2011 News
On this page:
- Constructing Workplace Democracy: Women's Voice in New Zealand Public Service
- International Society For Professional Innovation Symposium
- ANZAM 25th Annual Conference - December 7 - 9 Wellington
- Dragon's Den Consultancy Challenge
- Robots May Dominate Rugby by 2050
- Envisioning The Future For World Tourism Day
- New VMS Courses: HRIR 320, MGMT 320 and 321
Constructing Workplace Democracy: Women's Voice in New Zealand Public Service
6 June 2011
Dr Noelle Donnelly, Dr Sarah Proctor-Thomson and Dr Geoff Plimmer from the Industrial Relations Centre in the Victoria Management School at Victoria University of Wellington recently presented the findings of their survey Women's Voice in New Zealand Public Service to the PSA Women's Network.
The full report can be found on the PSA website.
A Radio New Zealand interview, Survey puts unpaid overtime at worth a thousand plus jobs, including comment from Dr Geoff Plimmer, can be found on the Radio New Zealand website.
International Society For Professional Innovation Symposium
6 July 2011
This symposium will bring together business people, consultants, policy makers and academics interested in harnessing innovation to improve firm productivity and competitive advantage. We are expecting a large contingent of international participants, particularly from Europe, ISPIM's homebase. The following link provides further information: ISPIM Symposium
ANZAM 25th Annual Conference - December 7 -9 Wellington
6 July 2011
25th Annual Australian and New Zealand Academy of Management Conference (ANZAM).
We were looking forward to welcoming you to Christchurch in December, but the February 22nd earthquake changed all that. While the University of Canterbury is largely undamaged, it will be some time before it is back to its beautiful parkland state.
So, we now look forward to welcoming you to Wellington in December to join us in celebrating the 25th ANZAM Conference, centered around beautiful Te Whanga-nui-a-Tara (Wellington Harbour).
Despite the change of venue, we still promise you a warm Kiwi welcome, and a friendly, relaxed event in which you can develop and share your research, recharge your networks and make new friends and research partners. We can also promise you fantastic Kiwi wines and cuisine and some of the world's most spectacular and unspoilt landscapes, should you choose to stay on for a few days after the conference.
Although the conference is still being hosted by the University of Canterbury, we would like to acknowledge the generous support of Victoria University of Wellington and Massey University. The conference follows on from the ANZAM doctoral workshop which will be held on the 5th and 6th of December at the Wellington Campus of Massey University.
Please join us in the Cultural Capital of New Zealand in December 2011.
Associate Professor Kevin Voges (University of Canterbury)
Associate Professor Bob Cavana (Victoria University of Wellington) - Conference Co-Chairs
For further information, please click on the link provided: ANZAM Conference
Dragon's Den Consultancy Challenge
2 September 2011
P>The first Victoria MBA "Dragon's Den Consultancy Challenge" occurred during August 2011. The "dragons" this year were CEO's Colin McDonald, (NZ Land Information) and Rosemary Hannah-Parr, (The Leadership Centre); CIO, Glen Willoughby, (Hutt Valley DHB) and Andrew Gibbs (Partner, Deloitte's). The challenge for the MBA student groups was to interview one of the Dragon's in their work environment, develop an understanding of a problem faced in the dragon's organization, and create a 'pitch' outlining how the problem could be solved.
Faced with the difficult issue of how to consolidate and gain economies of scale across a range of non-clinical functions (including information services) for six very diverse District Health Boards in the Central Region, the winning team Kieran Nolan, Kieran Sims, Josh Borgia and Karsten Klusemann suggested a two phase approach including benchmarking against best practice both within and outside the sector and creating a new organisational design and governance leadership.
Robots May Dominate Rubgy by 2050
6 September 2011
Elite athletes with bionic implants, built-in chips to monitor their performance and shirts embedded with nanotechnology medicines to heal minor injuries could be taking the field for the 2051 Rugby World Cup. They'll be refereed by robots and watched by spectators lounging in the comfort of a luxury hotel bedroom overlooking the pitch.
That's the prediction of Victoria University Associate Professor Dr Ian Yeoman, who has been examining how New Zealand will dominate the world of rugby in another four decades.
