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The podcast currently has 52 episodes available.
Nottingham Business School’s Business Leaders’ Podcast
Episode 52
Alison Swan Parente MBE - Founding the School of Artisan Food, at the age of 60
Summary
Alison Swan Parente MBE is founder of the pioneering School of Artisan Food and the Welbeck Bakehouse.
She set them up as second career, sixteen years ago, when she was 60.
In Episode 52 of the Nottingham Business School’s Business Leaders’ Podcast, Alison talks to Visiting Honorary Professor Mike Sassi about the joys and challenges of her ‘new’ career.
She also enthuses about creating a new generation of butchers, bakers, brewers and cheese-makers.
Introduction
• Alison Swan Parente was born in Sussex, just after the Second World War.
• She enjoyed a 35-year career as a child psychotherapist, in Britain and America.
• When she retired in 2007, at the age of 60, she set up artisan bakery The Welbeck Bakehouse, on the Welbeck Estate in north Nottinghamshire.
• Soon after, she founded The School of Artisan Food.
• Sixteen years on, the school has won industry awards and built a national reputation for its hands-on courses and world class tutors.
• It teaches traditional skills including bread-baking, cheese-making, brewing and butchery. Its courses focus on healthy and sustainable food.
• In recent years, the school has teamed up with Nottingham Trent University to deliver degree courses in artisan food production.
• Alison was an expert judge on the BBC’s Top of the Shop show, with restaurateurs Tom Kerridge and Nisha Katona.
• In 2017 she was awarded an MBE, for services to education and charity
Key takeaways
Alison Swan Parente told Mike Sassi…
…she was interested in food and cooking from an early age:
“My biggest influence was living in a communal household, in America in the 1970s, where the men cooked. I’d never seen that before. They’d learned [cooking] for political reasons. The women were fed up with cooking.”
…one aim of the School of Artisan Food is to provide routes into employment for young people:
“If you are thinking about how to make young people resilient, one thing you can do is help them to be creative - another is to give them a job.”
…when artisan food producers enthuse about what they do, that’s good marketing:
"Marketing is essential for any business. But the best marketing is authentic marketing."
…it is important for leaders to be well-informed:
“Leadership involves hanging around discreetly in the shadows of your institution, hearing about the things that are going on.”
…it’s also important for leaders not to become micro-managers:
“You have to know what’s going on – but you also have to trust the people you employ.”
And Alison’s advice for leaders and would-be leaders?
“You have to listen to people all the time. Do more listening than talking!”
Related links
• More about Alison Swan Parente MBE
• Alison’s LinkedIn profile is here
• Alison is trustee and founder of the School of Artisan Food
• Alison Swan Parente presented the BBC’s Top of the Shop
If you enjoyed this episode NBS Business Leaders’ Podcast with Alison Swan Parente, listen to previous shows with…
• The Chair of the English Football Association Debbie Hewitt
• Paralympic gold medallist Charlotte Henshaw
• The CEO of Capital One UK Lucy Marie Hagues
Nottingham Business School’s Business Leaders’ Podcast
Episode 51
Nadeem Raza - leading a management buyout, then floating on the stock exchange.
SUMMARY
Nadeem Raza is CEO of transport technology company Microlise.
He joined Microlise in the 1980s as a young software engineer and over the next three decades worked his way up through the company. In 2008 he led a management buyout – and in 2021 the company floated on the Stock Exchange, where it was valued at £156.5m.
In Episode 51 of the Nottingham Business School’s Business Leaders’ Podcast, Nadeem tells Visiting Honorary Professor Mike Sassi about his love of writing software, his fascination with managing people… and why a quarter of all the trucks on Britain’s roads are empty.
INTRODUCTION
• Nadeem Raza is CEO at the Nottinghamshire-based Microlise company which provides software solutions for the transport logistics industry.
• Microlise works with all four of Britain’s biggest supermarkets – Sainsbury’s, Tesco, ASDA and Morrison’s – and scores of others international brands from JCB to DFS and Eddie Stobart to Travis Perkins.
• The company’s technology helps fleets of trucks and other vehicles move goods from manufacturers to warehouses; warehouses to shops and supermarkets; and from shops to customers via home deliveries.
• Nadeem Raza led a management buy-out of Microlise in 1982, then floated it on the Stock Exchange in 2021, when the company was valued at £156m.
• The company now has 750 staff, operating across six continents. Last year it turned over £71m, with a gross profit of £43m and an operating profit of £2.3m.
• Microlise has won two concurrent Queen’s Awards for Enterprise – for International Trade in 2018, and Innovation in 2019.
• The company was originally founded in 1982, developing warehouse management software.
