"Establishing the first management school in CEE, in Slovenia, I was facing a lack of understanding in Slovene society as well as in the broader region. In Slovenia, this was a new and strange idea and abroad, nobody knew of Slovenia and nobody believed that we could create something great in this country and in a region where professional management had no tradition. I was certain that we had to work together for recognition, but even more certain of establishing the standards of good management education which could support the reform processes in this part of the world. The start of CEEMAN was difficult, but today we are all proud of our achievements and the international standing of our organisation".

Danica Purg, CEEMAN President and President of IEDC-Bled School of Management

In establishing CEEMAN, Danica Purg showed the determination and courage of a fearless girl, a statue of which was put in front of the Wall Street bull in Manhattan last spring as a symbol of women in leadership. From the beginning, Professor Purg rejected the idea to just copy/paste the western model of management education, instead CEEMAN took into consideration the development needs of societies as a primary principle for management education with ethics and sustainable development at its core. Over the years, CEEMAN has not changed its stand, but in the meantime sustainability has become fashionable.

"When we started, we were thinking how to develop elementary management skills but now that we have really moved along, we talk much more about developing leaders and entrepreneurs. This is the change. The idea of helping management institutions to be closer to practice, to understand how to do something relevant for practice, that has not changed at all. The idea of relevance to local needs, the markets in which these schools are operating, that has not changed at all." 

 

Derek Abell, CEEMAN board member and ESMT (European School of Management and Technology), Berlin

At the turn of the millennium, CEEMAN started to conquer the world and in the last few years it has become very popular among Chinese business and management schools. As a rising economy, the Chinese want to avoid profit-only management education and are very eager to incorporate social responsibility, sustainability and ethics in their curriculums. It is therefore of little wonder that this year, CEEMANs annual conference and 25th anniversary will be held in China.

"I am very pleased to have the privilege of hosting the event. In China specifically we can learn a lot about sustainability from CEEMAN members. We can learn a lot about the values created in cultural businesses and in creative businesses. CEEMAN's members, particularly from Eastern and Central Europe, can learn how Chinese people changed their lives through manufacturing with their businesses growing so quickly. There are a lot of lessons that we can teach each other."

Wu Xiaobo, CEEMAN board member, Dean of the School of Management, Zhejiang University, China

At the China conference, CEEMAN members will discuss the rethinking of entrepreneurship in a way that will best support the challenges for management education in rising economies - not only in China but also in Asia more generally and in Africa.

"Entrepreneurship is a mindset. You really need to create that mindset among the leaders of tomorrow, who we are educating today, so they can be ready for the world we will face tomorrow." 

Gazmend Haxhia, CEEMAN board member, Entrepreneur, ACMS and A.S.G. Group, Albania

 

CEEMAN	International Association for Management Development in Dynamic Societies
FOUNDER AND PRESIDENT	Professor Danica Purg
OFFICES	IEDC- Bled School of Management
ESTABLISHED	1993
MEMBERS	220 management and business schools and institutions from 62 countries.
CEEMAN IQA	Provides international acknowledgement that the accredited school is excellent according to the internationally recognised quality standards and in its relevance to the society and responsible corporate and leadership practices.
CEEMAN IMTA	International Teacher's Academy educating the educators about new approaches in management education.