Company Culture

The rapidly changing pace and focus of management has to be considered within the context of the organisation and that of its competitors, to gain any relevance or meaning. With this in mind, it may be useful to consider the impact of your organisation’s culture has upon both management style and employees’ involvement in their own company decision making.

Organisational culture has been defined as ‘the way things are done around here.’ Reviewing a company’s culture is not always as simple as it may seem…as any culture is value driven. The origins of most corporate cultures lie in the belief and value systems of its original management, however that was constituted. Hence, we can argue that mission statements, objectives and management style are all predisposed to reflect the dominant values of the company. If you consider your own organisation – the layout, artefacts, even the codes of behaviours taken by employees, will naturally be supportive of the culture.

Cultural Types 

It is interesting to look at the different characteristics associates to the four most frequently used cultural types, placing your organisation either in one dominant culture or across several.

1.Control (Hierarchy) Culture 

•  Mainly found in autocracies and bureaucratic management led organisations 
• Formalised recognised rules/procedures
•  Specialised process 
• Hierarchical structure 
• Communication top-down 
• Promotion through recognised stages 

2. Market (Compete) Culture 

•  Core values of competitiveness and productivity 
• Oriented toward the external environment instead of internal affairs 
• Competitiveness and productivity achieved through external positioning
•  Assumptions that the external environment is hostile rather than benign, consumers are choosy and interested in value
•  Leaders are hard-driving producers and competitors are tough and demanding

 3. Clan (Collaborative) Culture 

•  Shared values and goals, cohesion, participative, individuality 
• Typical characteristics of clan-type firms were teamwork, employee involvement programs, and corporate commitment to employees
•  Rewards on the basis of team (not individual) accomplishment 
• Customers are best thought of as partners 

4. The Adhocracy (Create) Culture

•  Management foster creativity, adaptivity and flexibility 
• Titles, job responsibilities and even departmental alignments change frequently
•  Dynamic environment of skilled individuals 

To accept that organisational culture has a strong identifying influence on both the internal and also the external customer, it is valid to question how managers can shape the motivational behaviour of staff through it. Interestingly, there can be very different interpretations of culture within one organisation, i.e what may be perceived by senior management as a highly effective learning environment, directed through an efficient policy driven management team, might be perceived by lower level staff as an organisation that is confining in terms of training and development opportunities and is disorganised within a confused management structure. This mismatch is not unusual and is often reinforced through a weak communications policy.

Many may remember Ricky Gervais’ character Brent’s motivational endeavours in the ‘Office’. Motivation is a complex and difficult task for management , requiring a need to understand not only the company’s cultural context, but having access to information concerning the extrinsic and intrinsic needs of staff.

Management Style and Staff Motivation 

There are many examples of organisational recognition of the positive relationship between management style influences and motivational behaviour. Central to most are:

• Employee expectations
•  Line management engagement 
• Resources fit for purpose 
• Recognition 
• Communication 

It is useful to reflect upon the findings of theorist Herzberg in the context if staff perception. He suggested that employees do not necessarily become motivated by what they expect to be in place at work, such as: opportunities to work in teams, a fully equipped work station, access to line management and so on. However, if these were not available, the individual may well become demotivated. Thus, it is the ‘extra’ extrinsic or intrinsic opportunities made available that can motivate staff (features such as: new responsibility, training initiatives ,acknowledgement of their work) that positively influence behaviour. But, it is work recognising that what motivates one employee may not another – so what strategies can managers put in place to best access this knowledge?

Many companies have a rigorous performance management (PM) strategy that furnished them with detailed information concerning staff members. How this strategy is perceived by staff, again, depends upon the management communication style and how line managers view their role in the process. Ideally, PM initiatives should be the product of collaborative communication, to engender a more responsive and committed workforce.

In conclusion, the culture of any organisation is the key influence on internal and external perceptions, impacting upon the image and reputation of the company. Driven in many cases by traditional beliefs, management need to be responsive to the changing demands of both the internal and external customer within their particular market, to ensure they maintain or improve their position.

