Towards closer partnership with business and industry

Gearing up for the knowledge-based economy
Since its establishment in July 1999, the School of Professional Education and Executive Development (SPEED) has been fully committed to the cause of lifelong learning. During the period under review, the School has set up a framework of lifelong learning and introduced a number of new initiatives that helped shape the development of continuing education in Hong Kong.

Laying the foundations
At its initial stage of development, the School has mainly concentrated its efforts in laying down the foundation upon which a variety of programmes catering for the needs of mature learners can be developed. The School has developed Professional and Continuing Education (PCE) programmes that focus on specialist knowledge, and Credit Accumulation Mechanism (CAM) that facilitates lifelong learning. Both of them were launched in September 2000.

Developed in collaboration with professional bodies and industry organisations, the PCE programmes provide a structured study pattern for learners to sharpen their core management skills as well as industry-specific knowledge. Upon completion of these programmes, participants will be granted PCE awards that carry specific discipline titles by the University. The first batch of PCE programmes, in the areas of jewellery, packaging, print media and human resources management, was offered in the academic year of 2000/2001. A new series of PCE programmes, comprising eight discipline-based awards in banking and finance, health care, hotel and catering, information technology, insurance and marketing, will be launched in the following academic year.

In parallel, the School launched the first batch of credit-bearing courses under CAM in September 2000. CAM provides a framework by which learners can accumulate credits towards PCE awards. Credits earned under CAM are valid for life. Learners can, according to individual needs and interests, decide what subjects they will take and how far they will progress up the qualification ladder. In the past year, 164 credit-bearing subjects were developed by the School and other faculties of the University. By 30 June 2001, a total of 976 students has been registered under CAM.

CAM and PCE programmes are the two main building blocks of lifelong learning for mature learners at SPEED. Subject to the School’s credit transfer policy, credits are transferable between the two schemes of study. Learners, in particular busy executives, can therefore adjust their study plans in case there is a change in personal circumstances.

In response to the Government’s new policy of providing 60 per cent of our senior secondary school graduates with access to tertiary education in 10 years?time, the School has decided to extend its services to cover post-secondary students. Its first full-time Associate Degree (AD) programme, the Associate of Arts in Business, will be launched in September 2001. Derived from a broad-based and holistic curriculum, AD programmes aim to provide students with a foundation for further studies or career development.

In view of the growing demand for post-secondary education, the School is planning to expand its AD provision, which includes increasing the choice of streams and elective subjects. The School is also preparing for the establishment of a Community College which will offer an academic as well as administrative infrastructure for delivering full-time AD programmes.

Entrepreneurial spirit
The acronym of the School, SPEED, represents the underlying mission of the School to instil a spirit of dynamism, energy and entrepreneurism into its education activities. To achieve this goal, the School has forged links with industries, professional bodies and other tertiary education institutions, with a view to identifying the needs of the labour market and drawing together resources for promoting lifelong learning.

The joint efforts of the School and the Hong Kong Jewellery Manufacturers?Association, the Hong Kong Packaging Institute, the Graphic Arts Association of Hong Kong, in developing the PCE programmes mentioned above, are one of the many examples of successful co-operation between academia and industry. The participation of industry associations ensures that programme curricula are relevant to the needs of the industry, and resources for practical training are in place if necessary. This model of collaboration will be adopted for other partnerships in the future.

As for academic collaboration, during the year under review, the School formed a number of new alliances with overseas universities for articulation of programmes as well as academic exchange. These included the University of Alberta (Canada), the University of Michigan-Dearborn (US), the University of Southern Queensland (Australia) and Saint Michael’s College (US).

The School also reached an agreement with the University of London that preparatory programme leading to its Bachelor of Science in Computing and Information Systems would be expanded to include modules for its Diploma in September 2001. Collaborations with Monash University and the University of Western Sydney in offering their degree programmes in Hong Kong, which started in the early 90s, will continue in the coming years.

