UW-Madison delegation finds optimism and opportunities in Asia

“Cautious optimism” is the economic outlook from Asia, according to a survey conducted at MIPIM Asia last week by the Wisconsin School of Business in cooperation with HKUST Business School.

“The strong sense of optimism that we’ve seen in the last two years in Asia has been justified,” says François Ortalo-Magné, Albert O. Nicholas Dean of the Wisconsin School of Business, who presented the survey findings at the annual real estate and investment conference in Hong Kong, which is attended by 1,800 senior real estate executives, retailers, government officials and city administrators from 41 countries. This is the third annual investor survey led by Ortalo-Magné at this conference.

An obvious reflection of this optimism is the fact that more than half of the participants surveyed at the conference reported improved or at least the same level of business activity in the current quarter compared to the same quarter last year.

“China is the unavoidable market because of the scale and the performance of the economy,” says Ortalo-Magné.

Ortalo-Magné’s visit is part of the University of Wisconsin–Madison’s broader efforts at deepening relationships with government, business and education leaders in China. He accompanied Gilles Bousquet, dean of the Division of International Studies and vice provost for globalization, and Laurie Dennis, associate director of the Wisconsin China Initiative (WCI), to meetings in Hong Kong and Shanghai.

“The sense that I get each time I visit Asia is that the center of gravity in the world is moving here,” says Ortalo-Magné. Last November, he accompanied former UW–Madison Chancellor Biddy Martin and her delegation on a trip to Asia intended to strengthen academic relationships in the region and promote collaborative economic development.

Bousquet adds, “We are seeking to create a unique UW presence that is consistent with the Wisconsin Idea and highlights the strengths of our world-class university, matched to the needs in China.”

UW–Madison already has a variety of connections with many of the top Chinese universities, including the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST).

HKUST Business School is among three of the world’s leading business schools (along with HEC Paris and INCAE-Costa Rica) in a ground-breaking partnership with the Wisconsin School of Business to offer the Global Real Estate Master (GREM) degree program. Joe Walsh, director of the program, joined Ortalo-Magné for part of his Asia trip.

“There is strong demand for high-level education in real estate in Asia,” says Walsh.

Ortalo-Magné and Walsh are working to expand the GREM program, which combines graduate-level instruction in economics, finance, and business administration at one of the partner schools with training in the principles of international real estate during a capstone semester at Wisconsin. They met with university officials, local real estate industry leaders and prospective students.

While in Hong Kong, Ortalo-Magné also addressed the American Chamber of Commerce and met officials with the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS), a prominent worldwide organization for professionals in property, land, construction and related environmental issues. Wisconsin’s BBA and MBA real estate degree programs have been accredited by RICS.

“When I hear this time referred to as the ‘Decade of the Pacific,’ it reinforces to me how much smaller our world is getting and in turn how important it is to have a global awareness in all we do,” says Ortalo-Magné.

-- by Kris Hammargren

MIPIM Asia: Macroeconomic outlook and implications

Wisconsin School of Business Dean François Ortalo-Magné is in Hong Kong this week for the annual real estate property and investment conference MIPIM Asia. He facilitated the opening keynote session today with Robert Ciemniak, global head of Thomson Reuters Real Estate Markets, and Yiping Huang, professor of economics at the China Center for Economic Research at Peking University. On Thursday, Dean Ortalo-Magné will deliver the wrap-up presentation "Where do Asian, European and American investors see opportunities in Asia today?"

Visit live.mipimworld.com for the full conference schedule and more highlights





His visit to Asia is also part of the University of Wisconsin–Madison's efforts to develop stronger ties with China. The dean will join Gilles Bousquet, dean of the Division of International Studies and vice provost for globalization, and Laurie Dennis, associate director of the Wisconsin China Initiative, for meetings in Hong Kong and Shanghai.

Also participating in MIPIM Asia is real estate faculty member Joe Walsh who also leads Wisconsin's Global Real Estate Master (GREM) program, an intensive graduate-level program which is partnered with three of the world's top business schools: HEC Paris, Hong Kong UST, and INCAE. While in Hong Kong, he is meeting local real estate industry leaders and prospective students. The Global Real Estate Master (GREM), which graduated its inaugural class in 2011, is a unique two-phase program that combines high-level instruction in economics, finance, and real estate finance at one of the partner schools with training in the principles of international real estate during a capstone semester at Wisconsin. The program is now accepting applications for the 2013 semester.

Wisconsin Real Estate goes to Costa Rica

Wisconsin Real Estate is visiting INCAE in Central America this week! Faculty Associate Joe Walsh, one of the administrators of our Global Real Estate Master program, is on campus in Costa Rica for a series of visits with faculty and staff of the top-ranked business school plus meetings with local industry leaders and students. We're grateful to Guillermo Selva and everyone at INCAE for arranging the schedule for the visit.

Wisconsin's new Global Real Estate Master (GREM) degree program is a partnership between three of the world's top business schools--INCAE, HEC Paris and the HKUST Business School--and the top ranked Wisconsin Real Estate Program. This unique initiative brings students from all corners of the globe to study the best in real estate education in Madison. The inaugural GREM class will arrive on campus in January 2011 for an intensive spring semester of activity.

To learn more about the GREM partnership, visit www.bus.wisc.edu/grem/. Or click on INCAE's GREM program page.

Retail Mood Lifts at MAPIC

The global footprint of the Wisconsin Real Estate Program continues to make an impact around the world. While Department Chair François Ortalo-Magné, was in Hong Kong presenting at the MIPIM ASIA Conference (see previous posts), Faculty Associate Joe Walsh traveled to Cannes, France to participate in the annual MAPIC Conference. With over 6,500 attendees, MAPIC focuses on the retail sector of the global real estate market.

During the conference closing session, Walsh presented the findings of a survey of MAPIC attendees which was conducted and compiled by him, with assistance from several students from HEC Paris, the #1 business school in Europe (FT). (The selected HEC students studied real estate finance in France under Ortalo-Magné and Tim Riddiough last spring through a unique partnership between HEC and the Wisconsin Real Estate Program.)

Survey results confirmed a renewed sense of optimism in the international retail market. For example, results showed 53% of those polled felt more optimistic at the end of MAPIC than they did at the start. Asked how they felt the market perspectives had changed over the past 12 months, over 65% of retailers expressed optimism, while 35% of developers said they felt an improvement in the retail real estate sector. International retailers polled before and during MAPIC 2009, report that they believe the market has bottomed out and that 2010 will see a significant recovery in certain retail sectors and territories.

Chris Igwe of CB Richard Ellis, who also presented during the closing session, noted, “There is a future. There is hope. What’s been interesting here in Cannes is the mood, which is clearly positive.” He advised developers that understanding retailers’ needs is increasingly important. “In our industry, a lot has been said about ‘build it and they will come.’ You can’t just build anything today, because nobody will necessarily buy it up. We need to dialogue more to understand what has worked and what hasn’t.”

Wisconsin’s involvement in MAPIC builds on a long history of collaboration with REED MIDEM, the coordinators of the annual MIPIM Conference in Cannes, France, as well as a unique partnership with HEC for the Global Real Estate Master (GREM) degree program. This innovative program brings together students from HKUST, HEC Paris and INCAE for a semester of intensive real estate training at Wisconsin. The first class will commence in Spring 2011. Visit the GREM program website at bus.wisc.edu/grem.