8 ASIAN REVIEW. cies eam NIKKEI ¥ / MASTERING BUSINESS IN ASIA scr!Sere ASIAN REVIEW CTP] (NUMBER OF ASIAN SCHOOLS INTOPSO ‘GFTS GLOBAL MBA RANKING = all cussion at CEIBS (Photo our in 2002 with funding from Hong Kong Sere ASIAN REVIEW CTP] billionaire Li Ka-shing's foundation, ‘The school has never sought to be ranked, in part bezause many of its and Cornell University business schools before returning to China in higher postgraduate including Group Holding’s Jack Ma Yun and Tencent Holdings co-founder Chen Yidan. ‘The school says its graduates dean, Tam Kar Yan, ng: "There's not to go up, but a lot of roomCon poet uniquely designed programs suited to local conditions, Huawei Technologies, Ali rival JD.com , hot technology startup DJI Technology, the world's largest maker of drones -- founded by HKUST alumnus Frank Wang --and more traditional family-run bu 1r approach. nits first decade, the programs taught by CEIBS were no different from those offered at Harvard and INSEAD, according to the school's dean, Ding Yuan. But gradually the school began to research and \corporate China-specitie managerial sues -- particularly how Chinese corporations emerged as global competitors and how foreign ‘companies expanded in China. Today, ASIAN REVIEW. CTP] its case development center has hundreds of such studies. In the first week of this year's full- time MBA program at CEIBS, students, companies to the t surrounding the Great W: discussions, Chines stud debated the merit Beijing's Belt and Road Ini government program aim ims at top schools are also fleet China's role as a slobal leader in fin regulatory and intellectual property issues related to the burgeoning field. ‘They are also devoting more of their Con poet focus to entrepreneu:ship. CKGSB ies, and history, ($74,786). ‘While CEIBS's focus is increasingly ‘on domestic companies, the school itself isa global endeavor, having ‘opened a campus, sha European campus, ‘or the first 10 years, our school ‘was the most successful copy machine," Ding said. "But we have gone from knowledge disseminator to ‘knowledge creator. Cur aspiration is to become the next Harvard. But ASIAN REVIEW. CTP] become the next Harvard, we must do something different from Harvard.” CKGSB also says it wants to expand, into whi Bing, terms Asia's each other. Ihope our school is a platform.” “Confucian bloc’s” share of global GDP WChine MSingopore Hong Kong Vietnam Mapan Rest of world South Koreo Confucian bloc L Soues ‘nal Monetay Fund [POONER If high rankings are one testimonyity with for "When Iarrived her ; only one foreign student in my said Ding. "This year, 40% of. students come from outside China.’ Among the latest CEIBS intake for its 18-month full-time MBA program is British-born Apricot Wilson, 29, a nance professional and University of ‘Cambridge graduate who believes her best career opportunities are in Asia, ‘China was squarely in frst place as my choice of business schoo destination countries,” Wilson said "The best schools are located in Beijing and Shanghai, and CEIBS stood out.” NETWORKING OPPORTUNITY Foreign students are also attending business schools ‘operated by China's fully state-owned universities, according to Michael a former Wall Street banker now professor of finance at Peking University’s Guanghua School of Management. ASIAN REVIEW. Although Guanghua did not make FT rankings, Pettis said he has impressed by the quality of the students and the improving curriculum. "When I came to Beijing 15 years ago, there were heavier course loads and more rote learning," said who earned his MBA at Columbia University's Graduate School of Business and later taught there. "The changes have been tremendous, and the students are extremely bright and oper led." But Pettis said the most important reason to study at one of China's top business schools is networking, " "A lot of the leadership in China draw very heavily from the top universities. The great advantage is that your classmates will end up running the Chinese government, Chinese businesses or Chinese banks. And in a country in which the legal system is ASIAN REVIEW. es not as clear as in the West, personal connections are much more important NE y impressive. This year, seven Asian schools (including INSEAD) are in the top 30, with 11 in thetop 50 and 13 in the top 100. In 2014, five schools were in the top 30 and nine in the top 50, ‘while in 2006 only two were in the top 30 and four in the top 50. In 2004, ‘only one school - INSEAD, at 4th 50. The second-highest Asian school was CEIBS, at 53rd. RTS Founded: 1995 Unique features: Traces ts root to 1956 ~ Nanyang Bu: for 24th place, MBA schools reflects the region's economic dynamism. This has created an upsurge in “high-paying jobs and "Many of the MBA rankings proxy salary and career development, and here Asia has done well ~ particularly Hong Kong and Singapore graduates have gone to attain high salari Singapore Business School, which was ranked 26th. Hyderabad/Mohali, tied for 27th withthe S.C. Johnson Graduate School of Management at Cornell Univer the US., closely followed by the In Institute of Management Ahmedabad at 20th. The third Indian school in the top 50 is the Indian Institute of Management Bangalore, at 49th, while the Indian Institute of Management Caleutta is ranked 95th. ‘on producing graduates for eompanies ‘operating in India’s bustling economy, rather than for the U.S. and U.K. "People are saying, ‘Why