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Bangor Business School

News from Bangor Business School 

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Unique PhD Sponsorship for Bangor Business School Student

Anahita Baregheh is one of 5 Bangor Business School students to be awarded a PhD this year, but hers is a PhD with an ‘innovative’ twist.

In a unique partnership with Bangor Business School, Anahita’s studies were sponsored by BIC Innovation, a Bangor-based business consultancy for whom she worked on a part-time basis during her third and final year of study.

“This sponsorship was an invaluable experience” said Anahita, from Iran. “As well as allowing me to pursue a PhD, I was also able to have an input into BIC’s projects and to conduct market research for clients. The opportunity gave me a great insight into SMEs [small and medium enterprises] around Wales.” She added: “this experience will give me an edge over other candidates in the job market as, not being purely research-led, it differentiates my PhD from others”.

Anahita’s PhD focussed on organisational innovation in SMEs, looking into innovation processes and how these processes can be improved to optimise results. She is currently putting the finishing touches to her doctoral thesis.

Dafydd Davies of BIC Innovation commented: “Anahita was a fantastic student doing research work on food businesses for us, which we intend to build on in order to work with other industries. Her work really helped us understand the impact that innovation processes can have. We hope to continue building our relationship with Bangor Business School in the future and we wish Anahita all the best in her future career”.

Bangor Business School Appoints New Head

Professor John Thornton, Professor of Global Finance, has been appointed as the new Head of Bangor Business School.

He takes over from Professor Phil Molyneux, who has relinquished the role in order to focus on his position as Head of the College of Business, Social Sciences and Law.

The trio of internal appointments is made up by Professor Kostas Nikolopoulos, who replaces Professor Thornton as the College’s Director of Research.

Professor Thornton’s appointment comes as the School embarks on a new and exciting venture in the shape of the Bangor Business School London Centre, which will accept its first cohort of students from September 2011. Elizabeth De-Ben Rockson was recently announced as Centre Manager in the first London-based appointment to be made.

Bangor Business School Students Visit China

In April 2011, 16 Bangor Business School students took part in the School’s first ever student visit to China, led by Professor John Goddard, Deputy Head of School; Sarah Wale, School Manager; Yizheng Wang, International Liaison and Support Officer; and Peter Westmoreland, Student Liaison and Research Assistant. The trip was supported by Edulink, Programme Administrator for several of Bangor University’s successful partnerships with Chinese universities. 

The 10-day trip gave the students, many of whom participate in the School’s Chinese Business and Language module, the opportunity to experience at first hand everyday life in three major Chinese cities: Shanghai, Nanjing and Beijing. Involving a combination of educational and sightseeing activities, the visit began in Shanghai with introductory sessions on Chinese culture and society, a visit to the Shanghai World Financial Centre, a tour of the Yuyuan Gardens and the Bund, a night-time boat trip on the Huangpu River, and a visit to Shanghai Science and Technology Museum. In Nanjing, students visited Sun Yat-sen's Mausoleum and the City Wall, and received a warm welcome from Bangor’s Chinese partner Hohai University, where they participated in educational sessions including Chinese calligraphy and Tai Chi. The visit concluded with visits to several of Beijing’s major landmarks, including Tian’anmen Square, Forbidden City, Summer Palace, the Great Wall of China, and the ‘Bird’s Nest’ Olympic Stadium.

“The trip offered students a great opportunity to immerse themselves in Chinese culture, and to expand the knowledge they have gained on the Chinese Business and Language module,” said John Goddard. “China is now a major player in the world economy, and I’m sure many of our students will travel to China regularly in their future careers in business and finance. Several of the students who participated on the trip have since enquired about the possibility of an extended period of study in China, either as part of their undergraduate studies or at postgraduate level.”

“A trip of a lifetime! China may not be the first place that comes to mind as a trip destination, and I had my doubts about going at first, but I am so glad I went in the end! To do so many amazing things in a small period of time was fantastic, and to interact with other students and staff and make new friends made the trip even better. This really was a life changing trip. Thank you Bangor University.”
- Luke Edwards, First Year BA Business Studies and Marketing

“The China trip was an opportunity of a lifetime, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Bangor Business School did a fantastic job in putting everything together and I'm very grateful.”

- Daniel Patman, Second Year BA Business Studies

“I would just like to say how much I enjoyed myself on the China trip. Thank you for an amazing trip.”

- Robert Pritchard, First Year BA Marketing

One in Se7en Awards scheme for young entrepreneurs launched at Bangor Business School

Plaid Cymru leader Ieuan Wyn Jones and Bangor Business School marked World Entrepreneurs Day by launching One in Se7en, a new awards scheme for young entrepreneurs in participating schools and colleges in north Wales, and pledging a £90 million growth fund to help fledgling and small Welsh businesses develop and grow.

Launched at the Bangor Business School, the One in Se7en Awards for Young Entrepreneurs have been developed by Llandudno businessman and entrepreneur, Stephen Jones, proprietor of 75point3 Independent Financial Advisors. Supported by Professor Jonathan Williams of Bangor Business School, their aim is to inspire a new generation of young entrepreneurs to come forward with fresh business ideas for the future.

Plaid Cymru leader Ieuan Wyn Jones said: “Entrepreneurs are the drivers of the economy. One in seven of the Welsh workforce is self-employed and this number is increasing. Those who take the step to create and build businesses ensure jobs and prosperity for the whole country. Only by carefully nurturing that creativity and enterprise, and the sheer energy and optimism of our young people, will we be able to see more and more indigenous Welsh businesses grow up and bring vital jobs and prosperity to every community throughout Wales.”

