To Yaron Jacobs, a Westerner living in Hong Kong, the CUHK EMBA programme provides an opportunity to broaden his horizon by going through the broad range of skills and industry knowhow that the programme offers.
Besides, he saw it a unique opportunity to co-operate in a learning environment with a broad range of people from Hong Kong. “Not only did I make some great friends, I also learned a lot about the local culture and habits through these associations,” Yaron cites the network advantage.
Yaron currently works at the Lan Kwai Fong Group. “The place Lan Kwai Fong is indeed a symbolic melting pot of eastern and western cultural influences in Hong Kong,” he reckons. He credits his success in his current role from the experiences he gained in the EMBA programme.
Yaron was inspired by the leading thinkers at Silicon Valley when the EMBA class visited the University of California, Berkeley. “I learned and applied some methods on technology and innovation management when I launched my start-up company some time later,” he recalls how he took advantage of the occasion. He believes the programme has encouraged entrepreneurship.
On the subject of innovation and technology, Yaron believes that young executives – as well as older ones – should not be forced to adapt to a changing environment; rather they should be driving the change. He offers a suggestion, “Many young people feel dissatisfied by the rigidity at work, but this can be a source of motivation to find something better and do it.” This, he sees, is the way to become successful.
“In a business venture, people need to know where they are, adopt a good strategy that tells them where they want to go, and apply management theories to help them get there. There are myriad ways to do things differently, particularly in our digitally connected world today,” advises Yaron. He is certainly confident that the theories he learned in the EMBA course will guide him through the journey towards his strategic goal.