Bristol Business School partnerships and accreditations

For today's graduates it is essential to possess inter-cultural competencies and the ability to work across cultures and societies. Bristol Business School provides a diverse and inclusive learning environment that enables all of our students to learn with, and from, those from different backgrounds and cultures.We are also proud of the work that we do with strategic international partners to promote high quality education in a range of countries.

Key strategic international partners with whom we run collaborative programmes in partnership include:

• Taylor’s University, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
• National Economics University (NEU), Hanoi, Vietnam
• International University – Vietnam National University, Ho Chi Min City, Vietnam
• Banking Academy, Hanoi, Vietnam
• Villa College, The Maldives
• Bristol Institute of Business and Management, Colombo, Sri Lanka
• The British College, Kathmandu, Nepal

We also work with a wide range of international partners to provide opportunities for their students to study with us in Bristol and/or for UK-based students to study abroad. These partners include:

• Guangdong University of Finance, China
• HELP University, Malaysia 
• INTI International University, Malaysia
• Montpelier Business School
• Rangsit University, Thailand
• Renmin University, China
• University of Monterrey, Mexico
• University of Texas at El Paso, USA
• Tian Fu College of Southwestern University of Finance and Economics, China

We collaborate with both private and public sector organisations through research, knowledge exchange and our courses. This is key to knowledge sharing, research and developing courses that produce students with practical skills beneficial to employers.

We have a number of key partnerships with:

• NHS (National Health Service) – we have actively worked with the NHS to deliver leadership conferences.
• Space Engineering Services Ltd – we have worked with Space Engineering to help develop their people management policies.
• Cycling England – monies were awarded to Bristol and South Gloucestershire Councils to double its cycling levels in the city within four years and we are working with the councils to help in this endeavour.
• Veale Wasbrough Vizards – this project involves investigating the governance, scope, scale and strategy of first generation family businesses.
• Lidl UK – by working with our Placement Scheme Lidl provide our undergraduate students a year’s work placement experience.
• Deloitte Digital – programme sponsor for the MSc Financial Technology, providing extensive support for practice led learning, collaborative projects and joint research.
• DAC Beachcroft – lead the employer support group for the MSc Risk Management and Insurance , facilitating industry input into teaching and collaborative research and projects.

Accreditation and active relationships with professional bodies is important to delivering relevant business courses.

Accreditations

Many of our Accounting and Finance, Business Management, Economics and Marketing courses are accredited by relevant professional bodies. Specific accreditations include:

• Chartered Institute of Professional Development (CIPD)
• Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA)
• Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA)
• Institute of Leadership and Management (ILM) - Bristol Business School is an ILM approved centre that offers different levels of coaching and mentoring courses.
• Chartered Institute of Marketing (CIM)
• Chartered Insurance Institute (CII)
• Chartered Institute for Securities and Investment (CISI)
• European Foundation of Management Development
• Global Association of Risk Professionals (GARP)
• Chartered Management Institute (CMI)
• EFMD Programme Accreditation System (EPAS)
• Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW)

Professional bodies

We have strong links with a number of professional and accrediting bodies:

• Association of Business Schools
• Association of Advance Collegiate Schools of Business
• Institute of Direct Marketing
• Chartered Institute of Marketing
• Institute of Leadership and Management (ILM)
• Chartered Management Institute (CMI)
• Confederation of British Industry
• Institute of Directors
• Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply
• Business West

The role of the Board is to keep us close to business and their employment needs to ensure students meet the needs of employers and we build strong national and international partnerships.

Our regional business leaders will use their leadership experience to look at how Bristol Business School (BBS) and the Bristol Business School building can serve the needs of our region and its economy.

As a result, we can grow our international reputation in business and law and our provision will continue to create employable graduates.

Meet the board

Business leaders from our region's financial, commercial, legal, public and health sectors are represented on the panel.

Ololade Adesanya

Senior Manager, Ernst & Young

Ololade is a Senior Manager at EY and the Wealth and Asset Management sector lead for the Internal Audit practice. Prior to EY, she was Head of Audit for Sanlam UK and Ireland, before which she worked for PwC where she qualified as a Chartered Accountant through the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW).

Steven Beavan

Head of Business Banking (West of England), Barclays

Steven, Head of Business Banking at Barclays plc, leads a team of relationship directors across the region responsible for supporting Barclays business customers. Barclays is a multinational personal, business and investment bank. Steve’s focus is to help businesses across the West of England thrive by providing specialist financial solutions. With a background in mergers and acquisitions and international trade, Steve is passionate about delivering an exceptional service for his clients to help them grow and develop, both domestically and internationally.

Karen Evans

Regional Executive, ICAEW

Karen is an experienced marketer with extensive knowledge in communications and project management. Karen works in the West of England representing the interests and promoting the profiles of c5000 ICAEW Chartered Accountant members. ICAEW is a world-leading professional membership organisation that promotes, develops and supports 181,000 Chartered Accountants and students in 148 countries. 

Victoria FitzGerald

A qualified CIMA accountant, Victoria gained her MBA with Bristol Business School. She has held finance director roles in manufacturing, education and arts sectors. Victoria has been a chair and a trustee in the academies sector and is currently a trustee of Bristol Museums Development Trust. She founded her own financial consultancy business for the education and charities sectors.

David Henderson

Head of Business Transformation, Hargreaves Lansdown

David is the Head of Business Transformation at Hargreaves Lansdown. David also sits on the advisory board for Fintech West and the Board for the Bristol technology Festival, both of which aim to promote skills, inward investment and collaboration across the region. Hargreaves Lansdown is the UK’s leading savings and investment platform. For nearly 40 years, HL have helped clients save time, tax and money on their investments. Today they are trusted with more than £120 billion by 1.5 million clients. HL focus is on helping their clients make good financial decisions throughout their life and have a range of products to help. They are a secure, FTSE 100 company based in Bristol where we they employ over 1,700 people.

Adam Jones

CTO and MD, Redington

Adam has been working in fintech for a decade for a wide range of companies from some of the largest banks in the world to disruptive and innovative start-ups. He is a passionate advocate of the need to increase financial inclusion and diversity in technology and financial services. In addition to his role as CTO of Redington where he heads up the fintech business line ADA, Adam is a Trustee of RedSTART, a visiting lecturer at Henley Business School and is actively involved in a range of industry initiatives and working groups.

Paul Keenan

Consultant and Expert Witness in Financial Regulation cases at Keenan Regulatory Consulting

Paul is an independent consultant in financial regulation, with over 40 years of experience of international financial markets, as a government fund manager, a regulator, a compliance officer, an Expert Witness and as Trainer of market professionals and is also a life member of the CISI.

Tim Lincoln

Audit Partner, Grant Thornton

Tim leads the audit business at Grant Thornton's Bristol and South West offices, and leads a team of 30 people all providing high-quality advice and service to their clients and to the market place. Grant Thornton is one of the world's leading organisations of business and financial advisors. Tim’s focus is on growing the south west audit practice, developing the offering to the market and building the team to deliver on this commitment.

Caron Ricciardi 

Process Improvement Manager, Lloyds Banking Group

Caron is a CIMA qualified accountant, and has held numerous Financial Controller and Manager roles across different business sectors. She is currently the Process improvement/Business Development Manager at Lloyds Banking Group, a financial services group that serves people, businesses and communities across the UK.

Isabel Thompson

Director, Vendigital

Isabel is a Director at Vendigital – a consulting firm which specialises in helping organisations manage their toughest cost and operational challenges. Isabel works with manufacturing clients to help them manage their cost base and transform their businesses. Her background is in business transformation and change consulting – she joined PwC as an economics graduate, followed by a number of years at KPMG where she led consulting and business development teams.

Jenni Turco

Executive Chairman of Positive Wealth Creation Ltd

Jenni is one of around 7,000 UK Chartered Financial Planners within the financial advice profession and is the Executive Chairman of Positive Wealth Creation Ltd, who provide independent financial advice. Since 2008, the Chartered Insurance Institute (CII) has awarded the company the title of ‘Chartered Financial Planners’. This exclusive award is subject to annual reassessment and is reserved for those businesses meeting a ‘Gold Standard’ relating to professionalism and capability. This means that they follow a demanding code of ethical practice and places clients’ interests at the heart of the advice given.

Since 2013, gradually they have built their relationship with UWE Bristol by delivering guest lectures, offered paid placements and sponsored our Prize for the Best Completion of the PFP Module. They also retain three UWE Bristol graduates as full-time staff members who have already qualified or are working towards completion of the Regulated Diploma in Financial Planning.

Jenni specialises in retirement, taxation and intergenerational wealth planning, having won the Insurance Institute of Bristol Awards for best performance in the Chartered Insurance Institute’s G10 exam on Taxation and Trusts in the West of England, and then for best completion of the Advanced Financial Planning Certificate. 

Nolan Webber

Investment Director at Rathbone Brothers Plc

Nolan is an investment director within the Bristol office at Rathbone Brothers Plc who provide individual investment and wealth management services for private clients, charities, trustees and professional partners. He manages investment portfolios for private clients, trusts, pensions and charities. Nolan graduated from UWE Bristol with a first class honours degree in business studies and is a member of MENSA. Nolan is a Chartered Fellow of the Chartered Institute for Securities and Investment, having completed the full diploma qualification, and is past president of the CISI Bristol, Bath & South Wales Branch committee.