Professor Ya-Ru Chen earned her PhD in psychology from Columbia University. She is Academic Dean for China Initiatives at SC Johnson College of Business of Cornell University. She co-founded the Emerging Markets Institute at Johnson School of Management in 2010. In 2015, she initiated and launched the Cornell-Tsinghua FMBA dual degree program — the first of its kind in China. Prior to joining Cornell, she was on the faculty at the Stern School of New York University and Rutgers Business School. Professor Chen also has extensive experience in senior executive education.
 

Professor Chen's research focuses on cross-cultural differences and similarities in employees' behaviors and attitudes. She has compared the ways in which employees in different cultures react to performance feedback, relate to their own groups and other groups, and negotiate with their business counter parts. Her recent work examines how employees obtain, maintain, and experience status and power in their different cultural environments and in globally diverse settings. She also looks at how power and status concerns affect leadership effectiveness and influence business interactions across cultures. Professor Chen has published extensively in leading psychology and management journals, including Psychological Review, Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, Administrative Science Quarterly, Management Science, Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, and Organization Science.
 

Professor Chen has received multiple teaching awards, including the Star Teacher Award in 2017-2018, and the Gravitas Teacher Award in 2019. Professor Chen’s research received the Best Paper Award from the Organization Behavior Division of the Academy of Management in 2002 and the Best Micro Best Paper Award at the International Association of Chinese Management Research in 2008. She was the recipient of the 2011 faculty Research award by the Johnson School of Management at Cornell University, and the recipient of the Thousand Talent Award in management by the Central Organization Department in China in 2014. She has been on the editorial boards of the Academy of Management Review, Organization Science, and Administrative Science Quarterly.

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Cornell is fully committed to the mission of any person, any study.

 

This program was designed to develop leaders of the next generation whose career focus is on the China market with global perspectives.

 

It’s unique because this program not only focuses on China, but also wants to help professionals in the China market to develop global perspectives.

 

There are a few unique qualities of our students.
 

Number one, I think our students not only have high caliber.
 

Second, they have the eagerness to learn.
 

And I think the third thing is that our students show appreciation for what they have gained from the faculties and two universities.
 

The third quality I think is a great quality of lots of Chinese students.
 

And I think that sets us apart from the rest of the programs, at least those at the Johnson School.

 

Most students come to the MBA program want to upgrade their career, but we actually have higher expectation than that.

 

We want them to have great impact in their communities and future development of the China market.

 

So it’s not just about getting a better job or getting a higher salary. Those are important.

But I think these are short-term goals we certainly hope that they can achieve easily, but the most important thing is that I want them to not only do well, but also do good in the future.