Corporate Universities: Commercial Advantages and Social Values Report

This report provides an in-depth analysis of corporate universities, specifically focusing on Coles Myer University and Hamburger University. It explores the rise of these institutions, highlighting their commercial advantages and the social values they uphold. The report delves into the importance of knowledge management, relevant learning strategies, and the practices employed by these corporate universities. It examines competition, co-existence, and collaboration within the corporate university landscape, as well as trends in their development. Furthermore, the report offers recommendations based on the findings and concludes with a comprehensive overview of the subject matter, providing valuable insights into the role and impact of corporate universities in the business world. The report also discusses the importance of corporate universities in terms of investment and the key structural framework of education.

Running head: GLOBAL BUSINESS
The Corporate Universities
Name of the student:
Name of the University:
Author note:

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Executive Summary
The purpose of the report is to state the two selected universities such as Coles Myer
University and Hamburger University. These are the corporate universities owned by their parent
governments. The report talks about how the corporate universities provide education and how to
rose to the zenith under the umbrella of the corporate goals of the Multinational Corporations.
The multinational corporations provide education so that the students get their jobs in their
respective organization. However, in terms of investment, the multinational corporations must
come up with important objectives and goals which would connect the aims of the corporate
Universities to make much a better place. The University follows certain social values and they
follow them accordingly. The knowledge management also plays an important role in sustaining
the environment of the University and come up with the key structural framework of the
education. The competition is tough enough to retain their status as a one of the best universities.
Therefore, the universities must come up with proper rules and regulations so that the investment
proved to be worthwhile to the Parent Organization.

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Table of Contents
Introduction......................................................................................................................................3
The rise of Corporate Universities: Coles University and Hamburger University..........................3
Commercial advantages and Social Values.....................................................................................5
Knowledge Management.................................................................................................................6
Managing Relevant Learning......................................................................................................7
The practices of strategies by the Corporate Universities...............................................................8
Competition, co-existence and collaboration................................................................................10
Competition...............................................................................................................................10
Co-existence..............................................................................................................................10
Collaboration.............................................................................................................................10
Trends in the development of the corporate University................................................................11
Recommendations..........................................................................................................................12
Conclusion.....................................................................................................................................12
References......................................................................................................................................13

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Introduction
The purpose of the topic is to discuss about the phenomenon of the corporate university.
The notion of the corporate universities have been explored here and a series of developments in
the field of technology, education and business education that is impacting the people in the
various ways. The universities which are chosen in this report are the Coles University and the
Hamburger University which are set up by their respective multinational organizations. It is also
been taken into account that firms have the good reasons to invest in the corporate universities
with limitations. One of the dangers that are involved here is the chamber of echo. The managers
who are going to the university school are exposed to the ideas from the peers belonging to the
other companies. Companies are also known to utilize the education in the prestigious school
whether it is an executive MBA or a course of shorter leadership. In the recent years, the
visibility of the development and training initiatives within the multinational corporations which
adopts knowledge, language and structure and also the practicing of the higher education has
risen quite drastically. The corporate Universities have the capacity to make contribution by re
framing the higher education and also integrating the higher education and the other work
organizations through the implementation of knowledge, employability and learning. The report
also suggests about the development of the corporate universities and also about the investments
of the multinational companies being profited or not. It has also been stated in the report that the
development of the corporate Universities which might impact the higher education in the
institution.
The rise of Corporate Universities: Coles University and Hamburger University
Coles Institute: The CEO of DeakinPrime came across an idea to set up a corporate
University. In the year 1999 of the month of April, Coles institute was the first corporate

