Upfront: Just how social is employees’ networking?

Employers beware: an FT survey suggests that while the current generation of young managers have embraced social media in their professional lives, it is mainly to network with an eye to their next job, writes Adam Palin. Among the three-quarters who use social media for professional reasons, LinkedIn is by far the most popular platform, according to the poll.

In the survey completed by 716 individuals who graduated in 2009 from masters in management programmes, 65 per cent use LinkedIn professionally. Of these, 87 per cent say it is an effective networking tool. Facebook – used by 96 per cent of respondents in their personal lives – is used by only 34 per cent in a professional context.

While many companies have embraced the social media revolution in their workplaces – 43 per cent of respondents’ employers have their own internal platforms – the success of such initiatives appears limited. Although more than half of those using internal platforms report that they are effective tools for internal co-operation and learning, only 30 per cent frequently log in. Two out of five of their less enthusiastic peers do so seldomly or never.

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The rise of the masters

Evidence that the masters in management programme is gaining in popularity is more than anecdotal. Data from the Graduate Management Admission Council, which administers the Graduate Management Admission Test for business school entry, show the proportion of GMAT score reports sent to non-MBA programmes rose from 22 to 33 per cent over the most recent four-year period. As well as masters in management, masters in finance and accounting were particularly popular. The trend is strong in Europe, where the percentage of students sending scores to masters programmes rather than MBAs rose from 21 to 43 per cent.

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Fashion finds dedicated followers in the east

Demand from Asia and the Middle East is helping to drive growth in the number of programmes focused on the luxury and fashion industries, business schools report, writes Charlotte Clarke.

Grenoble School of Management this month launches a masters in fashion, design and luxury management in France and London, with most applicants from Asia and the Middle East.

“It is not surprising that most of the demand is coming from the Middle East and Asia, knowing how the luxury market is going [there],” says Serena Rovai, the programme’s designer. The school also plans courses in China and Singapore from September 2013.

Meanwhile, Skema Business School is consolidating the presence it established in China in September 2011 with a masters in fashion and luxury management. More than 50 students will graduate from the programme this year, with a further 50 enrolled for the second year.

“We need to be very quick in these countries,” says Ivan Coste Manière, professor of marketing at Skema.

HEC Paris and Essec, west of the French capital, are also well established in the field and SDA Bocconi in Milan was one of the first schools to create a specialised masters programme.

Last year Bocconi also launched an MBA programme on luxury business management in collaboration with Bulgari, the Italian maker of watches, jewellery and perfume.