• Nadeem joined it as a software engineer in the late 1980s and worked his way up to the position of managing director.
KEY LEADERSHIP TAKEAWAYS
Nadeem Raza told Mike Sassi about...
…why he became a software engineer:
“I joined Microlise to do something I really loved – writing software. I’ve been writing software since I was 14. It was a hobby. ZX Spectrum, Atari computers, Commodore computers… that’s where I started.”
…the importance of being curious:
“I started as a software engineer. But because I’m always thinking, how can I do something better? or, how can I improve a particular process? I ended up being seconded to every other area of the business.”
…leading a management buyout during a national financial crisis:
“2008 was difficult. We completed our MBO at the beginning of the financial crisis. We got into debt problems and went through two or three years of challenging times. But we managed to get through it. If you can get through the tough times, then the easier times are just a walk in the park.”
…how best to manage people:
“The business is made up of many different areas… they have many different people and characters, with many different ways of working. Understanding that, helps you organise, manage, motivate and lead.”
…why good staff are so important:
“There is a lot of knowledge and experience among staff. Without them the software is just a tool that you don’t really understand how to use.”
…looking after and retaining your staff:
“If you treat people well and look after them and give them opportunities, then they will hang around.”
…what motivates his leadership:
“I’m always wondering how I can create value and benefit [for staff and customers], rather than thinking ‘what’s in it for me?’ That happens as a consequence. If you create value elsewhere, ultimately, you’ll benefit yourself.”
…the company’s most recent international contract:
“Woolworths is a big brand in Australia. We help them deal with home deliveries (mainly groceries) from their supermarkets, in new electric vehicles.”
…the need for more collaboration between companies that use trucks:
“25 per cent of the time trucks run with nothing on board. They’re empty. They’re just carrying air! In any other industry this amount of ‘waste’ would be an enormous figure to deal with.”
RELATED LINKS
• There’s more about Nadeem Raza on his LinkedIn page
• Nadeem Raza also features strongly on the Microlise website
• Nadeem Raza is a trustee of Nottinghamshire Community Foundation
• Recent news stories about Microlise, from Insider Media
If you enjoyed this episode of the NBS Business Leaders’ Podcast with Nadeem Raza, listen to previous shows with…
• The former Chairman and Chief Exec of Experian Sir John Peace
• The CEO of Capital One UK Lucy Hagues
• International business executive Sir Ken Olisa OBE
Nottingham Business School’s Business Leaders’ Podcast
Episode 50
Nick Beighton - The e-commerce pioneer who turned ASOS into an international success story
Summary
Nick Beighton transformed ASOS into a global e-commerce powerhouse. When he walked through the front door to take up the role of Chief Finance Officer in 2009, the company was a fledgling online fashion retailer, with 200 staff and £160m of revenues. When he stepped down as Chief Executive 12 years later, the company’s workforce was 3,500-strong… and its annual revenues were just shy of £4bn.
In a special Episode 50 of the Nottingham Business School’s Business Leaders’ Podcast, Nick tells Visiting Honorary Professor Mike Sassi about the importance of values, the need for planning, and why it’s always better to use influence rather than exert control.
Introduction
Nick Beighton is one of Britain’s most celebrated e-commerce fashion executives – best known for the 12 years he spent on the board of online retailer ASOS (2009 to 2021).
He was CEO of ASOS for six years, during which time he helped turn the company into a huge global success story.
Nick was born in Nottinghamshire and started his career as a chartered accountant with KPMG, in Nottingham.
He graduated from Nottingham Trent University in 1989 after studying accounting and finance.
Nick went on to become Head of Finance at High Street retailer Matalan. He was also Chief Finance Officer at Britain’s biggest operator of late-night venues Luminar.
For 14 months up to March 2024, Nick was CEO of luxury fashion retailer Matchesfashion. He is currently chairman of the Secret Sales online fashion retailer.
KEY LEADERSHIP TAKEAWAYS FROM NICK BEIGHTON
He tells Mike Sassi…
…a leader must be the coolest person in the room when something goes wrong:
“At ASOS, when something went wrong I would say – guys, it’s just another bump in the road. It’s not failure. It’s something new we’ve learned.”
...it’s important to listen to your mum:
“[When I left school] I wanted to join the Royal Marines. My mum wasn’t blown away! So, when the opportunity came to work in an accounting office, she pushed me into it.”
…successful leaders are always willing to experiment:
“One of our values at ASOS was, never be afraid to turn left when others turn right. If it doesn’t work, you can [stop and] go again.”
…as businesses get bigger, they become less entrepreneurial:
“I was always asking [myself], how do I put entrepreneurialism into the organisation? The best ideas don’t come from the boardroom – they come from your team, and your customers.”
