Towards a new TAMK-companies collaboration model for the 2nd year “International Business” curriculum
Aversa, Stefano (2020)
Aversa, Stefano
2020
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Julkaisun pysyvä osoite on
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:amk-2020082519862
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:amk-2020082519862
Tiivistelmä
In spring 2020, the “International Business” Degree Programme at TAMK was looking at redefining the collaboration model with companies for the second year curriculum, with the goal of reducing the number of unique groups that students need to be part of, and to enable a deeper collaboration between parties. The purpose of this thesis was to identify which aspects of the collaboration with TAMK are more important for companies so that they can be considered in the design of the new model. The findings were analysed via a theoretical framework defined by the literature on University-Business Collaboration, TAMK’s vision on the new collaboration model, and the Kano-model for customer satisfaction.
Seven companies that have previously collaborated with TAMK have been interviewed via a semi-structured qualitative methodology designed according to a model defined by educator Noriaki Kano to determine and prioritize customer requirements and their relation to customer satisfaction. The research found that companies see value in collaborating with the same group of students for a full semester, that they find value in students focusing on innovation, and that they would like to meet students regularly during the research period. Furthermore, companies would appreciate the opportunity to get support on multiple operational functions by a balanced international team composed of Finnish students, programme students, and exchange students. The data also showed that companies dislike a collaboration model that involves fees or payments to TAMK, but that they are willing to reward the students in case of excellent work.
The conclusion is that there is variation of needs and expectations among companies, particularly between small and larger companies. The research findings suggest that defining one single collaboration model that works for every company is not feasible and the suggestion is for TAMK to focus on the collaboration with larger companies, to formalize the requirements and expectations of each company before the start of the collaboration, and to maintain the aspects of the current collaboration model that are working well, such as communication and lecturer’s engagement. It is suggested that TAMK would complement the current approach for establishing a collaborative relationship with companies with a networking event where TAMK can present the collaboration opportunities to attending companies. Finally, it is recommended that TAMK would shift from occasional relationships with companies to a series of strategic partnerships, and adopt a CRM system.
Seven companies that have previously collaborated with TAMK have been interviewed via a semi-structured qualitative methodology designed according to a model defined by educator Noriaki Kano to determine and prioritize customer requirements and their relation to customer satisfaction. The research found that companies see value in collaborating with the same group of students for a full semester, that they find value in students focusing on innovation, and that they would like to meet students regularly during the research period. Furthermore, companies would appreciate the opportunity to get support on multiple operational functions by a balanced international team composed of Finnish students, programme students, and exchange students. The data also showed that companies dislike a collaboration model that involves fees or payments to TAMK, but that they are willing to reward the students in case of excellent work.
The conclusion is that there is variation of needs and expectations among companies, particularly between small and larger companies. The research findings suggest that defining one single collaboration model that works for every company is not feasible and the suggestion is for TAMK to focus on the collaboration with larger companies, to formalize the requirements and expectations of each company before the start of the collaboration, and to maintain the aspects of the current collaboration model that are working well, such as communication and lecturer’s engagement. It is suggested that TAMK would complement the current approach for establishing a collaborative relationship with companies with a networking event where TAMK can present the collaboration opportunities to attending companies. Finally, it is recommended that TAMK would shift from occasional relationships with companies to a series of strategic partnerships, and adopt a CRM system.