Competition to reinforce principles of ethics, integrity in business students

GSVC is held under the joint cooperation of various institutions.

"We joined hands with the Haas School of Business of the University of California at Berkeley in the US to host this competition and we are the partner for the Southeast Asia region," Assoc Professor Gasinee Witoonchart, dean of the Thammasat Business School, said yesterday.

GSVC emphasises that businesses must not only consider profit maximisation but also their impact on the environment and community.

The one big lesson to be learned from the global economic crisis was that business schools should instil their students with honesty and integrity.

"There must be ethics in all business leaders and they should begin to demonstrate a high level of responsibility for their actions and decisions. We emphasise to our business students that businessmen must be responsible to society and practice good governance," Gasinee said.

As a business educational insti¬tution, TBS wants to see its graduates step into the business world with the right spirit.

"When they conduct business or make business decisions, they should be looking at how to benefit the society they live in and not just how to maximise profits," she said.

Businessmen must take into consideration their contribution towards the community and environment and most importantly, the opportunities they provide to the workforce.

"Most of the problems have arisen from greediness and from people who are very 'skilled'," she said on the global economic crisis.

Today students no longer rush to large companies offering high salaries and cushy jobs.

"The trend is beginning to shift," she said.

Students want to know what the company's vision is. They want to make sure that this is in line with their ideology. They also look at how the company is contributing to society and the community and what its policies are on saving the environment.

"These factors are now becoming key determinants when business students are looking for a job," she said.

Corporate social responsibility, or CSR, is being perceived by business students to be an important factor in a company's success and far more significant than just the company's profitability.

Thai students perform well on par with their peers from the region, she said.

In 1999 and 2005, TBS students won the Global Champion award.

"That was one of our greatest achievements, as we were the only Thai business school to win this award, beating students from leading business schools around the world," she said.

Held at the University of Texas at Austin each May, the Global Moot Corp Competition is one of the world's most prestigious and longest running business plan competitions.