Richard Addo-Tenkorang, Concurrent Enterprise: An Industrial Competitive Advantage for New Product Introduction/Development in Finland

Juha-Pekka Kurvinen, Media-ammattilaisten sisäisten tarinoiden johtamiskäsityksiä

Nnamdi Oguji, Acquisition Strategies and Performance of Nordic Manufacturing Firms in Central and Eastern Europe

Narashima Boopathi Sivasubramanain, Leading Business in India – Cultural Intelligence Quotient (CQ) Perspectives of Finnish Leadership Behavior

Rayko Toshev, Decision Making Models and Customers Service Design for ”Smart” Electric Grid Networks

Olli Välimäki, Kovenantit, informaatio ja kumppanuus

Narashima Boopathi Sivasubramanain and Richard Addo-Tenkorang.

Graduate School has granted 21 000 euros from the Vaasa University Foundation for three post-graduate students:

Alemu Moges Belay, Productivity Improvement Using Concurrent Engineering as Competitive Strategy

Katalin Érsek, Health Policy and Health Economics of Breast Cancer Prevention. A Comparison Between Finland and Hungary.

Elina Nevasaari, Bakom orden – att strukturera vetande i språkbadselevers uppsatser

Graduate School has also granted two year research positions to following researchers:

Denis Davydov, Essays on Empirical Corporate Finance and Banking

Sylvi Elsner, Lexemet Zuwanderer i tysk migrationsdiskurs

Tuomas Huikkola, Teollisuuden ratkaisuliiketoiminnan strategiset kyvykkyydet

Zhu Liandong, Efficiency of Biodiesel Production from Algae Naturally Growing in Lakes, Reservoirs, and Seas in Finland

Diplomas were handed by university’s rector Matti Jakobsson at an award ceremony. Both winners also received a prize of 850 euros.

The aim of the competition was to produce a video describing the university, studying and student life in Vaasa for student recruitment and marketing purposes.

Check the award winning videos: http://www.facebook.com/vaasanyliopisto?sk=videos

Maria Nilova, Arttu Ylitalo, rector Matti Jakobsson and Shaima Abdelmageed.

Graduation event Publiikki

The University's Graduation event Publiikki will be held on Friday 25th of May. In the event, the graduates will receive their degree certificate. The event takes place at 3.00 pm in restaurant Mathilda.

The graduates must notify their participation in advance with the degree certificate application. Friends and familymembers (max. 3) are also welcome to take part.

Celebratory Dinner for Graduates

All the students who have got their Master’s degree in academic year of 2011-2012 are invited to a Celebratory Dinner in restaurant Buffetti on 25th May 2012 at 5 p.m. Also the friends and families of the graduates are invited.

Participation to the dinner costs 36 euros per person.

Please enroll for the dinner to linda.lindqvist(at)uwasa.fi at latest 16th May 2012.

The panelists are either working with migrants and/or have migrated to Vaasa themselves. The audience is invited to ask questions and to participate in the discussion.

No entrance fee, everybody is welcome!

Event will be organized in two days. The theme of the first day will be “Wireless Automation” and the second day is “Tactical Communication Systems”. For both days, we will have keynote expert speakers in those areas of research.

The WoWCA is a great chance for researchers to present their latest results. Moreover, it is a chance for industry professionals to be up to date for this exponentially growing field of engineering. And, it is chance for interested people and students to meet professionals in the area of wireless communication and its applications.

Programme and registration

With support of IEEE Joint Communications & Information Theory Chapter - FINLAND Section

Paper submission deadline extended to 4th of April, 2012

„La Suisse Plurielle“ – A photo exhibition on migration

Switzerland – a multicultural country? The photo exhibition “La Suisse plurielle,” organized in collaboration with the Swiss embassy, will be on display in Tritonia (University of Vaasa) from March 30, 2012 through April 20, 2012. The Swiss ambassador will be present for the opening ceremony which takes place on March 30, 2012 at 14.00. Everybody is invited!

The exhibition shows works of the Swiss photographers Ursula Markus, Edouard Rieben, and Pierre-Antoine Grisoni. They broach the issue of migration in Switzerland, while still adopting a global perspective; a close look reveals that these authentic pictures narrate their own, very personal stories. Moreover, the aim of the exhibition is to focus on the human being and to raise questions to generate dialogue on migration.

