From the Exec Dean - March

Hello Everyone,

David with Peter Lorange, President and owner,
Lorange Institute of Business Zürich

Welcome to this very busy time of the academic year, as enrolments are being completed and students are settling in their very first classes, or returning to continue their programmes of study with us, and we’re seeking to engage them accordingly.  With that in mind, I thought to turn our attention to the importance of the student experience and our respective contributions to that experience.

During our recent Faculty meeting at City Flinders, I spoke about this year as not just the “Year of the Dragon” in terms of the Chinese astrological calendar, but also a year in which, as a Faculty, we need to “ride the dragon”.  Referring to a quote from Confucius:

I know a bird can fly, a fish can swim, and an animal can run.

For that which runs, a net can be fashioned; for that which swims, a line can be strung.

But the ascent of a Dragon on the wind into heaven is something that is beyond my knowledge.

I told the story of the Sydney 2000 Paralympics Domes and Pavilion volunteer team supporting the efforts of the fencing competitors and how we were expected to “ride the dragon” of a competition schedule that was threatened always by pairings that ran over- or under-time, by competitor “no shows”, and by equipment failure or breakdown.  This was a fluid and dynamic environment in which we were constantly on the lookout for changes/variations and to which we needed to respond quickly and creatively.  Given the success of the Sydney Paralympics, it appears that the team rode the dragon pretty well.

In 2012, we in the Faculty of Business and Law need to ride the dragon of a highly competitive and uncertain environment, as international student numbers decline across the country, and our sister institutions seek to shore up their revenues by enrolling significantly larger numbers of local students than would otherwise be expected. This year we need to be focussed on recruitment and retention as full year activities – ensuring we maximise the number of students who join us and minimise the number who leave us.

Key to that focus, as our single most important recruitment and retention strategy, is the quality of the experience, in and out of the classroom, that we create for our students.  And we need to do this in the face of significant resource constraints resulting from the highly competitive environment in which we are embedded.

A great exemplar of creating such an experience is Accounting and Finance’s Lily Wong, who is this month’s featured colleague.  Lily’s commitment to the students and her ability to motivate and inspire is evident in both the student evaluations and teaching awards she has received. Lily is a colleague for whom, when she’s working with and on behalf of her students, everything counts.

I look forward to working with you throughout the year where, together, we can create an environment for our all students and each other where “everything counts”.

Best Regards,

David

Meet Our People - Lily Wong

Lily began her connection with VU as a student, completing a Bachelor of Business before returning as a tutor. She later a completed a Master of Business, and was promoted to Senior Lecturer on the basis of her teaching achievements. Lily also has varied industry experience, having worked in administrative and accounting roles in the private sector. At VU, Lily has taught in a range of subjects from first year through to post-graduate, and until recently she co-ordinated VU’s largest accounting subject – Accounting for Decision Making.  Lily still co-ordinates the overseas delivery of this core subject and combines her love of travel with teaching in Hong Kong, Beijing, Kuala Lumpur and Johor Bahru.

Lily Wong

Lily is passionate about teaching, and aims to provide her students a learning experience which is educational, enjoyable and enduring. Her empathetic understanding of students, and her ability to motivate and inspire them has culminated in a number of awards recognising her considerable skills in this area. These include being a finalist in the prestigious Australian Awards for University Teaching, and being awarded an Australian Learning and Teaching Council Citation for Outstanding Contribution to Student Learning; Faculty of Business and Law Staff Award for Teaching Excellence; and the Vice-Chancellor’s Peak Award for Excellence in Teaching and Learning.

Lily has embarked on a PhD in e-learning and its impact on student learning outcomes. She has presented her findings at conferences nationally, as well as in the US and Europe. Her research has been published in international peer-reviewed journals.

Publications news

Professor Colin Clark, with Dr Zdenko Miholcic as research assistant, has coordinated the preparation of a booklet for CPA Australia examining accounting issues in the public sector titled Leadership and Influence in the Public Sector. The publication, which can be viewed online here, acknowledges the contributions made by Professor Colin Clark FCPA and Dr Zdenko Miholcic from the School of Accounting and Finance, Victoria University in preparation of the paper.

Supply Chain Grads Hit the Road

Five of our Supply Chain Management graduates were recently accepted onto the highly sought-after Linfox Graduate Recruitment Program.

The five who made the grade were selected from over 400 applicants.

From February 2012, Minh, Yeni, Kate, Tim and Queenie (pictured right) will each undertake three six-month job rotations with Linfox. The job rotations will see them gain valuable experience in various roles and in various locations throughout the company.

All five will then take up permanent positions with the company in mid-2013.

WIL takes AIME

Aryanna Lock and Jon Malpas at AIME

The Annual Asia-Pacific Incentives & Meetings Expo (AIME), known as the premier meetings and incentives event in the Asia-Pacific region, held its 20^th expo at Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre (MCEC) on February 20-21. In attendance were a number of VU Tourism and Event Management and Work Integrated Learning (WIL) staff.

The event is co-sponsored and coordinated by the Melbourne Convention and Visitors Bureau (MCVB). MCVB Senior Manager Events and Marketing Services, Jon Malpas, oversaw the MCVB’s extensive displays at AIME and was ably assisted by Events & Marketing Services Coordinator and VU alumna Aryanna Lock.  Jon stated he ‘couldn’t be happier’ with Aryanna’s work in readying for this high profile and large scale event at the MCEC.

Numerous VU graduates were on hand at AIME in various roles, including Karen Jackson, Four Points by Sheraton Geelong Sales and Marketing Manager, and Brooke Doughty, Hotel Sofitel BDM Conferences and Events. MCVB Research Manager Danielle Ramirez said of WIL student Claire Wardley, who has been working for her for the past 4 months, ‘Claire is an exceptional students and will be successful in any work environment’.

Phoenix Project updates

Catherine Lou with
the Chun Hui Cup

The Phoenix Project, in collaboration with CSES and the Institute for Supply Chain and Logistics, won the 6^th annual Chun Hui (Spring Light) Cup in December 2011 in China. The winner was judged on the quality of research, the degree of industry endorsement, and the potential business impact of the entry. The Phoenix team's submission, accompanied with operational prototype scenarios under a modern service platform to support Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) for their supply chain and logistics requirements, was one of 371 submissions from around the globe.

PhD student Catherine Lou (pictured with the cup) represented the team at the awards ceremony in Guangzhou, China. The Chun Hui Cup competition is one of three significant events in China focusing on commercialization and entrepreneurship through research and innovation by overseas Chinese scholars. It is organized by China’s Education Ministry, and the Ministry of Science and Technology. The competition has helped identify new potential research partners in China.

The  Phoenix Project recently received a research seeding grant of $10,000. The research project, run in conjunction with the  Institute for Supply Chain and Logistics for and Beijing Jiaotong University, will explore real-time logistics services coordination and optimisation for SMEs. Beijing Jiaotong University has contributed another $10,000 towards this joint research.