Product • 02.10.2007
The European Retail Academy
by Prof. Dr. Bernd Hallier
Founded in the middle of February 2005 , the European Retail Academy (ERA) has reached already in the middle of 2006 two world-records; it is the largest network of universities/universities of applied science which teach "retail". Its "virtual" construction, linking mainly the retail chairs by the internet (www.european-retail-academy.org) is in www.google.de already at Nr. 1, if “european retail” is entered. In 2010 more than 160 members joined this international academic network.
Use Number 1 of that Site is to give transparency to university teachers, students, but also personnell-departments of retail-companies who might be interested in international research or student-exchange. At the ERA-homepage the retail-chairs have each a link to their own homepage. A student of Athens can for example see what is the content of studies in Dublin or Oxford.
Use Number 2 is an input via the bimonthly "ERA-News" at the Homepage. By the news all homepage-visitors will for example be informed about events which happened in the past.
Use Number 3 is the content about the retail-structure linked to the news. From ERA-news readers do find the TOP 10 in India, in Russia, in the Ukraine etc.
Use Number 4 is at the homepage the "preview". 12 months ahead everybody can see which events or fairs for retail are rated worth to be visited from the view of ERA-academia – for example in Athens in December. Again "links" are used to guide the visitors of the ERA-homepage to the organizers of the Czech Retail Summit in Prague or the Chinese Retail Conference in Shanghai.
Use Number 5 is the link to sponsors like IBM which report about their retail-activities or studies or the Forum Art Business.
Use Number 6 is the annual SummerCamp for lecturers . Its topic in Kiev in 2005 was for example the German dual educational system where in a sandwich-program students work part-time and study part-time. Each meeting gives a new chance for the lecturers to broaden their scope.
Use Number 7 are the personal contacts from those meetings to establish (perhaps) a new international research project. In a globalizing world students can expect from their lecturers those international networks!
Use Number 8 is the public relation created via the "ERA-roof". Uptill now (in 2010 ) already 81.000 calls have reached the ERA-homepage. Those being represented by a link did have a chance to be seen 81.000 times- those without a link did miss the chance of 81.000 new clients!
Use Number 9 is the fact that each university of the homepage has the profit of a "multiplier-effect" by the synergy of cooperation. Each action of one university is increasing the "total" content of the ERA-homepage.
Use Number 10 is a new link for students for traineeships, grants, jobs. By this new initiative students should travel!
Summarizing the status of ERA it can be said by the "insiders" that within one year the foundations have been layed for a cathedral of education for retail"; its real value will be seen by the public perhaps first in 3 to 5 years.
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