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University of Australia and it was launched by David Kemp, the then federal minister of
education of Australia. It was considered as a red letter day for the corporate education in the
country of Australia. Next is the Hamburger University established by McDonalds, located in
Chicago was framed out to give instruction to the personnel who are employed by McDonalds is
the various fields of management of restaurant. The founder of this University is Ray Froc and
there are more than 80, 000 restaurant managers work. The corporate Universities have a pre
history. It has also been pointed out that around 28000 people have passed from this Hamburger
University.1 The corporate Universities tend to focus on the implementation rather than the
practice. The corporate Universities have two greater features Firstly, it has a dedicated facility
and secondly is the curriculum which is made to the strategy of the company. Both the
Hamburger University and the Coles University has these facilities.2
The extent of the corporate education and the activities of training is economically big.
The corporate training and development consists of huge markets and also consider education in
society. It is always believed that gaining qualifications from the from these corporate
Universities gives social prestige to the students who are passing out from these universities.3
Both the universities play an important role while imparting a quality based education. The
1 Mcdonalds.com, 'Hamburger University - Mcdonald's :: Mcdonald’S' (Corporate.mcdonalds.com, 2017)
<http://corporate.mcdonalds.com/mcd/corporate_careers/training_and_development/hamburger_university.html>
accessed 25 August 2017
2 Deakinprime.com, 'Coles Myer - Deakinprime' (Deakinprime.com, 2017) <http://deakinprime.com/clients/case-
studies/coles-myer> accessed 25 August 2017
3 Lui Abel, Amy, and Jessica Li. "Exploring the corporate university phenomenon: Development and
implementation of a comprehensive survey." Human Resource Development Quarterly 23, no. 1 (2012): 103-128.

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corporate classrooms are being set up by the DuPont, General Electric and Edison in the 19th
century to give quality based classroom to the students. It is nothing but an educational
organization which is made to render help to its parent organization in order to achieve its goals
through the conduction of activities that develops the learning and knowledge of the
organization. Corporate Universities are job specific.4 For example : The Hamburger University
is the job specific and also the Coles Institute of Australia are also job specific. Both the
Universities give training for the managerial posts to the parent organization.5
Commercial advantages and Social Values
Establishing the corporate university carries importance which a company has placed on
the development of the staff and also on professional based standards. It is also at the same time,
giving assurances to which the company has the employment based on social responsibility.
Therefore, the corporate universities are seen as one of the way to build the commitment of the
employee and also making the company quite attractive to the potential employees.6 It has
happened with the Hamburger University of McDonalds that while negotiating with the
government through the ways it would give training to its local staffs and give assurance to the
standards of its professions. Both Hamburger and Coles Myer University believes in creating a
4 Wheeler, Kevin. The corporate university workbook: Launching the 21st century learning
organization. John Wiley & Sons, 2012.
5 Jauhari, Vinnie, and Rhodri Thomas. "Developing effective university-industry partnerships: an
introduction." Worldwide Hospitality and Tourism Themes 5, no. 3 (2013): 238-243.
6 Jarvis, Peter. Universities and corporate universities: The higher learning industry in global society. Routledge,
2013.

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marketing brand around the corporate University which they believe in strong values and
principles. In order to create the corporate university, the business must be encouraging. The
Universities have a number of facilities on the technology, customers and banking. These are the
important aspects that are important for the Hamburger University.
The Coles Myer University has the business cases for the environment of learning in
order to reduce the costs of training and they encourage the shift from the training of one
classroom to the other classroom. The laptops of the corporate University are the part of the
manifestation which are tangible, which means the greatest part of the chunk is gone. The
organizations believe in the values of turning the business which is led by education into the
actions.7 The corporate Universities always aim at the improvement in the performance of the
staff and a culture based environment where the innovation can sustain.
Knowledge Management
Knowledge Management made its position strong in the fast moving technological and scientific
based industries where it has been said that the success which is achieved by the companies can
take the integration of many different and specialized expertise who are experiences to bring
improvements in the processes of the Corporate university or attempt to avoid the wheels which
are re-inventing For example: The Hamburger University set up by Mac Donald’s. The
Knowledge Management includes the capacity of the organization to concentrate keep track on
the important information and also indulged into renew the process of working.8 To universities
which are conventional in nature always based on the dissemination of knowledge, preservation
7 Holsapple, Clyde, ed. Handbook on knowledge management 1: Knowledge matters. Vol. 1. Springer Science &
Business Media, 2013.
8 Liebowitz, Jay, and Michael Frank, eds. Knowledge management and e-learning. CRC press, 2016.

