Last Day in Munich

Friday, June 5th, was our last day of the class in Munich. We had a class on Human Resources practices in Europe that focused on hiring practices, motivation, and retention. Our instructor, Jurgen Rohrmeier, had experience running human resources and consulting for U.S. companies with locations in Germany. At the end of the class, Dean Rickie Moore of EMLYON presented our students with certificates of completion. We also gave a round of applause to Rosanna Wong, an Online MBA student who finished her MBA program with the completion of this class.
I spoke to many students about their overall impressions of this trip, and the consensus was that this was a very unique learning experience that exposed them to things they might never have seen otherwise. They appreciated the range of companies and businesses that we visited, from a family-owned business like AC Canova to large operations like EADS and BMW. Students also appreciated hearing feedback from instructors in France and Germany who gave them a greater understanding of how different countries in Europe are from the U.S. and from one another, and how to do business effectively in those environments. If you read any brochure for an MBA program, you are likely to see the words "global business." The students who went on this trip
had the opportunity to go beyond the buzzwords, and to actually experience global business as an integral part of their business education.
This concludes my 2009 Western Europe IFS blog. If you have any questions about our MBA program or this trip, please feel free to e-mail me at sa.burke@neu.edu.
In closing, here is a picture of a few of our MBA students, taken right outside of the FOM business school in Munich after our last class. Is this strength in advertising, or what?...

Day Ten - Visit to EADS

This morning we attended a class at FOM business school, taught by Peter Deisenbeck and Niklas Lampenius, on the European Insurance Industry and Perspectives on the Financial Crisis. We discussed how the financial crisis has impacted countries in Europe, particularly Germany, and also the role that both lenders and consumers have played. After lunch, we visited EADS in Manching, Germany. This EADS location is the headquarters of EADS Military Air Systems. On our tour, an EADS pilot showed us where the Eurofighter jet is made and gave us an overview of the production process. Photographs were not allowed on most of the tour, but we were able to take pictures in a facility that houses "vintage" planes dating from the World War II era. All of the planes are still operational, and one was used recently in the filming of the movie Valkyrie with Tom Cruise. Here are a few pictures of our visit:

Day Nine - Visit to Siemens

We started our day today with a class on product marketing in Europe at the FOM business school. After class, U.S. Consul General Eric Nelson and Principal Commercial Officer Isabella Cascarano joined us to share their remarks on U.S. - German relations. They also discussed resources available to U.S. companies who want to do business in Germany.

In the afternoon, we visited the Siemens world headquarters in Munich. We had a guided tour, which included a walk through the history of technological innovation at Siemens, starting with the first long-distance telegraph line in Europe in 1848. After a historical overview, we were given a preview of future Siemens products that are in development, such as facial recognition software that could be used for airport security. Here are a few pictures of our day:

Day Eight - Visit to BMW in Munich

Last night we arrived in Munich, Germany for the last leg of our Western Europe trip. This morning we started the day with an exciting tour of the BMW plant in Munich. Our tour guide showed us how BMWs are assembled, from the welding of the body frame, to the paint job, to the "marriage" of the body frame and engine, and ultimately, the finished product. We saw the robots that are used in many stages of production and also the specialized tasks that require teams of human workers to oversee. At the end of the tour, we had the opportunity to explore the BMW showroom and participate in some interactive, virtual-reality driving games. In the afternoon, we had a class at the FOM business school in Munich on Doing Business in Germany, taught by Mr. Prof. Dr. Thomas Peisel. We also heard comments from Susan Schaubhut, an MBA student at FOM who moved to Germany from the U.S. several years ago. Our MBA students learned how a better understanding of German culture can lead to more effective meetings and business deals with German companies. We finished the day with a group dinner at a local beer garden. Here are a couple pictures from our day:

Day Seven - Visit to the United Nations

We started the day today with a visit to the World Meteorological Organization, a specialized agency of the United Nations. The WMO is the UN's authoritative voice on the state and behavior of the Earth's atmosphere, its interaction with the oceans, the climate it produces, and the resulting distribution of water resources. Pierre Eckert, the Director of Climate change, delivered a presentation on climate change and the mission and goals of the WMO. After our visit to the WMO, we had a guided tour of the United Nations in Geneva, Switzerland, which is the site of the original League of Nations. The UN in Geneva is the largest office outside of the headquarters in New York. The committees that meet in Geneva focus on issues such as human rights, humanitarian efforts, and disarmament. Here are a couple pictures of our day:

Day Six - The Olympic Museum in Lausanne

Today we traveled from Lyon to our hotel in Geneva. Then we took the bus to Lausanne, Switzerland for a guided tour of the Olympic Museum. We saw the Olympic torches for summer and winter games from the Berlin games in 1936 through Beijing in 2008. We also saw a large collection of memorabilia from the summer and winter games, including Michael Phelps's swimsuit, Katarina Witt's skating outfit, and Carl Lewis's "golden shoes." The Olympic Museum is located on the shores of Lake Geneva, with a beautiful view of the mountains. Here are a few pictures:

Day Five - Exploring Lyon

After many company visits and classes last week, today we had some free time to explore Lyon. Professor Mooradian organized a visit to the Roman ruins on the top of the hill overlooking Lyon. We took the funiculaire to the top of the hill and spent some time walking through the Roman theaters, baths, and aqueducts. Then we walked over to visit the basilica that overlooks Lyon and admired the beautiful architecture and stained glass windows. Afterward, we took the funiculaire back down to Old Lyon and enjoyed lunch at an outside cafe. Tomorrow we leave Lyon and head to Geneva. Here a couple pictures from today: