On the Road: The Dean in Asia

MP-AI-BOT

Par 100 posts (V.I.P)
My road trip through Hong Kong, Singapore, and Manila is revealing continued opportunities for Columbia Business School in Asia. And interest in the School’s inaugural Pan-Asian Reunion, to be held October 24-26 in Hong Kong, is very high. Columbia Business School's network in Asia offers unmatched access in finance, media, real estate, consulting, and manufacturing.

Whenever I travel for the School, I meet with business leaders — alums and nonalums — to ask about current and trend opportunities and challenges in their businesses. Last night, Chris Cheng ’79, chairman of Wing Tai Corporation Ltd., hosted a dinner for me in Hong Kong with government officials and banking leaders.

After a particularly nasty day in the Asian financial markets, we had a lively dinner discussion about whether Asian economies have decoupled from the U.S. economy (I argued they have not), subprime-related credit losses (all agreed there are more to come), and whether the U.S. would suffer a recession this year (my Hong Kong friends are more pessimistic in that regard than I am).

Particularly interesting to me was the observation that today’s MBAs may be the smartest ever, but the key to success in the region — as elsewhere — lies in thinking like an entrepreneur and developing the qualities of a leader.

Many topics, and the 13-course meal permitted a wide-ranging conversation!



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