Norwich Business School will be holding an MBA Open Evening on Tuesday 13 August, 6-8.30pm in the Thomas Paine Study Centre, UEA.
The MBA Programme comprises of:
• Full-time MBA • Executive MBA (part-time)
All variants will start in January 2014.
As part of our on-going programme review and development, for the January 2014 intake, we have developedthree elective subject areas within the MBA programmes where the University has established a world-class reputation: Strategic Carbon Management, Brand Leadership and Economic and Finance.
If you are looking to study for an MBA, you may be interested in attending our MBA Open Evening. Come and find out more about our innovative MBA Programme and meet current students studying for an MBA. The MBA Programme Director and Course Leaders will also be there to answer any questions.
We offer a number of competitive scholarships on all our MBA courses. For more information and how to apply, please visit our website.
“Completing the MBA has been a momentous fulfilling journey for me – it has allowed me to explore further business and management from an academic basis and put into practice my learning and understanding.”Sam Brown, Executive MBA Graduate
Annual CPI inflation up from 3.4% in February to 3.5% in March
Annual RPI inflation down from 3.7% in February to 3.6% in March
Commenting on the inflation figures for March, published today by the ONS, David Kern, Chief Economist at the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC), said:
“The inflation figures for March were broadly as expected. However, it is disappointing that the steady fall in inflation seen since September 2011 has been reversed this month. We expect inflation to fall over the remainder of the year, but the decline will be less than the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) has envisaged. This means that the pressures on businesses and consumers will ease, but not as rapidly as first hoped.
“With inflation falling more slowly than expected, we believe that any further increases to the Quantitative Easing (QE) programme are unnecessary. The main priority should be ensuring that the additional liquidity provided by the most recent QE increase is put to better use to improve the flow of lending to credit worthy businesses. The government’s credit easing programme should be made more substantial, but the MPC must also reconsider its reluctance to purchase private sector assets.”
Diversity is everyone’s businessProfessor Monder Ram, OBE Director of CREME, Centre for Research in Ethnic Minority Entrepreneurship
This is a rare opportunity for policy makers, business owners, academics and researchers to share the learning from much acclaimed Professor Monder Ram.
Date: Friday 08 June 2012 Time: 16:00 – 18:00 Location: Norwich Business School University of East Anglia
The challenges presented by the current economic climate mean that businesses in the region need to ensure that they use skills and ideas from across the local community, including groups which are currently under-represented.
The aims of this event are to identify ways to bridge gaps in knowledge, overcome prejudices, foster collaboration and open up new markets for local businesses.
Feedback from this event will be forwarded to the National Ethnic Minority Advisory Group.
This event is free to attend but places are limited. Please register your interest by emailing decere@uea.ac.uk before 01 June 2012.
Tidal Transit Limited provides access, transport and crew transfer services to the industries of the North Sea. Operating from the North Norfolk coast we specialise in safe, speedy and efficient travel for those working in the offshore wind energy sector. Our fleet of custom-built, high specification wind farm work boats offer unparalleled stability and are crewed by fully qualified personnel with a thorough local knowledge and maritime experience.
Tidal Transit Limited was incorporated in January 2011 having formerly traded at Norfolk Fishing Trips under the management of Adam Wright of Thornham. Norfolk Fishing Trips had been running since 2005 offering day charter fishing trips from Brancaster Staithe in the summer and Lowestoft in the winter. It evolved into Tidal Transit to make the most of the growing offshore energy sector around the UK and especially wind.
Since January 2011 Tidal Transit Limited has raised over £2m for funding the development of its fleet of new purpose built offshore wind support vessels. We took delivery of Ginny Louise in December 2011 and Eden Rose in April 2012. The Company plans to build a further 8 vessels upon the same design which we aim to be available during the next 2 years.
Adam Wright (Operations Director) and Leo Hambro (Commercial Director), are in the EDP Future 50 for 2012 and Tidal Transit’s vessels were finalists in EEEGR 2012 Innovation Awards.