5-6% of Vaasa’s inhabitants have a migration background. Participate in our photo competition and show us your own personal “Intercultural Vaasa!” We look forward to receiving your contributions. Please send them to us at foto@uwasa.fi until April 16, 2012. The award, a dinner for two at a Thai restaurant, will be presented on April 18, 2012.

Information on the frame program will be communicated at a later date.

Here is the first number of the Research News of the University of Vaasa (pdf).

Newsletter includes topics like New Funding, New Projects, Research funded by the Academy of Finland and presentation of the Research Group The Intercultural Phenomena in Time.

Newsletter is published in every other month during the academic year. Next
newsletter is published in May. Topics to come: Tekes-projects, new publications and
much more.

Editor:
Publication and Science Editor Virpi Juppo, tel. +358 44 024 4233, email: vira@uwasa.fi

The application deadline is 30 April 2012. The students apply for admission to the doctoral programmes, and the primary study right is given for a doctorate degree.

More information

- Several regional, national and international events aimed at experts in the energy industry are organised in Vaasa every year, and despite their differences, they interest many of the same operators,” says Robert Olander, the Marketing Director of Technology Centre Merinova and the representative of EnergyVaasa.

- Our target in combining these three popular events is to increase their media reach and strengthen Vaasa’s visibility as the flagship of the energy sector in Finland. Vaasa EnergyWeek will bring more than 1,000 experts in the field to the area, which will definitely make it the hub of energy issues for that week.

19 March 2012, Energy and Environment Seminar

The national Energy and Environment Seminar kicks off this energetic week. Organised annually since 2005, the seminar this year will focus on the issues of energy efficiency from the environmental point of view and offer a fascinating opening for researchers, business representatives and political decision-makers. Traditionally, decision-makers both at national and EU level have held lectures at the seminar and this year is no exception. In addition to Anette Rothberg from the EU Commission’s Directorate-General for Energy, the seminar boasts speakers such as the Finnish Minister of the Environment, Ville Niinistö, and the Director-General of the Ministry of Employment and the Economy’s Energy Department, Esa Härmälä.

20 March 2012, Vaasa Wind Exchange

Last year, Vaasa Wind Exchange drummed up more than 50 exhibitors and over 600 visitors and its popularity seems to continue. The exhibitors in this networking event include companies operating within the wind power sector, as well as municipalities and authorities, which is sure to create exciting discussions about issues concerning zoning and licence practices, business opportunities and wind power construction.

From 21 to 22 March 2012, Renewable Efficient Energy II Conference (REE II)

This international conference will deal with issues such as the various alternatives for renewable energy, distributed energy production and energy self-sufficiency. The subjects will be examined from the point of view of a sustainable and more efficient energy supply than ever. The topics will be discussed by such eminent specialists as Dr Alagappan Narayanan from India (specialism: bioenergy and biofuels) and Dr László Dinya from Hungary (specialism: regional energy self-sufficiency).

In addition to the three main events, Vaasa EnergyWeek offers supplementary programmes linked to the theme.  Olander invites participants to take part in the various interesting evening events and company visits that are on offer, as they will help them to network.

More than 1,000 experts from the energy industry will get together during the Vaasa EnergyWeek taking place between 19^th and 22^nd March 2012 in Vaasa. The Vaasa region is the home of EnergyVaasa, the most important centre of energy technology in the Nordic Countries. EnergyVaasa is organising the event in cooperation with its partners Pohjanmaan Expo, the Ostrobothnia Chamber of Commerce, the Regional Council of Ostrobothnia, Technology Centre Oy Merinova Ab, Vaasa Energy Institute (VEI), Vaasa Region Development Company VASEK and the Centres for Economic Development, Transport and the Environment for Ostrobothnia and South Ostrobothnia. The main sponsors of the EnergyWeek are ABB, Wärtsilä and EPV Energy Ltd.

WWW.ENERGYWEEK.FI

The aim of the project was to find out how innovative Born Globals can grow to become truly global firms while also surviving, taking into consideration their limited resources to address the global market opportunities and required holistic management of the process.

