Over the last 12 months, Professor Paul McGuinness has been working closely with colleagues at Mannheim Business School, a top European business school and leader in executive education, to design an insightful and detailed field trip week for students studying The Sheffield MBA. The week covered a wide range of topics including the German and EU business economy and culture, focusing on the German Mittelstand, as well as financial regulation and European start-up businesses. Alongside classroom based learning, such as lectures, group work and presentations, the students took part in a number of company visits to BASF, the German Bundesbank, Deutsche Boerse and the MANIFEX fintech hub in Mannheim, all of which brought to life what the students had been learning in the classroom both in Germany and in Sheffield. The trip gave the MBA cohort invaluable opportunities to build connections with leading experts in the German business community and fellow MBA students from around the world.
Professor McGuinness’ relationship with Mannheim Business School dates back to 2016 when he led Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) MBA visits to the School. Before joining Sheffield University Management School as Chair in Accounting and Finance, he was a full time professor in the Department of Finance at CUHK, during which time he developed strong connections with colleagues in Mannheim. This relationship helped in developing the thorough and varied programme of quality speakers and company visits for our MBA students.
Professor Fraser McLeay, Dean at Sheffield University Management School, said, "The international field trip is an important component of our new multi-faceted internationalisation strategy. Feedback from our MBA students has been overwhelmingly positive and their active engagement with the speakers, companies and Mannheim Business School has played a major role in enhancing the reputation of Sheffield University Management School and the University of Sheffield more generally beyond the borders of the UK.
We look forward to continuing to develop our relationship with Mannheim Business School and continue to offer our MBA students an international study trip as part of their dynamic and varied programme."