Recently twenty Executive MBA participants from Gothenburg participated in an intensive course on doing business in China. The course, held in Shanghai and Hangzhou, is an integrated part of the Gothenburg Executive MBA programme at the School of Business, Economics and Law, University of Gothenburg, Sweden. Visits to Chinese and multinational companies were combined with studies in Chinese Business and Supply Chain Management at two of China’s top universities, Zhejiang University and Shanghai Jiao Tong University.


The Executive MBA participants have diverse backgrounds and work in different business sectors. The common denominator is that they are managers, often with global roles in companies such as AstraZeneca, Husqvarna, Gunnebo, Stena and Volvo. The Gothenburg Executive MBA programme, which runs part-time over two years, focuses on emerging markets in Asia and aims to strengthen the participants’ skills on how to do business in countries like China, Korea, India and Japan.

The training course in China is divided into two modules, four days in Shanghai and four days in Hangzhou. Hangzhou has a population of nine million and is the capital of the Zhejiang province, which is characterized by entrepreneurship. The Zhejiang province has a higher growth rate than China in general, and many successful companies are based here.

Peter Karlén, Commercial Director, AmphoChem AB
Peter Karlén, Commercial Director, AmphoChem AB

“I work within a business group that sources materials on many different markets, mostly other than the Asian. As a first time visitor to China it was invaluable for me to gain access to the network and contacts that participation in this course offered. I found it especially interesting to hear about the logistical challenges in doing business on the Asian market. It was also valuable to take part of the endeavour from Chinese companies to go from imitation to innovation by developing new business models. Even if you only caught a glimpse of China’s importance as a world-wide marketplace you returned home with a greater understanding of the challenges that China faces going forward.  How can China maintain its growth whilst at the same time reduce the social gaps and increase social responsibility from the companies?” says Peter Karlén, Commercial Director, AmphoChem AB.

 

WaHaHa EMBA visit

The participants visited companies like Sunwin Bus, Shanghai Harbour, Jiashan Green Logistic Center and Wahah, as well as networked with executives working in China for companies like New Wave and Swedish Chamber of Commerce.

“Thanks to the School’s network of partner universities and companies in China, the participants were given the opportunity to visit a wide range of companies and educational modules at top universities. By arranging roundtable seminars and networking meetings with executives working in China, we provide our participants with a better understanding of Chinese economy and Chinese business culture,” comments Håkan Ericson, CEO GU School of Executive Education at the School of Business, Economics and Law in Gothenburg.

The modules in China include themes such as Chinese Culture, Chinese Business and Management, A Chinese Approach to Innovation, CSR Management and Sourcing in China, Establishing of Start-ups in China and Supply Chain Management. Both Zhejiang University and Shanghai Jiao Tong University are ranked as some of China’s top universities.

Do read Håkan Ericson’s blog posts from the trip to China:

https://www.guexed.com/executive-mba-class-in-china/

https://www.guexed.com/observations-on-everyday-life-in-china/

For more information, please contact:
Håkan Ericson, Managing Director, GU School of Executive Education, +46 31 786 53 81, +46 709 50 63 35,
e-mail hakan.ericson@handels.gu.se; www.handels.gu.se/exed

 

GU School of Executive Education at the School of Business, Economics and Law in Gothenburg offers the only AMBA-accredited Executive MBA Programme in Sweden as well as tailor-made programmes for internationally oriented companies in the Nordic market. Our education programmes are offered in, among other countries, the US, India, Singapore, Hong Kong, China and South Korea. By combining academic rigour with practical relevance we develop our clients’ key employees. http://www.guexed.com/