Newsletter No. 487

10 # 4 8 7 | 1 9 . 1 1 . 2 0 1 6 Photo by Keith Hiro 口 談 實 錄 / V iva V oce Ms. Stephanie Villemagne 工商管理學院副院長及工商管理碩士課程主任 Associate Dean of Graduate Programmes and Director of MBA Programmes, Faculty of Business Administration 一個成功的MBA課程有甚麼要素？ 一個成功的MBA課程，必自成一個良性循環—優秀的學生和教員團隊， 會吸引到企業有興趣參與合作研究計劃和聘用其畢業生，因而又吸引到更 多的一流學生及教授，如此循環不息。新的課程往往要花頗長時間及大量 資源來打造這個良性循環，但只要它一旦出現，餘下的便只是把品牌管理 好。中大的MBA在科目及教授陣容方面已經頗強，只要在幾個骨節點稍作 微調，令其品牌更脫穎而出，在國際更受注目便是。 英國脫歐與美國總統選舉的結果對商業教育有甚麼影響？ 英國脫歐之路怎麼走，候任美國總統會做得怎樣，我們且拭目以待，但可 以說，排他主義和國粹主義必不利商業活動及教育。只有在一個開放的世 界，人才、意念及資源自由流動，商業才會蓬勃。國家跟公司和個人一樣， 有優點也有缺點，不能學習他人所長，補自己不足，任你有天大本事，故步 自封，成就始終有限。很多西方企業的管理人員被派到中國或印度，接觸 到新鮮事物，刺激思考，回國後發揮更大。反之，亞洲企業的管理人員也一 樣。 你對MBA排名有甚麼看法？ 我視之為一個遊戲，是一個必須參與的重要遊戲。不少學生對一所學校感 興趣的第一件事是其排名榜上的名次。但不是所有排名榜都具同樣影響力 的，因為不少排名榜的準則不是那麼客觀嚴謹。依我看，《金融時報》的 排名榜，數據收集方法公開，排名準則客觀，加上嚴謹的審核機制，是眾 多排名榜中比較可信及具權威性的，是兵家必争之地。如其他具份量的學 校一樣，我們也重視排名，不過我們不是為排名而排名，而是要一併把課 程做好，以能為學生為社會提供價值為目標。 你在著名的INSEAD商學院十年，你怎樣比較INSEAD與中大的 MBA？ INSEAD規模很大，有時候大得容不下一點個人色彩。中大的MBA規模比 較小，但也正好在教與學方面可以有多些彈性作個人化安排，對學生來說 是好事。但我們需要加深與業內人士的合作，令課程更緊貼市場。還有就 是INSEAD獨沽商業一味，中大的MBA則是一所綜合型大學學術體系的 一部分，很多機會可以利用大學其他方面的專長、資源及優勢。我見到無 限可能性。 身為MBA課程主任，首要任務是甚麼？ 我首要任務在課程及就業兩方面。首先是確保課程緊貼社會脈搏，保持競 争優勢，照顧到學生及社會的需要，其次是加深與企業的聯繫，加強就業 服務，令我們的畢業生找到理想的事業起步點。接著下一步是改革我們的 兼讀課程使其更具彈性，以吸引更多背景迥異的學生，這樣我們的學生群 便會更多元化，與不同界別及專業的聯繫便會不斷加深。 你想錄取怎樣的MBA學生？ 除了GMAT成績之外，我也注重申請人的熱誠和動機，與及他／她為何下 這麼大決心唸MBA。我希望每年加入我們的新生，在專業經驗、興趣和理 想各方面都做到百花齊放。 中大的MBA課程是香港甚至是亞洲最悠久的，這是一項資產還是 負擔？ 肯定是一項資產，很少商學院有我們這樣悠久的歷史和輝煌的傳統，但我 們切不可安於現狀，必須時時保持警覺，前瞻未來。我們有幸有一個強大 的校友網絡，有他們支持學院必可更上層樓。我也衷心感謝前人的貢獻， 令學院達至今天的成就，我也先向每一位將與我一起努力的同事道謝。 你適應在中大和香港的生活嗎？ 在出任MBA課程主任之前我已經多次來過香港及中國。今年8月我舉家搬 入中大校園，沒有適應的問題，雖然有時候要在新界截一部司機會說英語 的計程車殊不容易。但生活起居完全不成問題，人們都很友善有禮，而且 很多方面還方便得很，香港可能是世界上最有效率的城市。中大校園美極 了，山水魚鳥，藍天白雲，我和家人還有很多地方要去探索呢。 What makes a successful MBA programme? A successful MBA programme runs on a virtuous circle of being able to attract the best students and the best faculty, which would in turn attract corporate interest and give rise to research or employment opportunities with them, as a result of which more high-calibre students and faculty would come. It takes a long time and a lot of resources to build but once it’s built the virtuous circle maintains itself. All one needs to do is to grow the brand to ensure the success to continue. CUHK MBA is already very established and strong in its curriculum and faculty. It would take a few tweaks along this circle to make its brand stand out even more and better recognized internationally. What implications would Brexit and the result of the US presidential election have on business education? While the way forward of Brexit is still uncertain and we’ll see how Mr. Trump enacts his presidency, we can say that a return to exclusionism and populism is not good news for many things, business and business education included. The latter thrives on an open world in which talent, ideas and resources should be allowed to flow freely. Countries, like people and companies, do well in certain things but not so well in others. That’s where learning from and interacting with the others comes in. No matter how well you do locally, you wouldn’t be truly successful if you don’t know how to do business with people from somewhere else. That is why many western companies and their executives find their ventures or postings in, say, China or India, highly rewarding as they always learn new things in their host countries and take away invaluable insights. The converse is true for Asian companies and executives. How do you view the MBA rankings? I view it as a game but nonetheless a very important game in which the players have to play along. We know that one of the first things that a prospective