I hope you are all coping well with the freezing cold!
The biggest bit of news all week really was the election of Syriza in Greece and the effects that might have on the global economy, the Euro zone and basically everything. If you are interested here is an interesting profile of Alexis Tsipras, Syriza's leader and a Q&A with the Financial Times about the potential implications of the Greek Election. This piece from the Telegraph about the impact of Syriza is also illuminating. The Guardian also has a nice round up of economic experts examining the slowdown in UK GDP which is well worth a read. Furthering the theme of economic uncertainty the FT.com has another excellent video examining the potential long term impact of low oil prices and even Google is feeling a financial pinch and suffering a shortfall in paid clicks and stepping back investment in Google glass.
But it is not all bad news at all. Apple has reported its largest profit ever this quarter and not just it's largest but the largest ever and even they are staggered by how well they are doing. The good news keeps on for Apple as their share of the Chinese market is predicted to outgrow the US market. Continuing the sequence of excellence in depth Special Reports from the Financial Times, this one looks at Working in Accountancy and is a must-read for those of you leaving the university soon, job hunting or just considering a career in Accountancy.
Friday 30 January 2015
Calling all PhDs
The British Library is currently running a Twitter based
competition for all PhD authors and current doctoral students, inviting them to
say why their doctoral research is/was important, using the hashtag
#ShareMyThesis.
Twitter competition - https://twitter.com/search?f=realtime&q=%23sharemythesis&src=typd
Competition web page - http://www.bl.uk/share-my-thesis/
The competition aims to raise awareness of the importance of
doctoral research and increase visibility of the PhD thesis as a valuable
source of research information. It is generously supported by Research Councils
UK and Vitae, and there are some great prizes.
The range and quality of doctoral research being tweeted in
140 characters is truly amazing. Entries are flooding in already, and you can
see them all here https://twitter.com/search?f=realtime&q=%23sharemythesis&src=typd.
The competition closes on 9 February, when eight entries
will be shortlisted and invited to expand their tweet into a blog post.
Tuesday 27 January 2015
Bloomberg Aptitude Test
Secure your internship or full time placement now!
Middlesex University will be running the Bloomberg Aptitude Test on the 6th of February at 11am in room S112.
Students interested in taking the BAT should follow the instructions below to register.
It is important that:
Alternatively, if you have already registered you can log in:
You can recover your login information using your email
If you would prefer to take the BAT at Bloomberg's head office in London, you could select from a range of dates and times. Select Europe, UK and then Bloomberg London Office from the list.
Middlesex University will be running the Bloomberg Aptitude Test on the 6th of February at 11am in room S112.
Students interested in taking the BAT should follow the instructions below to register.
It is important that:
- All entrants should fill in all parts of the registration profile that have a red asterisk * otherwise you will not be able to proceed with the test.
- Register only once using your private email.
- Arrive at the examination room at least 20 minutes before the exam is due to start as there are a few administrative procedures to run through.
- Navigate to the Bloomberg Institute http://
about.bloomberginstitute.com/ - Click on Sign Up in the top right hand corner.
Alternatively, if you have already registered you can log in:
You can recover your login information using your email
If you would prefer to take the BAT at Bloomberg's head office in London, you could select from a range of dates and times. Select Europe, UK and then Bloomberg London Office from the list.
Friday 23 January 2015
Oil Prices again, a world review and why you shoudl stay in uni if you want to be the next Zuckerberg.
Doom and gloom from the IMF which says falling oil prices will not increase global growth and even worse falling oil prices may threaten the electric cars which is not great for those of you who secretly want to drive Tesla. Another special report from the Financial Times - this one is the World in 2015 and it is fascinating if not exactly cheerful reading.More cheerful news (perhaps) on the ethical business front as the Co-op bank is now refusing to finance business that do not pay their tax.
For those of you who are feeling discouraged by the state of the world or the state of your essays, here's an article arguing the next Zuckerberg should stay in University. If you are struggling with those research essays don't for get to make an appointment with one of you librarians - here's the link and come back feeling inspired.
For those of you who are feeling discouraged by the state of the world or the state of your essays, here's an article arguing the next Zuckerberg should stay in University. If you are struggling with those research essays don't for get to make an appointment with one of you librarians - here's the link and come back feeling inspired.
