Hong Kong Is Home to a CareerOriented BAA Chapter
At the center of the Chinese vortex of change, the small administrative region of Hong Kong is immersed in a pitiless working environment. "We say that for a manager changing job every two years is normal, not a sign of incompetence; remaining a decade in the same job, now that's unthinkable," says Stefano Passarello, 33 years old, since January 2014 leader of the local chapter of the Bocconi Alumnum Association. Passarello founded P&P Limited, an accounting and tax consultancy for foreign firms entering the Chinese market. The chapter gathers 120 alumni in the area, and is steered by an executive committee of six people. "The aim of our activity is to strike the right mix between business and cultural networking. However, given Hong Kong's peculiar characteristics, the alumni's interest remains strongly career-oriented."
It is on the latter that the chapter's latest events focus on. In late March, the chapter hosted Valerie Sun, formerly CEO for Taiwan and China of the LVMH luxury group for a talk. Today she's the region's chief executive for Chanel. She discussed human resources with Bocconi Alumni, considering how high-end retailing has changed rapidly towards increased sophistication over the last few years. In early May, 16 Bocconi students flew to Hong Kong for a week of In-Company Training: "We had them meet some of the Italian companies that operate here," Passarello explains, "among which Essess (Kartell) and Moleskine". The sheer speed and energy of the city are contagious for the local Bocconi Alumni, who through their chapter leader express a clear wish: "We put forward our candidacy to host the next Asia Conference of the Bocconi Alumni Associaton."