CEMS Club Prague QUARTERLY

Talented CEMSies Find out about interesting hobbies of Prague CEMSies

Christmas in Prague What to do in this wonderful city during the festivities?

Interview with Lucia Slezáková CR Coordinator at PwC Czech Republic

Christmas Issue

Grow Further.

EXPAND YOUR OPPORTUNITIESBCG is a global management

At BCG, your potential is limited only by your talents and ambitions. You will work daily with the world’s leading businesses on a wide range of high-level strategic challenges. You will gain the knowledge, experience and skills to excel in

3 Prague Christmas Guide Discover what to do in this wonderful city during the festivities

CEMS again ranked 2nd in the prestigious Financial Times University ranking

Drahomíra Mandíková explains the Plze!sk" Prazdroj’s most successful CSR strategy in an exclusive interview

Remember with us what the best fall events were like in an extensive review

4

2 Editorial A welcome word from Mr. President about this issue, semester that is almost behind us and Christmas

15 Jan Iser Interview with a fresh CEMS MIM Graduate, currently living in Copenhagen, on his cross-cultural experience

8 “To be successful, CSR needs to be embedded in the business strategy” Interview with Lucie Slezáková, CR coordinator at PwC Czech Republic

6 It is not all about studying… A series of interviews with CEMSies who are very successful at their unusual hobbies

1411

QUARTERLY QUARTERLY

EDIT

OR

IAL

DEAR READERS,

I hereby want to welcome you to the Christmas edition of the

CEMS Club Prague Quarterly. Along with a review of your action-

packed semester you will find tips concerning how to spend the

Christmas holidays in Prague and also some interesting readings for

cold evenings next to the open fire in the form of interviews with

successful people in various business areas.

When we will hand out this issue, the results for the CEMS Club

Awards 2011 will already be public. But while I am writing this

editorial, we are still kept in the dark. Whatever the result I would

like to thank everybody who voted for us. Getting into the top

three CEMS Clubs in the world is a big honour and a privilege. We

will keep up the good work.

In the past semester we organized quite a lot of big events as, for

example, the Gala Casino Night or the Teambuilding weekend.

Those were accompanied by some smaller events like the Meet

the… series or the Rotation Dinner. For the first time we also “ran”

around Prague during the Running Dinner; our classmates scored

top places in various competitions organised by companies and

almost all of us attended the one and only Career forum in

Budapest. I hope you all enjoyed the semester.

To the students who are leaving us I wish: Good speed! To the

students arriving: Welcome to the best place in the CEMS network!

I wish you all Happy Holidays, Merry Christmas and all the best in

the year 2012!

Martin Strnad

President, CEMS Club Prague

-2-

CHRISTMAS IN PRAGUE GUIDE

ow, a few months later, when they lit up the Christmas tree on

the Old Town square, I was thinking back of him. Since I had left

home for studies, last year I had to find my own way how to spend the

Advent time. Thus, I have to say, that Prague is a truly amazing city for

that. Let me share some tips with you on how to enjoy this magic time

of the year in Prague. There are a few things you should definitely do:

feed your stomach and soul with festive goodies and traditions and share

all of this with your friends.

Let’s start with the tradition: Christmas time in Prague begins four

weeks before Christmas Eve and is called Advent. Simultaneously all

Christmas markets begin. On these markets you will find plenty of tasty

food. The most appreciated specialties are traditional Czech sausages

and Christmas wine (sweet and hot wine with cinnamon). Except for the

main market in the Old Town, I would very much recommend you to

visit the Vy!ehrad market. In lovely surroundings with a great view over

Prague and with far fewer tourists, you can buy and even fabricate

traditional Czech craftwork by yourself, listen to Czech Christmas songs

and observe folk dances. Do not forget to try the traditional Czech

Christmas Eve meal: Lent carp with potato salad, which you can order in

restaurants in U Drahokoupilu in Radlická street for a very reasonable

price.

