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May 2008

Students Faced-Off in Business Plan Competition

Forty-four students in 17 teams presented their original business plans and competed for $23,000 in prize money in the G. Steven Burrill Business Plan Competition on April 18 in Grainger Hall.

Learn more about the winners.

Campus Honors Business Career Center’s Lisa Collins 

Lisa Collins, associate director, undergraduate career services in the Business Career Center, has won UW-Madison’s 2008 Norman Bassett Award.

The Bassett Award is given to a UW-Madison staff member who embodies excellence in student services. Collins has spent the last 11 years working in the Business Career Center, where she advises business and pre-business students in areas related to career services. The award was made in recognition of her commitment to serving students and was presented at a campus ceremony in April.
 
Steve Schroeder, who directs undergraduate career services at the business school, said receiving the Bassett Award is tremendous recognition. "In my time at UW-Madison, I have not met someone with Lisa's determination and commitment to students. She cares passionately about students and is a true asset not just to the business school but to the campus community.”

Toni Whited Given Gaumnitz Distinguished Faculty Award

Professor Toni Whited of the Wisconsin School of Business was awarded the school’s 2008 Erwin A. Gaumnitz Distinguished Faculty Award. The award is bestowed annually to a faculty member based on the quality, significance and productivity of recent research.
 
Whited is the Kuechenmeister-Bascom Professor in the business school’s Department of Finance, Investment and Banking. Her path-breaking work on corporate finance has gained considerable attention in both scholarly journals and the general business press. Most notably, her research won the prestigious Brattle Prize from the Journal of Finance in 2005 and 2008.
 
Whited worked at the Federal Reserve Board and was on the faculty of the University of Pennsylvania, Northwestern University, the University of Michigan and the University of Iowa before joining the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 2003. She serves on the editorial board of the Journal of Macroeconomics and is one of the founding co-editors of Finance Research Letters, which specializes in short, top-quality articles.  

Belle Heberling Receives First Erwin A. Gaumnitz Distinguished Classified Staff Achievement Award

Belle Heberling is the first recipient of the Erwin A. Gaumnitz Distinguished Classified Staff Achievement Award. The award was created to recognize the contributions made by classified staff to the Wisconsin School of Business.
 
Heberling has been with the business school for 34 years.  She joined the school
in 1974, with the executive education program.  She has gone on to fill many
key roles, including several years with the Weinert Center for Entrepreneurship. Most recently, she has been working as PhD & MS coordinator. “This is a great sign of recognition for all the hard and proficient work that Belle has done and continues to do on behalf of our school,” said Aric Rindfleisch, associate dean for research and PhD programs. “She is the glue that holds our PhD program together.”

WorldCom Whistleblower to Speak at Ethics and Professionalism Symposium

The third annual Ethics and Professionalism Symposium by the Department of Accounting and Information Systems will be held May 1. The public is invited to attend a public talk given as part of the symposium by Cynthia Cooper. Cooper was named Time magazine’s 2002 Time Person of the Year, along with fellow whistleblowers Coleen Rowley and Sherron Watkins.

Cooper is the former vice president of internal audit at WorldCom. In June 2002, she revealed what would turn out to be the largest fraud in U.S. corporate history. Her report on the company’s actions unleashed a firestorm of investigations, media coverage and accusations. After its collapse, Cooper remained with the company (which changed its name to MCI and was later acquired by Verizon), serving as chief audit executive until it successfully emerged from bankruptcy. In 2004, she resigned to form her own consulting business. She speaks on ethics and leadership to students and businesses. She is a Certified Public Accountant in the state of Georgia, a Certified Fraud Examiner and a Certified Information Systems Auditor.

Cooper will speak and take audience questions from 4 to 5:30 p.m. in 1100 Morgridge Auditorium in Grainger Hall. A reception and book signing will follow. Cooper is the author of the book, “Extraordinary Circumstances: The Journey of a Corporate Whistleblower.”