…having a clear purpose helps leaders inspire their staff to follow them:
“I’m an unashamed admirer of capitalism. But purpose drives profit – not the other way round. When you do this, your team understands and follows you.”
…customers want to know about a company’s values and purpose:
“At ASOS, people were wearing our clothes because they wanted to express themselves in a particular way. Customers want to be part of a brand that has something they believe in.”
…a leader must be seen to embody the company’s values:
“When your organisation gets its values right… then you, as the leader, have to adopt them. Otherwise, the organisation calls you out as being full of sh’t!”
…it’s important for leaders to build their communication skills:
“You don’t have to be an extrovert to be a leader. You can be a quiet leader. But you must be a good communicator.”
And his advice to other leaders and would-be leaders?
“Leadership is not a right, it’s a privilege. So, make sure you do something with your leadership. Don’t just sit on it. Use your influence to make change. Don’t wait to be asked what you think!”
RELATED LINKS
• There’s more about Nick Beighton on his LinkedIn profile
• There’s also more about Nick Beighton on fashion news platform Drapers
• Nick Beighton’s exit from Matchesfashion was reported in Retail Gazette
If you enjoyed this episode NBS Business Leaders’ Podcast with Nick Beighton, listen to previous shows with…
• The former Chairman and Chief Exec of Experian Sir John Peace
• The CEO of Capital One UK Lucy Hagues
• International business executive Sir Ken Olisa OBE
Nottingham Business School’s Business Leaders’ Podcast
Episode 49
Ajay Sethi: Mr Tweezerman UK – the public face of a global beauty brand
Summary
Tweezerman is one of the world’s best-known beauty accessory brands – and Ajay Sethi is MD of Tweezerman UK.
Ajay set up his business in the back bedroom of his family home, exactly twenty years ago. He became a joint venture partner with Tweezerman in 2018.
In Episode 49 of the Nottingham Business School’s Business Leaders’ Podcast, Ajay tells Visiting Honorary Professor Mike Sassi about the pressures and pleasures of leading such a high-profile brand.
He also explains why he installed a disco glitter ball in the staff toilets.
Introduction
• Ajay Sethi spent the first fourteen years of his career in sales, with Spillers, Sara Lee and Cork International.
• In 2004 he set up his own business, QVC Global, in the back bedroom of his Nottingham home, selling TRUYU branded beauty accessories to major department stores and retailers.
• German conglomerate the Zwilling Beauty Group bought QVS in 2013 and Ajay became a joint venture partner.
• QVS changed its name to Tweezerman UK in 2018, when Ajay bought the rights to the Tweezerman brand in Britain.
• Tweezerman UK now has 20 staff, based in offices in Edwalton, Nottingham. Last year its turnover was almost £8m.
• Tweezerman’s beauty tools – including tweezers, eyelash curlers, cosmetic brushes and pedicure accessories – are used by A-list actors and celebrities around the world, from Margot Robbie to Molly Mae Hague
• The brand sells in 67 countries. Tweezerman’s premium brand tools are on sale in Harrods and Sefridges. In London.
• British customers have affectionately dubbed Ajay, Mr Tweezerman!
Key leadership takeaways
Ajay told this episode of the NBS Business Leaders’ Podcast about:
…being offered the chance to sell beauty accessories after he was made redundant from a book wholesaler.
“At the time I would have said yes to anything. If you’d asked me to be a horse trader, I would have said yes!”
…the importance, for businesspeople, of finding a gap in the market.
“[When I started selling] I stood in front of the beauty fixture in a major store and had a bit of a moment… I realised they didn’t have any pedicure files – and I had six in my range. I rang the buyer and told her she had a gap… to cut a long story short, we’re still supplying them, 20 years later.”
…the skills required to build a business.
“People do business with people. I spend most of my time trying to get people to engage with me… The most important thing is authenticity.”
…not realising, in the early days of his business, that traders need a VAT number to release imported stock to customers.
“I was told it took up to four weeks to get a VAT number – and I needed the stock that day. I begged, I pleaded, I cried… within two hours I had the number. But I’d never known that kind of pressure. I went into survival mode.”
…the role of a business leader.
“What I do is set out the business culture… I’m a great believer that everything is driven by values. If your value relationships [with staff and customers] don’t work, your business won’t work.”
…Tweezerman’s “funky” offices, with their neon lights, graffiti art and disco glitters balls in the loo.
“I want it to be fun for staff to come to work… and it’s a focus of attention when buyers come to our office. Sometimes they don’t want to leave. We have such a lovely energy.”
…the great potential for growth in his business.