Through the Consortium of Continuing Education Institutions (CCEI), the School has established links with other continuing education institutions in Hong Kong and Macau, including the Caritas Adults and Higher Education Service, the Hong Kong College of Technology, the Hong Kong Federation of Trade Unions, the Hong Kong Productivity Council and the Macau Polytechnic Institute.

With a view to facilitating credit transfer for further studies under CAM, the School has worked out a mechanism for validating subjects offered by other member institutions of the CCEI. The new credit transfer policy will be in full operation in the next academic year.

Expanding into the Chinese mainland
The School’s efforts in promoting lifelong learning have extended beyond the Hong Kong SAR. Since September 2000, the School has been offering the Higher Diploma in Enterprise Management in the two University outpost centres in Shenzhen and Hangzhou. In the academic year of 2001/2002, the School will introduce the Executive Diploma in Management Studies, the professional programmes of the UK’s Association of International Accountants and Chartered Institute of Marketing in these outposts.

Producing skilled manpower
Since the establishment of the Institute for Enterprise (IfE) two years ago, the University has evolved into an even closer partner to the industry in developing and enhancing human resources, technological know-how and business strengthens. The Institute is dedicated to meeting the needs of our partners in Technology and Product Development, Management and Executive Development, and Partnership and Business Development.

Focusing on product and technology development
On the Product & Technology Development front, the PolyU Technology & Consultancy Company Limited (PTeC) is a strategic professional service arm. The wide range of services covers consultancy, contract research, product development and design, and improvement, surveys, and sourcing for new technology and products. In terms of product development, the Rapid Product Development Syndicate (RAPRODS), managed by PTeC, is geared towards developing new and innovative products and technologies quickly and economically.

PTeC has collected a hefty array of international accolades through the International Strategic Technology Alliance (ISTA). Joining hands with 17 fellow universities from China, the UK and US representing major academic and applied research strengths, ISTA aims to develop advanced technologies within the Alliance. In October 2000, the 5th meeting of ISTA was held in conjunction with the Institute’s Xian Mission Tour. During the meeting, top managerial businessmen shared their views on developing new opportunities in the West of the mainland.

Building human capital for enterprises
In pursuit of quality Management and Executive Development services, the IfE consolidates the strengths of various centres, previously operated independently, to cater for the human resources development needs of the commercial, industrial and public sectors.

As Hong Kong has evolved through structural changes to become a key player in the new economy and global knowledge community, the Management and Executive Development Centre (MEDC) has been fine-tuning its mission, strategies, organisational structure, skills and competence profiles to transform itself from a department offering public and in-house training programmes into a strategic business unit which provides consultancy services that include management consultancy.

2000/2001 was a very fruitful year for MEDC. With the concerted efforts of staff members of MEDC and PCCW-Centre for Intellignet Enterprises, MEDC put together a total of 163 events, training courses included, to more than 5,000 executives and professionals from over 1,000 local corporations and companies with operations on the Chinese mainland. MEDC’s training programmes were very well attended. About 700 executives and managers representing 30 companies and various departments participated in MEDC’s customised courses. A total of 14 courses related to continuing professional development for members of professional associations and 43 IT-related courses for public enrolment were organised. In addition, 19 intensive training courses were offered to more than 540 senior managers from mainland corporations.

Last year also witnessed the successful launching of three major training initiatives. The IfE Enterprise Leadership programme, designed and modelled on a format similar to that of an mini-MBA programme, was launched in April 2001. Three subjects in the Enterprise Leadership programme were offered so far. More than 100 owners, CEOs, general managers and senior executives from local small- and medium-sized enterprises participated.

MEDC opened up the first 18 credit-bearing courses under CAM for participants who are senior- or middle-level managers aspiring to further their studies by adopting a flexible lifelong learning scheme leading to academic credits and PolyU degree awards. MEDC was also selected as an approved institution to collaborate with the Hong Kong Institute of Financial Planners to offer training modules in financial planning to prepare students for the necessary external certification to qualify for the Certified Financial Planner designation.

