WHY EMBA,WHY OLIN -奥林第三班毕业感言

When Minyi Du enrolled in the Washington University-Fudan University Executive MBA Program, she was not exactly sure just how the program would benefit her. She already had a master’s degree in industrial engineering and had honed her skills as country manager of Thames Water plc, a UK-based water company that provides water and water treatment to 21 million domestic and commercial customers.

The EMBA Program’s value, however, was revealed sooner than expected. “Now I do specialty gas trading for my own Shanghai company,” she enthused. “And in May, I started consulting. My background and connections in the utility sector helped.”

So did her Executive MBA degree. It multiplied and deepened her international management skills and furthered her knowledge in strategy, organizational design and change, and leadership—sought-after competencies in a fast-growing country positioning itself as an economic powerhouse after decades of Communist rule.

Du and her 42-strong network of Class 3 graduates recently celebrated their commencement at Olin. It was the capstone to a rigorous two-week residency of classes, with company site visits and a few extracurricular activities mixed in. Emerging with a western EMBA degree that holds international sway, its no wonder they’ve grown near-giddy with thoughts of putting their new skills to work. Many of those who have graduated before them have been promoted, landed jobs with new companies, or launched their own business ventures.

Cornering the market

From the outset, the program has demanded quality participation. “I must say, the interview was not as easy as the one I had five years ago when I was promoted as the general manager of the China market for Volvo Construction Equipment,” said Kebao Yang, class speaker at the 2005 commencement. “It was through the interview that I experienced how much effort the program management was making to enhance the quality of the candidates. I was ready to make one of the most important decisions in my life because I was accepted by two other programs.”

The value of this degree, says Jim Little, professor of finance and economics and academic director of Olin’s EMBA programs, is backed by the quality of the participating institutions. “We’ve been doing executive education a long time, and our experienced faculty is, in large part, why we have been so successful.”

Internationally ranked Olin faculty teach the classes. Their extensive experience in consulting with international companies and teaching executives plays into their roles. They are joined by leading Fudan teachers, who provide China-specific insights and give the students access to the Fudan faculty.

Some courses throw open a window on whole new areas of study.

“You won’t find many courses on informal leadership, influence, and politics taught within Chinese business schools,” says Stuart Bunderson, associate professor of organizational behavior. Bunderson teaches “Managing Power and Politics in Organizations.”

“Informal leadership deals with how to get things done in organizations when you don’t necessarily have the authority to issue mandates,” he explains. “Skills in this area are critical for our Shanghai students, many of whom are pursuing careers in matrixed organizational structures characterized by frequent change and shifting leadership. The opportunities for significant impact are incredibly rich in those settings. But so are the political risks. In my course, students look for tools to make these complex worlds more tractable so they can better navigate within them.”

While the Olin School has been in the business of executive education for more than 20 years, it was in 2001 that the contract to produce an educational joint venture with Fudan University was signed. At that time, MBA programs were relatively new in China, on average four or five years old. And, there were no Executive MBA programs at all.

Since then, competition has mounted and unsuccessful entrants to the market have been numerous, says Patrick Moreton, assistant dean and the program’s managing director. Among those that continue to operate are the University of Southern California, with partner Shanghai Jiao Tong University, and Rutgers University, Olin’s major competitors. According to Moreton, the Washington University-Fudan University program has cornered this market. Seventy percent of the class is made up of local Chinese whereas USC claims less than 25 percent and Rutgers, an even smaller segment. Says Moreton, “Our program has more or less dominated the local market for US education among the Chinese managing in multinational companies.”

While the programs operate on a similar model, the Washington University—Fudan University program, founded with support from Emerson and Anheuser-Busch Companies, is the largest and arguably the best. Part of the reason regards the reputation of the program and the institutions that comprise it. As with the pace of nearly everything in China, word on its performance has traveled fast.

“Student satisfaction is very important,” says Professor Rong Zhou, displaying a satisfied look herself as she surveyed the room where Class 3 graduates were snapping photos of one another, toying with their mortarboards, and inspecting the folds of their gowns.

“Because it [student satisfaction] is high,” Zhou says, “more students in Shanghai are getting to know the Olin School well. And, we are more confident with the program.”

With each new class, administrators and faculty tool the program to accommodate cultural differences, new teaching methodologies, and demand for targeted courses and skills.

Zhou, a professor of management science, directed Fudan’s Chinese-language EMBA Program before moving to her post this year as co-director, with Moreton, of the EMBA joint venture. Her contributions, say many, have been invaluable.

Her appointment helps fuse the two programs, says Moreton, making them into one true cooperative venture that draws upon resources from both institutions. Continuity in leadership, expanding capabilities, and increased faculty involvement have further stabilized the program.

The dynamic growth in China, however, has called for thinking about business in dynamic ways.

“Strategy can no longer be thought of as a static thing but must be thought of in sequences,” says Little. “Everything is dynamic.

“Take Volkswagon. It nearly owned the China market until as recently as five years ago. The model was a decade old and not a top-of-the-line car. But, it had 50 percent market share. Today, VW has maybe 7 or 8 percent. The big question is, How do you move strategy over time?”

Partnering for prosperity

“The program has grown more sophisticated along with the Chinese population,” Little says. Meanwhile, local competition nips at the heels of nearly every Chinese international program.

“There is incredible competition in the executive education marketplace among Chinese institutions,” says Moreton. “Growing sophistication of local programs and the price points they offer is reducing our market. This counters the earlier belief th