We all know that Asia is hugely important as the producer of more and more of the world’s goods and services. Asian markets are rapidly growing in both size and importance. We can also read about the increasing global economic, cultural and political influence of Asian countries in general and China in particular. However, from a business perspective Asia is much more than just big markets, high growth rates and economic power. It is about understanding a part of the world that is fundamentally and very quickly rewriting the rules of global competition and business.

Understanding new rules and a different playing field
Companies need international business specialists that understand and can adapt business activities to the very different playing field that applies in an Asian context. The Western approach to trade is no longer dominant – now the East is doing business on its own terms. One example would be how Chinese state intervention and state subsidies shift the competitiveness of industries and companies. Another would be how very large Japanese and Korean business conglomerates create highly complex business environments. Furthermore, Asian firms have technological leadership in areas such as information and communications technology, robotics and artificial intelligence. Yet another example would be how historical and cultural patterns create a very different setting for negotiations, communication and relationships with partners in Korea, India or other countries. Asian business understanding is not an “add-on” to a traditional business education. It is a specialisation in itself.

Managing complexity across borders and cultures
To create Asia business specialists who can successfully navigate this complexity, the IBA focuses on three key areas:

• Firstly, you must understand the special conditions of Asian business, economics and markets.
• Secondly, you must understand the cultural traits and traditions that shape Asian societies and Asian business and management cultures.
• Finally, you must understand business conditions through traditional business courses such as finance, accounting, marketing and organization. You will learn the fundamental concepts of international business and gain insights into topics of international management.

These three key areas are of equal importance. It is the integrated understanding you will gain from working with all three together that will allow you to understand and analyse Asian business challenges, risks and opportunities – and develop and implement relevant solutions.

Importantly, the programme includes a significant language component and you will learn either Mandarin Chinese or Japanese. Understanding one of these languages is an important additional key to gaining a deeper understanding of Asian culture. At the same time, your language skills will allow you to access information and form personal relationships that are important for doing business in Asia and which non-speakers cannot. Of course, Chinese and Japanese are just two of many Asian languages, but the programme focuses on them as they are the principal Asian business languages along with English.

Hands-on experience in Asia
The unique four-year structure of the programme allows students to spend two full semesters in Asia. All students participate in a structured exchange at a university in China or Japan during the fourth semester. In addition, you can spend the seventh semester on individual exchange. This allows you to gain practical intercultural experience while also improving your language proficiency and further developing your international business skills.

Hear it from the students
Click below and hear why Sofie, Daniel and other students chose IBA and get their advise in regards to studying at CBS: