UH’s Vietnam Executive MBA program marks 25 years of impact

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Recap video of the event in Ho Chi Minh City: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ODJd3vfE5vE

The University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa's Shidler College of Business is celebrating the 25th anniversary of its Vietnam Executive MBA program, marking a quarter century of preparing business leaders and strengthening economic and educational ties between Hawaiʻi and Vietnam.

To mark the milestone, hundreds of alumni representing all 33 VEMBA cohorts joined faculty, university leaders and distinguished guests at anniversary celebrations in Vietnam. Held in both Hanoi, where the program welcomed its first cohort, and Ho Chi Minh City, where it later expanded to meet growing demand, the events honored a quarter century of academic excellence, international partnership and leadership development.

Since its founding in 2001, VEMBA has graduated more than 1,000 business leaders who now serve in executive roles across Vietnam and beyond.

"The VEMBA program is the only program of its kind and has established itself as a leader in executive education in Vietnam," said Shidler College of Business Dean Vance Roley. "As we celebrate this milestone, we also look toward the future by expanding our impact throughout Southeast Asia while continuing to strengthen the global network that has become one of VEMBA's greatest strengths."

Bold vision to a nationwide network

VEMBA traces its roots to a 1997 United States Agency for International Development-funded initiative that brought Shidler faculty to Vietnam to help train business educators as the country transitioned to a market economy. That effort inspired the creation of Vietnam's first Executive MBA program offered by an American university. The inaugural cohort welcomed 29 executives in Hanoi in 2001, followed by the program's expansion to Ho Chi Minh City in 2007. In 2024, VEMBA evolved into one nationwide cohort, further strengthening connections among executives across the country.

Today, more than 1,000 graduates from 33 cohorts representing 21 countries comprise one of Vietnam's most influential executive leadership networks. Alumni serve as CEOs, founders and senior executives across major industries.

Tung Bui, professor of information technology management, Matson Navigation Company Chair of Global Business and longtime faculty director of VEMBA, noted that the program has grown alongside Vietnam's own economic transformation.

"Twenty-five years ago, the primary concern of VEMBA students was how to optimize operations, improve accounting systems and refine internal human resource management," Bui said. "Today, our executives are thinking much bigger and looking outward. The most vibrant classroom discussions now revolve around artificial intelligence, global branding, exports and navigating international supply chains."

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About the Shidler College of Business at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa

Founded in 1949, the Shidler College of Business was named in 2006 after alumnus Jay H. Shidler, founder and managing partner of The Shidler Group. Since his initial gift of $25 million in 2006, Shidler has given approximately $238 million to the college in cash, land leases and in-kind donations. His contributions represent the largest individual donation to the University of Hawai'i at Mānoa and the second largest known gift to a U.S. public university business school.

In 2019, the School of Travel Industry Management rejoined the college. The college is renowned for its multicultural learning environment and its expertise in international business education and is consistently ranked among the nation's top schools for international business by U.S. News & World Report. Long recognized for its Asia-Pacific focus, the college offers a wide variety of degree, certificate and executive programs. The college has the only graduate program in the state of Hawai'i and Vietnam accredited by AACSB International. For more information, visit shidler.hawaii.edu.