Apart from the food and confirmed by thousands of tourists, you should

experience the special Prague Christmas spirit. So, how should you best

get into the mood? Remember that Czechs are Christians from

tradition. So, there is no Santa Claus and there are no Christmas

stockings. All presents and blessings are brought by Little Jesus that you

can see in the little Christmas cribs. These models of his birthplace can

be found at markets and in churches. You do not need to be Christian

but you definitely should visit one of the Christmas concerts that take

place in the churches. The music of joy and peace in the oldest

cathedrals is simply unforgettable. The most famous one is in Saint

Salvator, right in front of the Charles Bridge. Unfortunately, you have to

buy tickets but those are available in most ticket chains. You can also

spend some money on Czech glass, for example in form of Christmas

baubles. These are known world-wide, and definitely will please your

mum. But do not stress for presents too much, it is not worth it... If you

were good you will get some anyway. But you should be afraid of the

lack of snow. Because remember when the first snowflakes will fall, take

your friends and glide down the hill of Pet!ín. This place, which is usually

occupied by couples, with the first snow turns into a racing track and is

undoubtedly a must for every winter.

Finally, I hope that you will find some time between the exams and

project presentations to discover the magic of Christmas in Prague.

With the CEMS Christmas party it just begins and keep in mind that it is

not just about Christmas trees…!

Last year I spent a semester in Taiwan and when I came back to Prague, I was accompanied by my Taiwanese friend. He loved it here and the first impression he shared with me was: „It is so cute that you have so many Christmas trees here“.

Text by Kristina !ahojová N

-3-

QUARTERLY QUARTERLY

HOW WE RULED THE SEMESTER

The new academic CEMS year was kicked-off on the 26th of September after the first day of lectures at VSE. It was the first year that the CEMS club organized an official welcome event to which also our corporate partners and CEMS university representatives were invited. After some presentations and a short introduction of the new CEMS Club team everybody could enjoy drinks and a delicious buffet at the restaurant Rezavá Kotva, which offered an amazing view over the Vltava and Prague. The welcome event was a great success and a wonderful way how to end the first day of university.

This year the already traditional Teambuilding weekend took place on the first weekend of the new semester from September 30th till October 2nd. More than 50 1st year and 2nd year CEMS Prague students participated in the 3 days event at Lávka Chocerady. It was a weekend full of fun activities, lectures, teambuilding games and parties, which offered a great opportunity to get to know most of the fellow classmates. A special highlight was the costume party under the theme of “Movie heroes” on Saturday. ! As usual the teambuilding weekend was a perfect start into the new semester.

Another great and new event in Prague is the running dinner. Already organized for several years at other CEMS universities it was held in Prague for the first time on October 7th. CEMS student and alumni teams of 2 offered a dish at their kitchen for 2 other pairs and then travelled further to other places all around Prague to enjoy dishes which were prepared by other teams. In the end all groups met in a Salsa bar to party. Everybody had a great time while enjoying delicious home-made dishes. This event is definitely going to be repeated.

WELCOME EVENT Rezavá Kotva, Prague TEAMBUILDING WEEKEND

Chocerady

RUNNING DINNER All around Prague

Text by Sandra Huber

-4-

On the 11th of October 15 CEMS students got the opportunity to participate in the first rotation dinner of the semester which focused on the FMCG sector. The rotation dinner is an already traditional event organized by the CEMS Club Prague in cooperation with the corporate partners and other companies. The selected participants were invited to enjoy a delicious three-course meal at the FAMA Restaurant together with representatives of L’Oréal, Plze!sk! Prazdroj and Procter & Gamble. The students shared each course of the dinner with one of the participating companies. It was a perfect opportunity to have an informal conversation with the corporate partners in a relaxed environment and to get to know more about the FMCG sector. The 2nd rotation dinner this semester took place with representatives of the consulting companies Boston Consulting Group, PricewaterhouseCoopers and Roland Berger Strategy Consultants. Both events were a big success and feedback was great.

Of course, we also want to mention all the other smaller great events we had during this semester. Just remember our nice CEMS drinks, the Meet the… series and our great CEMS sport day. Reporting about all these events in detail would already go beyond the scope of this article. Therefore, at this point the only thing that remains to be said is “Enjoy the party” and we wish you a very Merry Christmas. Also this semester the CEMS

Club Prague organized a CEMS day at VSE. For this purpose an information stand was built up in the big hall of the Rajská budova on the 12th of October. Students interes-ted in the CEMS programme got the opportunity to ask questions and to chat with current CEMS students who were talking about their experience. The interest in the program was really high and the CEMS stand was busy all day long. CEMS Prague can probably look forward to many new applicants for the next year.