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and production. However on the other hand, corporate Universities would see the management is
naturally located or the Knowledge’s production within the organization.9 In an analysis it has
been pointed out that, the production of knowledge has shifted from the area of the University
and now it has become a widespread in the industries.
Managing Relevant Learning
The Corporate Universities are involved into a degree of centralization and their purpose
is to make sure that they are providing training and development properly. The Hamburger
University in this context always make sure that the training and development which are given to
the students are aligned with the corporate goals which enhances the understanding of the
promotion between the units of different business. The Coles Myer University on the other hand
focused on who are responsible for looking after the needs of the technology and the
organization.10 The University has the best faculties in such as School of Business, faculty of
learning and development. The corporate University is devoted to the development and learning
wants of the company, so that the relationship with the university and the company becomes
stronger from the point of strategic view. Both the universities in this context must take care of
the partnership based on joint ventures, the suppliers and the customers. The corporate
Universities in this case are needed to be careful enough as they have the finite sources and their
first responsibility is to give internal values to the organization. The primary importance of the
corporate University lies in the fact that the strategy based on learning and development has to be
right for the company and then the universities can deploy the strategies with their partners who
are into joint ventures.
9 Roper, Stuart, and Chris Fill. Corporate reputation, brand and communication. Pearson Higher Ed, 2012.
10 Hicks, Diana. "Performance-based university research funding systems." Research policy 41, no. 2 (2012): 251-
261.

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The practices of strategies by the Corporate Universities
Through the description and analysis of the initiatives of the corporate university , these
universities can take variety of shapes and some of which are relevant to the higher education
than the others . The corporate universities focus on the learning nature which includes the
process of imparting information, developing the respective skills of vocational through the
means of broader education, also through the means of professional development.11 The second
aspect concerns that whether they are concentrating on the learning centers of network. In this
context, the most similar types of training college or University and their aim is to raise the status
and the profiles of the training outside and inside of the organization. McDonalds Hamburger
University is an example of this corporate university but not Colles Myer University of
Australia. Hamburger University focuses on the delivering the skills which are needed for
consistency and also improvements in the important operations.
Another type of Corporate University is the Computer Based Training on the Intranet.
The reason to put the investment in this type of University is actually quite obvious, whenever
there are staffs that are to be retrained regularly for using the new tools of software or to comply
with the legislation or updating the latest products that they sell.12 The costs are considerable
when such training is provided on the basis of face-to-face. That is why the companies can
switch over to the electronic companies on training may save on the staffs and also on the cost of
accommodations when they are distributed internationally. The Colles Myer University and the
11 Tricker, RI Bob, and Robert Ian Tricker. Corporate governance: Principles, policies, and practices. Oxford
University Press, USA, 2015.
12 Duarte, Fernanda P. "Conceptions of Good Teaching by Good Teachers: Case Studies from an Australian
University." Journal of University Teaching and Learning Practice 10, no. 1 (2013): 5.

