Fox deepens connection with Ghana at 2nd IB Certificate Program 

For the second year in a row, the Fox School welcomed Executive MBA students and professionals from the University of Ghana’s Business School for an International Business (IB) Certificate Program.

Organized through Fox’s Institute of Global Management Studies (IGMS) and Temple Center for International Business Education and Research (CIBER), the IB Certificate Program took place Feb. 8 and 9. The program included collaboration with Temple’s Small Business Development Center (SBDC) and academic lectures by professors from Fox and Temple’s School of Tourism and Hospitality Management, as well as presentations by representatives of the University of Pennsylvania, PECO Energy, the City of Philadelphia and the U.S.-Kenya Chamber of Commerce.

After a welcome and introduction by Temple CIBER Executive Director and IB Professor Dr. Arvind V. Phatak, Day 1 began with a presentation on Understanding Cultural Differences by Anastasia Shown, the assistant director of Penn’s African Studies Center, and Busola Awoniyi, a senior analyst for Energy Acquisition at PECO.

Shown and Awoniyi’s lecture was followed by Temple SBDC Senior International Specialist Holly Meng’s talk on Doing Business in the U.S. Stanley L. Straughter, chairman of the Philadelphia Mayor’s Commission on African and Caribbean Immigrant Affairs, rounded out the morning with his presentation on U.S./Ghana Trade Relations.

On Day 2, Christine Martey-Ocholo, the president and co-founder of the U.S.-Kenya Chamber of Commerce, presented on How to Secure and Structure Foreign Direct Investment. Martey-Ocholo also serves on Temple CIBER’s Advisory Board.

Over the two-day span, academic lectures were provided on the following topics: Strategies for Emerging Market Companies Competing in the Global Marketplace, Dr. Arvind Phatak; Marketing Tourism, Dr. Dan Fesenmaier, professor of tourism and hospitality management; Global Financial Crisis, Dr. Bruce Rader, assistant professor of finance; International Joint Ventures: Strategic Motives, Concerns & Negotiations, Dr. Roger Kashlak, professor of IB and management; and The Challenges of Globalization, Dr. Stanley Ridgley, assistant professor of IB and strategic management.

The program was originally initiated through Paul Asabere, a native of Ghana and a Fox finance professor. Temple CIBER continues to deepen its relationship with Ghana through the Destination Ghana Short-term Study Abroad program for undergraduates and is currently investigating a collaborative Trade Mission to Ghana with Mr. Straughter and the City of Philadelphia.

­– Chelsea Calhoun