Meryl Bradshaw is senior lecturer in organisational behaviour at Warrington School of Management, University of Chester. 

Warrington Wolves success can be a blueprint for other businesses

THE rise of Warrington Wolves, both as a sporting team and as a business entity has been quite dramatic over that last decade or so.

Their consistency on the pitch, coupled with investment in infrastructure has ensured that they have the appeal and through the Halliwell Jones Stadium the capacity, to draw and cater for an extensive fan-base.

A blueprint for rugby league facilities the creation of the stadium, despite any nostalgic feelings around moving from Wilderspool, represents the intent to grow the biggest club possible.

A shift from terraces to seating, the addition of added on-site leisure facilities, parking and good accessibility makes for a better crowd experience and so a stronger family appeal. The “From Wire 2 Wolves” display and DVD captures a huge shift in the operations, cultural context and business model of this historic entity.

The 130 year plus history of the club is a triumph, as few businesses manage to survive through so many ups and downs over such a period. It is the loyalty of the supporters which has ensured continuity. All businesses should learn from this lesson; build a brand that enough people love and the future should be assured.

Professor Lawrence Bellamy is Associate Dean at Warrington School of Management, University of Chester (Padgate Campus)

Flexible working in a 24/7 culture

Marketing and organisational behaviour lecturer, Stephenie Hodge, from the Warrington School of Management (University of Chester) provides insight into flexible working practices.

There is no disputing that over the last decade organisations of all sizes and sectors have worked in a constant state of change brought on through the recession, expansion of globalisation and the speed in which new technology and social media are testing the skills of even the most effective managers. So how does the manager of the future not only cope with, but thrive in, leading and motivating a team that is aligned with the organisational goals and have a mind-set of managing output, not hours?

A flexible working approach

A major future trend researched by The Institute of Leadership & Management (ILM, 2013) has identified that 94% of UK organisations offer some form of flexible working. 51% of all the managers surveyed expect flexible working to become the norm within five years and recognised as a future global trend. This is proven to be a highly effective incentive to attract and retain talented employees. It empowers the individuals, giving them greater control over their working week; increasing their engagement, productivity levels which in turn reflects positively to the brand image of the organisation. Their autonomy creates a corporate personality and helps to identify and verify the company’s values, therefore achieving the ‘buy-in’ to the culture and psychological contract.

Individual’s values and perspective on working life has changed; they don’t buy into the job for life concept anymore and would rather have the option to adjust their work/life balance to best suit their personal circumstances. Therefore, flexible work options can also be used as a trade-off against a salary increase, which may suit or be the only option available to an employer.

This research is further endorsed by Kingston University/Ipsos MORI who found that ‘workers on flexible contracts tend to be more emotionally engaged, more satisfied with their work and more likely to speak positively about their organisation and less likely to leave (CIPD, 2014)

Leadership and management

However, before this approach can even be considered the 2020 manager will not only have to be agile and adaptive, but also that the fundamentals of good leadership and management will matter more than ever.

52% of managers agree that skills such as communication, delegation, goal-setting and motivation are vital when operating with less time and in a more complex working environment (ILM, 2014). Trust and transparency are key as the flexible working approach has to be seen as fare and consistent and be embraced by the organisation and not seen a career limiting option.

There will be yet more on-going cultural changes due to the social and demographic shift, so a different hybrid breed of manager is required that still possess the traditional skills and qualities, but is equipped with a modern mind-set and approach (ILM, 2014).

Generation Y

There is now an expectation from our up and coming generation that this freedom and autonomy goes hand in hand with their ambitions. They are very much motivated by money, status and career advancement and do not perceive working in a flexible manner as impeding their promotion or dedication. This does not mean that they don’t want to work as hard or as long as required, but in a different working format to enable more a work life balance. This mind-set of changing working patterns needs to be embraced by employers or they could be missing out on new talent to take their business forward.

