opportunity to elevate and apply his previous work to “a broader, university-wide level”.
Yi-Chen believes UWS plays an important role in Australian higher education. “Having a university like UWS in the current Australian educational landscape that provides endless opportunities for students, whether they are new to study or taking further studies, and to have those opportunities spanning across an entire region is something quite unique and which other institutions cannot provide.”
He adds that the way international students view Australia has shifted significantly in the last 10 to 20 years. Previously the majority of international students would only focus on selecting the discipline areas for study. But now, Yi-Chen says, “they are not just looking for study and learning, they are looking for career opportunities after their study”.
“Most international students come directly either from high school or Bachelor degrees. Ninety-five per cent don’t have work experience, and they want their university to provide it as part of the program,” says Yi-Chen.
UWS therefore has an important role in fostering this process both for international and local students through developing strong community engagement and business partnerships throughout the region. The Sydney Graduate School of Management (SGSM), for example, engages industry partners to offer students business internships which are embedded into their degree programs.
“Building engagement relationships locally and overseas is important as it provides opportunities that our students otherwise may not have. Seeing our students develop and grow as professionals within their chosen careers and then graduate from our university career-ready is something that makes me proud to be associated with UWS,” Yi-Chen says.
This process is particularly valuable for international students looking to determine whether they wish to stay in Australia or return to their home country to find work. “They are very clearly identifying what directions and career paths they will follow when they complete their study here,” Yi-Chen says.
Now furthering its commitment, SGSM is engaging with international alumni around the world, through bodies such as the Australia-China Alumni Association.
“Through social media, we get alumni to engage and connect with us, and conduct various alumni activities in different countries,” Yi-Chen says.
The next step is to develop more regular activities to gain the assistance of alumni in promoting UWS to other potential students. In October, Yi-Chen will be travelling to China with Dr Laurel Jackson, director, postgraduate education from SGSM to host alumni functions in Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou.
Yi-Chen says though many alumni graduated in the past 10-15 years, “we want them to get the feeling of ownership in UWS, and that they are constantly linked up and engaged”.
Personally, Yi-Chen looks forward to continuing to play a key role in the important work of UWS. “The UWS vision and what it stands for inspires me to keep doing what I am doing. Seeing our students graduate at the end of their studies keeps my passion alive. I take pride in being able to provide students with an engaged learning experience, enriching their educational learning journey, and to encourage them in their studies, dreams and aspirations.”
Save the Date – Alumni Dinners in China
SGSM’s Director of Postgraduate Education, Dr Laurel Jackson, will be travelling to China in October with Dr Yi-chen Lan with the express purpose of meeting with UWS Alumni in China.
All UWS Alumni in China are invited to attend. Details as follows:
- Shanghai Dinner – Thursday 18th October 2012
- Guangzhou Dinner – Saturday 20th October 2012
- Beijing Dinner – Wednesday 24th October 2012
More details will issue shortly. Dr Jackson and Dr Lan look forward to meeting with you there.
Alumni Award Winner – Australia China Alumni Association
UWS is proud to be affiliated with the Australia China Alumni Association. The Association is China’s biggest alumni network, open to all China-based alumni of Australian universities. It promotes Australian education via the success of alumni, and supporting alumni in China through business and social networking.
The Association holds annual alumni awards with various categories. SGSM is thrilled to congratulate one of our own as the winner of the CPA Australia, Australia China Alumni Award for Banking and Finance. Mr. Edmond Ching is a Partner of Restructuring Services with Deloitte & Touche Financial Advisory Services Limited, based in Shanghai. Edmond graduated from UWS with a Master of Business Administration in 1995. Edmond specialises corporate rescue and recovery, corporate and debt restricting, and receivership and liquidation.
Alumni Profile
Jo Hanlon, Principal/Director, Mind Your Ps
Jo Hanlon previously held sales, marketing, business management and regional business development roles with Baxter Healthcare in Australia, New Zealand, South East Asia and South America. Since completing her MBA at SGSM, Jo went on to establish her own successful HR consultancy.
‘I decided to do my MBA because I wanted to build structure around what I had already experienced in my working life; I wanted a more in-depth knowledge of important structures that support, and metrics that indicate, the health of a business. I had a blast. I was travelling a lot with work and needed to squeeze more and more into my life, so I just had to juggle things around to be workable. I got great value from the group work which wasn’t a “vanilla” experience – it was multicultural, a true reflection of workplaces today.
‘The real-life experience and knowledge of the lecturers made it very relevant, so what I was learning I could immediately put into practice on a day-to-day basis and the HR subjects I did made a great contribution to the choice of what my business was to involve. I continue to build my business and it provides me with flexibility, choice and the ability to make a real difference. I have a wide and balanced view on business which benefits my clients hugely and there is no doubt that a lot of that foundation came from doing the MBA.’
Research Update
Dr Daniela Spanjaard looks at Retail Brands and their fight for Consumer Loyalty
Holden or Ford? Coles or Woolies? These are often seen as the choices that divide our nation. Unlike the supermarkets, however, we actually have a wider range of car makers from which to choose. Daniela Spanjaard is undertaking research into the differences between the supermarket landscape in the UK – with its more diverse range of players - and in Australia, with particular focus on the retailer’s own brands and the impact on consumer loyalty.
Daniela's background comes from industry experience working for multinational market research agencies specializing in Fast Moving Consumer Goods in a variety of account management positions. She has expertise in a wide range of market research methodologies (both qualitative and quantitative), building client relationships, and assisting companies with their brand management programmes. She has worked with both sales and marketing teams at all levels aiding to develop long term growth via marketing information and business strategies. Clients she has worked with include Arnotts, Campbells, Unilever, Uncle Tobys, Streets Ice Cream and NSW Police.
Read more of Daniela’s article Retail brands fighting for consumer loyalty: a case for cross cultural research (PDF, 110.52 KB).
