Business School

Message from the Dean

At The University of Auckland Business School we recognise the importance of fostering partnerships with industry both to produce outstanding graduates and to enhance the quality of business practice in New Zealand companies.

The Business School has a range of initiatives aimed at giving business access to the skills of experienced and motivated students. The School’s MBA programme, for example, offers the opportunity for companies to engage our highly-qualified students on real-world research projects. The students on this course are all senior-level executives with a minimum of 15 years’ work experience, who bring a rich diversity of knowledge and capabilities to their project work.

The School’s many internships also enable our students to gain work experience while making significant contributions to host companies. The Master of International Business, for example, includes "capstone" courses which offer students internships or applied research projects on current business issues, while student-run Chiasma has pioneered industry internships for biotechnology students.

Our Business Case Centre is yet another example of the strengthening bonds between the University and the world of commerce. Case studies produced by the Centre give businesses valuable development and teaching tools and are often used in company training sessions. Internationally, involvement in the creation of case studies has proved to be valuable in helping senior managers think more deeply about the performance and strategic direction of their organisations.

The School's new Global Executive Leadership Programme, developed in partnership with business growth centre The ICEHOUSE and the United States-based Thunderbird School of Global Management, is a further manifestation of our commitment to developing the capabilities of New Zealand business.

Finally, we are committed to building on our role as a ‘thought leader’, by making the insights of our researchers and teaching staff widely available. We also seek out leading international specialists to run workshops, give public lectures and participate in forums, and are increasingly harnessing the power of social media to engage with our stakeholders.

I warmly invite you to explore the benefits of partnering with us.

Professor Greg Whittred