would I want to miss out on opportunities in India? This is where the growth is," Symonds ASIAN REVIEW. re 2) na INSEAD, the top ranked school on the FT lst, is increasingly looking east. Its newly appointed global head of careers services, for example, is based in Singapore, reflecting job growth in the region. According to [NSEAD's dean, Tlian Mihov, around 70% of the school's graduates divide their time between the French and Singaporean :mpuses, meaning the school is. either Asian nor European, but global." ich to that taken by 1ess schools, which have set up campuses in Asia, in some cases partnering with local schools to a better foothold in the region, but ‘more on their cachet as to American schools than any hybrid identity. ASIAN REVIEW. es business cousestaughtat hea For example, the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School ‘opened its Penn Wharton China Center in 2015 in Beijing, ince been moved from Singapore to Hong Kong. "Our approach toteaching our Executive MBA Program in Asia is wre Chicago -- the program is the same as Chicago, the professors fly to Hong Kong to teach the exact same ‘courses they teach in Chicago, and the degree requirementsare identical, meaning students receive the same receive if they studied in Chicago," said Booth Associate Dean Rich Johnson. and examples in teaching their courses. The students themselves also provide much of the domain-specific knowledge and insight into their own esses, which they bring into in class and in study sim program at the American University of "We offer the same versity of to the U.S. education system for those who otherwise might not be able to afford it,” said Brent White, a iversity of Arizona law d vice provost for internatior education. Western business s prestige and what John Center, described as "bringing and analytical rigor to business But Asian schools,Sere ASIAN REVIEW several European schools. UNIQUE NEEDS Asia's ecor diversity — from the rapidly growing middle infrastr do in the West, of corporate strategy, you cannot teach remains appealing for some Asians because it exposes Chicago Booth's MBA program. primary considerations were an experience, partic inthe U. ida profession network outside of Singapore, as well as to gain exposure to different schools Nikkei Asian Review. ASIAN REVIEW CTP] (GLOBAL MOA RANKING 2000-2017,ASIAN REVIEW. Comores Cre Asia's newest business school takes an action- packed approach GWEN ROBINSON, Chief editor nidable central bankers -- is jemark baju ku traditional dress, Ze' ied as she leads ound the gleaming campus herself into creating what she defines a unique model for the "disruptive inusually ani visitor ASIAN REVIEW. es e regional ike a proud parent showing off a id's tal ‘beams as she Lab, a brightly of 3-D printers a other computer-aided design equipment at the heart of ASB' Innovation and Entrepren Center Inspiration to innovate is one help entrepreneurship, printing is part of thet. the future. I icate MIT: toapile of cables and. machines. ‘Asa key force behind the push to a world-class business school in capital, Zeti is bout the school's Management in the 1980s. Under the program, students are given weeks of intensive training and sent to nies to work on specific d r time on these corporate ig firsthand experience emerging economies. Zati described the pr the MBA ost effective work on real problems, in companies,” she told the Nikkei Asian Review, ‘As evidence of ts success, the model is now being copied by other business schools, she noted. Even so, few would have the pulling power of Sloan to draw top corporate partners. "Already, companies that meet our nazed, using ving’ when accept graduates into their workforee, it takes about two years for them to be able to nat we aim to makeReflecting the firepower of ASB's board and backers, the school has more than 300 corporate host partners ranging from big regional ‘companies such as Malaysia's Air Asia , Astro Malaysia Holdings , Axiata Group , Sime Darby and CIMB Group Holdings to multinationals such as Boeing, Johnson and Johnson, Intel and Prudential. Charles Fine, ASB's president and dean, says that the action learning concept and pr first batch of 47 MBA students note they were attracted by tke program, as as by the school's affiliation with ‘Action learning is one of the most exciting and enlightening parts of my journey at ASB,” said Jia Wann Tong, 31, who did both graduate and ASIAN REVIEW. postgraduate degrees in the U.K. and worked nearly six years in the oil and gas industry before undertaking her MBA. “The projects provide real business experience ... and a wide range of hands-on learning opportunities where we can exercise leadership skills and apply classroom learning to management challenges in ms around Asia.’ ist-West” crossover in ASB's Iso a draweard, she ‘SB is the only business school that provides the fusion of both Asia insights and MIT's genetic blueprint. This is truly a unique combination that serves the economies of today and tomorrow.” ‘The school, which opened to its inaugural group of MBA students in August 2016, was established with the backing of Bank Negara Malaysia, collaboration with Sloan in a 10-year deal that Zeti helped to broker. She is fond of emphasizing that of all Sloan's international collaborations, this is the ngest and among the most comprehensive partnerships. [Bank Negara Malaysia] had originally looked for a