Being the time of the year with the most energy and vigour, Spring is the season of my personal favourite, for the weather, the green but also the vibrance our students bring to the Centre - it is the MBA peak workshop season. I would like to welcome students, current and new to immerse yourself in the study experience in China Centre. Also to thank all our support staff for a job well done!

Coming up is the Labour Day break and also the 7th Asia Business School Desert Challenge, which will be launched in inner-Mongolia over the break. It is a tough test of strength, speed and determination. With all our MBAs successfully finished the 3-day 70km desert hike winning the top 'ShaOu' prize last year, we wish them the best of luck and a proud return!

Looking back ten years, the Centre was founded in 2008. That makes 2018 the most important and soon most memorable year for us. 10 years ago, as the Business School's overseas arm, the Centre was founded. I was lucky enough to be the founding Director. 10 years on, we have successfully helped increase awareness of the University in China, established partnerships with institutions and corporates and most importantly brought to local professionals blended-learning programmes of Manchester quality. Proudly adding to the portfolio, will be a selection of Masters Programme and a short-term credit-bearing management and leadership programme, to better assist our future students with personal and career development.

To celebrate the occasion , I would like to invite our students and alumni to join me for our big 10th anniversary celebration in September.

We hope to turn our birthday into an event where you share the best memory of Manchester with friends and MBA colleagues.

Sherry Fu

China Centre Director

With elective courses being delivered across international centres for Global MBA students this March and April, many have chosen to study at the home Campus in Manchester. In addition to academic challenges, the MBAs also enjoyed the culture, history, architect and social life the experience had to offer. 

Established in 2008 as an overseas presence of Manchester Business School, on 25th September 2016 China Centre was the first overseas centre to be re-opened as The University of Manchester (UMW) China Centre by Professor Dame Nancy Rothwell, President and Vice-Chancellor of the University. After 10 years of endeavour, China Centre will continue its commitment, serving the University of Manchester's international strategy and further exerting its influence in China. In celebration of our 10th anniversary, a series of events will be laucnhed including a  celebration dinner this September! 

On 22nd April, Michelle Ma, AMBS MBA Alumnus, a manager of a famous commercial bank with 4 years working experience in Dubai, offered to share with alumni her experience and prospectives  on the economy and culture of Dubai. To ease in and familiarize alumni with Dubai, Michelle started her introduction with showing Dubai’s tourism icons such as Dubai Tower, Jalor hotel and its bright sun, beautiful beach, large shopping centers and luxurious hotels. 

Our GMBA students come from cities all across China, in addition to Shanghai, Beijing, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Hubei and Fujian, a significant number of students come from cities in West China. On  20th and 21st April, centre staff traveled to Chengdu and Chongqin respectively to meet our candidates and applicants. Coming up this May, there will be a series of Information Session and Face-to-Face counseling sessions to be held in Wuhan, Hangzhou and Nanjing. Information can be found on centre website.

On 8th Mar, China Centre hosted a relaxing afternoon session with current students, alumni and interested future MBA students to join. We were excited to have Ms. Flora Wang, Senior VP in Global Capital Market of JLL to share her story being a career women taking leadership role in a global enterprise while being a mother of three. Invited guest speak also includes, Dr. Aoni Xie from SinoUnited Health to share a talk on female health. 

As we reach the busiest time for applications for July 2018 GMBA, China Centre hosted various Information Sessions all across China including several in Beijing. On 17th Mar, we were glad to have invited Ms. Annie Yang Jing, our Jan 2017 intake GMBA student for a sharing session. Annie has over 20 years' work experience in B2B marketing in IT industry with both Global 4A marketing agency and in in-house. The session was not only casual but also insightful.

On 10^th Jan 2017, the new intake of Manchester Global MBA students received a warm welcome to start their 2-year MBA journey at The University of Manchester China Centre in Shanghai. The induction session was hosted by Ms. Sherry Fu, UoM China Centre Director. Joining Sherry were Dr, Jiyao Xun, Associate MBA Director and members of the student support team. The cohort comprised of students coming from diverse backgrounds with average experience of 8-15 years’ experience, including finance, pharmaceutical, manufacturing and consulting. 