Professor Jonathan Williams of Bangor Business School added: “Bangor Business School is delighted to launch the One in Se7en Awards with 75point3. Encouraging entrepreneurial flair through the medium of education is vital for successful business growth and the economic development of our region.

“Schools and universities play a major role in nurturing the entrepreneurs of tomorrow. The basic skills we learn from an early age through to topical discussions at university help shape our knowledge and ability to be innovative and creative. The One in Se7en Awards offer local students the opportunity to think outside the box, challenge conventional wisdom, uncover the intricacies of business and the economy, and enhance interpersonal and team-building skills with fellow students. I fully expect the One in Se7en Awards to motivate players, unlock youthful vigour, and create aspirations for personal development in either Higher Education and/or the world of business. Bangor Business School wishes each player every success in competing in this year’s awards and for the future.”

Stephen Jones, founder and proprietor of 75point3, said: “The objective is for pupils to come up with a new or improved idea which will lead to an increase in the prosperity of their local community. It needn’t be complicated and ideally could be something that can be implemented without a major financial

commitment. The idea is likely to involve a business plan of some form but it does not have to be a new business if they can see another way that the community could benefit. We look forward to receiving entries in autumn 2011 via YouTube or other digital media and will be awarding prizes in 2012. Sponsoring businesses can bid via eBay but should get in early while they can as there has been considerable interest from business colleagues already.”

Pictured above are (L-R): Prof. Jonathan Williams of Bangor Business School, Stephen Jones, founder and owner of 75point3, Plaid Cymru leader Ieuan Wyn Jones and Plaid Cymru candidate Iwan Huws.

New Module in Corporate Social Responsibility a Success

Final year students returned recently from a successful two day study visit to Burnley Football Club as part of Bangor Business School’s new module in Corporate Social Responsibility led by Neil Doncaster, Chief Executive of the Scottish Premier League and Professor John Goddard, Deputy Head of Bangor Business School.  The study visit offered the 42 participating students the opportunity to see how the theory they had been introduced to during the taught part of the module can be applied in a real world setting.  Day one of the visit included talks by key members of staff at the football club and gave students the opportunity to ask questions concerning the role of Corporate Social Responsibility in the context of a large organisation.  This was followed on day two by the students delivering their own short presentations in groups constituting the first assessed piece of work on this module.  The visit was naturally rounded off with attendance at a Burnley football match!

“The CSR module has been one of the highlights of my business degree at Bangor. I believe the trip provided a valuable insight into the inner workings of a business and demonstrated how the theory taught in lectures applies to organisations. The 'mock' press release helped me develop a new skill and fuelled my desire to enter the world of business. Finally, the module is well-taught and Neil Doncaster's ability to give real life examples significantly helps students to fully understand the ever-growing importance of corporate social responsibility.”

Christian Russell-Pollock
Third Year Marketing Student

“The study visit to Burnley Football Club as part of the Corporate Social Responsibility module was magnificent, both interesting and educational.  The lectures were very motivating and we also watched an exciting football match!  For me this two day trip expanded on the lecture element of the module and was a totally new learning experience which was enlightening but also fun.  Although I am not a football enthusiast, after watching the match I feel I may have to change my opinion.  The trip is really worth attending.”

Yao Yao
Third Year Banking and Finance Student

Chief UK Economist visits Bangor Business School

imageA former Bangor Business School student, who is now Chief UK Economist of Deutsche Bank in London, one of the world's leading financial service providers, recently returned to Bangor to deliver a talk to our current students. His lecture “UK Economics: A bumpy ride”, gave students an insight into the work of city economists and what UK economic issues they are currently focussing on.

Dr George Buckley, who graduated with a BA in Economics from Bangor in 1993, said: “Bangor Business School provided me with a solid academic grounding in economics and business. What I learned at Bangor I still use today in my position as Chief UK Economist at Deutsche Bank in London. The standard of teaching was excellent. Bangor Business School set me up for life, and has helped me enormously in my subsequent studies and my career.”

Stand out from the crowd

image of paulinaAs more and more people graduate every year with bachelor degrees, have you ever thought what would make you stand out from a crowd, or what would make your job application stand out from a bundle of application forms? Why not combine your Business degree with a European Language? You do not need to have a GCSE or A-Level in a language to study for a language joint Business degree at Bangor University. Our School of Modern Languages offers beginners and intermediate language courses especially for joint-degree students studying at Bangor Business School. You can choose from French, German, Spanish or Italian.

Paulina Marek is on her final year of a BA Marketing with French. She explains why she chose this option.

“I chose to study Marketing with French mainly because I am interested in both subjects and I didn’t want to give any of them up! I strongly believe that combining your degree with a language will become very useful in life. It will enable you to communicate more confidently when you travel, and will increase your chances of working for an international company, or even if you want to start up your own business in another country. Having a business background alongside a language can also help with practical skills such as conducting marketing research, creating a business plan, managing and organising. Combining these abilities will create good prospects for the future. I would highly recommend it to anyone!”

Investors not impressed by impression management, according to Bangor Business School research

The practice of awarding hefty bonuses to employees within the Banking industry at a time of global Banking crisis has caused widespread controversy. Bank employees had grown accustomed to receiving substantial annual cash bonuses, and such bonuses in a period of recession became highly unpopular amongst the public in general. Banks have been seeking alternative methods of rewarding employees, including the award of ‘share option compensation’.

