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- Alumni Interview - EMBA,PMBA,FMBA
- Sang Won Ahn (Executive MBA class of 2013) CFO & Representative Director, SAP Japan " SKK GSB provided me with a strong foundation to be successful in the global market. The Kelley – SKK GSB Executive MBA curriculum offers students a rich global context and perspective in every aspect of business. I gained great insights and global perspectives through the many business case discussions during classes as faculty members have always promoted thought-provoking discussions. The Effective Communications course and its application in all classes, helped me to build strong communication skills which are critical in my current role. " Meng-long Jack Shao (Executive MBA class of 2017) Sales & Marketing Manager, Japan & Korea, Hormel Foods International Corp. " The courses I attended during the Kelley - SKK GSB Executive MBA program helped me gain experience in building a global network and sharpened my business perspectives. In addition, I reached out to members of my former cohorts and discussed specific business issues related to Korea. Also, the experience at SKK GSB continues to enhance my opportunities for a global career. I was an expatriate for my company during my MBA study period and have continued to build a global career until now. My responsibilities in the international division have increased because of my MBA degree. " Jin Hee Bae (Professional MBA class of 2019) APAC Developed Market CSR & CSV, Microsoft " The SKK GSB Professional MBA program has a great advantage in that you can gain a high level of insight into the global market as it is designed from the perspective of a global market from the beginning to the end of the curriculum. With a high percentage of foreign professors, I was able to gain a deeper understanding of the markets in each country that only a native can have. In addition, many classmates are working in various global companies such as VISA, Oracle, Samsung, and Richemont, so we can share the information about changes the global industry makes and the challenges they face. We can learn from each other’s past work experiences directly or indirectly. Furthermore, I have been recognized internally for my diverse capabilities by the knowledge and experience gained through the Professional MBA program. I was not only in charge of the market in Korea but also in various other countries such as New Zealand and Singapore. Above all, I have made friends who would give me a lot of life advice; the diverse perspectives and thoughts of various people have helped me to grow as a person and have also contributed to my career growth. " Eun Sun Lim (Full-Time MBA class of 2013) Client partner, Global gaming, Facebook Singapore " All of the courses I have taken during the time I was at SKK GSB have been directly leveraged throughout my career. Especially the Study Abroad Program that I experienced enabled me to directly compete with other top tier global professionals, which subsequently prepared me better to work in a global environment. I'm confident that many of the students or graduates of SKK GSB have ambition and passion to become a competitive global leader and professional. With that motivation in mind, the courses that you can take at SKK GSB can equip you to build your career globally. For instance, all the case studies handled were based on global applications, which puts you in a more competitive position in the workplace to be a global professional than others who have not been exposed to various global business cases. Also, class discussions, papers and preparations for your course exams are all part of the preparation for you to be a global professional, as it constantly challenges you to think globally and act globally. " Ik Soo Hwang (Full-Time MBA class of 2019) Global Managment, ABInBev Korea " The most helpful course for me at the SKK GSB Full-Time MBA Program was the Applied Business Project (ABP), which lasted for about 3 months. Other classes helped me a lot, but with my limited practical experience, the ABP curriculum had the biggest impact. As a direct business consultant, we have been able to acquire a wide range of knowledge by presenting applicable solutions as well as in analyzing corporate and market environments while handling consulting projects for specific companies. This experience was the best opportunity for me to apply my skills and to develop my career skills through theoretical knowledge. In addition, through the Global Business Trip, I have learned what business issues the overseas start-ups are concerned about and how they are growing with such diverse foreign professors and classmates. This has enabled us to establish a diverse and vast global network of not only domestic alumni but also helped us to understand perspectives of overseas alumni. "
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- 작성일 2023-08-01
- 조회수 656
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- Alumni Interview - Hwa-yong Sim (FMBA 2019)
