SHANGHAI, China, Feb. 26 /Xinhua-PRNewswire/ -- The Rutgers Executive MBA office in Shanghai hosted on February 8, 2007 a talk on its on-going EMBA Leadership Series, with speech delivered by Mei-Wei Cheng, Chairman and CEO of Ford Motor (China) Ltd.
Speaking to an audience of Rutgers alumni, students and special guests, Mei-Wei Cheng, himself a Rutgers Beijing EMBA alumni from the class of 1999, shared his leadership experiences with three of the world's largest and most recognized organizations; AT&T, General Electric and the Ford Motor Company. When asked to define leadership Cheng stated that it is "someone's ability to improve and motivate people/organization, to make achievements worthwhile by helping people/organization, to become more than they realized they can be. Managers need to get the results through people whereas Senior Executives need to motivate a lot of people".
Cheng talked about the need for strong communication skills. "You could be the smartest guy in the world, but if you can't convey your ideas, then you probably will not be seen as such".
It was during his tenure at General Electric that Cheng was introduced to the 4-E's; Energy, Energize, Edge (a willingness to make tough decisions) and Execute (being results driven) which he still refers to today. Moving to Ford, Cheng discovered a corporate culture that can be best be described as a balance between innovation and the continual pursuit to develop leading-edge processes, technologies and products and being socially responsible.
In terms of Chinese State Owned Enterprises (SOE), Cheng remarked that they need to anticipate changes in technologies, market dynamics and global competition. SOE's must also learn to change quickly and decisively, find and support "change agents" on the leadership team and above all constantly communicate a consistent message.
In his view, the qualities for being a successful leader include self-confidence and commitment, courage, integrity, humility and initiative, tenacity and perseverance, a passion for winning and delivering on commitments, and the notion change or die. "Change is constant -- this goes for companies, business and people. If you don't change, you die".
About Rutgers Executive MBA
Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, offers a 14-month Executive MBA (EMBA) in Shanghai and Beijing. Rutgers' prestige, history and international reputation have all been leveraged into a program of uncompromising quality and relevance. Annually the course content is changed by approximately 40% to ensure that students are getting a program that reflects the constantly changing technology-driven business world.
The EMBA program in China mirrors the one offered in the United States and to ensure a consistent quality in the content and delivery all the professors are flown from the United States to teach the courses.
A typical EMBA class comprises 10 to 12 different nationalities making it one of the truly international and diverse programs currently available in China. The program also has a very unique design that minimizes time away from the office and maximizes course content retention.
The Rutgers EMBA class of 2008 will begin in July, 2007 in Shanghai and September, 2007 in Beijing. Applications are currently being accepted for both classes.
Next program in the on-going EMBA Leadership Series will be on March 12 in Beijing when Professor Gordon Smouther speaks on Managing Risks in Global Supply Chains. Professor Smouther is considered one of the leading experts on Supply Chain Management.
Upcoming EMBA Information Sessions
Beijing dates:
March 14, April 10, May 16, June 12, July 10, July 31 and
August 21, 2007.
Contact number to register for a session is (8610) 8526 2528/29/13 Ext. 18
Shanghai dates:
March 13, April 17, May 15, June 5 and June 26.
Contact number to register is (8621) 6217-6067 Ext. 15 or
6217-8711 Ext. 15
For more information, please contact:
Kelly Brantner
Executive Project Manager, Beijing
Tel: +86-10-8526-2528/29/13 Ext. 18
Kristin Glavitsch
Recruitment Manager - Corporate Relations, Shanghai
Tel: +86-21-6217-6067 Ext. 15 or +86-21-6217-8711 Ext. 15
Website: http://www.rutgers.cn
