Business Leadership Forum Showcases the Energy of Tomorrow’s Leaders

Imagine a room filled with more than just exam nerves. What you feel most strongly is an overwhelming desire to create, build and make things happen. That was the atmosphere at NEWTON Business Club in Brno at the end of May, when it hosted the Business Leadership Forum, an intimate yet highly intensive conference that marked the symbolic end of the programme’s first year.

After an opening introduction and a look back at the year, led by Eva Ambrozová and Petr Novák, the programme took an unexpected turn. Joining the students directly from a boat at sea, our CEO Jirka Koleňák and Petr Krause sent them a motivational message. It was a fitting reminder that good business is about more than sitting around a table. It requires a broad perspective and the ability to navigate a team through turbulent waters, both literal and metaphorical.

Five minutes to make your mark

After reflecting on the semesters that had passed and looking ahead to what was still to come, it was time for the students to present their projects. The format was uncompromising: three minutes to introduce themselves and five minutes to present their project to a panel. The students therefore experienced first-hand the pressure of being concise, clear and convincing.

“During their presentations, the students showed that they can come up with interesting ideas and think about them in practical terms,” says Petr Novák, reflecting on the quality of the projects. “Even at this stage, the projects felt like something worth developing further and eventually bringing to life. What I enjoyed was that these were not just ‘school presentations’. They had energy, a personal perspective and a genuine desire to create something.”

Constructive criticism and meaningful feedback

Being able to present an idea is one thing. True leadership also reveals itself in how well you listen and respond to feedback. According to Tereza Tomanová, the intensive work the students have put in over the past year is already producing clear results.

“What impressed me most was the sheer amount of energy and motivation. After a year in the programme, the students are already able to give relevant feedback in a remarkably mature way,” says Tereza Tomanová. “You can feel that they genuinely live what they are talking about, and that in a relatively short time they have completely shifted the way they think. They are able to explore different topics in depth. They have fantastic ideas for original projects, and we believe they will be able to take them to the next level in their second year.”

A space for reflection and networking

Following an afternoon of student presentations, which also featured guest speaker Matěj Žák, an alumnus of several study programmes at NEWTON University, the event moved into a more relaxed networking session. Over good food and drinks, participants discussed the topics there had not been enough time to cover during the presentations. These formal and informal encounters are an important part of what makes the forum meaningful.

As Eva Ambrozová puts it: “The Business Leadership Forum represents the symbolic culmination of a year’s work. It creates a space for students from different years of the programme, lecturers and industry partners to come together. It gives students an opportunity to recognise how far they have progressed during their studies while also defining the next steps in their professional and personal development.”

This year’s forum confirmed that the Business Leadership programme is not about simply reading about projects in textbooks. It gives students the opportunity to create, defend and develop their own ideas, and to take them further.

Find out more about the Business Leadership programme on our website.