The second cohort of students in Cisco-Fudan-Stanford (CFS) Supply Chain Leadership Institute concluded their five-day consecutive study in the School on November 13.

The program’s lecturing Professor Hau L. Lee from Stanford University, School Dean Xiongwen Lu, Associate Deans Zhiwen Yin and Jian Zhou, Professor Yongkang Yang who is director of Executive Development Programs, and Professor Hongyu Li and Professor Yifan Xu from Department of Management Science of the School, participated in the graduation ceremony.

Vice President Jeff Gallinat of Cisco Global Supply Chain Management, and Supervisor Hanbo Wang of Cisco’s Customer Value Chain Management organization, were present at the event to give wishes to the graduating students.

From right to left: Dean Xiongwen Lu, Vice President Jeff Gallinat of Cisco Global Supply Chain Management, Stanford Professor Hau L. Lee, and Associate Dean Jian Zhou

Mr. Gallinat expressed gratitude to the School leaders and faculty members for their support to the program. He also thanked Professor Hau L. Lee and other overseas professors, as well as the students, for their heart-felt passion during the period of program study.

Although it is quite a short period of time that CFS program has been run so far, he said, it is moving on the track toward success.

He said that every single moment there are various changes, and he hoped the students will bring what they’ve learned in the program into their work, in order to achieve innovative results.

On behalf of Cisco, he said he felt honored to be part of the program and wished it a greater success in the future.

Stanford Professor Lee said that: “Each time I arrive in the School, I feel at home. I am extremely impressed with the discussions I’ve had with Fudan professors, through which I’ve got deeper understanding of supply chain area in China.

“This afternoon, I felt moved when hearing some of our students say that ‘to study the program is like getting nourished with nutrition provided by Cisco and Fudan, and when back to the company, we should take such nutrition to our colleagues and contribute more to the development of supply chain industry of China.

“I hope that, in next one to two years we are able to see the excellent cases of supply chain which are to be created here in China,” Mr. Lee said.

Speaking at the ceremony, Dean Lu took a retrospective view at the School’s cooperation with Cisco and Stanford University.

He said that a common vision is the foundation for the cooperation. Firstly, we have to have enough patience in study, work and life. Secondly, as the School is dedicated to fostering China’s future leaders, it needs to pool up resources from various avenues to selectively launch learning programs. Also, most enterprises have to increase their competitiveness and they can not do that without an efficient supply chain system. Thirdly, small-and-medium-sized enterprises are unable to afford high risks and costs, and they have to create new business models, reorganize production process, so as to increase their competitiveness and production capacities.

He added that, from the perspective of a broader definition of supply chain in management science field, the development of supply chain will contribute to the cross-disciplinary research, which will definitely lead Chinese enterprises to sharpen their competitive advantages.

“I want to thank all of you for your encouragement and assistance given to the program. Today is a new start of the cooperation for you and us. We hope we are going to achieve mutual benefits and make bigger progress,” the dean said to the graduating students.

Professors-and-students photo

A number of 37 students in the 2nd class of CFS program received graduation certificates which are jointly granted by Cisco, Stanford Graduate School of Business, and the School.

The 5-day highly concentrated study has brought them to the global frontline of supply chain management knowledge, while the discussions with Cisco on industrial practice have enabled them to understand Cisco’s practical experience oriented from clients’ needs for supply chain management.

After graduation, they are expected to use their innovation knowledge learned in the School to assist enterprises in increasing market share, reducing costs, raising client service levels and enhancing the market values, so as to drive forward businesses on the track toward world-class standards.

November 24, 2009