It may sound like science fiction, but Dr Yeoman says many of the technologies needed to turn his vision into reality already exist or are being developed.
Take the prospect of elite, cyborg-style professional athletes-beings that are half human and half robot. Dr Yeoman says genetic engineering has given us the means to create designer babies and the technology is already widely used in sports such as horse racing.
He says implants are becoming more common for organs, bones and limbs and are increasingly accepted in the field of professional sport. He cites, for example, South African double amputee Oscar Pistorius qualifying to compete in the 2012 London Olympics using carbon fibre prosthetic running blades.
"We're also developing the means to create highly advanced nanobots (microscopic robots) capable of entering the bloodstream to feed cells and extract waste. Humans who have been injected with these nanobots will evolve into cyborgs and would make outstanding athletes," says Dr Yeoman.
The significant advances taking place in nanotechnology are likely to lead to development of fabric that can destroy airborne germs and pollutants according to Dr Yeoman.
"We are already using antimicrobial technology in shoes to keep them clean and prevent athlete's foot."
He says some sports consultants are predicting that injuries could eventually become almost non-existent due to advances in gene therapy and the ability to use sensor technology to predict an injury before it occurs.
Advances in nutrition and other areas of science will also impact on player health and performance. "New therapies will cut recovery times from injury by up to 300 percent and we can look forward to individualised pre-match drinks and non-invasive injections to optimise energy levels."
One change predicted by Dr Yeoman that is likely to receive widespread welcome is the introduction of rugby balls with radio frequency identification chips and robot linesmen and light-emitting systems to identify where fouls have occurred. "There'll be no more blaming the ref," he says.
The way we watch rugby is also likely to be radically different in the future. 'TV viewers will enjoy lifelike 3D images in their indoor or outdoor home theatre while for really dedicated fans, the ultimate experience will be staying at a hotel that's part of the stadium complex.'
Dr Yeoman says the Marriott Hotel at England's Twickenham rugby ground already includes six suites that overlook the pitch.
In answer to rugby fans who think a game dominated by technology would lose its edge, Dr Yeoman points to the exponential growth in gaming. "We're already playing games ranging from chess to rugby and football on computers."
Dr Yeoman's thoughts on the future of professional rugby form part of a book to be published in the United Kingdom early next year called 2050 Tomorrow's Tourism.
While his research focuses on what is possible, rather than what is desirable, Dr Yeoman points out that ethics are constantly changing.
"Things that seem abhorrent now might be widely accepted in 20 years time."
And delving into how rugby might look 40 years on hasn't dampened Dr Yeoman's enthusiasm for the way the game is played in 2011. He is a Scotland fan and has tickets to watch Scotland play Argentina in a Rugby World Cup fixture in Wellington on 26 September.
"I'm also hoping Scotland will beat the All Blacks in the final in Auckland-but that's a wish rather than a prediction!"
For further information please contact Dr Ian Yeoman ; ian.yeoman@vuw.ac.nz
Envisioning The Future For World Tourism Day
3 October 2011
Second-year Bachelor of Tourism Management student Acusha-Tara Sutton recently won a writing competition which required her to envision the future.
The competition, sponsored by Victoria University 2050 project and supported by Futures Thinking Aotearoa to coincide with World Tourism Day on 27 September, required Victoria University students to write an inspirational speech as the leader of New Zealand tourism in 2050 reflecting back over the last 40 years.
"World Tourism Day is about linking culture, diversity and tourism. Acusha-Tara winning entry is reflective and inspires therefore representing the challenges and opportunities that New Zealand's tourism industry faces on the path to 2050" says Dr Ian Yeoman, Associate Professor of Tourism Future.
Below is the winning entry:
'The dogmas of the quiet past are inadequate to the stormy present. The occasion is piled high with difficulty, and we must rise with the occasion. As our case is new, so we must think anew, and act anew. We must disenthrall (To free from a controlling force or influence) ourselves, and then we shall save our country. These famous words written by Abraham Lincoln in 1862, still hold true today. The problems and challenges that we face today cannot be addressed with the logic of yesterday, nor can tomorrows be met with the solutions of today.