One of the highlights of the semester was definitely the CEMS Gala night, which was once more organized under the theme of “Casino”. This year it took place at on the 26th of October. CEMS students, corporate partners and alumni gathered to enjoy a nice dancing event with an excellent buffet dinner and to “gamble” at the black jack, poker and roulette tables. With the fake money nice presents, which were provided, by the corporate partners and the university could be won during an auction. Among the appreciated gifts was, for example, a hand-signed Corporate Finance book from doc. Hnilica’s personal library and many other practical things.

GALA CASINO NIGHT Na Marjánce, Prague

ROTATION DINNERS Fáma and Artisan Restaurants, Prague

CEMS DAY V#E Prague

-5-

OTHER EVENTS

QUARTERLY QUARTERLY

JAN VERNER

What is your hobby? My hobby is photography! I love taking pictures and I do it everywhere. I actually don't know how it started. I generally like all technical gadgets but cameras have always been my favorites. So, one day I decided to buy one and that’s how my journey with photography begun. Why do you like it? Why I like it? - Because I can express myself by taking photos. I like taking pictures of people as well as landscapes, but my favorites are the pictures I take during my travels. Moreover, I love the feeling when I can see that the quality of my pictures is improving. I spent a lot of time reading books about the “science” of photography and I practice a lot. I even participated in a program for young photographers, last summer in the Philippines. This experience taught me a lot. Since then, I take photography more and more seriously. What is your biggest achievement? I do not hold my own exhibitions. One of my biggest achievements was being accepted for the Economix magazine as a photographer. Moreover I put all the pictures on my website and my FB photo profile. Do you have any further plans connected with your passion or will it remain “just” a hobby? My further plans are pretty much straight forward. I would like to stick to photography but I am not yet sure how exactly to do that! My dream is to be able to combine business and photography.

JON

AS

HU

USO

M

What is your hobby? Parkour is a method of movement focused on moving around obstacles with speed and efficiency. It emphasizes the joy of movement. People often think it is about doing crazy things and jumping off high buildings and between roofs and performing dangerous tricks, but it is not about that. Maybe some small part of it is, but most of the time you would never do that. Why do you like it? I lived in a sport academy for one year and they had a Parkour course. I always try new things, so I decided to take part in it. I liked it from the beginning as is not competitive at all. I used to do a lot of sports, almost every sport you can imagine and it was all very competitive. But at the end I was very tired of the constant race. Do you perform somewhere? For us it is very important that Parkour is not a rival sport, so we would never participate in a competition. For me it’s not about achievement it is more about having fun and developing your skills. But I am a member of a show team; we have instructors and professionals who help us and our team dancers develop show choreographies. One of our team successes was a trip to China where we had a performance on a stage at the World Expo event. Do you have any further plans connected with your passion or will it remain “just” a hobby? It is my hobby and it will always be like that. I am a Parkour instructor, I teach children and adults. It is a hobby I will continue also in the future, but I don’t perceive it as my professional goal.

IT IS NOT ALL ABOUT STUDYING…

-6-

Text by Agnes Krémer

PAVE

L BA

RAN

YK

What is your hobby? My hobby and big life passion is Freestyle Frisbee. It is actually way more than just a hobby. It is kind of a lifestyle and as such influenced me a lot. Freestyle Frisbee is a team sport where you and your partners perform combos of consecutive tricks with a rotating Frisbee (you balance it on your fingernail). You kick your legs over the disc, pull it from behind the back, pass it to your friend, get it back, let it roll around your chest and in the end do a double spin as Patrick Swayze in Dirty Dancing and catch the disc 2 meters above the ground with some crazy trick! This is Freestyle! :-) Why do you like it? Freestyle Frisbee is based on a really strong and cool worldwide community. Thanks to this I have really good friends all around the world and we often meet on the tournaments and at other events in different countries. And especially these people are the reason why I love the sport so much. In addition, as one of the Freestyle Frisbee Gurus, Steve “The Beast” Hayze said: “The point of FF is to create and not to stop. All the sports I was doing before were about stopping. You score a goal and it is over. In FF you just create and create and create...!” and I love this! :-) Do you perform somewhere? Yeah, we perform at many festivals, parties, balls or company events all year round. Just recently I also participated in VSE´s Got Talent with my friends (as Freestyle Union) and eventually it happened that we won the whole thing! :-) It was really a fantastic feeling, to perform in front of the crowd of thousands of people and then the announcement… yeah, it was a great fun and that is the reason why we do it! Do you have any further plans connected with your passion or will it remain “just” a hobby? Well, I am also one of the directors of Czech Federation of Freestyle Disc and of course we have many plans how to promote the sport in the Czech Republic as well as the Freestyle Union and Freestyle sports in general. However, it is not really possible to make a living with this only. Therefore, it is not my priority No. 1. Nevertheless, Freestyle Spirit and passion for the disc sports is deeply ingrained in me and I do not think this will change! :-)

