June 15 2017 Indian Newslink Digital Edition

08
Educationlink
A new breed of MBA growing in Auckland
Frances Valintine
Venkat Raman
venkat@indiannewslink.co.nz
Diana Sharma
While traditional courses
in management practices
continue to attract young
students and people on
their career paths, a new breed of MBA
is beginning to gain traction at the Unitec
Campus in Auckland.
‘Master of Applied Practice,’ run by
Tech Futures Lab provides opportunities
for people to acquire knowledge and skills
to re-engineer their careers, link business
decisions with technology and remain at the
cutting edge.
Accredited by the New Zealand Qualifications
Authority (NZQA), the 50-week
Programme is administered by Tech
Futures Lab in association with Unitec, the
first batch of candidates are due for their
graduation now.
Adapting to change
Frances Valintine, Tech Futures Lab
Founder and education futurist, believes
that there is a growing need for tertiary
programmes to evolve and adapt to prepare
students for the future of work.
A member on the Board of Directors of
Callaghan Innovation, KEA New Zealand
and the US Board of Talentnomics, an organisation
committed to the empowerment
of women in developing nations, Ms Valintine
perceived the need for an alternative
to the conventional MBA course to enable
Candidates of the first batch of Master
of Applied Practice Programme
people to be innovative in an evolving
world of businesses and vicissitudes.
“The Master of Applied Practice has
achieved global recognition for its focus
on challenging old thinking and enabling
students to connect with the best in the
business with expert mentoring and advice,”
she said.
Diana Sharma: Prime Example
Unitec General Manager (Alliances and
Partnerships) Diana Sharma is a prime
example of people who love challenges
and do something different even in their
well- settled careers.
“Traditional business and administration
MBA is not for me because it is based on an
outdated way of looking at business. I wanted
something more relevant and tangible for
our tech-enabled world,” she said.
It was during a workshop conducted by
Ms Valintine that Ms Sharma realised that
she had not accounted for the impact that
new technology has been exercising on
business, and the world.
“That is what triggered me to think about
what I was doing in my life. It was not
about a job or money, it was about ‘What
is my purpose, what is that I can do that
actually makes a difference to the future of
the world?”
In her various roles, Ms Sharma is
“always doing something new, always
testing and tweaking projects and ideas, and
having an open dialogue with customers,
seeing what is working, and fixing what
needs to be fixed.”
Defining hours
She said this programme broadened her
perspective and got her thinking differently
and asking the important questions.
“This programme gave me the flexibility
to think in a safe environment and explore
new ideas, while also giving essential
knowledge about future technologies,” she
said. Ms Sharma recently completed the first
12 weeks of the 50-week Programme during
which she developed a unique project with
the support of skilled technical experts and
leading industry mentors.
While she is still refining and building
her project, Ms Sharma is driven to create a
digital platform for families to preserve and
share their stories and memories.
Her project stems from her own memory
of escaping Kuwait as a young child.
Digitalising memories
Her family left the oil-rich Gulf State in
September 1990 following the Iraqi occupation
a month earlier. The experience has
now prompted her to explore modern ways
of using technology to preserve precious
family heritage.
“This Masters programme is curated for
your personal journey, which is quite different
from what other education environments
are like, where you are expected to follow
a certain rhythm. This is real, and you will
end up with something real, not theoretical,”
she said.
She used the Masters of Applied Practice
– Technological Futures, to cultivate and
implement her idea for a digital storytelling
platform to help families preserve their
memories and heritage for future generations.
Her experience in Kuwait made her
see an opportunity to create a means for
families to protect their treasured stories
digitally.
JUNE 15, 2017
Workshops for constructive
engagement with youth
Rakesh Naidoo
A
workshop aimed at engaging
with the younger members
of the society will be held in
Auckland on Saturday, July
8, 2017 at Mangere East Community
Centre, 372, Massey Road, Mangere
East from 1030 am to 4 pm.
Organised by the Human Rights
Commission, Multicultural New
Zealand and Hui E, it would be the ninth
workshop in a series of 12 such events
being held throughout New Zealand.
Three more workshops, one each at in
Hamilton, Rotorua and Dunedin will
be held shortly, details of which will be
announced soon.
These workshops are free and are
open to the youth and adults who work
with them.
As well as meals, participants will
have free WiFi access at the venue.
Exploring barriers
The purpose of these workshops is to
explore some of the barriers youth face
when accessing social services particularly
when they require assistance.
The workshops provide a positive
environment to interact, discuss these
issues and mutually educate and inform.
The youth will also contribute to developing
a Youth APP – YouthAoteaReo
funded by the New Zealand National
Commission for UNESCO. This will
serve as an ongoing national resource
to support youth.
Our focus is on getting the key
voices of youth at the workshops.
We are confident this positive initiative
will strengthen our engagement
with youth.
Rakesh Naidoo is Strategic Advisor,
Race Relations at the Human Rights
Commission.
START
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THIS JULY
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0800 62 62 52
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