The 9th International Business School Shanghai Conference (IBSSC), with the theme of “Reimagining Business Education after the Pandemic”, was successfully held in online and offline combined format by Antai College of Economics and Management (ACEM), Shanghai Jiao Tong University (SJTU) in Shanghai from October 19 to 20, 2022. More than 400 guests from 280 business schools and institutions across 33 countries all over the world participated in the conference both online and on site. The conference invited 26 deans of top business schools worldwide to share their views on dealing with the long-lasting impact of pandemic crisis on the contents, and ways of rebuilding the future business education. Lin Zhongqin, President of SJTU, and Gu Feng, Executive Deputy Secretary of the Party Committee of SJTU delivered the opening and closing speeches respectively. Chen Fangruo, Dean of ACEM, Jiang Wenning, Secretary of the Party Committee of ACEM, and Prof. Yin Haitao, Associate Dean of ACEM, as well as others of the ACEM leadership attended the plenary and parallel sessions of the conference.

President Lin Zhongqin of SJTU gives welcome speech.

“The IBSSC has witnessed the rapid economic development of China in the past 20 years and the gradual emergence of Chinese business schools on the world stage, and it will unswervingly advance the high-level international cooperation to find the best way to cultivate first-class talents with new thinking, new ability and new spirit.” said Lin Zhongqin, President of Shanghai Jiao Tong University in his welcome speech.

The whole conference consisted of Plenary Session, Parallel Session A, B and C, as well as Round-table Session. Prof. Francesca Cornelli (Dean of Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University, USA), Prof. Qiao LIU (Dean of Guanghua School of Management, Peking University), Prof. Christina Soh (Dean of Nanyang Business School, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore), Prof. Madhav V. Rajan (Dean of Booth School of Business, University of Chicago, USA), Prof. Simon Mercado (Executive Vice-President, ESCP Business School, France), and Prof. Catherine Duggan (Dean of Graduate School of Business, University of Cape Town, South Africa) made their keynote speeches on how to deal with the all-round challenges brought by the global pandemic and how to rethink and reimage the future business education, while other speakers from online and offline deeply analyzed the long-term impact of the pandemic crisis on future business education and explored the future of business education based on the theme of the conference.

During the Plenary Session, a grand new Doing Business in China (DBIC) Online Learning Platform (https://online.acem.sjtu.edu.cn/DBIC), an English online program initiated by ACEM as the first of its kind, was released. Dean Chen Fangruo from ACEM unveiled the details of DBIC platform to both online and offline audience. “DBIC offers a Real China Perspective. It offers a platform for you to learn China-specific business ecology and practices in a globally engaging way.” Chen said. The launch of this platform has promoted the mutual communication between Chinese and Western business education, and is an innovative teaching model among Chinese business schools.

Dean Chen Fangruo introduces the DBIC Online Learning Platform at the Plenary Session.

The Round-table Session was chaired by Prof. Wang Fanghua (former Dean of ACEM). Prof. He Wensheng (Dean of School of Management, Lanzhou University), Prof. Ma Tieju (Dean of the School of Business, East China University of Science and Technology), Prof. Wang Hong (Dean of China Europe International Business School), and Prof. Wei Hang (Executive Deputy Dean of the College of Business, Shanghai University of Finance and Economics), and Prof. Wu Chaopeng (Executive Deputy Dean of the School of Management, Xiamen University) deeply discussed how to actively respond to the future business education model.

Speakers discusses at the Round-table Session. (from left to right: Wang Fanghua, He Wensheng, Ma Tieju, Wang Hong, Wei Hang and Wu Chaopeng) 

During the three online parallel sessions themed "Global Risk and the Social Responsibility of Business Schools", "International Business Schools’ Collaboration in an Uncertain World" and "Meeting students and clients’ expectations on digital learning". Dr. Geoff Perry, Senior Vice President of the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB), Professor Eric Cornuel, President of the European Foundation for Management Development, and Mr. Andrew Main Wilson, CEO of AMBA & BGA, as well as eight deans of prominent business schools discussed on achieving sustainable development and exploring the complexity of business education in the world with uncertainty and risks.

In the meantime, online participants exchanged through the Gather Town metameres virtual space to e-interacted connect each other and the world.

Participants interacts through the Gather Town.

Prof. Gu Feng, Executive Deputy Secretary of the Party Committee of Shanghai Jiao Tong University, said in closing remarks that the successful holding of the IBSSC will further promote the cooperation and integration of management education between the East and the West, and reflect the responsibility of business schools in the joint business governance with joint consultation and construction throughout the world.

Prof. Gu Feng delivers speech in closing remarks.

The biennial International Business School Shanghai Conference (IBSSC) was initiated by Antai College of Economics & Management (ACEM), Shanghai Jiao Tong University (SJTU) in 2006. Since its inauguration, the IBSSC has become the largest dean-level conference for business schools in the Asia-Pacific region. It is also recognized worldwide as one of the most influential international business school conferences.