MARTIN MINA$ÍK

What are your hobbies? I could say that I have two – one is moderating events and the second one is performing as a stand-up comedian. I moderate and prepare various social events like balls, concerts, sport competitions and company parties. During my work as a speaker I meet many musicians, dancers and other people from the art industry. Therefore, I already have a good network which helps me a lot for organizing events on my own. Being a stand-up comedian is also important to me; however for almost a year I did not have time to perform. What is your biggest achievement? It is hard for me to evaluate myself, but one of my big achievements was probably the production of a gala evening for the NATO during the Future Soldier Exhibition. I was a Special Event Manager, responsible for the whole program and hosting (in English). The guests enjoyed it a lot. I also don´t want to forget performing in an HBO stand-up comedy show called Na stojáka. Do you have any further plans connected with your passion or will it remain “just” a hobby? For now it is rather a hobby, because I do not host many regular events. But I really enjoy it and it would be my dream if it turned out to be my real job in the end. I would like to continue with both moderating and being a comedian. These activities are my hobbies and it would be difficult for me to choose one of them at this point. But if I was forced to do so, I would probably give up stand-up comedy in order not to lose credibility as a moderator.

-7-

QUARTERLY QUARTERLY 2

Slezáková: Any company that wishes to successfully implement CR in the firm needs to embed it into its business strategy and get support from top management. At PwC this is achieved through our CR Strategy team. The team includes the Country Managing Partner and senior management representing each of our lines of service and our operations. The Strategy team is supported by the Corporate Responsibility coordinator and by cross-functional teams, working groups of departmental volunteers from across the business.

Could you briefly explain how working groups concerning sustainability issues function? Slezáková: Through oversight of our sustainability strategy and continued assessment of our achievements and challenges, the CR Strategy team provides leadership and direction on key policies and actions for implementation. The individual projects and activities are then coordinated and executed by the working groups. Each working group is led by a designated member of the CR Strategy team. The groups ensure that the CR strategy is aligned with the needs and values of our employees.

1

Why are Corporate Social Responsibility and sustain-ability so important for PwC? Slezáková: All of our actions have an influence on our people, clients and the environment in which we live and operate. The recent negative economic developments and the level of uncertainty about what the future holds have an impact on us along with other businesses. This is one of the reasons why we believe that we have an obligation to take a leadership role in promoting and practicing Corporate Responsibility (CR). (Comment: At PwC we use the term CR - Corporate Responsibility instead of the CSR.) We also realize that, in order to become a distinctive professional services firm, we must integrate responsible behaviour into all aspects of what we do – ranging from contributing to a stable and transparent Czech marketplace, providing advice to our clients and developing our people to their full potential, to minimizing our environmental impact and working with our local communities.

How is Corporate Responsibility spread within the company?

Lucia has been with PwC for over 3 years and is working as coordinator of the overall Corporate Responsibility programme. She focuses mainly on topics such as stakeholder engagement, sustain-ability & climate change as well as community involvement. Lucia is also involved in the new Corporate Responsibility Club at the Netherlands- Czech Chamber of Commerce and working group focusing on marketplace. She studied at the University of Economics in Prague with the focus on International Relations and Psychology and Sociology in Management. Lucia is a keen traveller and photographer.

LUCIA SLEZÁKOVÁ CR Coordinator at PwC Czech Republic

“TO BE SUCCESSFUL, CSR NEEDS TO BE EMBEDDED IN THE BUSINESS STRATEGY” explained Lucia Slezáková the reason why the CSR approach at PwC is so successful. As a CR Coordinator at PwC Czech Republic she has the best overview of all the activities, which she has agreed to share with us.