partner for our leadership development center, set up 10 years ago by the central bank to focus on leadership in finance -- but it has gone beyond financial now to the as gone : "MIT had set up a supply chain management school [in Kuala Lumpur], teaching a nine- month masters course, which it had sutecessfully done in Spain; they were looking for an Asian eity to manage it, and they looked at Malaysia. It all started from there.” With a top Western name and the backing of a prominent Asian central bank, the partnership has already proved a good match for both sides as ‘well as for the students. Tt is very importent also to have the foundations, the analytics, that you ‘ean draw on one of the best schools in the world -- this and we can draw alsc on the region, it provides the best you can get from both worlds," Zet sai. While frequently on the international conference and seminar circuit, where she is in great demand for her economic expertise, she argues that Asia can also teach lessons to the rest of the world. "I'm very proud to say that most of my education, except for my doctorate, was in Malaysia, I ‘graduated from the University of Malaya, and only subsequently went to the USS. to do my doctorate at the University of Pennsyvania, "This region has keen for 10 years a growth center in the global economy, and I think it will remain on that trajectory for the foreseeable future,” Zeki noted. "It’s very important to have some education that gives people insight and understanding, on what is ASIAN REVIEW. CTP] going on in Asia, also to have the foundations, the analytics, that you can draw from one of the best schools in the world. This is what Sloan offers us, and through action learning and other programs we can also draw on the region. It provides the best you can get from both worlds. But, she added, itis crucial to "know the theoretical framework, the analytics, how itis applied in the rest of the world and how itis applied to challenges here. Asia is the most diverse part of the world, so what is the same here may not be the same as in Vietnam or Myanmar." Under the current agreement, Sloan supports ASB in curriculum development while also providing faculty and staff for the school's flagship MBA course. Over time, the curricula will be expanded, possibly to include specialty fields such as Islamic finance, said Zeti. STRONG BACKING Any engagement with ASB shows the extent of Malaysian central bank support. The school is located in the bank's sleek Sasana Kijang building near Kuala Lumpur's business district, which hosts the bank's "center fo excellence in knowledge and learning” and some international financial education and research facilities, including a global research hub set up by the World Bank Group.But there are bigger embitions for ASB. The school is now preparing for its second intake of students even as construction continues apace on its sprawling new campus at the edge of, Architectural accommodation, futuristi tech labs and recreat s suggest that Zeti is only half joking when she describes the new campus as "almost like a resort.” Even the school’s temporary ing, however, features state-of- mind for years, and ASB is a dream come true. Drawing on Sloan's teaching resources, the school offers an array of visiting professors and outside experts first year of operatio most other schools, the fees .0-month course of about $85,000 for students from outside Malaysia cover accommodation for the entire duration of the program, and for all students, mate ASIAN REVIEW. [ewes ‘The package includes four weeks at Sloan in Boston, as well as about five "action learning’ stints with corporate partners, both in Malaysia and abroad. MAKE-OR-BREAK FACTOR ASB is drawing top talent among MBA candidates from a range of countries and fields, and while setting high entry standards, has given to admit some “unconvent lack formal qu: saduater be critical. "We will be judged on their per ce," Zeti said. For now, the school’s lack of any international ranking is a essing, she added. ASB r absent from leading global and will probably stay that way for at least five years, in a region where rank and status are prime considerations, but this also gives the school time to build up. Zeti, unsurprisingly, is confident: "We are very ambitious. We know of course we are going to have to ear assessed when students graduate. look at them, and people will itthat kind of Lanfranco, 31, a Peruvian-Australian who worked for six years as an engineer in project development before signing up for ASB. "It makes fora very c and brings wn ue perspectives to every problem we tackle in class or on. action learning projets attitudes are vital for ASB's recruitment process. And the school's ASIAN REVIEW. eae) first intake reflects its flexi students con , with from 12 countries and luding about one- even have two from the Bank of Mexico,” said Zeti, noting that other central banks around the world have indicated interest in sending students to ASB.Sere ASIAN REVIEW Ciirkescs Diverse business models pose a test for Asian MBA programs SIMON ROUGHNE) regional correspondent types of companies are also varied ne from or aim for nies as disparate as linked corpor: ly businesses, big ASIAN REVIEW Singaporean to leverage its owned and run ises are lessSere ASIAN REVIEW It is an approach some of the region's lesser-known schools are is keen to bui infrastructure, we include maritime and port