- Hwa-yong Sim (Class of 2019) graduated from the Full-Time MBA course this February. To assist foreign alumni in their job-seeking process, Sim recently launched a job support project for foreign students. To help the Hirediversity project to succeed, SKK GSB established the SKK GSB Care Committee earlier this year, which has been actively assisting the project by providing office space. SKK GSB’s PR Committee interviewed the founder of Hirediversity, Sim, to scrutinize his project in detail. What did you consider when applying for MBA? My primary goal was to complement my lack of knowledge and expand my network through the MBA program. SKK GSB's Full-Time program fully met my needs. What was the most impressive class in the MBA curriculum? We all are talented individuals from 15 countries around the world. I was able to acquire a global perspective by working on projects with my fellow classmates. For example, in Professor Gokce's Creative Thinking class, I teamed up with students from Singapore and Thailand and worked for a month on problems related to Korea's daily work commute. It deepened my understanding of the traffic situation in Singapore and Thailand, as well as the way governments and citizens approach this issue. The biggest attainment is that I got to approach this topic from diverse perspectives. Professor Tae-young Kim’s Strategic Management class was very impressive as well. From the real-world examples of creative shared values (CSV), I contemplated a lot about how to improve Hirediversity from a simple student-volunteer work to a more dynamic and efficient project. Earlier this year, you launched Hirediversity project to assist SKK GSB students get jobs. What made you to start this project? In the process of helping foreign students with their job search, we found that there was a problem with the system. The biggest problem in the job search process was the lack of access to information. From the standpoint of foreign students, there were few reliable means to access corporate job openings. The job openings are normally shared through social networking sites such as Facebook, where information is spread without proper verification. It is almost impossible for an individual to check and search all the details prior to his or her application submission. On the other hand, from the corporate point of view, there are difficulties in reaching out to foreign job applicants. I felt the urgent need to eliminate the information dissemination problems between the two parties. Tell us about what you achieved so far with Hirediversity. The Hirediversity project achieved the goals set during the initial planning phase. The goal at the planning stage was to increase the quality of jobs for applicants and to raise the employment rate. To help boost the employment rate, we e-mailed about 300 companies to enquire if they were looking for foreign applicants. To improve the quality of jobs, we translated and provided "average salary" and "company reputation" to foreign students, which are not readily available to them. These efforts turned out to be fruitful; 9 out of 12 students ended up with satisfactory vocational positions. In addition, some schoolmates have given priceless advice regarding salary negotiation; they advised to seek an annual salary that is about 30% higher than the current amount. What I learnt from SKK GSB is that communication skills and strategic thinking ability were critical in this process. Now, our aim is to resolve the visa problems for foreign students, which is by far the biggest handicap in foreign student employment.
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- 작성일 2023-08-01
- 조회수 498
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- Best & Brightest Executive MBAs - Jungwan Shin
- Jungwan (Julia) Shin Indiana University Kelley School of Business/SKK Graduate School of Business, Sungkyunkwan University “Positive challenger who passionately and courageously pursues innovation, turning the impossible into the possible.” Hometown: Seoul, South Korea Fun fact about yourself: I have often been told that I can’t do something I really wanted to do because of “some” reasons. Despite their worries, I continued to pursue what I believed with confidence and a positive mindset. For instance, when I wanted to get promoted as head of an organization at a U.S. firm, some said that I wouldn’t get promoted because I am female, Asian, and a local person. However, I made it. And when I was thinking of studying in the executive MBA program, many people said that I couldn’t complete the program because I am “too old to study.” But I accomplished it at the age of 52 with even better results than I expected. My life seems to be an ongoing journey, where I need to make the “impossible” into the ‘’possible.” Where are you currently working? AJPOP Business Consulting Korea as CEO and representative management business coach: • Helping CEOs improve managerial capability and competitive advantage via 1:1 business coaching and other training • Assisting the CEO-succession process with succession planning and business management teaching to successors. • Helping the management with executive roles via executive business training • Having CEOs and CEO successors connected to well-known successful leaders from different entities including government organizations, corporations, and universities for support, insights, and inspirations • Offering business and economic forms for CEOs with high-level leaders in Korea giving lectures and discussions including government officers, well-known professors, presidents of associations, and other professionals like corporate lawyers • Providing public lectures on business management, entrepreneurship, corporate culture, and leadership to the employees of corporations and other organizations Which academic or extracurricular achievement are you most proud of during business school?The company that I