SPEAKERS PROFILES

Speaker Profiles

Shalini Bhatia

Director, Programs, Executive Education, Stanford Graduate School of Business

BIOGRAPHY

Li Haitao

Camelia Ilie

Melanie Barnett

Devin Bigoness

Full Professor, Dean of Executive Education and Strategic Innovation, and Chair of the Center for Inclusive and Sustainable Leadership at INCAE

Chief Executive Education Officer, Ross School of Business at University of Michigan; Executive Director, UNICON

Dean's Distinguished Chair Prof. of Finance, Assoc. Dean for Degree Programs, Assoc. Dean for Alumni Affairs & Development Foundation, Dir. of the FBRC

Chief Client Officer and Executive Director, Darden Executive Education & Lifelong Learning, Darden School at the University of Virginia

PhD, Yale University

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Mike Malefakis

SUN Tianshu 孙天澍

LI Yang

Li Wei

Xiang Bing

Visiting Prof. of Information Systems, Exec. Acad. Dir. for Business Scholars Program, Dir. of the Center for Tech, Big Data and DT.

Asso. Prof. of Marketing, Academic Dir. for Executive Education Programs, Academic Dir. for MBA Program

Prof. of Economics, Assoc. Dean for Asia, Dir. of the Case Center, Dir. of China Economy and Sustainable Development Center

President of University Partnerships at Emeritus, former Wharton Executive Education CEO and Assoc. Vice Dean.

Founding Dean, Prof. of China Business and Globalization, Cheung Kong Graduate School of Business (CKGSB)

PhD, University of Maryland

PhD, Columbia Business School

PhD, University of Alberta

PhD, University of Michigan

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Biography

Devin Bigoness leads the Custom solutions team for organizational partners and clients as part of the Darden Executive Education and the Sands Institute for Lifelong Learning. He is responsible for overall client engagement, team leadership and expanding Darden’s reach to global organizations to drive impact. Prior to Darden, Devin served as Director, Custom Live Programs at the integrated area of Cornell University in Cornell External Education. In that role he worked closely with global clients such as Merck, Amazon and RSM leveraging faculty across Cornell University. Before that role he served as Executive Director, Custom Programs for the Cornell SC Johnson College of Business and Executive Director, Executive Education for the Samuel Curtis Johnson Graduate School of Management at Cornell during his 9 years at the University . His Executive Education career began with 8 years at Duke Corporate Education in London (UK), New York and Durham (NC) as a Project Director and Program Manager working with global organizations such as Google, IBM and The Home Depot. He serves on the Board of Directors of UNICON, University based Executive Education Consortium. Devin has also worked in Sports Marketing, Brand Management and Sports Media Relations in both the private sector and University based athletics.

Biography

She has designed and managed international programs on leadership, diversity, and gender equality for two decades. Within the framework of gender equality, stand-out Lidera in Spain, Women Leads in Latin America, and Women Executive Leadership Program in the United States have offered training opportunities to more than 1,600 graduates from 15 countries. In particular, the projects on Social Progress of Women and Women Entrepreneurs in Latin America have generated several studies published in specialized magazines and spread internationally. Additionally, Camelia writes about higher education, business school models, MBA programs and sustainability, wellbeing, and leadership. She has a strong focus on innovation, finance and business analytics. She developed resilience, cultural awareness, and a global mindset thanks to the opportunity to work with executives and companies from more than 15 countries. She was a Visiting Scholar at the Rockefeller Center for Latin American Studies at Harvard University. In the Harvard Review for Latin America, Camelia writes the Focus on Leaders under the Covid-19 column. Dr. Ilie has received several recognitions, such as the Women of the Decade Award in Education and Leadership by the Women Economic Forum Latin America, and was part of the Top 100 most powerful women in Central America and the Caribbean list of the Forbes Magazine.

