Charatsri Tanaphuwanont 

CEIBS (China Europe International Business School)

“The most introverted extrovert you’ll come across, sincere but not serious, and here to make a dent!”

Hometown: Bangkok, Thailand

Fun Fact About Yourself: I am Thai by birth, Chinese by blood (of pure Chinese descent), and an ex-Indian resident (I lived in India for over 4 years during high school)

Undergraduate School and Major: Thammasat University, Economics

Most Recent Employer and Job Title: CIMB Thai Bank Public Company Limited – Manager (Investment Banking)

Describe your biggest accomplishment in your career so far: I was part of the three-member team advising one of Thailand’s leading real estate developers on the acquisition of six resorts in Asia-Pacific to increase their global footprint and hotel portfolio. Later, I advised the group on shareholding and capital restructuring as well as on a spin-off IPO of their hospitality business. The newly-listed holding company now owns 39 resorts and hotels with 4,647 keys in 5 countries. The IPO transaction was completed within 1.5 years after the acquisition and raised over THB 7,400 million under Regulation S.

What is the biggest appeal of earning an MBA in China?  During my professional career, I had the opportunity to learn about how businesses in the western world work. Over the past quarter-century, China has revolutionized and re-defined business. Therefore, coming to China to learn more about the core values and culture that drives business in this country was the biggest appeal of doing an MBA here.

What quality best describes your MBA classmates and why? Passion. Something common in our batch is a sense of passion in what they do and a deep sense of dedication to whatever they’re committed to doing. Very rarely do you see people sitting idle, even during breaks, and you constantly see people working on cases, projects, or organizing workshops and events. There is a sense of purpose and hunger not often seen in individuals who’ve already achieved so much in such a short period.

Aside from your classmates, what was the key part of the MBA curriculum or activities that led you to choose this business school and why was it so important to you?  There were two key considerations for me when it came to choosing CEIBS over other b-schools – its added focus on China in the curriculum and its up-to-date courses on digital business. As mentioned earlier, cases on Chinese businesses help develop a clear understanding of the market and the climate and open up a whole new world of learning not available at any other b-school. Also, businesses around the world are increasingly building a digital landscape for the future. I believe these businesses will need professionals who are well-verse not only in digital technology but also in strategy in the age of digital. CEIBS continues to work on updating its digital curriculum and will produce business leaders that will shape the digital strategy of businesses in the future.

What other MBA programs did you apply to? Fudan-MIT IMBA, Antai (Shanghai Jiao Tong University)

What do you see yourself doing ten years from now? I came for an MBA to broaden my horizons and to explore different industries where I’d like to work, so I am still figuring out what I want to do post-MBA. Ideally, I would love to work in general management in the manufacturing or FMCG industries.