Fast food giant McDonaldís Vice-President of People today returned to Manchester Metropolitan University Business School to launch a new centre specialising in people management and development. David Fairhurst, who graduated from the University in 1996 with an MA in Strategic HR Management, joined the CIPDís Director General Geoff Armstrong as a guest speaker at the opening of the Centre for Professional Personnel and Development (CPPD). The Centre will link HR academics and professionals in the North West and offer training, continuing professional development, consultancy and short courses across the region and beyond.
Mr Fairhurst, who will chair the Centreís advisory board, said he was looking forward to returning to the scene of his studies. ìIt was this University that acted as the springboard for my career and I hope Iíll be able to share with them not only my own experience as a HR professional, but also 30 years of outstanding HR practice Iíve found at McDonaldís,î he said. Speaking ahead of the launch at the Business Schoolís Aytoun Building, he said that the Centre would provide a ìbridgeî between academia and cutting edge practice. ìFor most organisations today the primary source of competitive advantage is people but, unlike machinery and processes they must be inspired and developed, and treated with respect and dignity,î he said. ìJust as engineers, process specialists and IT professionals have had their turn at the forefront of organisational change, it is now HR professionals who hold the key to success or failure. Thatís why itís so important to build links between academia and the profession.î
Mr Armstrong added his backing to the Centre. ìPeople management and development is rapidly emerging as the critical differentiator between successful and less successful organisations,î he said. ìThe Centre will demonstrate that people management is routed in a systematically learnable body of knowledge and practice which is every bit as important as the other disciplines of management.î
The MMU Centre is lead by Sue Shaw, Head of the Business Schoolís Human Resource Management and Organisational Behaviour Division. ìWe have more than 60 years experience of working with HR professionals, which is reflected in our designation as a CIPD Centre of Excellence,î she said. ìThis new Centre enhances our reputation as a provider of high quality training, consultancy and applied research, and weíre looking forward to working even more closely with the profession.î
HR heavyweights join forces to launch new business centre
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