FEaTuRE Education
Educating
the
Masses
n By Monica liau
aoke Wang is glow- fessionals
G
ing. He just finished is growing.
his thesis and is about H o w e v e r ,
to graduate with both when dipping
a management MBA into the local
and an MA in engineering from the Chi- pool, many hir-
na Leaders for Manufacturing (CLFM) ing companies find
program, a joint venture between Shang- the education of
hai Jiao Tong University (SJTU) and the their targeted talent
Massachusetts Institute of Technology is under-developed.
(MIT). CLFM is unique as it not only According to several
combines two education branches into a sources, many sup-
single program with a supply chain focus, ply chain and management graduates have
the truck but the possibilities beyond it,”
but also includes a mandatory six month never seen anything as basic as an RFID,
he says. “These students can learn whole
industry internship. A pretty tall order, which means they will likely require years
books by heart, but when you ask them
but in Ke’s case, it has paid off. The extra of training once they are hired.
what it means…you get blank looks.”
bounce in Ke’s step comes from making
Professor Ming Dong, Chair of the Op-
it through months of intensive interviews Mind the Gap
erations Management Department and
and finally being hired by Cisco Systems, Many complain that the biggest prob-
Academic Director for CLFM says a
where he interned last year. He is one of lems with fresh Chinese graduates is
lot of MA students base their projects
the last of his classmates to secure a job, that their education is chiefly fed a diet
on literature without actually having re-
many of whom have gone to equally big of theory, not “real world” case stud-
search to back it up. “I recently had one
name companies like Apple and Hon- ies; most are not ready for the practical
student give his thesis on demand pro-
eywell. “We have a unique selling point application of their profession. This is
cessing,” says Dong. “It turned out that
coming from this program,” says Wang a complaint heard the world over from
he just reviewed a previous paper in his
“In China there are big opportunities for anyone who has ever hired new blood.
own words.”
us because we can provide knowledge However, Holger Schober, Director of
Bob Liu, president of executive search
and experience right after graduation.” Executive Education at the Supply Chain
firm China Supply Chain Service, says
There are not many other students who Management Institute, says that what a
this education gap is nothing wrong with
can boast Ke’s experience. As companies lot of Chinese students really lack is the
the students and everything wrong with
in China move from manic growth-ori- ability to see the supply chain as a bigger
the professors who are teaching them. “If
ented strategies toward putting more val- picture and solve problems outside the
you look at the professors in China, very
ue on intelligent supply chain approaches, box. “Students in supply chain should be
few of them have done major systematic
demand for supply chain educated pro- able to look at a truck, and see not only
study or research about supply chain,”
26 MARCH/APRIL 2010 www.supplychains.com
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