“We’ve grown revenues 300 per cent in the last six years. Revenues are now at £8m – they really should [soon] be £15m. New products, new categories, now customers… I just don’t want to stop!”
…the pressures of being an entrepreneur.
“I have one hundred business ideas a day. Some days I don’t sleep!”
Related links
There’s more about Ajay Sethi on his LinkedIn profile.
The Tweezerman UK website is here.
Ajay is also a trustee of Our Dementia Choir.
Journalist Lynette Pinchess wrote this piece about Tweezerman, for Nottinghamshire Live.
If you enjoyed this episode NBS Business Leaders’ Podcast with Ajay Sethi, listen to previous episodes with…
Two Michelin-starred chef Sat Bains
The CEO of Capital One UK Lucy Hagues
The MD of Xerox UK Darren Cassidy
Nottingham Business School’s Business Leaders’ Podcast
Episode 48
Matt Wallace: Building your own business – and knowing the value of a good podcast
Summary
Fifteen years ago, entrepreneur Matt Wallace was an iMovie hobbyist in a university press office, trying to persuade his boss of the value of video.
Today he runs his own company, Janno Media – making videos, creating podcasts and live streaming for dozens of commercial clients across Britain.
In Episode 48 of the Nottingham Business School’s Business Leaders’ Podcast, Matt tells Visiting Honorary Professor Mike Sassi how he turned his hobby into a business – and how lockdown paved the way for his expansion into podcasts.
Introduction
• In 2012, Matt Wallace founded Janno Media – a company that provides podcasts, live streaming, video, graphics and photography for commercial clients.
• Matt is an alumnus of Nottingham Trent University and served as President of the NTU Student Union in 2004.
• He went on to work in the press office at NTU.
• Matt started Janno Media, aged 30, with a £3000 compensation windfall from being miss-sold a Payment Protection Insurance plan. He bought an iMac, DSLR camera, audio recorder and plug-in microphone.
• Having initially rented an office, Janno started remote working in 2016 (four years before lockdown).
• Janno now has eight staff members and 50 clients, including Santander.
• In collaboration with NTU’s Centre for Broadcasting and Journalism – Janno offers the annual Janno Media Award £5,000 bursary, to a student podcaster who shows promise.
Key leadership takeaways
Matt Wallace said:
On the importance of leading from the front...
“There can be no better way of understanding how your business is evolving than being on the ground, meeting the clients and seeing your staff in action – seeing what works, and what doesn’t.”
On building a business based around video…
“Video used to be something that you wheeled into a room, in a steel cabinet TV with a VHS machine underneath… Once the iPhone became the device, it was clear to me how big video was going to be.”
On the effects of lockdown…
“Everyone had their hand forced in some way by lockdown. As a business owner you had a choice of sitting and taking the furlough payments, waiting for it to blow over… or leaning into the situation and capitalising on an opportunity.”
On creating a podcast for a customer…
“You can’t just assume it will become viral, instantly likeable or highly shareable. You have to understand what the intention is for your customer.”
On the value of a well-crafted podcast…
“It’s not the number of people who listen to it, but rather what you’re able to convey. Even if you only have ten people listening… but they’re all stakeholders or clients… and they understand what you’re saying… and it reinforces why you have value to them… then people appreciate it.”
On the challenges of managing an online, remote workforce…
“Our industry changes daily, with new means and methods of working. We have to keep teams excited about the industry they work in by constantly being responsive to those changes.”
On entrepreneurs seeking a Higher Purpose for their business…
“If your only motivation for running a business is pounds and pence then you’ll very quickly become unmotivated. Because cash ebbs and flows. You need a vision. [You have to ask] what is the wider contribution of what we do?”
On the importance of using your time well…
“Be generous with your time – to yourself, and to other people. Use your time to listen and learn, to develop and grow. Invest your time… and it will reap its own rewards.”
Related links
There’s more about Matt Wallace and Janno Media here…
Matt Wallace chronicles the first ten years of Janno Media here…
Chapter 1: From how to why
Chapter 2: Who you know
Chapter 3: Boring and conventional
Chapter 4: Where our ‘why’ lives
If you enjoyed this episode NBS Business Leaders’ Podcast with Matt Wallace, listen to previous shows with…
The former Chairman and Chief Exec of Experian Sir John Peace
The Vice Chancellor of Nottingham Trent University Professor Edward Peck
Broadcaster, entrepreneur and founder of Boom Radio David Lloyd
Nottingham Business School’s Business Leaders’ Podcast
Episode 47
Darren Cassidy: Leading digital transformation in a global brand built on paper and print
Summary
Darren Cassidy has been with global print tech giant Xerox for 33 years – in 18 different roles.
