THE MBA JOURNAL

A Publication from the Tippie MBA Association THE MBA JOURNAL INSIDE THIS ISSUE: 2004-05 Edition THE FUTURE OF THE TIPPIE MBA Weathering the Storm A Study in Endurance: Tippie Sends a Delegation to the 2005 LeedsNet Impact Case Competition A Letter from the Class of 2005 MBA Association President Faculty Spotlight: Toby Daglish MBAs Celebrate Lunar New Year My Secrets To Getting a Job Class of 2002 Alumni Update Students Meet Wall Street Legend Net Impact Members Attend Conference in NYC Henry Fund Celebrates Ten Year Anniversary Iowa Alumni Reunite Online Speakers at Tippie The editors of The MBA Journal asked us to write an article commenting on the direction of the Tippie MBA Program. As we look ahead to the future of the Program, it makes us reflect on the evolution of MBA programming, both nationally and at Iowa. For years, most MBA programs were heavily theoretical, modeled after Master of Science programs, with minimal focus on practical application. Over time, a few schools such as Harvard, Wharton, Northwestern, Dartmouth and Michigan developed an “applied model,” which was then picked up in the seventies and late eighties by a handful of schools across the country. These programs focused on three things: a good academic education, an emphasis on immediate application, and significant attention to professional development. In contrast, most research-oriented schools, including Iowa, were still treating the MBA as an extension of their undergraduate programming. Forging ahead, one of the most influential occurrences happened when Business Week and then U.S. News and World Report started to rank MBA programs. At least another half-dozen media outlets have followed. On the positive side, the rankers have nudged schools to add application and professional development to their programs. On the flip side, ranking criteria does not necessarily reflect an honest measure of the educational experience. A high ranking does not mean that a school’s graduates are the most effective, successful, or satisfied in their roles as business leaders. With this background, where does Tippie fit among the more than 480 AACSB-accredited MBA programs in the world? We believe that a worldclass MBA program should improve students’ professional and personal lives, intellectually, practically and ethically. If the Tippie School can excel at this, the rankings and accolades will follow. To achieve this, we must provide an integrated program of quality academics, experiential business application and professional development. We work hard to stay current by monitoring changes in business practice, listening to our students and alumni, and benchmarking our competitors’ programs. Our conclusions are supported by a recent article in Strategy+Business, a Website for Booz, Allen, Hamilton consulting, which suggested six program reforms: 1) Require more development of people skills; 2) Emphasize and deliver the basic business skills and tools for business problem solving; 3) Provide strong grounding in theory; 4) Design curricula so that students can learn by doing; 5) Encourage students to take electives outside the traditional core; 6) Create differentiated curricula and allow students to concentrate in specific industries. Just as the business world has been changing rapidly, we, too, have responded to the need for change. In 1993, the School of Management was established, moving the oversight of the MBA program from the Graduate College to a professional School with the sole focus on training successful business leaders. During this time period, our School’s leaders moved to a fall-only admission, added more aggressive recruiting strategies, and implemented the case method in many MBA courses. The Tippie program engaged in continuous incremental change as well as dynamic and discrete curriculum revision. In 1998, we introduced a significantly new curriculum and have since added more experiential learning experiences such as the Henry Fund, Rapid Continuous Improvement, and International Marketing Consulting. These are now complemented by ad hoc finance and marketing field study projects each year. These continuous changes have been critical advances, but with the move to the new Pomerantz continued on page 2 1 The MBA Journal Future of Tippie MBA continued Building and dedicated MBA classrooms, we are provided an opportunity for major curricular revision. We are excited because we will be able to offer courses in ways that make pedagogic and practical sense. The curricular revision, which is in the advanced proposal stage, is aimed at providing tight linkages between course work, experiential learning, and professional development. Specifically, the new curriculum will focus on three initiatives: 1. Delivery of skill building professional development experiences in the areas of business communication and presentation, ethical and moral direction, applied business strategy, and team management. The new curriculum calls for one-week professional immersion experiences distributed at the beginning and mid-point of the first semester; 2. Delivery of applied learning (“hands-on”) opportunities in consulting, marketing, finance, operations, and international business; Modularization of select electives, to provide a greater variety of choices. The