School news - HKU Business School

09 November

Seven HKU Business School faculty members recognised as top 1% scholars worldwide

Congratulations to our seven faculty members, who have been included in the list by Clarivate Analytics as the top 1% worldwide by citations in at least one of the 22 research fields:

Professor Chen Lin, Associate Dean (Research and Knowledge Exchange), Chair of Finance, Stelux Professor in Finance

Professor Kevin Zhou, Chair of Strategy and International Business, Chung Hon-Dak Professor in Strategy and International Business

Professor Simon Lam, Ian Davies Professor in Ethics, Professor in Management and Strategy

Professor Thomas Ng, Professor, Management and Strategy

Professor Bennett Yim, Area Head of Marketing

Dr. Yi Tang, Associate Professor, Management and Strategy

Professor Patrick Chau, Honorary Professor, Innovation and Information Management

Data source: Essential Science Indicators, Updated as of July 9, 2020 to cover a 10-year plus 4-month period, January 1, 2010-April 30, 2020

Learn more about HKU Scholars in the Top 1%: http://hub.hku.hk/local/top1pc/top1pc.jsp

09 November

Silver Lining in the Storm – Driving An Economic Transformation to Boost the Prosperity of Hong Kong

2020 is a year full of challenges but not lack of opportunities for technologies related in finance and business to shine. It is also a year where corporate leadership and visionary management of directors put to the absolute test. Themed ‘Vanguard in Challenging Times’, the Director’s Symposium 2020 organised by The Hong Kong Institute of Directors had gathered over 200 directors and senior officers from diverse enterprises. A few of top industry leaders and business experts were invited to share their managerial insights on how to steer through the increasingly turbulent world. One of the guest speakers, Professor Hongbin Cai, Dean of HKU Business School, led a highlighted talk on an overview of economic outlook during the event.

Professor Cai believes that the global economy’s future is ultimately dependent on the duration of the COVID-19 pandemic, and the stability of individual economies prior the pandemic. Regarding to the second point, Professor Cai observes that the global economy has never fully recovered from the 2008 financial crises due to expansionary monetary policies and close-to-zero interest rates. These policies have wrought long term damages and malign sequelae to the global financial systems lasting hitherto. While excessive liquidity propelled asset prices in the global stock market, it also created a decade long of jobless growth worldwide, exacerbating income inequality on a global scale that pulled the trigger of deglobalisation.

In a world full of uncertainty and fear, at the center of its stage, Professor Cai sees the intensifying tension between the United States (US) and China. He believes that the US will continue to contain China regardless of the result of the US Election. Regarding the economic strength of the US, Professor Cai believes that it is supported by a strong microeconomic foundation. Research and Development of the US remains top notched, and its innovation industry is vigorous and booming. However, it is currently flanked by social crisis and recessive economic problems brought by zero interest rates and national debt. As the US economy is full of uncertainties, it is futile to predict its future. Professor Cai urges the audience to stay tuned to the US’ presidential election for better insights.

China on the other hand, is on better grounds. Not only it is the only major country manages to fully contain domestic spread of COVID-19, it is the only major economy that manages to have positive economic growth in 2020. However, Professor Cai calls for prudence as deglobalisation and the pandemic have caused a replacement effect. Countries around the world will attempt to relocate their entire supply chains or part of their supply chains overseas in order to diversify production risks. In addition, sanctions from the US may also dissuade foreign capital from landing in China.

To survive the new normal, China has come up with the idea of ‘Dual Circulations’. Professor Cai stresses that dual circulation is not seclusion. It still emphasises further opening-up of the economy and bolstering ties with other nations. But the balance will inevitably be tilting towards the domestic market. Against this backdrop, Professor Cai predicts that, in the upcoming 14^th Five-Year Plan, the central government will stress more on cracking down speculation on real estates and manufacturing investments. On the other hand, it will require local governments to ponder new investment plans on technological innovations, while maintaining a delicate balance between growth and social welfare.