Real Estate Undergrads Take 2nd Place in National Competition

A team of Wisconsin School of Business undergraduates took second place in this year’s USC Real Estate Challenge.  The case competition was won by the National University of Singapore.

This is the real estate program’s third straight top-two finish.  (Wisconsin won the competition in 2006 and came in second in 2005; the competition was not held in 2007).

Other schools participating this year included USC, Texas, the
University of British Columbia, Auckland University (New Zealand) and
the University of Colorado.

The Wisconsin team was composed of  Gretchen Frankenthal, Brandon Goetzmann, Priti Patel, Daniel Polsky, Amy Steffens and Dain Tofson. Professor Stephen Malpezzi was the team’s advisor.

Wisconsin MBAs Competed in Big Ten Case Competition

A team of Wisconsin MBA students competed in the 2008 Big Ten Case Competition held at The Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio. A team of students from each Big Ten school received a complex business case to analyze. They had to identify the company’s challenge and present their recommendations to a panel of professionals.

In the first round, three teams compete against each other, with the winning team from each group advancing to the finals. Wisconsin’s team members were 1st year MBAs  Elena Taylor, Center for Brand and Product Management; Brad Hanson, Nicholas Center for Corporate Finance and Investment Banking; Nate Henderson, Applied Security Analysis Program; and Elizabeth Smith, A.C. Nielsen Center for Marketing Research. Taylor received an outstanding presenter award. Mark Matosian, director of student services, served as team advisor.   

Wisconsin School of Business Length of Service Staff Awards 

The annual Length of Service Staff Awards will be held Wednesday, May 14,  from 3:30 to 5:30 p.m. in Room 5120, Grainger Hall. Please RSVP by May 4, to Ilsa Valdez  ivaldez@bus.wisc.edu.

Retired and Retiring 2007-2008

Maureen Armstrong
Peter Barcher
Carol Birkholz
John Eichenseher
Barbara Lauersdorf
Gary Lessuise
Nancie Luther
Roger Maclean
J. Paul Peter
Ann Powell
Dianne Rothwell
Robert Schubert
Terry Thompson

2007* Length of Service Staff Awards

3 Years
Michael Mihelbergel
Maureen O’Connor
Arif Qureshi
Deidre Robinson
Blair Sanford
Judith Schaeffer
John Surdyk
Julie Wood

5 Years
Cynthia Adams
Melissa Amos-Landgraf
Mark Anderson
Michael Carr
Shannon Elliott
Joyce Fasanella
Randi Huntsman
Joseph Ordaz
Barbara Peterson
Gina Srenaski
Sachin Tuli
Charles West

10 Years
Lisa Collins
John McKeller
Ann Powell
Alisa Robertson
Andrew Taylor
Barry Roberts

20 Years
John Walsh
Nancy Thompto

* Calendar year

Undergraduate Commencement Celebration Set for May 17

Wisconsin School of Business faculty and staff are invited to join graduating undergraduate business students and their families at the Undergraduate Commencement Celebration Saturday, May 17. The reception will be held from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. in Grainger Hall’s atrium, prior to the 2 p.m. commencement ceremony at the Kohl Center. Cake and punch will be provided and the building will be open for tours.
 
All faculty and staff are welcome to stop by to help the school’s newest graduates celebrate their success. For more information about the Undergraduate Commencement Celebration, please contact Elesha Belke in Alumni Relations at 263-2807 or ebelke@bus.wisc.edu.

Huber Undergraduate Computer Lab Grand Opening

A program to celebrate the opening of the Huber Undergraduate  Computer Lab will be held Friday, May 9 from 11 a.m. to noon.  Faculty and staff are welcome to join in thanking Dan Huber (BBA ‘58) and Pat Huber (BSE ‘57) for their generous naming gift for the lab in 1200 Grainger Hall.

The program will feature student leaders, Undergraduate Commencement Campaign leaders and presentation of a thank you gift to the Hubers. Cake and punch will be served.