established three years ago was selected and certified as a “2019 excellent company” in the sector of consulting CEO and CEO successors. I think this is partially attributed to the EMBA program. I applied business knowledge that I learned from the executive MBA to my real-world business practices. I am so proud of what I did during business school. What achievement are you most proud of in your professional career? When I was at AIG Korea, the CEO announced that AIG faced an unprecedented, serious crisis affecting its worldwide business, not to mention AIG in all countries. We struggled with great confusion and loss, but we tried to find the best solutions to recover by protecting our customers from leaving AIG and reducing loss. Our team stayed focused on roles and responsibilities with greater efforts. I remember I stayed late at my office almost every day to resolve so many related issues. There were many customer complaints and very high staff turnover. One day, I got a letter from the president of AIG’s head office. It said, “It is an extraordinary time for our business. Our business is fundamentally based on people, and you play an important role in executing AIG’s strategy. Thank you for your extraordinary contribution and dedication to AIG.” I voluntarily had great dedication and commitment and I really wanted to contribute to the recovery of the business during a very bad time for AIG. This is the most memorable and fruitful time in my professional career. Another more recent and important achievement for me happened in 2018, while I was studying for the executive MBA. One day, one of my clients called me with an urgent tone in his voice and asked me to come to his office suddenly, saying that his company might be in deep trouble. His son had expanded his business in expectation of business growth and increasing trade between Korea and China. But after the strained relationships between the two countries arose in 2017, trade decreased suddenly and the impact was huge. Many similar businesses were failing and or were in crisis. He asked me to help the company. I prepared detailed crisis management plans. Fortunately, the solutions applied worked out. In fact, I applied much of the knowledge that I learned from the EMBA program and it helped. My previous business work experience and the MBA knowledge that I gained were all well combined and applied successfully! Extracurricular Activities, Community Work and Leadership Roles: • My company was selected and certified as a “2019 Excellent Company in Korea in Consulting CEO and CEO Successors” by NICE SI, Korea’s No. 1 corporate evaluation organization in 2019 • Honored for academic excellence by the business school • Awarded the “Gold Prize of Outstanding Achievement” by the business school • “Future CEO scholarship” recipient • Selected as Secretary General for Korea’s business and economic forum • Mentor to MBA student in SKK GSB What was your favorite MBA course and what was the biggest insight you gained about business from it? It was the Management of Organization course, which dealt with many topics relating to the management of organizations, including business power, social networking, employee behaviors, leadership, and corporate social responsibility. During the course, our class considered the interesting experiences of successful people like Heidi Roizen and Monica Ashley, which I found very exciting and related to my daily business activity. During the class, we discussed real-world business issues and individual behaviors and interactions which affect every organization. It covered the behaviors of senior executives that affect the entire business management process and social welfare. When we diagnosed problems and challenges in class, I realized why win-win networking skills are very necessary for better business standing and decisions. Why did you choose this executive MBA program? The school has an incredible mix of courses as well as great professors who help students learn fundamental business management skills. In fact, I chose the school because the whole program was so exciting and the professors deliver business knowledge effectively and share real-world business experiences. For example, Dean and Professor Idie Kesner would be a great role model for anyone. She guides students to think deeply on how business strategies should be based on global perspectives. Professor Eric Shih and Professor Rockney Walters are great professors in teaching marketing strategies in this MBA program with their real business experiences at large companies such as GE, Apple, Samsung, and LG. Professor Jaeha Lee and Professor Andrew Yi are well-respected professors who are effective teachers skills possessing great business knowledge. They so pleasantly spend time with students and share many real-world practices. I guess all of the professors in the MBA program are great and amazing with a very good mix of business knowledge and practices. This is the reason for my choosing this MBA program. I enjoyed my choice indeed. What did you enjoy most about business school in general? Since I have been working at global companies for many years, I just wanted to study at the business school to help me combine my business experience with the academic knowledge to upgrade my business skills. This was the reason why I chose and enjoyed the program so much. What is the biggest lesson you gained during your MBA and how did you apply it at work? “Do not stop learning!” This