Born Globals are firms that from inception internationalize their business outside home country and often also rapidly globalize their business to a number of continents.

Born Global growth stages

– We have found that there are four critical phases in Born Global growth: introductory, commercialization and foreign entries, rapid growth and foreign expansion, and rationalization and foreign maturity, one of the editors of the report and the director of the project consortium, professor Peter Gabrielsson from the University of Vaasa tells.

It was found that organic growth is the main growth method, but rapid global growth also calls for the use of partnerships and acquisitions.

– We could see that growth and survival are facilitated by the existence of sufficient but not slack of resources. Proactiveness and networking capabilities are crucial for advancing through growth phases while dynamic capabilities are critical for survival. Interestingly, it was found that government support advances growth, but survivability may be endangered especially in the long term.

Born Global networks and firm performance

Networks are important for Born Globals to grow successfully to global markets. There are four network elements that the firm needs to pay attention to: network content, structure, centrality, and management.

Born Global managers need to continuously evaluate the firm’s relationships, assess the mutuality of benefits, avoid overreliance on a single partner, and take according action early on, and not hesitate to restructure relationships in time and as needed.

– The results show that the stronger the relationships between network partners and the more central the Born Global becomes, the higher the firm performance.

– Managers should use their closest relationships to enhance their network centrality and extend that to improve the firm’s influence on its industry. They should also adopt a proactive approach to managing networks since it tends to yield better results than a passive approach. This includes extending their networks beyond current boundaries and even creating new networks for example, by inviting companies within their sector to cooperate in various ways, doctoral researcher Fabian Sepulveda from Aalto University explains.

Entrepreneurial marketing strategies

The degree of innovativeness and adaption of marketing strategies are especially key areas to be addressed in the strategic decision-making of Born Global firms.

– The innovativeness of marketing strategies should go beyond product and technology innovativeness. Such strategies can be pursued by taking novel approaches to build value innovation, leveraging external resources in co-creating marketing strategies and value with others, and utilizing the possibilities of low-cost marketing.

– Rapid globalization also compels a Born Global to make strategic decisions about the degree and manner of adaption of marketing strategies and such decisions should involve both customer- and country/region-based considerations. Based on our results the two dimensions of marketing strategy – innovativeness and adaptation – are extremely important for growth and success of Born Globals, doctoral researcher Johanna Hallbäck from the University of Vaasa concludes.

Born Global firm striving for high marketing performance should acknowledge the importance of fit between the marketing strategy innovativeness and adaptation, the industry environment and the global growth phase of the firm.

Governmental support

Born Globals make valuable contributions to Finland’s economy such as creating new jobs, improving international trade balances, and adding to the GDP.

The three types of support most frequently wanted by firms were financing, international sales and marketing support, and research and development aid says professor Mika Gabrielsson from Aalto University.

– It seems that government support has a positive influence on the growth of firms, but it is highly important that the firms are competitive on their own. Without the proof provided by paying customers, government support eventually delays the inevitable failure of firms that do not independently pass the test of private markets.

The research is part of the "Born Globals – Growth Stages and Survival" -cooperation project between the University of Vaasa, Aalto University School of Economics and six partner organisations: Finpro, Biohit, Hartwall Capital, Innohome, IonPhase and Mapvision. The financiers of the project are the LIITO-program of the Finnish Funding Agency for Technology and Innovation (Tekes), and the partner organisations. The project was coordinated by the University of Vaasa.

The research report:

Gabrielsson, Peter, Mika Gabrielsson, Johanna Hallbäck & Fabian Sepulveda (eds) (2011). Born global growth stages and survival – Most important research results and recommendations. Reports 170.

See also Research Group in International Marketing

Tornikoski has made her PhD in the research group "Human resource management as a strategic competitive partner". Currently she works at Grenoble Ecole de Management in France as an assistant professor.

The team of three, who have already won the Finnish Championship in Project Management, won again!

Team members are students Maria Nilova and Elena Sapegina, who study in Master's Degree Programme in International Business and Hugo Chamorro Sotelo, who studies in Master's Degree Programme in Industrial Management.

The event takes place once per 5 years. Teams from Sweden (Linköping University), Denmark (University of Southern Denmark) and Finland (University of Vaasa) competed for the title "Nordic Champion in Project Management 2011".

