Ken Gurrola, MBA ’95, president of the JS Club of NY, with the two presenters, Eileen Higgins, MBA '89, and Byron Hoover, MBA '90.
Alumni Relations Director Risa Mish with Henry Renard, MBA '55.
Click here for details
Reunion 2005
June 9-12
See details for Johnson School events in the events section down below
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Director’s Message: What’s your “Big Idea?”
BR Ventures, the Johnson School’s student-run venture capital fund, announces the launch of its fifth annual BRV “Business Idea Competition,” a contest designed to foster entrepreneurship by combining the talents of entrepreneurs with the capital and resources of BR Ventures and BR Incubator. BRV was established, in part, to help nascent business ventures, and part of the organization’s mission is to seek out business ideas and help realize the potential of those ideas by providing business incubation services and seed capital. The BR Ventures Business Idea Competition provides a way for individuals who are affiliated with Cornell to take their first step toward turning a “business idea”—a concept upon which a commercial venture can be based—into a viable business. A “business idea” can be centered on a technology or on a superior means of meeting a market need. Any concept that has the potential to be the foundation for a profitable business may be a Business Idea, and all Johnson School (and other Cornell) alumni are eligible to participate in this competition.
If you believe that you have a great business idea, please consider entering the Business Idea Competition. The entry process entails completing the Business Idea Submission form and the Entry Team Certification and Agreement, both of which can be found on the BRV web site, http://www.brv.cornell.edu/, along with a complete set of competition rules. Evaluation of the finalist Business Idea Submissions will take place on February 24, 2005, and will be conducted by a panel comprised of BRV Managers and select outside judges, including alumni who are venture capital professionals. Each team accepted as a finalist will be invited to give a presentation before the evaluation panel in Ithaca, NY, with the first-place winner receiving a $10,000 grant from BR Ventures, 20 hours of free legal assistance from Entrepreneurship Legal Services, and consideration for incubation services from the BR Incubator (http://bri.cornell.edu/); the second-place winner receiving $2,500, and the third-place winner receiving $1,000.
What are you waiting for? Give us your big idea today!
Risa M. Mish '85, JD '88
Director, Alumni
Relations
Johnson School Announces New Cornell Boardroom Executive
MBA
The Johnson School is breaking new ground with the development
of a new and unique program called the Cornell Boardroom Executive MBA.
Developed in partnership with Canada’s Queen's School of Business, the Cornell
Boardroom Executive MBA is a 17-month program scheduled to start in June 2005.
The program organizes participants into Boardroom Learning Teams of
approximately 6-8 people. Each team will be assigned a boardroom site in their
home city. Courses will be delivered via a combination of residential sessions
and interactive multipoint videoconferencing sessions on three out each four
Saturdays to boardroom sites in major cities across the northeastern United
States and Canada. Approximately half the participants will be located in each
country, Queen's and Cornell will share teaching responsibilities, and
participants will graduate with two MBA degrees—one from Queen’s and the other
from Cornell.
The program will expand the Johnson School’s reach into new markets, expand our international network of experienced managers and professionals, and provide a platform for expansion into other global markets. World-class faculty from both institutions will teach classes. Residential sessions will be held both campuses and in NYC. Prior to graduation each team will conduct an analysis of an international business opportunity and spend a minimum of five days in a region outside of the United States and Canada doing field work. The first group of participants will complete the intense, team-based program in November 2006, becoming full-fledged alumni of both schools.
The cost of the program will be $89,000. Students offered enrollment in the program will be held to the same high academic standards required for the Johnson School’s MBA, TMO and Executive MBA programs. More information about this program can be found in the upcoming Fall/Winter 2004 issue of Cornell Enterprise. To learn more about Queen’s School of Business—ranked #1 among international MBA programs in Business Week’s 2004 “Best B-Schools”— visit business.queensu.ca.
