CV Albert Schram Consultant

PERSONAL INFORMATION

Dr. Albert Schram 

permanent residence since 2011, in Negrar, Province of Verona (Italy) 

Cell. +39​3495307481     
albertschram@gmail.com 

http://about.me/AlbertSchram 

Skype a.schram  

PREFERRED JOB

Senior Consultant

SUMMARY

Well-rounded, accomplished, innovative, and collaborative higher education executive and consultant with exceptional people & communication skills, offering 10+ years of experience in executive roles, and 20+ years in leadership positions in international higher education, consulting and research. Outstanding achievements 50%+ success rate with project proposal for the European Commission's framework programs, leading and motivating leadership teams, consultants, academics, university staff and students. Uninterrupted, exceptional track record in consulting, higher education management and research publications.

Highlights

    • Innovative, strategic executor, adding value over 10 times employment costs in last 3 roles since 2006.

    • Contributed to Maastricht University entrepreneurship program and incubator

    • Created Tune-PRO business incubator at PNG University of Technology

Achievements

    • CEO experience. Served as Vice Chancellor for two terms at the Papua New Guinea University of Technology with 9000+ students, 1000+ staff and annual budget of over $45 million

    • As Vice Chancellor made the PNG University of Technology the first university in the world to have campus wide broadband internet through the O3B satellite system http://bit.ly/2JW5mLx

    • Acquired 44 major grants of which 24 European Commission framework programme or erasmus garnts.

    • Provided executive team training, and recipient of annual executive training since 2007. Fellow of the Executive Leadership Academy of the University of California Berkeley

    • Achieved professorial rank in 1999 at the Latin American University of Science and Technology in Costa Rica (QS rated)

    • Worked as expert for research proposal evaluation for European Commission framework and life-long learning programs, executed numerous consultancy projects in over 22 countries for leading consulting companeis (SIDE, S.A, ECOLAS BV, ECORYS NV, Euro-trends, HTSPE etc.) funded by European commission, EuropeAid, EEAS, IABD, PNUD and World Bank

EDUCATION AND TRAINING

23/03/2015–27/03/2015

Fellow Executive Leadership Academy

Certificate

University of California Berkeley - Center for Studies in Higher Education, Berkeley (United States) 

- All topics of university management and leadership presented by leading academic researchers and experienced practitioners, including changes in the higher education environment, leading multicultural communities and teams, and leading with a long-term vision.

- Topics covered:

    • Infrastructure and facility management

    • IT, technological advances and digital disruption

    • Online teaching & learning

    • Budget, financial and resource management

    • Fundraising, total resource development

    • Faculty recruitment, retention, and tenure

    • Student life and fostering student success

    • Entrepreneurship

    • Governing board relations

    • Strategic, academic, and campus planning

    • Transition and succession planning strategies

    • Implementing evolving leadership models

    • Executive career search strategies

    • Crisis management

    • Athletic program development and governance

    • Public and media relations, and social media

 

Additional online training 2018:

Nov. 2018: "Dangerous Questions: why academic freedom matters" by University of Oslo and Scholars at Risk, 3 weeks, 3 hours per week.

Certificate: https://www.futurelearn.com/certificates/doa7vce

Dec. 2018: "HR Fundamentals" by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development in the UK, 5 weeks 3 hours per week.

Certificate: https://www.futurelearn.com/certificates/3j4k3x0

01/08/1990–24/11/1994

Doctorate

EQF level 8

European University Institute, Fiesole (Italy) 

- Discipline: Economic and Business History.

- Method: application of quantitative techniques and models from economics and management sciences to historical questions.

- Topic: The impact of railways in northern Italy 1856-1884

- Department: History and Civilization.

- Defense: 24 November 1994 http://cadmus.eui.eu//handle/1814/5972

- Recommended for publication and published in 1997 with Cambridge University Press ISBN 978-0521571593, https://goo.gl/YkLtq

- Degree legalized by World Educational Services (USA) in August 2018.

- Won one of two national 3 year competitive Doctoral scholarships in 1990.

