Stability the Key Word for Hanken in 2013
New areas of strength and PhD Programme
An external audit of research at Hanken produced very encouraging results. Of the school's ten areas of research, four were considered to meet the highest international standards, and another four were found to have potential for international competitiveness. The four highest-ranked research areas were appointed the business school's areas of strength for the next five years. They are Finance, Management and Organisation, Marketing, and Economics.
The school also strengthened the education and research it conducts in entrepreneurship by founding a new competence centre: the Erling-Persson Centre for Entrepreneurship. The centre was named after the Erling-Persson Family Foundation, which was the biggest individual donor of the Hanken 100 fundraising campaign.
In order to reinforce the regrowth of new researchers, Hanken restructured its doctoral education around a PhD Programme. In 2013, Hanken was able to guarantee 18 months of full-time funding for all of its new PhD candidates. The new structure and the initial funding guarantee increased the attractiveness of postgraduate studies at Hanken, which was evident in the higher number of qualified applicants.
The number of publications in international peer-reviewed journals with an ISI Web of Science Impact Factor of >1 totalled 53 and thereby exceeded the set target (32) by a good margin. Hanken also increased its number of publications within the Financial Times 45, which is a list of the most prestigious journals in the world.
Investments in education and stable degree turn-out
After a period of focusing on research, 2013 was characterised by investments in the quality of education at Hanken. In the autumn, Professor Veronica Liljander was appointed Programme Director for all education at the BSc and MSc levels, and a group of prominent, young and ambitious teachers were given the task to identify and develop ways and incentives for improving the quality of teaching.
The Board of Hanken raised the intake quota for the integrated MSc education to 280 (from the earlier 250) to meet the new annual goals for Master's graduates. This, combined with the fact that a large number of the students who had been registered as absent for the academic year 2012-13 restarted their studies in the autumn of 2013, meant that Hanken had its highest number of starting first-year students in twenty years. The student intake in 2013 was also successful, with the number of applicants to the integrated BSc and MSc programme rising, especially when it came to applicants coming from a Finnish-speaking background.
The number of graduates at all educational levels remained stable and at a good level. During the year, 227 bachelors (2012: 237), 254 masters (255) and 15 doctors (13) graduated from Hanken.
In other regards, the adjustments in student numbers at the BSc and MSc levels were minor. One Master's degree programme was redeveloped to focus more on corporate responsibility. The first students were accepted onto the new Master's Degree Programme in Strategy and Sustainability in spring 2014.
Reaccreditation and recognitions for responsible business education
Hanken's MBA programme once again received a vote of confidence in the form of renewed AMBA accreditation. Based on the recommendations given as part of the accreditation process, Hanken has begun a development process with regard to the MBA programme. Some improvements were carried out in the programme starting in January 2014, while a more comprehensive reform is underway for the 2015 programme.
Hanken's efforts in responsible business education, in line with the Principles for Responsible Management Education (PRME), were validated when the school was chosen as one of the 25 PRME Champions, the aim of which is to collaboratively develop and promote activities that make responsible management education a reality. Out of the 500 universities that are part of the initiative, Hanken's report on its progress in the area was awarded the 2013 Recognition of Excellence Award, the prize for the best PRME report of the year.
Further internationalisation of education, students and staff
During the year Hanken signed an agreement for a double degree with the prestigious EMLYON Business School in France. The degree will be conducted within the framework of the English-language Master's Degree Programme in International Strategy and Sustainability at Hanken and the Master of Science in Management at EMLYON, initially with a quota of two students per year.
The effects of the compulsory semester abroad were clearly visible at Hanken, with overall student mobility (outgoing plus incoming exchange students) rising continuously. The number of students who spent at least three months on an international student exchange or internship rose from 299 (average for 2010-12) to 337 (average for 2011-13). The number of study credits completed abroad increased to 4,068 (2012: 3,212).
The number of international degree students remained stable. The proportion of international research and teaching staff rose from 20% (2012) to 21.2% (2013).
Solid balance sheet and increased returns on investments stabilised finances
In 2013, Hanken's assets, as confirmed on the balance sheet, increased to EUR 82.4 million (EUR 76.8 million in 2012). The year resulted in a profit of EUR 2.7 million, of which most was due to returns on investment and financing operations (EUR 4.2 million), primarily consisting of invested donations. The portfolio returns for externally managed assets reached 11.05%.
The operative income totalled EUR 22.0 million (EUR 23.1 million), of which funding from the Ministry of Education and Culture stood at EUR 16.6 million (EUR 18.1 million). Operative expenses totalled EUR 23.6 million (EUR 22.3 million), of which 65% (66%) were staff costs, 13% (13%) were property-related costs and 22% (21%) were other expenses.