Last week, throughout the simulation, students tried implementing their business models, imitating a product/service launch in an online format due to the lockdown. They demonstrated creativity and innovation through ideas related to the global pandemic situation: cooking and art (drawing) lessons, watching movies together, etc. That trial run was an opportunity to receive the panel’s (Dr. Goi and the consultants) feedback, but to also make a survey to collect comments from their peers, as part of the validation process.
Such data is crucial for bringing necessary improvements before an official product/service launch and that is exactly what the students were able to capitalize on for Week 6. With final improvements, students made their official pitch and launch in front of the panel, exhibiting everything they learned in the past 6 weeks and displaying entrepreneurial spirit and potential.
This week’s case taught students about cultural diversity and how innovation can result from a strong cultural synergy. While studies have shown a positive correlation between cultural diversity and innovation, particularly with how different cultural knowledge can lead to different ways of assessing and solving problems, it is not always the case as cultural diversity can create team struggles (language barriers, different values, misunderstanding from various interpretations, etc.). This is where cultural synergy becomes a key concept, bringing different cultures together by combining various strengths and skills in order to exploit the diversity.
Similarly, our Global BBA program has a very diverse body (whether it’s for students, faculty or administration) by bringing together various nationalities and making them grow together in and outside the classes, where the combination of their strengths and skills (while respecting their differences) leads to a great synergy within the program.