With a wealth of experience in different roles across the higher education, business and travel sectors, Dr Josiah Chan joined The Hang Seng University of Hong Kong (HSUHK) as the Vice-President (Organisational Development) and Secretary to the Board of Governors and the Council in January 2025.
In his role, Dr Chan provides strategic leadership and administrative oversight for important functions of the University, including corporate secretariat and governance, finance and business, human resources management, campus development and facilities management, sustainability and social responsibilities, and institutional advancement.
With one eye on the swift changes taking place across the world, and another on the rapid development of the University, Dr Chan stresses the importance of collaboration and a sense of community in an increasingly competitive higher education landscape, saying “As Hong Kong positions itself as an international hub for education, HSUHK needs a ‘glocal’ mindset to attract, educate and nurture the best local and international talent, as well as ensure that there are opportunities for them upon the completion of their studies.”
As he begins his journey with HSUHK, Dr Chan will be focusing on how to better utilise HSUHK’s current space and resources, as well as finding opportunities for the University’s expansion to cater to an increasing number of students and staff members. For instance, the University’s senior management team is currently assessing the feasibility of redeveloping certain areas of the campus and plans to solicit off-campus facilities to free up some space on campus. They also plan on increasing the provision of student accommodations, further improve efficiency by workflow re-engineering, and increase internal collaboration among HSUHK’s Schools, academic support and administrative offices, for example, by looking into how the Advancement and Alumni Affairs Office can work closely with HSUHK’s Schools to bring in external support and donations as we further strengthen our relationship with alumni.
“With increasing resources, building strategic platforms and strengthening internal and external partnerships, not only do we increase HSUHK’s exposure as a leading liberal arts university in the region, but we also ensure that our students are exposed to more dynamic learning and career building opportunities.” said Dr Chan.
While he grows HSUHK’s network and presence locally, regionally and internationally by establishing opportunities for collaboration with the government officials, private sectors and other educational institutions, Dr Chan believes that with its unique “liberal + professional” educational model, HSUHK needs to bolster its strategic edge as a private liberal arts university as we continue to collaborate and compete with other higher education institutions, noting “Since we gained our university title in 2018, we have achieved great success with excellent teaching staff, management, as well as students that are energetic, dynamic and ready for change. We have huge growth potential, and to best serve the larger Hong Kong community in the long-term, we need to establish our core strengths, positioning and prioritise areas for development accordingly.”
With a background that has been enriched with international travel and business experience, as well as his background in teaching and student affairs, Dr Chan has seen how students thrive when they are exposed to the world outside classrooms. As Dr Chan begins to reinforce existing relationships and build new ones across communities for HSUHK’s growth, he explains that in increasing HSUHK’s visibility on local and global stages, and as a private university, “we need to adapt a commercial mindset and not only position ourselves as an education partner, but also as a business partner in the region to ensure that the University and its students have the support of Hong Kong and international communities in terms of donations, internship opportunities, research opportunities and academic research collaborations.”
Although Dr Chan is a relatively new member of the HSUHK family, he has observed the positivity, creativity and energy of HSUHK’s students and staff. As the University continues to grow its educational footprint, Dr Chan encourages students to have diverse interests so that they have multi-faceted and adaptable skillsets with the hope that students take opportunities to get out of their classrooms, meet people from different backgrounds and embrace other cultures as part of their learning journey.
