News
2025/11/13
The 2025 BEST Alliance Symposium and Deans’ Meeting, was hosted on November 14 at Seoul National University, bringing together senior leadership, faculty and exports from Graduate School of Business, Seoul National University (SNU), School of International Corporate Strategy, Hitotsubashi University Business School (Hitotsubashi ICS), and Guanghua School of Management, Peking University (PKU) gathered to review ongoing initiatives and strengthen one of Asia’s most influential academic alliances. This year’s event reaffirmed the Alliance’s shared commitment to shaping the future of business education and research across Asia.
The symposium was opened and hosted by Dean Joon Chae (SNU), who welcomed participants and highlighted the Alliance’s achievements and future aspirations. Hitotsubashi ICS expresses sincere appreciation to Dean Chae and the SNU team for their leadership and the excellent organization of this year’s symposium and related programs.
Celebrating Milestones and Advancing Strategic Initiatives
The Deans’ Meeting highlighted major developments across the three institutions:
SNU celebrates its 50th anniversary this year. Dean Chae introduced initiatives designed to foster creativity, social responsibility, and global connectivity. Programs such as the Tuesday Music Concerts and the Snowflake Scholarship exemplify SNU’s commitment to student well-being and international learning opportunities.
Hitotsubashi ICS announced the upcoming Knowledge Creation Symposium in July 2026, in honor of Professor Emeritus Ikujiro Nonaka, along with plans to publish a commemorative volume and establish an endowed laboratory for knowledge creation research (see detailed ICS highlights below).
PKU Guanghua marked its 40th anniversary. Dean Qiao Liu presented key developments, including the launch of the Global Master in Management Program, continued global recognition of the Guanghua–Kellogg EMBA Program, and new government-linked educational partnerships in Southeast Asia.
ICS Highlights: Knowledge Creation Symposium, Expansion, and Thought Leadership
During the Deans’ meeting, Dean Emi Osono shared key updates that reflect a pivotal moment for Hitotsubashi ICS. As the school celebrates its 25th anniversary and Hitotsubashi University marks its 150th, Hitotsubashi ICS continues to expand its global vision and academic impact. A major announcement was the upcoming Knowledge Creation Symposium in July 2026, which will honor the legacy of the late Professor Emeritus Ikujiro Nonaka. Alongside the symposium, Hitotsubashi ICS plans to publish a commemorative book and establish an endowed laboratory dedicated to advancing his groundbreaking work.
Dean Osono also emphasized that ICS remains committed to positioning its MBA Program as a transformative leadership journey. The addition of the Wise Leadership course, inspired by Nonaka’s philosophy, strengthens this mission by integrating deep reflection with practical leadership development.
Hitotsubashi ICS’s global footprint continues to grow as well. New exchange partnerships with the University of Cape Town Graduate School of Business, the University of Ghana Business School, and Fudan University School of Management will broaden opportunities for student mobility and cross-cultural learning across Africa and Asia. This expansion aligns with Hitotsubashi ICS’s long-term goal of developing globally minded leaders who can navigate and contribute to diverse regions.
Collaboration That Delivers Results
This year’s Doing Business in Asia 2025 program received strong positive feedback. Thanks to close coordination across the three schools students experienced smoother logistics, richer academic content, and higher overall satisfaction. The program’s evolution highlights the Alliance’s commitment to delivering an integrated learning experience that reflects the dynamism of Asian markets.
Exchange and double degree updates also reflect continued progress, with Hitotsubashi ICS actively engaging in new mobility flows for the 2025–2026 academic year. These initiatives support Hitotsubashi ICS’s mission to provide students with meaningful opportunities to learn beyond the classroom.
Advancing Joint Research
ICS reaffirmed its role in driving the BEST Joint Research Program, led by Joint Research Program Director Prof. Kangyong Sun (ICS). This collaborative platform enables faculty from the three institutions to pursue impactful cross-border research addressing pressing challenges in management, leadership, and business innovation.
In 2025, eight faculty-led projects were approved, with each school contributing funds to support interdisciplinary collaboration. The initiative not only strengthens academic ties but also enriches the intellectual ecosystem shared by the Alliance. By bringing together diverse perspectives from Japan, South Korea, and China, the program fosters rigorous scholarship that reflects Asia’s growing influence in the global economy.
Prof. Hyun Youyung (ICS), in collaboration with Prof. Sungchul Noh (ICS), delivered a joint presentation on their latest collaborative project, “Cross-cultural Empirical Research on the Impact of GenAI on Designers' Creativity in Image Production: Evidence from Japan and South Korea.” Their work explores how generative AI influences creative processes among designers across different cultural contexts, highlighting similarities and differences between Japan and South Korea.
Prof. Masazumi Hattori (ICS), in collaboration with Prof. Ryosuke Fujitani (ICS) and Jouchi Nakajima (Hitotsubashi University), presented a joint research project, “The Real Effects of Corporate Cash Holdings in the Evolution of Financial Strategy in Japan.” Their research focuses on the role of corporate cash reserves in shaping strategic financial decisions and the broader implications for corporate governance and firm performance in the Japanese market.
Hitotsubashi ICS’s commitment to research excellence ensures that insights generated through the program will shape business practice, policy conversation, and future curriculum development.
Business Education in the Age of AI. A Timely and Forward-Looking Dialogue
The symposium continued with a public event titled “Business Education in the Age of AI: What Needs to Change and What Must Remain?” The keynote was delivered by Dean Joon Chae (SNU), followed by a panel discussion featuring Prof. Kyoungwon Seo (SNU), Prof. Yoshinori Fujikawa (Hitotsubashi ICS), and Prof. Qiaowei Shen (PKU), who shared their perspectives on how AI is reshaping the expectations, responsibilities, and identity of business schools.
The conversation began by addressing what must change. The panelists agreed that business education now needs to incorporate competencies that reflect the realities of AI-enabled decision-making, including data interpretation, prompt engineering, algorithmic literacy, and ethical frameworks for responsible AI use. They emphasized that integrating AI-related competencies will affect not only course content but also pedagogical methods and the ways learning takes place both inside and outside the classroom.
Equally important was the question of what must remain in business education despite rapid technological advancement. The panelists underscored that wisdom, judgment, empathy, integrity, and the ability to make decisions grounded in values and context must continue to anchor leadership development.
Looking ahead, the discussion pointed to significant curricular transformation over the next decade as business schools prepare learners for environments where AI is embedded in strategy, communication, and organizational leadership. The critical next step for educators and institutions will be defining how humans and AI can best complement one another in the learning process, ensuring graduates not only understand technological tools but also possess the capacity to guide, question, and govern them with foresight and responsibility.
A Shared Vision for the Future
The meeting concluded with renewed enthusiasm for expanding cooperation within the Alliance. Leaders from all three schools expressed a strong desire to deepen collaboration across student mobility, co-taught courses, faculty exchanges, joint programs, and collaborative academic events. For Hitotsubashi ICS, the path forward is one of continued leadership and active engagement. As the Alliance looks toward its next decade of partnership, Hitotsubashi ICS remains committed to strengthening ties, fostering innovation, and cultivating the next generation of wise, globally minded leaders.
With shared values and a collective commitment to excellence, the BEST Alliance continues to grow as a premier tri-school partnership and to shape the future of management education across Asia.
The Next Best Alliance Symposium will take place on November 13, 2026, and will be hosted by Hitotsubashi ICS.