Ginny Louise is working for SSE on the Greater Gabbard Wind Farm. Eden Rose will arrive in the UK on 18th April and is looking for work Katie Louise returned to Brancaster Staither for the summer season on 2nd April.
I’m a little shamefaced to say that I was a bit of a latecomer to Twitter. For someone who makes a living by being on top of technology, media trends and communication … I really was a bit slow off the blocks.
I knew about Twitter, of course, but had only ever looked at it in passing – and hastily dismissed it as a pointless stream of inconsiquential babble from a group of over self-publicists and narcissits. Who, after all, is interested in the 140 character meanderings of c-list popstars and self-help gurus?
Ouch! Looking back at that statement I hang my head; I am shamed.
I thouht I knew better, categorising myself as an “expert” in social media goings-on – and consigned Twitter to background noise without proper thought or consideration. I am converted and I humble myself at the alter of the almighty Tweet.
Not that I was all wrong, of course (I rarely am as my partner and children will be quick to confirm). There’s a hell of a lot of inconsiquential babble from far too many c-list personalities. But this is the … well, choose your own metaphor as I hesitate to use “scum on the surface” … they may be perfectly nce people in their day jobs – and I don’t have to read their outpourings. But, underneath the, flotsam (nice word, especially when separated from its customary partner) there is a rich vein of usefulness to be tapped into.
Twitter, in fact, rules!
I’m going to digress: a quick definition, just for interest’s sake.
Flotsam: debris/wreckage found floating on the surface after a shipwreck.
Jetsam: materials/objects thrown from a ship before or during a shipwreck.
In my mind, this makes Flotsam the swirly rubbish you need to cut through: Jetsam is the valuable stuff, stuff that your floundering mariner considers of worth enough to try to save.
Twitter is a medium that requires you to be a careful scavenger – ignore the Flotsam and salvage the Jetsam.
I first started realising that Twitter had real value when I heard about “PLNs”; Personal Learning Networks. Anything with the word “learning” in tends to prick my interest, so I followed up on these references and found that PLNs referred to the practice of following a group of people in your chosen industry/field in order to learn from what they were tweeting about. I tried it, I loved it. Overnight I found I was getting a steady flow of information and insights that were useful and stimulating for me.
And then I started sharing what I was learning, and adding a few bits of my own until I realised one day that Twitter had become a tool I couldn’t do without. I slowly realised why (this was my “revelatory” moment), Twitter was effective, real-time conversation – and it really benefitted me on a personal and professional level.
The other day I heard, or read, can’t remember where unfortunately, (sorry, information overload is a definite problem and some information slips out without me noticing) the best explanation for why Twitter worked: think of Google as a library – you go there to access archived information, digest it and move on. Think of LinkedIn as it was designed – an online version of offline networking. You go there to hook up with people, share a few opinions on relevant matters and then move on.
Now, think of Twitter as a 19th Century coffe house. This coffee house is filled with professional, intellectuals and artists. There’s a constant flow of traffic in and out of the doors and conversations going in every drection. There’s a table by the window filled with half a dozen people who work in the same trade as you, they’re busy spinning ideas at one another – swapping stories of the latest developments in the industry. They offer you a seat and you join the flow of words and ideas, adding your own where they contribute.
That’s Twitter. Real-time, fast-flowing, easy to sift and categorise (just move tables) and madly exhilarating. Yes, occasionally the air-headed lute and viola star’s conversations from the next table float into your consciousness – but it’s your fault for listening, you can always tune them out!
Twitter is my social media Jetsam – very nearly lost in the sea of information but gladly salvaged. Go on, try a bit of beachcombing of your own.
The author would like to seriously apologise for the overhwelming amount of mixed and jumbled metaphors in this post – but, in truth, is unable too.
The weather stayed dry and warm for the Chamber’s Summer Social held at Costessey Park Golf Club on July 12, allowing attendees to have a delicious BBQ, enjoy a glass of Pimms on the patio and make full use of the excellent golfing facilities.