proposed new delivery system will provide first-year students with more time for participation in student-run organizations, activities, and career development events. The improvements are designed with two objectives in mind: to enhance the Tippie experience and to increase the marketability of the Tippie MBA graduate. A Chinese business friend is fond of saying, “The only constant in today’s business environment is change.” The education offered at a world-class business school needs to both lead and reflect current business practice. Just as medical and law schools have a mission to produce excellent doctors and lawyers, business schools have an obligation to produce effective business managers and leaders. We know that by implementing programmatic changes that reflect the needs of today’s business environment, the Tippie School will continue to be competitive and provide its students with the tools to succeed in business. Gary Gaeth, Associate Dean, School of Management Colleen Downie, Assistant Dean, MBA Program 3. WEATHERING As the economy has weathered ups and downs over the past few years, many companies have revised their strategies for hiring MBAs. Visits to campus with presentations and recruiting activities have given way to a larger predominance of webbased recruiting and distance interviewing. This has been a challenge for students and career services offices alike, which have favored on-campus visits to introduce students to companies. Many career services offices have had to revise their strategies to include a “referral model” to increase opportunities for companies to get to know students. While the MBA Career Services office (MBACS) has been affected by the uncertainties in the THE STORM extensively with job seekers and corporate employers to match career interests and expertise, and she has considerable experience with career counseling, interviewing, assessment, employer relations, and business development. Along with the rest of the MBACS staff, she is helping students understand the value of networking, acting as a career coach and mentor, and further developing the referral model that has been so successful for MBACS in the past. economy, it has been wellpoised to maintain corporate relationships through student referrals. The office has developed personal relationships with companies throughout the country. Efforts are devoted to finding the right match between a student’s skills, experience and values and the needs of an employer. This focus has proved to be quite successful as Tippie has had placement rates equal to or better than peer schools. Recently the Tippie MBACS office added another talented individual to the team - Margie Peskin. Margie brings more than six years of corporate recruiting and executive search experience to the Tippie program. She has worked Margie Peskin, MBA Career Services Marketing, is working to find the right fit for both students and employers. As we approach graduation, we are grateful that the Tippie School of Management has devoted resources to benefit both students and employers. We wish tdo extend our special thanks to the staff of MBA Career Services: Shannon Christensen, Kathie Decker, Beth Knudson, Margie Peskin, and Angi Roemerman. 2 A S TUDY IN E NDURANCE : TIPPIE S ENDS A D ELEGATION 2005 L EEDS -N ET I MPACT C ASE C OMPETITION After a somewhat rigorous selection process and considerable preparation, four representatives of the Tippie School of Management traveled to Boulder, CO on March 11th for the LeedsNet Impact Case Competition. Net Impact is a national organization of “emerging business leaders committed to using the power of business to create a better world.” For the last five years, the group has teamed with the University of Colorado’s business school to host a case competition that focuses on issues of corporate social responsibility. Twenty schools participated in this year’s event, including the University of Pennsylvania, Duke University, UCLA, the University of North Carolina, and four Big Ten schools. This was Iowa’s third consecutive entry. Like many case competitions, the Leeds-Net Impact event demands endurance above all. Each of the teams receives the case at 6:00 pm on Friday, and is expected to present its recommendations sometime the next morning. Armed with a flip chart and a high-speed internet connection, first-years Gabriel Hansen and Mary Schaben and second-years Jesse Finch Gnehm and Bob Hillman set out to solve the world’s problems in approximately twelve hours. This year’s case involved Diageo, the global alcoholic beverage company, and its Environmental Working Group (EWG). The EWG had a problem with energy consumption and greenhouse gases— emissions were increasing beyond expectations, market and regulatory pressures were on the rise, and Diageo had missed its reduction targets in the most recent reporting period. Each team of MBAs was asked to assume the guise of a consulting firm, and advise the EWG on a specific course of action. The Tippie delegation managed to complete its assignment by about 3:00 am, fueled by Girl Scout cookies and a combination of potato and corn chips. Curiously, none of us brewed the coffee provided by the hotel—apparently, we are not a particularly hardboiled group of MBA candidates. Be that as it may, it should be