Camelia Ilie is a global entrepreneurial leader, advisor, and non-profit board member with over 25 years of experience in value creation, strategic innovation, and P&L management at organizations in Europe, Latin America, and the USA. Camelia Ilie is a Full Professor, Dean of Executive Education and Strategic Innovation, and Chair of the Center for Inclusive and Sustainable Leadership at INCAE, a leading business school in Latin America. Dr. Ilie leads the digital transformation at the institution through INCAE Online, an initiative designed and launched in partnership with Emeritus, a global leading EdTech player. Presently, more than 7,000 students are taught in the areas under her leadership each year. She serves as a member of several international boards, such as Chair of the External Advisory Council of the Institute for Advanced Studies of the University of Miami, Member of the Advisory Council for Latin America of the American Association of Colleges and Schools of Business (AACSB), Editorial Committee of LID Latin America, and Faculty Affiliate in the Program for the Advancement of Research on Conflict and Collaboration of the Maxwell School of Syracuse University. Trained as an engineer in medical devices and atomic physics, Dr. Ilie held executive and academic positions at international organizations and launched several multi-countries strategic business units in the last 25 years within universities, multinationals, and global EdTech institutions with a high impact on the P&Ls, business efficiencies and long-term transformations. Her consulting and teaching focus on Corporate Governance & Boards of Directors, Leadership & Change management, and Diversity & Inclusion for top management and board teams.

Biography

An authority on Chinese economy and business, Dr. Li’s main research focus is on economic development, taxation, financial markets, corruption, corporate governance, corporate research and development, entrepreneurship, trade and investment in China. His work has been published in prominent academic journals and books, and some of his research results have also been featured in Foreign Affairs, New York Times, Los Angeles Times, and on CNNfn (CNN Money) and Bloomberg TV. Professor Li has extensive consulting experience with multinational firms, Chinese firms, and the World Bank. Dr. Li has taught Macroeconomics, Global Economies and Markets, Managerial Economics, and Emerging Markets Finance in MBA, Finance MBA, EMBA, and Global EMBA, and Executive Education programs.

Dr. Li is Professor of Economics, Associate Dean for Asia, Director of the Case Center, and the Director of China Economy and Sustainable Development Center at the Cheung Kong Graduate School of Business (CKGSB). Before joining CKGSB, Dr. Li was Professor of Business Administration (with tenure) at the Darden Graduate School of Business Administration, University of Virginia, where he has served on the faculty since 2000. Since 2005, Dr. Li has also served as visiting Professor of Economics on the faculty of Cheung Kong Graduate School of Business. Before joining Darden faculty, Dr. Li was assistant professor and then associate professor of business administration at Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business from 1994 to 2000. He was also a visiting professor of strategy at Peking University’s Guanghua School of Management in 2004. He received his Ph.D. in economics from the University of Michigan and his B.Eng. from Shanghai Jiaotong University (China).

Biography

Melanie works directly with a wide range of client organizations. These include, for example, the largest bank in the world, ICBC; the public utility DTE Energy; Saudi Arabian telecom company STC; and the National Football League, among others. She serves as a faculty member in Executive Education as well, developing and teaching programs on leadership, change management, and team building. She has served as chair of the board of directors for UNICON (the International University Consortium for Executive Education) and on the boards of the Alumni Association and the Advisory Board for Intercollegiate Athletics.

Melanie Weaver Barnett is chief executive education officer at the Stephen M. Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan. Under Melanie’s leadership, Michigan Ross Executive Education has been consistently ranked among the top in the world, offering programs in multiple locations in the Americas, Asia (including India and the Middle East), Europe, and Africa. Melanie brings an inclusive, collaborative, and energetic leadership approach to her work, and, with the Executive Education team, has created new global partnerships, developed innovative learning experiences, and earned high levels of customer satisfaction, all while achieving unprecedented growth. Prior to joining Michigan, Melanie worked for then Fortune 500 firm Ethyl Corporation in its management and organization development area, and later established her own firm, The Leadership and Learning Alliance, a consultancy in organization and management development.

Biography

Dr Li Haitao is the Dean’s Distinguished Chair Professor of Finance, Associate Dean for Degree Programs, Associate Dean for Alumni Affairs and the Development Foundation, Director of the Family Business Research Center at CKGSB. Previously, he was the Jack D. Sparks Whirlpool Corporation Research Professor in the Finance Department of the Stephen M. Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan. He also served on the faculty of the Johnson Graduate School of Management at Cornell University. Dr Li serves on the editorial boards of Management Science (the Department of Finance) and the International Review of Finance. Dr Li holds a PhD in Finance from Yale University.

