Times they are a changing – and the relatively-new head of Bradford’s internationally-rated business school is determined that, while the institution marks its achievements over the past half-century, it is at the cutting edge of 21st century business education.

Professor Jon Reast joined the University of Bradford School of Management staff in 2011 as professor of marketing and was appointed interim dean in January 2013 before being confirmed in the top job last June.

“I’m enormously happy to be doing this role and have a great deal of pride in this school.

“It’s a fantastic organisation with a great reputation built up over 50 years so I feel quite a weight on my shoulders to ensure the School of Management stays a great place,” said Prof Reast.

He is clear that continued success will be achieved through innovation and focusing on areas of specialisation rather than offering a general business education curriculum.

He said: “Running this school is different to any brand marketing situation I faced when working in industry with probably five key competitors. We have 120 UK business schools and 13,000 internationally – this is one hell of a crowded shelf.

“In that context what we need to do is make it very clear to people how we are distinctive, and appraise them of our tremendous strengths.”

He said responsibility, innovation and internationalism were the key pillars of the school’s future and cited its world first MBA in innovation, enterprise and circular economy, launched last year, as an example of the way ahead.

Apart from enabling students to consider new business models based around re-using and preserving valuable and increasingly scarce materials, the new qualification is delivered as a distance learning course – another important development in the changing world of business education which the SOM is increasingly adopting.

Backed by the Ellen MacArthur Foundation – launched by round-the-world yachtswoman Dame Ellen MacArthur – the circular economy MBA has been developed in conjunction with firms including B&Q, BT, Cisco, Renault and National Grid.

Prof Reast said: “In the past we constantly re-used materials – for instance the milkman collecting empties or taking empty pop bottles back to the shop. The circular economy concept promotes that sort of thinking.

“For instance, Rolls Royce no longer sells aero engines to airlines but leases them over an agreed period, maintains them and at the end of the period takes them back for use in re-manufacturing. That means that materials which were once dumped get re-used.

“Mobile phone producers are increasingly keen to get back old phones because of their precious metal content.

“The circular economy is about coming up with products that can be re-used or re-manufactured to retain materials in them. Resource costs are rising and the circular economy is one way of changing the way we do things.”

Prof Reast said the Bradford MBA was designed to change the outlook of future business leaders and overcome marketing and manufacturing barriers to ensuring materials are more easily recoverable.

“Today, washing machine manufacturers build machines which seem to last just beyond the warranty period to ensure future sales of new machines. If machines were leased instead there would be a greater incentive to make them last longer.

“The circular economy will change economic models and the way economics is taught from the current ‘make, sell and dispose’ model. It’s a key area of focus for us and the wider University of Bradford.”

He believes Bradford’s Producer City project and its strong manufacturing heritage could enable it to become a key re-manufacturing centre and circular economy hub.

“In the United States re-manufacturing is growing faster than manufacturing. If Bradford could build on its history of manufacturing to embrace the circular economy then it could be a big deal for the city. This is something the university wants to lead on in support of the Producer City initiative,” said Prof Reast.

The new MBA saw its first intake of 20 students from around the world in January who are studying through online seminars, webinars and physical support materials. Overall, more than 500 students are studying for Bradford MBAs through distance learning and Professor Reast said the School was one of the UK’s top distance learning MBA providers.

This development has been driven partly by digital technology, tighter visa rules and the impact of the world’s worst recession for 90 years which has seen students being less able to afford to give up a job, pay tuition fees and living costs of studying in the UK.

For students attending the Emm Lane complex, the experience is also evolving – based less around lectures and seminars and more about debate, discussion and hands-on simulation exercises.

Prof Reast said the School of Management was developing technology advanced learning such as its share trading room which enables students to simulate stock market trading.

He said: “The banking crisis has thrown up many ethical issues as well as financial ones. Using the trading room enables students to face up to the fact that making ethical as well as financial decisions is part of the investment process.

“Ethics in financial services is a hot topic. We want to be a school known for responsible management practice and part of the trading group’s objectives is to ensure students understand about ethics and responsibility. Our commitment is underlined by signing up to the United Nations principles of responsible management education.”

The dean is keen to preserve the School’s balance of working with local, national and international businesses through developing an offering ranging from ‘business toolkit’ modules in mainstream areas such as finance for managers to building up specialised areas of expertise.

Prof Reast said that in Professor Carole Howorth, professor of entrepreneurship and family business, the School had one of the world’s leading experts in the field who was developing a new offering of direct relevance to family-run businesses which are crucial to most economies, including locally.

He said: “Carole has produced a report on family businesses as part of our knowledge-exchange scheme which should be useful to people running firms and also help us build up links with more local companies.

“Our law department is also focusing on intellectual property issues to enable us to advise on that as well as offering employment law expertise. Industrial relations practice and human resources are also key areas along with innovation.

“Rather than just having a suite of generic offerings we want to get back to the School’s roots in terms of being known for particular things – distinctive elements. We are looking in our cupboard of riches and deciding what we want to emphasise. We will concentrate on areas of excellence rather than being generalists.”

Prof Reast is determined to ensure the School of Management remains business friendly and ‘a business person’s business school’.

As part of the 50th anniversary celebrations – which kicked off with a founders’ dinner attended by three former deans and seven original students – SOM staff have been attending graduation ceremonies in places including Singapore, Hong Kong and India to meet current and previous Bradford MBA students and generate closer links with its student alumni.

Prof Reast said: “After 50 years we now have tens of thousands of former students on our alumni database, including some very senior and successful people. It is important to improve our links with them as they are not only ambassadors for the School but an important and influential asset that could help us going forward.”

Apart from potential financial support, developing more regular contact with past students would also help to open up better access for current students with international companies and broaden their education.

Business Secretary Vince Cable yesterday attended a House of Commons reception along with 75 SOM alumni from countries including the United States, the Caribbean and Europe to mark the 50th anniversary.

In October, the School will stage a month of virtual conferences based on ‘The Future Of’ theme covering family businesses, foreign direct investment, the circular economy and leadership and featuring internationally-renowned speakers.

Jon Reast spent the first part of his career working in industry for several multi-national businesses, including Reckitt & Colman in pharmaceutical marketing, sales and market research. At Kraft General Foods he promoted products including Bird’s custard powder, Angel Delight and a US breakfast cereal called Grape Nuts which did not go soggy in milk and also used by the sales team who put them under their car tyres in snowy weather. Consumer health, banking and transportation are other sectors in which he worked before becoming an academic.

Professor Reast worked at five universities before coming to Bradford and declares himself a good example of the benefits of gaining an MBA qualification. He took a full time MBA on Leicester University’s inaugural programme.

He said: “Doing an MBA helped me substantially. It enables you to look at and appreciate different aspects of an organisation, whether it’s talking to production people, understanding finance sheets or helping to set strategy.

“When I became a professor of marketing there was a lot of team management responsibility and direction setting – the sort of areas covered in the MBA. In a funny sort of way the role I am doing now brings together all my previous experience in industry and academia in different roles and has enabled me to do this job."