Onlineprograms are more and more popular these days as they are spurred by aconstantly evolving mode of technology and also allow a level of engagement andpersonal attention of participants. Seen the COVID-19, online program is theclear pathway when travels are restricted. Hence the School of Management,Zhejiang University organized 2020 "Business Plus" InternationalSummer Program that commenced on the 12th of July in which participants areexpected to develop skills fundamental to global leadership, including in-depthproblem analysis and exploration, presentation and expression, cross-culturalcommunication, and teamwork skills.

Onthe evening of July 12, the Welcome Session of "Business Plus"International Summer Program was conducted online in the form of videoconference. Zhou Weihua, Associate Dean of the School, and Pan Jian, DeputySecretary delivered an introductory speech concerning the program. All 117participants joined the meeting. Associate Dean Zhou Weihua explained that thecurrent situation is not only a drastic change unseen in a century, but also agreat opportunity to utilize. And this online program is an innovative attempt.Deputy Secretary Pan Jian suggested that the students enrolled are supposed todo some prevision and active questioning further after class to clear theirdoubts. Subsequently, the assistant teacher Mr. Wang Jiali and Ms. Huang Yutingemphasized matters that worth attention.

Thefirst lecture of the program - “Leadership in Extreme Contexts” was deliveredby Dr. Graham Mitchelmore, a core faculty member and practice professor ofLeadership and Organization Management at School of Management, ZhejiangUniversity. As an experienced senior manager in public services, Dr.Mitchelmore integrates credible academic attributes and exceptional operationalmanagement experience into his teaching. With transformational leadership,adaptive leadership and crisis leadership as the instruction, he discusseddifferent types of leadership in different contexts with students. “The uniqueinsights he shared with us are academic and practical, which not only broadenour horizons, but also inspire us to think about how to improve our leadershipand explore career possibilities.” one student said. Meanwhile, the studentsexpressed a high degree of enthusiasm by actively asking meaningful questionsand communicating with each other in the chat box.

Thesecond lecture was delivered by Professor Ming Hu on the morning of July 14th.The topic was “The Past and Present of Operation Managements”. Ming Hu is aDistinguished Professor of Operations Management at Rotman School ofManagement, University of Toronto. His research explores the interface betweenoperations management and marketing. In his lecture, he went through thedefinition of operation management (OM) and emphasized the importance of OMmodels in RM decisions and some everyday life scenarios. He also discussed thejoint behavior of prices and wages optimization in a multi-scenario model setupand other models such as carpooling and organ sharing etc. His lecture waspopular among students as he also shared some interesting life experiences andanecdotes to elaborate the theories above.

Whilein the afternoon of July 14th, Dr. Juan Yao, a Senior Lecturer of Finance,Business School of The University of Sydney, shared her topic "Journey tothe West - Offshore Financing by Chinese Firms" which was the thirdlecture of the summer program. As an expert in foreign exchange market andbusiness forecasting, she introduced theories on offshore finance andhighlighted ADR (American Depositary Receipts), including its definition,types, arbitrage, road, and etc. In addition, Dr. Yao analyzed why offshorefinance should be carried out, as well as its benefits and risks. Finally, inconnection with the current global situation, she asks two questions: "Thedeath of globalization?" "Localization or diversification?"These two questions aroused students further thinking.

Ourstudents met up with Professor Karin OConnor from Kellogg School of Management,Northwestern University online on Thursday evening for the fourth lesson of theprogram. First of all, combined with a large number of domestic and foreigncommercial complex cases like ZocDoc, she explained the unit economic model andfundamental law of growth. Her teaching focused on customer acquisition cost,customer lifetime value and logic relationships between them. Then, thestudents performed a case study about Moxie Jean, an online resale shop forgently used kids’ clothing. Feedback on the case study has been extremelypositive. Many ideas and opinions were shared actively on how to improve MJ’sCLTV/CAC ratio in class. “The lecture enabled me to master a business model foranalyzing the growth of an enterprise. It was also a brand-new experience todiscuss business cases online in English with my classmates.” a freshman said.

Onthe afternoon of July 17, Professor Jiatao Li from the Business School of HongKong University of Science and Technology started with his own personalexperience and briefly introduced the current situation and future developmentdirection of global strategy and innovation research, and explained the reasonsfor choosing this topic. Later, he talked about the challenges andopportunities brought by digitalization, and the impact of digital upgrading onbusiness globalization, focusing on the differences and connections between ESA(Economic-specific advantages), Ecosystem and the market. Then, on the premisethat the preparatory work was arranged, the three exhibition groups madereports on three related academic articles successively, deepening andbroadening the topics from the perspectives of reverse innovation, demandheterogeneity, and international digital commerce. Professor Li also citedspecific examples like Alibaba, Tencent, Amazon, etc., to make theoreticalknowledge lively and to guide students in a more targeted way.

Thelast lecture of this program themed “The Evolution of Luxury and Cultural andTechnological Dimensions of Luxury Brands Consumption” was delivered byProfessor Qing Wang, specialized in marketing and innovation, from WarwickBusiness School, The University of Warwick, UK. Her first point was thecharacteristics and evolution of luxury. Comparing with fashion, she furtheradded that luxury brands are not quantitatively comparable and give ahedonistic experience and such brands make us feel good even though they haveless functional value. They are symbolic consumption, making one feel exclusiveand unique, such as Rolex which is considered to be a symbol of success in themodern day. She also highlighted the case of Gucci. Professor Wang alsoexplained the cultural and technological dimensions of luxury brandsconsumption. Different thinking styles in different cultures make Luxury brandsshow regional differences.

Allin all, these five days have been very intriguing for the enthusiastic ZJU-SOMstudents. Understanding new environments, languages, and cultures breeds anappreciation for what you have, or where you come from. It also opens your eyesto what is going on in the global landscape and aspires one to be open to newavenues – academically and personally. The Summer Program is a greatopportunity for students to venture out, build confidence, participate andlearn by just staying home.