Friday 16 January 2015
Oil, Tech and Business .
The continuing fall in Oil prices has dominated headlines for some time now and here I have rounded up some interesting articles on the topic in case you wanted to read further or felt overwhelmed. Firstly, Norway's government is poised to hold crisis talks over the low prices as they are hard hit and here in the UK, Scotland has been asking for tax relief and jobs have been lost in Aberdeen. US Stocks have also been affected by the downturn. In other less-than-cheerful news, studies suggest that 'Black Friday' did not really benefit those UK Retailers who massively discounted and a video on why the Private-Public partnership between Circle and the NHS failed.
Turning to the lighter and more inspirational side of life, book sales rise as readers show a preference for print and a fascinating article on how France used Unemployment Benefit to encourage entrepreneurship -definitely more interesting and innovative than just cutting benefits. The Week in Review covers the Consumer Electronics Show last week is Las Vegas and is fascinating for what tech is coming next and maybe spotting the gaps in the market. If you do spot those gaps, here's an article from the Guardian on starting a business and transforming your career this year. Finally the Top 10 sustainable Business stories of 2014 - food for thought.
Turning to the lighter and more inspirational side of life, book sales rise as readers show a preference for print and a fascinating article on how France used Unemployment Benefit to encourage entrepreneurship -definitely more interesting and innovative than just cutting benefits. The Week in Review covers the Consumer Electronics Show last week is Las Vegas and is fascinating for what tech is coming next and maybe spotting the gaps in the market. If you do spot those gaps, here's an article from the Guardian on starting a business and transforming your career this year. Finally the Top 10 sustainable Business stories of 2014 - food for thought.
Friday 9 January 2015
The students may not be back yet but we are!
Happy New year and welcome to the soon starting Middlesex term!
As with my last post in 2014, I have several end of year reports and indeed predictions for the future that I think are interesting. Firstly a report on the 'Business of Whisky' - probably doing well over the last few weeks although overall sales have fallen. Also an interesting Review of the Year in the Middle East, looking at the many and varied events throughout that region and the likely consequences for business and politics. Now rather the reviews of the year gone, here are the Financial Times predictions for 2015 - is an industry you are interested in covered here? Have a look!
For those of you interesting in Oil and Gas here is some grim reading as Oil prices continue to plummet. The piece analyses the winners and losers from this situation while this video looks at tough time for US Gas. Food for thought in both cases. Two more videos now looking at the fortunes of Tesco and Sainsbury, Tesco, despite a terrible year, is showing some signs of recovery and has a clear plan for the future. In contrast, Sainsbury is suffering eroded returns are the whole supermarket sector suffers.
Away from news and on to skills and inspiration. Firstly should business students be taught to 'be detectives'? This article argues that Business Schools need to better equip students with practical skills and to tailor their research closer to real world scenarios - what do you think? Finally a post on the Blog of Harvard Business Review talking to ten people about having a career that matters. Really interesting and inspiring!
As with my last post in 2014, I have several end of year reports and indeed predictions for the future that I think are interesting. Firstly a report on the 'Business of Whisky' - probably doing well over the last few weeks although overall sales have fallen. Also an interesting Review of the Year in the Middle East, looking at the many and varied events throughout that region and the likely consequences for business and politics. Now rather the reviews of the year gone, here are the Financial Times predictions for 2015 - is an industry you are interested in covered here? Have a look!
For those of you interesting in Oil and Gas here is some grim reading as Oil prices continue to plummet. The piece analyses the winners and losers from this situation while this video looks at tough time for US Gas. Food for thought in both cases. Two more videos now looking at the fortunes of Tesco and Sainsbury, Tesco, despite a terrible year, is showing some signs of recovery and has a clear plan for the future. In contrast, Sainsbury is suffering eroded returns are the whole supermarket sector suffers.
Away from news and on to skills and inspiration. Firstly should business students be taught to 'be detectives'? This article argues that Business Schools need to better equip students with practical skills and to tailor their research closer to real world scenarios - what do you think? Finally a post on the Blog of Harvard Business Review talking to ten people about having a career that matters. Really interesting and inspiring!
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