noted that there is no better way to get to know one’s colleagues than staying up most of the night in a hotel room. We slept for four hours, submitted our presentation, lingered at the complimentary breakfast buffet, and finally presented our plan to a group of three judges. The program called for a fifteen minute presentation and an additional fifteen-minutes of Q & A. Miraculously, we ran through our slides in precisely the allotted time and fielded the questions enthusiastically and authoritatively. Mr. Finch Gnehm distinguished himself by reeling off a long list of numbers that seemed to stun at least one of the judges, who did not speak again. TO THE Iowa was not among the five schools chosen to compete in the finals that afternoon. We made the best of our situation and headed downtown. No one can say that Tippie students, who tend to distinguish themselves in the classroom, do not cut a fine figure at the pool table and the dart board as well! Special thanks to Roy Suddaby, who advised the team, Gary Gaeth, Colleen Downie, Katie Millard, Tom Gruca, and Sheila Goins. Bob Hillman, UI MBA ‘05 3 The MBA Journal A LETTER FROM THE CLASS OF 2005 MBA ASSOCIATION PRESIDENT Class of 2005 MBAA Officers Of ficers President Jesse Finch Gnehm Vice President Melanie Burns Technology Dean Wangerin Treasurer Mike Sculli UISG Senator Abram Sloss Alumni Jafar Azmayesh International Kwanua Tackie & Vishal Khanduja Journal Trish Bonica & Geoffrey Berg Marketing Kristi Hruska Member Relations John Mickelson Philanthropy Karen Caruth Occasionally, you wake up to find yourself in the middle of a cliché. Before you realize it, trite phrases leave your mouth before you can stop them. “Where did this semester go?” “Is it just me, or is time flying by?” This fall yet another crop of Iowa MBAs find themselves smack in the middle of this cliché. Faster than you can say equity beta or conjoint analysis, mid-terms have come and gone, many companies have come to campus for recruiting presentations, and more than 100 Tippie School alumni and their family members returned for Homecoming festivities. Since time has gone by so fast, this is a good time to reflect on some of the MBA Association’s accomplishments since The MBA Journal last hit your desk. Perhaps the most noticeable change is lit up on your screen . . . The Journal is now 100% digital. We made this change to speed up the time it takes to publish and to lower our costs. Since this is the inaugural online edition, we’d love to hear what you think of the new format. Tippie Wear, the great logo apparel that allows us to show off our pride in the Iowa MBA program, has gone digital as well. Working with The Iowa Alumni Network (www.iowamba.net) we now are able to offer Tippie Wear for purchase online. Lest you think the MBA Association has become a dot.bomb gone array, consider the following achievements of our members: The hard work of the Class of ’04 was rewarded in spades. Eighty-two percent of students had employment offers by graduation. Average salary levels rose to $71,416 and the average signing bonus topped $14,000. While the May grads headed off to conquer the world, the Class of ’05 headed off to internships at firms as diverse as Bear Stearns, Rockwell Collins, Eastman Kodak, Maytag, Pepsi, JennyO, AEGON, Frontier Foods, and AllSteel. MBAs aren’t much for resting on their laurels—yes, another cliché. This past fall, two world class leaders shared their insights with the students of the Tippie School of Management. The first was Erroll B. Davis, Jr., CEO of Alliant Energy. Davis has been named one of Forbes’ Most Powerful People and Fortune’s Most Powerful Black Executives. Davis spoke on leadership October 29 at the Tippie School. Second, on December 3 students made a pilgrimage to visit the Wizard of Omaha, Warren Buffett. (see related article) Buffett welcomed the group of students into his office for an extended hour and a half question and answer session. Following the Q & A session, the group toured two of Buffett’s businesses: the Nebraska Furniture Mart and Borsheim’s Jewelry. Both opportunities were a result of the work of the Tippie Leadership Association. As you can see, the mantle of excellence and leadership has been picked up and carried forward over the last year by Iowa MBA students. I’m betting that you can count on this year’s class doing the same thing next fall because you know what they say: “Nothing succeeds like success.” Jesse J. Finch Gnehm, UI MBA’05 President, MBA Association 4 F ACULTY S POTLIGHT : TOBY DAGLISH Professor Toby Daglish, known simply as Toby to most of his students, is one of the latest additions to the Tippie faculty. The fact that he was born in Durham, England and grew up in New Zealand is evident from his first use of “Cheers, mate,” “chap” or his pronunciation of idea as “idear.” He is well traveled and well trained. He studied math at the University of Cantebury (New Zealand), finance at the University of British Columbia, and received his PhD in finance from the University of Toronto. In addition to his schooling, Toby worked as an analyst for the New Zealand Treasury. His parents currently reside in New Zealand as well. Toby didn’t always want to be a finance professor. In fact, as a young chap Toby wanted to be a paleontologist and dig up dinosaur