The Southport School QLD
The Southport School and its HSBC Asia Literacy Ambassador investigated how China's emergence as an economic giant has impacted an HSBC corporate client involved in board sports, Billabong.
One group of Year 10 students looked at the opportunities and challenges around sourcing goods from China and another investigated retail opportunities for Chinese tourists interested in board sports.
The Brisbane-based Ambassador gave a short presentation to the class and facilitated a project on the importance of China to Billabong. Billabong provided the students with a lot of information and access to relevant managers, in addition to a guided tour of their premises.
Catching the Asian wave
Southport's Head of Languages, Lisa Miller, is a long-term local (and surfer). She was surprised to discover the company had manufacturing supply relationships in China for more than 20 years, and was well advanced in looking at sales into China and other Asian countries.
The HSBC Ambassador noted that visiting the site with the students gave him the opportunity for a better understanding of the client. He also found the contact with a school group made a distinct change from his normal work life.
The students were also very interested in the company's history, change of strategy and ownership, and information about the share price. One of the students did a project on this.
Collaborative efforts
Other projects included a 'Top 10' list of Chinese phrases for use by their staff, a map of surf spots in Taiwan and a simple advertisement that says 'Time to Surf' in Chinese and English. These will be shared with the company's management team.
Toby, the author of the share price project said, 'It was cool to do something different in Chinese, not just be in the classroom.'
Acknowledgements
Image: AEF
Note: AEF Go Global Programs refer to the suite of student engagement initiatives that include the program formally known as School Business Partnerships. Asia Literacy Ambassadors, as a result, are now referred to as Go Global Ambassadors.