International Christian University (“ICU” – Tokyo, Japan) offers a summer program targeting working professionals aiming to develop global leaders through liberal arts education. The program, Global Leadership Studies (“GLS”) led by Professor Grant R. Pogosyan (Dean of ICU Graduate School and Professor of Mathematics and Informatics) implemented manaba, a cloud-based collaborative learning system developed and managed by Asahi Net, Inc.

The GLS intensive and residential training program was offered over 4 weeks in the summer of 2011, for middle management gathered from inside and outside of Japan who faced the workplace expectations of demonstrating global leadership skills. The uniqueness of the program came from the philosophy of liberal arts principles that ICU has been pursuing since its establishment as well as its full boarding environment. It featured lectures by global leaders and eminent scholars, attentive coaching sessions, body and soul training, and culminating group projects such as “Crisis Management,” “Work-Life Balance” and “Jumpstart Japan”.

manaba was used as the main platform of the program. Every day, participants answered surveys commenting on the content of each lecture and uploaded individual daily learning summaries. Beginning the next day, the program was improved and revised flexibly based on the comments submitted. As a result, the quality of the entire program and the satisfaction level of the participants increased considerably. Moreover, manaba served as a learning place for group projects and discussion between the participants. Even after the completion of the program, manaba continued to foster deep lateral connections between the participants who formed a unique cross-industry network, which continues discussions and gatherings by this day. Finally, the information accumulated on manaba during the program is used by coordinators to improve and develop an even more effective one in the future.

International Christian University Global Leadership Studies