Professor Cai believes that ‘Dual Circulations’ could also benefit the Hong Kong economy. He observes the competitiveness of Hong Kong’s intermediary-based economy is being eroded by increasing deglobalisation and technological development worldwide, and its growth momentum has lost before the pandemic and social unrest. Therefore, Hong Kong must transform to a knowledge-based, innovation-driven economy and fully utilise its unique strengths to contribute in China’s external circulation. As Hong Kong has always managed to emerge stronger after surmounting an adversity, Professor Cai is positive that Hong Kong will eventually prevail.

03 November

HKU Echo Wen Wan named among MSI’s top marketing academics

Professor Echo Wen Wan, Professor of Marketing at HKU Business School, recently became a Marketing Science Institute (MSI) Scholar – a distinguished accolade to recognise top mid-career academics for their high-quality research which demonstrates strong practical relevance to address real-world marketing issues.

“I am honoured to be selected as one of the 35 MSI Scholars in 2020. As I was awarded as a MSI Young Scholar back in 2013, I feel grateful for MSI’s nurturing all along. Their continued recognition motivates me to keep pursuing my research interests and establishing more academic-industry partnerships. I would also like to thank HKU Business School for providing me such an inspiring environment. The encouragement and support I have received from my wonderful colleagues have helped me get to where I am today,” said Professor Wan.

Professor Wan’s research focuses on anthropomorphism of marketing with a sharp focus on how various types of anthropomorphism features on AI devices and service robot (e.g. physical morphology and voice) may affect consumers’ motivational, cognitive, affective and behavioural responses and the implications for marketers. Anthropomorphism refers to the use of personification in branding and communication. The M&M chocolate bean characters and Michelin man are classic examples. This line of research offers insights for marketers and industries on when they will benefit versus suffer from using brand or product anthropomorphism and how they can use anthropomorphism wisely in their marketing strategies.

At HKU, Professor Wan is also the Associate Director of the Contemporary Marketing Centre. She received her PhD degree in Marketing from Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University.

MSI is a non-profit research organisation dedicated to bridging the gap between academic marketing theory and business practice. Professor Echo Wan and Dr. Jayson Jia were named as MSI Young Scholars in 2013 and 2019 respectively. Professor David Tse, Chair Professor of International Marketing, served as a MSI Academic Trustee in 2008 to advise and support MSI’s research efforts and represent MSI’s worldwide community of marketing scholars.

02 November

HKU Information Day 2018

The Faculty of Business and Economics hosted more than 20 sessions of admission seminars and programme talks as well as a programme information exhibition at the HKU Information Day held on November 3, 2018. Thousands of guests were attracted to this annual event. Prospective students and their parents were able to interact with our faculty members and student ambassadors, and learned about the academic and campus life in HKU.

02 November

Congratulations to the Class of 2018!

The HKU 200th Congregation and the Faculty of Business and Economics Graduation Ceremony was held at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre on November 12, 2018. The ceremony was presided by Professor Xiang Zhang, the President and Vice-Chancellor of HKU.

We are honoured to have Ms Louisa Cheang, Vice-Chairman and Chief Executive of Hang Seng Bank, as our Guest-of-Honour to address the graduates this year. Ms Cheang is a proud alumnus of HKU and a Chapter Honouree of Beta Gamma Sigma – The University of Hong Kong Chapter. She has been a seasoned banking professional and recognised as one of the successful female leaders in the industry.

In the ceremony, Ms Cheang delivered her keynote speech to graduates. She gave her heartfelt congratulations to all the graduates and wished them every success in their future.

02 November

Edward K Y Chen Distinguished Lecture Series 2018

The Faculty of Business and Economics was honored to have Professor Chan Heng Chee, Chairman of Lee Kuan Yew Centre for Innovative Cities in the Singapore University of Technology and Design, and Ambassador-at-Large with the Singapore’s Foreign Ministry, as the keynote speaker at The Edward K Y Chen Distinguished Lecture on November 19, 2018.

The Lecture started by an insightful talk by Professor Chan on the topic of “The United States and Asia: the New Geo-Politics and Geo-Economics”, followed by a panel discussion joined by distinguished guests Professor K C Chan, Ms. Tara Joseph and The Honourable Jeffrey Lam Kin-fung, and a Q&A session hosted by Professor Larry Qiu.