According to a recent ESRC funded study undertaken by Professor Lynn Hodgkinson, Dr Jo Wells and Dr Doris Merkl-Davies at Bangor Business School, this form of compensation is open to managerial manipulation and thus constitutes an important corporate governance issue. Share option compensation may potentially encourage opportunistic behaviour aimed at maximising the value of share options. This is done either by retrospectively selecting a grant date which coincides with a share price low or by artificially decreasing the share price of their company on the grant date by manipulating information releases (impression management).

Further findings are expected as the Bangor Business School team of researchers continue to research this matter.

Bangor Business School to take its expertise to the City of London

Image of London Business BaseBangor University is set to be the only Welsh higher education institution to take its teaching into London as the University’s Bangor Business School, currently ranked as the leading institution in the UK for Accounting and Finance research, launches a new teaching base in the City.

As well as providing an excellent range of degree and postgraduate courses at Bangor, the Business School has decided to take some of its ‘products’ closer to the ‘marketplace’ by offering three specialist MBA degrees.

Professor Phil Molyneux, Head of Bangor Business School, says, “We have one of the leading Banking and Finance faculties in Europe and our research in the field is officially second to none.  By opening a new facility dedicated to our core strength in the City of London, we aim to bring our expertise directly to the financial capitol.”

The Bangor London Centre will aim to share the School’s excellence in Accountancy, Banking and Finance by delivering three specialist MBA degrees, covering Banking and Finance, Islamic Banking and Finance and a unique Chartered Banker MBA - the only qualification in the world to offer both an MBA qualification as well as the Scottish Institute of Bankers Chartered Banker status. All three programmes will be delivered at the London location and will be taught by the school’s current staff.

Lord Mervyn Davies, Chairman of Bangor University Council and former UK Trade Minister and Chairman of Standard Chartered Bank, will launch the Bangor London Centre on Thursday 25th November. He said: “London is one of the world's largest and most important financial centres.  It is only right that Bangor as a leader in its own field has a presence there.”

Professor Colyn Gardner, Chief Executive of the University’s Management Centre adds, “Bangor Business School offered the first Masters in Banking in the world in the 1970’s. We have continued to provide high quality programmes and produce notable alumni in the field of Banking and Finance ever since. Now is our opportunity to deliver three outstanding programmes that are extremely relevant to the challenges that banking faces today and from a truly international location.”

The venue for the launch will be the Centre’s new location in Broadgate Tower in the City of London.
The Chartered Banker MBA’s first intake will be January 2011, with the MBA Banking and Finance and MBA in Islamic Banking and Finance taking their first students in September 2011.

Bangor University wins €2 million grant to grow a greener economy

Bangor University has been successful in winning a €2 million INTERREG bid to carry out a project on ‘Green Innovation and Future Technologies’.

The collaboration between Bangor University’s Business and Environment Schools, Waterford Institute of Technology and University College Dublin, will establish a green innovation forum to help grow a sustainable green economy in Wales and Ireland.

The project, known as ‘GIFT’, will develop skills and create links between the region’s higher education institutions and industry by delivering economic activities related to environment, climate change, energy and waste management.

The project will have 4 initial themes – Knowledge Economy; Green Tourism; Green Technology and Waste Management, each co-chaired by Wales and Ireland based businesses.  Based throughout the region, the project will deliver around 100 business led collaborative projects, involving up to 200 businesses and will include case studies, a website, regular meetings and events and an annual Learning and Showcase event including business-judged excellence awards in each theme.

Working on the project on behalf of Bangor University are Dr Gareth Griffiths (Bangor Business School), Dr David Joyner (Research and Innovation Office), Dr Morag MacDonald and Dr James Walmsley (School of Environment, Natural Resources and Geography).

PhD Student attends Conferences

ABSRC conferencePhD student Hossein Izadi attended two conferences during September:

1) Advanced in Business-Related Scientific Research Conference (ABSRC) - 2010, Olbia, Italy, 8-10 September. They accepted Dr Azhdar Karami and Hossein's paper "Strategic management formulation process in SMEs" for presentation.

BAM conference2) 24th British Academy of Management (BAM)conference - 2010, Sheffield University,14-16 September.

They accepted Dr Azhdar Karami and Hossein's paper "Strategic management formulation framework in SMEs: the case of high-tech industry in the UK" for presentation as a round table paper.

All Wales Apprentice Challenge winners

Congratulations to our Barnardo's Apprentice team: Oana Lazar, Alba Stefani, Xi Yuan and Bo Liu, who have won the 2010 All Wales Apprentice Challenge, judged by Barclays Bank and BT, by raising the most money and making a profit for the charity. Their fundraising activities included a movie night, two football tournaments, beauty sessions and a raffle.

Schools in North Wales beat the Stock Market

Students at Prestatyn High School took on 23 other young fund management teams from regional schools in Stock Market Challenge and came out on top.

Prestatyn High School won the North Wales Schools event, held at Bangor University recently, with a portfolio value of £202,000. Runners up were St Gerard’s School and Ysgol Friars coming third.

Hundreds of pupils and students from our local schools experienced the excitement of the trading room floor ‘virtually’ first hand – thanks to this Bangor University sponsored initiative called Stock Market Challenge.

The competition gave participants the chance to experience the excitement of buying and selling shares on a live trading floor. The initiative taught young people how the financial markets work and encouraged them to develop key skills such as communication, problem-solving, decision making, teambuilding, and negotiation.

Staff and students from the university took part as traders running the dealing pits and were on-hand to offer information and advice to pupils and students interested in a related degree course at the Business School.