He’s now the company’s MD in GB and Ireland – and President of its operations in Western Europe.
But in Episode 47 the Nottingham Business School’s Business Leaders’ Podcast, Darren tells Visiting Honorary Professor Mike Sassi that he is as excited now as he was on the first day he walked through the door at Xerox.
During 30 minutes of insightful leadership chat, he talks about learning to change mindsets, the importance of younger staff and becoming an evangelist for transcendental meditation.
He also reveals how, although he is now the MD, he was originally turned down by Xerox after he failed his first interview.
Key leadership takeaways
Darren said:
On managing change in a business…
“One of the biggest things your team needs during a period of change is clarity… clarity of where to place their attention, and where to focus.”
On having the right mindset to perform and do business…
“When you go into a situation you either see opportunities or problems – the difference is massive. Having the right mindset is a skill… [with the right training] we can all get better at it.”
On being able to change the mindset of the people around you…
“It’s one of the biggest skills leaders need today.”
On becoming an evangelist for Transcendental Meditation…
“During the one time in my career when things started to appear dark, my wife announced – You’re going to do this meditation course, I think it will be good for you! And it was. I now do 20 minutes meditation every day.”
On the importance of leaders creating a culture of learning…
“The pace of change means if we’re not learning we’re going backwards fast. Talk to people, be inquisitive. Spend time engaging with what you don’t know.”
On why leaders should always be looking to take on young staff…
“Xerox is a good company to work for… so one of our greatest strengths is the number of people who have been with us for 35 years or more – but at times it’s also our greatest weakness.”
On recognising what you want to do…
“I drifted through school because I wanted to be a professional sportsman… then I realised what I really wanted to do was selling – and everyone told me the best sales company in the world was Xerox.”
On why selling should be better recognised as a skill in business…
“Sales done well is tough to do – but it has high impact.”
On celebrating the success of your staff when they move on…
“I love it when people get bigger jobs and get promoted… it’s the biggest accolade.”
On leaders not surrounding themselves with ‘yes men and women’…
“I pick a team full of people who are brave enough and good enough to tell me to stop… slow down… to challenge me.”
And his advice to young, would-be leaders…
“Learning what you don’t like is just as important as learning what you do like – so go and try things. Don’t take the next, safe option. Take risks!”
Related links
• There’s more about Darren Cassidy’s leadership philosophy, on his LinkedIn pages here.
• The website of Xerox – where Darren is MD of GB&I – is here.
• Darren discusses the Red2Blue strategy of changing mindsets here.
If you enjoyed this episode NBS Business Leaders’ Podcast with Darren Cassidy, listen to previous shows with…
• The former Chairman and Chief Exec of Experian Sir John Peace
• The CEO of Capital One UK Lucy Hagues
• International business executive Sir Ken Olisa OBE
Nottingham Business School’s Business Leaders’ Podcast
Andy Bostock - Leadership and career development insights from KMPG
Episode 46
Summary
Andy Bostock manages more than 1,000 staff as a senior partner with one of the world's Big Four audit companies KPMG. He also leads the annual audits of some of the biggest local councils and hospitals in the Midlands (of the UK).
In discussion with Honorary Visiting Professor Mike Sassi, Andy reflects on three decades with KPMG - and on the need for better funding for local government and the NHS.
He also highlights why local business people must talk up their cities; why staff who want to get on should spend more time in the office; and how the most successful leaders have built their careers on being kind to their colleagues.
Introduction
Andy Bostock is a Senior Partner with KPMG, one of the Big Four professional services companies.
He has been with KPMG for almost three decades – and has been a partner for more than ten years.
Based in Birmingham – from where he manages more than 1,000 staff – Andy’s expertise is in working with the Public Sector.
In recent years, he has audited some of the Midlands’ biggest local councils and NHS hospitals.
Andy is a season-ticket holder at Stoke City and has two sons who are professional and semi-professional footballers, at West Brom and Hanley Town.
Key takeaways from the conversation with Andy Bostock:
On the importance for staff to spend a wedge of their working week in the office…
He says: “If you are a junior person at the firm, where do you get your learning? [From] other people! You don’t get it from a laptop, sitting on your own, at home.”
On the long-running cuts to local, council-run amenities…
He says: “We’ll have to put more funding into some of these services if we value them… and some stronger leadership.”
On headlines created by the ‘bankruptcy’ of Nottingham and Birmingham city councils…
“It’s beholden on us as business leaders to talk up our cities.”
On the leadership benefits of taking on challenges outside your comfort zone…
“When I was younger, I was seconded to the CBI for a year and ended up as bag-carrier to the Director General Sir Richard Lambert. It was a wonderful experience. It took me to a completely different place.”
