Innovative debates on New Social Media
Last week, the CEMS students at NHH kicked off the new academic year by participating in one of the three pillars of the CEMS programme: the CEMS block seminar. The theme for this year's seminar was Social Media, a topic that was debated by students and academic staff at NHH, and corporate representatives.
30.08.2011 - Carmen Codreanu
The block seminar is part of the CEMS programme along with the skills seminar and business projects. It starts the academic year for CEMS students, and the theme changes from one year to the next, depending on what is topical and what students are interested in.
The title of this year's seminar was 'Corporate use of social media: impact on branding, identity and profit.' It was held in Voss, and the students were given both an academic and corporate perspective on the topic.
The seminar was closely linked to corporate innovations in the use of social media. It focused on many important aspects, especially from a business point of view.
A symbol of quality
Tor Aase Johannessen, CEMS Academic Director, explained how NHH started the CEMS programme and how it has subsequently developed: 'The idea was that the business schools in Europe would form a community and cooperate on exchange students. The first schools in the network were in Milan, Paris and Barcelona. NHH joined in 1992, and we were happy about that, as only one business school in each country participates in the CEMS alliance - the best business school.'
'Later on, the programme was extended overseas and, while this could complicate things, the results have been positive all in all. The students have changed from the previous years - they are better now due to the strict selection process,' Johannessen adds.
Anita Fjuk, a director in Telenor Development, underlines this view: 'I didn't know that the students were on such a high level, I think that's why they are CEMS students.'
Different people sharing common values
Micael Ueland is a CEMS student at NHH. He found the block seminar inspiring and stimulating.
The block seminar has become a multicultural event with participants from all over the world. Students made the most of this cultural diversity and were eager to meet their fellow participants.
In the following, some of the participating students share their views about the CEMS block seminar:
'The experience was stimulating: I met people from different cultures, and it was interesting to hear their views and about how they work. Students have shown that they have a lot to offer and hopefully we have something to offer, too,' says Micael Ueland, a Norwegian CEMS student at NHH.
'The block seminar was an enriching experience because of its intensity and because it was packed with content. It was a chance to get a good grasp of Norwegian culture, values and style of working, which is very useful to us, the students,' says Elena Trofimova, CEMS student from Russia.
She continues: 'It is a social experiment in a nice way that brings together cosmopolitan and open-minded people. I call them citizens of the world because they want to explore new countries and people, and they push their own boundaries.'
'The thing that I really like is that we are so different in terms of skin colour, physical characteristics and language, but in the end we realise that we share the same values and thoughts and that is amazing,' says Irina Chitic, CEMS student from Moldova.
CEMS Block - seminar programme
Elena Trofimova, a Russian student from the Graduate School of Management St.Petersburg University (to the left) and Irina Chitic from Moldova, a student at Rotterdam School of Management, were pleased with the multicultural environment and lectures at the block seminar
The block seminar started on Monday 22 August with an academic introduction to developments and challenges in relation to social media, and went on to examine businesses' use of social media, with the emphasis on ethics.
Further analysis included social media in businesses' internal and external communication, new ways of working with social media, and empirical findings relating to customers' experience.
The students were divided into groups. They got together to discuss important issues of the day and to solve assignments set by the presenters.
The lectures were given by NNH professors and corporate representatives from Accenture, NRK, Statoil and Telenor. They included a video conference with one of the representatives from Statoil.
The students also participated in team-building activities that fostered close contact among the students.
The seminar concluded on Friday 26 August with a 'take home exam' consisting of an open case to be answered individually.
Students impressed by the lecturers
Jose Maria Bou is a Spanish student at ESADE who is currently running his own business. He is now looking forward to applying what he learned at the block seminar to his own company
'The academics and corporate representatives have proven that they have wide experience and you can really trust them. They encouraged us to share ideas, and this way of working has proved to be very positive,' says Jose Bou, a CEMS student from Spain.
Micael Ueland found the event and the lecturers inspiring: 'Everyone was interested and engaged. I really liked the business perspective and that the best people were sent to lecture us.'
Student Elena Trofimova shares the enthusiasm about the lecturers: 'They didn't just describe the business process, they also shared their emotions and passions with us.'
In this picture Svein Arne Enes, Senior Consultant from Statoil explains "Social Media in Internal Communication"
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