The pupils and students worked in small teams trading in shares and foreign currency. Each team started with £15,000 in ‘virtual’ funds to invest by interpreting and analysing information from the stock market.

The simulated live trading took place over a two-hour period, during which time the students built a portfolio of shares and currency by making decisions about when to invest and when to sell. The team with the highest portfolio at the closing bell won.

The project is not just about teaching young people about the financial markets – it’s much, much wider than that. It’s about encouraging them to work in a team to develop their communication skills and their decision making ability – skills which will be vitally important to them when they enter higher education and the world of work, whichever career path they ultimately choose.

Pictured above (top) are the winning team, Prestatyn High School and (bottom) runners up, St Gerard's School.

Trading bell sounds to launch investment competition

Students from across North Wales region will soon be experiencing the excitement of the trading room floor ‘virtually’ first hand – thanks to a Bangor University initiative called Stock Market Challenge.

The competition will give over 140 Year 12 pupils the chance to experience the excitement of buying and selling shares on a live trading floor. The initiative not only teaches young people how the financial markets work but encourages them to develop key skills such as communication, problem-solving, decision making, teambuilding, and negotiation.

Staff from the university will be taking part as traders running the dealing pit and will be on-hand to offer advice and guidance to pupils and students interested in a related degree course at the university.

The pupils and students will work in small teams to trade in shares and foreign currency. Each team will start with £15,000 in ‘virtual’ cash to invest by interpreting and analysing information from the stock market.

The simulated live trading will take place over a two-hour period, during which time the students will build a portfolio of shares and currency by making decisions about when to invest and when to sell. The team with the highest portfolio at the closing bell wins.

The project is not just about teaching young people about the financial markets – it’s much, much wider than that. It’s about encouraging them to work in a team to develop their communication skills and their decision making ability – skills which will be vitally important to them when they enter higher education and the world of work, whichever career path they ultimately choose.

Professor Phil Molyneux, Head of Bangor Business School*/ /*said: “At Bangor Business School we think it is essential that we focus on developing the qualifications and skills of our young people, to ensure the appropriate skills base is in place to take advantage of the job opportunities now and in the future. Initiatives such as the Stock Market Challenge provide us with an opportunity to introduce the university to young people whilst also helping our next generation of business leaders to consider a high value qualification in finance, banking or accounting.”

Will World Cup Success Lift the Economic Gloom?

The success or failure of England in the World Cup is likely to have a significant influence on the London stock market. Research examining the link between the FTSE 100 index and England's international football results reports, on average the FTSE will fall on the day after an England loss, rise slightly, on the day after an England win and fall slightly on the day after a drawn match.

The research carried out by academics from the Universities of Bangor, Leeds and Newcastle examined whether on average returns from the FTSE 100 index changed significantly the day after 290 England international football games occurring between 1984 and 2009. It is reported the largest gains and falls in the stock market occurred after tournament games such as the World Cup. Slightly lower share price gains and losses are reported after friendly and qualifying matches. Further the effect of England's performance on the stock market has been declining overtime. The level of stock market gains after England winning at football has been declining noticeably since 2004. The effect of an England loss at football on next days trading persists over time and remains negative on average.

The effect of international sporting results on stock markets is well documented and is often attributed to the psychological effects of the result. Professor Robert Hudson from Newcastle University Business School explains "Stock brokers, like everyone else can be carried away in the depression associated with an England loss at the World Cup".

If England do lose too many World Cup matches and face an early departure from South Africa, this could also have some real negative business effects. Alcohol, media, leisure and sportsware industries may all benefit from a prolonged England World Cup campaign. If England do get knocked out of the World Cup early, share prices could fall. Dr John Ashton from Bangor Business School commented "If England are eliminated from the World Cup early, it may be a good day to look for bargains on the stock market".

This study updates past research by the same authors considering the link between share prices and international football results undertaken prior to the 2002 world cup. This update of the academic research is forthcoming in the journal Applied Economics.

Mean FTSE Returns on the day after England football results.  

 

 

 

Mean Return after win

(No. of wins)

 

Mean Return after draw

(No. of draws)

 

Mean Return after loss

(No. of losses)

All Internationals

(290 games)

0.0444%  (154)

0.1004%  (78)

-0.0521%   (58)

Tournament and qualifying

(143 games)

0.1489%    (81)

0.2459%  (35)

-0.1081%   (27)

Tournament

(44 games)

0.0376%    (18)

-0.4484%  (9)

-0.2943%   (17)

Full Data Period (6th January 1984 to 10th July 2009)

Unconditional Daily Return on the FTSE 100 Index.

Mean 0.0279%, Median 0.0537%, Trimmed Mean 0.0383%

Mean FTSE Returns on the day after England Elimination from Major Tournaments

 

Tournament

 

Elimination Match

Share Price Impact: FTSE 100

World Cup Finals 1986

Lost to Argentina 1-2 in Quarter Finals

-0.88%

European Championship Finals 1988

Lost to USSR 1-3 in Group Phase

-0.33%

World Cup Finals 1990

Lost to West Germany on penalties in Semi Finals

-1.02%

European Championship Finals 1992

Lost to Sweden 1-2 in Group Phase

-1.37%

European Championship Finals 1996

Lost to Germany on penalties in Semi Finals

-0.45%

World Cup Finals 1998

Lost to Argentina on penalties in 2nd Round

+1.50%

European Championship Finals 2000

Lost to Romania 2-3 in Group Phase

-0.75%

World Cup Finals 2002

Lost to Brazil 1-2 in Quarter Finals

-1.38%

 

European Championship Finals 2004

Lost to Portugal on penalties in Quarter Finals

-0.20%

World Cup Finals 2006

Lost to Portugal on penalties in Quarter Finals

+0.87%

 

PhD student’s award winning paper

Congratulations to Iman Sharif, a PhD Student at Bangor Business School, on winning the best paper in Banking and Fellowship Award of the World Business Institute at the 12th International Business Research Conference.  The conference, sponsored by the World Business Institute Melbourne, Australia, was held in Dubai, United Arab Emirates on 8th and 9th April.  The title of Iman’s award-winning paper was ‘The Impact of bank lending on Economic activity’, which is part of her PhD Research on The Bank Lending Channel, supervised by Professor Phil Molyneux, Head of Bangor Business School.  