What is the payback?

If managed correctly, the payback will be built around a stakeholder relationship approach:-

·         The individual-Self-motivated and empowered which leads to a natural drive and commitment to the team effort.

·         The manager-Managing a contented team with an ethos which is aligned with the organisational values, therefore reassured that the job is being done to the best of its ability with no conflict acting as a barrier.

·         The customer & external stakeholders-The vision for transparency leads to collaboration and mutual trust which can bring a true competitive edge.

·         The organisation-Will be viewed as holistic and modern forward thinking in their approach. It holds potential value as a recruitment, engagement and retention tool; as well a great brand endorser.

Managers who are prepared to trust in their team and think differently can model the way into making flexible working the norm, will be the ones who are remembered not just as managers but as great managers.

Top of Form

Profit or Cash - which is more important?

Jim Stockton, Senior Lecturer in Finance at the Warrington School of Management (University of Chester), discusses profitability and liquidity planning – essential elements for every business to succeed!

Introduction

There are many reasons why these failures occur-some relate to the lack of a coherent business strategy, some to the absence of a focussed market research but many are simply due to the absence of some rudimentary financial planning, or to be blunter, basic budgeting. This brief article seeks to point out some fundamentals on this often neglected skill or to quote Monty Python the “bleedin obvious”!

Budgeting

Budgets are generally regarded as having at least five areas of usefulness:-

• Budgets tend to promote forward thinking and the identification of short term problems
• Budgets can help, in larger businesses to co-ordinate activity and ensure a common understanding exits on priorities-for example there is little point in the sales team aiming to deliver optimistic targets if the production team have a different aim in mind
• Budgets can motivate managers and staff to improve performance if “stretch “ goals are set
• Budgets can help control a business-simply put does actual performance, measured monthly, compare favourably or adversely with the budget?
• Budgets can also act as a means to authorise spending within a business

The purpose of this article is to concentrate on the difference between profit and cash flow or, put another way, highlight the fact that profitability AND liquidity are opposite sides of the same coin when it comes to business survival. Business may fail through lack of profitability but its running out of cash that actually sends them to the wall. Indeed it is entirely possible for a profitable business to go bust by failing to pro-actively manage cash flow (known as overtrading)

Profitability

Let’s consider some basics-business has to generate profit in the medium to long term-after all, in our capitalist society, that is what it is all about-why take the risk otherwise? Business entrepreneurs see an opportunity in the market place to launch a product or service and to do so in a way that will generate a profit possibly with an idea or expertise that others will find difficult to copy. A business plan can be developed around this which should be capable of being expressed in financial terms-in other words- a profit forecast based on the sales compared to the cost of those sales. All pretty straightforward so far hopefully.    This forecast or budget can and should be expressed over a reasonable time scale and should be as detailed as possible especially in the early days of the business-certainly for the coming year (broken down into months) and hopefully for another two years after that in order to give a reasonable perspective on the future of the business.. Let’s assume our small business compiles a profit forecast and that it looks reasonable-losses can be incurred in the early months as long as the longer term position indicates future profitability on a sustained basis. This profit projection can be enhanced by compiling a forecast balance sheet which will indicate:-

• The assets the business will own
• The liabilities it will generate
• The impact on the owners initial and subsequent investment

It is important at this stage to differentiate between the long term (investment in fixed assets such as premises, machinery and vehicles) and shorter term assets such as stock, debtors and free cash). Equally a distinction needs to be made between short term financing obtained by trade credit from suppliers and an authorised bank overdraft and longer term funding via a formal bank loan for example.

