Richard Ivey School of Business expanding Asian presence

Visit to India will enhance Ivey's capability to train global leaders

LONDON , ON, Oct. 30 /CNW/ - Given Ivey's mission to prepare global leaders, and the growing importance of India in the global economy, leaders of the Richard Ivey School of Business are currently in India to expand the School's ties with this region.

The goal of the trip - October 24-31 - is to explore partnerships, engage with the academic and business community and to advance Ivey Business School's presence in India .

With Canada and India bolstering their relationship, Ivey Business School is helping build bridges between schools, companies and academics.

"Ivey's involvement in India will extend our accomplishment in China . It strengthens our Asia presence and enhances our capability to train global leaders in Canada and both India and China , the two heavy-weights in today's economy," said Carol Stephenson , Dean, Richard Ivey School of Business and one of the participants on the trip.

The Canadian High Commissioner, Joseph Caron , hosted a lunch for Ivey with guests including academics and policymakers from Indian government. Ivey officials also met with Business School Deans, high-profile academics and business leaders including the CEOs of Birla Sunlife, Naukri.com, as well as senior executives at Indian giants such as Airtel and Infosys, and multinationals including Microsoft, GE, HSBC, and Citigroup.

As a centrepiece of the trip, Ivey leaders today signed a partnership with the Indian School of Business (ISB) for a Case Development Centre. ISB is a world-class business school in India with partnerships with Wharton, Kellogg and London Business School and is a well-recognized leader for preparing executives who can respond well to a rapidly changing global marketplace.

"We are proud to be partnering with ISB in an ambitious case development and training program which will transform the educational environment in India . In so doing, Ivey will also be able to bolster its own capabilities in managing in emerging markets," said Stephenson. As part of the Case Development initiative, Ivey faculty have already taught three case-writing and case-teaching workshops in India .

"There is great need for India-based cases," said Charles Dhanaraj, Adjunct Professor at Ivey. "It is important not only for Indian students to better understand business in their country, but also important for students of management education around the world to better understand doing business in this important region."

"Well-written cases make business challenges come alive," said Eric Morse , Associate Dean, Richard Ivey School of Business. "Case teaching is a strong way of communicating management education to the next generation of business leaders."

Ivey is the second largest producer of business case studies after Harvard and the largest producer of Asian case studies in the world.

With permanent campuses in Hong Kong , Toronto and London , Ontario, Ivey has an enviable experience working in emerging markets. Ivey opened its campus in Hong Kong more than a decade ago, being the first North American school to establish a permanent campus in the region. Ivey Executive Development courses are taught throughout the world. These programs address industry-specific challenges, support major change in the organization's direction and ensure managers share a consistent interpretation of the company's vision and values.

Through its Asian Management Center, Ivey remains as the top producer of China-based cases, including several hundred available in Chinese. Through case-teaching workshops and case-writing workshops conducted in partnership with several Chinese universities, Ivey has contributed significantly in advancing case-based business education in China . Ivey's case competition in China , launched in 2005 by Ivey's alumni, and sponsored by Coca-Cola is a big draw to hundreds of Chinese MBA students every year.

This is just one more step in advancing the global expertise of Ivey faculty and carrying that expertise to the globe.

    
    About the Richard Ivey School of Business, The University of Western
    Ontario
    

The Richard Ivey School of Business (www.ivey.ca) at The University of Western Ontario offers undergraduate (HBA) and graduate (MBA, Executive MBA and PhD) degree programs in addition to non-degree Executive Development programs. Ivey has campuses in London (Ontario), Toronto , and Hong Kong . Ivey recently redesigned its curriculum to focus on Cross-Enterprise Leadership - a holistic issues-based approach to management education that meets the demands of today's complex global business world.

For further information: Dawn Milne, Richard Ivey School of Business, [phone], [email protected]