Mr Lisle is the first civil servant ever awarded with the scholarship.

"The Force is very proud of Jim's achievement because it's a good example of lifelong learning through continuous self-development. This should serve as an example to all of us to undertake self-learning during spare time in order to broaden our horizons," Mr Thomas noted.

He added that the Force had a long association with the Henley Management College, which is recognised as the number 1 MBA in the UK and amongst the best in the World.

Assistant Commissioner (Service Quality), Mr Charles Wong Doon-yee, who also attended the presentation ceremony, saw Jim's award as an example of the Force's culture of continuing learning.

"The strategic planning and finance management that Jim will learn from his MBA Programme will be applicable to the Force," Mr Wong said.

Ms Veronica Chan said the Henley Management College and the South China Morning Post had been offering the MBA scholarship to Hong Kong residents for the past 10 years in order to train up managerial personnel with "this high profile programme". The winners in the past came from many sectors, including banking, telecommunications, engineering, legal, trading and services.

This year, the MBA Programme had attracted about 100 applicants. The main selection criteria were the candidates' abilities to undertake the programme and the benefits of the programme to their employers, jobs and career development.

In the next two years, Mr Lisle will add another Master's Degree to his academic credentials.

So far, he already holds two Master's Degrees - one in Arts from Leicester University in the United Kingdom, and the other in Public Policy and Administration from the Charles Sturt University in Australia.

To win the scholarship, Mr Lisle submitted a c.v. and two papers on the benefits of the MBA Programme to the Force and to his own career developments and, after short-listing, attended an intense one-hour interview by senior representatives of the two sponsors. Together with another candidate, he was subsequently selected winner from a short-list of nine candidates.

Speaking at the presentation ceremony, Mr Lisle thanked the Henley Management College and the South China Morning Post for awarding him a wonderful opportunity for self-betterment. The award shows vision on the part of the sponsors and a realisation that the Force does encourage and facilitate its members to pursue lifelong learning through continuous self-development, he added.

Mr Lisle stressed that whilst the Force can learn from the private sector, there are also skills and attitudes that the private sector could learn from the Force. He hoped to demonstrate that to his fellow students during the MBA Programme.

Speaking to OffBeat after the presentation ceremony, Mr Lisle pointed out that the Henley Management College MBA Programme is the leading course in the UK. He felt that to have won the scholarship in an open competition was a real achievement but when it was offered by an institution as prestigious as Henley it was even more rewarding.

"The Force is a progressive employer and that is why we have been sending senior officers to Henley Management College and other prestigious institutions since the 1970s. This MBA will provide me with private sector skills, knowledge and attitudes that will hopefully allow me to contribute to the Force in the areas of effectiveness, efficiency and economy, especially in my current portfolio as Head of the Force Efficiency Studies Bureau," Mr Lisle added.

The MBA Programme will take two years with lectures and workshops conducted in the evenings or at weekends. The core subjects covered are managing IT, managing people, marketing, managing performance, managing finance, strategy and managing change. "All these should be of interest to senior police managers," Mr Lisle said.

He urged any officer considering self-development to 'just do it'. As he pointed out if a middle-aged "gweilo" with two young children can do it, then anyone can!

Mr Jim Lisle sets a good example in lifelong learning