CUBS Conference 2020: Future-proofing Business

Leading executives from Vodafone and Ryanair will join cast members from the Young Offenders on stage at the Cork Opera House for the fourth annual CUBS Conference, UCC on Tuesday, 10 March next. The event will discuss how the next generation of business leaders can “future-proof” their careers against a backdrop of dramatic change across industry. To survive in a rapidly-changing world, companies need to attract and retain the most talented people. This year’s event will hear from world class speakers and panellists from Business, Finance and Technology as they discuss their careers, business experience and the skills essential to future-proof your career as a leader in business.

Up to 900 current students from all academic backgrounds and business people are due to attend the fourth annual CUBS conference, and will hear insights from former UCC graduates Kenny Jacobs of Ryanair, and Anne O’Leary of Vodafone. Other speakers at the event will include The Happy Pear, the founders of Gym+Coffee and Eleanor Hayes, a former UCC graduate now working for MTV.

The world of business and the arts will collide during a special panel consisting of cast and crew of the popular TV programme, The Young Offenders. The audience will hear of the challenges in turning a Cork based movie with a tiny budget into an international TV success story.

MCs for the event is communications expert and author, Gina London and broadcaster Jonathan Healy. The conference will also hear from a panel of CUBS alumni.

Professor Thia Hennessy, Dean of CUBS and Chair of Agri-Food Economics at the School said:  “The challenge for all business owners going forward is to stay ahead of the disruptive trends that have changed the landscape globally in recent years. To that end, having speakers from Vodafone and Ryanair means that students will get a greater understanding of staying ahead of the competition. We also hope that students will enjoy hearing about the business strategy behind the Young Offenders, which has grown from a small budget film to an international success.”

As a globally-renowned centre for research, learning and teaching, CUBS offers an educational environment that successfully combines industry and academia. With a dedicated team of permanent professors, academic lecturers and professional staff, the school prides itself on being the largest provider of undergraduate business education in Ireland. A staggering 95 percent of CUBS graduates secure immediate employment; good news indeed for the estimated 4,000 students expected to enroll over the course of the next five years.  CUBS also has a significant number of full-time postgraduate students and the highest level of research income.

It is a really exciting time for the Business School. UCC recently secured planning permission in the centre of Cork city for a new Business School building which will be the location of CUBS’ second city-based premises. Last year CUBS officially opened the UCC Centre for Executive Education – an integral part of the Business School – at an impressive site on Lapps Quay; a listed building that formerly housed the Cork Savings Bank. This new building, is expected to open for business as soon as 2022 or 2023, and will span 220,000 sq. ft and 1.46 acres and will act as a base for some 200 staff and 4,000 students. 

Follow the CUBS Conference on social media using #CUBSConf and #CUBSConf20.