student looks at is how a school is ranked. However, not all rankings are equal as some of them rely on subjective elements as their ranking criteria. To me, the Financial Times ranking, due to its data collection method, criteria and audit mechanism, is the most objective and therefore the ranking to reckon with. As all serious schools in the market, we take rankings seriously. But we would not just create a programme that is only good for ranking. We would want one that provides good value to the students and to the community as well. How would you compare the MBA programmes at INSEAD where you spent a decade and at CUHK? INSEAD is a large institution, so large that sometimes there’s little room for individuality, whereas our MBA is smaller and hence there are more ways to personalize the approach in teaching and learning which makes it of more value to the students. However, we would need to work more closely with practitioners to bring our curriculum more in alignment with the latest trends and concerns in the business sectors. Also, unlike INSEAD which offers business education exclusively, our MBA is embedded in the larger academic structure of a comprehensive university. There are many ways to leverage on the other expertise, resources and opportunities of CUHK. I see immense possibilities here. What are your priorities as MBA director? Curriculum and career are my top priorities. We have to make sure that our curriculum stay current and competitive and always serve the needs of the students and the society. We have to manage our corporate network, strengthen our career services and make sure that our graduates are placed with the right recruiters. Then we will also introduce more flexibility in our part-time programmes, so as to attract more applicants who will further enrich the diversity of backgrounds among our students and strengthen the ties with various sectors and businesses. What qualities do you look for in the MBA applicants? We do not look at GMAT scores exclusively but also an applicant’s drive and motivation and why he/she is making a big commitment to take up the MBA challenge. We are also looking to further the diversity in our student body in terms of professional experience, interest and aspiration. CUHKMBA is the oldest MBA programme in Hong Kong or possibly Asia. Is that an asset or a burden? It is definitely an asset. Very few business schools are endowed with such a long history and tradition as we are. However, we must not be complacent and we need to be always forward looking. We are fortunate to be able to ride on the backing of a strong and dedicated alumni body. This potent network can facilitate the school to achieve the next level of success. I am grateful to my predecessor and all those who have done such brilliant work to get the CUHK MBA where it is today, and would like to thank in advance those who will be working with me to take the programme to the next level. How have you been adjusting to life in CUHK and in Hong Kong? I had visited Hong Kong and China several times before taking up the MBA directorship here. I came with my young family and moved into the CUHK campus in August. We have had no problem at all in adjusting to the life here, except that it’s sometimes not easy to get in the New Territories a taxi whose driver speaks English. But it’s easy to set up house here and it’s efficient to run your errands and get your paperwork done. I have known countries and places that cannot boast the same kind of efficiency. People are friendly and helpful. The campus is lovely, with its verdant environment and fresh air. There are still so many places on campus for us to explore.