We had a very a successful annual conference in China, bringing together more than 120 deans, professors, businessmen, entrepreneurs, and partner associations from all over the world, We discussed the challenges of entrepreneurship and management education in rising economies. The conference was kindly hosted by one of the most prominent management schools in China: the School of Management at Zhejiang University.
Apart from this great event, CEEMAN successfully delivered in the spring two other programs - IMTA and the Program Managers Seminar - with record numbers of participants coming to Bled.
Every year, I am increasingly convinced that IMTA is one of the best faculty development programs in the world. We have an outstanding faculty, addressing the most challenging issues that management professors and teachers are facing at work today. We make sure that during the two weeks of IMTA in Bled professors have time to exchange information on their teaching practices and reflect on them. We also make sure that we prepare professors from all over the world for the challenges of the future.
In December, CEEMAN organized its first EdTech seminar on digital technologies in higher education. We should keep in mind the urgency that we are dealing with when facing digital transformation. In my view, the challenge is to find a way of using more high technology [MM1] in our schools for more high touch.
I am also very proud to say that 2018 is a year of CEEMAN's 25th birthday. When we established IEDC-Bled School of Management 31 years ago not enough was known about the school, and Central and Eastern Europe in general. Other associations around the world did not understand us, either. So, working together with a group of people from Eastern and Central Europe, we decided to establish CEEMAN. When we started this association, we were focusing mostly on Central and Eastern Europe. Yet, over time we have realized that the issues of change and transition, so characteristic of our region in the 1990s, are still relevant nowadays in other societies that are undergoing similar transition and dynamic change.
In 25 years, CEEMAN has become a global association, yet it continues to do what it did at the outset. We are interested in accelerated management development, in great management education, in the uniqueness of our management education, and in excellence and relevance. We want our member schools, and in fact all management schools around the world, to do something useful for their environments and for societies at large.
I personally believe strongly in the mission of CEEMAN, and in the work we do. And I am looking forward to many more years of this great cooperation and friendship in our “family”.
On behalf of CEEMAN's team, I send you a lot of good wishes for 2018!