 

Business School student receives first Bangor University degree

Image of Thamer AlbahraniBangor University has awarded its first ever Bangor University degree.

Thamer Hassan Albahrani received degree certificate number 00000001 on completing his MBA in Management at the University's leading Business School.

Forty year old Thamer Albahrani, who is originally from Saudia Arabia, is now studying for a Doctorate in Economics, studying international business trade at the University.

Having graduated from King Faisal University, Saudi Arabia, Thamer who comes from Alhasa in Saudi, ran his own business there before coming to the UK in 1998. Prior to undertaking professional career development by studying one of Bangor University's highly respected Management MBA Degrees, he was working in marketing for a private college in Cardiff.

"Though we've been in existence for over 125 years, this marks an important step for the University. Bangor University recently gained its own degree awarding powers from the Privy Council, having previously given University of Wales degrees. Awarding the first degree marks the conclusion of that process and we look forward to awarding Bangor University degrees at our graduation ceremonies later in the year," commented the University's Vice-Chancellor, Professor Merfyn Jones.

Thamer said: "I'm very glad to be the first person to receive a Bangor University degree. I originally lived in Brighton and London but moved to Cardiff and now Bangor. I like Wales and the Welsh people. I decided to study at Bangor University as it has a good reputation and the 2008 UK Research Assessment Exercise rated the Business School as the best in the UK."

Calling all Irish students – come and meet us in Dublin on 8 and 9 April!

We are delighted to inform you that Lecturers and Professors from Bangor Law School and Bangor Business School will be coming over to Ireland during the Easter break and will be available to meet prospective students who are interested in studying Law and Business degrees at Buswells Hotel, at 23 - 25 Molesworth Street, Dublin 2 (near the Dail) on the following dates and times:

  • Thursday, 8th April 11am – 7pm
  • Friday, 9th April 9am – 1pm
  • (Buswells Hotel, Trinity Suite, Lower Ground Floor)

The format is informal and gives prospective students and / or their teachers and / or parents an opportunity to discuss with us the advantages of studying in Bangor for a wide range of Law or Business degrees.

Why choose Bangor?

  • Only 99 minutes from Dublin, across the Irish Sea in North Wales, close to Holyhead
  • Bangor’s LLB Law Degree holders are eligible to take the Irish Law Society Entrance Examinations
  • 335 - 350 CAO points or higher in the Irish Leaving Certificate
  • 93% satisfaction rate amongst Bangor Business Students in the National Student Survey 
  • Bangor Business School has been ranked the top Business School in the UK for research in Finance and Accounting (Research Assessment Exercise 2008)
  • 2nd best value University city in the UK for students
  • 125 year tradition of teaching excellence

For further information contact:

LAW: + 44 1248 383 781 / law@bangor.ac.uk

BUSINESS: +44 1248 382 578 / business@bangor.ac.uk

London Study Visit

A group of second year undergraduate students studying various courses at Bangor Business School recently went to London for 3-days as part of the ‘London Study Visit’ module.  During their stay, they had the opportunity to see at first hand the Houses of Parliament, Westminster, Bank of England, Competition Commission and International Business Wales.

image of london visit

Bangor Business School’s success in the IBM Business Challenge

Bangor Business School competed in the semi-finals of the IBM universities business challenge held at Lloyds TSB Headquarters, Solihull at the end of February. The team of five students included Benedict Nicholls, Team Leader and also Bo Liu, Jin Ma, Syazwani Nordon and Ryan Collins. Marwan Khammash and Roz Jones went along to give their support. The team fought off very stiff competition in what was a very competitive business challenge, coming a very respectable third and beating the University of Birmingham, Manchester Metropolitan University, the Univesity of Liverpool, Nottingham University and the University of Abertay, Dundee Business School. 

Roz Jones, Lecturer in Business and Management at Bangor Business School, said:  “The event also offered a great opportunity for students to network with recruitment agencies, meet other students and make decisions in a competitive business environment.  Our thanks also go to those in the other two teams who were selected for the challenge but who unfortunately did not get through to the semi finals. These teams offered additional support and advice to the team going through to the semi-finals, which was great to see and definitely made a difference.”

image of winners

Football gives hands on marketing experience

Every year, successful business people visit our school to give talks about their jobs and the organisations in which they work. Recent contributors have included Neil Doncaster, Chief Executive of the Scottish Premier League, home of Scottish Football, who has been working with a group of students on a marketing and customer relations project as part of the Professional Sports Management. As part of the project, the students also had the opportunity to visit Norwich City Football Club and learn more about running a professional football club. To conclude the project, the students presented their work to Mr Doncaster, who gave valuable feedback to each group.

