ESADE Alumni Around the World: Jordi Camps, President of the ESADE Alumni Greater China Chapter
"The world is always changing and changing fast. You have to be able to reinvent yourself and your future at the same speed"
Jordi Camps is President of the ESADE Alumni Greater China Chapter and Co-Founder and CEO of China a la Carta and Experience North Korea. ESADE interviews him in Shanghai.
As someone who is pursuing a carrer in a country like China, what value do you see in your status as an ESADE alumnus?
ESADE is an increasingly well-recognized brand worldwide. More importantly, though, ESADE shaped me. I received a comprehensive and global education at ESADE. It taught me that we live in an interconnected world and gave me the tools I need to succeed as a professional in today’s world.
Your Chapter is very active and its members are very involved. How do you manage that?
The chapter’s main goal is to offer value to its members. In other words, we are not a social club (although we have a good time), but rather aim to strengthen our networking. For example, every year, or, at least since I became president, we hold an annual “star event: a conference featuring high-profile speakers, experts on issues of interest to those of us who live in the region. Last year, we held an event on e-marketing. As I’m sure you know, e-commerce is growing fast in China, so we decided to put together an expert panel on the topic. We were able to talk and “swap cards with people who are closely linked to the industry: it was a win-win all around.
What are the goals of the Executive Board of the ESADE Alumni Greater China Chapter?
To grow, to attract more members (because there are people in China who still haven’t joined), and, above all, to increase the value of all our actions. In fact, we are studying the possibility of organizing a second event in the same academic term. Most importantly, we aim to ensure the continuity of what we have been doing so far, because, quite frankly, it is a formula that works very well.
You are President of the ESADE Alumni Greater China Chapter. How do international chapters help ESADE graduates who live outside of Spain?
As I hinted at earlier, it is very important to make it clear from the start that we, the chapters, are not job banks per se. What we are is a good gateway into a country with which some people may not yet be familiar. We are an initial point of contact when someone would like to start a business in or move to another country. We can share our own experience with them and provide them with contacts to make it easier for them to settle in and get started.
As the president, you volunteer your time to organize activities for other alumni. What motivates you to strengthen ESADE's alumni network?
One thing is clear: whether I want to or not, I will be an ESADE graduate for the rest of my life. That is why all alumni have a stake in strengthening the brand of the institution that gave us our education. The more prestigious the ESADE brand, the stronger our profiles and candidacies will be when, for example, we apply for different jobs.
When ESADE increases its international value, my personal and professional value increase with it. Ensuring we have access to a much stronger network is thus really in everyone’s interest and benefits us all.
Looking back now at your years as an ESADE student, what would you say were the main takeaways of your experience in its classrooms and on campus?
First, I would say I gained a strong academic background. I also received considerable humanistic and ethical training. And, finally, I gained a global worldview.
Define ESADE in three words.
Diversity, global approach, academic quality.