-8-

Text by Markéta Jelínková

5

which helped you receive this ranking? Slezáková: We are honoured and happy that we were selected to be among the top five most responsible companies along with other large companies. I believe that this was mainly achieved through our complex approach towards CR, commitment from our top management and employee engagement. I think that we are on a good track. Nevertheless, we will continue the hard work in the upcoming years to become a distinctive and responsible business in today’s society, further integrate CR into our business strategy and strive for even better ranking.

So far, we have been talking about the attitude of PwC towards social responsibility and sustainability. What are your personal socially responsible goals and drivers? Slezáková: I am striving to embed CR or some of its aspects not only into the corporate culture of PwC, but also into the day-to-day activities and people in my personal life. I think that it’s pretty much all about common sense, human decency and respect for others and the place we live in.

What experience in CSR did you have before getting the position in this field at PwC Czech Republic? Slezáková: I started at PwC straight after university. I had however already been working very close to this area, although I didn’t call it CR, throughout my studies at high school and then later at university, especially through volunteer work and involvement in student organisations, workshops and conferences.

4

general? Slezáková: Our local CR strategy and activities are more or less aligned with the global strategy and the strategy of the CEE region, which we belong to, but of course they are adapted to the local environment and market conditions. We also support cooperation and sharing best practice across the region.

In 2010, you received the Via Bona award for your employees’ participation in donating and volunteering. Could you explain to us what your employees did so that PwC Czech Republic was chosen to receive this award? Slezáková: Thanks to our employees and partners we devoted more than 1,000 working hours to CR activities and in 2010, PwC Czech Republic donated more than CZK 1.7 million in cash, services and gifts. This is a great achievement and we are very proud of our people. The award also recognised our complex approach towards employee engagement in the community and volunteering. I have already mentioned some of the activities previously, but if you are interested in learning more, you are welcome to read our Corporate Responsibility reports, available on our website. In the Byznys pro spole"nost national awards, you are number five in the “Top responsible large company of 2011” category. Are you satisfied with this position or do you want to try hard to get an even better position in this ranking? What do you think was the essential feature,

3

Could you introduce PwC Czech Republic’s main CR projects?

Slezáková: We approach CR from four perspectives (quadrants) that

represent all areas of our impact. In the area of our marketplace, we focus mainly on the promotion of ethical business conduct and transparency in the Czech market and helping firms and organisations to increase their competitiveness. Key projects include the Czech CEO Survey, Thought Leadership, the Fraud Forum and workshops on CR. We also partner the Czech Innovation Awards. We invest in our people by providing a range of opportunities to support them in reaching both their personal and professional goals. We are focused on: complex learning & development programmes, coaching, personal development programmes, international secondments, flexible working arrangements and benefits. We strive to mitigate our impact on the environment through: measuring our carbon footprint and the development of a carbon management plan, waste management and recycling, printing on recycled paper, internal awareness campaigns among employees and volunteering. In the area of community support, we focus especially on sharing our time, knowledge and resources and projects with educational and integrational elements. Our key projects include the Odyssey mentoring programme, Employee Community Projects, the Vesmirna internship programme, the Christmas Charity collection, fundraising breakfasts and educational workshops for NGOs.

Could you compare the CR activities of PwC Czech Republic with the CR activities of the PwC network in

-9-

“A RESPONSIBLE APPROACH IS A LINK BETWEEN BUSINESSES”

says the Director for Corporate Affairs in Plze!sk" Prazdroj, the biggest brewer in the Czech Republic and one of the CEMS Corporate Partners.

In this interview, Ms. Mandíková describes the attitude of Plze!sk" Prazdroj towards sustainability and CSR.

