
Translated as Dingjian daxue de tiaojian頂尖大學的條件 (The Prerequisites of Leading Universities) (Taipei, Lianjing Press, 2024)
William C. Kirby is T. M. Chang Professor of China Studies at Harvard University and Spangler Family Professor of Business Administration at the Harvard Business School. He is a Harvard University Distinguished Service Professor. He serves as Chairman of the Harvard China Fund, the University's academic venture fund for China, and Faculty Chair of the Harvard Center Shanghai, Harvard's first University-wide center located outside the United States. A historian of modern China, Kirby's work examines contemporary China's business, economic, and political development in an international context. He writes and teaches on the growth of modern companies in China (Chinese and foreign; state-owned and private); Chinese corporate law and company structure; business relations across Greater China (PRC, Taiwan, Hong Kong); and China's relations with the United States and Europe.
William C. Kirby is T. M. Chang Professor of China Studies at Harvard University and Spangler Family Professor of Business Administration at the Harvard Business School. He is a Harvard University Distinguished Service Professor. He serves as Chairman of the Harvard China Fund, the University's academic venture fund for China, and Faculty Chair of the Harvard Center Shanghai, Harvard's first University-wide center located outside the United States.
A historian of modern China, Kirby's work examines contemporary China's business, economic, and political development in an international context. He writes and teaches on the growth of modern companies in China (Chinese and foreign; state-owned and private); Chinese corporate law and company structure; business relations across Greater China (PRC, Taiwan, Hong Kong); and China's relations with the United States and Europe. He has authored or co-authored more than fifty HBS cases on business in China, ranging from start-ups to SOEs; agribusiness and middle-class consumption; banking and microfinance; healthcare and education; corporate governance and corporate social responsibility; and the global strategies of Chinese firms. His current projects include case studies of trend-setting Chinese businesses and a comparative study of higher education in China, Europe, and the United States. His most recent books include Can China Lead? (Harvard Business Review Press) and China and Europe on the New Silk Road (Oxford University Press).
Before coming to Harvard in 1992, he was professor of history, director of Asian studies, and dean of University College at Washington University in St. Louis. At Harvard, he has served as chair of the history department, director of the Harvard University Asia Center, and director of the Fairbank Center for Chinese Studies. As dean of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences., he led Harvard's largest school, with 10,000 students, 1,000 faculty members, 2,500 staff, and an annual budget of $1 billion.
Professor Kirby's research and consulting have focused on strategies for business and education in China. In addition to the American Council of Learned Societies, he serves on the Board of Directors of Cabot Corporation; The China Fund, Inc.; The Taiwan Fund, Inc.; Harvard University Press; and Schwarzman Scholars at Tsinghua University. He served as senior advisor on China to Duke University in the founding of Duke Kunshan University.
Kirby holds degrees from Dartmouth College, Harvard University, the Freie Universität Berlin (Dr. Phil. honoris causa), the Hong Kong Polytechnic University (Dr. Phil. honoris causa), and Hong Kong Baptist University (Dr. Humanities honoris causa). He has been named Honorary Professor at Peking University, Nanjing University, Fudan University, Zhejiang University, Chongqing University, East China Normal University, the Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences, and National Chengchi University. He has also held appointments as visiting professor at University of Heidelberg and the Free University of Berlin. He is a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.
William C. Kirby is T. M. Chang Professor of China Studies at Harvard University and Spangler Family Professor of Business Administration at the Harvard Business School. He is a Harvard University Distinguished Service Professor. He serves as Chairman of the Harvard China Fund, the University's academic venture fund for China, and Faculty Chair of the Harvard Center Shanghai, Harvard's first University-wide center located outside the United States.
A historian of modern China, Kirby's work examines contemporary China's business, economic, and political development in an international context. He writes and teaches on the growth of modern companies in China (Chinese and foreign; state-owned and private); Chinese corporate law and company structure; business relations across Greater China (PRC, Taiwan, Hong Kong); and China's relations with the United States and Europe. He has authored or co-authored more than fifty HBS cases on business in China, ranging from start-ups to SOEs; agribusiness and middle-class consumption; banking and microfinance; healthcare and education; corporate governance and corporate social responsibility; and the global strategies of Chinese firms. His current projects include case studies of trend-setting Chinese businesses and a comparative study of higher education in China, Europe, and the United States. His most recent books include Can China Lead? (Harvard Business Review Press) and China and Europe on the New Silk Road (Oxford University Press).
