On the afternoon of June 17^th 2026, the closing ceremony for the 2^nd edition of “Innovation Practice—Action Learning” (IPAL) course was held successfully. Since the program’s launch on March 11^th, 14 corporate mentors from nine partner companies, including Siemens, YTO Express, VLINKER, Dewu, VIOOH, OCBridge, Neobio, Yusine and Shanghai Tongzheng, have worked alongside more than 30 Chinese and international students to deliver an outstanding demonstration of industry-education integration.

Internal faculty members in attendance included LIANG Jian, Deputy Dean of the School; MAO Wenzheng, Academic Director of the Master of Global Management program; XIAO Chao, Assistant Professor in the Department of Construction Management and Real Estate; JIANG Hui, Associate Professor of Marketing; and HUANG Xunmi, Director of the Global Master of Management program. Together with corporate representatives and course students, they witnessed the project’s successful outcomes.

Group photo from the closing ceremony of the 2^nd IPAL course

During the ceremony, the 14 project teams presented their research findings from the past three months, focusing on real-world strategic issues faced by enterprises. Each team integrated course toolkits, such as those from marketing, into their practical analysis, demonstrating the effectiveness of the “theoretical input–case dissection–scenario implementation” training process with solid data, clear logic and innovative solutions. A judging panel composed of mentors from within and outside the university provided professional evaluations and feedback on each team’s performance. The event featured lively on-site interaction and a constant exchange of ideas.

Group presentations

After the presentations, LIANG Jian gave a speech on behalf of the school. He congratulated the students on successfully completing the course, and thanked the nine partner companies and their corporate mentors for their invaluable support of the project. He noted that the second cohort of the IPAL program had further strengthened the industry-education collaboration mechanism established by the first cohort. Students honed their global strategic vision and localized implementation capabilities by tackling real-world business challenges, while enterprises were able to secure international talent with cross-cultural communication skills and practical management expertise ahead of schedule through in-depth interaction. He stated that the School of Economics and Management at Tongji University would use the successful conclusion of the second IPAL program as a new starting point to continue developing innovative industry-education integration models, thereby creating an even more successful “Tongji chapter” in higher education serving national strategies.

The closing ceremony then moved on to the awards presentation. Liang Jian presented letters of appointment to each corporate mentor, awarded the ‘Best Performance Award’ to outstanding project teams and issued completion certificates to all students who had successfully finished the program. These certificates recognized three months of hard work and embodied the deep collaborative bond between the university and enterprises based on “joint research, joint talent development, and shared outcomes”.

Presentation of Letters of Appointment to Corporate Mentors

Presentation of the Best Performance Award

Monica, a student from the MGM project and recipient of the Best Performance Award, said that the Siemens IPAL experience has been an excellent bridge between academic learning and industry practice. It allowed me to gain hands-on experience in project coordination, international teamwork, and professional communication. Collaborating with a global company like Siemens has enhanced my understanding of real-world business operations and further shaped my career goals in international project management and leadership.

WU Yifan, Siemens IPAL project corporate mentor, stated: “The students not only infused the team with vibrant innovative energy but also provided multi-dimensional, practically valuable insights throughout the process of exploring overseas business growth strategies. With their exploratory mindset and solid professional competence, they opened up new perspectives for us to understand global market differences and optimize customer value propositions, while also accumulating valuable intellectual support for the long-term development of our business going global. The key insights and actionable solutions generated during this IPAL project will continue to be applied in actual business operations, driving the consolidation of experience and the translation of outcomes into tangible results.”

While the 2^nd session of the IPAL program has come to a successful conclusion, the exploration of university–industry collaborative education never stops. In the future, Tongji SEM will continue to collaborate closely with partner enterprises to enhance management education through innovative practices. The school is also committed to nurturing innovative, multidisciplinary talent with an international perspective and practical skills.