JAN 18 - Tsinghua-Harvard Executive Education Program celebrated its fifth anniversary inBeijingKerryCenter. Professor McFarlan, Senior Associate Dean of Harvard Business School (HBS), Ms. Kharajian, Director for External Relations of HBS and Mr. Chen Shida, Executive Director ofHBSAsia-PacificResearchCenterattended this milestone event. The joint program faculty, staff and more than 150 students who attendedTsinghua-Harvard Executive Education Programwere among the participants at the anniversary ceremony.

Professor He Jiankun, Executive Vice President ofTsinghuaUniversityand the new dean of the Tsinghua School of Economics and Management congratulated on the success of the Tsinghua-Harvard Executive Education Program for the past five years. He pointed out that the Tsinghua-Harvard Executive Education Program not only strengthened the brand of Tsinghua Executive Education but also equipped many business entrepreneurs and executives inChinawith strategic vision, global perspectives and management skills. Besides, through cooperation with world-class business schools like HBS, Tsinghua SEM upgraded its own teaching and management capacity, developed its faculty and raised the program qualities close to the international standards for high-level executive education programs. He emphasized that SEM, via direct cooperation with HBS, had the opportunity to cultivate the management and executive team, introduce a series of advanced teaching methodologies in line with the school’s long-term development strategy. In addition, through the SEM-HBS program, Tsinghua business school has built up a high-level alumni network, which will be valuable resources for the school’s long-term development.

Professor McFarlan HBS Senior Associate Dean, spoke highly of the strategic alliance between Tsinghua SEM and HBS, through which faculty from both sides have established very close relationship and enhanced their teaching and research capacity. Not only Tsinghua SEM was empowered, HBS’s faculty was also given the access to better understandChina’s economy and Chinese enterprises. He indicated the SEM-HBS cooperation should and will be promoted to a higher level.

Professor Zhao Chunjun, former dean of SEM, Ms. Kharajian from HBS, and Li Jianqing, Director of Tsinghua-Harvard Program at SEM also delivered speeches at the event, representing SEM leadership and the management teams on both SEM and HBS sides. Afterwards, Professor McFarlan addressed the audience on the topic of organizational transformation.

The event marked the end of the first five-year joint program, but it was truly the beginning of the life-long friendship among the alumni. Mr. Ma Weihua, President of Southeast Chapter of Alumni Club, sent his congratulatory letter to the session. Mr. Li Jieyin fromHong Kong, on behalf of all his classmates, called for charity donations from the SEM alumni to fund an education scholarship. The call received warm and positive responses from the audience.

SEM alumni all expressed their strong desire and intent to continue their active participation in the school’s future programs. Faculty and administrators from the school made the commitment that they would make all their efforts in keeping pace with the market dynamics and in understanding the changing demand of the business community for executive education, on basis of which to further develop new and better programs that will effectively integrate global trends with Chinese domestic practices. They sent their best wishes toChina’s business executives and hope to serve their needs more effectively through SEM and international programs. SEM faculty and staff encouraged everyone present to share new thoughts and knowledge, learn from each other, and prepare themselves to work hard for greater achievement in the future.