On what he looks for when he is recruiting new staff…
He says: “It’s all about getting on with people… emotional intelligence and understanding… We focus too much on hard outcomes, like As and stars. It’s the personable bits that make the difference… People don’t appreciate how important these things are.”
Andy’s advice to anyone starting out on a leadership career…
He says: “Be kind! In the world of work… treat people as you would want to be treated yourself. If you’re collegiate and positive, people will always want to work with you.”
Related links
Read more about Andy Bostock on the KPMG website here
Andy Bostock’s LinkedIn profile is here
Andy Bostock’s appointment as senior partner was reported by The Business Desk here
If you enjoyed this episode of the NBS Business Leaders’ Podcast, listen to previous episodes with…
MD of global financial services company Experian Jose Luiz Rossi
Forensic accountant at KPMG Kathryn Wasteney
Global Vice Chair at professional services company EY Errol Gardner
Nottingham Business School’s Business Leaders’ Podcast
Leadership roundtable: The future of business education
Summary
To mark the opening of Nottingham Business School’s new Postgraduate and Executive Education Centre, three experts come together to discuss the future of business education.
They are, the President of the European Foundation for Management Development Professor Eric Cornuel, the Chief Executive of the Chartered Association of Business Schools Flora Hamilton, and the Dean of Nottingham Business School Professor Baback Yazdani.
In a candid discussion hosted by Honorary Visiting Professor Mike Sassi, they talk about impactful research, challenging technologies and why business schools will only be truly successful if they embrace a higher purpose.
They also agree that business schools should be proud to generate the revenues that underpin other university departments.
Introduction
• Professor Eric Cornuel has been President of the prestigious European Foundation for Management Development for more than 15 years.
• During a career spanning more than three decades, Eric has helped establish world-class standards of management education and research in Europe, North America, Asia and Africa.
• His work has set new benchmarks for the impact of management teaching on business practice across the globe.
• Eric has held leadership positions at management schools in Europe and Asia, including HEC Paris and the Catholic University of Louvain.
• He is a fellow of numerous universities – and sits on the boards of several international business organisations.
• In recognition of his outstanding contribution to higher education, Eric has been awarded France’s highest honour, the Légion d’honneur.
• Flora Hamilton is Chief Executive of the Chartered Association of Business Schools.
• The chartered association is an organisation that promotes the UK business schools that offer the most effective support for small business.
• Flora became CEO last year, having previously spent ten years as Director and Head of Financial Services at the CBI.
• Professor Baback Yazdani has been Dean of the Nottingham Business School for 17 years.
• NBS is now the fourth biggest business school in Britain and a global exemplar for the sustainability of its research and education.
• It is also among the one per cent of business schools across the world, recognised by all three international accreditation bodies, EQUIS, the AACSB and the AMBA.
• NBS is a global leader in experiential learning and personalisation of education.
• NBS is also acknowledged as a major innovator in the delivery of its programmes and in its connectivity to business.
Nottingham Business School’s Business Leaders’ Podcast
Leadership roundtable: What is the future of business education?
Episode 45
Summary
To mark the opening of Nottingham Business School’s new Postgraduate and Executive Education Centre, three experts come together to discuss the future of business education.
They are, the President of the European Foundation for Management Development Professor Eric Cornuel, the Chief Executive of the Chartered Association of Business Schools Flora Hamilton, and the Dean of Nottingham Business School Professor Baback Yazdani.
In a candid discussion hosted by Honorary Visiting Professor Mike Sassi, they talk about impactful research, challenging technologies and why business schools will only be truly successful if they embrace a higher purpose.
They also agree that business schools should be proud to generate the revenues that underpin other university departments.
Introduction
• Professor Eric Cornuel has been President of the prestigious European Foundation for Management Development for more than 15 years.
• During a career spanning more than three decades, Eric has helped establish world-class standards of management education and research in Europe, North America, Asia and Africa.
• His work has set new benchmarks for the impact of management teaching on business practice across the globe.
• Eric has held leadership positions at management schools in Europe and Asia, including HEC Paris and the Catholic University of Louvain.
• He is a fellow of numerous universities – and sits on the boards of several international business organisations.
• In recognition of his outstanding contribution to higher education, Eric has been awarded France’s highest honour, the Légion d’honneur.
• Flora Hamilton is Chief Executive of the Chartered Association of Business Schools.
• The chartered association is an organisation that promotes the UK business schools that offer the most effective support for small business.
• Flora became CEO last year, having previously spent ten years as Director and Head of Financial Services at the CBI.
• Professor Baback Yazdani has been Dean of the Nottingham Business School for 17 years.
