Starting in the fall semester of 2021, Hanyang University Graduate School of Business will establish and operate an ESG track, which has recently been highlighted as the most important business issue within the Professional MBA course. Due to the world financial crisis in the late 2000s and the COVID-19 pandemic that began last year, the interest for sustainable business management has been evolving, more attention is being paid to ESG businesses in generating their companies' economic value and balancing with the environment and society, and the government is providing diverse support projects and regulations at the same time. In accordance with these global trends, Hanyang University will establish an ESG program starting next semester for the first time in the Korean Professional MBA program.
ESG business management, meaning environmental, social, and corporate governance, considers the sustainability of companies and the society around diverse stakeholders in the business area. Traditionally, managers and business management researchers saw the corporate goal as maximizing stakeholders’ value and they concentrated on enhancing financial results. However, as businesses’ social influence started to expand, situations where decisions for the business financial outcome led to large social costs occurred frequently. The Earth’s climate changes, forest fires happening every year and social conflicts from the income gap are representative examples. As a result, the international society reached a conclusion that sustainable development in society as a whole is difficult for short-sighted business management practices and presented the ESG, which means the business management structure for reaching environmental and social responsibilities, as the new business management paradigm.
The distinctiveness of the Hanyang University MBA ESG track should be compared with overseas top MBA programs as there are no instances of domestic ESG programs in MBA courses. The most important difference is that the course will be operated mainly online. The education demand for ESG is not only limited to businesses but is spreading rapidly across society such as the government, public institutions, and local governments. Hanyang University is planning to maximize accessibility to ESG education on site and produce professional ESG experts and run all MBA ESG tracks live online and in-person.
Another distinctiveness is the structure of the curriculum for direct application to business practices. In the 3 steps of Foundation - Advanced - Practicum is formed, the Foundation module is for the basic concept knowledge in ESG business or investment. This is followed by the Advanced module where students take courses on combining ESG business management in practice through case analysis, domestic/foreign policy analysis, and practical experiences. The last semester is the Practicum step, where students operate their own ESG business projects. Instances such as writing ESG reports that suit international standards, developing an index for analyzing information and measuring the ESG result, and establishing ESG investment strategies. These courses allow problem-solving using practical perspectives through the on-demand PBL where students select their own ESG problems in the field and real-business projects from the IC-PBL operation. Furthermore, through the co-teaching system with Hanyang University MBA full-time professors who operated numerous academic research and projects related to ESG and adjunct professors with extensive experience in the field, it is expected to provide the most needed education for the field practices.
Lastly, Hanyang University MBA pursues education beyond the campus. The ESG track will provide opportunities to learn global ESG business management by visiting great overseas businesses in the United States and Europe. Also, the forum composed of graduate students and experts in the field will run quarterly ESG classes to create diverse support structures that will allow students to successfully work as ESG experts after receiving a degree.
ESG business management for sustainable development is both a new challenge and an opportunity. Each government is implementing a variety of support projects and investing policy funds for effective transitions into ESG. Markets are along the same line. Financial institutions are considering ESG as a core element in an investment decision. Apple and other major global companies are also requesting ESG business management from their partners, which implies that the demand for ESG professionals will continue to increase. Under the new strategy of Hanyang University MBA, Hanyang is preparing to produce experts needed in the field that will be on the forefront of the transition to a new paradigm filled with new opportunity.