Executive MBA Students Travel to Thailand and Vietnam

In March 2009, 46 Executive MBA students traveled to Bangkok (Thailand) and Ho Chi Minh City (Vietnam) to connect with top corporate officials, government staff and others to gain insights into international business practices in developing countries.  Site visits included NMB-Mineabea, Thailand Ministry of Health, Samitivej Hospital, Siam Cement, Stock Exchange of Thailand, Cho Ray Hospital, Nguyen Binh Khiem Elementary School, Ernst & Young, CEPS/Microfinance, OPV Pharmaceutical, Kimberly Clark Vietnam, General Shoes, East Meets West Exchange  and more. 

Wisconsin Executive MBAs Get International Lesson on Giving Back

During a recent international study abroad trip, students from the Wisconsin School of Business Executive MBA program donated three new fully loaded computer systems and $3,400 to the Dieu Giac Orphanage for abandoned, orphaned or street children in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. The visit and donations to the orphanage were made possible by the efforts of Andrew Berns, one of the students in the program. 

The visit occurred during a required international trip for second-year students in the program for working professionals. Students, comprised of experienced, high-potential business leaders, engaged with corporate officers, governmental ministries, and educational institutions in Thailand and Vietnam over the course of the two-week experience. Drawing upon their coursework in marketing, finance, economics, accounting, strategy and leadership, the trip is meant to enhance understanding of trade, multinational operations and economic policy and provide firsthand insight into the opportunities and challenges of doing business abroad.

More than 120 children ranging in age from several months to 18-years-old reside in the Dieu Giac Orphanage, whose goal it is to provide a safe and caring environment and give greater purpose and meaning to the lives of each resident through education and craftwork. 

The donation of computers will be used primarily to support the children’s education and connect them with the broader world. The Dieu Giac staff, comprised of Buddhist nuns, will also make use of the equipment to improve the operating efficiency of the orphanage. The remaining cash donation will go toward general support of the facility.

 Funds were made possible through generous donations from the Executive MBA Class of 2009 as well as the Wisconsin Alumni Association (WAA), which provided the students the opportunity to sell the first edition of the “Red Shirt.” One-third of proceeds went to the WAA, one-third went to the vendor  and the remaining one-third went to support the Dieu Giac Orphanage donation.

Participants in this year’s experience include: Andrew Berns, Ph.D. (Instructional Chair, Liberal Arts, Milwaukee Area Technical College); Brandon Duck (Internal Audit Director, State of Wisconsin Investment Board); Eric Frey (VP Finance, The Fireside, Inc.); Peter-Michael Keppler (Director of Product Planning-Outreach Marketing, Harley-Davidson Motor Company); Michael Nasif (General Manager, Kohler Rental Power); Kathryn Otto (Director of Healthcare Initiatives, Thrive); and Tom Richardson (Director of Purchasing, Kerry Group).

 Jeffrey Seglin Was M. Keith Weikel Speaker 

Jeffrey L. Seglin was the speaker at the M. Keith Weikel Speaker Series on April 3. He spoke to Wisconsin Enterprise MBA Programs students and alumni. Seglin is the author of “The Right Thing,” a weekly column on general ethics syndicated by the New York Times. He is an associate professor at Emerson College in Boston and an ethics fellow at the Poynter Institute for Media Studies. He writes and lectures widely on business ethics and related topics for the New York Times, Fortune, FSB, Salon.com and CNN.

Job Search Support Group Meets
The Evening MBAs in the Enterprise MBA program had their monthly Job Search Support Group in April. Several students updated their peers on their job search or asked for advice. The group shared stories, resources and names of contacts in order to assist each other in their searches.

Former Governor Tommy Thompson Speaks on Health Care and Economy
More than 100 current students, alumni and friends of the Enterprise MBA Programs community came to hear Former Wisconsin Governor Tommy Thompson speak on April 17 about “Health Care and the Economy.” The former Health and Human Service Secretary and four-term Governor of Wisconsin shared his stories and anecdotes while providing advice on improving the economy.

Executive MBA Student Dr. Michael Fiore Honored by Alma Mater
Second-year Executive MBA student Dr. Michael Fiore has dedicated his career to addressing the dangers posed by tobacco. For his efforts, Fiore (Bowdoin College ‘76) was selected by the Bowdoin College Board of Trustees to receive the 2009 Common Good Award, which honors alumni for profound and sustained commitment to the common good with conspicuous disregard for personal gain.

Fiore is a professor of medicine at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health and director of the UW Center for Tobacco Research and Intervention, which he founded in 1992. Fiore is nationally recognized expert on tobacco. He has written numerous articles, chapters and books on cigarette smoking and was a co-author and consulting editor of “Reducing Tobacco Use – A Report of the Surgeon General (2000). He served as chair of the panel that produced the United States Public Health Service Clinical Practice Guideline: Treating Tobacco Use and Dependence in 2008.

Fiore chaired the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Subcommittee on Tobacco Cessation of the Interagency Committee on Smoking and Health, which produced a comprehensive plan for promoting tobacco cessation in the United States. In July 2003, he was one of five national recipients of the Innovators in Combating Substance Abuse Award from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

His chief research and policy focus has been to develop strategies to prompt clinicians and health care systems to intervene with patients who use tobacco. As part of this effort, he spearheaded the concept of expanding the vital signs to include tobacco use status.

Evening MBA Team Competes in Crazylegs Run
A team from the Evening MBA program, “Bucky’s Night Shift,” competed in the annual Crazylegs Classic run held in Madison in April. The team had 29 members—made up of program alumni, students, family and friends.

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