Passion Leads to Modified Business Models

Springfield, OH — Mai Trinh, a 2009 Business graduate of Wittenberg University and doctoral candidate at Case Western University, is integrating Eastern culture into concrete business theories. Originally from Vietnam, Trinh’s cultural perspectives and exceptional application of knowledge have allowed her to put a new twist on everyday business models, and make them her own.

Trinh indicated that business can use her modified models to improve diversity management and team management. She explained that someone of western culture looks at a problem and sees an entirely different solution than a person of eastern culture. It is important to understand how and why each of these people came to different conclusions, and her models explain that. She also explained that her models can be used to encourage someone to think more creatively. So, for example, a westerner could try to solve a problem using an easterner’s prospective. As businesses continue to expand globally, specifically into East Asia, such infusion models could soon be applied to the work of multinational corporations.

Trinh, a Scholar-in-Residence in the Wittenberg Business program, also spoke about her journey from Vietnam, and how she struggled at first to adapt to the U.S. culture, language, and everything around her at Wittenberg. In the end, her struggle led her to her true passion: the integration of East Asian culture into western business perspectives. Trinh’s work demonstrates the importance of discovering what you want to do in life as part of the college experience. She inspired students attending the program to do the same—chase their passion just as she did.

Published October 2013

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