FIRST STUDENT ACTIVITIES FAIR TO BE HELD SEPTEMBER 20

The Finance, Insurance & Risk Management and Real Estate Department is helping to organize the First Annual Business Student Activities Fair to be held Wednesday, September 20, 1 to 4 p.m. in Rooms 1101-1132 in the School of Business.  Booths will be set up by school organizations and majors to acquaint students with the different types of activities offered.

 “Representatives from each department will be available to discuss the opportunities available in the business school,” said student Gary Zhu, president of the Financial Management Association. 

There will be 8 or 9 business organizations and honor societies hosting tables.  It is hoped that through the fair more students will become involved in student organizations affiliated with their major and industry. “Industry support to student chapters provides speakers in the field, career advice and a broader understanding of a profession,” said Zhu. 

POCKETDOC PLACES IN TOP 12 IN THE WORLD

Congratulations to the VCU student team, PocketDoc, and their faculty advisor, Jeff Babb, program advisor from the School of Business, Information Systems Department, for developing an innovative software application that earned them a place in the top 12 at the Microsoft Imagine Cup International Competition in India.  

 
To read more highlights and view pictures:  http://vcuic2006.blogspot.com

The following link and story provided by VCU News:  http://www.vcu.edu/uns/news/vcuview/archives/2006/aug/imaginecup.htm

ALUMNI AND FRIENDS INVITED TO DISCUSS “FREAKONOMICS”

The VCU University Learning Center selected the book “Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything” by Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner as the University’s campus-wide summer reading selection. Freshmen were given the book and urged to join discussion groups during the first week of school.  Feedback from students indicated that the book served as a fitting introduction to college life, inspiring energetic debate with their new peers and a willingness to look at everything a bit differently, according to Daphne Rankin, interim director of student engagement at VCU.  The School of Business is inviting alumni and friends to come “back to school” for a night on Tuesday, October 3 at 7 p.m. to join faculty from the department of Economics for a discussion of the book. Free, but RSVP requested. We will meet in room 2106.  Contact Katherine Oliver (804) 828-1485 or lkoliver@vcu.edu.  

WATCH US GROW

Check out the Engineering Ramcam http://www.vcu.edu/ramcam/eng.html  and get a bird’s eye view of the construction of the new School of Business on the Monroe Park Campus Addition.  The Ramcam is located on the top of the Engineering Building located at Main and Belvedere.   

Photos Courtesy of Trammel Crow

IT’S VCU: WORKING TOGETHER, CHANGING LIVES

The third of four commercial-free television episodes showcasing VCU — including the people and programs that make it unique — began airing September 5, on NBC 12 at 11 a.m. “It's VCU: Working Together, Changing Lives” looks at VCU's relationship with the Richmond community and beyond. From education to neighborhood partnerships to medical care, VCU — its students, faculty and alumni — is dedicated to the strong connection with the people around it. Each episode will be broadcast several times in a variety of time slots. For the complete broadcast schedule, visit http://www.vcu.edu/itsvcu/

IRISBEKOV EARNS CFA

Talgat Irisbekov, a 2004 bachelor’s degree graduate in Finance, has successfully completed all three levels of the Chartered Financial Analysts (CFA) examination in the first three years he has taken the exam. “In finance, completing the three levels is comparable to receiving a Certified Public Accountant designation,” says Dr. David Upton, School of Business Chair of the Finance, Insurance & Risk Management and Real Estate Department.  “The exams are regarded as being among the hardest professional examinations given by a professional organization.”

Irisbekov credits the VCU Finance Department, Dr. Upton and Dr. David Dubofsky for preparing him for the series of examinations. He received a scholarship to study for the first level, but thereafter relied upon his finance texts and what he had already learned in classes. 

PARSONS CHALLENGE GRANT OFFERS
EXTRAORDINARY OPPORTUNITY TO GIVE

An extraordinary opportunity to participate in a matching grants fund is now available. The Mary Morton Parsons Foundation, based in Richmond, has announced a $1 million matching grant for the Campaign for the School of Business. In order to receive the grant, $1 million in new gifts and pledges from alumni and friends must be raised by the end of October 2006.

“This challenge grant is a great opportunity to reach out to our alumni for support, because any new or increased pledge to the campaign, received through the end of October, will qualify toward the matching dollars,” says Katherine Oliver, associate director, Office of Development & Alumni Affairs for the School of Business. “We are currently conducting a phone campaign to more than 10,000 alumni. In addition, we are communicating with other friends and supporters in the community.”

Anyone interested in learning more about this matching-funds opportunity should contact the Development Office at (804) 828-1485 or lkoliver@vcu.edu

SIX SIGMA GREEN & BLACK BELT TRAINING ROLLED INTO THREE WEEKS

The Center for Corporate Education is registering students for Six Sigma certification. The first two weeks will be Green Belt training from September 11 to 15 and October 9 to 13. Black Belt training will be offered the third week, November 6 to 10. The classes will be taught by Lee Campe, ’93, a Six Sigma Master Black Belt instructor. All sessions begin at 8 a.m. in Room 1229 in the VCU School of Business building. For further information visit the Center for Corporate Education website http://www.bus.vcu.edu/cce/SixSigma.htm

TECH TUESDAY SERIES RESUMES SEPTEMBER 19

Tech Tuesday will resume its schedule of discussing timely technology topics on Tuesday, September 19.  Greg Provo, President and CEO of Strategy Café will present Systems Thinking. The program begins at 7:30 a.m. in Room 1132 of the School of Business building.