Cash flow/liquidity

It’s at this point where the cash flow forecast becomes important-even vital. Our profit forecast can and should indicate business profitability based on the assumptions made by the owner of the business. However the next question to be asked is how does this affect cash flow going forwards? Just because the profit forecast is positive does not mean that the business will generate a positive cash flow and enable the business to meet its short term liabilities which includes those nice people from HM Revenue and Customs as well as suppliers to the business. The profit forecasts need to be converted into cash flow forecasts that take account of:-

• Credit terms to be granted to customers
• Credit terms obtained from suppliers
• Stock holding levels to prevent stock outs but avoid overstocking
• Investment in longer terms business assets
• Use of any agreed overdraft facility
• Longer term financing facilities

Plugging this information into our cash flow forecast should reveal any problem areas regarding whether the business will run out of money or need to increase any of its financing sources i.e. additional overdraft facilities, a longer term loan arrangement or increased investment in the business from the owner. At this point, it should become clear whether the business has a chance of financial survival or whether a complete rethink is required concerning the business assumptions built into the profit forecasts. Sometimes numerous iterations are required (know rather grandly as “sensitivity analysis”) in order to arrive at a business plan that meets the business owners’ aspirations but is also grounded in commercial reality as far as the generation of cash is concerned.

Summary

This article is necessarily brief and skips conveniently over numerous issues in order to deliver a fundamental point-(remember Monty Python above?). Business must financially plan to in order to succeed and that planning must involve profit planning and liquidity planning. One without the other is a business disaster waiting to happen.  

  Jim Stockton, Senior Lecturer in Finance at the Warrington School of Management (University of Chester)    



    

Straightforward & quite useful read on starting a business RT @InCheshireMag: Profit or cash? Which is more important http://t.co/nHSnOqkj7I
— Matt@NooksYard (@NooksYardCider) April 28, 2014

Warrington Businesses set to benefit from the International Festival of Business

THE International Festival of Business 2014 will be held in and around Liverpool during June and July.

The aim of this event is to boost international business opportunities and focus on regions of the world; China, India, USA, Asia, Europe and South America during different weeks.

Sector themes include Energy, Finance, Logistics, Manufacturing, Maritime, Creative and Digital Industries, Science, Technology, Research, Education and Enterprise.

The north west is well-recognised for these.

This will be a huge event, with 50 days of workshops, presentations, expert advice and networking activities to attend.

The City of Liverpool will be putting on an extensive cultural programme too, to showcase itself as a leading business and leisure destination.

So if your neighbour in the big house next door is having a party then you’d better make sure that you have an invite!

Warrington businesses are well-placed to benefit from the opportunities which this event will bring.

Energy, Manufacturing and Logistics industry clusters lead, not only in the region but also internationally.

Warrington businesses should not only be attending, but should be putting themselves forward within workshops, on stands, displays, volunteering their expertise and raising their profile with the international attendees.

Let’s make it IFB Warrington.

Professor Lawrence Bellamy is Associate Dean at Warrington School of Management, University of Chester (Padgate Campus)

Do you feel like your business needs a boost? 

Ignite Business Club is a unique initiative set up by Warrington School of Management to help local organisations access the extensive network of expertise available at the University.

Find out more here

Can you hear the employee ‘voice’?

There has been a lot of interest in the business news recently around the idea of ‘employee engagement’. This is not a new initiative; it has been an agenda item for government and organisations for a number of years now writes Meryl Bradshaw.

The recent recession highlighted the need for organisations to create a sense of belonging and loyalty in the workforce, required to sustain retention of key skills and knowledge. The thinking behind this is that a feeling of belonging would maintain a sense of stability, even where pay-cuts/ freezes, and the possible threat of redundancy were present. Therefore, engaged employees are far more likely to support the management’s efforts to cost cut and where called for, do more for less.

Cultural Change

To move towards an employee engagement policy, management may have to recognise that cultural change is necessary, and to achieve this they need to work closelywith all staff members.

This common approach will be the starting point in establishing an employee voice, which is led by senior management and endorsed by line managers.

Indeed, it can be argued that the success of employee engagement is in the hands of well trained and committed line managers, to drive, guide and feedback to staff. It can therefore be justifiably stated that culture engages or in reality disengages staff.

When management recognise that the workforce needs to be ‘on board’ with the corporate vision through an engaged level of commitment, it naturally falls to HR to make this possible.

