Building Our Future Together
A reporter from the Financial Times asked me during a recent interview why I chose to take up the deanship at NUS Business School. My answer to her was this: I am attracted to NUS Business School because it is an institution characterised by a vision of excellence, talented and dedicated faculty and staff, bright and motivated students, and a vibrant and supporting alumni community. Also, the University’s vision is particularly appealing – NUS is a global university in Asia. The critical factor that influenced my decision to move here is the charge that the President, the Provost, and the Trustees offers me – that we strive to deliver world class teaching and research that not only meet regional needs but also make globally recognised contributions.
I said in an earlier email that it is with great excitement that I come on board as the new Dean of NUS Business School. It is exciting to feel the energy and the momentum of progress here. I appreciate the diversity, strength and intellectual energy we have and what our communities have already achieved. In my mind, NUS Business School is an excellent business school destined to be even greater. As the world re-orientates itself towards Asia, there will be many research and education needs in this region. Our School has what it takes to attain world class standards in these areas that will have a real impact on both the business community and the economic progress in Asia and beyond. I believe that as we are guided by our aspirations and a common desire to bring the School to a new level of excellence, our School will rise to prominence as one of the world’s foremost learning community that produces ideas and leaders who are positioned to excel in today’s rapidly changing business world.
We have much to be proud of, and much to build on. The work ahead of us is important and challenging. The goals are ambitious. But I believe we can determine the outcome as we set forth to build something special here – and I hope to rely on the support and counsel of faculty, students, alumni and friends as we build our future together.
Prof Bernard Yeung
Stephen Riady Distinguished Professorship Chair
Dean, NUS Business School
Build Trust To Stay Ahead, Says Management Guru
For those who attended the talk by Mr Don Peppers of Peppers and Rogers Group on 12 May at the University Hall Auditorium, they would know that both excellence and innovation are needed for companies that want to succeed.
A leading authority on customer-focused relationship management strategies for business, Mr Peppers demonstrated through case studies of successful organisations on how constant innovation and excellence in operations has to be balanced in order to attract and retain customers.
“It is the people that make the difference,” Mr Peppers remarked as the recipe to success.
He also highlighted the trend that today’s customers are increasingly influenced by feedback about products and services on online social networks.
“…a 12-year old started a forum topic that had many more hits and comments… more than an online profile created by a marketing executive of a large company,” Mr Peppers related to the audience’s amusement.
He asserted that the only way to improve satisfaction, loyalty and referrals, would be to provide innovative products and excellent service to build a good reputation with the customers. It is only when companies succeed in building trust among its customers, that it would attract trustworthy and motivated employees who will provide excellent service and innovative products.
This, Mr Peppers reckoned, would enable companies to create a sustainable competitive advantage.
Click here for more photos.
Back To Top 
A Warm Welcome
We welcome Professor Nicholas G. Hall from The Ohio State University, who will be hosted by Department of Decision Sciences from 5 May to 18 May.
Prof Hall is Professor of Management Sciences in the Fisher College of Business at The Ohio State University. He holds B.A., M.A. degrees in economics from the University of Cambridge, a professional qualification in accounting, and a Ph.D. (1986) from the University of California at Berkeley. His research interests are in operational supply chain issues, especially scheduling and pricing, and in applications of operations research to public policy problems.
We also extend our welcome to Professor David Yao (Columbia University) under the Cycle and Carriage Chair as well as Professor Max Shen from UC Berkeley University. They will be here from 27 May to 20 June and 27 May 08 to 03 June respectively.
Prof Yao received his PhD degree from the University of Toronto (1983), and has held numerous distinguished appointments. He was Associate Professor at Harvard University, and since 1988 has been a full Professor of Industrial Engineering and Operations Research at Columbia University. His teaching and research interests are in stochastic models, queues and queueing networks, focusing on the analysis, design and control of stochastic systems, such as manufacturing systems, supply chains, and communication networks.
Prof Max Shen received his PhD from Northwestern University. He has been active in the following research areas: integrated supply chain design and management, market mechanism design, applied optimization, and decision making with limited information.
Back To Top
Heartiest Congratulations
Heartiest congratulations to Assoc Prof Catherine Yeung who is promoted to Associate Professor with tenure on 1 July 2008.
This promotion recognises the significant impact that Catherine has quickly achieved in her research on the role of affect and its influence on consumer decision making, as well as her contributions on both the teaching and service dimension.
Back To Top |
