During the week of May 8 to 14, the students of the Master in Business Management (MBM) of ESIC, had the opportunity to attend the international business study tour in Amsterdam. This opportunity was both academic and cultural. Every day we attended classes at the School of International Business, specifically at the Hogeschool van Amsterdam. It was an incredible experience where we were able to get to know each other better and also to meet our classmates from the other four locations in Spain. In total 62 students traveled to Amsterdam to live this experience.
Monday 9:
Chinese economic development. Macroeconomic policies
The experience began on Monday at 9 am when the whole group of MBM students arrived at the magnificent campus facilities where we were going to teach the scheduled course. We were welcomed by Brechtine, who explained the program we were going to take and the different speakers who would be taking part during the week.
The first class was given by the dean of the Hogeschool van Amsterdam School of International Business, Roger Busser, who explained the history and economic development of China to become a world economic power, as it is today. He explained that this was achieved thanks to the GDP growth method, working on physical capital, human capital and investment in technology for its industry.
On Monday afternoon, we were scheduled to visit the headquarters of ABN-AMRO bank. At the leading Dutch bank, we were met by Zijian Wang (head of ABN-AMRO’s learning partner office), who spoke to us about the mission and vision of this bank and Summit X. Ji (ING consultant), who spoke to us about the «new normal» in the Chinese economy after COVID 19.
And to end the first day, we attended a dinner organized by Zijian Wang at the Chinese restaurant FuLu Mandarijn Amsterdam, where we were delighted with a representation of the best Chinese cuisine.
Tuesday 10:
Building up professional relationships in China. Do’s and dont’s in China
Tuesday’s day started at 9 am with Claudio Perotti, who gave us some guidelines and tools to conduct business relations with Chinese counterparts. This same day, we also had 45 minutes of Mandarin Chinese class, where we learned some tones, simple phrases and some phonetics. It was quite amazing for all the students.
In the afternoon we went to the Rijksmuseum where you can see famous collections of paintings from the Dutch Golden Age as well as a rich collection of Asian and Egyptian art. That same afternoon, we were able to stroll through the flower market and after dark through the different neighborhoods of the city center and along the canals.
Wednesday 11:
In the third class we were able to learn the «Thinking Patterns, Open Door Policy and Economic Development of China». It made us learn many things that we did not know or had not taken into account so far and also the class was taught by a Chinese professor. In general we were all very attentive to his explanations and we had a great time.
Before lunch we had to take a covid-19 antigen test and you may wonder why. This was done because after lunch, a bus was waiting for us at the door of the university to take us to Rijswijk. Rijswijk is a city near The Hague, where the Huawei company is located. Since it is a Chinese multinational technology company, we were asked by protocol to provide maximum security.
What did we do there? First of all, they gave us a general presentation about the company and about their future plans, and we were able to ask questions to those people who are more curious. Then, we had the opportunity to listen to Mr. Sedat Gultekin, who shared with us some of his personal experiences within the company. To end the visit, we were shown two technological showrooms where they showed us all their projects.
At the end of the visit, the bus did not take us to the hotel. There was a lot of traffic because Ajax and Heerenveen were playing. Many of us went to watch the game from the outside, as the hotel was only a few meters away from the stadium. It was a night of celebration because Ajax were league champions. We all ended up soaking wet, but we had a great time!
Thursday 12:
On the fourth day, in the class of “Sourcing from / Market entry in China Do’s and dont’s in China”, we learned about concepts that have to do with personal relationships and honor. Then to finish our last class before the exam, we continued learning Chinese. The farewell was brutal as we all ended up singing a song in Chinese.
In the afternoon, we took a tour of the canals of Amsterdam. The truth is that it was a great day to go by boat. We could see the highest swing in Europe, located in A’DAM Toren tower and many more places like Anne Frank’s house among others. During the boat ride we were offered drinks and refreshments, which was a nice touch as it was very hot.
When we got off the boat, we had free time to continue visiting and exploring the city.
Friday 13:
On the fifth day of the Business Study Tour the exam took place at the University at 9.30 am The exam was based on the lessons of the previous four days: history of China, customs, economic relations and short language lessons to learn to communicate. In other words, fundamental knowledge when you want to start interacting with the Asian market.
After the exam, we met with the respective groups to decide how to organize the work, and it was a wonderful experience to be able to study in such a prestigious university full of international people.
The rest of the day was dedicated to tourist activities, each with his group, and then we all gathered in a typical Dutch bar where the university gave us 30 euros for each of us for dinner. It was a wonderful moment to conclude this experience, to be able to compare all together and plan the date for the next meeting.
Saturday 14:
End of the Business Study Tour. Return of each group to their cities.