Although western economies are struggling and the Eurozone faces a continuing crisis, one field of business is flourishing: business education. And as in many other areas, demand from emerging markets is driving this growth.

As we are in the second decade of the 21st century, the balance of global economic power is shifting toward the developing and emerging regions of the world. The BRICS countries-Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa-along with the rapidly growing economies of Mexico, Malaysia, Indonesia, and others, are now driving global growth. China is predicted to become the largest economy in the world by 2040, if not sooner. India's economy will soon eclipse that of Japan's. Brazil is a global leader in commodities, but also a major contributor in more advanced industries. South Africa is becoming a more attractive location for trade and investment.

So in the context of such economic growth, business education in those emerging markets will be an industry with great potential, and will continue attracting more and more attention from all over the world.

For this reason, we feel "Business Education in Emerging Markets" will be a great theme for the Fourth IBSS Conference. The theme will involve discussions on the development, reform, and transformation of business education in emerging countries, and will explore curricular innovation, pedagogical approaches, and strategic alliances in the context of emerging economies. The second topic to be discussed at the conference will be how American/European business schools can be better players in the international business education market. What are the differences in their strategies toward BRICS countries compared to other areas? In addition, the business schools' international ranking session will be one of the most important components of the conference. Since we feel international rankings have become the strategy with the highest priority among deans' councils at Chinese business schools, we hope to build this platform for all Chinese and other BRICS country schools.

Who should attend?
Deans, Directors and Rectors from leading business schools in the world; leaders from international business school organizations; and CEOs from leading international enterprises.
The International Business School Shanghai Conference, which has been held every two years by Antai College of Economics and Management, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, has become the largest top-level forum for business schools in the Asia-Pacific area; globally, it is the biggest international conference after the Annual Conference of the AACSB and EFMD. For management education in China, the International Business School Shanghai Conference provides a larger and vaster space for international communication and cooperation. The IBSSC has already become an extremely valuable forum brand for the business school, and Antai is devoting itself to developing the IBSSC into the most influential management forum in the international management education circle.