Interface - January Issue by STAR (Study Association Rotterdam School of Management, Erasmus University)

interFACE Magazine of the rotterdam school of management, erasmus university • Volume 29: ISSUE 2 • January 2013

How good are your study skills really? Rank yourself!

Erasmus Recruitment Days -

SPECIAL

Technology – True Love? 10 Highlights of 2012

A Glimpse of YOUR Future

W W W.G A A A N . N U

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INTERFACE

January 2013

In front of you lies the second Interface of this year. A year which is going utterly fast. At the office many new active members have taken their positions. I see a lot of enthusiastic students who are creating new ideas to outperform last year’s achievements. It is amazing to see that inspiration, motivation and the willingness to improve themselves make these students excel. Seeing that energizes me. The theme of this Interface is: balance. The word balance has many meanings. A means of judging or deciding, a counterbalancing weight or influence, a mental and emotional steadiness… So, many explanations for just one word, it almost seems like even the word balance encounters imbalance itself. What brings us balance in our own mind, at university, in our student life and in this enormous world? In trying to find balance in my own mind I need to have time with my friends and I sometimes play squash. The struggle for hitting the ball already calms my mind after a hard day of work, just as relaxing with friends. Spending lots of time thinking and working for STAR leaves little space to think about other issues. My friends help me think about

what is important in life. They stop me from encountering imbalance between my work and life. Which is in my opinion an important balance to have. Times are changing, a new government has taken their seats and upcoming students will not receive ‘studiefinanciering’ anymore. Instead a loaning system will take its place. Meanwhile, students at the RSM need to attain all their credits in their first year. So, the balance between studying, fun, money and self-development is shifting. Luckily the RSM leaves space for self-development later on in your study years. It is up to the first year students and the upcoming students to establish a new balance in student life. Will the world ever be in balance? All over the world people are arguing, fighting, making war and encountering problems’. It seems that our way of living is under pressure. Just to give an example, will there ever be a financial balance in Europe? At least, besides our different cultures, languages, ways of thinking, we seem to have a social balance. But how long will that last? Our different financial positions may also lead to social imbalance. As people need balance, so does our association. In November the STAR board had their policy week, something which is unique when you look at our history. With the support of our main sponsor PwC we made our own strategy map concerning all our policy points. It was an amazing and inspiring week for all of us and we will make sure STAR will profit from this intense week. At our General Assembly of Members at the 13th of March we will present our policy. I hope to welcome you there. So hopefully many critical thinkers can help STAR successfully find its way in a new direction Tekst: Rik Hendriks, Chairman of the STAR board

Colophon

INTERFACE

january 2013

The Interface Magazine is published by STAR (Study Association Rotterdam School of Management, Erasmus University). The editorial staff aims to promote the exchange of knowledge, experience and opinions among all those involved with the Rotterdam School of Management, Erasmus University. Executive Producer: Mirna Steur (brandmanager@rsmstar.nl) Editor-in-Chief: Floris Vernooij Creative Director: Iris van Rijn Editors: Keely Bates and Marnix Boon Writers: Floris Vernooij, Iris van Rijn, Keely Bates, Marnix Boon, Eline de Wit, Marjolein Broekhuisen and Lea Pollert. Graphic design and production: OCC dehoog, media partners (www.occ-dehoog.nl) Circulation: 7000 copies Mailing: Four times a year to students, employees and alumni of Rotterdam School of Management, Erasmus University; once a year to students of Economics and Business Administration across The Netherlands. Advertising: Linda Weekers (commercial@rsmstar.nl) Adress: STAR Interface, RSM Erasmus University P.O. Box 1738, Room T04-53, 3000 DR Rotterdam; Email: interface@rsmstar.nl (not for change of adress); Tel: (010) 4082037; Fax: (010) 4089023 Change of adress: To change your adress, please go to www.rsmstar.nl/mystar

Finding a balance in life is probably one of the hardest things to do. As a student it sometimes feels like there is always some obligation you are committed to, a paper you need to write or some article you have to read before the night is over. And as time passes, it seems like the clock is against you. Besides the academic aspect of a student life there is also a social facet. You might have a commitment to your girlfriend or boyfriend and wanting to spend as much quality time with them as possible, or friends and relatives you want to visit and devote your time to. Whilst navigating through all these responsibilities, challenges and activities it might feel like you’re a juggler, having to constantly balance a set of balls in the air while at the same time worried some might fall shaking up your world entirely. And as life progresses the load increases and with every day passing by you might find yourself required to juggle even more balls, while only those few you’ve successfully accomplished take the weight off of your shoulders. You might have find yourself in the challenging position of writing a Master-thesis or a dissertation, or maybe you have to cope with your boss, relentlessly handing out one assignment after the other.

Whilst doing so it is easy to neglect your health and family. Finding time for yourself may seem impossible, especially when you’re going through life at 200 km/h while simultaneously you’re running empty. And this is exactly what this interface-issue is about. We try to show you tools and perspectives, which you can use to help find an essential balance in your life. It is best to work on finding that balance now, because it sure will make your life a hell of a lot easier once you start working on the boss’s clock most of your time. Furthermore we present in this issue a special about the upcoming Erasmus Recruiting Days, which is an event, perfect for you to meet and greet your “possible” future employers. And as a little added Bonus you can find a calendar with all the upcoming STAR related events in the middle of this publication, which of course give a great overview of all the events you can then attend to have a good time and relax a bit. At the end of the day in order to be refreshed and ready for anything life throws at you, you will need to find time to “play”. You are more likely to succeed when you’re having fun, so play just as hard as you work. Find time to laugh, to catch up with friends, to meet new people or to just lay back and chill out. And then, when push comes to shove, you’ll be ready for any sudden challenges that come your way. You can face any obstacle you want and make every second count! On behalf of the whole Interface committee I present you this new committee’s first issue. Tekst: Floris Vernooij

INTERFACE

january 2013

INDEX

MIND A Glimpse of your future-working life

32 10 26

UNI An interview with Gerard Drost Stress! 6 tips and tricks

31 8 16 31 32 45

LIFE 5 things, nightlife New years resolutions The swan market Pictures of you Study skills, yes please!

WORLD

21 28 42

Technology - True Love? 10 highlights of 2012 We Survived!

INTERFACE

january 2013

42 18

RSM

New Ways of Working

24 40

STAR-Calender STAR is recruiting

ERD-Special

10 STAR

ERD

Advertisers Index

2 12 44 48

KPMG RSM NIBC PWC

INTERFACE

January 2013

THE FIVE

‘five things to do around Rotterdam, in this issue: GOING OUT!’ Locus Publicus

Oh Rotterdam!

How we love this city! But if you’re new in town or just don’t feel like exploring Rotterdam extensively, it might be difficult to start feeling at home here. That’s why from now on we’ll help you get to know Rotterdam through ‘THE FIVE’! For this issue we researched the nightlife of Rotterdam, and this is what we found the best places to go out! So get off the couch, get dressed and go out! Enjoy your night and don’t forget to stop by these awesome places! Tekst: Eline de Wit

This is THE place to start your night. With over 200 different sorts of beer there is always one you like. Apart from this huge variety in beers they also offer 12 drafts, from which you can drink all night long. So this really is the perfect place if you’re a fan of beer. But even if you’re not a huge fan, you’ll probably love this cozy place. During the winter there is a fireplace, which makes the bar an even better place to spend your night. Since the bar starts to get crowded pretty early it’s a great place to start you’re night out! Oostzeedijk 364

students frequently visit this bar, so it’s a nice place to socialize, dance and have fun with your friends, while meeting new people as well! Haringvliet 100

INTERFACE

January 2013

vintage chairs, extremely large clocks and awesome wall-art, so you either really like it or just don’t. In this bar you’ll find a lot of different cocktails and if you’re into it, you can also drink gin all night long. Hartmansstraat 18a (just around the corner of the Witte de Withstraat)

NRC

This is another great pub that should be on your list ‘places to go to this month’, especially when you’re not into beer and prefer wine instead. This pub has got two spacious floors and is located in the building where previously the printing and editing of NRC took place. You can still feel a little of that cultural spirit in this place with its nice biologic cuisine and a winebar we immediately fell in love with. Besides this exquisite dining opportunity, you can also just come for some good music and cultural nights. Witte de Withstraat 63

SOHO

SOHO Bar has been known in Rotterdam for years now. Not only is this place known for its good parties and the opportunity to smoke shisha, but also de cocktails are recommended. The cocktailshakers seriously make the best cocktails! Since SOHO has a new owner the place has become even better. This place doesn’t need a lot of explaining, you should just try it out yourself! One more tip: this place is even better during summertime, because of their absolutely amazing terrace! Pannekoekstraat 53-A Just a little extra cultural tip! Visit Melief Bender, the oldest bar in Rotterdam. It’s a really nice place, but make sure you get there early, because the pub closes at around 10 o’clock. Great place to have dinner before going out! You’ll find it on Oude Binnenweg 134B

De Vrienden Live

This bar offers that cozy sing-along atmosphere. At the beginning of the night a band plays what the audience wishes to hear. They literally play what the audience wants to hear, because you can write down any song you like on a coaster and just pass it through to the lead-singer! Afterwards a DJ will enter the Amstel beer can, where he will play great songs all night long. A lot of

CAFÉ LABRU

This place is extraordinary in every aspect. It describes itself as ‘whisky music beer funky chill people vintage rum chips art coffee good-vibe’ and that’s exactly what it is. Kind of messy with its

From now on every INTERFACE issue will consist of an article on ‘5 things to do around Rotterdam’. If you have great ideas of places we should go to or subjects we should write about please do not hesitate to contact us: interface@rsmstar.nl. Please make sure to name your e-mail: ‘5 things’

INTERFACE

January 2013

Interview

Gerard Drost BSc Business Administration, RSM Treasurer STAR board MSc Financial Management, RSM ExxonMobil, Business Analyst Unilever, Senior Category Analyst

2001-2005 2005-2006 2006-2008 2008-2010 2011 – Present

Works 40-50 hours a week Vacation days: 38 per year Earns: €3000 per month Last book read: Wij zijn ons brein from Dick Swaab (didn’t finish it though) Last movie watched: James Bond Skyfall

In every published edition of Interface we will interview a young graduate of RSM about their lives and thoughts. How did they experience their time at RSM? What kind of work do they do? These and more questions will be answered in a series of interviews. This edition features: Gerard Drost, Senior Category Analyst at Unilever. Tekst: Marnix Boon

INTERFACE

January 2013

Gerard Drost Could you tell us something about your student life in Rotterdam?

In my first two years I was mainly focused on studying and not that much on what was happing outside of the lecture rooms. However, as time passed I became more interested in the other aspects of student life. I always enjoyed collaborating with other students and at that point STAR came in the picture. First, I was a member of the STAR management week committee; afterwards I became the Treasurer for the 28th STAR board.

After you graduated at RSM, you worked for two years at ExxonMobil. At Afterwards you decided to switch to Unilever. What was your motivation behind this transition?

ExxonMobil is an enormous American petrochemical multinational company, which comes along with a certain corporate culture. As their processes are with huge potential risks, petrochemical companies try to delimit possible failures as much as possible. This is also embedded in their corporate culture, since managers are really restricted to their own function. To be honest, I felt a bit constrained in my work. At that point Unilever crossed my path with a very attractive job. The company always really interested me, making a switch a logical step.

What do you do at Unilever on an everyday basis?

Well, my formal function is Senior Category Analyst for the Unilever Supply Chain Company. To understand what my job entails, it is important to know something about the organizational structure of Unilever. The Unilever Supply Chain Company owns all processes from the purchase of ingredients until production and transport of these goods. At the same time within every European country, Unilever has its own sales organization. These buy their goods from the supply chain company. For this they pay a so called transfer price. Every quarter the transfer prices are updated. Changes in price occur for example due to scarcity in materials, changes in production costs or fluctuations in currencies. It is my job to explain to business partners, together with my team, what the drivers of price changes are and how they may impact the business.

Unilever is a company that finds sustainability increasingly important. Is this something you find very important yourself?

Of course, I try to live with an eye to the future. However, I don’t live as sustainably as I probably should. It sometimes startles me what the impact of our way of life is, especially after hearing hard, world-shattering facts from a documentary or report for example. Just to be clear; I didn’t specifically chose for Unilever because of its progressive sustainability policy.

As you are a Unilever employee, do you exclusively buy Unilever products?

[Laughs], well the major part of my groceries are definitely from Unilever. Yet, I’m still Dutch, so if I for instance see 3 deodorants from a non-Unilever brand for the price of 2 I will not hesitate to buy them. Nevertheless, no friend is safe for my comments if I see products of non-Unilever companies at their homes.

Do you encounter a big amount of stress at your work?

For me, stress comes with squalls. As I have strict deadlines while the end of the quarter is approaching, my stress level goes up. But it goes down as fast as it went up after we met the deadline. Basically the amount of stress I encounter comes in a cycle. People around me may find me a bit crabby and introvert during such stressful periods.

How does Unilever help employees who suffer from severe stress?

Fortunately enough, I personally don’t have experience with severe stress. What I know is that Unilever finds it very important that everyone is healthy as well as that its employees have a good work-life balance. Hence, Unilever has corporate doctors that can help our employees if necessary. Also, what I find pleasant myself is that we have a gym at our office. For many people this is great to de-stress from work, or just a way to clear your mind.

An extreme result of constant high levels of stress is a burnout. Do you think there is a taboo on burnouts in the corporate world?

I know a few people who had to deal with a burnout. What I noticed is that sometimes a person gets ‘a label on their head’. So yes, in a way this may follow them later on in their career.

Where do you want to be in ten years time? Do you have a clear ambition?

My ambition is that in ten years time I’m in a position where I can initiate new products. If that is possible at Unilever then I’d be glad about it, but otherwise I will achieve this goal at another company.

Do you have a new year’s resolution?

I should do more for people who are not as fortunate in life as I am. This is a bit in line with living more sustainably. With a little effort I could probably help others a lot, so why not?

Could you give some advice to students?

Orientate yourself as early as possible! When my graduation came near, I had little idea of what kind of company I wanted to work for. Even if you’re just in your second year, participate in workshops and events that present companiesof companies. You can never start too early with orientating yourself in the direction you want to go in your career. At the same time, don’t be afraid to just start. Every job is an experience! After as little as a week on your first job, you’ll realize it is ‘just work’ and it won’t shatter your world if it turns out to not be the ‘job for life’ yet.

7 opposites: Make a fast decision and pick one: 1 New York – Beijing 2 Euroshopper – Biological products 3 Career– Spare time 4 Rock – Dance 5 CEO – CFO 6 Usain Bolt – Michael Phelps 7 Sustainability – Profit

New York Euroshopper Career Dance CEO Michael Phelps Profit

iwill.rsm.nl

I WILL keep RSM RunnIng StRong! • Run with fellow students, alumni, staff and faculty • weekly training sessions for 5km and 10km races from January onwards • Networking drinks and dinners • A CRAFT sport shirt

weekly training starts in January, so sign up quickly! Go to: WWW.RSM.NL/MARATHON

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Join the RSM team at the Rotterdam Marathon 2013 on Saturday 13 April and Sunday 14 April

INTERFACE

January 2013

A Glimpse of your future-

working life While popping the champagne, lighting up the fireworks and showing-off your latest dance moves, you were probably pre-occupied with other things than taking your time to ponder over some intriguing discussions and serious reflections on life. Since it is the beginning of the year and we all need to get our brains running again, I couldnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t think of a better time to initiate a topic that requires some serious reflection, than now. The topic I want you to dive into deals with the working future of our current day students. Tekst: Marjolein Broekhuizen

also this anxious about your future??

INTERFACE

January 2013

Keynes predicted…

As you all know back in the 1930’s the US had to face the hardships of the Great Depression and people had to deal with dark financial times. Parents could only hope for a better financial future for their children and grand children. It was in this period that one of the greatest economists of all times wrote an essay to help envision a better future. John Maynard Keynes predicted in his essay “Economic possibilities for our grand children” that in 100 years (by 2030) “growth in the developed World would stop, because we will have enough to lead “the good life”. His predictions were based on a 2% increase in capital and a 1% increase in productivity per year. If his predictions were correct, this would mean the income of the people at the time would need to be eight times as high to reach the level of economic satisfaction Keynes was talking about in his essay. Keynes was right in foreseeing that we would reach this level of economic growth, since we did so in the beginning of 2000. However, we were only able to enjoy the economic status of Europe for a few years until the crisis erupted.

Good old times: Early 2000

A mere decade ago we were actually enjoying the “good life”. During these years, opportunities seemed limitless. The South of France and Italy were replaced as holiday destinations by more exotic travels to Australia and South-East Asia; BMW and Mercedes replaced the Opel and Renault, and Lego was replaced by expensive high-tech game equipment. It was around this period that “the daddy-day” was introduced. There was a new working trend in which dads were able to combine their ambitions at work with some quality time at home. We were in the upswing and ready to lead the good life. Clearly, up until this point Keynes was right in predicting that the economic growth would enable people to work less and enjoy life more. Unfortunately this trend didn’t progress…

collapsed and subsequently a downgrade of all major banks brought the market to a complete hold. “What happens in the US, doesn’t stay in the US”, and of course we in Europe soon after started experiencing the effects of the US economic crisis. Europe slipped into a recession, which caused not just massive unemployment in the southern parts, but also a sharp fall in housing prices throughout the entire European continent. As a consequence people lost their savings and hence an immediate impact could be seen in declining consumer confidence. A vicious cycle of low consumer confidence caused the further deterioration of the economy. This is the tough reality that we live in today. Basically we had reached the turning point of our stress-free and easy-going lifestyles. So Keynes was right in expecting that we would reach the point of economic satisfaction in which the quality of our lives would significantly improve. However, he couldn’t accurately predict that this would be followed by the economic crisis in which we are currently entrenched. Daddydays have been abolished and replaced by longer working days; holiday travels are postponed and today’s children need to give their parents extremely cute puppy eyes to make them buy the latest gadgets on the game market.

What does this mean for us students?

The Panic of 2008

Then we hit the year 2008 a.k.a “The Panic of 2008”. Since the beginning of 2000 the Fed (Federal Reserve) had made some disastrous decisions in giving away extremely cheap loans and providing low interest rates to stimulate consumption and maintain trust in the economy. As a result, banks were practically scattering mortgages to people who weren’t able to afford them. The system was doomed to fail and did so when Lehman brothers

We are at the beginning of our independent lives and some of you might be soliciting for jobs at the moment. Although we are lucky enough to enjoy a solid university degree, this is not a guarantee for us to receive the perfect jobs we are opting for or the relaxing working-times we would like to have. We need to really get our act together and prove we are better than the hundred other competitors out there, all pleading for the same exciting job at KPMG or a traineeship at ING. And when we are lucky enough to receive the job at the company we desire to work for, we will need to continue to prove our added value so we won’t be replaced by the next high-qualified graduate waiting in line to take your spot. This means working long hours and investing a lot of time in our careers. Is this really what you want? I interviewed 4 students at RSM to get a slight impression of their future ambitions and how they are planning to manage their hobbies, children, and social life in combination with their demanding careers.

INTERFACE

January 2013

The future plans of 4 RSM students J. Sass (22) At the moment I’m working towards the end of my Bachelor IBEB. Regarding my Master and my first working experience, I’m ambitious and internationally orientated. The prospect of working in the international finance or consulting business is really appealing to me. I am willing to work hard and know that the workload of this job will be heavy as a starter, but eventually there should be time for raising kids (As an economist I understand that the current “population ageing” is a problem). The combination of work, kids and hobbies shouldn’t be a problem in my opinion, as long as the planning ahead for it is well executed. D. Spoor (21) For the past two years I have had this idea to find a job as risk manager after completing my Master Finance and Investments. During my job I want to build up enough capital to start an innovative company in a product or service. By becoming an entrepreneur, I expect to have flexibility in managing my time. I have noticed during various internships that I am unable to practice sports and other hobbies due to the intense working times. For me it wouldn’t be an option to choose between my hobbies, my job and my children. Life is a rollercoaster and without these aspects in life I wouldn’t be happy. A job is obviously important, but those little kids that will hopefully receive my genes are also my priority.

J. Hoogland (21) After my studies I would like to work at a multinational corporation like Nestle or Douwe Egberts and preferably in a marketing function. Four working days per week would be ideal for me. I do want to have children, but that can wait! At this particular moment a good career is more important for me than having children. I am definitely willing to give up certain hobbies for a job that suits me well. I believe that if I really like my job, I believe it can become my hobby as well. I am confident that I will need to make proper decisions about my career once I’ve reached the point of wanting to have children, but if possible I’d prefer to manage this together with my future partner. A. van der Burg (21) In September this year I started my premaster Business Administration to be able to start the Msc Marketing next year. I would like to envision a future in which I work in the marketing team of a multinational. I am very ambitious and want to invest a lot of time in my career. In the future, when enjoying a career, it will still be important for me to spend time with my friends and go for a drink or have dinner during the weekends. Personally, I would never want to give up these things for work, because I need the relaxation to be able to function properly at work. You work to live, but you should never just live to work. In my opinion it is essential to find a good balance in life. I believe experience will guide me in the right direction.

INTERFACE

January 2013

NEW YEAR’S

RESOLUTIONS 2013 has started! And a new year always brings new opportunities! So, we went around campus to ask you about your New Year’s Resolutions. What will you do different this year? Are you planning on working out more? Study harder? Party less? Or perhaps party more? These students were so kind to tell us about their resolutions, and some of them may be an example for all of us. Therefore, thanks to everyone who was willing to share their honest wishes for this new year. Let’s make it a good one!

Oscar (18), IBA: ‘This year I’m not making resolutions, because I never stick to them’

Miruna (19) & Cezary (19), IBA: ‘Our resolutions? Well here they come: 1. Make a “To-Do lists” everyday, 2. Ride the bicycle again, 3. Read at least one book a month, 4. Do NOT take resists and last but not least: KEEP SMILING!’

Tekst: Eline de Wit Photographs: Keely Bates

Guust (19) & Jeroen (19), BA: ‘We’re going to drink more together!’

Sjors (20), IBA: ’I will live this year without limitations’

Vlad (18), IBA: ‘I will give up established stereotypes and brighten up my life with openness to any new experiences and opportunities!’

Rens (19), BA: ’I will drink much more whiskey’

INTERFACE

January 2013

Ellen (18), IBA :’I want to go out a lot and have fun, yet still pass my first year’ Cor (26), master student/ helpdesk employee: ‘I really would like to get my first 15 clients for my new company ‘corthecoach’

Hiba (18) & Valérie (19), IBA: ‘We would like to travel more around the world and go parachute jumping, YOLO!’

Baptist (18), IBA: ‘In 2013 I’ll try to skype with my friends back in France more’ Lea (20), IBA: ‘This year I’m going to start thinking and actually buying Christmas presents for my beloved ones slightly earlier’

Celien (19), IBA: ‘ I want to get my driver’s license’ Anne (19), Economics: ‘I will start working out, perhaps I’m going to start swimming again’

Deike (20) & Lena (20), IBA: ‘We want to have a great time at The Yacht Week in Croatia this summer’ Eline (17), IBA: ‘This year I really want to explore the Unknown of Rotterdam’

Alicia (18), IBA: ‘I’d like to work my way to get closer to my ideal of perfection.’

Berend (21), BA: ‘2013 is all about getting through the pre-master year and start my master’

Malik (left), IBA: ‘This year I want to go to Katmai and see the brown bears feeding on salmon’ Denislav (middle), IBA: ‘I will visit the 7 Lakes of Rila this summer’ Mateusz (right), IBA: ‘I’ll windsurf around Sardegna this summer’

Tim (21), BA: ’This year I’m going to work less’ Johan (25), BA: ‘I’m going to study as efficient as possible’

Micaela (21), IBA: ‘I would like to visit at least three new countries throughout 2013’

INTERFACE

January 2013

New ways of working Microsoft’s ‘mobility’ office by Eric van Heck

There is a common expectation among forward-looking companies that through the use of information technology new ways of working can be created that will enhance workplace conditions with such an effect as to improve employee satisfaction levels, increase productivity and ultimately impact positively upon company performance.

the organisation: personal growth and personal freedom to create aspects that they think are worthwhile for themselves and for the company. In the Netherlands, these three factors convinced Microsoft that it was essential to move to new offices. For them it was the start of what they described as a journey. At the outset

Certainly, as far as improving the

In 2005, Bill Gates wrote a white

it was clear that they would have to

methods of working for the benefit of

paper “Digital Work Style: The New

look to combine the virtual dimension

employees, and when seeking to recruit

World Of Work”. In part this served as

(the role played by technology) with

the best of today’s bright minds, it

a basis for Microsoft’s exploration and

the physical dimension (the building

should be borne in mind that the younger

subsequent development of new ways

itself) and the mental dimension

generations expect from companies

of working, about which they identified

(how people interact with new

environments that suit their needs. They

three key factors:

technologies, new ways of working,

have no desire to spend their

•

and a new environment). Before the journey commenced,

environment where they will be expected

that the traditional office model was not

Microsoft approached RSM for

to work between the hours of 9 to 5 at

the most efficient way of organising and

assistance. After much discussion it

a desk piled high with stacks of paper.

utilising this knowledge.

was agreed that we could best assist

Instead, they expect collaboration tools

•

That the Microsoft business model

by measuring and assessing the impact

was changing, from traditional software

of the workplace on performance. This

sales to one that is more customer-

would be done through ‘before’ and

and methods that are specifically designed to help them get the job done. But how can organisations find the

oriented: it is about ongoing relationships

‘after’ measurements, ie, prior to the

methods, tools and ways of working

with clients and working with them in

relocation and then again a short while

that are right for them? Is there a

teams, sometimes virtually. As such the

after the move.

universal panacea that can be applied

work environment is necessarily much

We created an online survey that

– a one-size-fits-all approach? Or

more collaborative and therefore needs

would explore perceptions: individual

should companies be looking within

better tools that are specifically

perceptions about work dimensions and

themselves for the solutions?

designed to facilitate and encourage

performance. We developed unique

this collaboration.

analytical instruments that carefully

•

RSM,

have

worked

closely with a number of major

That there is fundamental truth in

measured working dimensions and

the philosophy that you can only create

individual performance. And we

these points. One stand out example

a growing company if the people

analysed the ‘before’ and ‘after’

is Microsoft Corporation.

employed by it are able to grow within

responses to the survey.

companies to determine exactly

04 | 1st Quarter 2010

That increasingly businesses function

in a knowledge based environment and

professional lives in a ‘traditional’ office

INTERFACE

January 2013

their own choosing, felt much more flexible in terms of how, where and when they could do their job. An improvement in productivity levels was also noted by those surveyed. Satisfaction levels, which were already very high, remained so, as did the innovation dimension. The third aspect relates to the issue of trust, and is something that prominently features in studies we have conducted with other organisations. As well as online surveys through

a fixed office any more and the building

Trust is an important element.

which Microsoft employees could

has been designed to be what we call

Employees need to trust their managers,

contribute, specific research was also

activity based. It is no longer an office

and managers need to trust their

conducted utilising Masterâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s students.

in the traditional sense. Instead it is a

employees in terms of giving them the

For example, one explored digital working

workspace, where employees can

freedom of how, where and when they

styles within the organisation. Another

locate themselves in different parts of

would like to work.

looked at team performance, in both

the building depending on the tasks

Managers at Microsoft had many

physical and virtual teams, and sought

they need to perform. Increasingly, it

discussions about this issue. They

to determine if there were variances in

is a meeting place where employees

questioned how levels of trust could be

performance between the two.

can interact with colleagues, partners

increased. How could they give

and clients.

