The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) has received a US$500,000 donation from the Tongyi Industrial Group to boost the development of the Center for Electronic Commerce at the University's School of Business and Management. In appreciation of Tongyi Industrial Group's generosity, the University has named the Center after the Group.
Prof Tony F Chan, President of HKUST, Mr Tie-ming Song, Chairman of Tongyi Industrial Group, and also from HKUST, Dr Eden Y Woon, Vice-President for Institutional Advancement, Prof Kalok Chan, Acting Dean of Business and Management, and Prof Kar-yan Tam, Director of Tongyi Industrial Group Center for Electronic Commerce, officiated at a naming ceremony held last week. Prof Chan expressed his gratitude to the Tongyi Industrial Group for its generous donation. "The Center is committed to advancing knowledge through frontier research on conducting business over electronic platforms," he said. "Such support from the Group is set to have a great impact, enabling more longitudinal studies and promoting knowledge transfer in the electronic market." Prof Chan also acknowledged Kellogg-HKUST EMBA Program alumnus Mr K P Cheng for making this partnership possible between the University and Tongyi Group.
Mr Song said: "Businesses should not only pursue profit. They should also adhere to corporate social responsibility, contribute to technological development and the overall prosperity of society, and improve living standards. We are honored to work with HKUST and support the development of the Tongyi Industrial Group Center for Electronic Commerce for the next five years. We hope to boost techonological advances by facilitating the Center to maximize its capabilities and by widening knowledge of e-commerce."
As a world-class research university dedicated to excellence and innovation in education and research, HKUST has been proactive in strengthening its teaching and research facilities. Established in 2001, the Center plans to further expand its capacity in the next five years with a series of initiatives. These include conducting a longitudinal study on social networking, establishing a business case repository and databank of best practices of e-commerce and social media, and organizing an annual forum featuring renowned experts and senior corporate executives in the fields of electronic commerce and social media, among others. The Center will also step up its efforts to promote knowledge transfer by providing training courses for executives and corporate clients, and consulting services.
Tongyi Industrial Group was founded in Fushun, Liaoning Province, in 1997. Focused on energy and petrochemicals, it has developed into a major enterprise, with an emphasis on customer trust, creativity and social responsibility. The Group has a number of domestic and foreign subsidiaries. The Group's business is divided into four main areas: manufacturing, trading, storage and transportation, and investments. Business activities cover chemical manufacturing and distribution, LPG-to-chemical manufacturing, trading, oil & gas storage and transportation, and urban gas supply chain, among others.
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