Aluminate - October 2010 - University of Edinburgh Business School

editor’s comment
Capitalising on
connections
Welcome to October’s edition of
Aluminate, the first published since
the School moved to its new home.
The School is now based at Buccleuch Place,
just 100 metres from the old building on
Bristo Square, but the School has a very
different feel and atmosphere, which is all for
the better. Other than the top-class facilities,
the main benefit is that the School now has
the space to house all staff and postgraduate
students in one building, allowing all to mix
and connect far more easily. I hope many of
you take the opportunity to visit us in our
new home. Please get in touch with the
Alumni Office if you are in Edinburgh
soon and would like a tour.
Making connections, at least virtual ones,
is very pertinent to this edition of Aluminate,
which focuses on the phenomena of social
media (SM) and what they mean for how we
live and do business, both now and in the
‘FOR THOSE OF YOU WHO ARE NOVICES TO MAKING
CONNECTIONS ONLINE, THERE IS A GREAT GUIDE ON
GETTING STARTED WITH LINKEDIN FROM UNIVERSITY
ALUMNUS CHRIS BROWN’
Jacquie Rorie
future. Many of you are already experts
in using SM – whether it be for professional
or personal purposes. Turn to page 24 to read
about four alumni who are trail-blazing
through the SM landscape. And for those of
you who are novices to making connections
online, there is a great guide on getting started
with LinkedIn from University alumnus Chris
Brown on page 23.
Some of you are telling us that the
economic climate is still tough, with most
sectors and markets still suffering. Two
alumni working in consultancy give very
different accounts of how they have turned
the economic crisis into an opportunity and
taken their careers onto a new level. Read
about Gerry Rose’s and Arnar Palsson’s
uplifting experiences on pages 18 and 26.
Conducting excellent academic research
is a core function of the Business School,
and is often at the heart of current business
practice. On page 32, read a profile of
Professor Abhay Abhyankar, a leading
research academic who has his feet firmly in
the corporate world. And if your company
is interested in establishing links with a
research institution then alumnus Ian
Murphy, of Edinburgh Research and
Innovation, tells you how to make the most
of that relationship to deliver what your
business needs on page 33.
And for those of you with a playful streak,
read about Dr Jim Paton and Lego, the latest
tool to help businesses approach problems
more creatively – see page 28.
Lastly, I am pleased to announce that the
new Alumni website is now live so there are
even more ways to keep connected with the
School and each other. You can read about
key features of the website on page 16 and
view the live site at www.businessschool.ed.ac.uk/alumni
I hope you enjoy the issue. Let us know
what you think and please do keep in touch.
Jacquie Rorie
Editor
If you no longer wish to receive future issues of this
magazine, please contact the Alumni Manager:
University of Edinburgh Business School, 29 Buccleuch
Place, Edinburgh EH8 9JS. Tel: +44 (0) 131 650 9840
Email: alumni@business-school.ed.ac.uk
The views expressed in Aluminate are not necessarily
those of the University of Edinburgh Business School.
Magazine design by Connect Communications.
The University of Edinburgh is a charitable body,
registered in Scotland, with registration number
SC005336.
2 | aluminate | october 2010 www.business-school.ed.ac.uk