~Launch of Visionary Innovation Programme (VIP) and Sponsorship Opportunities~

NUSAJAYA, Johor, Malaysia, April 15, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Frost & Sullivan today launched the Growth, Innovation and Leadership (GIL) University. GIL University aims to bring together the great innovators, entrepreneurs, leaders and best practices to provide a unique and powerful experiential learning program which will positively change lives and create a significant impact on economic development, employability and visionary leadership.

Established as a not-for-profit organisation, GIL University will commence operation in August 2014 and is now open to accepting applications for enrollment and sponsorship through www.giluniversity.org. Ebi Zadeh, Global Vice President of GIL University said, "We have received significant interest from public and private sectors. We also have now opened sponsorship windows for key areas such as women in boardrooms, high-technology and under developed markets."

According to Global President & Managing Partner of Frost & Sullivan Aroop Zutshi, the Visionary Innovator Programme (VIP), the flagship program of GIL University, is intended to groom and develop world-class leaders for booming markets such as South East Asia. He highlighted that South East Asia's GDP already exceeds India by 20% with only half the population. Initiatives such as ASEAN Economic Community (AEC 2015) and Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) will create a single market comprising 40% of global trade. However, without leaders capable to create and realize their visions beyond their own borders, the ASEAN vision may not be fully realized.

David Frigstad, Chairman of Frost & Sullivan, also emphasized the need for a programme that lifts the visionary capability of the leaders to meet these new challenges. He stated, "VIP is one of the smartest leadership programmes in the world. It has been designed to focus on mentoring by global leaders instead of relying on management theory and case studies. We help leaders look well beyond the boundaries of their own markets, and acquire real-world knowledge and know-how to make a real difference in business and society."

He added, "Frost & Sullivan will bring the best and smartest from our global leadership team, along with our GIL community of global business leaders to deliver this programme. Through this combination, VIP participants will have unprecedented opportunity to take their game to the highest level, internationally."

Professor Vinnie Aggarwal from the University of Berkeley California, is Chairman of the Board of Governors. He stressed the need for strong academic rigour and excellence in delivering the programme. GIL University has academic advisors from Stanford, Harvard, INSEAD, Cambridge, Waseda University and several other top-tier institutions. He continued, "Developing leadership in the new era requires practical, experiential learning. The new world needs new methods to bring leaders in emerging markets into the same fold as global champions."

Ebi Zadeh also mentioned that GIL University welcomes co-investment partnerships with organizations who wish to use GIL University as a foundations to build their leadership organization.

About GIL University

GIL University is a partnership between Frost & Sullivan and Khazanah Nasional Malaysia.  It is working in collaboration with the University of California Berkeley APEC Study Center.  A Board of Governors has been established and is chaired by Dr Vinod Aggarwal from the University of California, Berkeley. For information please visit www.giluniversity.org

Contact:
Ebi Zadeh
Global Vice President, GIL University
Malaysia: +603 6204 5908 / +6016 342 1056
Singapore: +65 6890 0957
Email: [email protected]

SOURCE Frost & Sullivan