was the biggest lesson, I learned and a lot more than I expected. Give us a story during your time as an executive MBA on how you were able to juggle work, family, and education? I had a decent talk with my husband for his support and understanding before I applied for the MBA program. He gave me a great understanding and support all the time. More importantly, I always thought of my daughter who was studying medicine at the university and hospital. When I thought of her hard work, nothing was comparable. I studied very hard. I tried to manage time carefully in order to not miss any assignments and lectures. I got up early in the morning to read for class assignments. I often went to bed late to do homework and read articles for MBA. However, I always made sure to get to sleep before midnight so I could be efficient and effective at work during the day. The biggest challenge was using time effectively. What advice would you give to a student looking to enter an executive MBA program? This executive MBA program is so great. I can’t explain how great the program is. Please be open and brave and do not worry too much about it. Just go ahead with courage and boldness. You will figure it out. Your peers will encourage each other to finish the MBA journey completely. In my particular cohort alone, there was such a diverse group of talented people. For instance, one particular member was an outstanding leader who ensured that we stayed focused on our studies. Another was able to share with us the latest technology knowledge that he acquired in his professional career. Finally, another valued classmate brought a sincere happiness and enthusiasm to every session which lessened the pressure of balancing academics with our work and social lives. I strongly recommend this executive MBA. Your future self will be so proud of what you did today!” What is the biggest myth about going back to school? Before returning to school, I unsure about how the experience would affect my life. Since graduating, time-and-time again I realize this executive MBA has left a great impact on me every day. It gave me great knowledge. More importantly, it gave me great pride. And it gave me great connections, thanks to Kelley’s strong alumni all over the world. What was your biggest regret in business school? The only regret that I have was that I had to miss two days – one due to a business trip to Europe and the other one due to the flu. I tried to attend all the classes and get focused on what professors delivered. I really enjoyed each class indeed. Which MBA classmate do you most admire? I thank Jiyoung Lee, who always encouraged me to stay focused on studying. She helped me stick with completing the program whenever I became worried about my tight schedule for work and study. Like me, she takes care of work and also is a wife and mother. Unlike me, she was required to complete the program by her employer. I could have dropped out if I wanted, but she kept encouraging me – telling me that this program could have a great impact after graduation. Because of the many business trips I must take – which require a lot of energy and time – I had to use every weekend for my studies, which was very tiring. We shared with each other what worked in balancing concerns at work and home with our studies. “I knew I wanted to go to business school when…I wanted to upgrade my professional experience and abilities, through better academic business knowledge and become more confident of my business management skills.” What is your ultimate long-term professional goal? I would like to make my company become the No. 1 business coaching company in Korea, based on the reputation of the most respected companies I serve. I want to help my clients grow and succeed in their visions coming true. This is my vision. In one sentence, how would you like your peers to remember you? The nice cohort who always showed passion, challenge and courage, and who stayed focus on the lectures and would continue to build good friendships even after graduation What are the top two items on your bucket list? 1. Talk with 100 successful leaders worldwide, face to face, by 2021 and then share their great tips with my clients for their success in life and business 2. Having a great time and fun in Northern Europe with my daughter and husband in two years, after my daughter finishes her degree. What made Julia such an invaluable addition to the class of 2019? “All of the EMBA faculty and her classmates will agree that Julia Shih genuinely cares about the things she does and, most importantly, the people with whom she works. She is an intellectually curious person who inspires those around her to invest their time and energy into their studies as well as to the welfare of one another. Despite the rigor of the academic program and the sacrifices it took on participants’ time and energy, she faced every challenge with an enthusiastic “can-do” attitude that brightened the environment for both students and faculty alike. She clearly is the type of person you would readily consider as a mentor, a valued colleague, and a friend.” Article source: https://poetsandquantsforexecs.com/2019/07/01/2019-best-embas-julia-shin-indiana-university-kelley/
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- 작성일 2023-08-01
- 조회수 462
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- Advice from predecessors-PMBA 2017