11 Teams Competed at CIBER MBA International Business Case Competition 

The University of Wisconsin-Madison Center for International Business Education and Research (CIBER)  hosted the third CIBER MBA International Business Case Competition April 17 and 18 at the Fluno Center for Executive Education.  MBA student teams from 11 top-ranked domestic and international business schools competed.

The team from the Wisconsin School of Business took third place in the competition. Wisconsin MBA teams members were Sangeeta Bokadia, Nicholas Center for Corporate Finance and Investment Banking; Michael Kirtman, Center for Brand and Product Management; Nina Sastrodihardjo, Grainger Center for Supply Chain Management; and Paul Wirth, Nicholas Center for Corporate Finance and Investment Banking. Michael Kirtman was one of three students in the competition to receive a Best Individual Presenter awards. Mark Matosian, director of student services, was the team’s advisor. 

The teams spent 24 hours developing a solution for a global business problem concerning the location of a new Walt Disney Company theme park resort and presented their proposals to a panel of corporate judges.  Teams of students represented Bocconi University, Italy; Chulalongkorn University, Thailand; Copenhagen Business School; Hong Kong University of Science and Technology; Tecnológico de Monterrey, Mexico; The Ohio State University; University of Connecticut; University of Kansas; University of Maryland-College Park; University of Washington and University of Wisconsin-Madison. 

“This event is a unique opportunity for students representing a wide range of countries to get to know the people they will be doing business with around the world in the near future.  It is a great chance for CIBERs to prepare the next generation of corporate leaders to compete in the global economy,” said Randy Dunham, co-faculty director of the Wisconsin School of Business CIBER.

Students presented strategic solutions and recommendations to a panel of 17 corporate judges. The University of Washington won first place, the University of Maryland-College Park took second.

Foley & Lardner provided gold-level sponsorship of the event and Harley-Davidson Motor Company sponsored at the silver-level.  Bronze level sponsors included Pearson-Prentice Hall, Trader Joe’s and Whole Foods.  The five participating U.S. schools, each home to a CIBER, also co-sponsored the competition.

In 1998, the University of Wisconsin-Madison was selected as a CIBER, joining a distinct network of universities nationwide, all of which are known for the strength of their international programs. Created by Congress in the late 1980s, CIBERs were established to help increase and promote the nation’s capacity for international understanding and economic enterprise.  

IN THE NEWS

People and programs of the Wisconsin School of Business were in national and local news recently.

National

Real Estate Professor Morris Davis was interviewed on National Public Radio’s  “Marketplace” on the effects of Fed rate cuts.

Alumna Jennifer Hackett was quoted in the Wall Street Journal article “How to write an admissions essay that can pave the way to B-school.” The article, which originally ran in 2006 when she was a Wisconsin MBA student,  discussed tips for admissions essays to increase the chances of being admitted to an MBA program.

Dean Michael Knetter participated in a roundtable discussion with Republican presidential nominee John McCain. The discussion centered around McCain’s newly unveiled economic agenda. The event was covered by several media outlets, including CBS News, Associated Press, ABC local, TMCnet, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Milwaukee Business Journal, Wispolitics.com, the Badger Herald and the Milwaukee Small Business Times.

• CBS News
• WBAY, Fox Falley
• KSFN, Fresno, California
• Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
• The Business Journal of Milwaukee
• Badger Herald McCain stopping in state today""
• Badger Herald "McCain drives economic line"
• Small Business Times

News of the Wisconsin Naming Gift continues to gain international attention. The Financial Times of London discussed the gift in an article, “Alumni pay a debt of gratitude.”
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/2/b7e79d9e-12d8-11dd-8d91-0000779fd2ac,dwp_uuid=02e16f4a-46f9-11da-b8e5-00000e2511c8.html 

Regional

The G. Steven Burrill Business Plan Competition and its winning entry, Sky Vegetables, received extensive media attention and was heavily covered in green  technology and sustainability blogs.