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Shall Open University are the typical examples reducing the spending on the training of an
organization which is highly distributed that needs to pass the relevant information quickly.13
The Third Type of Corporate University which is having the designation of Country
house experience and this carries the same feature of the landscape of the corporate universities.
The Management, development of the executive and the leadership has been taken place in such
locations which are quite away from the headquarters. Now these initiatives had been changed.
They are now addressing the challenges of the corporate world to promote the cohesion across
the different international business specially that have grown through the different corporate and
national cultures and they cannot be over-stated. Through the activities of the face-to-face
development and the creation of the networks based on cross organization may be resulted from
the higher frequency of the mergers who are multinational.14 Being partially detached from the
pressure of the main life of corporate universities, the facilities provide a social space where the
degree, assumptions can be questioned back. They have even think tanks researchers where they
can make some time out in order to think about the different challenges in the context of facing
the internal issues of the organization and also about the wider concerns. The examples of this
university are Rushlikon University which is owned by Swiss Re.
Finally there is the polymorphous Corporate University such as Coles Myer University of
Australia. The University is involved into a wider range of learning such as combination of e-
learning, business management, mentoring and placements.15 However, their focuses are likely to
change often as it is polymorphous in terms of shifting the perceptions of the priorities based on
strategy. The Coles University of Australia, Cap Gemini Ernst & Young contains several
13 Forsyth, Hannah. A history of the modern Australian university. NewSouth, 2014.
14 Seddon, Peter B., Peter Reynolds, Leslie P. Willcocks, and Peter Mahler. "How To Succeed In The
Transformation Of An It Function: Lessons From Coles Myer Limited." In PACIS, p. 84. 2012.
15 Giroux, Henry A. University in chains: Confronting the military-industrial-academic complex. Routledge, 2015.

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features having the 12 years of existence.16 The increasing use of the e-based learning in the fast
moving industry which provides the on- line magazines and also at the same times put greater
influence on fostering the communities among the varieties of professionals who all work in the
Company.
Competition, co-existence and collaboration
Competition: Other than the differences between public University and Corporate
University, the Hamburger University is facing tough competition from Walmart in the field is
now tired of waiting for the colleges in order to give them the post of the managers and also the
higher position of their company. Therefore, Walmart like Hamburger also started giving
professional discipline and skills.
Co-existence: Public Universities are differentiated in different ways which are often
considering performing its operations within a very limited competition or they are using product
which cannot be imitated. Socially, the experiences such as liberal arts based on higher education
and pre-vocational which impact from the corporate University’s development especially it
includes countries which are awarding the powers and they are controlled highly.
Collaboration: There are many corporate Universities who have built their own
capacities for the provision of in-house of leadership and management and they are indulged into
buying best experts from the other cosultancies on the ad-hoc basis. With time, the development
and training became sophisticated. In terms of Collaboration, the vocabularies and the consistent
messages a significant in terms of developing the same understandings across the dispersed
16 Hood, Neil, and Julian Birkinshaw, eds. Multinational corporate evolution and subsidiary development. Springer,
2016.

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companies located in the same country or abroad.17 Therefore, some of the corporate Universities
like Coles Myer University have chosen to make its collaboration with the expertise of other
universities in the field of distance learning, e- learning and also the sizes of the contracts are
also included directly to the correspondence.
Trends in the development of the corporate University
The combination of the diverse expertise always remained an important challenge for the
work of the business. To make the corporate University as well economically beneficial then the
expertise cannot be remain detached from the University. The influence of the Multinational
companies is increasing over the workings of the sectors of University. The investment that of
the Companies to their respective Universities like Hamburger University and Coles University
are quite profitable and they are looking forward as well to make their streams
diverse.18Therefore, to drive the large corporations exercise a higher degree of influence over the
process of learning who are seeking the greater money value in respect to their operating
strategies and circumstances19 Both the universities are providing values to their students which
are in fact having its alignment of their corporate goals. However, both the universities in order
to gain their competitive advantages must be quite potential enough to make their investment
worthy of their parent organization.
17 Wilson, Tim. "A review of business–university collaboration." (2012).
18 Gibb, Allan, Gay Haskins, and Ian Robertson. "Leading the entrepreneurial university: Meeting the
entrepreneurial development needs of higher education institutions." In Universities in change, pp. 9-45. Springer
New York, 2012.
19 Au, Wayne, and Joseph J. Ferrare, eds. Mapping corporate education reform: Power and policy networks in the
neoliberal state. Routledge, 2015