confident that they have the skills they need to progress in the coming years and just eight per cent of CVs currently reference AI. Taking Manchester Metropolitan University Business School as a case study, Emma Holt, programme leader for the MBA, global online MBA and global online MSc in Finance & Strategy, explained along with MBA director Anastasia Kynighou how more than 12,000 students have engaged with the programme as part of their curriculum. Moreover, 70-plus members of staff have been accredited via Cappfinity’s proprietary Strengths Profile, which uses the company’s Skills Suite to categorise 60 skills into realised and unrealised strengths, learned behaviours and weaknesses. OPTIMISING DATA & THE STUDENT JOURNEY In a breakout session on optimising the student journey all the way from first enquiry to alumni interactions, Full Fabric vice-president Tania Roquette talked about the need to meet changing expectations, arguing that “students expect a seamless, integrated experience.” Meanwhile, 4Uni Solutions founder Oliver Matthews highlighted how messaging gets confused, students become disengaged and opportunities are lost when data is not held and managed well in a single repository: “When you have so many fragmented systems, you’ve got data being handled by different people for different reasons and using their own set of priorities.”
Representatives from Manchester Metropolitan University and Cappfinity led a breakout session on personalised learning and skills development
STORING CREDENTIALS ON THE BLOCKCHAIN Tomas Mindlin, CEO at Proof of Knowledge (POK), explained how issuing verifiable digital credentials on the blockchain can help students demonstrate their skills in a world where generative AI is increasing the propensity of fake or inflated qualifications. Mindlin shared that POK uses non-fungible tokens (NFTs) for further security, “because it guarantees permanent access for the learner, is tamper-proof and does not depend on a specific platform”. Mindlin also pointed out that digital credentials need not be limited to degrees, giving the example of how a university issuing anniversary certificates to engage alumni led to LinkedIn being “flooded” with its brand. SUSTAINABILITY & LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT An expert panel presented their progress in developing sustainable leaders in one of two breakout sessions focused on the collaborative Silk Road Network and chaired by AMBA & BGA’s international advisor for China, Zhongming Wang. Jun Qi, associate dean at Jinan University’s School of Management detailed strategies implemented at undergraduate level to build green leadership from the ground up, while Ignacio Bartesaghi, director of the international office at UCU Business School, highlighted its research and subsequent focus on the characteristics required by leaders in sustainability. Yangao Xiao, associate dean at the Management & Economics School, Electronic University of Science &
Technology of China, then touched on the value it sees in combining technology and sustainable development. Meanwhile, Kenji Yokoyama, dean of external relations at NUCB Business School, shared how his school tracks the proportion of teaching cases that contain keywords related to sustainability, with this figure now standing at 19 per cent. FEAR OF ACCUSATION DRIVES STUDENT AI CONCERNS Turnitin solutions engineer Divia Lorenz tackled the topic of academic integrity in the age of AI, drawing on the company’s experience of checking for similarity and detecting whether papers have been written using generative AI. Referencing an international survey of 3,500 students, educators and administrators, Lorenz highlighted that AI is of most concern to students, with many fearing being falsely accused of using it inappropriately. “Among the students we surveyed, 64 per cent are worried about the use of AI, compared to only 50 per cent of educators and 41 per cent of administrators.” CHINA’S LEARNING LANDSCAPE AMBA & BGA’s international advisor for China, Zhongming Wang was joined by the accreditation and membership organisation’s chair, Wendy Loretto and accreditation & China director Geroge Iliev in hosting an interactive showcasing session. This was a warmly received opportunity to deep dive into how institutions in China can differentiate themselves, both nationally and internationally, with particular emphasis on partnership positioning.
Jun Qi (right), associate dean at the School of Management, Jinan University, speaking at a breakout session on areas of focus within the Silk Road Network
26 Ambition • ISSUE 4 • 2025
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