The “Edward K Y Chen Distinguished Lecture Series” was initiated by a group of former HKU students of Professor Chen from the early 1970s. Established through a fund set up in 2007, this Lecture Series represents a tribute to an honoured teacher and a distinguished scholar, and aspires to demonstrate the fine tradition of great respect and appreciation for Teachers and Mentors (“尊師重道”) to future generations.

The Lecture Series is held annually and is presented by the Faculty of Business and Economics.

29 October

BBA (IBGM) student Shivang Singh garners recognition from The Global Undergraduate Awards for his research

Shivang Singh, a year 4 BBA(IBGM) student, has been recognised as “Highly Commended Entrant” by The Global Undergraduate Awards (UA) for his research paper “Investigating the business ethics of bike-sharing companies”.

Every year, UA coordinates an awards programme for penultimate and final year undergraduate students, as well as students who have graduated within the programme year. Entrants can submit their work to one of our 25 categories, which represent a broad range of academic disciplines.

Shivang’s work was considered to be among the top 10% of academic coursework submitted globally in the “Business” category. His study draws on the evolution of the peer-to-peer based sharing economy and uncovers the non-compliance of bike-sharing companies with ethical conduct standards.

“I am deeply grateful to Mr. David Bishop for expanding my knowledge in business ethics, corporate governance and corporate social responsible. After further revision, I aspire to get it published in an academic journal,” said Shivang.

About The Global Undergraduate Awards

The Global Undergraduate Awards is the world’s leading academic awards programme which recognises top undergraduate work, shares this work with a global audience and connects students across cultures and disciplines.

29 October

Deans from Top Business Schools Joined The Stanford China Economic Forum To Facilitate International Collaborations and Explore Education Trends

Themed with ‘The Future of Business Education in the U.S. and China’, the Stanford China Economic Forum 2020 was held online on October 16 (Friday). Three Deans from the world-leading Business Schools were invited to the event to share their insights, including Professor Hongbin Cai, Dean of HKU Business School, Professor Ann Harrison, The Bank of America Dean of Haas School of Business, University of California, Berkeley, together with Jonathan Levin, The Philip H. Knight Professor and Dean of the Graduate School of Business, Stanford University.

As the world begins to emerge from the COVID-19 pandemic, these challenging times call for more dialogue and collaborations across public health, education, government and business. The Stanford China Economic Forum aims at gathering business experts and scholars to promote dialogue, an open exchange of ideas, and collaboration across institutes, districts and countries. During the Forum, the Deans discussed the upcoming teaching and learning trends under various challenges brought by the pandemic, the rising tensions between China and US and the social movements. The ways on how to adapt and respond to all external factors that affect Education, as well as providing the best learning environment amidst major global incidents were the key focuses of the Forum.

A coin has two sides; and crisis always creates opportunities. Professor Hongbin Cai, Dean of HKU Business School believes that the wide use of remote teaching technologies during this challenging period will not be able to replace the tradition face-to-face teaching, however, will certainly add value to the future mode of teaching even after the pandemic. ‘Some of the teaching methods and technologies we are using now offer flexibilities to students and provide more effective ways to keep the class together,’ He said.

‘The current hybrid mode adopted allows students to participate in class despite the limitation of quarantine policies, travel restrictions or tight schedules for working students. In lectures with large group of students, technology also helps to encourage interaction between students and the lecturer. Students could raise their questions though the chatroom and get their queries settled.’

Professor Cai also appreciated the efforts by Stanford University for organising this Forum during his wrap-up speech. ‘This is a very good opportunity for facilitating the collaboration between academics and students, across China and the US. As Hong Kong is a truly international place and HKU is a truly international university, I am looking forward to building a stronger collaboration across the Pacific Ocean. It is vital for us to build a stronger community to house people from different backgrounds sharing different views, and to mutually respect each other.’