- Won annual competitive scholarship for three months research secondment at London School of Economics in 1993.

- Used first notebook computer (Compaq 286) for library research with bibliographical database, internet user since 1993, user of first geographical information system on PC.

- Academic profile sites:

Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albert_Schram

Vizualize: http://vizualize.me/AlbertSchram

Google scholar: https://goo.gl/muVm8M

ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8726-6754

Research Gate: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Albert_Schram

Academia: https://umuc.academia.edu/ProfAlbertSchram

Researcher ID: http://www.researcherid.com/rid/I-5973-2013

 

01/11/1988–01/06/1989

Certificate International Relations and Defense Policy

EQF level 7

Clingendael Netherlands Institute of International Relations, Wassenaer (Netherlands) 

- All aspects of international relations and defense policy were covered in this high level 6 months inter-mittent course.

01/09/1982–31/08/1988

Masters in History (doctorandus)

EQF level 7

Utrecht University, Utrecht (Netherlands) 

- Thesis on railway investment in the Papal States in the 1840s and 1850s

- Papers on Vietnam War, Military Justice in the 18th C, and the Revolutions of 1848.

- Won the annual scholarship of the Royal Netherlands Institute in Rome for my 3 months masters thesis research

01/09/1985–31/08/1988

Minor (bijvak) in political sciences and public administration

EQF level 7

Leyden University, Leyden (Netherlands) 

- Courses on political sciences, constitutional law and international relations.

- Thesis on the concept of "gloria" in Machiavelli.

01/08/1976–01/07/1982

Gymnasium-B

EQF level 6

Het Nieuwe Lyceum, Bilthoven (Netherlands) 

- Top 1% nationally in English, top 5% in Mathematics in national exams.

- Pre-university education that included 8 instead of 7 required subjects (Gymnasium-B): Mathematics, Advanced Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry, Latin, French, English and Dutch.

WORK EXPERIENCE

 

01/08/2018–Present

Professor

University of Maryland University College Europe, Kaiserslautern (Germany) 

UMUC has been a leader in delivery of hybrid/blended learning for the past 3 decades and is in the top 20 of onlince colleges in the USA. It has received numerous awards for its innovations: http://bit.ly/2Y1wWuw.

This appointment involved extensive training on the Concourse based LMS, as well as verification of teaching experience for the past 7 years, and the doctorate legalized for the USA by World Education Services Inc.

This is a part-time adjunct position based in Italy. My main tasks are teaching one or more courses per semester in the fields of history or management in blended delivery mode at US Air Force bases in Northern Italy with the LEO, using UMUC’s state-of-the-art learner management system and life-streaming technology.

- Developed modern curriculum for hybrid (online/presential) courses, and provided teaching materials see syllabus HIST141 https://goo.gl/RgssLk and HIST142 https://bit.ly/2U8XLzf

- Provided online coaching and mentoring using Enhanced Learning Model (ELM)for effective delivery

- Passed mandatory Faculty Development 412 course for hybrid or blended teaching (online and face-to-face)

- Passed all mandatory privacy, security, health and safety training

 

Other engagements:

- One of 5 key resource persons for the Centro Internazionale per lo Sviluppo Socio-Emotivo e l'Aprendimento Auto-Diretto (International Centre for Social-Emotional Development and Self-Directed Learning CISSAD) with academics from pedagogy departments of Universities in the Veneto and Washington State University (starting in Sep. 2019 contingent upon funding).

07/02/2012–19/04/2018

Vice Chancellor (President)

Papua New Guinea University of Technology, Lae (Papua New Guinea) 

 

Highlights

- On 1 June 2015 became first university in the world to have broadband internet provided by satellite O3B system, in absence of a fibre network

- In November 2017, obtained first unqualified, clean audit for PNG public universities' accounts in over 20 years, and making annual savings in operational expenses of about 25% annually through implementing financial controls

- Implemented numerous academic quality improvements, including introduction of mandatory aptitude test for candidate students with ACER in Melbourne, revision of criteria for academic appointments and promotions, and streamlining of all recruitment and hiring processes.

