It’s official, alumni can’t get enough of cases and class participation! They proved this once again when more than a hundred participants trooped to the SGV case room to attend this year’s alumni masterclass. A varied lot representing MBM/MBA, MM, MDM and EMBA alumni from 1973 to 2018 came fully prepared for the masterclass. They also came from far and wide, with alumni from Korea, the US and India in attendance.
Alumni being attended to by ARO staff at the registration area.
The Alumni Relations Office organized the masterclass as one of the Homecoming Week’s highlights to let alumni relive their caseroom experience.Prof. Richard Cruz, voted by alumni asone of AIM’s most favorite faculty at the recent 50th Anniversary Gala Evening, was the hands down choice to conduct the class.
The Alumni Relations Office staff, from left: Tere Espiritu, Fatima dela Cruz (intern), Jaika Corpuz, Abby Ramos and Patrick Albao (intern).
To give participants time to study and dissect a real case, materials were sent days before the event. Prof. Cruz selected an HBR case titled “Prune the Brand Portfolio?”, with “The Strategy Palette: Five Approaches to Strategy for a Complex World” and “Leader’s Framework for Decision Making” as companion readings for the ensuing class discussion.
A twist this year was the participation of current students from the MBA and MDM programs. Not only was it a great opportunity for them to network with alumni, they were also able to pit class participation skills as well as learn from the wisdom of their more senior classmates for the evening.
Former chairmen of the AIM Alumni Association – Philippine chapter, Teddy Villanueva and Ed Sison, both MBM 73.
Prof. Cruz masterfully guided the very animated discussion as alumni relished every opportunity to offer their insights and analyses of the case facts, to the delight of the students. They passionately argued their points and used all their acquired experiences to bolster their viewpoints. It all made for an exhilarating class discussion, replete with profound analyses and thought-provoking ideas which everyone indubitably appreciated.
Prof. Richard Cruz leading the case discussion.
As the class ended, everyone expressed a yearning for more of these events to help in the continuing education of the alumni, to which the Alumni Relations Office is only too willing to oblige. Please stay tuned for announcements of future masterclasses.
Bernie Jiao, ARO EMD, presenting a plaque of appreciation to Prof. Richard Cruz.
We thank alumni who traveled near and far to join us on this wonderful evening of fun and learning. We also thank the students for their game participation, and for taking on additional readings on top of their already loaded coursework. Our special gratitude to Prof. Richard Cruz for his untiring support of alumni activities despite his very busy schedule. As the masterclass proved, he is indeed a very deserving winner of the Favorite Faculty award!
A souvenir photo for those who stayedto network and continue the case discussion.
words by Bernardino Jiao
