In planning and executing their recent International Field Study to China, students of Loyola’s Executive MBA Programs found the Chinese concept of guanxi - a personal connection in which one individual is able to prevail upon another to perform a service or favor, or be prevailed upon – to be a component that was vital to the success of the experience. Because Loyola believes that a student cannot develop a clear perspective on what it means to compete globally through academic study alone, each executive class first studies and then travels to an emerging market of the world, typically Asia or South America, for a nine day working tour. This year, once China was identified as the host country, students relied on the team approach to problem solving that they have adopted since day one and began to plan their trip. Through professional and personal relationships, they identified potential site visits, developed subject matter that was relevant to their coursework and the organizations to be visited and scheduled interviews with leadership-level company representatives. Frequently, the visits were coordinated by individuals who had never met one another but who nevertheless recognized the potential for opportunity in introducing Loyola’s executive MBA students – experts in their own right – to executives at the hosting companies. And so they began to form their own guanxi network. The dynamics paid off and site visits on this particular trip included such organizations as Toyota Motor Investment Company, Federal Express, Tyco Healthcare China, Black & Decker, Andersen Windows, and Shanghai McCormick Foods. The students also met with officials at the United States Information Technology Office and the United States Embassy in Beijing. Once back in the U.S., the guanxi network continued to grow. Over an Americanized Chinese lunch of egg rolls, rice, and steamed vegetables, the IFS students walked first-year executive MBA students through the highlights of their recent trip. The information shared ranged in topic from outlining typical travel details such as passport renewals and vaccinations, where to eat and what to wear, to more personal observations regarding the nature of the people they encountered, the cultural differences identified, and the still-fresh memories of favorite sites and local interactions. Each table was ‘hosted’ by an IFS ‘alum’ to facilitate further discussion about the trip to China, reflections on what to expect during the second half of MBA studies, and the typical networking that happens when skilled professionals connect. Although the observations were as unique as the students themselves, the collective experience was one of deeper understanding of what it means to compete globally and a clearer perspective of how the markets and theories studied inside the classroom live and breathe in their natural environments. (Based on notes from 12/16/06 luncheon presentation given by EMBA students recently returned from their China IFS experience)
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