- Created Tune-PRO innovation centre and business accelerator

- Created Post-Graduate Certificate Program on Student-Centred Teaching and Learning and obtained 60+% adoption rate of Google Classroom LMS

- Made 15+ key executive, 25+ senior academic, and 10+ key managers appointments., oversaw hundreds of hiring, promotion and dismissal procedures as Chair of the Staffing Committee

 

Scope:

- Two terms, appointment renewed in 2015.

- Average annual budget over US$40 million and 1,000+ staff of 100+ different cultures and language groups, 6,000+ distance learning matriculation students, plus 3,000+ indigenous PNG students and 60+ Pacific students on campus.

- 3 amalgamated TVET colleges (Nursing, Timber, and University College)

- 1 research farm 40 Ha. with life stock, horticulture, cacao and coffee sections

- 1 university clinic with 1 doctor, 1 health worker and 12 nurses.

- 1 zoo with 20+ Papua New Guinean iconic species (cassowary, bird of paradise, salt water crocodile)

- Effort indicator: chaired over 60 effective meetings annually while traveling 30% of the time (70 of 254 work days), and sent over 1,000 emails on average per month as per Gmail meter (2014-2017).

 

Financial Results (as Member of Finance Comm. & External Audit Board):

- Made 10 years strategic business plan. Hired financial advisor.

- Obtained for 1st time unqualified, clean audit report from Auditor General for 2015 accounts

- Value added: combined reduction and expenses and revenue increase exceed 10 times my employment costs.

- Reduced operational expenses with 25%, over $1 million annually

- Balanced budget in 2017, created conditions for long-term financial sustainability establishing financial controls

- Increased corporate support from less than US$100,000 per year to over US$3,000,000 per year in kind and in cash (2014-2017)

- Reduced non-salary expenses by 10-15% yearly through better financial controls and lowering of financial mandates (2015-2017)

 

Human Resources Results

- Led major reorganization to reduce staff headcount with 30% within 3 years, starting with HR and IT departments.

- Made 10+ executive appointments by improving recruitment and training processes

- Hired or promoted 25+ senior academics and 15+ managers

- Streamlined human resource processes and academic appointments and promotion

 

Academic Quality (as Chairman of Academic Board):

- Led professional accreditation process for engineering programs as per the Washington Accords, set up academic quality assessment team (AQAT), online students' evaluation of teaching, Industrial Advisory Board, and assured regular audits of subject files

- Assured distribution of Dell Laptop computers to first year students in 2015-2018, and achieved over 60% adoption of Google Classroom as Learning Management System (2017)

- Streamlined student selection process and submitted each candidate to independent aptitude test administered by Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER) in Melbourne

- Assured the appointment of a Dean of postgraduate studies and the establishment of a graduate school

- Started Executive MBA, and PG certificate on student centred learning programs

 

Internationalisation:

- Sent 77 of 150 Faculty members abroad for training, 27 of which for doctoral program (2014-2017)

- Participated in 4 European Commission's Erasmus Mundus, and 2 Erasmus Plus projects

 

Infrastructure:

- Developed Master Plan for campus http://www.unitechpng.com, approved by Council Nov. 2015

- Oversaw completion of 13 infrastructure projects from 2014-7, incl. sealing all campus road, 23 new staff houses, O3B satellite broadband internet earth station

- Opened first satellite campus in Kundiawa (May 2017)

 

Other Affiliations:

- Commissioner of Oaths (volunteer Notary)

- Adjunct Professor at James Cook University (Queensland, Australia) since September 2012 until present

 

Service

- Member of Conseil Scientifique of Université de la Nouvelle Caledonie, 2014-16

- Co-Chair of Pacific Islands University Research Network 2016-18

- Member of the Program Executive Board for REDD+ with UNDP and FAO.

- In 2012, organized the first Career Fair and Open Day in 4 years, and the first Cultural Show in 6 years.

- Organized the "I Make UNITECH Fly!" values in action campaign.

