The ESADE MBA Blog · ESADE Business School · Barcelona

Ties between Barcelona and China have become more evident lately given events like last year´s China at Barcelona Summit and the emergence of Chinese Catalan entrepreneurs like Didac Lee. But as firms here intensify their search for new investors and markets amidst the deteriorating financial situation in Western Europe, China remains an enigma – the biggest prize yet the most difficult nut to crack.

There are vast cultural differences that make it hard for Western firms to do business with China, explained recent guest lectures from the ESADE China Europe Club in my Global Marketing class. Some have to do with product preferences. The Chinese ideal of beauty is pale, white skin rather than tanned, olive skin; Chinese brides wear red dresses, not white. Then there are differences in social norms. Chinese people tend to be direct where Westerners would be discrete, yet they can be passive when Westerners would speak their mind. In view of these differences, experts propose several maxims to Western companies itching for a piece of China´s exploding middle-class market.

• Establish a local team to manage operations and negotiations. Without them, relationships suffer and it is difficult to ensure that suppliers and customers follow through on their commitments.
• “Achinar” or “Chinafy” products and trademarks to fit local tastes, as Nivea and Haagen-Dazs have done. Sales of Haagen-Dazs’ Mooncake ice cream have grown 25% annually for the last 14 years, according to General Mills.
• Consider sacrificing margins for volume, even on luxury goods. The middle class aspires to buy status symbol Western brands, but with middle-class incomes topping out at 1500 Euros per month, they are still price-sensitive.
• Be prepared for copying of intellectual property (though Chinese reverse-engineering experts prefer to call their work “homages.”) Ask Apple, whose iPhone 5 has already been pirated in China ahead of its official release, or Microsoft, which loses four computers to pirates in China for each one that it sells legitimately. Companies can combat counterfeiting by maintaining production in home markets or working with last-generation technology in China.

ESADE faces some of the same challenges in creating its brand in China. The school is currently conducting focus groups to determine the best way to translate both its name and brand meaning into Chinese characters, as Coca-Cola has done so successfully. Another dilemma is what to do about competitors’ banner ads being displayed in forums that are ostensibly about ESADE, as in the screencap below. (It could be as easy as ramping up display advertising spend.)

But ESADE appears to be doing things right in China. It has created a localized landing page, it posts on Weiboo and bulletin boards to expand its reach, and it hosts small roundtable chats in Mandarin with the Admissions staff’s resident linguist, Mary Granger. The biggest challenge is to find qualified students and convince them that Europe is the best place to embark on an international MBA.

For my classmates and I, the time is ripe to join the China boom. As many of us are headed on exchange to Asia next fall (Including me, to Hong Kong), perhaps we will.

Paying homage? The forum is about ESADE but the banners are for local business schools

ESADE recently filmed a series of videos commemorating the Class of 2012 during graduation week. In the videos, three questions were asked: What would you improve for your children’s world; How do you imagine the future; and what will be the MBA’s lasting impact on your life.

It’s interesting to see themes surface in each of the videos that reflect ESADE’s values. For instance, an appreciation for the diversity of the MBA students and a desire to make the world more accepting in general. Diversity is one of ESADE’s main assets. It can be a real challenge working with people from opposite cultures, but through collaborative learning experiences and events like Gastrofest and Holi students grow to understand each other.

Other recurring themes in the videos are business ethics, equality, and peace. Enjoy!

Just wanted to share two videos from the Emerging Futuers 2012 Conference, held last week at ESADE Forum (see previous post for more details). The first video is a general recap of the conference, while the second is an in-depth interview with one of the Healthcare panel speakers, Dr. Ngozi Onyia from Nigeria. Enjoy!

By Khalil Alnammari, First-Year MBA Student

Next Friday, April 27, ESADE hosts the 2nd Annual Emerging Markets Conference. “Emerging Future 2012 – Is the world ready?” The conference will bring together creative minds to discuss, debate, and challenge the most pressing topics concerning emerging markets today. A dynamic group of experts, practitioners, and professionals will gather together to explore ways to push boundaries of business and innovation related to healthcare, finance, or operational needs in today’s new global economy.

This conference is tremendously exciting because emerging markets provide the world with new investment opportunities and hubs for innovation, creativity, and growth. Companies from the developed world are seeking emerging market access for profitable growth, universities from around the world are strategically building relationships with emerging market institutions for research and recruitment, and international organizations are expanding capacity to meeting the growing demands and needs of emerging market economies.

From McKinsey consultants in London to healthcare professionals in Nigeria, the program will be driven by professionals whose work is at the heart of these critical emerging issues. There is a special focus on Brazil, Latin America’s largest and fastest-growing economy, at this year’s conference. The keynote speaker is Consul Sergio Barbosa Serra from the Brazilian attaché in Barcelona. Consul Barbosa Serra will reflect on both his experience in Barcelona and as the former Brazilian Ambassador in South Korea and New Zealand.

In hosting this conference, ESADE proves it understands the importance and influence of growth economies. As business schools rush to establish a presence in emerging economies, ESADE can boast of recent study tours in Saudi Arabia and the UAE, upcoming summer internships in places like Cambodia and South Africa, and thriving exchange programs in Brazil, China, and India. ESADE has also made emerging economies a priority for recruiting, in particular Brazil, India, China, and Saudi Arabia, in addition to strengthening historic ties with Latin America.

Come to the 2012 Emerging Future conference at ESADE and get your questions answered because this is one enriching event you won’t want to miss.

For more information about conference and to register, please visit our website at https://esade.campusgroups.com/emerging_future_2012/about/