There were a number of different networking activities on offer throughout the evening, including a tutored wine tasting, hosted by Brian Sullivan of HarperWells who brought three ‘cheeky’ wines to taste from his exquisite collection. There was also a putting competition, won by Active Norfolk’s George Webster and a ‘Beat the Pro’ competition, where delegates competed against Costessey’s Junior Pro as to who could get nearest to the green on the first hole, won by Adam Beeney of Sprowston Manor.
Three 60 Second Spotlight speakers also managed to profile their company against the clock, with attendees hearing about The Forum Trust, I Want More Sales and Winsor Bishop.
The relaxed and informal atmosphere of the Summer Social provided the perfect environment for business networking and making great connections, but don’t just take our word for it:
@NorfolkAmy “Great event tonight, the combo of golf, wine and networking worked surprisingly well!”
Lambda_Alex “Had a great evening at the #ChamberSummerSocial. Definitely enjoyed the @HarperWells wine-tasting”
Photos of the highlights from the event can be found on the Norfolk Chamber’s Facebook & Google Plus pages.
Our next evening social networking event is Look the Business: Fashion, Beauty & Business the John Lewis Way – Get you and your business ‘bang on trend’ by hearing the story of John Lewis’ success from their Operations Manager, Lesley George. Plus a skincare and make-up demo and fashion workshop showcasing business dress trends for men and women, plus the opportunity to network and do business in a relaxed atmosphere. For full details click here.
This SundayLP Partner Jonathon Chaddand a family team of 5 others will be running the Bungay Black Dog half marathon to raise money for the East Coast Hospice. This charitable trust has secured land at Gorleston to build a 10 bed hospice which is now moving forward to the planning consent stage. This is a very worthwhile charity and I hope you will feel able to give it your support. In addition to inpatient end of life provision the Hospice will provide facilities for families to stay with patients and specialist palliative day care, alternative therapies, outreach homecare and educational training for those involved in the nursing profession.
We are aiming to get the whole team of runners to complete the circular course of 13 miles from Bungay to Beccles and back in an average of under 2 hrs and I hope that your support will motivate us to achieve that.
The DCLG’s Building Regulations consultation covering England only, runs until 27th April 2012 and builds on previous consultations with the aim of moving closer to zero carbon – whilst increasing compliance with regulations and reducing red tape.
Whilst there are clear benefits the proposed changes would decrease the regulatory burden by nearly £64m per year. On the other side, Part L changes will impose costs of £103m for new homes and £101m for non domestic buildings.
Part L: Energy Conservation
Part L looks at reducing carbon and creating the right position for zero carbon for domestic buildings by 2016. It is possible the regulations may firstly focus on the building fabric with proposals for zero carbon performance requirements of 39 kWh/m2/yr for apartment blocks and mid terrace houses with 46 kWh/m2/yr for semi detached and end of terrace. A higher specification may be needed for detached. Consequential improvements, both domestic and non domestic will become law in 2014.
The next stage for non domestic buildings, although further away, will require a 20% boost in building performance. The definition of ‘technically, functionally and economically feasible’ is static at 10% of the principle works costs. The Green Deal is seen as the principle way to upgrade current buildings with the use of over design allowing a margin for error and the creation of publicly available specification with a QA scheme is proposed to improve quality.
The consultation is thorough and has proposals which should be welcomed for the industry.
The London 2012 Olympics may well be a once in a lifetime opportunity (the last time the Olympics were held in London was 1948) for many of us to experience the Olympics first hand. This has the potential if not handled correctly to cause friction between employees (who wish to attend or volunteer at the Games) and employers (who have businesses to run and staffing levels to maintain.
ACAS have issued some guidance for both employers and employees, which include an informative Q & A section.
As most employment lawyers will testify, April and October are extremely busy months when it comes to Employment Law Reform. Hopefully you will find the timeline below of use for this year, although in practice this area of law can change literally by the week.
February 2012
We have already had the annual review for various statutory caps, which as usual came into force on 1st February.
The weekly cap for the purposes of redundancy pay has been increased to £430 (from £400) per week. This means that the maximum statutory redundancy entitlement has now increased to £12,900.