- Brokered peace between Enga and Chimbu students in 2012.

- Contained tribal fighting on campus on 25-26 June 2016 between Southern Highlands (government) and Enga (opposition) students

- Supported Busama Village clinic during 2017, and was appointed as honorary Elder/Chief for International Affairs. Succeeded by Chief Dr. Lindsay Cameron.

 

01/09/2007–31/08/2011

Development and Research Director / Researcher

Maastricht University, Maastricht (Netherlands) 

 

Maastricht University is ranked #5 in Times Higher Education world ranking of young universities. The School of Business and Economics has triple crown professional accreditation: AMBA, EQUIS and AACSB.

 

Highlights

- From 2007 to 2011, achieved average 20% overall success rate for submissions of the School of Business and Economics

- In 2010, obtaining 6 Marie Curie fellowships out of 12 submissions, the highest number for a single school in the EU

- Value added by increasing revenue exceeded 10 times my employment costs

- Obtained participation in BEEM-UP in EU green buildings program

- As member of the Knowledge Transfer office, contributed to entrepreneurship and innovation through grants acquisition, and development of the business incubator

 

Financial Results:

- Increased EU research funding with 300% from EUR450.000 annually to over EUR1.5M in 2009 and 2010

- Coordinated grant submission efforts of over EUR12M annually, with on average a 20% success rate

- Responsible for a EUR45M project portfolio

 

Capacity Development:

- Increased success rate for individual post-doc fellowship applications to over 50%. In 2010, obtained 6 Marie Curie Fellowship for the School of Business and Economics out of 12 applications

- Provided key input for successful large research grants, such as EU BEEM-UP project on green buildings

 

Teaching & Learning

- Received Problem-Based Learning and Basis Kennis Onderwijs (BKO) training from Maastricht University Education Department

- Developed and delivered an undergraduate and a post-graduate courses using Problem Based Learning using Blackboard and Eluminate LMS for distance and online learning including online lecturing and turoting.

- Delivered lectures and courses for the School of Business and Economics at the International Centre for Integrated Assessment, School of Governance, University College Maastricht, and Global Health Program

Internationalisation:

- Member of the University's Turkey and India Teams with the purpose of facilitating research and teaching with universities in these countries, contributed to partnership building, joint research, faculty mobility, student recruitment and higher education fair participation

 

Personal Development and Consulting:

- Participated in high-level management training offered by "De Baak", executive coaching by "Right Management", and 4 staff training sessions on effective working, leadership of complex projects (provided by leading Dutch company Twynstra & Gudde), management and communication skills

- Independent evaluator for the European Commission, on Competitiveness and Innovation Program (EACI), Education Audiovisual and Culture Agency Executive Agency (EACEA), Environmental Policy (DG ENVIRONMENT) and Corporate Social Responsibility (DG RESEARCH -REA)

- Consulting for European Commission, wrote policy review report on CSR research in FP6

- Consulting for European External Actions Service, team leader for study for Rio+20 summit on green economy with case studies on Canada, South Korea, China, Thailand, Brazil, Mexico and Tunisia

Service

- Organized the European Researchers' Night "Beyond Borders" in 2008 for the first time in Maastricht https://cordis.europa.eu/project/rcn/90037_en.html

 

Other affiliations:

- Adjunct Professor at University of Turabo (Puerto Rico, USA) 2009-12 delivering courses at the business school in Masters and Doctorate programs

- Board Member Open wijs foundation (http://www.openwijs.nl) promoting open-source software in education

01/09/2006–31/08/2007

Academic Director / Vice President Academic Affairs

Zuyd University - Maastricht Hotel Management School, Maastricht (Netherlands) 

 

Zuyd University is consistently ranked nationally as one of the best universities for applied sciences for teaching.

 

Highlights

- with board approval, obtaining 3rd partner Oxford Brookes University in MA program on innovative hotel management with ESADE-St. Ignaci

- preparing MBA for AMBA accreditation and selling it to Maastricht School of Management (MSM)

 

Scope:

- Reporting to Director and International Advisory Board

- Annual budget about EUR1M

- Span of control: Postgraduate and International Office - 5 employees

- Responsible international and industry partnership, internationalization and program accreditation.

