Wharton School

The Wharton School’s Business Journal, Knowledge@Wharton, To Reach Chinese Readers
The Boston Consulting Group/Knowledge@Wharton China Reports Launched

June 3, 2004 — The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania announced that Knowledge@Wharton, the online business analysis and research journal of the Wharton School, will soon be available to Chinese readers around the world. A Chinese version of Knowledge@Wharton will be launched to reach management leaders in China as well as Chinese-reading populations worldwide. In addition, Knowledge@Wharton and The Boston Consulting Group have entered a partnership to create four special reports on China.

The Chinese version of Knowledge@Wharton, which will be launched in early 2005, will provide articles and research papers in its database from existing Knowledge@Wharton content as well as articles uniquely created for the new version. It will be funded by donations as well as corporate sponsorships. The Chinese version will be announced during Wharton’s Global Alumni Forum in Shanghai, which is held June 3-6. This will be the fourth language in which Knowledge@Wharton publishes content. In addition to English, it currently publishes in Spanish and Portuguese in collaboration with Universia.net.

Prior to the launch of the Chinese version, four BCG/Knowledge@Wharton China Reports will be published by Knowledge@Wharton in English and Chinese. Topics include how China affects the global supply chain, the risks of doing business in China, and a look at global multinational corporations in China. The first report, titled "China and the New Rules for Global Business," focuses on strategic and operational questions. It includes articles about opportunities and threats that global firms face in China; an analysis of how sourcing production in China compares with the rest of the world; and the challenges that big banks face in China, among other topics.

The announcement of the Chinese version of Knowledge@Wharton and the BCG/Knowledge@Wharton China Reports coincides with Knowledge@Wharton’s fifth anniversary. Since it was launched in May 1999, Knowledge@Wharton has grown to over 342,000 subscribers in 189 countries. Subscriptions are increasing at a rate of 6,000 to 8,000 a month.

“The Chinese version and the BCG/Wharton China Reports are an exciting opportunity for Wharton to disseminate knowledge about this very important region to readers around the world,” said Patrick T. Harker, dean of the Wharton School. “We are excited to be working with The Boston Consulting Group, which shares our goal of advancing global business practice by delivering cutting-edge knowledge to business leaders. The ability to reach Chinese executives is a timely celebration of the success and growth of Knowledge@Wharton over the past five years.”

Mukul Pandya, director and editor of Knowledge@Wharton, stated, “This is the right time for Knowledge@Wharton to focus on China. Companies all around the world are looking for credible business insights about that country, while Chinese firms are exploring ways to expand globally. This endeavor will address both those needs.”

Wharton alumnus Hal Sirkin, a senior vice president at BCG and leader of the firm’s Operations Practice, added that for many companies, China has risen to the top of the management agenda. “Today, in many industries, operating in China is no longer just an option to consider – it is an imperative if they are to remain competitive. Companies need to move quickly, yet many questions and risks remain. We are thrilled to work together with Wharton on this important effort.”

About Knowledge@Wharton and the Wharton School
Knowledge@Wharton is a free biweekly online resource that captures knowledge generated at Wharton through such channels as research papers, conferences, books, and interviews with faculty on current business topics, and distributes that knowledge online to a global business audience.

Among business users, 15 percent are top managers at their companies, 35 percent are in senior management and 45 percent are in middle management. Sponsors of Knowledge@Wharton include Booz Allen Hamilton, Boston Consulting Group, GE Commercial Finance, Lincoln Financial, Merrill Lynch, and Samsung.

The website contains more than 1,500 articles and research papers in its database and more are added every week. Over the past five years, Knowledge@Wharton has been featured in the Wall Street Journal, the Financial Times, BusinessWeek, the Economist Intelligence Unit, Information Week and several other publications.

The Economist.com stated in May 2004 that Knowledge@Wharton “stands above many of its peers … by providing more in-depth articles with a variety of faculty sources.” And in an article published in the January 2002 issue of Inc. entitled, "Best of the Net - These business school sites can help you think big," the magazine looked at sites from 50 top schools and ranked Knowledge@Wharton number one. Inc. had a panel of CEOs evaluate sites in depth, and concluded that Knowledge@Wharton “is a trailblazer and as good an example of Web branding as you'll find anywhere."

The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania is recognized around the world for its academic strengths across every major discipline and at every level of business education. Founded in 1881 as the first collegiate business school in the nation, Wharton has approximately 4,600 undergraduate, MBA, and doctoral students, more than 8,000 participants in its executive education programs annually, and an alumni network of more than 80,000 worldwide.

About Boston Consulting Group
The Boston Consulting Group is a management consulting firm. It was founded in 1963 and now has 60 offices in 37 countries. Its primary focus is corporate and business strategy, including operational and systems strategy. It has served companies in all major industries and developed countries and also has offices and clients in several developing countries. Please visit the BCG website which contains a subscription service for its publications.