On 24 March 2023, the Asian Institute of Management (AIM) welcomed a new cohort of managers and business leaders during the convocation for the Executive Master in Business Administration (EMBA) program under the Washington SyCip Graduate School of Business (WSGSB). Designed to hone a general management perspective that is Asian, entrepreneurial, social, and developmental in outlook, EMBA also refines the analytical, decision-making, and leadership skills of students.
President and Dean Dr. Jikyeong Kang offered her congratulations for their acceptance into the class and reminded them to steel themselves for challenging months ahead due to the program’s rigorous curriculum. She mentioned that their enrollment does not only cover unique teaching and mentorship but also networking opportunities. “The better the programs, the better the school you join, you get to study amongst people who are equally qualified and equally experienced. And that makes a huge difference.”
WSGSB School Head Dr. Felipe Calderon, CPA, CMA, noted that the current EMBA cohort is the biggest in the school’s history, consisting of 83 students. In assuring the incoming cohort that they were on the right track, Guest Speaker and General Counsel of Coca-Cola Philippines, Inc., Atty. Terence S. Fernando, EMBA 2019, recalled how he was inspired to pursue further studies at AIM after practicing law for fifteen years. “I felt I only had a very limited lens—a legal lens. I wanted to add more to the discussion at work but couldn’t because I didn’t have any formal training in finance.”
EMBA is an 18-month program that enhances and extends a student’s knowledge of general management concepts. Through the guidance of seasoned and practitioner-oriented faculty, classes become opportunities for deep-dive discussions of real-life business cases covering economics, finance and accounting, marketing, operations, leadership, and strategy. Students from disparate industries and with varying levels of corporate maturity tap into their own professional experiences and further learn to collaborate in teams when formulating answers.
This year’s cohort is comprised of students from the Philippines, the People’s Republic of China, the United Kingdom, and the United States. They share impressive professional credentials from diverse industries such as banking and finance, gaming, government, information technology, maritime, power, real estate, and security and investigations.