Llun o fyfyrwyr Ysgol Busnes Bangor

Students with Neil Doncaster and Professor John Goddard, Deputy Head of the Business School

Life in Downing Street

Eric Hepburn, a Bangor alumnus, who is now Chief Operating Officer, Prime Minister’s Officer, 10 Downing Street, came to Bangor to deliver a fascinating talk on ‘Life in Downing Street’, giving students an insight into how the British Government works.

image of eric hepburn

Bangor University spearheads new research into bank regulation

Click here to read the Daily Post article about Bangor University's new research into how bank regulators’ interventions in troubled banks affect the supply of money.

First research to study effect of how bank regulators’ interventions into troubled banks affect liquidity provision of the economy

Despite a growth in bank regulation in the last few decades - and the likelihood that regulation will increase following the recent crisis, no evidence exists regarding how effective the measures are that financial regulators take when banks are in trouble and if this has wide ranging effects on banks’ ability to supply liquidity to the economy.

A new piece of research to be conducted by Dr Klaus Schaeck of Bangor University Business School intends to address the gulf in the academic literature available. Schaeck intends to establish what effects different measures at the regulators' disposal have on the banks ability to supply liquidity to the economy - which is ultimately their core reason to exist.

Adopting newly devised measures of bank liquidity, Schaeck will apply these measures to a dataset for a group of banks to see how the liquidity generation of those banks was affected by the imposed regulatory interventions of various types.

The Research Project Grant, funded by The Leverhulme Trust is expected to be completed within 9 months and the results should influence public policy and policymaking in banking in any country where bank regulation is in place and intervenes to prevent a bank from collapsing.

Schaeck says, "The viability of a bank depends on its ability to produce liquidity- and governments have stepped in by creating regulating bodies as they do not want to see banks fail. The banking system's ability to take deposits and provide loans, is the oil that keeps our economy going. However, we don't fully understand the effects of regulatory actions on the banking system’s ability to supply liquidity when they try to rescue failing banks."

"Any business that is limited in the scope of its activities is going to be affected in some way- it's the knock-on effect of these actions on a bank that is already in danger of collapse that we're particularly interested in. The intent is to better understand how to limit the scope of a bank's operations without unduly damaging its core function to supply liquidity to businesses and individual customers. This is done in the interest of preserving the institution, and also of preserving the supply of liquidity to the local economy" he explains.

The research will improve the financial regulator's understanding the effect of each of the different measures on the liquidity generation of the banks. This in turn will lead to improved policy responses to restore confidence in individual banks.

Dr Schaeck will collaborate with Thomas Kick from the German Central Bank and two U.S. academics who have recently developed the measure to assess liquidity creation in the banking system: Allen Berger who is affiliated with of the University of South Carolina, the Wharton Financial Institutions Center, and Tilburg University, and Christa Bouwman who is visiting MIT’s Sloan School of Management. She is also affiliated with Case Western Reserve University and the Wharton Financial Institutions Center.

From Britain to China: the making of MG Rover

Ian Pogson, MGTF 85th Anniversary Project Manager and Chief Engineer recently visited Bangor Business School and gave a fascinating insight to the making of MG Rover.

image of MG team

Bangor graduate selected for Babson

A graduate of Bangor Business School was recently selected to attend a prestigious entrepreneurship course at Babson College in Boston, Massachusetts, the world’s leading entrepreneurial school.

image of michelleMichelle Daniel from Sheffield was selected alongside thirty other students and entrepreneurially minded individuals from around the world to attend a two-week residential course, which was sponsored by the Santander Group.   

“The course was intense but allowed time for us to explore Boston and experience some amazing activities provided by the college,” said Michelle. “These included a welcome canapé party, a lobster evening, a duck tour of Boston and trips to restaurants and theatres.

“We were taught by experienced entrepreneurs. Themes such as buying a small business, marketing, negotiating and selling were covered during the program. Teaching was very practical and we were engaged in numerous exercises such as ‘how to save Polaroid’. We were also allocated time to work on a business plan, which we presented on the final day.  

Overall, my experience at Babson helped me to further develop knowledge gained at Bangor Business School and has given me the confidence to set up my own business in the future.”

Michelle recently graduated from Bangor Business School with a First Class BA Honours Degree in Business and French.

Bangor University’s IBM success

ibm teamThree teams from Bangor University recently celebrated their successes in the IBM National Universities Business Challenge.  Under the guidance of Marwan Khammash and Roz Jones of Bangor Business School, all teams did exceedingly well in the extremely competitive 6 week event.

One team will now be going through to the semi-final in Solihull in February 2010. The teams are undergraduate students at Bangor University. Congratulations to you all and good luck in Solihull!  

Bangor Business School’s ‘Bizi Bodies’ Netball success

 image of netball team

Well done to Bangor Business School’s Netball team – ‘Bizi Bodies’ – who were crowned Runners Up in the Inter-Departmental Netball Tournament, held at Maes Glas Leisure Centre recently.

 

 

 

 

Bangor Business School share their expertise in major entrepreneurship conferences

image of roz jonesRosalind Jones, Business and Management lecturer at Bangor Business School, recently attended the Research Symposium on Marketing and Entrepreneurship hosted by the University of Illinois, Chicago, US.  She presented a paper ‘Presentation of the generic EMICO framework for research exploration of entrepreneurial marketing in SMEs’, which was co-authored with Jennifer Rowley, who is also a lecturer at Bangor Business School.

