{"id":22943,"date":"2025-06-13T12:55:15","date_gmt":"2025-06-13T11:55:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/kbs-news-events\/?p=22943"},"modified":"2026-01-29T15:16:02","modified_gmt":"2026-01-29T15:16:02","slug":"we-bring-the-world-to-a-leader-kent-mba-students-take-on-global-esg-challenge","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/kbs-news-events\/2025\/06\/we-bring-the-world-to-a-leader-kent-mba-students-take-on-global-esg-challenge\/","title":{"rendered":"We bring the world to a leader: Kent MBA students take on global ESG challenge"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"lead\">That\u2019s why our MBA students don\u2019t just learn about global business &#8211; they live it. As part of our commitment to learning by doing, students recently took on a live ESG consultancy challenge with an international industry leader, putting their skills to the test in a real-world setting.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">The challenge brought our MBA cohort to Athens, Greece, where they collaborated with <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.loulis.com\/en\/\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">Loulis Mills<\/span><\/a><span data-contrast=\"auto\">, one of Southeast Europe\u2019s most established flour and food ingredients companies, with more than 240 years of history. The experience was hosted by <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/alba.acg.edu\/\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">Alba Graduate Business School<\/span><\/a><span data-contrast=\"auto\">, part of The American College of Greece, providing students with a rich cross-cultural learning environment.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">The trip included a Design Thinking Sprint with Alba\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/alba.acg.edu\/faculty-research\/about-alba-faculty\/core-faculty\/nikos-mylonopoulos\/\">Professor Nikos Mylonopoulos<\/a>, and a session with <a href=\"https:\/\/alba.acg.edu\/faculty-research\/about-alba-faculty\/core-faculty\/pavlos-vlachos\/\">Professor Pavlos Vlachos<\/a> exploring the business case for Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) investment \u2013 helping students blend academic insight with practical consultancy skills.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/kbs-news-events\/files\/2025\/06\/making-cookies-at-loulis-mills.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-22958\" src=\"http:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/kbs-news-events\/files\/2025\/06\/making-cookies-at-loulis-mills.jpg\" alt=\"Making cookies at Loulis Mills\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1500\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<h3>A consultancy challenge rooted in ESG<span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">The students were tasked with addressing two forward-looking strategic briefs provided by the client:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li data-leveltext=\"\uf0b7\" data-font=\"Symbol\" data-listid=\"5\" data-list-defn-props=\"{&quot;335552541&quot;:1,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769226&quot;:&quot;Symbol&quot;,&quot;469769242&quot;:[8226],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;\uf0b7&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;multilevel&quot;}\" data-aria-posinset=\"1\" data-aria-level=\"1\"><span data-contrast=\"auto\">How can a leading food producer enhance transparency and nutritional responsibility across its brand portfolio?<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li data-leveltext=\"\uf0b7\" data-font=\"Symbol\" data-listid=\"5\" data-list-defn-props=\"{&quot;335552541&quot;:1,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769226&quot;:&quot;Symbol&quot;,&quot;469769242&quot;:[8226],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;\uf0b7&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;multilevel&quot;}\" data-aria-posinset=\"2\" data-aria-level=\"1\"><span data-contrast=\"auto\">What does truly regenerative or circular packaging look like \u2013 and how can it be scaled across both B2B and consumer product lines?<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Working in four consultancy teams, students applied a range of tools \u2013 from design thinking and stakeholder mapping to emerging technologies and sustainability frameworks \u2013 to develop creative, commercially grounded responses.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Their proposals spanned themes including:<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li data-leveltext=\"\uf0b7\" data-font=\"Symbol\" data-listid=\"6\" data-list-defn-props=\"{&quot;335552541&quot;:1,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769226&quot;:&quot;Symbol&quot;,&quot;469769242&quot;:[8226],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;\uf0b7&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;multilevel&quot;}\" data-aria-posinset=\"1\" data-aria-level=\"1\"><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Enhancing consumer trust through supply chain transparency and ethical sourcing<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li data-leveltext=\"\uf0b7\" data-font=\"Symbol\" data-listid=\"6\" data-list-defn-props=\"{&quot;335552541&quot;:1,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769226&quot;:&quot;Symbol&quot;,&quot;469769242&quot;:[8226],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;\uf0b7&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;multilevel&quot;}\" data-aria-posinset=\"2\" data-aria-level=\"1\"><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Leveraging digital and AI tools to support product innovation, labelling, and personalised nutrition<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li data-leveltext=\"\uf0b7\" data-font=\"Symbol\" data-listid=\"6\" data-list-defn-props=\"{&quot;335552541&quot;:1,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769226&quot;:&quot;Symbol&quot;,&quot;469769242&quot;:[8226],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;\uf0b7&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;multilevel&quot;}\" data-aria-posinset=\"3\" data-aria-level=\"1\"><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Imagining new models for packaging reuse, material innovation, and consumer engagement within the circular economy<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Final presentations were delivered at Alba Business School, with one of Loulis Mills\u2019 senior leaders offering high praise for the quality, creativity, and professionalism of the student teams.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/kbs-news-events\/files\/2025\/06\/mba-students-at-acropolis-hill.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-22965\" src=\"http:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/kbs-news-events\/files\/2025\/06\/mba-students-at-acropolis-hill.jpg\" alt=\"MBA students at Acropolis Hill\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1500\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<h3>Learning by doing \u2013 the Kent MBA in action<\/h3>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Led by MBA Director <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.kent.ac.uk\/kent-business-school\/people\/5204\/chen-tom\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">Professor Tom Chen<\/span><\/a><span data-contrast=\"auto\">, the International Consultancy Challenge is a defining feature of the Kent MBA, designed to immerse students in global business contexts, strengthen leadership and consultancy skills, and deliver measurable impact beyond the classroom.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">This project is a clear example of how we bring the world to a leader, equipping Kent MBA students with the tools to navigate and shape complex global business environments.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\"> Naturally, we also made time for the students to enjoy some of Athens&#8217; cultural highlights and to celebrate the end of their experience together.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/kbs-news-events\/files\/2025\/06\/mba-international-challenge-celebrations.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-22959\" src=\"http:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/kbs-news-events\/files\/2025\/06\/mba-international-challenge-celebrations.jpg\" alt=\"MBA students at the coast for their celebratory meal\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1500\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<h3>Explore the Kent MBA<\/h3>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Discover how our internationally accredited MBA equips working professionals to lead change in a fast-moving world.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.kent.ac.uk\/kent-business-school\/mba\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">Find out more<\/span><\/a><span data-contrast=\"auto\"> today.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>That\u2019s why our MBA students don\u2019t just learn about global business &#8211; they live it. As part of our commitment to learning by doing, students &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/kbs-news-events\/2025\/06\/we-bring-the-world-to-a-leader-kent-mba-students-take-on-global-esg-challenge\/\">Read&nbsp;more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":79181,"featured_media":22956,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[177066,169048,9875,124],"tags":[87394,263986,9875],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/kbs-news-events\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22943"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/kbs-news-events\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/kbs-news-events\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/kbs-news-events\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/79181"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/kbs-news-events\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=22943"}],"version-history":[{"count":16,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/kbs-news-events\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22943\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":23360,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/kbs-news-events\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22943\/revisions\/23360"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/kbs-news-events\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/22956"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/kbs-news-events\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=22943"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/kbs-news-events\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=22943"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/kbs-news-events\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=22943"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}