The statutory cap for the compensatory award in unfair dismissal claims has also been increased to £72,300 (from £68,400).
March 2012
The new Parental Leave Directive, which increased the right to parental leave to 18 weeks, was due to take effect on March 8th. However, the Government have requested that this be postponed, so this is now likely to take effect in 2013.
April 2012
1) The draft regulations changing the qualifying period for unfair dismissal claims from 1 to 2 years have been published. These will come into force on 6th April. In a nutshell, any employee whose employment commences on or after 6th April 2012 will have to accrue 2 years continuous service before they are eligible to bring a claim for unfair dismissal. Any employee who was employed prior to that date will still only require 1 year’s service.
These regulations will have no effect on discrimination claims, which do not require any period of continuous service.
From a practical perspective if you operate a small business and you are considering recruitment of staff, it may make sense to defer the start date until 6th April if your business can cope in the mean time.
2) Statutory Maternity Pay will increase to £135.45 per week. Statutory Sick Pay will increase to £85.85 per week.
3) Various amendments to Employment Tribunal Procedure will be introduced. These will include an increased number of cases being heard by a Single Judge, maximum costs awards against a losing party increasing to £20,000 (this is currently £10,000) and deposits being increased from £500 to £1000.
October 2012
1) The new workplace pension provisions will be introduced for larger employers. Auto enrolment will be phased in dependant on the size of the employer. The rules are quite involved and there is ultimately no substitute for taking advice upon your own position. However, hopefully the attached link will provide some useful background information.
2) The current rates for minimum wage may be re-visited, although this is likely to be dependent on the recommendations of the Low Pay Commission, whose report is likely to be published in April.
Other possible developments
Consultation on a rapid resolution scheme for simple/low value claims.
Regulation to simplify the requirements for compromise agreements.
Mandatory conciliation via ACAS on all Tribunal claims.
At the Autumn Statement the Chancellor announced the formation of an industry-led taskforce to explore how to develop non-bank lending. Views have been gathered to contribute to the taskforce from 100+ respondents to the review’s call for evidence and from seven regional and technical workshops the taskforce has held with businesses and market participants. This covered information on, and experiences of, the barriers to non-bank lending, and a range of ideas and insights into how they might be tackled.
Thetaskforce’s report recommends areas where industry can act to stimulate andexpand alternative finance markets and where there are actions for Government totake. The Government agreed with the analysis set out in the report, welcomes thecommitment shown by those named in the report in taking forward therecommendations, and commits to work with businesses and the broader financecommunity to address these important objectives.
The AGE 16 to 24 year olds is aimed at helping eligible employers to offer young people employment through the Apprenticeship programme, by providing wage grants to assist employers in recruiting their first apprentice.
The National Apprenticeship Service will provide up to 40,000 Apprenticeship grants to small medium sized employers recruiting 16 to 24 year olds with a value of £1,500 to encourage new employers to take on new apprentices.
The £1,500 is in addition to the training costs of the Apprenticeship framework which are met in full for young people aged 16 to 18 and 50% for those aged 19 to 24.
Priority will be given to small-medium sized employers with less than 250 employees and we expect to support at least 40,000 of these employers to recruit an apprentice for the first time.
Large employers (more than 250 employees) are not eligible for support through this initiative. But we do want to encourage take up within their small-medium enterprises (SME) supply chain.
It is expected that most employers will want to access AGE 16 to 24 to support the recruitment of one apprentice. However subject to budget availability and the employer’s commitment to support the apprentice to the end of their programme, up to 3 grants can be made to any one employer. However, the employer must commit to the total number of apprentices they wish to take on through the grant at the upfront agreement stage.
To check if you are eligible and to apply for AGE 16 to 24 you can:
Complete the online web enquiry form
Call the National Apprenticeship Service on 08000 150 600
An adviser from the National Apprenticeship Service will contact you to discuss the support available in more detail
Or contact your local Training Provider direct.
Further information View/download our fact sheet and presentation for further information on the Apprenticeship Grant for Employers of 16 to 24 year olds.