Business brains probe global threat

13/11/03

Business brains probe global threat

Students from across Europe have been getting their heads together to explore ways of minimising the threat of international terrorism to global business. The students, all completing Master of Business Administration courses run by Kingston University, met at a recent workshop held at the institution’s business school.

During the discussions, also attended by students completing MBAs at the university’s Kingston Hill campus, they tackled the challenges of overcoming a range of business-related problems posed by international terrorism. Items on the agenda included policies in response to the risks of an outbreak of war, security threats and cyber terrorism. Strategies for overcoming potential environmental hazards and the difficulties of drawing up a corporate code of ethics when a company’s operations spanned several countries were also debated.

General director of MBA programmes Dr Sonia El-Kahal Maclean said the workshop was designed to prepare students for situations they could easily contend with in their careers. “We wanted to give them examples of real life crises that most managers in global business have to deal with,” she said. “They could well find themselves negotiating with a multicultural team, expected to lead the decision-making process and come up with a solution within a matter of hours.”

During their five-day visit, the European MBA students also visited LloydsTSB and the Bank of England in the City. “This was the first time many of the students had met each other and they really benefited from sharing their ideas and experiences,” Dr El-Kahal Maclean said.

Kingston’s MBA programme, which is accredited by the Association
of MBAs, is delivered in Moscow, the Greek cities of Thessaloniki and Athens and Haarlem in Holland.