Biography

Prior to Wharton, Mike served as the Associate Dean of Executive Education at Columbia Business School where he introduced online SPOCs in 2012. Mike served as Director of Executive Education at the University of Chicago Booth. Earlier in his career, Mike lead Executive Education at INCAE working with LATAM’s top ranked business schools delivering programs in 8 counties in the region. His first role at a business school was as an Assistant Director at Michigan Ross Executive Education. Mike serves on the AACSB Business Practice Council and is an advisor at ExecOnline. Previously, was on UNICON board for 6 years and served as Chair of the Board and had been an active member of various committees.

Mike Malefakis is President of University Partnerships at Emeritus an online learning provider that partners with over 75 of the world’s best universities reaching 300,000+ students a year. Prior to joining Emeritus Mike was Senior Advisor at Leeds Illuminate, an impact investing fund supporting EdTech and workforce access companies. Mike has a long career of over 25 years working with five of the world’s top ranked business schools. Mike’s last job in academia was CEO & Associate Vice Dean, of Wharton Executive Education. There he expanded the reach of non-degree programs to over 70,000 learners a year with growth in both in-person as well as online programs. During the year of no in-person programs Wharton Executive Education enrolled over 10,000 participants in live-online programs and over 60,000 in primarily asynchronous programs.

Biography

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Biography

Dr. Xiang Bing is the Founding Dean and Professor of China Business and Globalization at Cheung Kong Graduate School of Business (CKGSB). CKGSB is China’s first faculty-governed, independent and private business school with headquarters in Beijing, campuses in Shanghai and Shenzhen and representative offices in Hong Kong, London and New York. He has served as an independent board member of a number of companies (including four Fortune Global 500 companies) listed in Hong Kong, Mainland China and the United States. He is a member of the International Advisory Council of Fundação Dom Cabral (FDC) in Brazil, a member of the Global Advisory Board of Yonsei School of Business in Korea, a member of the Advisory Council for the Royal Academy of Management (RAM) in Oman, a member of the Advisory Board of Asia House in London and a Counselor for One Young World Summit in Dublin. He was a member of the Board of Trustees for United Way Worldwide (US) from 2011-2017. Dr. Xiang’s research interests include the reform of state-owned enterprises, innovation and the role of the private sector in China, and economic disruptions. He is a leading authority on China business, innovations in China, globalization of Chinese companies, China’s development models, global implications of China’s transformation, social innovation, economic disruptions, China-US relations, global trade and investment systems and global governance. His writings and cases on these subjects are considered among the most influential in China and beyond. Dr. Xiang has served as keynote speaker at influential forums and conferences around the world. These events include Harvard China Forum (closing keynote, 2017; first opening keynote, 2018; opening keynote, 2019; first welcome keynote, 2023; Harvard University), Morgan Stanley Twenty-first Century Asia Pacific Summit (November 16-17, Singapore; keynote), SCMP China Conference: USA 2019 (December 10, 2019; New York City; closing keynote), FT Banking Summit 2017 (November 30, 2017; London; closing keynote),

CKGSB-Brookings US-China Forum 2016 (December 14, 2016; New York City; opening keynote & Dialogue with Dr. Henry Kissinger) and US Committee of 100 Annual Conference 2016 (April 16, 2016; Los Angeles; opening keynote). He has been invited to prestigious webinars such as Bo’ao Dialogue 2020, Asian Leadership Conference 2020, 2022 and 2023 (Seoul, Korea), World Knowledge Forum 2021 (Seoul, Korea) and World Chinese Economic Summit 2016, 2017, 2019, 2020 and 2021. He has participated in many prominent closed-door conferences, including Ditchley Foundation Annual Forum (2010, 2012, 2018 (First Co-Chairman) and 2021), Yale CEO Summit (2016) and Rome Roundtable (2017—2020 and 2022). He was also an invited speaker for forums such as the World Economic Forum, Bo’ao Forum for Asia and Saint Petersburg International Economic Forum, and for institutions like the Foreign Policy Association (September 27, 2018; New York City; lunch keynote for members of the Board of Trustees), Center for Strategic and International Studies (September 28, 2018; Washington D.C.; lunch keynote and roundtable panelist) and Pheu Thai Party in Thailand (September 2, 2019; Bangkok; a special talk for 350 parliament members). Dr. Xiang was named the “China Philanthropist of the Year” in 2018, 2020 and 2022 by China Philanthropy Times. He was awarded the “Vanguard for Social Responsibilities” in 2020 by Southern Weekly. Dr. Xiang received his Ph.D. in Business Administration from the University of Alberta in Canada, and his bachelor’s degree in Engineering from Xi’an Jiaotong University in China.