Text by Marek Pali"ka

QUARTERLY QUARTERLY 1

Let`s start with an unusual question, that really interests me. When you hear the name Plze!sk! Prazdroj, CSR is not exactly the first thing that occurs to you. Why is CSR and sustainability so important for you? Mandíková: Plze"sk" Prazdroj has been around for almost 170 years, and we would like to successfully develop our company also for future generations! We are proud of the great heritage and therefore we need to grow our business in the right way and with sustainability in our minds. As a business unit, we need to meet not only the needs of our consumers but also of those of our partners and the society we live in. Using natural resources efficiently, benefiting the communities we operate in, and providing our consumers with accurate and balanced information is a standard we pursue relentlessly. These priorities are an integral part of our business philosophy. But still, don’t you think, that you as an alcohol producing company are kind of fighting against your nature? Mandíková: I don’t think so. Plze"sk" Prazdroj is a core part of Czech pride and economy. We have big respect for nature, as our beer is a purely natural product, thus we strongly believe that we must use natural resources wisely. Our breweries strive to meet the highest environmental standards. For example, our average water consumption of roughly four liters of water to produce one liter of beer is one of the most efficient in the country and our aim is to reduce it even more. Renewable energies, such as biomass or biogas, play an increasing role in our energy mix. Speaking about sustainable approach, I should also mention that over 90% of all our packaging material is recycled or reused and with almost 100% waste recycling or reuse we are aiming to zero waste operations. That is quite a huge amount of projects and activities. Do you have a CSR department or does

We decided to change our

terminology from CSR to

Sustainable Development a few years ago as it better reflects the complexity of

this approach.

2

each department have its own CSR team? How big is your CSR operation overall? Mandíková: First of all, we decided to change our terminology from CSR to Sustainable Development a few years ago as it better reflects the complexity of this approach. Sustainable Development is thus embedded in the Company strategy and we take this sustainable element into account for every business decision. When it comes to the management of Sustainable Development activities, I am heading the department with experts in this area. We have also established a cross-departmental team of experts who are in charge of Sustainable Development in different areas of our business. Furthermore, we are exchanging best practices with our SABMiller colleagues, which gives us worldwide expertise. Before joining Plze!sk! Prazdroj in 2010, you spent numerous years working for the Slovak company Pivovary Topvar. Could you compare the approach towards the sustainable develop-ment in these two companies?

3

Mandíková: Both companies as the members of SABMiller believe that their business will succeed if they manage their relationships well, use natural resources efficiently and meet the needs of their consumers and the communities they operate in. A responsible approach is a link between businesses and society. Therefore the approach is much alike. Could you briefly introduce us the main projects of Plze!sk! Prazdroj concerning the Sustainable Development? Mandíková: Philosophy of sustainable development permeates through all our activities. We care for a good quality of life in the communities we operate in. Our main program named “Prazdroj to the People” supports projects that seek the same goal. In the last 9 years the program has supported almost 274 projects by granting more than 55 million CZK. Another key topic of our strategy is protecting the environment. Furthermore, we take an active part in promoting a responsible approach to alcohol consumption. We even designed websites dedicated to responsible alcohol consumption www.napivosrozumem.cz, which are increasingly popular among our consumers. If I am not mistaken, recently, you have been awarded the Top responsible large company 2011. Was it the result of one concrete project or of your efforts towards sustainability in general? Mandíková: We greatly appreciate this award. It is the recognition of long-term efforts of the whole Company and teams of people, who consider the environment and bear in mind sustainability. Here I speak about operators from the bottling plant, brew masters, but also about the members of executive management, who are guided by our ten priorities in this area. Thanks to the dedication of our people, sustainability is so speaking a part of our everyday bread. Therefore I think the award is a result of our dedication to sustainability, long-term, systematic

-12-

4

approach with clear strategic plan, measurable results and also development of specific projects like for example Prazdroj to the People. What are your core plans for the upcoming year 2012, when it comes to Sustainable Develop-ment? Mandíková: We have clearly defined ten priorities in the area of Sustainable Development, and we also declare the goals that we would like to achieve. For example till the year 2020 we aim to reduce the emissions of fossil fuel from using the energy in our breweries by 50%. We have ambitions in a field of usage of water, which we would like to reduce about a quarter. We will continue in the everyday support of responsible consumption of alcohol and in the ten years old project “Prazdroj to the People” which helps to improve quality of life of the people living in the regions, where we have our breweries. When it comes to sustainability, we do not think just one year ahead. Sustainability is about long term future!

5

So far, we have been talking about the attitude of Plze!sk! Prazdroj towards CSR and sustainability. What are your personal goals and drives towards these topics? Mandíková: Similarly to the businesses, which have defined their mission and values and live by them, many of us live our lives based on well-rooted values: values that help us to make right decisions, to choose our path or to take on the right journey. I personally believe that to be considerate and mindful to people and the environment is vital for gratifying, valuable and successful life. I like diversity which enriches and I support the extraordinary in people around me as well as a zeal to do things better. Responsibility and transparency are not only a part of my professional life; I pursue them in my personal life too.