bones. Well, Toby realized he had to make a living somehow or as he says, “Goodness knows, I sold out to greed somewhere along the way.” So he exchanged cleaning up dinosaur bones for analyzing bond prices. Now Toby finds himself teaching the Fixed Income Securities course in the Tippie MBA Program. He is known by his students to be approachable and down-toearth. He operates with a high level of enthusiasm and is concerned about his students. Toby enjoys many activities, ranging from backpacking and camping to drinking beer with his mates. He also enjoys playing video games and has been known to run when motivated. If you want to discuss music with him, you best know Counting Crows, he is a huge fan. In addition to Counting Crows, he also enjoys a mixture of pop and nonhardcore rock. He admits that he has come to like jazz more as he is getting older. Toby has three passports and has traveled extensively throughout the UK, France, Canada, the US and New Zealand. Toby hopes to see a “posse of folks together” for his class next year. It’s a great class for those serious about finance. So get ready for some good oldfashioned “boot-strapping” fun and Toby will look forward to seeing you in his class. Cheers, mate!! Jeremey Hatt UI MBA ‘04 Toby Daglish’s career has taken him from work with the New Zealand Treasury to his position as a UI Assistant Professor of Finance. 5 The MBA Journal MBAS CELEBRATE LUNAR NEW YEAR Each year Chinese and Korean MBA students host a Lunar New Year Celebration co-sponsored by the SOM and the MBAA. The Lunar New Year, also known as the Spring Festival, marks the New Year according to the lunar calendar. The holiday typically takes place in late January or early February, and the date varies from year to year. It is one of the most important and widely celebrated holidays in many East Asian counties such as China, Korea, Japan, Vietnam, etc., with each nation having its own unique traditions and customs of celebration. This year’s MBA Lunar New Year celebration was held on February 9th, and coincided with the actual date of the 2005 Lunar New Year. The evening began with MBA students, faculty, and friends having the chance to sample a delicious variety of Korean and Chinese dishes. Dishes ranged from Korean sushi (kim-bap) to Chinese dumplings (boa-zi and zhao-zi). This year’s celebration had a Chinese and a Korean program. Chinese students kicked of their program by having Shengli Zhao, UI MBA ’06, introduce the origin and traditional customs of the Chinese Spring Festival. His classmate, He Hui followed by explaining the Chinese Zodiac which runs in 12-year cycles with each year being represented by an animal. The 12 animals are: rat, ox/cow, tiger, rabbit, dragon, snake, horse, ram/sheep, monkey, rooster/chicken, dog, and pig. 2005 is the year of the Chicken! Jialin Qi, UI MBA ’06, then explained the cultural importance of the Chinese dumpling, which originated in Northern China, and is viewed by many Chinese as the traditional food of the Spring Festival. A demonstration of successful dumpling making was then offered. The Dumpling Challenge followed, which grouped the audience into teams, whose mission was to make as many anatomically correct dumplings as possible. Next Zhu Liming, UI MBA ’06, offered another challenge. After demonstrating the proper use of chopsticks, he allowed audience members to test their own skills, and which proved that the “Karate Kid” has nothing over an MBA student. First-year MBA students, Yang Qiao, Wei Gu, and Jun Yu then shared highlights of China’s past and present. After testing the audiences’ geographic skills and memories, they allowed everyone to view video images of China while area resident Su Zhang performed on the traditional Chinese string instrument ,Guzheng. The Chinese program was then capped by a Gongfu video demonstration presented by Shengli Zhao. Korean students got their program underway by introducing the traditions and history of the Korean Lunar New Year holiday known as Seol. Korean students, family members and friends began the program with the traditional New Year’s greeting called sebae. Sebae is an elaborate and precise bow or curtsey that when performed in the traditional Korean dress is very elegant. Soo Yeon Lee, UI MBA ’05, followed the sabae with an introduction to the traditional Korean clothing style known as Hanbok. In addition to pictures, she and numerous Koreans in the audience modeled their own traditional clothes which demonstrated the beautiful and colorful elegance of the Hanbok. One of the most enjoyable aspects of the evening was seeing the numerous Korean children proudly donning their Hanbok and looking most adorable! Myungkyu Noh, UI MBA ’06, took us from fashion to ritual, when he explained the rite of Charye, the ritual that honors one’s ancestors. Typically performed on Soel, the rites of charye involve offering food and drink to the departed family members. Important to charye is the ritual table where certain foods are arranged based on type and color. There are numerous rules that dictate the order in which food is placed on the tray. Myungkyu shared a few of these common rules: Red foods and meats are placed on the east side of the table while white foods and fish are set on the west side. (See picture to the side) However, not