Venture capital and Private Equity are two types of funds that are very popular with funding new technologies, start-up companies. Investors of this type are gaining much attention with companies invested in acquiring exposure and market success. On Wednesday 18th April, Mr. Jan Gregory deivers an introductory talk to students and interested MBA applicants the on underlying mechanism, the pros and cons of being funded by Venture Capital or Private Equity.

On Monday 16th April, introducing meso-data as data with  memory  and emotions, Prof. Patrick McNutt discussed  the phenomenon of 'onsumers' - a  new  word to describe  online consumers.  Algorithms track and capture onsumer behavioural patterns. Data with memory and emotions goes beyond individual choice. Building on a series of anecdotes from behavioural economics Patrick presented a critical review of data patterns using game theory in an attempt to also define a smart strategy for business.

On Tuesday 23rd Jan, Manchester Global MBA July 2018 intake welcomed its first Taster session on Strategic Management. As Jan 2018 intake students finish induction and start their Manchester MBA journey, China Centre invited Ms. Irene Roele, experienced strategy consultant, researcher and academic at Alliance Manchester Business School.

On Tuesday, 20th March,  Manchester Global MBA team had an interactive session running on the study of Operations and Marketing. The session was delivered by Mr. Antony Paulraj, who has extensive experience in Operations with research interests in the areas of sustainability, supply chain management, strategic supply management, supply chain innovation, and inter-organizational systems.

How do companies form business Strategies? What do business strategies constitute of? What are the economic reasoning behind every market decision by firms?  On Tuesday, 13th March, Economics Academic and Strategy Consultant Paul Patton offered to China Centre students and prospective students a taster session with real case studies of the Managerial Economics focusing on the following aspects: Elasticity as a strategic variable; Cost leadership as a strategic tool; Game theory as a strategic weapon.

On 22nd April, China Centre Continue Study Club invited Dr. Chen Dafei, previously a visiting scholar at the University of Manchester, to deliver a talk on the very hot topic of short-term challenges and long-term difficulties of China's economic development. More than 70 alumni and students attended the talk. Dr. Chen first analyzed financial risks and structural deleveraging in its logic and method. Then he explored the trade friction between America and China focusing on its cause, confrontation and prospect. 

On 22nd April, to connect new students with senior alumni, a Sunday breakfast social was held at the University of Manchester China Centre. The workshop tutor Professor Oswaldo Lorenzo and more than 10 workshop starters and alumni from different industries such as healthcare, HR, marketing, finance etc presented the mixer. The networking session began at 8:30am, thirty minutes before the workshop to make it convenient and feasible for workshop attendants. 

On 18th April, a group of more than 20 students and alumni visited Guan Sheng Yuan Group Internet and Finance Park (“GSY Park”), which occupies 12,000 square meters in central Shanghai. The GSY Park, originally the headquarter site for the Guan Sheng Yuan Group, now mainly provides free community space for the public and incubation sites for start-ups in areas such as internet, finance, and innovation.

On 23rd Mar., the China Centre Healthcare Club has invite Audrey Lu (AMBS GMBA alumnus), Hongwei Zhao (AMBS  MBA Alumnus) and Pan Wei to give us a brief discussion on 1) the ‘two invoice systems’ in pharma distribution; 2) policy change and trend analysis on Tendering; and 3) solutions exploration on “2nd price negotiation & hospital sales volume control”. Alumni from healthcare sector gathered for knowledge sharing. The three-hour sharing was information-packed and followed clear and logical orders, respectively. 

On 18th Mar., China Centre kids club welcomed its second club event this year on Early Age Reading in English. Ivy Yang, an AMBS GMBA alumnus, a mom of a 5-year old boy, and an advocate for early childhood English learning via board games, drawing books and other fun teaching tools delivered an interactive sharing session.  Alumni parents and kids engaged in various ice-breaking board games. 

