From the Presidents: Building CEIBS' Future Together
From the Presidents
Dear alumni,
We live in a complex era, where rapid technological developments enable us to effortlessly connect with friends both near and far. Nevertheless, we still opt to fall back on traditional qualities such as sincerity, tolerance, and trust when we want to bring people closer together. In our role at the ‘head’ of the CEIBS family, we aim to strengthen the school’s ties with alumni through a blend of modernity and tradition. That’s why, each quarter, we will be sending out a digital letter to inform you of the school’s latest developments and plans for the future. We look forward to hearing more from you!
The year 2019 marks the 25th anniversary of CEIBS. This is a tremendous milestone that fills us with joy and hope for the future. The year got off to a great start with news that CEIBS’ MBA programme has climbed to #5 in the Financial Times’ global ranking. This makes us the only business school in Asia with both MBA and EMBA programmes in the FT’s top five. Of course, we would never have gotten there without the hard work of students, faculty, and staff at each of our five global locations, nor without our 22,000-strong network of alumni located around the world. Your outstanding contributions to the business world are a credit to the school’s name, and a testament to your own worth.
From January 21-22, the 2019 EFMD Conference for Deans & Directors General was held on our Shanghai campus. Over 300 decision-makers from 55 business schools around the world descended on the city to share valuable insights on innovation in management education. This marked the first time, in its 46-year history, that this prestigious event was being hosted outside of Europe, underscoring a shift in the center of gravity of global management education toward China. Globalization is embedded in the CEIBS culture. Having completed our metamorphosis, we are now embarking on the next stage of our splendid journey.
From January to March, alumni organizations across China held a succession of annual conferences along a common theme of Learning and growing together through communication. Together with other members of the school’s leadership and faculty, we attended a number of these events. We were especially inspired by the family-like atmosphere among the CEIBS community over the Spring Festival period. Meanwhile, as part of our mission to ‘serve alumni, give back to CEIBS, and contribute to society’, the school is supporting the CEIBS Alumni Association as it prepares to host its annual meeting and the CEIBS CSR Forum. In February, our alumni Zhou Xinyan (EMBA 2015) and Jin Guangxue (EMBA 2011), as well as 16 members of the CEIBS Family Business Second Generation Private Board, made generous donations to the CEIBS Education Foundation to fund research work at the CEIBS Center for Family Heritage. On behalf of CEIBS, we’d like to take this opportunity to thank them, as well as each and every alumnus who has contributed to the school since its inception, though you are too numerous to name individually. We will forever cherish your heartfelt affection for the school; you bring great honor to our name.
If a centenary can be considered a major milestone, then CEIBS is already a quarter of the way there. We are deeply gratified that over the past quarter century, CEIBS has evolved into a world-renowned business school that relentlessly pursues academic excellence, and which now ranks among the best in Asia. The school has made major contributions to China’s growth and economic integration with the rest of the world. It has also helped to sow seeds of faith and virtue within the business community, and inspired countless students to aim beyond financial success; the pursuit of innovation will forever be part of the CEIBS spirit. In celebration of the school’s 25th anniversary in 2019, we are organizing a series of exciting events to look back on our achievements and envision the future together with you all. In April, we will hold parallel Anniversary Launch Ceremonies in Beijing and Shanghai, which will coincide with the CEIBS MBA graduation ceremony and the annual CEIBS CSR Forum. In addition, from May to October, we will host forums in cities across Asia, the US, and Europe to spark ideas and generate discussion. To culminate the festivities, we will also hold a gala event in November.
Finally, if we can share some words of wisdom, let them be the following: The key to the future lies not in your previous successes, but in holding true to your aspirations, cherishing life, putting long-term goals ahead of short-term gratification, and spending a lifetime in pursuit of the essence of entrepreneurship.
We look forward to marching hand in hand with you along the way!
Sincerely,
CEIBS
President
Prof. Li Mingjun
President (European)
Prof. Dipak C. Jain