all food on Soel is left for the ancestors, so while Soo yeon and Myungkyu explained their traditions, Jong-in Jang, UI MBA ’06, provided the audience with a taste of homemade ddok-guk, or rice dumpling soup, which is the traditional Korean New Year’s dish. In addition, to the traditions of food, Koreans also placed a ritualistic significance to certain folk games, several of which were introduced by Jong-in. He first provided a demonstration of the popular boys’ game jaegi-chagi, in which a shuttlecock is kicked with one foot or both feet into the air with the attempt to kick it as many times as you can without it hitting the ground. He even allowed several members of the audience to try it themselves. This was followed by the introduction to too-ho, an ancient game of pitching arrows into a pot. (Wisely no demonstration was allowed with the arrows!) The last game introduced was the board yut-nori. This traditional Korean board game, usually played on the first day of the Lunar New Year, uses four halved sticks (flat on one side and curved on the other) much like dice as a measure of scoring and moving across the board. (picture on the side). Given the well known fact that Koreans have always known how to enjoy themselves, games proved to be the most appropriate way to end the evening. As always the Lunar New Year allowed our Chinese and Korean students to share this important holiday with their Tippie family. Their efforts were much appreciated and reminded us again of the warmth, goodwill and respect generated through the sharing of one’s traditions. Ann Knudson, Institute for International Business 6 MY SECRETS TO GETTING I said I was just lucky in landing a job at Principal; however, luck is only part of the story. I’d like to share with you my four secrets to landing the job you want. My first secret is to use the Services staff MBA Career Ser vices staf f as much as possible. It was really a pleasure talking to them and they were really professional. I had a couple of mock interviews before my interview, but I decided to have a special one targeted towards Principal. It was very helpful. The staff fully prepared me for a technical finance interview, which helped me realize that I wasn’t as prepared as I wanted to be. So I redid my homework and felt much more prepared. The interview with Principal turned out to be very wideranging. We talked about a number of very broad topics. I received an offer for a summer internship and was elated. However, I was informed that they had no intention of recruiting me for a full time position. My supervisor at Principal had a piggy bank on his desk with the words “Creative Financing.” That’s my second secret to getting a job: be creative. My creative. job was really overwhelming at the beginning. Part of my job was to build stock back testing models every day. I felt that there were some improvements that could be made with just a little creativity. I wrote some short emails to my leaders and colleagues suggesting enhancements to the platform. For example, one of them was to integrate a “clone” function for a back testing family to our portfolio management tool. I was surprised that it was realized in two weeks. My creative suggestion greatly improved efficiency. Another secret is to go beyond bey expectations. We had a meeting with Hong Kong investors. I prepared a portfolio analysis for my manager, and he wanted it by 4:00 pm for our 7:00 pm meeting later that day. He was satisfied with what I had prepared. However, I realized during a later discussion that the investor cared about cash management and asked some questions about it last year, so I prepared some cash level analysis for the fund in time for the meeting. The client was really satisfied with the cash management improvement and my manager was pleased that I had exceeded his expectation. The last secret is to listen and listen every respect ever yone. I showed interest in everything I could and showed respect to everyone regardless of their status in the organization. I listened to people carefully even when I may have had different ideas and said thank you to them. I learned things from everyone that I could. At the end of the summer I was offered a full-time position and the opportunity to finish my MBA studies in Des Moines. What a blessing! So, remember my four secrets for getting the job you want: talk to staff in MBA Career Services as A JOB much as possible; be creative; go beyond expectations; and respect people. Good luck! Alan Wang, UI MBA ‘04 Alan Wang’s Internship experience led to a full-time position with Principal in Des Moines. “I said I was just lucky in landing a job at Principal; however, luck is only part of the story.” 