To learn more about BoD perspective on IBC-M, we conducted a short interview with some of the members:

1. How do you feel about being in the IBC-M Board of Directors?

Harry: I feel very strongly about IBC-M, so I it is very satisfying for me to be in the Board.

Stefan: I think it is both an honour and a challenge. I am aware that IBC-M is considered as a ‘centre of excellence’ among the higher education institutions with a labour- and profession-oriented approach, and may set an example for the region of cooperation across borders and cultures. Assisting in securing and maintaining such high standards is one of the tasks of the Board of Directors, and as a Board we now have to find out how we jointly and also on an individual basis can deal with this.

2. What else do you do apart from IBC-M activities?

Harry: I am a senior lecturer in the International Business programme of HAMK University of Applied Sciences in Valkeakoski, Finland.

Stefan: I am still active in the area of recognition, quality assurance and accreditation (on behalf of my previous organisation, EURASHE, and also as a Board member or external evaluator of national and sector-specific QA agencies). I am also a Council of Europe expert on higher education policies, and occasionally receive a mandate from the European Commission in the same areas. Meanwhile I also try to enjoy my retirement as an honorary Secretary General of EURASHE.

3. How do you imagine IBC-M in 5 years?

Harry: Fulfilling the same important role it is doing now but with a bigger scale and growing sustainability.

Stefan: The upcoming 5 years are crucial, as the EU support provides IBC-M with a unique opportunity to grow internally and externally, expand its range of activities and substantially increase its student numbers, also by diversifying its education provision and the targeted student and learner groups. Long term sustainability should be the ultimate goal, but of course not everything depends on us, and the staff or students of IBC-M, so it is important to stay connected with the external world, and watch evolutions and trends in society.

4. Any message for current IBC-M students and staff?

Harry: I know many of the staff and students well, so I want to send my best personal regards to everyone involved with IBC-M.

Stefan: For the staff I should say, continue the way you have managed so far to offer quality education, while also accepting new curricula assignments and trying out new teaching methodologies. Students should be ambitious in fixing their own targets, and be open to international experiences, within the region and beyond that. The student generation before you has offered excellent examples of this. Both staff and students should remain confident about their future here, and that of the College, on a long term.

5. Any message to future IBC-M students?

Harry: Make a smart choice and choose IBC-M. Study well. I hope to meet you soon.

Stefan: As the best advertising is by word of mouth, prospective students have to take the trouble to learn about experiences of others, who before them have chosen IBC-M. I am sure they will not regret the experience of being a student in an open and multicultural environment. After all, this is how the business world is evolving as well, and IBCM therefore gives an opportunity for life and future careers.

We at IBC-M would like to thank the IBC-M Board of Directors for their willingness and wish them the best in their future endeavors!