Zero hours spent on corrections

The competition was more challenging for participants considering the fact that there was no information about its content. The organizers had highlighted especially that no questions would be answered regarding the tasks and knowledge areas of project management.

We started the first day from introduction of the teams and getting familiarized with a simulation program, which was used for the competition. Every team had a similar task that was to manage a virtual project considering constraints in terms of availability and capabilities of human resources, assigned budget, and determined duration of the project. Therefore, the success was measured based on quality, costs and time parameters. In general the task reminded a real life challenges that project managers frequently face but simplified for learning purposes.

At the beginning teams had 90 minutes to plan the project: to assign people for determined activities, to create risk management plan and responsive actions, to calculate budget, and to schedule formal and informal meeting with team and supervisors. The smooth progress and success of the project were dependent on how careful all necessary issues were considered at the planning stage, e.g. match of people skills with assigned activities or planning trainings for employees before assigning him or her for a special task.  When the time for preparation was over, the project started. Teams managed part of the project on the first day.

The simulation software was programmed to receive e-mails and phone calls from staff and supervisors, making important decisions about procurement, costs, risks, team building, etc. All situations described a small episode of the ongoing project and made us as project managers make decisions. Competing teams needed to react to arising problems quickly and possess solid knowledge in all areas of project management, analytical skills, and ability to work and make decisions under stress as well as show disciplined and coordinated teamwork.

After finishing the first part of the simulation teams passed through the Project Management Skill Test consisting of 50 project situations. We agreed that it was more difficult than 100 questions from the qualification round that we had at the University as this test offered situations where decisions should be prioritized.

At the end of the day the mid-term results were announced. Our team was placed on the second between Denmark and Sweden. Good results from the test helped us to reduce the gap to the first place but there were still some missing points that we had an opportunity to get during the second day of the competition.

Next day we continued working with the simulation. There was time for corrective actions and strategy re-thinking. It might have been a key to our success as we came prepared and had already some work pieces in mind. We executed them, finished the project on time, with sufficient quality but over budget. We had to wait for results knowing that Danish team completed the project earlier than it was planned.

The award ceremony was very exciting. The organizers of the competition announced that two teams scored the same points. So the winner was decided based on the second evaluation criterion “time spent on correction of errors”. The winner spent zero hours that reflected better quality of the project performance. It was a completely surprise to us when we were announced as the winner. It was an honour to win in such tight competition.

Maria Nilova, Elena Sapegina & Hugo Chamorro Sotelo

The Graduate School of the University of Vaasa

Professor Joanna Paliszkiewicz (Warsaw University of Life Sciences) will act as opponent and professor Josu Takala as custos.

The dissertation is available at Info (Tervahovi).

This autumn a competition called “Your take” was organized by The Economist newspaper and Student Competitions for students across Europe. The task in the competition was to share your perspective on a current, thought-provoking topic recently covered by The Economist. First, an image (photograph, drawing, comic etc.) should be created that would visualize the candidate’s views on the topic. Then, a text of a maximum of 400 characters should be written explaining the idea briefly. The results of the first round of the competition were decided by a public vote. Then, the submissions of the ten finalists were evaluated by an official panel of judges from The Economist. The judges awarded prizes to the top three student submissions.

Benedek based her submission on the topic of talent management which was the topic of one of her written assignments for a course she took at the university. Her idea was based the paradox of studying about the war for talent on the one hand, and the struggle of educated young people for work on the other. As someone who has moved abroad in the hope of a better life and having to face the same labor market situation all over again, Benedek thought that she should enter the competition and bring the issue to the public’s attention. The submission, entitled “The long road ahead”, is represented by an image of a young person leaving home, heading down a long and winding road hoping to find happiness abroad.

The judges from The Economist awarded Benedek second prize and made the following comment on her submission:

- A striking image with a good thought about being on the road and the challenges that unemployed youth face

The submission will be featured as part of a student subscription campaign inserted into all subscriber copies of The Economist in Central Europe in April 2012. In addition, Benedek received a free ticket to an Economist Conference of her choice in Europe and an annual digital subscription to The Economist.

For more information visit: www.yourtake.studentcompetitions.com/