7 The MBA Journal CLASS OF 2002 ALUMNI UPDATE Jeremy Meccage is busy in Princeton, NJ with his start-up, Zag Sports, Inc. (www.zagsports.com). They provide athletes of all ages sports-oriented tours all over the world, with a chance to compete against the best foreign athletes. He and his wife are also helping coach the baseball and field-hockey teams at Princeton University, and they are getting used to the NJ way of life. Stephanie Pieart has become the karaoke queen of Carmel, Indiana. She writes, “I get into karaoke contests a lot. I am also in the process of planning a trip to Texas for Christmas and to the Caribbean for a cruise next fall.” Rajesh Narayanan is in Chicago, working with BP Chemicals as an Inventory Analyst and he recently enjoyed watching a Bulls game against the 76ers. Rob Bakker writes that he is working for US Bank in Des Moines in the Middle Market Commercial Lending Group as an Assistant Relationship Manager underwriting loans up to $35 million! He is looking forward to a promotion to Relationship Manager in the next couple months. Rahul Bohra is working at Capital One in McLean, Virginia, near Washington DC. He has been to visit the capital, but wants to get New Jersey (Rahul is a gambler!). He hasn’t seen any his MBA classmates, but has eaten lunch with the Iowa alums at his company. Heather Stahmer is at Pearson in Coralville and wants to send a big hello to everyone and is sorry she missed everyone at homecoming. Varsha Borde had a little baby girl named Aditi on August 19th. She writes that she is in Coralville, and is planning to start looking for a job in the next couple of months. John Zhu decided to tackle yet another degree, and is at The University of Iowa working on his PhD in marketing modeling. Ryuji Ago has been busy in Yokohama, Japan at his new job. He misses Iowa and his wonderful classmates. He says if anyone has a chance to visit Japan, please let him know! Alex Knigge is in Cologne, and working for Lufthansa Consulting, a management consulting firm. His current project is in Mexico, and he plans to fly to Kuwait in December for another project with Kuwait Airways. Alex says, “I could not be happier with my job since I love traveling and get to meet interesting people from all over the world.” Min Kyung Kim is back in Seoul, Korea, and mapping the global marketing strategy of Samsung Electronics, which has taken him traveling to Istanbul, Turkey. He has met with many alums living in Seoul. Jorge Anaya writes, “I live in Iowa City, I run into MBA’s all the time, and I have not met any movie stars.” Brian Hurley is working for GE in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Brian and his wife Laura recently added a new member to the family, a golden retriever named Murphy. Nicole Pfeiffer recently moved to Dubuque, Iowa and is currently working as a Senior Sales Representative for Eli Lilly Pharmaceuticals in the Cedar Rapids and Dubuque markets. Nicole and her husband had a baby girl in February 2004. Kevin Bakker is in Cedar Rapids at Aegon USA. He married his fiancée Colleen in May 2003, and took a great Honeymoon to Hawaii. He writes, “Since then, our lives have been pretty uneventful. However, I did make it to several Hawkeye games in Iowa City!” Tom Ressler wrote, “I took a job with the Federal government through a Presidential Management Fellowship program. I’ve been seen playing my harmonica in bars in D.C. as well as with my brother’s band back in Peosta, Iowa. Congrats to the Class of 2002 for being the first to participate in The Tippie Review’s alumni update! Dave Sheppard received his JD in May ’03 and his MBA in May ’04 He is employed as an attorney for Myron M. Cherry & Associates LLC in Chicago. Dave and his wife Kim have 2 children, Drew 20 months and Kendall 7 months. Josey Bathke finished her JD in December ‘03. She is employed in the general counsel’s office at the The University of Iowa. Matt Henry is currently working at Brown Medical Industries in Spirit Lake, Iowa as Manager of Contract/OEM Sales. He has traveled to Colorado, southern Italy and Frankfurt where he met up with our fellow German/ Belgian Tippie alums Tom, Alex, Daniel, and Katrin. Tom Maes writes that while he never made it through the third round of interviews with consulting companies, an exciting opportunity in Product Management arose at Lufthansa. Tom will be implementing cabin concepts for the largest aircraft in the world, the Airbus 380, due out in 2007. Mark Wall bought a house near Madison, Wisconsin last July. Although he is busy at work, season tickets for Hawkeye football games have brought him back to Iowa City. Erin Kouri reports that she really enjoyed the get together at Mark Wall’s place for the Wisconsin/ Iowa game. “The Dunpheys, Paulsens, Jennifer Johnston, Matt Henry, Sherif Massoud, Jorge Anaya, and I were there. It was great to see everyone and catch up.” 8 STUDENTS MEET WALL STREET LEGEND Every year, students in the Tippie MBA Program at The University of Iowa arrange personal visits with prominent industry leaders throughout the country. This year, Jafar Azmayesh, a resourceful 2nd year MBA student, decided to test his networking skills by attempting to set up a visit with Warren Buffett, one of the greatest American investors in history. Azmayesh’s tenacity paid off when Buffett agreed to the visit with MBA students from the Tippie Leadership Association and undergraduate students from the Hawkinson Institute of Business Finance. “I was thrilled that we were able to make this visit happen,” states Azmayesh. “We were all impressed by how open, accessible, and personable he was. His willingness to meet with us was just the first sign.” A group of 49 students made the journey from Iowa City to Omaha, traveling by chartered bus across the state. The group met with Buffett at 10:30 a.m. on Friday, December 3rd for a ninety-minute informal question and answer session. Buffett