For example, HR can ensure that line managers have the right skills training to be able to support the policy. It is far more beneficial to have a line manager who can regularly communicate with teams, offering levels of autonomy, rather than being controlling with limited staff feedback.

Supporting this is the necessity to understand that job satisfaction is only a part of engagement, employees’ behaviour and their expectations fall in line with what they see and hear within their work environment. Managers then should acknowledge that staff and customer attitude is based on how they see themselves as being treated. Hence, if staff feel ‘engaged’ they will behave accordingly.

Staff Surveys

When an organisation has committed to an engagement policy, the question of

‘How do staff feel now?’ and ‘How can this be measured?’ arise. In order to answer these questions most organisations chose to identify the current levels of engagement. Again, this task should be led by HR and senior

management; how it is organised is again a management decision based on advice.

Many organisations choose to ascertain current staff attitude through a staff survey.

However, to make sure the responses are useful to the organisation, it is important to inform all staff of the reasons behind why it is being produced, and their role in

the process.

The responsibility for informing staff of the value of the survey and what staff can expect to get from it, again will come down to the line managers, HR, and in some cases the union.

Many companies chose to outsource the whole process of employee surveys to specialist suppliers; this does not preclude those who wish to maintain an in-house approach however, providing the skills are available to do so. If a supplier is the preferred choice, the company will need to work closely with them to ensure they are clear about their objectives and expectations for the survey itself. A pay-off in deciding to outsource is the acknowledgement of confidentiality for staff, thereby encouraging honest participation; this may not be so for the in-house survey.

The evidence of monetary investment in this process also affirms for staff, the commitment that management have to

the policy. The use of specialist suppliers allows benchmarking against comparable organisations, a useful resource for management decision making.

There are many different categories that

could be included within such a survey,

for example:

• Day-to-day working life

• Training

• Values

• Line management effectiveness

• Teamwork

• Flexible working

• Job clarity

• Workload

• Career development

These are generally fixed within three

discrete sections:

1. A demographic section

2. An opinion section

3. A space free for comments

Most surveys measure engagement by rating scales, which are answered by tick boxes, for example, strongly agree to strongly disagree.

Different systems can be utilised to distribute the survey, but most are now carried out online through the company

intranet, with employees being sent emails linked to the questionnaire.

The initial survey will enable management to identify areas for possible change / development within the company. The very fact that senior management are recognised as implementing such a scheme and the appreciation of why it is being introduced may well boost initial engagement.

Companies that have used a third part supplier can expect to receive a break- down of results.

These results are usually presented to the senior management team initially.

For example by ‘Headliners’ followed by departmental and then through the sectors, such as demographics.

Managers can chose to hold team meetings at local level to present significant results for discussion. It is important to review results with staff, enabling them to offer their thoughts and feedback to the management team. The evidence of action taken from the comments made is vital for the process of engagement to be recognised as upheld by staff.

It may be said therefore, that any company that is actively looking to support their employees’ engagement, needs to carefully consider what the core values of the organisation are, and how they are evidenced in the culture of that organisation. If there is any cause for concern, for example in internal communication, there are strategies available to help in securing a strongly committed workforce.

Meryl Bradshaw is Academic Lead and Senior Lecturer in HR at Warrington School ofManagement, University of Chester. 

Do you feel like your business needs a boost?

Warrington School of Management is launching Ignite Business Club on Wednesday 26th March  - an initiative designed to help businesses increase sales through: a business diagnostic, ongoing webinars and master classes, access to grants and a mentoring network. 

This launch event is free to attend and provides local business people with the opportunity to network and find out more about the Business Club. You will also get the opportunity to hear the inspirational story of local entrepreneur, Adrian Lomas who set up his business from a spare room in his house to grow it into one of the most successful digital agencies in the UK, with a multi-million pound turnover.