employees more freedom; the freedom

The key findings can be divided into three areas thus: In the first instance our research highlighted the fact that there are

This, our findings show, has

to work when, where and how they

increased even further the levels of

choose and yet still manage them

mobility among employees.

effectively? What they came to realise

differing digital work styles within the

Secondly, we looked at performance

was that their own perceptions had to

corporation. In assessing these we

and in our analysis divided this into four

change in terms of how to manage,

considered the aspect of mobility. From

dimensions: flexibility; productivity;

and in doing so required the use of

here we were able to characterise

satisfaction, and innovativeness.

output driven methods of measuring overall employee effectiveness.

mobility on a scale of one (deskbound)

A substantial increase in flexibility is

to seven (highly mobile both internally

shown after the move to the new tailor-

Also, empowerment is a crucial

and externally).

made building and the adoption of new

factor. Microsoft found that they needed

It became apparent that mobility was

working methods. People, because they

to empower their people and give them

a major factor in any considerations for

could work from home or office as they

more freedom. This, they discovered,

a new office building. Now, no one has

felt suited them, and in the hours of

improves employee flexibility, which in

1st Quarter 2010 | 05

INTERFACE

January 2013

New ways of working Microsoft’s ‘mobility’ office (continued) by Eric van Heck

turn leads to higher productivity – but

Two further dimensions have been

are now looking at how, especially in

that’s only if or when the element of

added to our work. The first relates to

countries like the Netherlands where

trust is in place.

sustainability and eco-efficiency.

traffic jams and transport overcrowding

From our research Microsoft came

Companies are asking: can we, through

are daily occurrences, work can be

to understand how crucial not just the

new ways of working, reduce our

redesigned in such a way that it offers

design of the work environment is for

environmental footprint? This is an

more flexibility. Further, how can we

company performance, but how

area that Microsoft Corporation is

utilise the existing infrastructures –

essential it is to consider employees’

currently investigating.

the highways and rail networks, for

perception and attitude towards working

The second dimension relates to

in this environment. We spend a great

‘smart working’ and the concept that

part of our lives working, so it should

‘smart working is smart travelling’. We

be obvious that to get the best from us

higher productivity? A lot of major questions will need to be addressed here. For example, how

we must be happy.

do we redesign work in such a way that

This is a very important message

This RSM research project is a

it will improve the ecological footprint,

for all companies. Our research shows

multi-year, multi-client, multi-

work-life balance, customer interaction

us that changing the workplace can

department

undertaking.

and customer service? How can we

lead to increased levels of productivity,

Companies sponsoring this

better utilise the transport infrastructures,

f l e x i b i l i t y,

and

research are De Unie, Essent,

even Internet infrastructures?

innovativeness. However, it has to be

Microsoft, Rabobank, Sogeti,

stressed that there is not a one-size-

Transumo, and TopForce.

satisfaction

fits-all solution.

If more flexibility can be created in these areas then we can finally create

Participating faculty and master

a situation where people can decide

You cannot take Microsoft’s journey

students collected data via

for themselves where to work, what to

and use it as a template within your

interviews, online surveys, and

work on, which technologies and tools

own organisation. The lesson is that

analysed secondary material like

to use and when.

you have to start on your own journey,

white papers, web sites, and

In essence, we need to question and

understanding the insights gained from

internal company documentation.

break down many aspects of our

Microsoft, and seek to come up with a

A number of online surveys have

existing

way of working that best suits your

been conducted that measured the

workplaces, the work itself and how it

people; suits the way they would like

perceptions of 2,640 knowledge

is done.

to deal with their colleagues, their

workers had about their work

managers, and especially with your

dimensions.

clients.

preconceptions

about

Eric van Heck is Professor of

In 2010 new students, faculty

Information Management and Markets,

We have conducted similar research

and sponsors will join the project.

Department of Decision & Information

with a number of major companies,

More information can be found at:

Sciences, Rotterdam School of

and, as corporate interest in our findings

www.newworldsofwork.nl

Management, Erasmus University.

is growing, will continue to do so.

06 | 1st Quarter 2010

example – in such a way that leads to

Email: evanheck@rsm.nl

INTERFACE

January 2013

Technology -

True love? In large parts of the world finding food and water are the most important daily tasks. In other parts people are still driven by the constant worry of not earning enough money to provide clothes, shoes and simple necessities for the family. Here in our world our emotions are more often stirred by technology. Where is my phone? Is it charged? Do we have Wi-Fi? We spend more and more time pondering over such simple thoughts like e-mail’s, messages, tweets and so on. It could turn out to be a small disaster in our eyes if we left our phone at home or heaven forbid, lost it! For many, it’s already a disaster if we run out of time for “Facebook” during break.

Have you ever witnessed yourself or others in a social setting, meeting friends for a snack break in between two lectures for example, where one is listening to music, while the other quickly has to check something on the Smartphone? No? Look again! The person with you right now is almost certainly harboring “Smartphone” thoughts. Do you recall the last time you were asked to turn off your phone, for example at the dinner table? I do! I remember a recent conversation with my mother when my phone whispered gently “I miss youuu”. Whatever it was it could have waited and I knew that, but a powerful inner urge forced me to check anyway. Should it really be this way?

INTERFACE

January 2013

A Blessing or a Curse? In 2007 the first “IPhone” was presented in the USA, with people camping overnight in front of the store for days, just to be one of the first to “fix” on the latest technological love. That is almost six years ago now and technology has progressed even further. With new ‘apps’ coming out almost daily, you today can use your phone for almost anything. The Smartphone revolutionized not just texting and calling, but invented ways of controlling our interest for this ‘highly desirable, multi-tasking, small and smart life-organizer.’ Hundreds of games and a vast array of applications allow our life to be less complicated in some ways, while at the same time contributing to the hectic of “NOW”. Just a few decades ago for it was considered normal for a message to take 2 days to be received and another 2 days for it to be fed back to the sender. Today, this is considered regress if it were to take even 2 minutes and then it’s obviously a lousy connection or poor provider if you can’t deliver an immediate response or assistance. Technology has transformed our lives in ways we can’t imagine, made information systems faster and more efficient, helped in reducing the chaos of our daily lives. With the Internet you have access to any needed information at any given point in time - check your time schedule? Tweet while waiting at the hairdresser? Need distraction? No problem! Today, instead of reading or talking to people around us, we tend to treat our phone as our “social companion”.

Time is moving faster and we use every free minute we have to fill it with something else or we think we need to. Quite naturally our hands tend to grab for the phone in our pockets, with the excuse that we just needed to check our schedule quickly – it might have changed? Then, inevitably, all the endless possibilities of our Smartphones seduce us. We are truly “in love”!

Is this a Blessing or a Curse? Picture yourself in a warehouse, trying to find a new desk chair for your room. After spending 30 minutes with an assistant, comparing different prices, sizes and types of chairs, you finally have found three that you consider the “best value”. As soon as he turns to other customers, you quickly check your phone to compare prices over Amazon.com. Well, it turns out to be a blessing for you as the prices online are cheaper than in the store, but what about the assistant who offered his time and advice to you, but didn’t sell? Imagine another situation, where you are in a pub and hear a song playing over the radio you immediately fall in love with. Not long ago we’d start chatting to our friends or people around trying to find the artist and “wohooo” a real conversation starts. Now, with the latest App you just have to turn it on and the app will find artists and song titles for you. All these ‘simple benefits’ take the interaction with ‘humans’ out of our life equation. They have transformed the world we grow up in today, but to what extent are we doing future HARM with this new technology?

Smartphones and I have a “Love/Hate” relationship. On the one hand I appreciate its usefulness on occasions, but at the same time I hate it’s constant demanding presence in my life. You could compare these high-tech cell phones to ALCOHOL in many ways. Do you realize that certain types of alcohol have an adverse effect on your health, damaging your liver over the years? Although you realize it is not good for your body, you simply can’t stop its consumption. You recognize how hard it is to stop, once you’ve come to love the taste, right? It’s the same with our new-age Smartphone. Why stop using it if it has soooooooo many benefits for you? However, the extent of how much we actually use our phones on a daily basis is almost obsessive. Consider this…we are really in love! That crazy ‘loss’ feeling

INTERFACE

January 2013

Ask yourself “Do I really prefer to be in love with a silicon-based communicationdevice?”

we get when we leave our lover at home. That haze that we live in when all we see around us is filtered. That “I only have eyes for you, my darling Smartphone!” attitude. When our friends go “Oh, He/She is in love, you can’t get through to Him/Her now.” The next time you walk around campus pay attention - love yourself more and the people around you! Tekst: Keely Bates

FACEBOOK.COM/IWILLRSM

KEEP AN EYE ON FACEBOOK.COM/IWILLRSM FOR DATES

IWILL.RSM.NL

ROTTERDAM SCHOOL OF MANAGEMENT

HAVE YOUR OWN I WILL PICTURE TAKEN AT ONE OF THE PHOTOSHOOTS!