Bill Huling takes on new role
On September 1, Bill Huling, the
Johnson School senior director of Corporate Programs for the last 10 years,
began his duties on Cornell’s Alumni Affairs and Development staff as the
Individual Giving Officer assigned to the Johnson School. In his new role, Bill
will focus on the Special Gifts area, developing a broader base of alumni
interested in contributing funding to the many Johnson School programs and
activities. Bill will be able to use his extensive knowledge of Johnson School
alumni and all dimensions of our programs and capabilities in his new
development role. At the same time, Bill will create an important linkage
between alumni relations and development and corporate relations initiatives.
Bill will continue to be based in Sage Hall until next summer when the external affairs staff of the Johnson School will move downtown to Seneca Place in the same facility that will house Cornell's alumni relations and development group.
Bill has done an outstanding job in the corporate relations area for the Johnson School for many years. We appreciate the commitment and energy that Bill has brought to forging the strong relationships we have today with our many corporate partners. We are pleased that Bill will continue to have a dedicated relationship with the school in his new role. Please congratulate Bill on his new position.
Johnson School seeks Executive Director of Alumni Affairs
and Development
See this link
for full details and job description.
Alumni invited to check out Jambo—the future of
networking
After graduating from the Johnson School, Charles Ribaudo, MBA
’00, joined EDS Ventures, Electronic Data System’s $150 million global venture
capital fund. Charles was one of four individuals to launch the fund, recommend
investments, and manage the portfolio of 30 investments. In 2003, Charles left
to start a software company of his own, Jambo Networks. Charles co-founded Jambo
with Jim Young, whom he met over 12 years ago on a three-month outdoor
leadership program in East Africa called NOLS. Charles and Jim formed a lasting
friendship while climbing Mt. Kenya and trekking through the Masai Mara. Over
the years, Charles and Jim lost touch. Then, two years ago, in a meeting in
Dallas, TX, Charles met Jim’s father and the two of them were reconnected.
Charles and Jim decided to start a company that would sense the people around
you and notify you when your acquaintances are nearby and introduce you to those
you might like to meet.
Jambo is also partnering with universities to allow their alumni to be notified when other fellow alumni are within walking distance. This would provide you with an infinite number of “networking events” with other alumni anywhere in the world. Just like a Cornell sweatshirt or baseball cap tells others around you that you went to Cornell, Jambo can also provide a “badge” that enables you to wirelessly know when other alumni are nearby. Charles is offering all Cornell alumni the opportunity to participate in its beta launch. Click here to sign up. http://www.jambo.net/beta/cornell
Forget ROI, It’s All About ROA (Return of
Assets)
When Cornellians made the Homecoming pilgrimage
on October 16, Ithaca was awash with athletic competition, none as great as the
third Annual Assets Alumni Hockey Game. Prior to the game, the dean hosted
alumni in his box for the football game, proudly discussing the school’s recent
success. A strategy session at the Chapter House followed before the Alumni were
treated (donations not included) to dinner at the Nines.Alumni from as far back
as the Class of 1986, represented by Donna Perine Spinella, gleefully donned
smelly hockey equipment. Fortunately, the only rust they showed was on their
skate blades, as they jumped out to an early lead on a goal by Erin McMahon, MBA
‘03. The current Assets, disregarded the value of pleasing alumni and potential
employers by stacking their rosters with ringers and scoring three straight
goals. [To protect their future employment, Current Asset scorers’ names are not
mentioned.] Exhibiting their will to win, the Alumni came right back, with
Kristi Broderick, MBA ‘04, splitting the “D” and going five-hole on the
sprawling Current Asset goalie. The Alumni, represented by Erin, Kristi, Donna,
Heather Gelchion, MBA ‘03, Lorraine Mejia-Kieffer, MBA ‘03, Nina Lukin, MBA ‘03,
Abra Benson, MBA ‘04, Melissa Middleton, MBA ‘04, and Lindsay Whitman, MBA ‘04,
wrapped up the weekend with their traditional late night at the Chappy. There
they told stories of Assets’ folklore to bright-eyed Current Assents, while
basking in the glow of their pictures on the wall. See photos here http://www.quistilton.com/open/hockey_alum_2004/hockey_alum_2004.html
Volunteer spotlight
Sarah Brubacher, MBA ’99,
got the volunteer “bug” as a Johnson School student, and continues to contribute
significantly to the Johnson School community as an alumna. As a student, she
served on the Student Faculty Committee, chaired the Johnson School Clubs
Council, played on four sports teams (Frozen Assets, Intramural volleyball,
soccer and inner tube water polo), served as a food columnist for Cornell
Business newspaper, sang in the a capella group “Sound Investments,” and was
selected as a Fried Fellow.
