SMU Impact Stories: From Campus to Company – Innovation through SMU-X Partnerships
For a decade, SMU’s signature experiential learning programme, SMU-X, has redefined how education meets industry. By bringing together students, faculty and partners to tackle real-world challenges, SMU-X turns classroom learning into actionable business and social innovation.
The brief sounded simple enough: help a local retailer streamline its customer experience. But as the students gathered around a whiteboard on a humid Friday afternoon, it became clear—this wasn’t a textbook exercise. It was a live business challenge with real stakes, clients and outcomes.
This is the essence of SMU-X: Singapore Management University’s experiential learning model that bridges classroom and industry.
By working alongside faculty and corporate partners to address pressing challenges, students don’t just learn about change—they create it.
Since its launch in 2015, SMU-X has completed over 7,000 projects with over 1,200 industry collaborators across sectors ranging from finance and technology to sustainability and healthcare. Today, it forms a cornerstone of SMU’s approach to undergraduate, postgraduate and lifelong learning.
A three-way partnership that creates value for all
At the heart of SMU-X lies a conviction: knowledge finds its fullest value when put into practice. Instead of hypothetical case studies, students tackle real challenges presented by industry partners. Guided by faculty mentors, they analyse data, conduct research, and design creative, implementable recommendations.
This triangular collaboration—between students, faculty and industry—benefits every participant:
- Students gain hands-on experience, sharpen critical thinking, and learn to navigate professional dynamics.
- Faculty stay attuned to emerging trends and often derive new research or consultancy pathways.
- Industry partners receive fresh insights from a generation unafraid to question assumptions.
“These students are not interns or employees of the organisation,” notes Mr Kevin Koh, Head of SMU-X. “Free from corporate concerns, they are willing to share the truth. This allows industry partners to walk away with very honest insights into what customers are thinking.”
Turning curiosity into impactful solutions
From sustainability to service design, SMU-X projects span an extraordinary range of disciplines.
One standout collaboration saw South Beach Consortium engage SMU-X students to enhance sustainability practices across its development. After extensive field research and stakeholder interviews, the students proposed imaginative ideas—from urban farming in rooftop planter boxes to repurposing car-park spaces for mushroom cultivation.
“We wanted to access a different, unique platform to generate fresh ideas and tap into young creative minds,” said Samantha Tan, General Manager of South Beach Consortium. “Engaging the students allowed us to see things from their point of view and we gained insight into emerging sustainability trends and practices.”
Public-sector organisations have also tapped into this approach. Students have co-designed mobile tools for diabetic foot screening with the National University Health System, developed breast-cancer awareness campaigns with the Breast Cancer Foundation, and collaborated repeatedly with FairPrice Group, whose continued participation underscores the programme’s tangible value.
Each project reflects a core SMU-X principle: learning and partnership can drive innovation that benefits both society and business.
Faculty and industry as co-educators
With SMU-X, faculty play an essential guiding role: helping students manage scope, align recommendations with industry realities, and reflect on what they learn through the process.
“By giving them a taste of real projects early, (students) gain industry exposure that they will need by the time they graduate," said Associate Professor Yuanto Kusnadi, Academic Director of SMU-X.
Industry partners, in turn, become co-educators who influence curriculum relevance and shape future talent pipelines.
“This is a way of futureproofing the business,” added Ms Tan. “There’s great value in having a pipeline of fresh perspectives alongside our own tried-and-tested ways of doing things.”
Expanding boundaries: global and lifelong learning
The reach of SMU-X extends well beyond Singapore’s shores. Through SMU-X Overseas (SMU-XO), students collaborate with international partners while navigating diverse cultural and business contexts.
Past projects have included helping Indonesia’s state-owned railway to explore new revenue streams and advising a Balinese tea plantation on sustainable packaging solutions.
“There are interactions with managers from different countries who may speak a different language and have a different culture,” said Assoc Prof Kusnadi. “These help SMU students relate better in the future workplace … with a foreign client or foreign industry partner.”
SMU-X also serves adult learners through SMU-X Lifelong Learning (SMU-XL). As part of Singapore’s first stackable applied postgraduate programme, professionals work on live projects within their own organisations. This enables immediate application of new knowledge—translating classroom learning directly into measurable business impact—and boosts talent retention.
Shaping the next generation of changemakers
As global priorities shift, SMU-X continues to evolve.
A new interdisciplinary capstone, SMU-X 2.0, is being piloted to bring together faculty from across schools on themes such as artificial intelligence, health and well-being, and global citizenship.
By deepening collaboration across disciplines and industries, SMU-X 2.0 aims to nurture leaders who can tackle complex, interconnected challenges with empathy and innovation.
For organisations, this evolution offers even greater opportunities to co-create solutions with future-ready talent. For students, it reinforces SMU’s belief that learning should never stop at theory—it must create impact.
“At SMU-X, every project is more than an assignment,” says Mr Koh. “It’s a partnership that shapes ideas, people and futures.”
From innovative education to lasting impact
After ten years, one truth endures: SMU-X is more than a pedagogy—it’s a partnership model for impact. It empowers students to think critically, challenges businesses to innovate responsibly, and strengthens the bridge between education and enterprise.
As SMU celebrates its 25th year, SMU-X continues to demonstrate how collaboration creates value that lasts—cultivating leaders who don’t just adapt to change, but drive it.
Partner with SMU-X
Whether you are an organisation seeking creative problem-solving, or a student eager to learn by doing, SMU-X invites you to join the journey. Together, we can turn learning into lasting impact—shaping the future of work, education and society.
Explore partnership opportunities with SMU-X. Visit SMU-X Partnerships or contact the SMU-X team to collaborate on your next innovation challenge.
The SMU Impact Stories series spotlights the journeys of our faculty, alumni, students, and partners who are driving positive change through education, research and community engagement. Each story offers a window into the values that define Singapore Management University—from academic excellence and inclusive leadership to real-world impact and global relevance. Discover more stories here.
