On Wednesday, 26 February, students from our business programmes had the opportunity to attend the Share Market Outlook 2025 event, held at the PwC Tower’s Makora Meeting Suite. The session featured insights from Greg Smith, Director at Devon Funds, a leading New Zealand investment management company overseeing $2.7 billion in assets.
🔍 Strategic Management in Action: Analyzing the External Environment
The event provided a unique chance for students studying Strategic Management to connect theory with practice. Using frameworks such as PESTEL and Porter’s Five Forces, students explored:
Economic trends like inflation, interest rates, and recession risks.
The rise of ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) investing.
The impact of technology and AI on investment strategies.
Increasing industry competition and alternative investments such as cryptocurrency.
These discussions offered a clear illustration of how external forces shape strategic decisions in the financial services industry.
🎯 Project Management in Practice: A Live Case Study
The event also served as a real-world case study for students in Project Management, who examined aspects such as:
Effective event logistics, including venue choice and time scheduling.
Risk management, with contingency planning to avoid disruptions.
Stakeholder engagement, ensuring strong attendance and relevance.
Post-event feedback, an area identified for future improvement.
By observing a professionally managed event, students gained first-hand knowledge of planning, executing, and evaluating successful industry events.
💬 Student Reflections: Learning Beyond the Classroom
Students found the session valuable for both their academic development and career readiness. They appreciated the opportunity to:
Apply theoretical models to real-world scenarios.
Understand the complexity of investment decisions.
Gain inspiration for future event planning and professional engagement.
📝 What’s Next?
The event sparked student interest in further research on market dynamics and encouraged them to consider hosting their own academic or industry events. It also strengthened the bridge between academic learning and industry relevance—something our institution takes pride in fostering.