Final Reflections

It was fitting that my brief stint at Cal Poly would conclude just how it began: off and running. The International Business Tour, like the two summer courses, was an intense and stimulating academic experience. However, the trip to China was like no other course I have ever taken in my college experience. Talk about “learn by doing”, my days were busy and filled with many valuable learning opportunities.

China is an amazing country filled with abundant business opportunities. Capitalism and consumerism are breathing life into communist China. The numerous firm visits and the frequent shopping outings bear witness to the previous statement. Such large corporations as Sun Microsystems, Microsoft, and HSBC have a presence in China and I am more familiar with their business models because I visited these firms while in country. The trips to the different markets, where vendors compete for your business via a negotiated price, made it clear to me that free market practices are alive and well in China. In addition, I purchased a necklace for my wife from a chain store that had locations in Shenzhen and Shanghai and the experience was no different from a transaction in the United States.

The highlight of the trip for me was the numerous interactions with Chinese citizens. Whether the interaction occurred in a business transaction or a native practicing English, the experiences will never leave me. More specifically, two episodes from the tour are noteworthy.

The first episode occurred in Shanghai when my roommate, Adam, and I wandered the streets after dinner for a couple of hours. During our short adventure, we had several opportunities to interact with the people of Shanghai and it was unforgettable. We sat down in a bar where we were the only customers in the place and we had to communicate with hand gestures. In another instance, we stumbled upon an open-air market where there were few tourists and a vendor became so enraged and grabbed my arm because I would not purchase her shirt. My belief is that the woman attempted to force me into the transaction with her erratic behavior. Fortunately, I was able to hold my ground and not succumb to her desperate measures. On the final stop of our brief adventure, Adam and I discovered a barbershop down a dark alley that we decided to patronize. What was unique about the barbershop experience is that Adam and I had to communicate with hand gestures and pictures to show the barbers how we wanted our hair to be styled.

The second episode was English Corner where Chinese citizens practice their English and ask questions about the western world. It was a once in a lifetime opportunity and I am incredibly grateful for the experience. All the people who engaged me in conversation were delightful and they left me feeling humble and thankful at the same time. I left English Corner hoarse and I would have stayed longer if the opportunity presented itself.

On a less cheerful note, I have to mention the pollution that I witnessed. Being from southern California, I have experience with smog but I have never observed it so thick. In fact, the smog in China affected my eyes and throat like never before. Litter is ubiquitous and I saw Chinese citizens throwing trash on the ground on a regular basis. In addition, any fresh bodies of water I encountered while in China were squalid and opaque. However, these conditions would not prevent me from returning to China and I sincerely hope that as the country moves closer to modernization that this issue will become more important.

In conclusion, I hope that a study tour like this becomes a tradition for the Cal Poly MBA program. I recommend that all future MBA students take advantage of this wonderful opportunity. I will talk about this trip for many years to come.