As an alumna, she has served since graduation as the alumni class president of the Class of ’99 (re-elected to a second five-year term at Reunion 2004), served as president of the Johnson School Club of Boston and on the board of the Cornell Club of Boston, and, after moving to San Francisco, began her current term of service as president of the Johnson School Club of the Bay Area, where she has overseen an expanded calendar of events and assisted in recruiting a wonderful volunteer leadership team. Professionally, Sarah has worked as a strategy consultant for (then) Andersen Consulting in Boston, worked for a partnership between Accenture and eBay, and now works as a senior policy manager in Trust and Safety at eBay.
The Johnson School is deeply grateful to Sarah for her excellent leadership, and we look forward to having the great benefit of her continued support of the Johnson Alumni Program.
Featured alumni
William H. Besgen ’68, MBA ’69, was promoted on July 21 to president and chief operating officer of Hitachi Capital America Corp. (www.hitachi.us/capital), a subsidiary of Hitachi Capital Corporation, Tokyo, Japan. Besgen, who reports to CEO Yuichiro “Ron” Shimada, joined Hitachi in April, 1990, as executive vice president and chief operating officer to help Hitachi establish its finance company in the U.S. Before Hitachi, he worked for 21 years at Citicorp in a number of senior management positions. Hitachi Capital America Corp. is an independent, diversified leasing and financial services company providing financing to Hitachi group companies and the commercial business sector in the United States. In addition to serving on the board of directors of Hitachi Capital America Corp., Besgen is also on the boards of directors of The Inner-City Foundation for Charity & Education in Bridgeport, Connecticut and Shepherds, Inc. in Fairfield, Connecticut, and is a trustee of St. John Parish in Darien, Connecticut.
Mary Sawall, MBA ’83, is a managing director and head of Human Resources of Huron Consulting Group LLC (http://www.huronconsultinggroup.com/) in Chicago, where she leads the firm’s Human Resources department and is a member of the senior management team. As one of the founding managing directors of Huron, she created the HR strategy and put infrastructure in place from the ground up, with primary responsibility for recruiting, integration, development, motivation and retention of employees. Before joining Huron, Sawall served as executive vice president of Human Resources for marchFIRST, a Chicago-based Internet consulting firm with 9,000 employees in 14 countries. Huron Consulting Group LLC, which has offices in Boston, Charlotte, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco, and Washington, DC, is an independent provider of financial and operational consulting services to a wide variety of both financially sound and distressed organizations, including Fortune 500 companies, medium-sized and large businesses, leading academic institutions, healthcare organizations and the law firms that represent these various organizations. Sawall remarked that her training at the Johnson School, combined with her liberal arts background, “was a win-win combination to succeed in the dynamic profession of human resources."