covered a broad range of topics ranging from his views of Social Security and the state of the U.S. dollar to more personal thoughts on how he evaluates managers and leaders. Afterward, he took the students to lunch at Gorat’s Steakhouse, where he continued with a more informal conversation on business. The day concluded with tours led by executives of two of Buffett’s businesses, the Nebraska Furniture Mart and Borsheim’s Jewelers. For Derek Johnson, 2nd year MBA student and president of the Tippie Leadership Association, Buffett’s down-to-earth style impressed him. “He stressed the importance of taking your time, doing due diligence, and that you really only need one good idea a year to be successful,” he explains. “He was also extremely funny and told great stories.” “It’s important for students like us to hear him say that he doesn’t invest in the things that he doesn’t understand,” recalls 2nd year MBA student Jeffery Rahm. “He believes it is important to invest within your circle of competence. In addition, he doesn’t regret investments that he wasn’t a part of, he concentrates on making solid decisions and seeing that those work out.” Hawkinson Scholar and Masters of Accountancy student Brad Downes, stated that Buffett provided great insight into being successful as a young professional. “He told us how important it is to align your investments with your personal philosophies, that you shouldn’t compromise your values. He told us to do what’s right in your own opinion, not what others think is right. That’s great advice for students entering the workforce to hear.” In preparation for the visit, all students were required to attend two meetings. Participants were provided with background information on Buffett and his companies and then participated in a mock question and answer session with Lecturer Brian Kelly. Kelly teaches both the Henry Fund and Krause Fund classes, which provide business students with a hands-on opportunity to manage real money funds. The visit was sponsored by Iowa State Bank and Trust; the Tippie School of Management; the office of the President at The University of Iowa; and University of Iowa Student Government. As a token of appreciation for visiting with them, the students gave Buffett two gifts: an Iowa Hawkeyes jersey and a gift certificate for a $20 account with the Iowa Electronic Markets. According to 2nd year MBA student Avery Robinson, “The personal exposure to Mr. Buffett will not soon be forgotten. The fact that we received an invitation to visit this business icon is incredible; this is a feat that even major players in the investment community aren’t able to accomplish.” Warren Buffett has been referred to as one of the greatest Wall Street legends of our time. It is widely known throughout the investment community that when Warren Buffett makes a move, investors pay attention. Buffett is currently the Chairman and CEO of Berkshire Hathaway which holds investments in companies such as Coca Cola, GEICO, MidAmerican Energy and Gillette. The Tippie MBA Program is devoted to providing students with the management training and skill development needed to succeed in today’s business world. Students meet frequently with business executives through a series of in-house lectures and company visits. This exposure to working professionals, combined with a comprehensive business curriculum, ensures that Tippie graduates are prepared to make an immediate impact in the workplace. 9 The MBA Journal NET IMPACT MEMBERS ATTEND CONFERENCE IN NYC This fall, members of the Tippie School of Management chapter of Net Impact traveled to New York City to attend the exciting 2004 Net Impact Conference at Columbia University. It may sound trite to say that the conference was “exciting,” but I really mean that. With thousands of MBA students and professionals committed to using the power of business to create a better world, Net Impact is a powerful and influential international organization. At this occasion, 1300 participants came together to share ideas of socially responsible business models with MBA students and leaders from around the world. One of the key speakers was Orin Smith, president and CEO of Starbucks Coffee. He talked about the way he leads Starbucks, an organization concerned not only with its economic value but also its role in society. The variety of topics was impressive, diverse and rewarding, and not completely restricted to social responsibility issues. Topics included: Using the Market to Solve Environmental Challenges; Ethics, Values and Social Responsibility; Challenges Women Leaders Face; Funding Entrepreneurs; China Panels; and Media as a Social Watchdog. Net Impact provides an opportunity for MBA students to network with other students that share an interest in improving the world, while working in business. I strongly encourage you to talk with Net Impact members, participate in the group’s activities and go to the annual Net Impact Conference at Stanford University next year. The benefits are, like the conference, exciting. Oscar Pina, UI MBA ‘05 HENRY FUND CELEBRATES TEN YEARS On October 15th, the University celebrated the success of the Henry Fund, a student-run investment portfolio named for its founders, Henry Royer and Henry Tippie. Started with a $50,000 donation in 1994, the