29 October

Interview with UGC Teaching Award 2020 Awardee: Mr. David Lee

From conference room to classroom

As one of the three winners of the well-recognised University Grants Committee (UGC) Teaching Award this year, Mr. David Lee, Principal Lecturer of HKU Business School, has received a number of awards for teaching excellence and innovation during his five years in HKU. Prior to entering the Education sector, Mr. Lee was having a promising career in the finance industry. The birth of his daughter however, was a turning point in life. “When I was working in the finance industry, I had to travel frequently, separated from my children at least one week per month. I thought if this continues, by the time my daughter is 20 I’ll have missed 5 years of her life and it didn’t seem worth it.” Based on Mr. Lee’s penchant for making a meaningful impact to the world, he eventually moved forward from generating value for shareholders, to nurturing leaders of tomorrow.

“New Normal” in Teaching

Mr. Lee observes that a lot of new technologies have emerged throughout the pandemic. For instance, virtual reality technologies have enabled students to attend field trips without physically traveling. But as the transfer of business knowledge requires minimal physical interaction, Mr. Lee believes that technology is not the most important component to business schools. On the other hand, as long as a teacher can engage students effectively, even the most traditional teaching tools can still deliver excellent classroom experiences.

However, Mr. Lee does believe that a new teaching trend is incubating. With extensive experience teaching online even before the current pandemic, Mr. Lee believes that the pandemic will have students cherish classroom learning more. However, as online learning has proven its value throughout this pandemic, even when an effective vaccine for the coronavirus is made, online learning components will permanently stay in our education system. Only time would tell how the balance between online and classroom learning changes.

Grit trumps wit

During the interview, we were captivated by Mr. Lee’s memorable collection of thank-you cards written by students. “Receiving thank you cards and emails from former students sharing their updates are really gratifying to me as an educator.” Teaching in HKU for 5 years, Mr. Lee praised the good potential of HKU Students, yet the most memorable students are not those with the highest grades, but those that managed to overcome adversity.

Mr. Lee believes that it takes short-term discipline and good time management to attain good grades in a course, but it takes grit, perpetual perseverance, and an indomitable will to deal with life crisises, learning his students’ success stories of surviving adversity has become an impetus for Mr. Lee to develop his pedagogy for the betterment of students.

An epic journey upcoming

The remarkable honour from the UGC does not slow down Mr. Lee’s pace in his teaching journey. Instead, Mr. Lee is dedicated to create new initiatives for further advancing the knowledge of students and enriching their learning experience. He plans to develop a digital library over the next 3 years that houses a variety of resources related ethics and leadership. This will hopefully become a platform for Asian leaders to explore ideas and solutions to their business challenges, and also a business case bank for business education. Mr. Lee observes that existing business case studies on ethics and leadership are mostly Western-oriented and developing such resources based on Asia experiences is important. Attempting to create a new learning category within the academic circle is ambitious, but Mr. Lee looks to the future with vigor and optimism.

29 October

UG students win top 10 in World Asian Case Competition 2020

A team of two students from HKU Business School won the top 10 in World Asian Case Competition 2020. Themed on “Thriving business in the Asian region”, the competition requires participants to research on a self-picked business in the Asian region, featuring the business’s turning points, key success factors, future challenges and solutions, and takeaway lessons of the case. It provides participants with insights into a wide variety of companies in different industries in Asia, and enables them to sharpen their skills that will be useful for future case competition.

World Asian Case Competition (WACC) is an annual international case competition organised by the Academy of Asian Business. It was divided into three parts, namely (i) short proposal in around 400 words, (ii) final proposal in around 10,000 words, and (iii) final presentation for around 15 minutes.

Advisor:

Dr. Matthias BUEHLMAIER, BBA (IBGM) Programme Director, The University of Hong Kong

Team Member:

Mr. HO Wai Yiu Ryan, BBA(IBGM), Year 4
Mr. CHAN Chau Yin, BBA(Law)&LLB, Year 3
(This team comprises 1 more team member from other HKU faculty.)

Students sharing:

Through the studying of the fast-emerging markets and business in Asia, not only did we practise the skills that we learned, we also gained a more realistic and thorough understanding of different business opportunities in the vast Asian market. During the competition, we were able to sharpen our research skills and do an in-depth case study on Asian business model, which provided an opportunity for us to orientate ourselves in the business world. In a nutshell, the competition helped us to paint a broader and more colourful picture of the Asian market. We are grateful for having such valuable opportunity.