Over the past 39 years the tourism industry within New Zealand has been met with many new issues that challenged the natural, social and cultural integrity of our beautiful country; but being the innovative and proactive people that we are, we faced them head on, with passion and determination. With a steady increase in GHG emissions we made it a priority to ensure constant reductions, not only within our own country, but globally, by bringing this issue to the forefront of political planning on a global scale. Fast growth in tourism saw cultures disintegrate as a more Westernised society was being created. We challenged this by ensuring that our Maori traditions were not only practiced by our people for the enjoyment, education and entertainment of tourists, but also employed in our everyday lives as they once were.
With every new challenge sent our way, Tourism New Zealand has answered; and over the last 39 years we have succeeded in maintaining and enriching the diverse natural, social and cultural that makes us unique; and although we must continue to adapt to our ever-changing environment, we can celebrate our achievements this far. Our environment, our culture and our diversity.
Runners up were:
- Bob Capistrono - PhD student
- Trisha Dwyer - Master of Tourism Management student
- Laura Brown - Bachelor of Tourism Management student
- Aiko Sato - Bachelor of Tourism Management student
See World Tourism Day for more details.
New VMS Courses: HRIR 320, MGMT 320 and 321
15 December 2011
New HRIR course & change in major requirements
A new integrative course, HRIR 320 Strategic Issues in HRIR, has been created and will be taught for the first time in 2012. It has a prerequisite of 30 300-level HRIR points and will be mandatory for HRIR majors starting their BCA from 2012. HRIR majors who began their BCA in 2011 or before are encouraged to include HRIR 320 if possible, but where that would cause difficulties they may complete under the 2011 major requirements.
The new course integrates HRM & IR at a strategic level, and makes better connections between students and the HRIR profession. It will be a prerequisite for BCA (Hons) in HRIR from 2013.
HRIR 301 Strategic HRM has been deleted. For 2012 this means that students who are already enrolled in HRIR 301 will be automatically transferred into HRIR 320 (the 300-level prerequisite will be waived for 2012 only).
If you have any questions please contact either your student administration adviser in the Commerce Faculty, or HRIR Head of Group – Jane Bryson.
MGMT 320 Current Issues in Management: Inaugural class of 2011
Victoria Management School was very pleased with student reaction to its new integrative course, Management 320, designed to explore emergent issues in management and provide a collective focal point at the end of the BCA in Management programme.
In recognition of the dynamic rate of change and pace of the global economy, this course brought to the attention of students emergent trends worthy of consideration and debate, including: virtualisation, open-sourcing, networking, gen y values, globalisation and sustainability.
Each issue was analysed using a strategic framework designed to integrate perspectives on strategy, entrepreneurship, leadership and organisation. The teaching approach was augmented with business cases studies and group presentations to invited guests with venture capital and business development experience from our alumni.
The course also introduced a number of teaching innovations, including a dedicated classroom manager, a designated 'Harvard-style' seating plan with photographs and name tags to facilitate case discussion, and rapid fire one-minute student presentations on hot-topics in the business news.
According to MGMT 320 student Jacqui Cuff:
"The course opened my eyes to future business trends and I feel better prepared for work in knowing what I have learnt from MGMT 320. It framed theory in areas such as entrepreneurialism, where in the past seemed to be perceived from a holistic viewpoint alone. I have a better understanding of what it takes to implement strategies in a real environment.
I understand the characteristics required for a person to successfully start up their own business. Most importantly, I am confident that I can see trends to come in the future New Zealand business environment and I feel better prepared to work in the changing business conditions."
MGMT 321 Organistations and Ethics: Starts Trimester 1 2012
A new course on Organisations and Ethics will be taught in 1/2012. This is an Organisational Behaviour course, emphasising ethical issues and the wider social context. Topics include:
- individual and organisational ethics;
- leadership and corporate power on a global level;
- diversity in the workplace;
- careers and working lives;
- organisations and the natural environment.
Teaching will be by lectures and tutorials, and assessment will include a short essay (20%), a longer essay (40%) and an in-class final test (40%).
For more information on both courses go to the course catalogue: Victoria University Course Catalogue.