Azhdar Karami, Senior Lecturer in Business Management, and his PhD student Jenny Byast, together with Sara Parry and Rosalind Jones from Bangor Business School, attended the 32nd Institute for Small Business & Entrepreneurship Conference (ISBE) in Liverpool at the beginning of November. Jenny and Azhdar presented the paper ‘Female entrepreneurs and strategic thinking: the case of the service sector in Wales’ and Sara and Roz presented a paper ‘Critical Success Factors in SMEs in the software sector’ which was co-authored with Jennifer Rowley and Beata Kupiec-Teahan. 

 

Bangor Global MBA in Banking & Finance

Capitalising on the renowned success of Bangor Business School and the prestigious Management Centre, January 2010 sees the launch of the Bangor Global MBA in Banking & Finance the latest programme developed to offer individuals the opportunity to engage with a flexible, blended learning programme. 

This suite of programmes is geared towards professionals in the field of Banking, Financial Services and Accounting who have major commitments that preclude the option of a full time programme but who have a need for further management education for career advancement.  The Bangor Global MBA in Banking and Finance is closely modelled on its already successful on-campus version, bringing together a wide range of subjects to give students the quality and experience of the full time programme without the need to step out from their careers.

The Course

  • 30 month modular programme, with intakes in January and July each year
  • A combination of face to face and online workshops limiting disruption to your career
  • Face to face workshops held at Bangor Business School’s Management Centre, a gold star, state of the art conferencing facility housed within 5 Grade II listed buildings
  • 8 core modules covering subject specific and key managerial concepts
  • 2 elective modules enabling students to tailor the MBA to their individual needs and specialisations 

For further information on the new blended learning MBA in Banking and Finance:

Bangor Global
The Management Centre, Bangor Business School
Tel: +44 (0)1248 365982
E-mail: info@global.bangor.ac.uk
Web: www.global.bangor.ac.uk/

 

Bangor Business School PhD student presents paper in ESSA conference

Image of ImanIman Sharif, a PhD Student at Bangor Business School, recently presented a paper at the ESSA 09 (European Social Simulation Association) conference.

The European Social Simulation Association promotes the development of social simulation research, education and application in Europe. Iman said: “The paper I presented is titled "Avatars in the Stock Market".  It is a review of the impact of the advent of agent based modelling on financial research.  My co-author is Dr. William Teahan from the School of Computer Science in Bangor.”

This year’s conference took place at Surrey University in Guilford.

Two new members to join Advisory Board

Two new members have joined the Bangor Business School Advisory Board:
Dyfrig John (former Chief Executive of HSBC Bank plc and Honorary Fellow of Bangor University)
Neil Ashbridge (the new Bank of England Agent for Wales)

Students go ‘Green’

A group of 29 international students studying for their MBA in Business and Management at Bangor Business School have been getting their teeth stuck into the local technology needs and issues of the North West Wales Spatial Plan area of Anglesey, Gwynedd and Conwy.

Image of staff and studentsThe students were tasked with assignments all centred around a current Welsh Assembly Government Consultation “Green Jobs in Wales”, which aims to create a greener Welsh economy in the future. In this pilot study, which was run under the supervision of Dr Gareth Griffiths of Bangor Business School, the students looked at the technology good practices, innovation and ideas of other companies and countries to inform them as to whether these practices and ideas could be relevant and potentially used in the local N W Wales Spatial Plan area.

The desired end result is a review of relevant Information Communication Technology (ICT) which could help underpin the delivery of business benefit to the local area, help to stimulate growth in the local economy and help to green the economy in the future. 

The picture was taken at the recent WAG/ University “celebration” event where five of the best students presented a merged overview of their study and findings to a number of interested local Stakeholders. The group had a strong international flavour – pictured are students from Russia, Peru, South Africa, Pakistan and the UK. Students related their findings to developments in their own countries and made fascinating recommendations about how Wales could learn from other nations.

Like Mother, Like Daughter

Image of mother and daughterIt was a double celebration for mother and daughter Rosalind Jones and Elizabeth Heyworth from Llangollen as they both graduated at Bangor University on the same day.

Rosalind, a Lecturer in Management at the Bangor Business School at the University graduated with a PhD while her daughter Elizabeth graduated with an Upper Second Class BA Honours Degree in Business and Social Administration. Mother and daughter are delighted to be sharing their success.

Rosalind said, “It’s wonderful. The thought that we might graduate together kept me motivated to finish the PhD in a relatively short period. I am extremely proud of Elizabeth and all the other graduating students. As this is a research led university the students have received the best tuition available, have studied hard and fully deserve their degree awards.”

Elizabeth was looking forward to the celebrations after all the hard work. She added, “It’s great to both be celebrating the end of our courses at the same time, it wouldn’t be the same party atmosphere if one of us was still waiting to finish.”

Rosalind moved from being a civil servant to studying full time and started her PhD entitled ‘Entrepreneurial Marketing in Small Welsh Technology Firms: An Empirical Study’ back in 2005. She added, “Later, I was lucky enough to be employed in the Bangor Business School firstly as a Teaching and Research Associate and now a Lecturer, a job which I thoroughly enjoy.

“My research was supported by a local software technology firm called Semantise who have been instrumental in my studies. I have also worked with other small technology firms both in Wales and the UK.”

Elizabeth who’s 22 and a former pupil of Ysgol Dinas Bran in Llangollen has fond memories of her time at Bangor.

She said, “Bangor has a great atmosphere and there is an endless list of things to do here. My highlight has been meeting a great group of friends and achieving a 2:1, when three years ago I never would have expected to be able to come to university. I have really realized my potential thanks to useful and positive feedback provided throughout my course.”

Elizabeth is following in her mother’s footsteps and is returning to Bangor Business School to study an MA in Business and Marketing and hopes to progress to studying for a PhD. Rosalind is also continuing with her studies and hopes to complete the tHE programme soon which supports effective and innovative teaching and learning.

Bangor Business School attends 38th EMAC Conference in Nantes, France

Four members of Bangor Business School recently attended the 38th EMAC conference held at the Audencia School of Management in Nantes. EMAC (European Marketing Academy) is the largest academic marketing conference in Europe and Bangor Business School had among the highest representation at the conference. Phil Stern, Marwan Khammash and Sara Parry presented papers on topics covering E-marketing, Innovation and Relationship Marketing whilst Roz Jones presented a poster on Entrepreneurial Marketing.

Schools in North Wales beat the Stock Market

Students at Deeside College took on 17 other young fund management teams from regional schools in Stock Market Challenge and came out on top.
Deeside College won the North Wales Schools event, held at Bangor University recently, with a portfolio value of £120,000.  Runners up were Eirias High School and Prestatyn High School coming third.

Hundreds of pupils and students from our local schools experienced the excitement of the trading room floor ‘virtually’ first hand – thanks to this Bangor University sponsored initiative called Stock Market Challenge.

The competition gave participants the chance to experience the excitement of buying and selling shares on a live trading floor. The initiative taught young people how the financial markets work and encouraged them to develop key skills such as communication, problem-solving, decision making, teambuilding, and negotiation.
Staff and students from the university took part as traders running the dealing pits and were on-hand to offer information and advice to pupils and students interested in a related degree course at the Business School.

The pupils and students worked in small teams trading in shares and foreign currency. Each team started with £15,000 in ‘virtual’ funds to invest by interpreting and analysing information from the stock market.
The simulated live trading took place over a two-hour period, during which time the students built a portfolio of shares and currency by making decisions about when to invest and when to sell. The team with the highest portfolio at the closing bell won.

The project is not just about teaching young people about the financial markets – it’s much, much wider than that. It’s about encouraging them to work in a team to develop their communication skills and their decision making ability – skills which will be vitally important to them when they enter higher education and the world of work, whichever career path they ultimately choose.
Professor Phil Molyneux, Head of Bangor Business School: said: “At Bangor University we think it is essential that we focus on developing the qualifications and skills of our young people, to ensure the appropriate skills base is in place to take advantage of the job opportunities now and in the future. Initiatives such as the Stock Market Challenge provide us with an opportunity to introduce the university to young people whilst also helping our next generation of business leaders to consider a high value qualification in finance, banking or accounting.”

The event was organised by the College of Business, Social Sciences & Law at Bangor University.

  • Pictured above left are pupils from Deeside College and above right pupils from Eirias High School.

Football module gives hands-on marketing experience

Bangor students have shown that they're top of the league when it comes to marketing, in a new football themed module offered at the Business School.

The module, which is run in partnership with Norwich City FC, gives students a real feel for life in the boardroom of a large football club.

Click here to watch our video about the module.

George Rae Memorial Lecture

Professor L Alan Winters, Chief Economist of DFID will present the bi-annual George Rae lecture at Bangor University on Monday, 1 June at 5pm in the Main Arts Lecture Theatre (Main Arts Building, College Road).  

His lecture will be focussed on: ‘Made in New York, experienced in New Delhi.  What the financial crisis means for development’.

L Alan Winters is Chief Economist at the Department for International Development, London, and Professor of Economics in the University of Sussex. He is a Research Fellow and former Programme Director of the Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR, London) and Fellow of IZA, Munich.  From 2004 to 2007 he was Director of the Development Research Group of the World Bank, the world’s largest and leading group of development economists, and had previously been Division Chief and Research Manager (1994-99) and Economist (1983-85) in the Bank. He has also worked previously in the Universities of Cambridge, Bristol, Bangor (Wales) and Birmingham.  He has been editor of the World Bank Economic Review, associate editor of the Economic Journal, and is now editor of The World Trade Review; heserves on numerous editorial boards. He has also advised, inter alia, the OECD, the Commonwealth Secretariat, the European Commission, the European Parliament, UNCTAD, the WTO, and the Inter-American Development Bank.

L Alan Winters is one of the world’s leading specialists on the empirical and policy analysis of international trade and has recently also worked on migration and the brain drain. He has published over two hundred articles and thirty books in areas such as regional trading arrangements, non-tariff barriers, European Integration, transition economies’ trade, international labour mobility, agricultural protection, trade and poverty, and the world trading system. He has also published on small economies, global warming, pricing behaviour and econometrics.

New Advisory Board Members

The following are new members of Bangor Business School Advisory Board:

Rachel Lomax (formerly Deputy Governor of the Bank of England)
David Lermon (Director for Wales, The Institute of Chartered Accountants)
Ian Williams (Director, North Wales, Enterprise and International Business Wales)
Peter Griffiths (Chief Executive, Principality Building Society)

Bangor alumnus gives talk about IT security for banking corporations   

Image of Brendan Pickering and studentsBrendan Pickering, Head of Group Fraud Technology at HSBC and Bangor alumnus delivered a fascinating talk to Masters students of Banking at Bangor Business School at the end of February on aspects of IT security for banking corporations worldwide.  How banks manage the risk of fraud was discussed and examples given of IT fraud included Phishing emails attempting to collect personal bank account details and a story about a 14 year old who managed to close down the whole FBI computer network as revenge for being arrested for IT fraud!

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