Grown up in Slovakia, where she studied at the Komensk! University in Bratislava. Before joining Plze!sk! Prazdroj, Ms. Mandíková spent 11 years working for the company Pivovary Topvar, another member of the large SABMiller family. Since 2008 she had been a member of the Supervisory Board of Pivovary Topvar. In her free time she mostly enjoys reading literature, hiking and taking care of her dog.

DRAHOMÍRA MANDÍKOVÁ Corporate Affairs and PR Director at Plze!sk" Prazdroj

Economical development

Environment

Arts and culture

Social welfare

Leisure and sports

Others

Education Health

Support and development of local communities - 2011

TOTAL: CZK 59.37 m

-13-

QUARTERLY QUARTERLY 2

and career development, „aims achieved“ comparing the initial aims of students with the outcome after graduation, „placement success“ which analyses to which extent the school was able to assist in job placement, and „international mobility” of alumni.

Remaining 10 criteria are calculated using data from the school surveys. These concentrate mainly on gender and international diversity of students, language requirements of the programme and the qualification of the faculty. Financial Times also publishes further useful information about the programmes, which are not subject to evaluation such as tuition fees, number of students yearly accepted or number of internships completed as a part of the programme.

Among the 65 evaluated Masters in Management programmes, Universität St.Gallen won the 1st place. During the last few years, some further schools have remained in the top 10: HEC Paris, EM Lyon Business School, Grenoble Graduate School of Business a Rotterdam School of Management - Erasmus University. ESCP Europe, an academic institution operating in 5 European metropolises - Paris, London, Berlin, Madrid and Milan, has again defended its position among the top 3.

A very specific position in the ranking is held by CEMS strategic alliance of business schools and corporate partners. Its CEMS MIM programme ranks 2nd in 2011. Alliance groups 26 prestigious educational institutions and next to its academic quality, it offers to its students close cooperation with the corporate sphere and the best results in the evaluation of international reach and diversity of alumni.

WHAT IS BEHIND THAT FINANCIAL TIMES RANKING WE KEEP SCORING HIGH

To well understand the international offer and be able to compare business schools and programmes across the borders remains a challenge for both students and professional public.

1

Thus Financial Times a one of the most prestigious dailies decided to focus on this topic and developed a sophisticated methodology for evaluation of Masters programmes offered worldwide in the area of business education based on a selection of criteria which really reflect the added value for students and a well-developed system of collecting the data.

Annually, a set of rankings is published, concentrating on programmes divided into several categories: MBA (Masters in Business Administration), EMBA (Executive Masters in Business Administration), Master in Management programmes, Masters in Finance and non-degree executive education courses. There is also a ranking of top European Business Schools, simply a “ranking of rankings”.

Even though the evaluation criteria slightly differ in the individual cases, there are basic requirements for the schools to be eligible to participate, in particular AACSB or Equis accreditation is needed as well as meeting a certain level of responsiveness of questionnaires that are used to collect data from schools and alumni.

In the case of MBA programmes, three main areas are analysed: alumni salaries and career development, the diversity and international reach of the school and its MBA, and the research capabilities of each school.

The criteria selected for the Masters in Management programmes are similar, though the amount of research undertaken by faculty at each school is excluded from the evaluation. The data from the alumni survey are used to determine six of the 16 criteria: „weighted salary“ (US$) recalculated using the PPP and reflecting the variations of salaried in different sectors, „value for money“ showing the value got from the investment into education, „careers“ measuring the level of achieved position

FINANCIAL TIMES RANKING 2011 The TOP 5 MASTERS IN MANAGEMENT

1

2

5

4

3

CEMS Master’s in International Management

ESCP Europe

HEC Paris

EM Lyon Business School

University of St. Gallen

-14-

Text by Karolina #tochlová

Jan is a fresh CEMS MIM Graduate from V#E-UCL. He has experienced working in several countries including France and Luxembourg. Recently he has moved to Copenhagen in order to start his professional career with Novo Nordisk. We decided to find out more about his cross-cultural experience.

JAN ISER Finance Graduate at Novo Nordisk

1

What were the key drivers for you to apply for a job at Novo Nordisk?

Iser: I became interested in the pharmaceutical industry for the first time when I was doing a comparative financial analysis for the Corporate Finance course at V#E. This interest was further reinforced by my business project, which I did in Belgium for GlaxoSmithKline.