Biography

Shalini Bhatia

Biography

Tianshu has worked closely with a variety of organizations including Facebook, Alibaba and Adobe. Many findings from these studies have been implemented by collaborating organizations. Tianshu has given over 80 talks at top universities (Harvard, MIT, Wharton, Chicago, CMU, NYU, etc.) and international conferences, and has over a dozen research papers published in top journals such as Management Science, Information Systems Research, MIS Quarterly, QME and Journal of Health Economics. Tianshu’s research has received 16 Best Paper Awards (ICIS, CIST, WITS, INFORMS), and served as the Associate Editors at ISR, Management Science and MISQ. Tianshu has developed a series of new courses on Digital Transformation, Big Data Analytics, and Digital Platforms and was honored with USC Golden Apple Award (for Best Professors). Tianshu received his Bachelor in Physics from Nanjing University, and Master in Physics and PhD in Information Systems from University of Maryland.

Tianshu Sun 孙天澍 is a Visiting Professor of Information Systems and Director of the Center for Technology, Big Data and Digital Transformation at CKGSB. He has been tenured at USC Marshall School of Business, held a joint appointment in Computer Science and been recognized with Robert R. Dockson Named Professorship. Tianshu’s research is focused on digital transformation, digital technology, digital platform, and digital economy. Tianshu’s research conducted in collaboration with leading private and public sector organizations addresses how firms and governments can combine data analytics, field experiment, causal inference, machine learning, and economic models to improve business decisions and industry policies. His current research aims to understand 1) the technology, organizational and strategy factors that drive successful digital transformation of enterprises and local economies, 2) how firms and government can facilitate and regulate the use of personal data in the digital economy; 3) how digital platforms can design data-driven interventions to influence social sharing; 4) how organizations can leverage mobile and internet-of-things to integrate E-commerce and offline retail.

Biography

An authority on Chinese economy and business, Dr. Li’s main research focus is on economic development, taxation, financial markets, corruption, corporate governance, corporate research and development, entrepreneurship, trade and investment in China. His work has been published in prominent academic journals and books, and some of his research results have also been featured in Foreign Affairs, New York Times, Los Angeles Times, and on CNNfn (CNN Money) and Bloomberg TV. Professor Li has extensive consulting experience with multinational firms, Chinese firms, and the World Bank. Dr. Li has taught Macroeconomics, Global Economies and Markets, Managerial Economics, and Emerging Markets Finance in MBA, Finance MBA, EMBA, and Global EMBA, and Executive Education programs.

Dr. Li is Professor of Economics, Associate Dean for Asia, Director of the Case Center, and the Director of China Economy and Sustainable Development Center at the Cheung Kong Graduate School of Business (CKGSB). Before joining CKGSB, Dr. Li was Professor of Business Administration (with tenure) at the Darden Graduate School of Business Administration, University of Virginia, where he has served on the faculty since 2000. Since 2005, Dr. Li has also served as visiting Professor of Economics on the faculty of Cheung Kong Graduate School of Business. Before joining Darden faculty, Dr. Li was assistant professor and then associate professor of business administration at Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business from 1994 to 2000. He was also a visiting professor of strategy at Peking University’s Guanghua School of Management in 2004. He received his Ph.D. in economics from the University of Michigan and his B.Eng. from Shanghai Jiaotong University (China).

Biography

Dr Yang Li is Associate Professor of Marketing at Cheung Kong Graduate School of Business (CKGSB). He received a Ph.D. in Marketing from Columbia University, a M.S. in Biomedical Engineering from Columbia University, and a B.S. in Electronics from Peking University. His research focuses on statistical machine learning and Bayesian nonparametrics, with applications including online recommenders, text mining, choice modeling, etc. Professor Li has published on leading academic journals such as Management Science, Marketing Science, and Journal of Marketing Research. At CKGSB, Dr. Li teaches marketing management to DBA, EMBA, MBA, and Executive Education. He has also consulted for Tencent, Baidu, The Trade Desk (China), Haier and Tmall.