More professional training & development initiatives
In response to the Government’s call for promoting Hong Kong as an international city, the Centre for Professional and Business English, the largest single training centre in the IfE, has devoted itself to the Workplace English Compaign and the Language Proficiency Assessment for Teachers. During the year, the Centre received overwhelming support from the public in enrolling in courses relating to these two areas. The Centre has run more than 600 courses with over 9,000 participants while the number of corporate clients has exceeded 200.

As planned, the IfE has extended its continuing education services to the Chinese mainland. With a vision of building up rich management resources there, the PolyU Outpost Centre has taken the initiative to set up outreach centres in strategic locations, including Hangzhou, Beijing and Shenzhen. A collaborative agreement between PolyU and Harbin Institute of Technology was signed in June 2001, with the aim of establishing the University’s fourth outpost in Zhuhai. Named the International College for Innovative Training, the Zhuhai outpost marks another progressive step taken by PolyU to expand its training base for running professional and continuing education programmes on the mainland.

During the year, our University conducted two more academic programmes on the mainland ?Master of Science in Hotel & Tourism Management and Bachelor of Science in Nursing. These two programmes were launched successfully at the PolyU outpost in Hangzhou in September 2000 and April 2001 respectively.

Furthermore, two programmes, namely Master of Science in Quality Management and Master of Science in Hotel & Tourism Management, were highly appreciated by an assessment panel of the Academic Degree Committee of the State Council of the PRC.

As a market leader in providing China business-related training, applied research and consultancy, the China Business Centre had an exciting year in 2000/2001. Besides traditional training in finance and business studies, the Centre started to focus on IT and related subjects. It conducted a series of in-house training seminars for local major corporations. With the success of such programmes, the Centre has built up its reputation in the area. In addition, it designed and conducted a series of training programmes for senior executives of telecommunications corporations from the mainland. The research staff of the Centre also published extensively on telecommunications and other IT-related issues of China.

In September 2000, PolyU signed a long-term co-operation MOU with Harbin Municipal Government on the groundwork built up by the Centre. In January 2001, the University President led a delegation to visit Harbin. The co-operation with a major mainland city marked a milestone in the history of the University.

Achieving success in partnership and business development
Teaching Company Scheme is an important initiative of the University. It was endorsed by the University Council in March 2001 that PolyU should continue to assure its leadership in this activity and to expand the Scheme by adding 20 new schemes per year from 2001/2002. The well-established Scheme encourages companies to take on PolyU research students for specific R&D projects directly related to the needs of client companies. The Scheme has not only achieved academic excellence, but also rendered immediate benefits to partner companies. It has also enabled the University to recruit new personnel for applied research.

Last year, there were 28 schemes registered with partner companies from various industries, including construction, hotel, textiles, electronic, software development, plastics and other manufacturing industries.

Maintaining close contact and being responsive to the needs and difficulties of industries, the Partnership Development Office (PDO), a marketing arm of IfE, continues to develop new leads and open up doors for collaborations and partnership among commercial clients, IfE and other departments and centres of PolyU.

The successful liaison and co-ordination of the donation of $7 million from Simatelex to PolyU testified PDO’s significant role and contribution to both IfE and the University. In 2000/2001, the Office helped to line up major collaborative projects with such prominent companies as Microsoft and SUNeVision.

In the past year, the Office worked hard on a number of spin-off corporations with various departments offering an excellent alternative for technology transfer opportunity. The most prominent example is the forthcoming listing of Eco-Tek Ltd (Diesel Particulate Trap project) on the GEM board. This will be the first listing of our University on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.

As a continuing effort in promoting PolyU’s technological development and achievement, PDO frequently organised on-campus tours, in-house presentations for corporate clients as well as participated in exhibitions to promote the capabilities of our University and co-operation opportunities with IfE. In the International Invention Expo 2000 ?Hong Kong, among the 600 exhibitors from 15 countries and regions, the University won one Gold, one Silver and four Bronze medals.

