Senior officials of the Chinese government and administrators from the
country’s leading business schools have combined to create a
far-reaching responsible business project.
The aim of the project, being called the Chinese Business School
Initiative, is to produce business leaders who have the ethical frameworks,
knowledge and skills to run successful enterprises, contribute to
social progress and improve environmental conditions in China.
Judith Samuelson, executive director of the Aspen Institute’s business
and society programme, which hosted the meeting at which the project
was set up, said: ‘As the private sector grows in China, the
government, media and general public are raising expectations about the
contributions that business can make to the harmonious society.
‘For the private sector to help to drive productive and sustainable
development of the Chinese economy and society, business leaders will
need a new array of skills. Chinese business schools are responsible
for educating many of these leaders, but lack focus on business
responsibility and opportunity around key social and environmental
issues.’
Samuelson emphasized that project workers will collaborate with all involved but will avoid preaching to them.
The project will involve stakeholders representing schools, government agencies and other business education organizations.
There will be five programmes:
surveys will assess the present state of business education and the thinking of students, teachers and businesspeople an
innovation programme will support pilot projects on MBA campuses to
find ways of strengthening students’ knowledge, skills and attitudesan
international academic research programme will be run to improve
understanding of the role of businesses in building Chinese society and
its economya public and mass media programme featuring corporate speakerspolicy will be discussed continually with business school leaders, government officials and other stakeholders.
As well as the Aspen Institute, the project involves the Chinese
organization SynTao, which promotes CSR in business, the Chinese State
Environmental Protection Agency’s environmental education and
communication centre, the Chinese National MBA Supervisory Committee,
Beijing University’s Guanghua management school, Tsinghua University
school of economics and management, AACSB International, which is the
main international MBA accreditation body, and the United Nations
Global Compact. Start-up funding has come from the Citigroup
Foundation.