 

Post Graduate Program Coordination:

- As head of graduate programs office, coordinated the MA program with Hong Kong Polytechnic and Penn State University, and prepared for AMBA accreditation by 2008

- Prepared MBA program for AMBA accreditation, subsequently program was sold to Maastricht School of Management

- Coordinated the joint MA program with ESADE business schools (Barcelona Spain) and developed new partnership with Oxford Brookes University, set up joint quality management system

 

Internationalisation:

- As head of international office coordinated all international relations of the school, managed partnerships, and coordinated lecturers' and students' exchanges (among which Erasmus program)

- Assured international placement for over 50 MA students in international hotel industry

 

Academic quality:

- Developed and maintained quality management system for MA and MBA programs

- Taught research skills and economics courses in Masters and MBA programs

- Carried out research on environmental management systems in the hotel industry

 

01/01/2006–01/09/2006

Resident Lecturer / Acting Director South Caicos

School for Field Studies, Salem (Mass.) (United States) 

School for Field Studies programs were at the time accredited by Boston University.

 

Scope:

- Managed team of 4 Faculty, 3 staff and 3 interns in remote location, and shared all related responsibilities.

 

Research:

- Carried out research projects on the fishery industry, marine parks, marine pollution, and sustainable tourism in cooperation with TCI’s “Department of Environmental and Coastal Resources” and local NGO's and companies.

 

Teaching:

- Taught semester course on the economics of pollution control, fishery and tourism economics.

- Taught summer course on Marine Protected Areas and Environmental Impact Assessment and Culture of the British West Indies.

 

Service

- Had UV water filter installed in local lobster processing plant.

- Participated in numerous field exercises in the community, including SCUBA diving. Opened 1 new dive site.

01/09/2003–01/01/2006

Research Fellow

Ghent University, Ghent (Belgium) 

 

Research:

- Team leader (50%) for “Valuation of non-market goods and services and cost/benefit analysis of forest resources” (BELSPO-FEFOCON project).

- Contributor to FP4 “Negotiated environmental agreements: policy lessons to be learned from a comparative case study”.

- Researcher (20%) in FP5 “Cost/benefit analysis of wave overtopping risks” (FP5-CLASH project).

- Contributor to FP6 “Information use by decision-makers in integrated coastal management and climate change” (FP6-COSTAS project).

- Prepared study on Sustainable Industrial Estates, EU-PIAV project.

 

Guest lectures and other affiliations:

 Guest lecturer Environmental Institute Bogazici University (Istanbul, Turkey) and Shenyang Business School (China).

 

Left at end of contract, due to lack of follow-up project.

 

PERSONAL SKILLS

 

Mother tongue(s)

Dutch, Italian

Foreign language(s)

Used English, French, Spanish and Italian professionally.

Communication skills

I have excellent cross-cultural communication skills, gained through interacting with diverse audiences in Latin America, Europe and Asia-Pacific. As Vice Chancellor (President) in Papua New Guinea, I dealt with probably one of the most diverse student populations in the most culturally diverse country in the world. I am active on Twitter and publish my own blog.

Organisational / managerial skills

Experienced executive with more than 10 years of board accountability. As Vice Chancellor I was responsible for over 1,000 staff and a budget of over EUR40 million accountable to the External Audit Board and Finance and General Purpose Committee. In 2017, the University obtained a clean audit for all its accounts from the external independent accountant.

As Chair of the Staffing Committee I was responsible for all search, recruiting and selection, and all aspect of HR management. As Chair of the Academic Board, I was accountable to Council for all academic quality aspects of the University programs.

Job-related skills

• Project management skills.

Digital skills

I have led several IT projects, for example the introduction of satellite based campus wide broadband internet through WiFi in Papua New Guinea through the O3B satellite system.

Other skills

• First Aid.

• PADI rescue diver certified 2006.

Driving licence

A, BE