My Experience In The UK

When I graduated from the NMMU, I moved to the UK. There were several reasons for this and I would like to briefly mention a few:

• To experience living overseas
• To experience working in a developed country
• To gain work experience

I lived in the UK for a couple of years and found my time career wise an excellent experience. I was able to witness first hand what it was like to live and work in a developed country. The reality is that there are of course big differences between a developing country and a developed country. It also allows one to appreciate your land of birth and gives one prospective and understanding.

I gained a lot in the UK work experience wise and I hope that I can be of value when I return back to SA.

Developing economies such as SA have so much to offer entrepreneurs if one can get into the right channels.

Oxford & Sustainability

I had an interesting weekend in the city of Oxford. To see varies campuses of Oxford University was quite something. Oxford University is the oldest university in the English speaking world and remains one of the top universities in the world. I think it is fair to say that this city and university have continued to grow and develop through time and is an example of sustainability.

In many ways a university operates just like a business. Students are their 'paying' customers that access vital knowledge through the service the university offers them.

My personal opinion is that many universities across the world get it right. For example Oxford University which has been established for centuries and is not only still around but has developed and grown. How many businesses have been around for that period of time and still keep hold of their core identity and their unique personality? Not many.

Well it was worth the journey and I must confess I really do enjoy the train trips. Gives one a lot of time to think and reflect on life. I really do value life experience highly and this was another good experience.

The below is a picture inside one of the court yards of Balliol Campus, Oxford University.

Some guys singing on the corner of Ship Street in Oxford. That building in the background must be one of the oldest buildings I have ever seen which has a Cafe inside.

HARLEY STREET, LONDON

Well what a busy week it has been!

This week took me to Harley Street in London. A famous street in London with many world renowned medical Doctors and Specialists. I was fortunate enough to present some of our products to a well known Professor who I discovered was filmed in a popular BBC Television series.

The presentation went well and the feedback was good.

I remember the days at university when we all had to deliver a presentation to the class and the nerves that were associated with my first few presentations was quite an experience. Once in 3rd year it became more about delivering an excellent presentation rather than getting through a presentation. These presentation skills are vital for the business world.

I believe in 4 broad factors that make a presentation sound:

1) Preparation
2) Confidence
3) Summarise
4) Close the sale or identify the next step

The UK so far has been a great environment to gain necessary work experience in a developed economy. How amazing it will be for me to bring the experience and skills I have gained here to the SA market. To play a part in growing the SA economy.

The picture below is of me on Westminster Bridge with the Houses of Parliament in the background. On the way to my next meeting...

Shaun Pritchard

The Student Company - my dream

So why did I start the BLS? Is the dream still achievable now that I am out of university? Is the BLS still going according to plan? Has the dream died when I left campus? These are some of the questions I would like to answer...

Look at how many big ideas started on campus and at student level. A number of those students are now billionaires such as Bill Gates (founder of Microsoft) and Mark Zuckerberg (founder of Facebook), it all started on campus. University provides the perfect mix and resources to move forward with innovative ideas and the biggest resource are those around you. Others that share your dream can bring their ideas and talents to the table. This is how student businesses are started...

So why did I start the BLS? I started the BLS to develop today's students to become tomorrow's business leaders. But how does that work? The mission expressed above is achieved by the 5 objectives set out by the BLS as found in the constitution. I am not going to go into too much detail here but by reading the objectives you will see how the BLS sets itself out to develop students into business leaders.

But what is the big idea, what is the end product? My dream was to create a 'student' company, a company run by students to generate income. To run just like a normal company would. With all the functions and departments with the aim of achieving the 5 objectives in a real company situation. Just imagine for example a 'student' marketing company set up at campus. Offering the local business community marketing support and charging a reduced fee. Generating income and making profit, in order to achieve income and profit the 5 objectives would be achieved. At the end of the day business is set up to achieve income and profit. Employment would be impossible if there was no income and would not be sustainable if there was no profit. The beauty is that as the 'student' business grows so does its reach and influence. The 'student' business model can be duplicated into other campuses and universities. And this is how a company is born! With a head office and branches scattered across varies campuses and universities. With investors and one day shareholders, the dream born on campus!