fund has since grown to more than $370,000. Led by UI MBA ’05 Jeff Rahm, the current class invited all previous analysts back to celebrate the fund’s success. The day started with a lunch reception, featuring speakers from the School of Management and ended with the current class presenting longtime instructor Todd Houge with a beautiful desk clock as a gesture of appreciation. “Anyone who has taken this class knows that it takes an enormous amount of effort from the students, but this also means that it is an enormous amount of work for the teacher as well,” said UI MBA ‘05 Jonathan Fletcher, who made the presentation. “This is not like any other class we have at Iowa, and we wanted to let Todd know how much we appreciate his dedication.” After the lunch, the group made a presentation to the Tippie College Board of Visitors. UI MBA ’05 John Everhart, a member of the first Henry Fund class and now a Hedge-Fund Manager in Minneapolis, said, “This is absolutely amazing,” referencing the fact that the fund has outperformed its benchmark, the S&P 500, by an average of 3% each year. Everhart’s sentiment was echoed by a number of the guests, who voiced their amazement at the returns. The event ended with a cocktail hour, dinner, and dancing with members of the College’s Board of Visitors. “It was fantastic to be in the same room as some of the most successful professionals affiliated with the University, and seeing how impressed they are with the success of the fund,” said Derek Johnson, the basic materials industry analyst. Geoff Berg, UI MBA ‘05 10 The MBA Journal IOWA ALUMNI REUNITE ONLINE has now migrated to a different service which provides improved service. Almost 300 Tippie MBA alumns currently congregate on the Iowa MBA Alumni site. The purpose of the site is to keep in touch, network, learn about developments at Tippie, and most importantly, have fun. Once someone signs up for the site (which takes about 10 seconds), they can join current Tippie alums in getting updates, news and information. Kudos to UI MBA ‘94 Jeff Roseman, who led the conversion to the new portal. He reminds people that the vibrancy of the site relies on every alum keeping their contact information up-to-date, adding content concerning alumni events and job leads, and posting discussion topics and other alumni news. Visit the new, updated Iowa MBA Alumni Network at: www.iowamba.net. In October of 2002, a group of Tippie MBA alumni, current students, and staff joined forces to envision a place on the Internet where alumni could meet and keep in touch. The site was initiated on MSN. The site SPEAKERS Douglas Pierce Joe Bourland Jim Louwsma Isaac Petersen Gonca Sariseker Allen Hogg David Miller Elaine Sagers Randy Lincoln Ron Jacobs Todd Smith Dr. Carol Scott-Conner Julie Zielinski Ruth R. Harkin Clay Jones Erik Blachford Dick Jacobson Chris Davis Ed Maier Chad Greely Paul Postler Mel Haught Erroll Davis Steven Scarpino Jake Brace AT TIPPIE ACNielsen ConAgra Foods Procter & Gamble Kimberly Clark Catalina Marketing Millward Brown Maytag Pella Rockwell Collins Jacobs & Clevenger Clear Blue Marketing UI Hospitals and Clinics Allsteel Corporation United Technologies Corp. Rockwell Collins Expedia.com Jacobson Companies McLeod USA The Maier Consulting Group IBM DB2 Postler & Associates Pella Alliant Energy NCR United Airlines Senior Vice President, Business Development Vice President Category Management Customer Business Development Associate Product Manager Director Business Development Director, Internet Project Manager Senior Director, Brand Management Vice President, Marketing Vice President, Sales and Support President CEO Head of Department of Surgery Vice President Vice President Chairman and CEO CEO Chairman and Founder Chairman and CEO CEO Consultant President CEO CEO Chief Privacy Officer CFO 11 A PUBLICATION FROM THE TIPPIE MBA ASSOCIATION The Tippie School of Management The University of Iowa 108 Pappajohn Business Building Iowa City, IA 52246-1000 Phone: 319-335-1039 Fax: 319-335-3604 Email: mbaa@uiowa.edu The MBA Journal is a collection of articles written and edited by alumni and current students in the Tippie Fulltime MBA Program. This publication provides insight into the activities orchestrated by the graduate student organizations, the faculty within the program, student experiences and more. The MBA Association is a graduate student organization that was established to: • Promote the professional interests of MBAs • Promote the educational interests of MBAs • Promote the social and athletic interests of MBAs A special thanks to Trish Bonica, Assistant Dean Colleen Downie, Kathie Decker, Jeff Emrich, Dean Gary Gaeth, Linda Knowling, Jana Murphy, Sharon Scheib, Rachel Stewart, and Barbara Thomas for their generous support throughout the Journal’s development. Thanks also to: Dana Csige, Jeremey Hatt, Frank Lunheng Li, and Alan Wang, Class of 2004; Geoff Berg, Jesse Finch-Gnehm, Bob Hillman, Vishal Khanduja, and Kwanua Tackie, Class of 2005; Oscar Pina, Class of 2006; Colleen Downie, Gary Gaeth, and Margie Peskin for their submissions. If you have any comments or questions please feel free to contact us at: mbaa@uiowa.edu. Snapshots from Snapshots from the Tippie MBA Experience Lunar New Year MBAA Picnic Halloween Party Football Tailgate Halloween Party 12