Book your ticket now

Success and Failure in Small Firms: Take a SMaRRT Approach

Small firms are the backbone of the UK economy; they account for around 99% of all
registered firms and employ 50% of all workers. Professor Lawrence Bellamy provides
expert advice on how small companies can ensure strategic success.

Despite decades of research on small firms, there is still a lot to learn about when it comes to success and failure. Whilst there are no easy answers, there are some indicators - common mistakes made and examples of good practice. Most of these can be linked back to strategic awareness and the ability to operationalise ideas. One way to consider these is to use the SMaRRT acronym:

STRATEGY

The ‘market’ is constantly changing. What worked one month may not work the next. Small firms don’t suffer from the ‘oil tanker’ problems that large firms do and, therefore, one of their key strengths is
adaptability (but they need to be alert to new possibilities). Trade magazines and journals often provide information on key industry changes and new technical developments; this information is useful but tends to be historical. The most up to date information tends to come from key customers and suppliers - by maintaining contact, you can gather data on a daily basis, enabling you to respond to market changes (but
you need to review what you are finding and check it with other information too).

Do your research!

Whilst it is important to deal with the day to day, it’s also important not to lose sight of the ultimate goal. Having a long-term vision allows you to view key decisions as steps towards an ultimate objective. Are
the things you are doing moving you in the right direction? As the business develops, your knowledge grows and the market evolves it may be reasonable to adjust your long-term direction. Whatever you decide, try to
make your offering distinctive. Why should customers choose you?

MANAGEMENT

Lack of management skills are often cited as the root of many problems when it comes to success and failure in small firms. It is an easy assumption to make, as you can always criticise a business after something goes wrong and blame the management. However, this area can be broken down into specifics - delegation
is a big problem for many owner-managers. They have started the business, built-up the customer base and probably done most of the roles within the firm. They hate to let go!

If it is a specialist task, then employ a specialist. Release your time to work on something else of
importance and which you are good at. Planning, innovation, budgeting, people skills and
managing risk are also important.

RISK

Manage the downside: in approaching any situation think about the risk involved and
how it can be minimised. Making a significant purchase? Could you dispose of it easily and what would it be
worth? Would it be better to lease? Taking on new staff? If the projects they are working on don’t go forward then can they be reallocated? Would you be better outsourcing that operation?

Get your planning right and reduce the chances of failure. Run through scenarios when making key decisions; if ‘A’ happens, how could we respond? Could we prevent this from occurring? Use specialist insurance if you need to. If you are lacking experience, then use a mentor to assist you. Build up your personal ‘knowledge bank’ and prevent yourself being ‘blindsided’ by an event; critical thinking skills are crucial.

RESOURCES

Finance, for small firms, is probably the largest single problem cited as a cause for failure. This can occur in a number of ways - liquidity problems occur simply because the time it takes customers to pay the firm is greater than the time you take to pay your suppliers (i.e. cash flow). In bridging the gap, firms fail to manage their debtors-creditor balance well and banks are often less helpful than they might wish for.

Small firms also tend to be underinvested; ‘make do and mend’ rather than invest in equipment which will make you twice as productive. Assess your investments carefully and look at the payback. Firms
really need to get a handle on what their fixed and variable costs are, especially in set up or growth phases when these can change dramatically. Monitoring and budgeting is crucial. When it comes to equipment (whether it’s for IT, your fleet or anything else), you need to have a renewal plan. Old kit is potentially unreliable and less productive than new. However, new kit depreciates quickly and financing costs can be high.

If you are running large premises plan your maintenance and if times are hard, you can leave replacement and renewal a little longer without too much detriment. People make your company perform well… invest in them. It’s not always about the money either; try to engage your employees by letting them try new tasks, recognising them with encouragement and personally engaging with them. Get to know your staff
and what motivates them - can you use the information within their job design?

TARGETS

Organise your firm through targets and measure them: new business gained, margin achieved, output levels, cost reduction, response time. Measure the things which matter, though. Break your business down into periods of operation and assign projects for completion within them, e.g. development of new products,
website update, IT upgrade, new area promotion, customer account review. Whilst running the day to day, projects will take the organisation forward. Cascade targets down to your employees and get them involved in the challenge, with appropriate support.

