Graduation ceremony for 24 communications professionals - MScom awards its top new graduates the Burson-Marsteller and SPRI Awards
Institutional Communication Service
13 November 2010
UNDER EMBARGO until November 13th, 5:30pm
24 communications professionals have received their diplomas today, graduating from the Executive Master of Science in Communications Management within the Faculty of Communication Sciences at USI. The eleventh edition of the degree program comprised eight week-long sessions held in Lugano and a two-week Advanced Strategic Management Session at the UCLA Anderson School of Management in Los Angeles, one of the leading business schools in the US, with which the University has had a long-standing co-operation.
The participants have acquired the technical and theoretical tools needed to handle communications for their respective organizations in terms of identity, image and overall strategic planning, and working in close cooperation with their managements. For their final projects, an essential part of the diploma program, the participants must provide a real consultancy project to companies and institutions. This year the beneficiaries were: Copenhagen Business School (CBS), iOMEDICO, Stryker and Zurich University of the Arts (ZHdK).
After the diplomas were awarded by USI President Piero Martinoli and MScom Academic Director Francesco Lurati, the best graduates received two important distinctions: the Burson-Marsteller and the SPRI Award.
Urs Rellstab, CEO of Burson-Marsteller Switzerland, has awarded the Burson-Marsteller Award for Academic Excellence, a recognition consisting of 10,000 Swiss Francs, granted to the best consulting project, which this year was attributed to the work conducted for the Copenhagen Business School. The authors of the project are Christoph Brunner (Zurich, Switzerland), Cristina Elia (Lugano, Switzerland), Janie Huus Tange (Copenhagen, Denmark), Barbara Paulsen Gysin (Hemmiken, Switzerland), Daniele Pelliciardi (Rio Saliceto, Italy) and Vivienne Rassaerts (Basel, Switzerland).
The project was chosen for having provided the client with concrete and realistic recommendations on how to ultimately improve its own positioning in the competitive marketplace of university education. The recommendations were based upon very thorough analysis of the situation and decision-making process of students from outside of Europe. This solid contribution, in alignment with the development strategy of the entire organization, is already being implemented by CBS.
The SPRI Award for the best grade average encompassing the entire program has been granted to Christoph Rytz (SBB Cargo AG) by Marion Starck, President of the SPRI (Swiss Public Relations Institute).
Finally, the scholarships offered by Global Alliance were delivered to three students who will start the MScom program next January.
Photos of the graduation ceremony will be available for download at the following link after the event (6.30 pm): http://www.foto.usi.ch/plogger/?level=album&id=53
List of graduates with respective country, position, and place of work
| First and Last Name | Nationality | Position | Organization |
| Claudia Bocelli | Italy | Marketing and Communication Manager | CFI Group Srl |
| Christoph Brunner | Switzerland (ZH) | Head of Information | Swiss Armed Forces |
| Vasco Cecchini | Switzerland (ZH) | Chief Communications Officer | PSP Swiss Property AG |
| Cristina Elia | Switzerland (TI) | Media relations | USI Università della Svizzera italiana |
| Jane Gardiner | New Zealand | Consultant | |
| Janie Huus Tange | Denmark | Director of International Marketing and Recruitment | Copenhagen Business School |
| Lydia Kirchel | Germany | Corporate & Marketing Communications Manager Europe | Haworth Europe |
| Lydia Krüger | Germany | Director Corporate Communication | Deutsche BKK |
| Barbara Melzl | Germany |
PR Manager and Spokesperson |
T-Systems Switzerland Ltd. |
| Stephan Michel | Switzerland (LU) | Head of Corporate Communications | CSS Versicherung |
| Barbara Paulsen Gysin | Switzerland (BL) | Head of Public Relations | Swissmilk |
| Daniele Pelliciardi | Italy | PR and Event Manager | Cantina Albinea Canali/Gruppo Cantine Riunite |
| Erik Petersen | USA | Head of Communications, Group Operations | Zurich Financial Services |
| Heike Pohl | Switzerland (ZH) | Head of Communications | Zurich University of the Arts |
| Simone Ramser | Switzerland (ZH) | Senior Public Relations Manager | Oerlikon Solar Ltd. |
| Vivienne Rassaerts | Germany | Employee Communications and Brand Manager | Actelion Pharmaceuticals Ltd |
| Alexandra Rhiner | Switzerland (ZH) | Communications Consultant | appunto communications |
| Christoph Rytz | Switzerland (BS) | Head of Corporate Communications | SBB Cargo AG |
| Guido Schommer | Switzerland (BE) | Communication Manager | sanofi-aventis (suisse) sa |
| Marion Schumacher | Germany | Regional Director Public Relations Europe | The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company LLC |
| Brona Simons | Ireland | Consultant | |
| Michele Tesoro-Tess | Italy | Management Consultant | Methodos SpA |
| Tobias Wölfing | Germany | Marketing Communications Manager | BASF Schweiz AG |
| Aileen Woulfe | Ireland | European Director of Communications | Stryker |
Contacts
Nina Volles, Managing Director Executive MScom Program
USI Università della Svizzera italiana
Via Giuseppe Buffi 13, CH - 6900 Lugano
Tel +41 58 666 46 02 (direct: 42 08)
E-mail: [email protected]
Web: www.mscom.usi.ch
The USI's Executive MScom Program in brief
The Executive Master of Science in Communications Management (MScom, www.mscom.usi.ch) is a part-time postgraduate program for experienced communications professionals. The courses, spread across 21 months in blocks of 7 days alternating months, are held in English. An international teaching faculty of more than 30 professors from renowned institutions around the world ensures the program's academic excellence and its global orientation. In its first eleven years, the Executive MScom Program has educated more than 220 communications professionals from around the world.
