Byline ICS

Interested to know what careers do alumni take after the MBA program at Hitotsubashi ICS? Then take a peek at the Alumni Talk Session held online on Saturday, June 27! We welcomed three alumni panelists:

On this Byline ICS piece, Aiko Tokiyama, one of the MBA Coordinators, interviewed two current MBA students and one alumna on their experience of studying for an MBA during the first years of motherhood. Doro started the program when her daughter was around 2. Hong found out she had been accepted to the program soon after learning she was pregnant; she began her MBA studies when her daughter was three months old. Aya welcomed her son in the same week the program started in September 2019, so joined her MBA class in March this year.

In this edition of Byline ICS, Jane Jihyun Park, a two-year program MBA student, shares with us why "The Most Important Thing" by Howard Marks is valuable reading for anyone who wants to excel in investing. Below read the three-key take-aways of her review. 

Last month, Class of 2019 students Chinmay, Jane, Julien and Sai were joined by their Seminar Professor Satoko Suzuki for their very first Zoom Zemi meeting, in which they discussed in length the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Below are some key takeaways:

• Will MBA programs continue to be offered offline beyond COVID-19?
• Has COVID-19 fundamentally changed people’s behaviors?
• What should companies do to communicate and create value during and after COVID-19?
• Is the airline industry going to be affected in the longer term as a result?
• Do you see any business opportunities emerging?
• Let’s talk about the Tokyo Olympics, now scheduled to take place in Summer 2021.

In this Byline ICS edition, our MBA students shared with us how they have been managing the swift change from in-classroom lectures to online sessions. Although most people have adjusted very quickly to life online, studying online is different and requires more discipline. Our students shared with us their tips on how to study efficiently at home.

On this Byline ICS edition, we sat down with Executive MBA alumnus, Katsuki Sakai (Kaz), who graduated with the first batch of our EMBA program in 2018. In this short interview, Kaz shared with us the key changes he sees in him after graduating from Hitotsubashi ICS’ EMBA program: 

“A little over a decade ago, I decided to do something “new” after work. Something that at the time seem ordinary or irrelevant, but that changed the track of my life path forever". 

To welcome our Class of 2019 (entrance year), alumni returned to ICS to join #foundationweek for a panel discussion, in which they shared with the incoming class their most memorable learnings from their time at #HitotsubashiICS and how they have leveraged their MBA throughout their careers. Perhaps the most valuable insight was their advice for this journey the #HitotsubashiICS2019 students have embarked on.

In this #bylineICS piece, we want to share the reflections that Miku Suzuki prepared for last week's alumni-panel discussion, as her busy agenda prevent her from joining us this time. 

Last month, we sat down with Vivek Kovilakathu, one of our alumni, to talk about his experience working in Japan as a foreigner. We learned about some of the challenges but also the benefits of working as an international professional in a Japanese company. Here are the highlights of our conversation:

As a person born and raised in the West, I get asked this question a lot – usually within 5 minutes of a conversation starting. Why, with the multitude of prestigious business schools in Europe and across the pond in the US, have I flown half way across the world to a place where the concept of an MBA is merely starting to find its feet? I take a deep breath and begin my usual talk of bridging cultures, of enjoying life in Japan, of the fact that Japan is a case worth studying both in the present and historically. As the list begins to whittle down, I hit the unavoidable wall, and my eyes start to shift nervously. Should I tell them? Should I tell them the real reason? After a brief pause, the words inevitably escape my lips: “I was also brought up watching Anime and reading Manga.” This is usually met with great enthusiasm, and a bond of mutual appreciation for the art is formed. Why was I even so hesitant in the first place?

I, like many people around the world who are infatuated with Japan, was first exposed to the country and its culture through the medium of Anime and Manga. For some it was something they picked up and left behind, but for others it has followed them throughout their lives: watching Nobita causing mischief with Doraemon’s gadgets as a kid, hot-blooded battles between alien super-warriors as a teenager and appreciating the delicate storytelling of a Ghibli film as an adult. It would be difficult to find any foreigner in Japan who hasn’t had any contact with it whatsoever. While it is a stretch to say that this was the main reason I embarked on my journey at Hitotsubashi ICS, it certainly led me down this path, and one of the first things I made sure to do was to be completely open about it.