Ultimately, all owner-managers get to a point where they feel that it’s time for something new. So you also need to have an exit strategy. After all if you can be successful in one business, why not three
or four? There is always a right time to move on if you’re working SMaRRT.

Professor Lawrence Bellamy is Associate Dean at the Warrington School of Management, University of Chester Warrington (Padgate) Campus.

Do you feel like your business needs a boost?

Warrington School of Management is launching Ignite Business Club on Wednesday 26th March  - an initiative designed to help businesses increase sales through: a business diagnostic, ongoing webinars and master classes, access to grants and a mentoring network. 

This launch event is free to attend and provides local business people with the opportunity to network and find out more about the Business Club. You will also get the opportunity to hear the inspirational story of local entrepreneur, Adrian Lomas who set up his business from a spare room in his house to grow it into one of the most successful digital agencies in the UK, with a multi-million pound turnover.

Book your ticket now

Warrington's World Class Industry

Warrington's nuclear industry is world-class.

You can measure by expertise, key projects delivered, innovations produced, finances and demand.  When the Japanese Fukushima Nuclear plant disaster hit in 2011 Warrington firms were called.

The nuclear jobs market (with salaries typically at £35K plus for technical roles) indications the health of the sector. This industry has been built up through decades of research, training and project experience. However the success of the industry is not just about nuclear applications; the broader supply chain is also critical.

The Warrington area also has chemicals, petrochemicals, biotechnology, automotive and high tech manufacturing elements. These industries all need engineering, logistics, project management, process control, metrology, scientific research and many other specialist shared skills and expertise.

The supply chains of these clusters support each other and so when one declines the others can feel the impact. Nearby AstraZeneca and Hewlett-Packard (Birchwood) job losses mean a migration of expertise from the area, if employees cannot find jobs quickly locally. Success breeds success.

Warrington is part of the 'knowledge economy' and keeping the knowledge here is critical. So what can be done to make Warrington more attractive to investors?

Professor Lawrence Bellamy is Associate Dean at the Warrington School of Management, University of Chester Warrington (Padgate) Campus.

STOP PRESS:

The Warrington School of Management is launching an exciting new business service that will include events and ‘Master Classes’ to help small and medium sized businesses grow. If you are interested in registering for more information, or would like to come to our launch event on Wednesday 26th March please send your details to Beth Morris at ignite@chester.ac.uk

Could HS2 make travel worse in Warrington?

The HS2 rail development takes another turn this week as some northern towns, both sides of the Pennines, are starting to get cold feet. Over in Yorkshire Wakefield will have no station under the development, but all the hassle of the track passing close-by.

Warrington, whose current rail connections are fair, could find that by not being served with the new development, finds its own lines and services downgraded.

The build of HS2 is one thing, the use is another. In terms of the build the strong civil engineering skills of Warrington companies will play a significant part in the development, boosting the local economy.

However once the build is finished a downgraded local service could be an outcome.

The scale of HS2 makes it a political battleground, with opposing parties battling for advantage over the contentious project.

So should Warrington move to oppose HS2 and lobby for an upgrade to existing services?

It would be cheaper, it would be quicker to build and it would directly benefit the town in use rather than indirectly through the network. It’s a tough call, but just like the track, a long way to go yet.

Professor Lawrence Bellamy is Associate Dean at the Warrington School of Management, University of Chester Warrington (Padgate) Campus.

STOP PRESS:

The Warrington School of Management is launching an exciting new business service that will include events and ‘Master Classes’ to help small and medium sized businesses grow. If you are interested in registering for more information, please send your details to Beth Morris at ignite@chester.ac.uk

New University Technical College will give Warrington what it has been missing

The multi-million bid for the Warrington University Technical College has been successful. In September 2015 the first intake of students will be entering the brand new purpose-built building in the Stadium Quarter of Warrington.

 The UTC is sponsored by the University of Chester with strong support from Warrington Borough Council and local employers including Sellafield Ltd, Tenet, Nuvia and AMEC. Warrington-based companies need the technical skills that these new workers will have for their businesses to be successful.

 My own engineering education benefited from a mix of work experience, use of workshop facilities in a local college and laboratory provision at a polytechnic. I had to travel to access these. The UTC will make these elements accessible for 14-19 year olds in Warrington.

 It will give students a strong grounding in maths, science and English (expectations for academic standards are high) and specialist knowledge critical for the success of UK technology and engineering industry. As an employee of the university and an engineer it will give me immense pride to see this project take shape and students receive quality education of a type that simply has not been available before.

Professor Lawrence Bellamy is Associate Dean at the Warrington School of Management, University of Chester Warrington (Padgate) Campus.

STOP PRESS:

The Warrington School of Management is launching an exciting new business service that will include networking events and ‘Master Classes’ to help small and medium sized businesses grow. If you are interested in registering for more information, please send your details to Beth Morris at b.morris@chester.ac.uk

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In this issue:  Students visit Everton FC | A final year student says | Work placements | Business speakers Email not displaying correctly? View in your browser Business Management Newsletter - February 2014 Thank you for your interest in Business Management at the University of Chester. Whilst you are considering your options we aim to give you a flavour of our programme and the approach that we, the teaching team, take in guiding and supporting students through the process of becoming successful graduates. We have some interesting stories and snippets below to start the journey. Don’t forget that you can visit us to find out more at one of our forthcoming Applicant Days. Book your place now Students enjoy a Premier start to Warrington stay Business Management students recently visited Everton Football Club to experience first-hand the importance of connecting business theory and business practice and how this is applied in a dynamic, exciting environment. Read more A Final Year Student Says... "The Business tutors are second to none. They make sure you know exactly what is expected and help you every step of the way.   "Doing a Business Management course at the University of Chester has really opened my eyes to the amount of possibilities there are when I graduate."   Kayleigh Miller Employers meet undergraduates and get involved in classes... Business lecturers have been collaborating with the Department of Careers and Employability to bring in external speakers from industry to provide a ‘real-life’ perspective to curriculum delivery.  Hearing from employers gives students the chance to enhance their commercial awareness by gaining a ‘real-world’ view of their subject and an understanding of the challenges faced and the strategies used within the workplace. Hearing from a range of companies can also help broaden students’ awareness of career options after they graduate. Catherine Rawcliffe, Talent Acquisition Specialist at Enterprise Rent-A-Car tells us: "It is important for students to network and learn best practice from the world of work. Enterprise Rent-A-Car spend a lot of time with students at the University's Chester and Warrington Campuses. Across the academic year we have helped students develop employability skills and commercial awareness, which is invaluable to the students and helps them prepare skills needed for their career search and future career development. Enterprise Rent-A-Car have enjoyed building relationships with both students and staff. It is a great opportunity for us to spot talent, keep the talent pipeline open and, in turn, select the best people for our Management Trainee roles." Work Based Learning All students have a work placement as an integral part of their programme of study. Nauman Wasif, tells us: "I had a great time working with Oxfam for my Work Based Learning, and not only did I get an opportunity to observe management in practice, but I also came out with influential contacts and priceless learning experiences. It's a great opportunity for students to network with prospective employers and share experiences with people who've been in the industry for a long time whilst establishing long term relationships." Read More about Work Based Learning Applicant Days Book your place for one of our Applicant Days now and see for yourself what makes Chester so unique. Book Now Follow the Warrington School of Management Facebook Twitter Blog Website Follow the University of Chester Facebook Twitter Website Get in Touch: Course Enquiries: Andrea Harper 01925 534325 a.harper@chester.ac.uk General Enquiries: 01244 512800 visitus@chester.ac.uk If you no longer want to receive emails from us you can unsubscribe.