An 18-member team comprising alumni of the HKUST EMBA for Chinese Executives (HKUST EMBA) Program and Kellogg-HKUST EMBA Program has successfully completed a grueling 112km expedition across the Gobi Desert in the 6th Inter-Business School Gobi Challenge 2011.
The annual event, held on 16-19 May 2011 and supported by such organizations as CCTV, China Entrepreneur magazine, QQ.com and Baidu, invited 18 top business schools* in the region to take part in this year's trek. Over 350 EMBA alumni from the participating schools overcame tough physical and psychological ordeals and braved extreme desert weather conditions over the four-day race. Among the 18 teams, 11 teams, including the HKUST Business School, achieved qualified results and have successfully completed the race.
The route of the inspirational journey followed that taken by the great monk Xuan Zang in the Tang Dynasty, who embarked on a journey to the west and crossed the Gobi Desert 1,400 years ago. The participating teams began the race at Ta Er Temple in Guazhou, Gansu Province, and reached the finish at the Baidunzi.
This is the second time the HKUST Business School team has participated in the arduous race. It is also the only business school in Hong Kong that has participated in this event. This year's team was led by Professor Yan Xu, Associate Dean and HKUST EMBA Program Director, and Professor Hilton Chan, Adjunct Assistant Professor of the HKUST Business School. Members experienced not only an exciting and enduring expedition, but also a chance to practise perseverance and to gain inspirations about life and management issues.
Professor Yan Xu said, "I am very proud to have participated in this mind-body challenge. The Gobi Challenge is considered part of our post-EMBA program and it provides alumni with an opportunity for life-long learning and for networking with alumni of various intakes as well as people from other business schools. This challenge has undoubtedly enhanced the bonding of the alumni relations across intakes and also across programs. The HKUST Business school team has lived the HKUST spirit by adhering to the regulations of the competition and ethical standards, which impressed the organizer and the other competing teams. In addition to the Gobi Challenge, the HKUST EMBA Program will continue to offer more inspiring post-EMBA programs and home-coming activities to further strengthen the alumni's sense of belongings to the program and the University."
HKUST EMBA alumnus and the first team member to reach the finish of the Challenge, Mr. Kevin Zheng, said the journey was unforgettable. "It was a truly inspirational and remarkable life-time experience. The race presented a hard test of physical endurance, but it also gave us a chance to work on team building, problem-solving and crisis management. I was very impressed by our team's strong spirit. By supporting and caring for each other, we were able to successfully complete the trek."
The HKUST EMBA for Chinese Executives Program is the University's only bilingual degree program taught in both English and Chinese. It is designed especially for Chinese-speaking senior executives in Greater China and overseas. Students comprise senior executives from a wide range of industries, and from Hong Kong as well as from different cities in Mainland China and Taiwan. The program aims to develop students into business leaders in their fields in China and the Asia Pacific region. It currently has an alumni network of around 300 in the Asia Pacific region.
Learn more about the HKUST EMBA for Chinese Executives Program at http://hkustemba.ust.hk/en-us/pages/home
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Learn more about 6th Inter-Business School Gobi Challenge 2011 at http://www.bizchallenge.net/
* List of participating Business Schools:
Guanghua School of Management, Peking University
Cheung Kong Graduate School of Business
School of Management, Fudan University
Antai College of Economics & Management, Shanghai Jiao Tong University
National University of Singapore Business School
Nanyang Business School
HKUST Business School
School of Business, Renmin University of China
China Europe International Business School
School of Business, East China University of Science and Technology
College of Management, National Taiwan University
School of Economics and Management, Beijing University of Posts and Telecommunications
School of Management and Economics, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China
Business School, University of International Business and Economics
School of Management, Shandong University
School of Management, Xian Jiaotong University
School of Management, Xiamen University
School of Management, Zhejiang University