On 18th Mar., Allen Mao, an AMBS alumnus and the founder of China Centre continue study club, delivered Session Two of Innovation-Driven Start-Ups, continuing the discussion on how to best utilize the innovative spirit in a start-up. In particular, he adapted Sun Tzu's military strategies or the art of war in the business setting creatively. The art of war is an ancient Chinese military treatise dating from the Spring and Autumn period attributed to the ancient Chinese military strategist Sun Tzu.

On 5th Feb, Bejing-based alumni visited IET (the Institution of Engineering and Technology) at its China office in central Beijing.  The company visit was organised by the University of Manchester China Centre and led by Ms. Sherry Fu, China Centre director. Mr. Wei Du, Manager at IET China office, a GMBA alumnus and an active member in the Beijing alumni community, introduced the institution by sharing its mission: to inspire, inform, influence and impact the global engineering community, supporting technology innovation to meet the needs of society. Throughout the 3-hour sharing, alumni from SAP, ALSTOM and consulting firms were delighted to see much potential for future cooperation.

On 3rd Feb, in celebration of Chinese New Year, the Western Returned Scholars Association Overseas-educated Scholars Association of China UK Chapter organized 2018 New Year Gala at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. Co-hosts include the University of Manchester alumni association. Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor (current Chief Executive of Hong Kong), Tieniu Tan (vice President of SORSA), Pijun Wang (Secretary of Party Committeeof SORSA), Carma Elliot (director China at British Council) and other distinguished guests celebrated this special occasion with more than 400 returned scholars from the UK. With good company, food, performances and prizes, a great evening provided opportunities for UoM alumni and UMW China Centre Director Sherry Fu to mingle with friends old and new from other UK universities.

In the morning of Saturday, 27th Jan., China Centre kids club welcomed its first offline event in celebration of the upcoming Chinese New Year. Jenfay Yang, an AMBS alumnus and the founder of China Centre Kids club, welcomed registered families by showing the video of President Donald Trump’s granddaughter Arabella’s greeting to China's President and First Lady in fluent and perfect Mandarin, followed by her singing and reciting ancient Chinese poetry in Mandarin. 

On 20th Jan, Allen Mao, an AMBS alumnus and the founder of China Centre continue study club, was invited to share with audience his views on what innovation-driven start-ups ought to be considering in everyday management. Having started a company himself, Allen analyzed existing start-up types and step-by-step start-up processes and carefully illustrated through examples and case studies that start-ups are in great need of innovations at all preparation, incubation, illumination, and verification stages. 

On 13th Jan., at Mcloud China Centre welcomed its first club event in 2018 on Omnichannel Marketing for Brand Commitment, where intensive discussion revolves around how to integrate traditional and digital media and experience to create seamless and consistent customer experience. Invited speakers were Mr. Eric Weng, AMBS GMBA Alumnus and Managing Director of Carat China; Mr. Paul Lin, Chief Strategy Officer at OMD; and Ms. Aileen Wei, AMBS GMBA Alumnus, General Manager at S² Digital of SINObase Group.

On 31^st Jan, Ms. Theresa May arrived in Wuhan for her state visit to China. The University of Manchester President and Vice Chancellor Prof. Dame Nancy Rothwell joined UK Prime Minister’s delegates of over 50 business and education leaders during her China visit. Among the delegates with Dame Nancy were members representing businesses such as BP, HSBC, Inmarsat, Standard Chartered, Sirius Minerals, Standard Life Aberdeen, AstraZeneca and the London Stock Exchange Group. China centre took part in a series of activities showcasing the University and its commitment to China.

The Jan 2018 intake welcomed students from a combination of backgrounds. Retail, Manufacturing, Pharmaceutical, Engineering has continued to be some of the top industries backgrounds student come from. The induction were hosted by China Centre Direction Ms. Sherry Fu.  Dr, Jiyao Xun, Associate MBA Director and members of the student support team also delivered talks covering important aspect of the MBA course.

The Financial Times Global MBA Ranking 2018 positions AMBS at 4th in the UK, 10th in Europe and 36th Globally. Candidates have chosen Manchester for quality of education, strong industry and alumni network, a chance for higher salary in return and global exposure. China Centre continues to strive in the provision of top experience to students from within and beyond the region. The news was shared in Chinese business school media by the Centre.