- Deputy Director Kim Sung-Hyun (Alumnus of SKK GSB Professional MBA 2017) Q1: A brief introduction of yourself? A: Hello. I am Sunghyun Kim who graduated from SKK GSB Professional MBA course at Sungkyunkwan University in 2017. Prior to entering MBA School, I was responsible for personnel management for Amore Pacific and LS Nico Bronze Smelting for approximately 12 years. After graduating from SKK GSB Professional MBA, I have served as a human resources manager at a local global clothing export company that handles global clothing brands such as Gap, Old Navy, Banana Republic, American Eagle, and Levi's. Q2: What made you decide to pursue MBA Degree? A: I have worked in the field of personnel management for about 12 years prior to acquisition of my MBA degree. Having had a long career in a particular field, he became a professional senior manager in that area, but he often felt he lacked the knowledge to fully understand the business as a whole. I decided to go to college because my MBA is the most suitable course for getting professional knowledge of the overall business. Q3: Why did you choose SKK GSB Professional MBA amongst various MBA programs at home and abroad? A: Firstly, I was introduced SKK GSB Professional MBA course at Sungkyunkwan University by my Chief of Personnel (CHO) at that time that it is an international MBA program. I felt confident that it was a program that CHO recommended. It was also attractive that it was the only night MBA program offered in 100% English of all the courses in the ROK. Having advanced-level English skills was very important for my future career management since I was working at a foreign company. Lastly, I liked the fact that it is an MBA course that comprises a number of foreign business executives and employees. It is not that difficult for employees of large/ midsize domestic enterprises to get involved in various educational and industrial events. However, opportunities to interact with employees at multinational and foreign companies are more of a rarity. SKK GSB Professional MBA was a perfect course that had English classes and dual degree tracks overseas, enabling myself to mingle with a variety of multinational corporate executives including Coca-Cola, Boeing, ING Life, Standard Chartered Bank and Citibank. Q4: What is the most significant change after SKK GSB Professional MBA program? A: First of all, the way I view business management has been greatly widened. While I considered mainly human resources related issues before the MBA program, I now closely scrutinize the company performances, corporate brand growth details, accounting issues, and market conditions collectively in addition to personnel management situations. This is indeed very helpful to me, especially since it enables me to see the big picture during business discussions with the management leadership. My department employees often tell me that I have changed. In consultation with other departments, such as accounting, sales, and strategy, they were impressed by the way I use the terminology and macroeconomic approaches learnt from MBA program to anticipate future developments. I gained a profound knowledge in various business fields thanks to SKK GSB's practice-oriented, well-segmented MBA curriculum. I had been trained by MBA education provided by my company before I joined SKK GSB, yet I felt what I wanted to learn was insatiable, even though it comprised lectures given by prominent Korean professors. I was in doubt of the effectiveness of MBA program even after the decision to join SKK GSB. However, the SKK GSB Professional MBA program has wiped out the concerns of mine with professional contents with rich business practices. With specialized MBA courses in accordance to categories, I was able to gain a wide range of professional knowledge. For instance, in the human resources field alone, a variety of courses are provided – from organizational and personnel management to leadership and corporate ethics. The Finance classes were also in-depth courses on swaps, options, gifts, derivatives, and so on. Q5: What was the most helpful curriculum from the SKK GSB Professional MBA? A: Firstly, the finance subjects were the main catalysts for the most noticeable changes. Since the company where I was in charge was dealing with a global metal mining, smelting, and trading business, call options, foot options, gifts, and hedge related issues were often mentioned. Even for employees of a human resources department it is paramount to understand the whole company issues, but since the finance field is difficult to comprehend, it often resulted in leaving an uncomfortable feeling with Finance. Yet, I haven't had to face such difficulties ever since I took Finance classes at MBA program. I was especially satisfied with the Financial Risk Management class given by the Dean Lee at SKK GSB. The lecture was very impressive in that it helped us to gain a thorough understanding from the financial perspective of the causes and developments in the real world of financial events, such as Lehman Brothers and the Kiko crisis. HR related classes are not always the most useful for its managers. For instance, after completing courses in marketing communications and branding management, and used the knowledge I gained to promote recruitment for talented individuals. I have over a decade of experience in human resources management, but I have learnt to organize and verify my scattered knowledge via HR modules. I used to write notes at work and in class to write down what I wanted to remind myself of. Q6: What