The CEMS Club Support (CCS) Function of the Student Board held the second CEMS Club Conference (CCC) for the year 2018 at Koç University from 27-29th September.
Twenty-two CEMS Club Presidents from around the world and five organizing members from the Student Board gathered in Istanbul for the CEMS Club Conference of the 2018 fall semester. During this three-day conference, valuable sessions on CEMS Club-related matters such as elections, handovers, finance & budgeting and organizational structures were addressed. Participants also gained insight into Student Board projects, various CEMS Clubs' needs and how to best support Club Presidents in their local roles.
Day 1- Kick-off Session
The first day of the CEMS Club Conference kicked off on 27th September at the Koç University, Rumelifeneri Campus, where 22 CEMS Club Presidents were welcomed by the host university. Highlights of this day included a welcome note by Nida Bektaş, CEMS Academic Director at Koç, kick-off sessions by CCS team, and the APAC session, which focused on understanding challenges faced by CEMS Clubs in Asia Pacific region and bringing innovative solutions to the table to resolve these challenges.
Day 2- Visit to Arçelik
The 2nd day of the CEMS Club Conference started with a visit to the facility of CEMS Corporate partner, Arçelik in Istanbul. The participants were given a guided tour through the prototyping space, “Arçelik Garage”, followed by presentations by Celal Vatansever (R&D Manager), Eray Hobikgil & İstem Şentürk (HR Department Managers of the International Operations).
The second half of the day was held at Koç University. The focus was on giving CCPs an overview of projects of Student Board as a whole and CEMS Club Support Function in particular, as well as the role of Student Board Representative alongside CEMS Club President in local CEMS Club. The participants were also briefed on the upcoming Global Responsibility Week, to be held 22-26th October, during which CEMS Clubs are expected to arrange activities aimed at integrating values of sustainability and responsible leadership in daily lives of CEMS students. The day concluded by announcing last semester’s winning CEMS Club Best Practices as well as the CEMS Club Awards. CEMS Club St. Gallen won 1st prize, whereas CEMS Club Prague and CEMS Club Rotterdam won 2nd and 3rd position respectively. Congratulations to the winning clubs!
Day 3 – Last Day of CCC’18 Istanbul
The 3rd day of the CEMS Club Conference was also held at Koç University. The day started with a productive session on guidelines for CCPs on budgets and financing of their clubs. Afterwards, strategic topics of the CEMS Club operations, elections and transfer of powers were addressed. Furthermore, a dedicated session was given to CCPs to come out and present their innovative ideas. The afternoon breakout sessions addressed common topics such as regional events, project outside of Europe and cross-CEMS Club cooperation.
"Our team works on multiple projects across different time zones with various CEMS Club Presidents. Being able to organize this event and finally meet in person to discuss common topics, share best practices and most importantly, build a diverse community is my personal highlight of all this work. There is so much I am constantly learning from everyone in this motivating environment!" - Hussnain Bashir, Project Lead- CEMS Club Conference
The CEMS Club Support Function and the Student Board would like to extend their gratitude to Arçelik A.S. for hosting a fulfilled day and a unique opportunity to interact with a CEMS Corporate Partner. They would also like to extend their appreciation to the Koç University for their warm welcome and support throughout the meeting.