INTERFACE

January 2013

Calendar

January Monday

Tuesday

Wednesday

Thursday

Friday

Saturday

Sunday

STAR office closed

Recruitment Period STAR Ski Trip

IBA Social Drink STAR Recruitment Drink

New Years Party

Recruitment Period STAR Ski Trip

STAR Recruitment Drink

Recruitment deadline

MSC Prom

STAR Recruitment Drink

Erasmus Recruitment Days

SMW Recruitment Deadline

INTERFACE

January 2013

February Monday

Tuesday

Wednesday

Thursday

Friday

Saturday

Sunday

Erasmus Recruitment Days

28 IBA Social Drink

March Monday

Tuesday

Wednesday

Thursday

Friday

Saturday

Sunday

General Assembly of Members

IBA Study Trip

IBA Study Trip BA Study Trip

IBA Social Drink

Office closed - Good Friday

INTERFACE

January 2013

Stress! 6 tips tricks and

Stress, unfortunately enough we all know how it feels. Is it at school, work or just right before you have to give an important presentation; stress is in some form incorporated in our everyday life’s. Effectively dealing with it is important, as it can be detrimental for your health. The most dramatic result of increasingly high levels of personal stress is a burnout, the psychological term for the experience of long-term exhaustion, diminished interest and a shocking deterioration of your overall health and life satisfaction. So to help you avoid all negative consequences of feeling strained, you can find below some tips and tricks to de-stress and relax. Tekst: Marnix Boon

Reduce smoking, drinking and coffee

Smoking cigarettes, alcohol consumption and caffeine all trigger various senses in your body. Those result in a considerable increase of your stress level. Of course, one cup of coffee will not make you extremely stressed all of a sudden. However, one should definitely watch out with the level of consumptions, as it can quickly get out of hand. You might not even notice it anymore, since it turned into an unconscious need, an automatic desire triggered by constant consumption. Besides, it is not going to kill you to just occasionally prefer to buy a Coke instead of a fridge stocked with beer. Likewise, those cigarettes have never made anybody healthier either. So for yourself, try to make this a healthier and less stressful year by reducing some of your bad habits.

Watch out with losing (too) much weight Good news for everyone who is in need of an argument to wait a little longer with their diet! The sugar level in your blood goes down as you lose weight. This will make you feel less active and easier stressed out. Hence, treat yourself a delicious kapsalon or burger on occasion; a diet can wait until after the exams or another hassled period. Yet, if you still want to do something about those extra pounds, don’t do it too radical. By losing weight in a steady matter, your body will be able to adjust to the diminished sugar level and actually over time burn more calories, since you’re avoiding the “Yo-yo” effect. Thus you have a great chance of avoiding the negative consequences of losing weight too much and too fast.

INTERFACE

January 2013

Exercise As we all know, it is great to exercise and simply clear your mind for a moment. Research has proven often enough that sport actually helps your brain to de-stress. So grab your bike and go to a nearby gym, or just jog around the Kralingse Plas. Of course during the Winter time it is cold outside and you will feel less motivated to go for a little run, but trust me if I say it will make you feel better afterwards if if its only for 15 minutes a day. Apart from the fact that you will feel less tensed and got a whip of fresh air into your lungs, it will be much easier for you to concentrate afterwards. Especially ideal if you’re for example writing a paper or your thesis!

Sleep well, feel well

“No day is so bad it can’t be fixed with a nap” are the exact words Carrie Snow once said. Though she is a well-known comedienne, she is absolutely right with this! After experiencing a stressful day, there are little things that will make you feel better than a good night of rest. People often glue themselves in front of their TV or PC screens as a way to relax and clear their mind. However, the best way to stop thinking about all the things still on your “To Do” list, all the words you still need to bring down on a paper or the effort you still need to prepare for your presentation tomorrow, simply going to bed early. The hours before midnight are the better for rejuvenating your body and mind than those after 12 PM. Additionally, eight hours of sleep is the minimum your body needs to recover from a stressful day and gather enough energy for the following. So respect your body’s need of at least 8 hours of sleep per day.

5 Avoid confrontations When feeling stressed, people tend to be easily irritated. Small things can make them disproportionally angry. Just to aware yourself of doing stupid things, you should always attempt to avoid unnecessary discussions and confrontations. If it is possible, try to discuss your dilemma the following week with the other party, or solve it in a more relaxing setting over a coffee at “Belmondo” for example. Although this is not always possible at your job or in your workgroup, such confrontations often occur in your personal life as well. You don’t want to damage good relationships with other people over momentarily stressed feelings, right?

Go out! Do something you like and HAVE FUN Sometimes you feel so stressed, you just have to go out and think about something else, simply clear your mind from any obligations you still have to fulfill. Even if deadlines are approaching, it is necessary to just relax, think of something else for a change and do something fun. I find a walk in the park, or meeting up with a friend the “best” medicine. It doesn’t matter what you do, as long as you enjoy yourself. Trust me when I say that after getting back to work, you will feel a lot more productive and balanced than before, which will evidently make it easier to focus and do a “good job”. Besides, as you will feel less stressed people will find it easier to cooperate and communicate with you. Hopefully, we helped you with some good tips and tricks. Balance your work and spare time in a good manner, to feel and act better. It is probably one of the best investments you can make this year!

2012

INTERFACE

January 2013

in a nutshell 2012, what a year! In our opinion, this year went

by in a blink of an eye. Let’s go over a few out of the many international highlights: records, international relations, the financial crisis, and other events.

Tekst: Iris van Rijn

Iran and its program of uranium enrichment: The first prominent event of 2012 was the aggravation of the relationship between Iran and the European Union in January. The European Union adopted an embargo against Iran in order to dispute the efforts of Iran to enrich uranium. In September 2012 Canada officially cut diplomatic connections with Iran. It even closed its embassy in the capital of the country, Tehran. In addition it banned Iran’s diplomats, while accusing Iran of supporting Syria, abusing human rights, and continuing with their nuclear plans. Despite the strong international critique towards Iran’s program of uranium enrichment, Iran does not plan to postpone or stop the program anytime soon.

The Greek Financial Crises: On February 21, after an all-night summit, the troika (which consists of the EU, ECB, and the IMF) and Greece reached an agreement: Greece will receive a second, 130-billion euro loan. Even as a new third loan is coming, Greece still has a long way to go. The requirements Greece needs to meet can be broken down in three guidelines. Firstly, Greece must fill a gap of 13,5 billion euros. Secondly, if Greece is granted a reprieve of another two years, a new 10 to 20 billion-euro gap needs to be filled. Thirdly, Greece should improve its economic prospects. If not, Greece will never be able to bring its debt down to 120% of its GDP by 2020. On the 27th of November the IMF and Eurozone agreed upon a new arrangement with respect to the Greek debt. Because of the declined economical situation Greece could not meet the requirement of bringing its debt down to 120% of its GDP by 2020. The new arrangement included the reduction of interest rates and an extended duration of the loans.

29 Dive outer space: On the 14th of Ocober, after earlier unsuccessful jumps, the 43-year old Austrian skydiver Felix Baumgartner jumped out of the Red Bull Stratos, a helium-filled balloon. Baumgartner became the first person on earth to withstand the sound barrier without any technological assistance of for example machines. His jump was a record space dive from 39 kilometers (24 miles) over New Mexico in the United States. During his free fall another record was established; 8 million people were captivatedly watching the live-stream on YouTube

The World Expo: From May 12 until August 12 the World Expo took place in Yeosu, a small port city in the south of South Korea. Some say the World Expo is the same to the economy, science and technology, as the Olympics are to sports. The theme of this year’s World Expo was “The Living Ocean and Coast”. People from all around the world have come to see the Expo and exchange ideas and opinions in order to restore the oceans equilibrium and protect it for the future survival of our planet earth.

The Summer Olympics: In the midst of our summer break, from July 27 to August 12, the 2012 Summer Olympics were held in London, United Kingdom. Once more China and the United States were combatting for the first place and the most medals Eventually the United States won the Olympics with a total score of 104 points of which 46 golden medals. China ended on second place with a total score of 88, with 38 golden medals. Great Britain was third with a total score of 65, with 29 golden medals.

World’s worst power outage: July 30 and 31 were for a lot of Indian people two remarkable days, which they certainly will remember. During these days the world’s worst power outage in history took place. The blackouts left approximately 620 million people without power. Coal miners were trapped underground, bodies in electric crematoria were half burned, doctors and nurses were not able to perform their tasks in hospitals, huge traffic jams emerged on the outskirts of New Delhi after traffic lights went out, and trains were not able to transport people.

INTERFACE

January 2013

INTERFACE

January 2013

China’s new president After the culmination of months of mystery, China presented its new top leaders. China’s ruling Communist party changed leader. Xi Jinping, the successor of Hu Jintao, now leeds the party. Hu Jintao was head of the Communist Party, which rules Chine for more than 60 years. Although the committee consists of mainly new members, many analysts argued that the new committee is unlikely to bring about new important political changes.

Reelection Obama November 6th: After a challenging race President Obama has been re-elected by the American people for a second term. Obama prevailed, despite the strong criticism on his campaign and his non-reaction to the various attacks of his Republican rival Mitt Romney during the presidential debates. In addition the lingering dissatisfaction with the American economy was critique of his opponents.

Hurricane Sandy: In October a very large storm of some 660 miles in diameter - Hurricane Sandy- hit the Caribbean, the Bahamas, the east coast of the United States, and Canada. This hurricane has cost many lifes. Unfortunately for many runners, the New York marathon was cancelled. However the paradox is that Sandy is expected to deliver the US economy a boost of 240 billion dollars and add 0.5% to the GDP next year. Economically speaking, this is definitely surpassing the loss of 50 billion dollars it has caused. As Bernard Baumohl, chief global economist at Economic Outlook said: “We’ll see construction ramped up, and that’s going to bring in jobs and an increase in demand for material of all sorts, and that’s going to further stimulate the economy.” However, many people lost valuable friends, lovedones, or their homes. Our hearts go out to all of them.