Greg Provo is the former European Chief Technology Officer of Capital One, a Fortune 200 Financial Services Company. His diverse experience over 19 years in the technology industry spans business and technology strategy, people and technology change, technology operations, solutions delivery, research and development, quality assurance, enterprise architecture, network engineering, knowledge systems architecture, consulting and sales.  Greg has a proven capability in building and leading successful cross-functional teams that solve large scale, complex problems, and deliver tangible business results.  The program is free and open to the public. RSVP requested. Contact Maureen Carley (804) 828-7074 or mecarley@vcu.edu

ANNUAL EMBA BATTLE DEVELOPS LEADERSHIP

The Freelance-Star called the recent School of Business Executive MBA re-enactment of the Battle of Chancellorsville “a course in war strategy."  Annually an EMBA class travels to the Fredericksburg battleground for a day-long class designed to teach such points as teambuilding, time management and how to regroup quickly, if a boss gets sick or leaves to take another position. This year 42 students made the trip. Andrea Nixon, a senior consultant-project manager for COMSYS Information Technology Services, Inc., called it a “fantastic learning experience.”  

The experience at Chancelorsville was part of a three-day Orientation for the Class of 2008. The event also included spending Thursday at Challenge Discovery and Saturday attending a seminar conducted by LTI, a North Carolina company specializing in teambuilding. 

Above - Class of 2008 EMBA students consult maps and decide upon tactics during their leadership war games at Chancellorsville Battle Field.  Left - Three days of challenges were met by, from left to right, Kenneth Scott, Mike Dean and Harsha Nagaraj as they participated in the Class of 2008’s Orientation Day program.

READ MORE about the EMBA TRIP. LINK TO STORY  

INTRODUCING SIX NEW FACULTY

Six new professors have been appointed to the School of Business faculty this semester:         
Haeran Jae, Ph.D., joins the VCU School of Business Marketing Department as an assistant professor.  Her areas of teaching and research include low-literacy consumers, linguistically isolated consumers, cross cultural issues, consumer behavior, service marketing and international marketing. She has also worked in sales positions.

Janet B. Kellett, Ph.D., joins the VCU School of Business Management Department as assistant professor, and will teach Human Resource Management and Organizational Behavior. She previously taught at The College of William and Mary, Mason School of Business, and for over 20 years was a manager with Verizon. As an auditor with the U.S. General Accounting Office, she received the U.S. Government Meritorious Service Award for coal mine safety investigation. 

Jeffrey A. Krug, Ph.D., joins the VCU School of Business Management Department as associate professor and will teach Strategic Management and Business Policy.  He previously taught at Appalachian State University in Boone, NC, at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and at the University of Memphis. His business experience includes working for PepsiCo, Inc. and Texas Instruments Incorporated.

Soumya Sivakumar, Ph.D. joins the VCU School of Business, Department of Marketing, as a visiting assistant professor, and will teach Buyer Behavior, Dynamics of Retail Management, and Information for Marketing Decisions.  Her current research interests include services marketing, consumer purchasing habits, consumer satisfaction and dissatisfaction, and studies of adverse customer behaviors.  Her dissertation was recognized for Honorable Mention in the Marketing Science Institute’s prestigious Alden D. Clayton Dissertation Competition for 2005-06.

Sonia Wasan, Ph.D. joins the VCU School of Business Accounting Department as an assistant professor and will teach Intermediate Accounting - I.  She received her bachelors degree from Jesus and Mary College, Delhi University, Masters in Commerce from Delhi School of Economics, Delhi University and Ph.D. from Louisiana State University in Accounting with minors in Finance and Economics. She is also a Chartered Accountant with the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India.

Dr. Ki Ho Lee from Shingu College in Seungnam, Korea will be a visiting professor in the Department of Accounting during the 2006 fall semester.  Dr. Lee is a professor in the Department of Tax Accounting at Shingu College. 

READ MORE about these faculty members http://www.bus.vcu.edu/news/faculty_2006.html

SUMMER CLASS TACKLES REAL PROMOTION PROBLEMS

During summer session students in MKBL 371 Integrated Marketing Communications offered three Richmond businesses suggestions for enhancing their promotion programs. New logo designs, advertising campaigns and promotional strategies were presented to Mad Cow Water Jet, Stevens Jewelers and VCU Office of Health Promotions.  “This is absolutely fantastic,” said Donald Stevens, a long established jeweler who was looking for a way to freshen his merchandising campaign and website. One team designed street banners to better designate the location of Stevens’s business. 

John McCormack of Mad Cow Water Jet reviews a portfolio of promotional items prepared for him by a MKBL 371 Marketing Team/ From left to right, Montana Umbei, Chris Ogle, Vanessa Brooks, Rowan Almannai and Sara Snitevarit.	The marketing team gave John Stevens dozens of promotional ideas. This group enhanced Stevens’ Jewelers existing logo. From left to right, Aimee Reid, Dana McChesney, Lauren Garvey, Rick Artus and Donald Stevens.