Before coming to Harvard in 1992, he was professor of history, director of Asian studies, and dean of University College at Washington University in St. Louis. At Harvard, he has served as chair of the history department, director of the Harvard University Asia Center, and director of the Fairbank Center for Chinese Studies. As dean of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences., he led Harvard's largest school, with 10,000 students, 1,000 faculty members, 2,500 staff, and an annual budget of $1 billion.
Professor Kirby's research and consulting have focused on strategies for business and education in China. In addition to the American Council of Learned Societies, he serves on the Board of Directors of Cabot Corporation; The China Fund, Inc.; The Taiwan Fund, Inc.; Harvard University Press; and Schwarzman Scholars at Tsinghua University. He served as senior advisor on China to Duke University in the founding of Duke Kunshan University.
Kirby holds degrees from Dartmouth College, Harvard University, the Freie Universität Berlin (Dr. Phil. honoris causa), the Hong Kong Polytechnic University (Dr. Phil. honoris causa), and Hong Kong Baptist University (Dr. Humanities honoris causa). He has been named Honorary Professor at Peking University, Nanjing University, Fudan University, Zhejiang University, Chongqing University, East China Normal University, the Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences, and National Chengchi University. He has also held appointments as visiting professor at University of Heidelberg and the Free University of Berlin. He is a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.
Translated as Dingjian daxue de tiaojian頂尖大學的條件 (The Prerequisites of Leading Universities) (Taipei, Lianjing Press, 2024)
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MIT Technology Review
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Harvard Business Review
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Wall Street Journal
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Institute for New Economic Thinking
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23 Jul 2024
HBS Working Knowledge
The New Rules of Trade with China: Navigating Tariffs, Turmoil, and Opportunities
18 Jun 2024
The World of Higher Education
Empire of Ideas: Creating the Modern University from Germany to America to China with
William C. Kirby
23 May 2023
Cold Call
The Entrepreneurial Journey of China’s First Private Mental Health Hospital
08 May 2023
China in the World Podcast
Empires of Ideas: Higher Education in China and the United States
23 Nov 2022
Blog: Marginal Revolution University
Best non-fiction books of 2022
28 Aug 2022
Wire China
On Academic Engagement with China
24 Aug 2022
Wall Street Journal
‘Empires of Ideas’ Review: Strong Nations, Strong Education
16 Aug 2022
National Committee on US-China Relations
Empires of Ideas: Creating the Modern University from Germany to America to China
15 Aug 2022
HBS Working Knowledge
University of the Future: Finding the Next World Leaders in Higher Ed
29 Sep 2021
Bush China Foundation
Building Sustainable Trust with China in Education, Business & Policymaking
07 Mar 2021
CGTN
What Role Does Diplomacy Play in China's Modern History?
22 Jun 2020
WGBH News
Colleges Brace For Steep Drop In International Enrollment This Fall
12 Jun 2020
NPR: All Things Considered
Zoom Apologizes For Blocking Accounts Of U.S.-Based Chinese Activists
26 May 2020
WBUR
US And China Spare Over Coronavirus
06 Apr 2020
Harvard Magazine
Is China Ready for Leadership on the Global Stage?
24 Mar 2020
Harvard Magazine
“Don’t Zoom While Driving”
17 Mar 2020
Cold Call
Is There a Winner in Huawei’s Digital Cold War with the U.S.?
30 Jul 2019
WGBH News
Across The Country, International Students Face Delays For Critical Work Visas. In
Mass., Employers Feel The Loss
24 Apr 2019
Bloomberg
Thailand's Richest Family Is Getting Richer Helping China
27 Mar 2019
New York Times
For China, a Long and Painful History Lingers Over Trade Talks With U.S.
15 Mar 2018
Reuters
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07 Mar 2018
MIT Technology Review
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02 Aug 2017
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04 Jun 2017
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02 Aug 2016
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30 Jul 2012
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