Carroll Lee 李佩詩

After working in the hospitality industry for over a decade, I developed a burning desire to learn something new that could give me a new perspective. I was also eager to find ways of giving back to society either personally, using my company’s platform, or through local connections.

It was such a blessing to be introduced to the CUHK EMBA programme by a dear friend. Over a breakfast meeting with Professor Chan and other staff members, I became convinced that no better course is available.

Over the two years, the programme has given me excellent training in time management, showing me how to make the best use of my limited time to balance work, study, life, and health. This learning process has been extremely fruitful.

I wish to summarise my study experiences with reference to the “six pillars” of the EMBA programme.

Theories—the lectures given by experienced professors provided not just theories, but also, and most importantly, real-life examples of subjects with which I had not previously been familiar, from macroeconomics to quantitative methods.

Practices—group and personal assignments enabled us to apply the theories we had learned in our daily work.

Internal Network—I was honoured to unlearn, relearn, and learn with an amazing group of classmates. My peers were professionals with diverse roles in diverse industries, ranging from top executives in multinational companies to local SME owners and entrepreneurs. I learned most from the insights shared by my classmates and from our discussion in and outside the classroom.

External Network—we benefited enormously from the opportunity to learn beyond the classroom. A range of forums and study trips allowed us to meet and learn from EMBA alumni and top executives outside the CUHK EMBA family. We also established an extensive network in China and Taiwan through cross-university courses. One of the highlights was a study trip to Tel Aviv University in Israel, which gave us eye-opening first-hand experience of a “start-up nation.”

Strategic Perspectives—in addition to obtaining theoretical knowledge, we gained practical experience in identifying different strategic perspectives to determine our priorities before making important decisions.

Social Contribution—I feel most humbled and most blessed by the realisation that the projects we undertook with guidance from experienced alumni and experts also had a real impact on society.

I don’t recall precisely how I “survived” everything that happened in the two years of study, but I do know that I gained fond memories, new perspectives and knowledge, and experience of making an amazing social contribution.

If I had another chance to choose the CUHK EMBA programme, I would undoubtedly do so again.

And if Hong Kong is your home and you want to make it a better place, this is the only EMBA course I would recommend to you.

Happy learning.