From here those that have made the business a success will no doubt develop businesses outside the boundaries of campus but keep close links to the universities their branches are operating in. This of course will be a revenue generator and the source for new innovative ideas and recruitment.

Is the BLS still going according to plan? Unfortunately it seems that the BLS is without a leader who can keep driving it on. A president of the BLS has to realise that the responsibilities he/she has would be the same as a CEO of a company but of course with less pressure. The BLS is therefore looking for a new CEO who can pick it up again and keep the dream alive! I am no longer at university and to be honest I think I needed an extra year with the BLS to get all its structures in place. The BLS was about 1 years old when I left and after that most of the leadership could not keep it going.

I truly believe that the dream of BLS is relevant and can work.

If you feel that the constitution of the BLS appeals to you then please get in touch with me. Whether you are at the NMMU or another university, it really does not matter. I believe we can start the 'student' company.

Shaun Pritchard

A Personal Update - Lesson 1 Internship

Not sure who is reading this blogspot these days (nothing has been posted for ages) but I thought I will start writing again and perhaps some may find my experiences overseas quite interesting and helpful. So I have been living in the UK since May 2009 and my objective has been to gain international work experience in marketing.

I have named this lesson 1 Internship as it allows me to arrange my experiences better as I can focus on one particular aspect - Internship.

So many graduates miss the Internship opportunity. The reality is that no matter who you think you are after you graduate you will more than likely not land that executive or management position. So how do you get there? How do you open your account into the business world. I believe one of the ways in is through internship.

In July 2010 I had made it through two interviews and was given an internship role with a company, after 3 months I completed my internship successfully and was given a permanent position and after 8 months in my permanent position I was promoted to Executive level.

Trust me you have a lot to learn outside the lecture room and an internship can help you fast track into a permanent post if you perform well. If you have achieved your degree or diploma then you have the diligence and discipline to successfully complete an internship.

How to find an internship:

1) Work out what industry you would like to work in
2) Look for companies in the chosen industry
3) Prepare you CV and always be prepared to write a covering letter
4) Look on their websites for internship programmes or positions (NB some companies start the process towards the end of the year before you graduate. So you can apply while you are in your final year for when you graduate.)
5) If you find nothing on their website then investigate (Phone HR department and ask who would be the best person to talk to regarding internships)
6) Nothing is certain in business so be prepared. One day you flying high and the next day you wondering why. Business works like the stock markets and often your career might go the same why particularly in Marketing. So be prepared but experience is king!

Any questions just ask.

My Guinness after a business presentation overseas in Dublin. At Dublin Airport on the way back to London.

FREE Marketing Advice!

I want to start something that is quite opposite to normal business practice and thoughts... Something that will be of great benefit to particularly young entrepreneurs and businesses that are in their early stages of development - FOR FREE!

What if I took profit out of the equation for giving marketing advice? The result will be free marketing advice.

Why would I do such a thing?

1. To allow for practical involvement by myself and university students for further experience.
2. To assist and embrace the importance of entrepreneurship.
3. To see how many people across the world will participate.
4. To see how many people I and university students can assist.
5. To see the effect our advice will have on the various respondents businesses.
6. To gain publicity for this blog spot and for those that assist.

So feel free to leave any questions, situations or help you may need regarding marketing. We will try answer every comment.

Shaun Pritchard

£ 50.00 for best comment

Let's talk student business!

Quick update from founder: I now work for a Public Limited Company in the United Kingdom. My degree has truly been put to the test, along with my marketing understanding. A degree/diploma offers a good foundation but a lot more needs to be built in order to achieve what is written on that degree/diploma - this comes through practical situations in the business environment and could be fast-forwarded in business orientated student organisations at uni. I continue to learn a lot, now it is time like always to give back.

So let's talk student business!
I will reward the student with the best comment with £ 50.00 which I think should be around R 560,00.

Here is the question: What do you think it takes for a student to become a business leader?