Student Journal 3
Monday, May 16th
Hong Kong Disneyland
The day started early with an MTR train ride …. Next stop Disneyland! Our group met with Michael Moriarty, CFO. Mr. Moriarty gave us a detailed overview of Hong Kong Disneyland operations, expansion plans and special events planned to mark the park’s fifth anniversary. He also discussed the primary focus areas of the overall Disney organization such as Creativity and Brand Development, Technological Innovation and Global Expansion. In addition, Michael mentioned initiatives and challenges associated with monetizing creative efforts and expanding the target demographics to include young adults and teenagers in addition to traditional visitors such as families with young children. After the presentation, we spent a few hours walking around the park, taking pictures and testing the rides – Space Mountain was by far my favorite!!!
Victoria Peak
After an exciting morning and lunch with Pluto (no kidding) at Disney, we went to Victoria Peak – the highest mountain on Hong Kong Island and home to the wealthiest residents of Hong Kong. I very much enjoyed the ride to the peak on the historic tram. Unfortunately, the rain didn’t allow us to enjoy the panoramic view of Hong Kong from the peak; the afternoon sightseeing plans were cancelled due to the bad weather. After a much-needed stop at Starbucks we boarded the bus and started making our way through rush hour traffic back to Kowloon. Later, I spent a couple of hours walking around the local shopping district. We concluded the day with dinner at Taiwan Beef Noodles restaurant – great place right across the street from the hotel – and a drink at the Ozone Bar at Ritz Carlton – the highest bar in the world that despite the rain offered an amazing view of Hong Kong at night. Great first day!
Tuesday, May 17th
Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce
Our host was Mr. David O’Rear, the Chief Economist of HKCC. Mr. O’Rear started with brief overview of the history of Hong Kong and proceeded to discuss the economic situation in Hong Kong and China. Interestingly, Hong Kong plays a major role in Chinese economy by providing significant investment capital. Mr. O’Rear highlighted one of the growing concerns for the Chinese economy: changing labor policies and demographics.
SSGA
Our group met with Ms. Ting Li, Managing Director and Head of China Market Development, and two of her colleagues. Ms. Li provided a brief overview of SSgA: the largest institutional asset manager in Asia with over $100B AUM. One of State Street’s objectives is to derive close to 50% of total revenues from international operations; growing Asian market is the major driver of international revenue. Ms. Li also shared the details of her impressive career at SSgA Asia and told us about her client relationship building and market development initiative in China.
Alumni Dinner Event
We took a ferry across the harbor to Hong Kong Island and walked to the China Club for the alumni event. BC alum turnout was impressive and I got a chance to talk to a few of the alums. It was a fun evening at an impressive venue with great food and an amazing view of the city.
Hong Kong Disneyland
The day started early with an MTR train ride …. Next stop Disneyland! Our group met with Michael Moriarty, CFO. Mr. Moriarty gave us a detailed overview of Hong Kong Disneyland operations, expansion plans and special events planned to mark the park’s fifth anniversary. He also discussed the primary focus areas of the overall Disney organization such as Creativity and Brand Development, Technological Innovation and Global Expansion. In addition, Michael mentioned initiatives and challenges associated with monetizing creative efforts and expanding the target demographics to include young adults and teenagers in addition to traditional visitors such as families with young children. After the presentation, we spent a few hours walking around the park, taking pictures and testing the rides – Space Mountain was by far my favorite!!!
Victoria Peak
After an exciting morning and lunch with Pluto (no kidding) at Disney, we went to Victoria Peak – the highest mountain on Hong Kong Island and home to the wealthiest residents of Hong Kong. I very much enjoyed the ride to the peak on the historic tram. Unfortunately, the rain didn’t allow us to enjoy the panoramic view of Hong Kong from the peak; the afternoon sightseeing plans were cancelled due to the bad weather. After a much-needed stop at Starbucks we boarded the bus and started making our way through rush hour traffic back to Kowloon. Later, I spent a couple of hours walking around the local shopping district. We concluded the day with dinner at Taiwan Beef Noodles restaurant – great place right across the street from the hotel – and a drink at the Ozone Bar at Ritz Carlton – the highest bar in the world that despite the rain offered an amazing view of Hong Kong at night. Great first day!
Tuesday, May 17th
Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce
Our host was Mr. David O’Rear, the Chief Economist of HKCC. Mr. O’Rear started with brief overview of the history of Hong Kong and proceeded to discuss the economic situation in Hong Kong and China. Interestingly, Hong Kong plays a major role in Chinese economy by providing significant investment capital. Mr. O’Rear highlighted one of the growing concerns for the Chinese economy: changing labor policies and demographics.
SSGA
Our group met with Ms. Ting Li, Managing Director and Head of China Market Development, and two of her colleagues. Ms. Li provided a brief overview of SSgA: the largest institutional asset manager in Asia with over $100B AUM. One of State Street’s objectives is to derive close to 50% of total revenues from international operations; growing Asian market is the major driver of international revenue. Ms. Li also shared the details of her impressive career at SSgA Asia and told us about her client relationship building and market development initiative in China.
Alumni Dinner Event
We took a ferry across the harbor to Hong Kong Island and walked to the China Club for the alumni event. BC alum turnout was impressive and I got a chance to talk to a few of the alums. It was a fun evening at an impressive venue with great food and an amazing view of the city.