Executive education makes mark
By Erin ZureickUpdated: 2007-07-13 08:44
As the PowerPoint slides flash across the projection screen, the students in professor Ben Sopranzetti's seminar furiously scrawled in their notebooks in an attempt to keep pace.
Equity. Debt. Hybrid financing. These are all part of the discussion as Sopranzetti, a professor of finance and economics at Rutgers University's business school, gives a presentation on venture financing to a capacity crowd in Beijing's China Life Building.
Pacing around the room with his microphone, Sopranzetti mixes fundamental business advice with recommendations tailored for those trying to seal deals in China.
"The right choice of bank makes all the difference here," Sopranzetti explained at one point while addressing debt financing.
The monthly seminar, which had its July meeting on Wednesday, is part of Rutgers' international executive MBA program. Those in attendance were a mix of foreign and Chinese students currently enrolled in the program, as well as alumni. Some flew in from other parts of China — and even across the globe — to attend.
"It's a chance for me to learn," said Linda Lin, a Chinese student in the program who is in charge of product and commercial management at Siemens, an electric and electronic company with strong ties in China.
"What we're learning is very close to your life, both practical or business," added Lin, who flew in for the seminar from the eastern province of Shandong.
Getting in the game
With China's economy booming, more international companies are setting up shop in the Middle Kingdom. And more universities are offering MBAs, or masters in business administration programs to accommodate the increasing demand for executives.
The University of Maryland's Smith School of Business, which partners with
the University of International Business and Economics in Beijing, began to
offer its Chinese MBA program in 2002 and introduced an executive MBA program in
Shanghai two years ago. Portland State University announced earlier this month
that it's in negotiations with Peking University to become the first American
university to offer an executive MBA program online for Chinese students.
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