The Value of MBA Programs and the Future of China’s Economy

On October 29, 2019, Dr. Xiang Bing, Founding Dean of CKGSB, met with ChosunBiz in Seoul and had an in-depth discussion on the value of business schools and the future of the Chinese economy.

Underscoring how China maintained and strengthened its position as the world’s third largest economy since 2008, Dr. Xiang said, “If companies fail to understand the East Asian markets, including China, there is a greater risk of management making wrong decisions.”

Source: Chosun.com

A. “Upon earning an MBA degree, there is still a high percentage of individuals seeking employment at large investment banks such as Goldman Sachs and global consulting firms such as Mckinsey. China is no exception. Those industries, however, are not growing fast enough. This should not be a cause for frustration because new opportunities are being created as corporate social activities expand into an array of diverse fields. Case in point: Interest in corporate social responsibility (CSR) and activities to support social organizations are on the rise.”

A. “Our goal is to be the Googles and Facebooks in global business education. Over a short history of 17 years, we positioned ourselves as a leading business school in China. We did not, however, rest on our laurels and we continued to innovate. For example, from the inception of CKGSB, we incorporated humanities, history, religion and philosophy into our curriculum. We are the first business school in the world to do so. Our hope is to help graduates enjoy an enriching life, not just a rich life. ”

A. “ In order for future business leaders to be competitive, they must have passion and empathy. There is clear limitations in the winner-takes-all mindset. Humanities is the foundation of passion and empathy. It also helps when managing talents of diverse nationalities. Isn’t this sufficiently practical?”

A. “In a variety of ways, we are helping our students to keep up with the changing trends in high tech. As part of our efforts, we established partnerships with the engineering department at Columbia University in 2016 and UC Berkeley in 2017. Furthermore, we are collaborating with leading technology companies such as Tencent, Baidu, and DJI to provide insight into China’s innovation ecosystem to our international students. ”

A. “ China’s market is much larger than the US, Germany and Japan combined. Even with a growth rate of 6%, there is no doubt that, in terms of size, the Chinese economy will serve as a leading growth engine of the world economy in the foreseeable future. Since 2008, the Chinese economy has been responsible for about one third of global economic growth. If any country misses the opportunity in China, it will face difficulties in competing in the global market. Another attraction point of the Chinese economy is that there is still room for deregulation . There are quite a few areas that are monopoly or oligopoly. Removing barriers to market entry will accelerate growth. ”

A. “Absolutely yes. It takes a forward-looking approach. The pain of the past should not pose as an impediment for cooperation for future growth. For Korean companies, the Korean market alone is too small. There is a need to strengthen cooperation not only with China but also with Japan. It would be great if a Korean entrepreneur with a groundbreaking item or technology built an ecosystem that can be established simultaneously in Korea, China and Japan.