To promote direct interactions and close collaboration with the business community, IfE organised a number of major seminars between 2000 and 2001 that attracted a total of close to
1,000 participants. They included the Round Table Forum chaired by Prof. Chen Siwei, the Seminar of Outlook of the 21st Century, etc.

Promoting intellectual property rights
There has been a growing awareness of the importance of intellectual property (IP) rights among our staff and students. Since the take-over of IP administration by PDO in mid-2000, the number of patent applications received from staff and students has soared. In the fiscal year until the end of May, we received and processed 27 patent applications and one trademark application, compared with a total of 46 handled between 1996 and 2000. In addition, there was also an increasing number of inquiries on IP-related matters, with around 10?5 enquiries per week.

Connecting with the academic community beyond Hong Kong
During the year under review, the Academic and Professional Collaboration Office continued to play an active role as a facilitator and a catalyst in forging collaborations and exchanges between the University and its counterparts both on the Chinese mainland and overseas.

Creating exchange opportunities for students
In order to promote interflow between local and mainland students and further strengthen the relationship with our strategic partner Zhejiang University, the Office launched a new programme in the summer of 2000 to receive 10 postgraduate students from the university to undertake a six-week practical training at PolyU. In addition, the Office also arranged 20 undergraduate students from Zhejiang University to participate in a one-week study tour in Hong Kong during summer.

In collaboration with the PolyU Mainland Scholars Association, a tea gathering was organised in February 2001 for the PolyU Management to meet and interchange ideas with visiting scholars, research personnel and research students from the Chinese mainland who were on campus. The response to the event was overwhelming with over 150 participants. In April 2001, the Office organised another event ?Know Your PolyU programme ?to enhance the understanding of members from the Chinese mainland about the University. The event, comprising an introductory session and a tour to PolyU’s major facilities, would be held at regular intervals each year. It was hoped that these social programmes, coupled with other collaborative endeavours, would help nurture long-term relationship and pave the way for even closer partnership between PolyU and mainland institutions.

To support the University’s ‘Preferred Graduate?Development Programme, the Office organised the Summer Student Placement Programme in Hangzhou for the second year. A total of 42 students was sent to Hangzhou for internship training with the support of Zhejiang University. Students were arranged to work in nine well-established companies and organisations, including Eastcom Communications Co. Ltd., World Trade Centre Grand Hotel, XiZi Elevator Group, Sir Run Run Shaw Hospital, etc. Besides, the Office also sent students for overseas training through the world-renowned International Association for the Exchange of Students for Technical Experience (IAESTE). Through the programme, a total of 37 students was sent abroad to 17 countries for internship, lasting from three months to one year, at renowned multinational corporations. In return, 33 overseas students were received for industrial training in Hong Kong. By taking part in the training programme outside Hong Kong, students were exposed to actual working environment and different cultures in other parts of the world. This would enrich their international and professional experiences, both vital to their career development in future.

Building a more solid academic network
The Academic and Professional Collaboration Office received 164 delegations, 114 of which were from the Chinese mainland and 50 from overseas last year. Among these delegations received, 42 were led by high-ranking officials equivalent to university vice-president level or above. There were also visits by senior government officials from the Chinese mainland including Prof. Cheng Siwei and Mr Xu Jialu, both are Vice Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress.

During the year, the University entered into agreements with a total of five new partners from the Chinese mainland and overseas. In addition to the co-operation with the Government of Harbin City, PolyU signed agreements in early 2001 with Nankai University and Northern Jiaotong University respectively to enhance the existing network
for academic collaborations. The University also established partnership with the University of Waterloo, Canada in April 2001. Through this collabo-rative linkage, staff and student exchanges would be initiated between the two universities. In the same month, a co-operative agreement was also signed with the University of Philippines to establish opportunities for collaboration particularly in hotel and tourism management.