do you think can be gained other than the regular curriculum through MBA programs? A: First of all, the English ability. SKK GSB Professional MBA program is offered in 100 % English classes and therefore has many opportunities to give out English presentations. I also attended English conversation classes and got professional English composition correction services from my school, which resulted in developing the habit of speaking, writing and even thinking in English as a result. By the time I graduated, my English was a lot improved, and I could easily speak in English with less hesitation. The company I work for now has many overseas manufacturing bases and a high share of communication with foreign business partners. Passing the English interview for my re-employment of this company, the English skills I learnt in my MBA program played a major role. I also got a big assistance in getting the human networks I needed. The SKK GSB Professional MBA program is rather small in a size of around 60 people, and this resulted in having people within each cohort familiarized with each other, creating a strong bond. Particularly, it was more than nice to have a multinational corporate network, which is difficult to obtain prior to joining into this program. Q7: Lastly, could you give me some advice for those who are considering going to MBA schools? A: I would like to tell you to start first, and then give a thought about it. Alike any other choices in life, it's much better to use obtained experiences to fit the reasons you chose after a challenge, rather than trying to think about them too much before starting. Similar to the case of mine, there are three main reasons for considering joining Professional MBA. Q8: Did it help you regarding employment, re-employment, starting a business, and raising your salary after graduation? A: In my case, after I graduated from MBA program, I have successfully had myself employed to the current company, and my salary has been increased significantly over the years. I am very satisfied that I got to see quantum progress not only in my personal capability but also in my career.
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- 작성일 2023-08-01
- 조회수 475
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- [Alumni Interview] Carlos Gorito
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[Alumni Interview] Carlos Gorito December 1, 2015 By: Maria Alejandra Varela; PR Committee of SKK GSB
If you’ve lived in Korea for at least a couple months and on top of that you are a foreigner, you’ve most likely heard of the show ‘비정상회담 (Non Summit); JTBC’. This weekly show features 3 Korean hosts moderating a debate between 12 foreigners living in Korea who speak Korean fluently. The debates cover current topics, but are specifically from the perspective of a foreigner. With this introduction, it is our pleasure to present to you Mr. Carlos Gorito; regular member of ‘비정상회담 (Non Summit)’. Carlos was a part of our Full-Time MBA Program Class of 2012 and currently works as the Education Advisor at the Embassy of Brazil in Seoul. Carlos first came to Korea in 2008 to complete his undergraduate degree through the country’s NIIED (National Institute for International Education) KGSP (Korean Government Scholarship Program). After his first year of learning Korean, he returned to Brazil because he felt that he really wanted to do more with the Korean language. When he graduated from his university in Brazil, he once again looked for opportunities to come back to Korea. This is when he found the SKK GSB program. At SKK GSB, he really found his home. He explained to us that when you research about different MBA schools in Korea, you will without a doubt find no other school with a more international atmosphere than SKK GSB. He said that it is a very unique program where you have many foreign and Korean professors who are obviously top notch. On top of that, you get a very international student body working together to get the most out of such a wonderful educational experience. Amongst his favorite moments, the one that stood out most was participating in the ‘Case Competition’. He really enjoyed the experience of coming together, discussing, and debating what would be the best solution for the case they were given. For Carlos, this was a defining moment in his MBA career. He also comments that his biggest learning experience was just growing as a professional. The learned sets of skills that SKK GSB gave him are basically the things he now applies spontaneously in his day-to-day life. The most obvious new beginning comes with his appearances on the TV show ‘비정상회담 (Non Summit)’, which he never even thought was possible. He enjoys sharing his ideas with the rest of the cast and also getting feedback from his fans. He doesn’t really feel like a celebrity, but at the same time he admits that people stop him a lot on the street and compliment him for doing such a good job on the show. He confesses that he cannot dance well nor can he play football well (as is usually expected of most Brazilians), but he is very passionate about representing his country and defending what it means to be a true Brazilian. Finally, when asked why other students should consider coming to Korea, he replied without hesitation, “Why not Korea?” From the moment we met him, his love and passion for Brazil, Korea, and SKK GSB proudly stood out throughout our interview. See the Interview Video (Click) -
- 작성일 2023-08-01
- 조회수 478