• http://wistechnology.com/articles/4695/
• http://www.madison.com/tct/news/283180
• http://cookingupastory.com/index.php/2008/04/24/sky-vegetables-a-brilliantnotion/
• http://www.matternetwork.com/2008/4/rooftop-crops-could-make-tastier.cfm
• www.urlfan.com/local/sky_vegetables_a_brilliant_notion/78840908.html   
• www.jsonline.com/story/index.aspx?id=741213  
• www.dane101.net/aggregator?from=140 
• www.forwardwi.com/forward_docs/rss.php   
• www.einnews.com/wisconsin/newsfeed-wisconsin-business 

The Economic Outlook conference was held at the Fluno Center this month. Economists  predicted a less harsh recession in the state of Wisconsin than the rest of the country. The conference was covered in Wisbusiness.com, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel and the Wisconsin State Journal. It aired in full on Wisconsin Eye, local TV channel 200.

The University of  Wisconsin-Milwaukee’s UWM Post featured an article on the Wisconsin Naming Gift.

The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel mentioned the Wisconsin School of Business in the article, “Regents OK fee for UW-Platteville.” The article discussed rising tuitions in the UW System and also discussed the differential tuition policy.

Senior Associate Dean Jim Johannes was quoted in the Des Moines Register article, “Baseball failure causes Quad Cities money tiff.” The article discussed problems with investment in a Quad Cities minor league baseball team.

Scott Converse, director, technology and operations program in Executive Education, was quoted in the WTN News article, “Business knowledge has become CIO’s most important skill.” Converse commented on the high demand for business analytical skills.

Local

Jon Davis authored an article on  how income tax laws  could be simplified to make them more fair that appeared in the Wisconsin State Journal. 

Dan Olszewski, director of the Weinert Center for Entrepreneurship, was quoted in the Capital Region Business Journal article, “Prayer and Profit.” Olszewski commented on the history of mixing religion with business in the United States.

The Capital Times quoted Steve Schroeder, director of the Business Career Center, in the article, "New grads still get jobs in slow economy." Schroeder discussed the good job prospects for students graduating in May despite the current economic state.

The Family Business Center was profiled in the Wisconsin State Journal. The article, “Board provides guiding hand to family business,” discussed a program presented by the Family Business Center on independent boards. Director Ann Kinkade was quoted.

Assistant Professor Morris Davis, Real Estate and Urban Land Economics, was quoted in the Wisconsin State Journal. The article, “Sub-Zero to lay off 235 employees at Fitchburg and Phoenix plants,” discussed how the housing industry slowdown affected the refrigeration and cooking appliances manufacturer.

The Capital Times quoted Wisconsin School of Business students J.J. Jackson and Richard Bagley in the article, “Wiscontrepreneurs: UW students compete to transform trash.” Students had 100 hours and $10 to create an innovative item out of trash.

Associate Professor Mason Carpenter was quoted in the Wisconsin State Journal article, “Is changing Spectrum sign a sign of things to come?”

The Daily Cardinal quoted Professor Jim Hodder in the article, “Saving for the future, spending in the present.” The article discussed the finances and saving habits of college students.

Accounting Professor Jon Davis authored an article on how income tax laws could be simplified to make them fairer that appeared in the Wisconsin State Journal. 

WISC-TV interviewed Associate Dean for Enterprise MBA Programs and Marketing Services Deborah Mitchell on demand-side issues affecting the latest General Motors layoffs in Janesville.

Update on Grainger Hall Addition 

An update on the addition to Grainger Hall will be held Thursday, May 1 from 9 to 10:30 a.m. in Room 4151. Associate Dean for Administration Melissa Amos-Landgraf and Building Manager Cheryl Schroud will provide a progress report on construction, and plans for the moves to the addition (tentatively scheduled for next month.) All faculty and staff are invited to attend.

Teams to Present at Project Brandwoven™  

For more than a year, the Wisconsin School of Business has been exploring ways to build the strength of the school’s brand to allow it to better compete with other top business schools. The next step in the process is “Project Brandwoven.”

Teams representing various centers and units within the school have been working on projects to help reinforce the school’s brand to internal and external audiences. The top projects will be presented on Friday, May 9 from 1 to 4:30 p.m. at the Fluno Center. A panel of judges will select the top presentations for special awards.