• NBS is now the fourth biggest business school in Britain and a global exemplar for the sustainability of its research and education.
• It is also among the one per cent of business schools across the world, recognised by all three international accreditation bodies, EQUIS, the AACSB and the AMBA.
• NBS is a global leader in experiential learning and personalisation of education.
• NBS is also acknowledged as a major innovator in the delivery of its programmes and in its connectivity to business.
NOTES
Key takeaways
Eric Cornuel is an advocate for business schools to be moral institutions that perpetuate strong values…
He said: “We [business schools] have to teach respect for stakeholders. We have to get back to our roots. A business school is an academic institution.”
Professor Cornuel believes private business must be “more than just a cash machine”…
He said: “Companies have a role in society… in the middle of an eco-system of stakeholders. Everybody has to take care of everybody[else], otherwise the system simply collapses.”
And Baback Yazdani agrees…
He said: “Companies today are more than just profit-making entities. They need to be guardians of the environment… to respond to societal needs… to play their part…”
Flora Hamilton believes business schools should be proud of the prominent role they play in helping to underpin university finances…
She said: “UK business schools enjoy a fantastic global reputation… That’s why they have been able to step in and bridge the gap where the absence of funding [for other university departments] has been… let’s celebrate that.”
Baback Yazdani highlights how keeping up with technological change is one of the great challenges for universities…
He said: “The time that elapses between invention and adoption used to be 30 or 40 years. It is now just months. Business schools need to understand this – and utilise it.”
Eric Cornuel says management and leadership research undertaken by business schools is often too hypothetical…
He said: “The connection with the reality of management is very doubtful sometimes… Research should be more connected to the current management of organisations.”
Flora Hamilton agrees…
She said: “We have to have a focus on impact… and ask [researchers], why are you doing this? What is the economic impact of that research?”
As does Baback Yazdani…
He said: “Research needs to be linked to the reality of what is happening in society… so we see that the ideas make a difference in the real world.”
So, what does the future hold for UK business schools?
Baback Yazdani said: “We need to be more connected to the world… to our regions… to the people we serve. At the end of the day, we are here to serve society, so our connectivity with it needs to be deeper… so we understand what to produce.”
Eric Cornuel said: “We have to produce sense, through research, then disseminate this sense through the population. And that sense has to be much more than simply being profitable. It is about being a citizen that plays a full part in society.”
Flora Hamilton said: “The future is bright for our world-leading [UK] business schools… because we are able to show the true societal impact of what they can deliver… Universities are about improving lives – and business schools sit at the heart of that.”
Related links:
Find out more about Professor Eric Cornuel here
Read more about Flora Hamilton here
There’s more about Professor Baback Yazdani here
If you enjoyed this episode of the NBS Business Leaders’ Podcast, listen to previous episodes with…
The MD of global financial services company Experian Jose Luiz Rossi
Entrepreneur and broadcaster Michael Hayman MBE
The Vice Chancellor of Nottingham Trent University Professor Edward Peck
NOTES
Key takeaways
Eric Cornuel is an advocate for business schools to be moral institutions that perpetuate strong values…
He said: “We [business schools] have to teach respect for stakeholders. We have to get back to our roots. A business school is an academic institution.”
Professor Cornuel believes private business must be “more than just a cash machine”…
He said: “Companies have a role in society… in the middle of an eco-system of stakeholders. Everybody has to take care of everybody[else], otherwise the system simply collapses.”
And Baback Yazdani agrees…
He said: “Companies today are more than just profit-making entities. They need to be guardians of the environment… to respond to societal needs… to play their part…”
Flora Hamilton believes business schools should be proud of the prominent role they play in helping to underpin university finances…
She said: “UK business schools enjoy a fantastic global reputation… That’s why they have been able to step in and bridge the gap where the absence of funding [for other university departments] has been… let’s celebrate that.”
Baback Yazdani highlights how keeping up with technological change is one of the great challenges for universities…
He said: “The time that elapses between invention and adoption used to be 30 or 40 years. It is now just months. Business schools need to understand this – and utilise it.”
Eric Cornuel says management and leadership research undertaken by business schools is often too hypothetical…
He said: “The connection with the reality of management is very doubtful sometimes… Research should be more connected to the current management of organisations.”
Flora Hamilton agrees…
She said: “We have to have a focus on impact… and ask [researchers], why are you doing this? What is the economic impact of that research?”
As does Baback Yazdani…
He said: “Research needs to be linked to the reality of what is happening in society… so we see that the ideas make a difference in the real world.”
So, what does the future hold for UK business schools?
Baback Yazdani said: “We need to be more connected to the world… to our regions… to the people we serve. At the end of the day, we are here to serve society, so our connectivity with it needs to be deeper… so we understand what to produce.”
