Strategic Partnership Project
The Responsible Global Leadership (RGL) Seminar in Bergen was organized as a Learning/Teaching/Training activity, which is part of the Erasmus+ funded Strategic Partnership Project on Sustainable Business Models, led by NHH in cooperation with CBS and ESADE.
Mobility funding, generated from the 16th CEMS Research Seminar on Supply Chain Management in Austria of this year, enabled two CEMS students from CBS and two students from ESADE to participate in the RGL seminar. Alexandra Kim and Rasmus Grand Berthelsen, from ESADE and CBS (respectively), were among the visiting students funded by the project to participate in the RGL seminar at NHH. The students were thankful both for the insightful seminar and the collaborative experience with other CEMS students, according to Berthelsen.
"During the seminar, I learned to think about business models in a whole new way, both by watching the instructors’ videos prior to the seminar, as well as working actively with business models during the seminar. And not only did I get to know more about business model fundamentals, but I also learned it in a sustainability-related context, which to me was extremely valuable," said Berthelsen.
Kim agreed, "I got a chance to learn from the best researchers and practitioners in sustainability and leadership fields. I have always been interested in how to make existing business models more sustainable. Thus, this experience at NHH was important for me and definitely broadened my knowledge by introducing real examples and best practices as well as it gave me a great source of inspiration, she said.
Through an interactive seminar held by the Leadership Consultant and CEO of the U.S based Mandala Partners, Scott Neilson, students learned about how to listen and satisfy stakeholder expectations, from colleagues to external clients, in order to meet the desired goals for a team or company. Following a bridging seminar, project leader and resident sustainability expert Associate Professor Lars Jacob Tynes Pedersen then led a skill seminar enabling the students to apply their knowledge to designing and pitching their ideas for a sustainable business model for social impact start-up, Bright.
Video Teaching Modules
Fellow sustainability expert, Associate Professor Sveinung Jørgensen, joined the seminar in his capacity as Board Member of Bright, giving the students inside information with which to work on the case. During the skill seminar, the two researchers also shared experiences from their current side-careers as strategic sustainability advisors.
The students were given access to teaching materials on Sustainable Business Models produced by the Erasmus+ Strategic Partnership project, in advance of the seminar.
During the two-year project period, the three partner schools NHH, ESADE and CBS are committed to producing video modules and disseminating knowledge of sustainable business models through activities held at each of the partner schools, as well as enabling student mobility between schools to participate in these activities.
Other activities related to the project have included a similar seminar and project launch event held at NHH in 2017 and 2018, respectively, as well as a seminar held at ESADE in January this year.
Multiplier Event at CBS
Smaller initiatives have included multiplier events in the form of seminars and panel discussions held at NHH and CBS in 2017 and 2018, during the CEMS Global Responsibility Week. The panel discussions at NHH have involved local social entrepreneurs who are engaged in finding sustainable solutions for their businesses, as well as helping individuals to develop sustainable habits to contribute to improving the environment.
The Erasmus+ funded Strategic Partnership Project will culminate with a multiplier event at CBS, to which all interested external parties such as local business representatives will be invited to learn about the project and its outputs.
This is the second year that NHH has included an additional component on sustainable business models as part of its annual CEMS Responsible Leadership Seminar. The Erasmus+ funded Strategic Partnership Project has enabled an enhanced model for an already popular activity, and given the success of the new format with the students who have participated, has paved the way for a strong RGL offering for NHH, even beyond the project period.