Why MBA: CUHK Business School – Hong Kong

Media Coverage by BusinessBecause:

After a Wall Street investment bank internship, Job Watcharaumnuay slid into the entertainment sector and starred in a Super Bowl advert for Unilever brand AXE, known for its Lynx deodorant.

The switch illustrates an unconventional path that has led him to CUHK Business School, and onto one of Hong Kong’s top MBA programs.

After a summer internship developing regional Hong Kong strategy at G4S, he landed a spot on the security company’s management trainee scheme, based in Hong Kong and Dubai.

Previously, he served for a year as president of the Corporate Social Responsibility Committee made up of 25 MBA students, also in Hong Kong, collaborating with companies including KPMG.

Before that, he was an assistant project director for the New York Film Academy — a position he held whilst simultaneously working as a personal trainer — after spending four months at Kerburn Rose, the investment bank.

The Thai national hopes to eventually pursue an entrepreneurial venture.

Why did you decide to begin an MBA, and why at CUHK business school?

Because I was hoping to start my own business post meeting entrepreneurial classmates with work experience like myself. My background might be quite different from most of my classmates as my family is quite open to me doing what I want, as opposed to most Asian families, but they also help provide critical feedback that has led to my success thus far.

I chose CUHK because prior to beginning my MBA, I was located in New York City. I initially went to NYC for an investment banking internship before changing to the entertainment scene. I had challenged myself to reach the top of that route by starring in a Super Bowl ad for AXE in 2014.

This however did not satisfy my thirst for knowledge and growth, so I went to the best geographically situated school in Asia for finance, which happens to be CUHK.

CUHK has the biggest range of alumni of all the schools in Hong Kong and that gives me a huge advantage when it comes to entrepreneurship, which I eventually want to pursue.

What makes Hong Kong a great place to attend business school?

Not only is Hong Kong the center of finance, but it is also the gateway to Greater China and several other countries. Ten years ago investment bankers used to say that if you made it to Hong Kong, you were set for life.

As a Thai person, Hong Kong is almost as unique as it is hard to penetrate — it drove me to challenge myself to succeed in this highly competitive yet prosperous and educational landscape. CUHK is a grand platform.

You participated in the Singapore Career Trek. Did you value the opportunity to build potential career networks with corporations?

The trek definitely presented opportunities as I was the only Thai national on the trip and Thai national MBAs are in limited supply for international MNCs [multinational corporations].

You pitched a business plan at IE Venture Day. What’s your advice for getting investors to back an idea?

They will only invest in the people, which means that you need to fully convince them that you are willing to give up everything, and I mean everything, for that business plan.

For me, I did want to do it, but it is a business that can only yield monetary benefits — something I came to realize during the MBA is not enough for me. I wanted to give back to society and to people who are not as lucky as me.

Why is it important for companies to take a closer look at their social responsibility?

CSR can only yield benefits if done truly from the heart. Many companies are realizing this and trying to make sure that everyone along the value chain knows what they are working for and what the ultimate goal is.

Why they should do it is to ensure a healthy, sustainable future for the company. Success may be instant, but maintaining success and stability is what keeps a company going.

From my experience, keeping your employees happy will lead to better services and products, resulting is happy clients; it’s all a chain effect. If you skip your stakeholder, you’ll regret it.

Media: BusinessBecause.com
Section: News/ Why MBA?
Date published: Sep 30, 2015