Southeast Asia has experienced an enormous economic growth with a rising middle class and strongly leveraged by the adoption of digital technologies. However, the region is very diverse in terms of economic development, cultural roots, religion, history, etc. and each country has its own unique context that is still difficult to comprehend for many Western corporations when doing business in the region. While Southeast Asia’s diversity is one of its strengths, the countries also have some commonalities, such as their affinity for digital technologies or strong roles of governments in steering the economy.
With its colonial history (except Thailand) and immigration of Chinese and Indians to the region, Southeast Asia is home to some very old and established corporations, but also to many younger firms that have been founded after independence from colonial powers in the 1960s and more recently, during the digital transformation of Southeast Asia. For instance, most countries have a vibrant Overseas Chinese business communities, often called the Bamboo network. Further, some countries have very open economies and have attracted Western corporations since many decades, while others have just started to open up.
The course aims to dive into the diversity of Southeast Asia in order to understand each countries business context, economic development and competitive position. Further, the course will reflect on the attractiveness and challenges of Southeast Asia for Western corporations, such as for global supply chains, consumer markets, and regional headquarters and also familiarize students with the local business landscape such as family businesses, founder-led firms, and state-owned corporations and reflect on the corporate strategies and governance models of these local corpoations.
The course is offered as part of the Master for Business Management (MUG-HSG) and usually takes place in Singapore as a one-week block seminar during the break of the autumn semester. The course has a study mission character combining lectures, case discussions and group projects with local company visits and guest lectures by senior executives from Southeast Asia.
Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the course will take place on the campus in St.Gallen in 2020 without a study trip to Singapore. Guest lecturers from Southeast Asia are integrated via Zoom as well as meet-ups with HSG alumni to get first-hand insights into working and living in Southeast Asia.