Eric Cornuel said: “We have to produce sense, through research, then disseminate this sense through the population. And that sense has to be much more than simply being profitable. It is about being a citizen that plays a full part in society.”
Flora Hamilton said: “The future is bright for our world-leading [UK] business schools… because we are able to show the true societal impact of what they can deliver… Universities are about improving lives – and business schools sit at the heart of that.”
Related links:
Find out more about Professor Eric Cornuel
Read more about Flora Hamilton
Here’s more about Professor Baback Yazdani
If you enjoyed this episode of the NBS Business Leaders’ Podcast, listen to previous episodes with…
The MD of global financial services company Experian Jose Luiz Rossi
Entrepreneur and broadcaster Michael Hayman MBE
The Vice Chancellor of Nottingham Trent University Professor Edward Peck
Nottingham Business School’s Business Leaders’ Podcast. Episode 44
Mary Storrie – Turning a tragedy into something positive
Introduction
• Mary Storrie is CEO of international charity The Rosie May Foundation.
• She and her husband Graham set up the Foundation after their daughter Rosie May was suffocated at a Christmas party near their home in Bottesford, Lincolnshire, in December 2003.
• A 17-year-old boy, who the family knew, was sentenced to life in prison for Rosie’s murder.
• In December 2004, Mary and Graham went on holiday to Sri Lanka, to escape memories of the previous year, and were caught up in the Asian Tsunami.
• More than 230,000 people died in the tsunami. But the couple survived – as did a tiny palm tree they had planted in Rosie May’s memory the previous day.
• In the last 20 years the Rosie May Foundation has raised more than three million pounds to educate children, empower women and help families lift themselves out of poverty.
• It established organisations in Sri Lanka after the tsunami and in Nepal after an earthquake there in 2015.
• It’s first project was building the Rosie May Home for Girls in Sri Lanka, for orphans who lost their parents in the tsunami.
• The Foundarion has also had great success training single-parent mums in Sri Lanka to be tuk-tuk taxi drivers, through its Think Pink campaign.
• Its staff rebuilt schools and established clean drinking water in Nepalese villages destroyed by the earthquake.
• The Rosie May Foundation has offices in Nottingham; Seenigama, Sri Lanka; and Tennyson, Australia.
Key takeaways
• On why Mary set up international charity The Rosie May Foundation…
“The charity has given me a channel for my grief – to turn something tragic into something positive. It’s given me a sense of purpose.”
• On studying for a degree and Masters, while running the Foundation…
“On reflection, [going to university] was the best thing I ever did. It gave me confidence. It opened so many doors for me.”
• On the Foundation’s work to empower women in Sri Lanka…
“We try to get to the root cause of the issue, which is always poverty. We try to get to women before they have no choice but to give their child to an orphanage.”
• On helping women in Sri Lanka to become Pink tuk tuk taxi drivers…
“We wanted to enable women to earn a man’s wage, in a man’s world.”
• On bringing Think Pink taxis to Britain…
“It’s always been my vision to bring the concept here. In the UK, less than three per cent of taxi drivers are women – for no good reason.”
• On the need for leaders like herself to have a succession strategy:
“I had a mentor who said: Tell me, what’s going to happen to your charity if you go under a Number 23 bus tomorrow? I said: Ah…”
• Mary’s advice for other leaders and would-be leaders…
“Push yourself out of your comfort zone. Every day!”
Related links
• Read more about Mary Storrie here
• Read more about Mary’s story here
• Read more about the Rosie May Foundation here
Nottingham Business School’s Business Leaders’ Podcast
Lorna Holder – How successful leaders reinvent themselves
Episode 43
Introduction…
• Lorna Holder is the Managing Director of the Full-Spectrum and Tuareg Productions companies.
• She was born in Jamaica, raised in Nottingham, and became the first black fashion graduate of Nottingham Trent University in 1975
• Lorna started her career as a designer with Birmingham-based House of Lerose – and in the 1980s, was made Head of Fashion at dressmaker Davies & Fields.
• In 2002 she was Executive Producer of the inaugural Black Film and Television Awards.
• She has delivered six Heritage Lottery Fund productions, based on research and oral histories of Caribbean people and other communities in Britain.
• Her productions have included collaborations with the V&A, British Museum, Rich Mix, BFI, Theatre Royal Nottingham and London Metropolitan Archives.
• Lorna’s book, 'Style in My DNA,' chronicles 70 years of British Caribbean fashion.
• Lorna has been a member of the Board of Governors at Nottingham Trent University for more than six years.
The podcast currently has 52 episodes available.