Semester Two: Managing in the Real World

Mr Charles Lovatt, MX Programme Co-ordinator, has written the following:

Change of presentational style and content

The Master's Extra Programme in your first semester was mostly about giving you useful information and pointers to various resources within the University such as those available through CAPOD and the Careers Centre.

In Semester Two, the focus changes completely and the semester's theme is Managing in the Real World. The expert speakers mostly come from outside the University: they've each been asked to talk from their professional expertise about the work they do and the complexities and challenges that real-world managers face. It's a programme of talks that will take you outside the comfort zone of textbook management. The real world involves a complexity of issues including: ethics, power, violence and randomness. Some of the questions that will be addressed:

* How to keep safe and manage the provision of care for convicted murderers?

* What’s the state of corporate governance in Scottish football (soccer)?

* How to prepare for the next SuperStorm Sandy? Or the next Hurricane Katrina? Or the next tsunami?

* Who owns your facebook? And when you die, can you leave it to somebody in your will?

* Female terrorism – equality of threat?

* How did Dundee become centre of the global computer games industry?

Programme

NB on a couple of days there are TWO MX sessions.  These run back-to-back on different topics with different speakers. MX programme semester two 2012-2013 (PDF, 135 KB)

Change of venue and Eventbrite registration

In Semester One we held MX sessions in one of the lecture theatres which needed to big enough to hold the entire Masters cohort of some 230+ students, however this type of presentation is very unidirectional and doesn't lend itself to two-way conversation or professional networking. In Semester Two therefore, to match the change of content, we'll hold MX sessions in one of the smaller rooms in the Gateway building. The type of presentation will become much more conversational, more like a seminar and there will opportunities for questions and discussion. Switching to a smaller room has many advantages but if the room used is too small, some people will be left standing outside. To solve this potential problem, I'll ask you to register to attend in advance using Eventbrite which is a quick and straightforward ticketing app. It'll allow me to match the number of intending attendees with room capacity. If you register, you're guaranteed to get in, and we'll switch to a larger room if need be (subject to availability). Registration will be open 10 days before each talk and will close at noon three days prior to the talk. You don't have to register in advance and are welcome to come along on the day – but there no guarantee that you'll get a seat or indeed get in at all! Registering in advance also simplifies the sign in process – there'll be an advance registration list which you can tick at the door.

First talks of the new season: Covering the Rangers story and Female Terrorism

In the first week of the new semester we have TWO talks on completely different topics from two top experts in their different fields. Wednesday 30 January 2013: Chris McLaughlin will be talking at 2.00 pm on covering the Rangers FC story - Chris is the senior BBC football reporter (this topic will be of particular interest to some of those taking MN5002 – Contemporary Conceptual Issues in Management: Rangers FC is one of the integrative case studies); later that same afternoon, at 4.15 pm, Louise Richardson will be giving her expert view on female terrorism. Louise is well known as Principal of the University – but prior to taking up her position, she was one on the most eminent experts on international security and terrorism. Eventbrite registration for each of these events will open early in January. You can attend both sessions but please register separately for each.

Certificate of Career Development and recognition of attendances

If you have attended four MX sessions in Semester One and attend another four in Semester Two, you're eligible to receive a Certificate in Career Development (CCD) which will be awarded in May. Additionally, we are hoping to put on a special event recognising the top attendees of the cohort. Further details will be available in January but the date pencilled in is likely to be Wednesday 3 April 2013.

Ideas for future speakers

I'm collecting ideas about the sort of people that next year's cohort of students might like to hear. If you've any suggestions or contacts you can share, please get in touch or feed ideas through your class rep. For September 2013, what do you think Semester One theme ought to be?

Thanks to Class Representatives

Finally, a very big 'thank you' to the class representatives who, individually and collectively, have been incredibly helpful in putting the programme together.