OPINION
When Polimi Graduate School of Management, Edhec Business School and ESMT Berlin collaborated through a student project called Innova Europe, a competition launched to tackle societal, economic and environmental challenges, it had a great impact. “Fostering entrepreneurship and driving positive impact are at the core of our school,” comments Tommaso Agasisti, Polimi’s associate dean for internationalisation and quality. “By collaborating with Edhec and ESMT Berlin, we emphasised the importance of technology, innovation and collaboration in creating products and solutions that have a meaningful and lasting impact. We are proud of this initiative and believe that it inspires our students to become change-makers and contribute to a better future.” But this collaboration went beyond those involved in the competition. They also ensured that the initiative received compelling media coverage and promotion through each school, as well as highlighting it on social media. Not only was the impact seen by students and key audiences, Innova Europe was also highly commended in this year’s AMBA & BGA’s Excellence Awards, when it featured in the running for Best CSR and Sustainability Initiative. So, if institutions are already collaborating – through programmes, research and the like – then it surely can’t be too much of a leap to encourage schools to consider working together to promote the world of business education even further.
higher education titles. Beyond this however, especially in international markets, such news would probably hold limited appeal to writers. But generating a topical discussion between deans at separate institutions? That holds a level of appeal that could be hard to ignore – especially if the topic they wish to discuss is also newsworthy. Examples of such collaborations can be seen when female deans pool their expertise to discuss the future of diversity in business education. Ultimately, it’s about understanding what’s new and interesting in the sector, grouping strong examples together and sharing that with the right media in order to gain strategic visibility. Often it can be hard to define a trend without looking beyond your own institution’s vision and values. For instance, there have even been occasions where a number of business schools have worked together to promote their home country as an up-and-coming study destination to international students. In such articles, schools worked to highlight everything from the strengths of the national job market to the incredible experiences available to students both in and beyond the classroom. Coming from one institution, such a story suggestion could have been written off as purely promotional and lacking credibility. But offered in collaboration, such stories become a must-read for business school applicants considering their options, as well as offering schools up to a much wider audience. After all, the right media coverage can not only attract new students, but also open doors to meeting new corporate partners, by raising brand visibility and bolstering reputation. In fact, further positives to be gained from such exposure also include boosting an institution’s appeal to new faculty, or even to donors.
Stephanie Mullins-Wiles is director of BlueSky Education and an NCTJ-accredited journalist with extensive experience of writing internationally across a range of topics including health, business and education. She has written for titles including The Economist and PR Week , plus many more. At BlueSky, she has helped business schools and universities secure world-leading media opportunities for over a decade
Ambition | MARCH/APRIL 2024 | 49
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