The entire Wisconsin School of Business community is invited to attend.  Information on the branding effort can be found at:   www.bus.wisc.edu/brandwoven.

BCC Appreciation Luncheon Slated

Faculty and staff are invited to attend the Business Career Center Appreciation Lunch. The event is held annually as a thank you to everyone who works with the Business Career Center to benefit students.  The luncheon will be held Thursday, May 15, 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the Business Career Center. Sandwiches, snacks, beverages  and cake will be provided.  Everyone is welcome to attend. 

MBA Student Awards Presented at MBA Celebration

Several Wisconsin MBA students were honored with awards at the MBA Celebration, held April 24 at the Fluno Center.

The Initiator Award is a new award created by the MBA Program Office to recognize MBA students who have developed or initiated programs/activities that have been innovative and demonstrate that these students are committed to “Being Out in Front™”. Recipients of this award received a check for $100.  The first recipients of the MBA Initiator Award were 2nd year MBA Katy McMurry from the Center for Brand and Product Management  and Danny Rice, 2nd year MBA from the  Weinert Center for Entrepreneurship.
 
The 2008 Jerred Service Award and a check for $500 went to 2nd year MBA student Jen Schultz from the Grainger Center for Supply Chain Management

The 2008 Outstanding Student Award and a check for $250  was presented to 2nd year MBA, Solymar Berrios from the Center for Brand and Product Management and 2nd year MBA Jara Kern from the Bolz Center for Arts Administration

The 2008 MBA Leadership Award and check for $500 were given to Felipe Izquierdo, a 2nd year MBA from the Graaskamp Center for Real Estate.

New Course This Fall to Explore Emerging India

A new International Business 365 Contemporary Topics course will be offered this fall, Emerging India. This three-credit course will feature a required January 2009 study tour that will visit Mumbai, Gurgaon, New Delhi and Agra, India. Complete details, including cost estimates, draft itinerary and application materials, are available at: http://www.bus.wisc.edu/international/emergingindia/.

FACULTY-STAFF  NEWS

Accomplishments

Blair Nelson Sanford, director of MBA Career Services, has accepted another two-year term on the American Friends of the London School of Economics Board of Directors. She is a 1989 alumna of the LSE.

Professor Robert Krainer, Finance, Investment and Banking, has been named a fellow of the Bank of France.

Transitions

Senior Associate Dean James M. Johannes has been named interim associate dean for Executive Education, taking the place of Roger Maclean, who retired in April. During the transition to new permanent leadership, Johannes will rely on Chuck Krueger and Linda Gorchels to help oversee day-to-day operations. Also during the transition, a committee is being formed to explore greater strategic alliances between Executive Education and the College of Engineering’s Engineering Professional Development.

Jennifer Smet has accepted the position of student services coordinator in MBA Career Services with the MBA Program. She formerly was with the Center for Brand and Product Management. 

Professor Jack Nevin has been named chair of the Marketing Department as of next fall; stepping down is Professor Craig Thompson. Professor Robert Krainer has been named chair of the Department of Finance, Investment and Banking; stepping down is Professor James Hodder.

Departures

Tony Cooke, web developer, resigned from his position with Marketing Services in April.

Enterprise MBA Updates

In April, the Enterprise MBA Speaker Series had as its speaker Paul Linzmeyer,  a general partner with Innovation for Sustainable Operations, Inc.  Linzmeyer is active in applying lean principles to environmental issues, operations and people.  He spoke to the Evening MBA and Executive MBA community at the Fluno Center.  

The Executive MBA program will graduate its 14th class on Saturday, May 17. The graduating class is composed of  33 individuals representing 30 different companies in Wisconsin, Illinois, Minnesota, Texas and Iowa.

About the Gazette

The Gazette is published monthly by Marketing Services for faculty and staff of the Wisconsin School of Business. Submissions for the June 1 issue of the Gazette should be sent by May 27  to Editor Lari Fanlund, lfanlund@bus.wisc.edu.