Tim Cook Named Chairman of Tsinghua's Advisory Committee
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Apple CEO Tim Cook has been appointed Chairman of the advisory committee of Tsinghua University's School of Economics and Management (SEM) in Beijing, and hosted the board's 20th annual meeting, according to the local reports (via sem.tsinghua.edu.cn).
Cook is no stranger to doing business here, having taken an active approach to finance and academia in China in recent years, and becoming a member of Tsinghua University's advisory board back in 2013. In March of last year, he delivered a speech at the opening ceremony of the China Development Forum 2018, speaking highly of China's economic achievements in the past 40 years.
Later that year, Cook remarked in a speech at the Economic Summit of the 20th China Development Forum (CDF) that China's opening-up is essential for both the country and the global community.
Some of the world's most prominent business leaders have held the position of Tsinghua's chairman of the advisory committee
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Tsinghua University is now ranked 23rd in the world's top 100 universities (read more about this via QR code below) and its School of Economics and Management is considered one of the top schools in China. Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Tesla CEO Elon Musk, Softbank chairman Masayoshi Son, Alibaba founder Jack Ma, and Tencent founder Pony Ma have all acted as members of the SEM advisory board.
During his announcement speech, Cook stated that over the course of the next three years, he will "promote the development of the college and build the college into a world-class economic management," according to Sina News (news.sina.com.cn).
The CEO's move does not come without some strategic benefit to his company, however: "the Chinese market is an important part of Apple's business, providing around USD 3 billion in revenue each month for the iPhone manufacturer," points out Campbell Kwan from ZDNet.com. "Cook's decision to become chairman of the school's advisory comes as Apple has drawn fire for its recent activities in China."
This article originally appeared on our sister publication beijingkids.
Photo: tsinghua.edu.cn, nicpic.com
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