Israel vs. Palestine Half November, Israel launched Operation Pillar of Defense on Palestinians in the Gaza Strip. Israel kills Ahmed Jabari, the military chief of Hamas along with 133 other Palestinians. Palestine killed five Israelis in rocket attacks in a respond to the attacks. Under guidance of the Egyptian Foreign Minister, Mohmed Kamel Amr, and Hillary Clinton, Israel and Palestine reached a ceasefire agreement after a week of bitterness and grudge. However, various specialists fear that if the underlying reasons of the conflict will not be addressed, this conflict will not be over for a long time.

On the hunt for something special

Trying to move away from the ever-repeating IKEA-

If that’s not convincing enough, the swan market has an ace up its sleeves: If you are overcome by a sudden appetite, enjoy the delicious specialties and little snacks of Rotterdam’s best restaurants, accompanied by coffee of Rotterdam’s most popular cafés.

Tekst: Lea Pollert

No wonder that the swan market counts up to 3,000 visitors, of all age groups in Rotterdam’s Crooswijk and even up to 7000 for its XXL formatted version.

style furniture? Wishing to enrich your wardrobe with something more special than H&M and Zara? Or desperately trying to find a present for your better half?

Once a month, Rotterdam’s creative vein pulsates audibly: Hidden in the backyard of Rotterdam’s “Crooswijk” a paradise of variety is just waiting to be discovered: Ranging from exceptional jewelry to affordable art, the swan lifestyle market offers creative alternatives to Rotterdam’s “Alexander” or “VD”. When taking a stroll through the stands, one can discover the existence of Guinness chocolate (ever tried a beer-tasting chocolate?!) next to self-designed print-shirts whilst letting yourself be taken away by the music of local artists.

INTERFACE

January 2013

If one of your new year’s resolutions was to try selecting presents for your beloved ones a little earlier, or if you’re just looking for an opportunity to brighten up your Sunday, come visit the Swan Market and be sure that you won’t be coming home empty-handed. For more information about dates and locations, check the website: http://www.swanmarket.nl

Commitees

STAR

INTERFACE

January 2013

> Erasmus Recruitment Days

As a student, your future career probably seems far away and rather untouchable. You may have wondered what lies ahead after you finish your studies. Lucky for you there’s an upcoming event that can bring more clarity to your future!

YOUR LINK

TO THE FUTURE The Erasmus Recruitment Days (ERD) is the largest on-campus recruitment event in Europe, completely organized by students. Basically, this means that 100 leading (inter)national companies are coming to our university to meet you! The 2013 edition of the ERD will take place from January 30th until February 13th, and during these two weeks you can participate in many different recruitment and career-building activities. Whether you are looking for a job or internship, or you just want to orient yourself on the possibilities for your future career, the Erasmus Recruitment Days has activities for you to achieve your goal. The Erasmus Recruitment Days is, as this years’ slogan says: ‘Your Link to the Future!’ The next 5 pages offer you in-depth information about the various activities that take place during the Erasmus Recruitment Days 2013. If you have any questions left, please visit our stands in the T- or C-building!

> What’s in it for you? An RSM Career Services survey has found that 34% of RSM students find their job through the Erasmus Recruitment Days.1 But even when you are not yet looking for

a job, the Erasmus Recruitment Days has something to offer you.

Are you a first- or second-year Bachelor student? • Visit the company presentations to discover more about what steps you should take now to get recruited in the future • You can also join the Off Campus Day and visit the Dutch headquarters of Google, Nike or Vodafone • Prepare yourself for the future with the different trainings we offer, and develop your skill set Are you a third-year or Master student looking for a job? • Participate in workshops, interviews, dinners or other recruitment activities • Use our daily drink to network with companies and their recruiters • Join the “Rotterdam Carrière Dag” and find out what is like to work for a dynamic, fast growing company in Rotterdam Are you an international student studying at RSM or here on exchange? • Join this year’s new addition, the “International Day” and discover the best ways to find a job in the Netherlands • Participate in the recruitment activities of one or more of the 25 companies looking for international students

Activities during the ERD Company Presentations: meant for orientation, perfect if you want to know what a company is looking for! Workshops: 3-hour interactive case, get a good impression of a company’s activities. Individual interviews: a one-on-one interview with representatives of your chosen company, can be for an orienting or selecting interview depending on the company. Branch Dinner: get to know 3 or 4 different companies from the same branch during an informal dinner! Company Dinner: discover the company of your choice while enjoying a luxurious dinner Informal Recruitment: various activities such as a wine tasting or cooking clinic with your chosen company. Daily drink: the ERD organizes a daily drink where you can meet representatives of different companies, the ideal way to find out more about working life! All activities except for the Company Presentations and Daily drink are based on CV-selection and motivation. You can find the program of the Erasmus Recruitment Days on the next 2 pages. 1 RSM, 2011. Graduate Placement Report 2011. [online] Available at: http://www.rsm.nl/fileadmin/Images_NEW/Sites/Recruitement_ survey/Graduate_Placement_Report_v4.pdf [Accesed 23 November 2012]

INTERFACE

January 2013

INTERFACE

January 2013

PROGRAM

Thursday January Company presentations

Workshops

11.00

Rijkstraineeships

12.00

Cisco

NS • Unilever • Booz & Company • FrieslandCampina

10.00

Wednesday January 30

GRAND OPENING

Yer - Sollicitatietrain

Lunch by Erasmus Recruitment Days

13.00

(From 17.00 onwards)

Training & Caree

14.00

Unilever

15.00

Cargill

• De Lage Landen* • APG* • McKinsey & Company • Cisco • Bain & Company

16.00 17.00

Yer - Personal brand

Drink by Cargill & De Lage Landen*

18.00

Branch Dinner Consultancy: Boston Consultancy Group • Booz & Company Dinner: C

19.00

Monday February 4 Company presentations

Workshops

Training & Career

11.00

L’Oréal

12.00

OC&C Strategy Consultants

• DSM B.V.* • The Greenery • Capgemini

Qompas - Assessment training

10.00

13.00

Lunch by Erasmus Recruitment Days Google*

14.00 15.00 16.00 17.00

Informal Recruitment

• OC&C • ExxonMobil* • L’Oréal • Gemeente Rotterdam • KPN Consulting

ExxonMobil* DSM B.V.*

Interviews

Tuesday Februa

Lunch - Gemeente Rotterdam • ExxonMobil* • Google* • DSM B.V.* • BTS* • Capgemini • KPN Consulting

Qompas - Netwerk training

Off-Campus Day to Google* • Nike Eu (All day)

Drink by Gemeente Rotterdam & KPN Consulting

18.00

Rotterdam Carriè

Branch Dinner Industrials: ExxonMobil* • Shell* • DSM B.V.* • Akzo Nobel* Company Dinner: OC&C Strategy Consultants

19.00

(Afternoon)

Frid Company presentations

Thursday February 7 Company presentations

Workshops

11.00

Delta Lloyd

12.00

A.T. Kearney

• Coolblue • Autoriteit Financiële Markten • Belastingdienst

10.00

13.00 Coolblue

15.00

KPMG

17.00 18.00 19.00

Informal Recruitment

• Van Lanchot Bankiers • Philips* • Accenture • Double Effect* • A.T. Kearney

BTS*

11.00

Interviews

ING*

12.00 Leading Talent - Orientatie FMCG markt & CV Check

13.00

Workshops • Philip Morris Benelux* • Avery Dennison*

Lunch by Erasmus Recruitment Days

14.00

Lunch by Erasmus Recruitment Days

14.00 16.00

Training & Career

10.00

• KPMG • ING* • Rebelgroup B.V. • Philips* • Belastingdienst • Delta Lloyd

Leading Talent - Orientatie FMCG markt & CV Check

• ING* • Achmea

15.00 16.00 17.00

Drink by Erasmus Recruitment Days

18.00 19.00

Drink by Erasmus Recruitment Days Branch Dinner Financials: Delta Lloyd • Van Lanschot Bankiers • Rebelgroup B.V. Company Dinners: ING* • A.T. Kearney

Tuesday February 12 Company presentations

Workshops

Training & Career

Informal Recruitment

Shell*

• Boston Consulting Group • Centraal Bureau voor de Statistiek • Ormit

Ebbinge Zelfanalyse & Sollicitatietraining

Lunch - Eneco

10.00 11.00 12.00 13.00

Lunch by Erasmus Recruitment Days

14.00

Boston Consulting Group

15.00

Kempen & Co*

16.00 17.00 18.00 19.00

* Language: English

Rodamco Nederland B.V.*

ABN AMRO

• Eneco • Henkel* • Vopak • Deloitte (Mergers & Acquistions)

Interviews

• Shell* • KPN • Rodamco Nederland B.V.* • Hilti • Rabobank • Kempen & Co*

Ebbinge Zelfanalyse & Sollicitatietraining Wine tasting - Ormit

Drink by Eneco Branch Dinner Financials: ABN AMRO • Kempen & Co* • Rodamco Nederland B.V* Company Dinner: KPN

INTERFACE

January 2013

ry 31

Informal Recruitment

Interviews

Friday February 1 Company presentations

ning • APG* • Cargill• NS • Booz & Company • FrieslandCampina

ding

10.00

Boer&Croon Young Executive Management

11.00

&Samhoud

12.00

AkzoNobel*

13.00 14.00

HEINEKEN

15.00 16.00

Company • Bain & Company • McKinsey & Company Cisco

Workshops

Training & Career

• HEINEKEN • Optiver Holding B.V.*

Linq - Personal branding & Online marketing

Informal Recruitment

Lunch by Erasmus Recruitment Days SNS Reaal • Ernst & Young • Roland Berger Strategy Consultants • Essent • Boer&Croon Young Executive Management • &Samhoud

17.00

Yer - CV training

Cooking clinic - KPN Consulting*

Interviews

• Policy Research Corporation • Boer&Croon Corporate Finance • Cisco • OC&C Strategy Consultants • AkzoNobel* • SNS Reaal • Roland Berger Strategy Consultants • Optiver Holding B.V.* • Essent

Drink by Erasmus Recruitment Days

18.00 19.00

ary 5

Wednesday February 6

uropean HQ* • Vodafone*

Company presentations

Workshops

Training & Career

11.00

Gupta Strategists

12.00

Rebelgroup B.V.

