Students on the BSM India trip covered four major metro areas and a widely diverse range of companies and organisations in nine intensive days.
Springing from the success of two previous Business Study Mission (BSM) trips conducted in academic year 2002-3, the BSM programme saw students venturing further afield last term to the very diverse cultures of India and Spain. Like the first trips to China, the main purpose of these BSMs was to make the students aware of the business opportunities, environment and practices in the respective countries they visited.
In a BSM course, students are initially exposed to the culture of a country through class room lectures and visitors. For BSM India, officials from the Singapore government as well as from the Indian High Commission came to talk to students about business ties between India and Singapore, while executives from organisations in Singapore who have business ties with India came to share about experiences in dealing with their Indian counterparts.
The BSM India trip was held from 3 – 12 October, and comprised a group of 20 students, led by course instructor Visiting Associate Professor Sundaram Janakiramanan. The whirlwind tour covered the major cities of New Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore and Chennai. Site visits included, among many others, the Bombay Stock Exchange, ICICI Bank, Infosys, WIPRO and Ford Motor Company, as well as a call centre.
The Singapore India Business Association (SIBA) in Chennai also arranged a meeting with Singaporean business people there.
As a follow up to the India trip, the students published a course book and put together a public seminar on 12 November entitled “The Practical Aspects of Doing Business in India”. The Guest of Honour was Dr Vivian Balakrishnan, Minister of State for Trade & Industry and National Development. |
 |
A visit to Real Madrid was significant for these students (pictured with course instructor Glenn Wharton, center), whose special project examined the football club’s recent and aggressive foray into the Asian market.
While India is an easily understandable target for a BSM trip, Spain is not so obvious a business destination. But in fact, “España” has privileged access to Latin America, acts as a major entry point to North Africa, and enjoys unrestricted access to all the European markets. Course instructor Teaching Associate Professor Glenn Wharton also says that the business opportunities in Spain are vast and varied. With its comparatively high growth rates for the last 10 years, Spain presents opportunities for businesses (and the SMU graduate), particularly as trade with Latin America expands.
In preparation for the BSM Spain (Madrid) trip, the 30 students completed a course in which they gained an understanding of the Spanish economy, its culture, history, and political system, as well as the implications of Spain’s membership in the European Union and relationship with Latin America. Entrepreneurs, industry, and government also able to attain a basic proficiency level in Spanish by taking in addition a Spanish language course.
The study trip was held from 30 November – 14 December and included site visits to Telefónica, BBVA, La Bolsa (Spain’s stock exchange), Madrid Chamber of Commerce, RTVE (Spain’s major TV and radio broadcaster), and Real Madrid Football Club, to name just a few. Customised lectures and seminars were given at El Prado Art Museum and the Universidad Complutense de Madrid and included topics in art history – useful background information for understanding and doing business with Spain.
With the success of these and previous programmes, the BSM course offering promises to be a mainstay in the SMU curriculum,
with the international business arenas extending as far as the global imagination.
|