Another driver was that after having experienced internships in affiliates, I now wanted to work at the Headquarters of a production company. Finally, I wanted to speed up my career by joining a financial graduate program, ideally in a CEMS partner company. Novo Nordisk offered all this so I found the company to be an ideal recipient for my application dossier !

Congratulations then! It is a great success to be accepted for the graduate program of such a renowned company! Could you describe us your daily tasks? Is every day a different challenge?

Iser: Thanks. I can frankly say that the job here is so far my most challenging work assignment. I have a really packed agenda, where trainings are followed by ad hoc tasks, or work on long-term projects, which I am responsible for. For example this Friday looked in the morning like a day full of meetings and work on my projects. However, upon arrival I received a top priority task to

2

improve the presentation for the Senior Vice President. Therefore, all the meetings had to be postponed and I will have to catch up with this work another day.

Is there anything you have learned at V"E that you now find useful at work, or did you have to study a lot by yourself?

Iser: I think the handiest skill a person working in finance needs is to know excel well. You may find it funny, but it can save you tons of time. During my current rotation in Financial Planning, I have already put my knowledge of financial accounting to a good use, but as topics like budgeting are not taught, I had to study them on my own. Being a member of the team, which supports the entire production unit, I had to familiarize myself with a lot of company specific information as well.

But to encourage you, my next rotation will be in corporate finance, so I might use something from CF or Financial Derivatives.

Recently, Novo Nordisk announced that they will no longer use living animals to test the quality of their batches of medicine. Are you happy about that, or is it just another PR message?

Iser: This achievement is considered as a big milestone for our

-15-

Text by Martin Sedlák

QUARTERLY QUARTERLY 3

R&D area. They even launched a small celebration. I can feel that Novo Nordisk is really concerned about how we influence the lives of the patients and also our environment – and I am not saying this only because I am on Novo’s payroll.

What was the biggest obstacle for you to overcome in Denmark?

Iser: For me, the biggest challenge is always to find a good collective of people to spend my free time with. With good friends, one can have a great time almost anywhere.

We heard some rumors about cross-cultural barriers you are facing; could you tell us more about the cultural shock you might have experienced?

Iser: By the time you asked me to participate in this interview I was going through a cultural shock. Autumn in Denmark is really dark and gloomy and in combination with some other anxieties this composes quite a dangerous cocktail. Starting a first “real” job, especially abroad, is a big challenge – even more when you have to face it alone. Danes are not very open and it is not so easy to find good friends quickly; they like to keep their distance.

Do you have any feelings for Danish women?

Iser: Well, I caught myself several times with this “blasphemous” idea in my head, that Danish women are more attractive than

4

Czech/Slovak. On the other hand, is not easy to approach them, unless they have several pints of beer running through their veins.

CBS must be a great source of interesting CEMSies, is the CEMS alumni community in Copenhagen as livable as the student one?

Iser: I am not really in touch with the local CEMS community. Nevertheless, I participated in the CEMS student and alumni party this weekend, so I might contact them and join some other CEMS events in the future.

Do you think you will be able to survive these two years of Novo Nordisk graduate program? Or do you already consider another career path, like joining the army (we saw some pictures of you in the Danish Military Museum)?

Iser: I think it would be a big shame to leave this program, as Novo Nordisk is a company, which offers a lot of interesting positions in diverse areas. This is why being at the Headquarters is so great. Concerning the army, I believe that military skills would be practical if the debt and Euro crisis turned out badly. To see it in a positive way: my child’s dream of becoming a great military leader might come true then !

Thank you very much for your time. Good luck for the rest of your stay in Denmark!

-16-

Published by CEMS Club Prague, o.s.

University of Economics, Prague nám. Winstona Churchilla 4

Prague, Czech Republic

Editor-in-chief Sandra Huber

Editors Kristina %ahojová Markéta Jelínková

Marek Pali&ka Martin Sedlák Martin Strnad

Karolina #tochlová

Graphic Design Ond'ej Bro( Marek Pali&ka

Photos Jan Verner

CEMS Club Archive

No reprints without prior permission of the publisher

CEM

S C

lub

Prag

ue Q

uart

erly

– C

hris

tmas

Issu

e

QUARTERLY QUARTERLY