• Expeditors* • PostNL

ImpressiveGreenApple Assessment training

10.00

13.00

ère Dag

14.00 15.00

Informal Recruitment

Lunch by Erasmus Recruitment Days Expeditors*

• KLM • Deloitte (Risk) • NIBC Bank*

PostNL

16.00 17.00

High Tea - Gupta Strategists

ImpressiveGreenApple CV check

Interviews

• Van Lanschot Bankiers • Boer & Croon Young Executive Management • Autoriteit Financiële Markten • NIBC Bank* • PwC • PostNL

Drink by Expeditors* • KLM

18.00

Branch Dinner Accountancy: Deloitte • KPMG • PwC Company Dinner: PostNL

19.00

day February 8 Interviews

Monday February 11 • Accenture • Gupta Strategists • Double Effect* • BTS* • Achmea

Company presentations

Workshops

Wim Bosman*

Nestlé Nederland B.V. • Randstad • Yse • Ministerie van Financiën

10.00 11.00 12.00 13.00

International Day*

Lunch by Erasmus Recruitment Days

14.00

Nestlé Nederland B.V.

15.00

Rabobank

16.00

Coca-Cola Enterprises

17.00

• Diageo • Ahold • Liberty Global B.V.*

Wednesday February 13 De Nederlansche Bank

11.00

Nike European HQ*

12.00 13.00 14.00 15.00 16.00 17.00 18.00 19.00

Vodafone*

Hilti Nederland B.V.

Workshops

Training & Career

Hilti Nederland B.V. • KPN • Altran • Mn Services

SheTailor* - First impact (men only)

Informal Recruitment

Lunch by Erasmus Recruitment Days • Vodafone* • Nike European HQ* Drink by Erasmus Recruitment Days

Interviews

Lunch - Rabobank

• Coca-Cola Enterprises • Randstad • Ministerie van Financiën • Eneco • Wim Bosman* • IMC Financial Markets* • ABN AMRO •Nike European HQ*

• Studelta - Ken je talent!

Branch Dinner Consumer Goods: Ahold • Unliver • Nestlé Nederland B.V.

19.00

Company presentations

Informal Recruitment

Drink by Coca-Cola Enterprises • Diageo

18.00

10.00

Training & Career

Interviews

• Shell* • Altran • De Nederlandsche Bank

SheTailor* - First impact (women only) Beer tasting Hilti Nederland B.V.

INTERFACE

January 2013

> What’s new?

International Day Are you an international student with the aspiration to pursue a career in The Netherlands? Then you should definitely join this year’s brand new addition, the International Day! During this day, special trainings and presentations will be given that focus specifically on international students. Furthermore Boom Chicago will present ‘‘Can’t Dutch This’’. Boom Chicago’s actors will make you laugh with a unique and sidesplitting perspective on Dutch culture, traditions, assumptions and absurdities.

Rotterdam Carrière Dag This event is for Dutch speaking students only

Always had the dream to make a big impact on your company? Start your career at one of Rotterdam’s fastest growing companies and you most certainly will. During the Rotterdam Carrière Dag you can get in touch with future leading companies. The day will have an interactive program during which you can show your potential to make a difference.

Afterwards you will have the exclusive opportunity to network with expats from different companies, during a special Erasmus Recruitment Days edition of the ‘Internationals meet Internationals’ drink on the top floor of Engels Grandcafé Rotterdam. Check out Nike European HQ, Google & Vodafone

from the inside! Are you curious to know what companies look like on the inside? Do you want to know all about a company’s culture? During the Off-Campus Day you can learn this and more about the company of your interest! This year we organize visits to Google, Nike and Vodafone. The exact program of the day depends on the company, but you can be sure you will discover many things only to be seen from the inside!

> Subscribe now! You can subscribe for the Erasmus Recruitment Days right now! The deadline for application is Friday the 9th of January, and this also includes subscription for all activities. You can subscribe at one of our stands in the T- or C- building or you can visit our website, www.erd.nl, create an account and subscribe. Costs for participation in the Erasmus Recruitment Days are only €12,50 and you can apply for as many activities as you want. Moreover, on the days you are participating in one or more activities, you can enjoy a free lunch or visit our daily drink!

Important dates 3 December - 9 January Subscription period

9 January Deadline for submitting your CV and motivation 30 January Grand Opening

31 January - 13 February Recruitment activities

5 February Off-Campus Day & Rotterdam Carrière Dag

8 February International Day

13 February Closing Drink

Facebook & App To make sure you’re not missing out on anything during the Erasmus Recruitment Days, like our Facebook page and download our app (available for iPhone and Android). This way you have access to exclusive content and you can use the app to keep track of your schedule!

The committee

From left to right: Marleen Metselaar, Jelle van Ommen, Feike Du, Jesper Drenthen, Charlotte de Backker, Nick Mahn and Anouk Geertsen.

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January 2013

INTERFACE

January 2013

CHALLENGE YOURSELF Become active at STAR!

STAR is recruiting again in January! Join one of our committees and become an active member at Europeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s largest study association. Working in a team with your fellow students to organize great events is a challenge you will not forget. It is the perfect opportunity for extracurricular development and making new friends. Take on the challenge and let us welcome you as an active member of STAR! If you want to know more about the committees we are recruiting for take a look at our information booklet, check www. rsmstar.nl/recruitment, come by our information drinks on Tuesday 8th of January or Thursday 17th of January, or send an email to: recruitment@rsmstar.nl. Make sure to apply before January 18th

Organise the BA/IBA Introduction Days! Do you remember your first weeks in Rotterdam and your own introduction days? In September around 150 firstyear students will join the IBA Introduction weekend. This weekend is summarized as lots of fun, new friendships and unforgettable memories! Organize the IBA Introduction weekend yourself! Find a good location, sponsors, organize great parties, and make as many students as possible enthusiastic about joining the event.

Be part of this yearâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Agenda Committee! Join the STAR Agenda Committee and support your fellow students in managing their time in a fun and efficient way. The Agenda Committee is responsible for the entire project, which includes the creative concept, the production phase, the acquisition to make the agenda possible and the marketing to make sure that the agenda is all over the university!

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January 2013

Organise the surf trip! Have you always wanted to learn how to surf really well? For the second time STAR is organizing a surf trip. Surfers of all levels from beginners to experts are welcome to join. The trip will take place in the summer, and you will be responsible for finding the accommodation, transportation, surf lessons, rent of equipment, city trips, and of course some nice parties! Apply now for a week of fun at the beach and make sure to organize a great week together with your fellow students.

Be part of the first Eurekaweek Committee! The Eureka week is the general introduction week from the Erasmus University, where thousands of new students will get to know the city and university life. As a member of this committee you will represent STAR during this week and will be responsible for the entire promotion, drinks, activities and dinners! Have an incredible week together with the rest of your committee and represent STAR during this week!

Challenge yourself and be part of the STAR Management Week Committee 2013 The STAR Management Week is the largest on-campus business event in the Benelux. During this annual highlight in October several recruitment activities, company workshops, speaker events, drinks and parties take place. The variety of activities makes this committee a truly diverse and unique experience. Contribute to RSM, STAR and Rotterdam student life and develop yourself at every possible level. You will start in February from two days a week, and from April until October it is full-time. STAR provides financial compensation and the project is granted 15 ECTS! This committee is open to Bachelor as well as Master students. We are looking for affiliation, enthusiasm and ambition, experience is not required! Note: this committee has a separate deadline: Sunday January 27th

INTERFACE

January 2013

We survived! Congratulations! If you are reading this, it means you have survived what would have been one of the worst days in the era of men: the end of the world! What has also become known as the apocalypse, has been predicted over 5000 years ago by the ancient SouthAmerican civilization the Mayans. According to them, or more specifically, according to their calendar, the world was supposed to end on the first winter day of 2012: December 21th 2012. Fortunately for us this didn’t happen, ensuring us as students all our hard work and studying wasn’t a vain attempt to get an academic degree. Furthermore the supposed ending of the world was already refuted by astronomer

The Mayans

Don Yeomans, manager at NASA’s Near-Earth Object program office at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory: “I can tell you now, the 21th of December 2012 will be a day just like any others” he said last year (07-12-2011). Although the world has survived to end another day, how is it possible there was such a fuss about a calendar (one of seven!) that was devised by an ancient civilization? A civilisation that, by the way, also believed that sacrificing virgins was good for the fertility of the rest of the group. Tekst: Floris Vernooij

The ancient Mayan calendar was, like the modern Gregorian calendar, 365 days long. In addition to years, the Maya measured time in longer periods, with a short-count and a long-count calendar, just as we measure time in decades, centuries and millennia. “The short-count was 52 of our years, and the long-count was 5,125 years long. This long-count calendar is coming to an end on Dec. 21,” Yeomans said.”Of course, a new calendar would start on December 22. It would be just like saying that our calendar ends December 31, and that’s the end of time, the end of days, that’s it, no regard for how a new cycle would begin. The Maya never predicted the end of the world occurred at that time.” Although there were those who believed December 21, 2012 will bring about a new age of enlightenment, many, many others feared a catastrophe. “I googled ‘2012 disasters,’ and you know how many hits I got? 35 million hits,” Yeomans said. “A lot of people are concerned about Dec. 21, 2012.”

Death from Planet X

One of the concerns was about how, from Earth’s point of view, the sun will cross in front of the plane of our galaxy on December 21th. However, the sun routinely does this twice a year without fanfare, Yeomans indicated. Another fear was about a planet dubbed Nibiru or “Planet X” is supposedly headed toward Earth. Yeomans noted that well-known UFO aficionado Nancy Leider, who describes herself as being in contact with aliens from the star system Zeta Reticuli, first said Nibiru would cause widespread disaster in May 2003, only to later change her prediction to december 21, 2012. “There’s no evidence whatsoever that Nibiru exists,” Yeomans said. Notions that it might be hiding behind the sun are unfounded, as “it can’t hide behind the sun forever, and we would’ve seen it years ago,” Yeomans said. While believers in Nibiru claim that astronomers and NASA were engaged in a conspiracy to cover up Nibiru to prevent panic, “there’s no way on Earth to keep astronomers quiet about anything,” Yeomans joked.

Solar storms

Another fear rested on Solar storms. Solar storms — torrents of energetic particles from the sun — do sometimes occur. These usually come and go in cycles of 11 years. When they slam into Earth, they

create auroras and can cause damage to satellites and power lines, still it’s “nothing that causes lasting damage,” Yeomans said. There are records of a solar “super storm” reaching earth in 1859. Although that caused little damage back then, there are fears that such a storm would inflict much more harm now, as that our world is far more dependent on electronics. Still, “there is no evidence that one will happen on Dec. 21 next year,” Yeomans said. “It’s impossible to predict solar activity that far out, and even an extremely strong solar storm wouldn’t bring the apocalypse that much fear”.

Pole dancing

The biggest, and as far as possible best scientifically substantiated argument, was about the poles of the Earth shifting around. The Earth has two kinds of poles, its geographical poles, which mark the planet’s axis of rotation. And its magnetic poles, which are associated with the planet’s magnetic field that makes our compasses point toward north. Some feared that either or both of these poles would flip in 2012. However, the geographical poles cannot flip because the moon stabilizes our planet’s spin. The magnetic poles do flip sometimes, but on time scales of about 500,000 years. These shifts are not sudden, but take place very gradually over thousands of years, “and there’s no evidence of a flip on Dec. 21, 2012,” Yeomans said. “Even if they did flip, it would not cause any real problems, other than us having to change our compasses from north to south.”

Spiritual new age of men

Coming back to the Mayan calendar, according to most historians the best way to interpret the calendar in a more spiritual way . The Mayans belief was that on 21-12-2012 the then known world

would end. Resulting in a, spiritually, “better” world. It is no coincidence that their calendar ends on the exact same day on which the world and sun are on the “equator” of the milky way galaxy. The Mayans thought that when this happens, Earth would be open to “spiritual glares from space” resulting in a spiritual and according to them morally “better” world. So even if the Mayans were true about the world, as we know it, ending on December 21th. The thought that in the worst case scenario it would’ve ended in exactly the same way as it was before December 21th. Ultimately, smart people can believe weird things for many numbers of reasons, Yeoman noted. For instance, real data is often confused with junk science, while anecdotal evidence and passionate arguments on the Internet and on television shows purporting to be fact are often mistaken for the real thing. “Scientists really have their work cut out for them,” Yeomans said. “We really have to do a better job educating people about science.”

Sources

http://www.space.com/topics/latest-news-for -nibiru-2012-and-planet-x/ http://www.space.com/16409-doomsday-fears-2012-mayan-calendar.html http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=RaKcPEBiZZw

INTERFACE

January 2013

At NIBC, entrepreneurial bankers start at the deep end As a trainee banker at NIBC, you also have a daily job. Your assignments and responsibilities start from day one. And youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll have the chance to specialise, in for example mergers and acquisitions. You and your fellow analysts will follow our incompany training programme at the Amsterdam Institute of Finance, led by professors from international business schools. A flying start at the bank that thinks and acts like entrepreneurs. For more information, visit www.careeratnibc.com.

INTERFACE

January 2013

STUDY SKILLS? Ehhhm…

YES, please! • Written Assignment for tomorrow • Test the day after • Deadline of written assignment plus your best friend’s birthday party tonight? If you ever encounter such a “TO-DO LIST” or ever asked yourself in which category you’d fall when professors give their famous talks about last minute revision candidates vs. organized, long-term revising students? Find out about your study skills and spot areas which might need an update. Rank your academic performance in each of the 7 study skill categories using the designated criteria, Circle the numbers that describe your way of studying the best. Total your points to receive your personal over-all rating score and explanations.

1 Almost Never

2 Rarely

3 Sometimes

4 Frequently

5 Almost Always

Attitude

I am able to study subjects that I don’t really like. 1 2 3 4 5 I keep up with assignments, readings and tests preparations, avoiding procrastination I attend class. 1 2 3 4 5

12345

Concentration

I can focus my attention without too much effort. 1 2 3 4 5 I study effectively without the distraction of negative thoughts and worries. 1 2 3 4 5 I keep my study-time a priority, saying “no” to social demands and extracurricular events. 1

Preparation and Follow-Up

I download and read notes, or read texts before class. 1 2 3 4 5 I stop reading periodically and check my understanding. 1 2 3 4 5 I review notes shortly after class. 1 2 3 4 5

2345

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January 2013

Time management

I find it easy to stick to a study schedule. 1 2 3 4 5 I spend more time on courses, which I consider to be difficult. 1 2 3 4 5 I prioritize by putting studying first and then balancing recreation, work, and sleep.

12345

Academic Stress

I trust myself and have confidence in my ability to succeed in university. 1 2 3 4 5 I have 30-60 minutes of unstructured down time, daily. 1 2 3 4 5 I spend time with my friends without having a bad conscience or thinking about studying. 1

Testing/exam writing

Before a test, I find out what will be on the exam and what kind of test I will be given. 1 I go into an examination prepared and certain of what I’ve studied. 1 2 3 4 5 I am relaxed, confident, and without “test anxiety” during an examination. 1 2 3 4 5

Goal Setting

I am up to date with assignments. 1 2 3 4 5 I persist when the work is boring or challenging. 1 2 3 4 I set high standards for myself in university. 1 2 3 4 5

2345 2345

STUDY SKILLS SURVEY AND SCORE INTERPRETATION Note: Your score is an indication of the STRENGTH of your study skills. If you scored: 89 - 105 Excellent study skills, showing a high degree of conscientiousness and goal orientation. You find it easy to apply your skills in the variety of university’s everyday challenges. Continue to maintain these skills and put extra efforts in when facing challenging subjects. Keep up the good work!

69 - 88 Good to fair study skills. Review your survey, spot your weaknesses in the areas where you scored the lowest. If you are particularly strong in one skill, such as preparation and follow-up, now might be the time to focus on a different area of your study skills. Acquire new techniques to improve your lower score categories and this effort should then be rewarded with higher marks.

46 - 68 Weak study skills. Significant improvement is needed. Try to rethink your study habits and concentrate on improving areas on which you scored 2 or lower first. This will help you to plan your improvement, and prioritize the areas which require more attention. Focus on activities which can develop these particular skills.

21 - 45 Poor study skills. Extra effort and work is needed immediately in order to improve your study habits. This may require “reprogramming” (discarding inadequate and non-workable study skills and adopting new ones.) Success is less likely if you fail to revise your personal study system. Talk through your self-assessment with a friend or a tutor whom you trust. They may see your strengths more clearly than you have in this exercise and could offer assistance and guidance to improve your problematic areas. Tekst: Lea Pollert

INTERFACE

January 2013

www.werkenbijpwc.nl

Soms ben je tevreden

Soms drijf je jezelf tot het uiterste Je hebt tijdens je studie alle mogelijke kennis opgedaan. En nu wil je aan de slag. Op een plek waar je al je ambities kwijt kunt. Waar de lat hoog ligt en waar je samenwerkt met professionals. Je start je carriĂ¨re vliegend en gaat recht op je doel af. Dat is: het beste in jezelf naar boven halen.

Kom verder op werkenbijpwc.nl

Neem voor meer informatie contact op met een recruiter: 088 792 87 77 werkenbijpwc@nl.pwc.com www.werkenbijpwc.nl/contact Volg werkenbijpwc op Facebook en Twitter