William Heiden, MBA ’87, was named president and CEO of Elixir Pharmaceuticals Inc., a Cambridge, Massachusetts-based developer of new drugs for metabolic disorders based on the science of aging and its relationship to disease. Heiden came to Elixir from Praecis Pharmaceuticals, where he served for two and a half years as president and chief operating officer. Before Praecis, Heiden spent 15 years in a variety of domestic and international executive positions with the Schering-Plough Corporation, his last position being vice president, Oncology/Biotech. In addition to his Johnson School degree, Heiden has an MA from the University of Louvain in Belgium, and a BS from the University of Florida. “I am very enthusiastic about taking on this new role at Elixir,” says Heiden. “The current management team and scientific advisors have all contributed to create a solid platform on which we will build a successful biopharmaceutical company. Elixir is on the cutting edge in one of the most exciting new research areas; the science of aging. Near-term, this translates into a number of opportunities to develop and market therapies to treat metabolic diseases.” Commenting specifically on his Cornell experience, Heiden adds, “My years at The Johnson School—as well as the exchange program at Louvain through Cornell—provided me with an excellent foundation from which to build a career: From courses in financial accounting to my international experiences at Louvain, the whole Cornell experience was invaluable.” Elixir Pharmaceuticals is focused on discovering and developing new drugs for metabolic disorders based on a unique understanding of the genetics of aging and its fundamental relationship to the onset of major diseases. Elixir scientists have identified many important genes that regulate aging and the proteins encoded by those genes are the targets of the company’s drug discovery efforts. More information about Elixir is available at http://www.elixirpharm.com/.
Ramesh Ramchandani, MBA ’01, was appointed senior vice president of marketing at ZiLog, Inc. (www.zilog.com), a leading provider of integrated 8-bit microcontrollers. He joined the company from ON Semiconductor Corporation, where he was the vice president and general manager of the Integrated Power Devices Division, and has held senior management positions in marketing and engineering with Mitsubishi Electronics America, Fujitsu Compound Semiconductor, and Avantek. Ramchandani is a member of the Executive Board of TiE, an entrepreneurial group dealing in venture capital markets, and is on the Dean’s Advisory Council for the School of Engineering at Arizona State University.
Recent Media Hits
Johnson School Consultant-in-Residence, Randy Allen, has started Girls Explore, a new business which produces life-like dolls and biographies of American women. Allen, who started the business in hopes of educating young women ages 8-10 about famous women who are role models, was the subject of this article that covered her life and new business in the DailyRecord.com. Dean Robert Swieringa is quoted in a November 2004 Business Week online article that raises the question of the value of an MBA. In the article, several students and deans are quoted sharing their perspectives on the value of the sought-after degree. When asked about the return on investment Dean Swieringa commented, “The payback period is going to look different, but it's still a good investment." The Johnson School is highlighted on the closing page of BizEd’s November/December magazine that is mailed to AACSB members. The magazines 15,000-plus subscribers are business school management leaders who direct and impact the b-school educational experience of more than 2 million students. Professor Robert Jarrow’s November induction into the Fixed Income Analysts Society Hall of Fame is also noted on page 15 of BizEd magazine’s November/December 2004 issue. Jarrow, the Ronald P. and Susan E. Lynch Professor of Investment Management and professor of finance and economics, was recognized for this lifetime achievements in the field of fixed-income securities and portfolios. The CEO compensation research of Yaniv Grinstein (and a colleague of his from Harvard Law School) was cited in a New York Times article that focused on the economic scene—in particular where economists stand on the issue of corporate scandals. Grinstein’s research found that “a proper calculation of the total compensation of the top five executives of all companies, including salaries, stock options and pensions, came to a stunning $260 billion over the last 10 years.” Market performance, they report, rose at about half rate of corporate pay. The dividend research work of Roni Michaely was cited in a Les Echos article written by one of Professor Michaely’s colleagues, Richard Thaler, a professor at University of Chicago’s Graduate School of Business. The article focused on increased corporate dividends and their impact on profitability perspectives.
For more Johnson School media hits, see Johnson School in the News.
SageConnection Events/other:
November 27
London, England
Annual Thanksgiving Dinner. Join the
Cornell Club of London at the East India Club (16 St. James’s Squire –
Piccadilly Circus is the nearest underground station). Time: 7-7:30 p.m. a
reception with cash bar; 7:30 p.m. traditional Thanksgiving fare (vegetarian
available). Cost: £35 per person. To make a reservation, send a check payable to
“Cornell Club of London” and post to Natalie Teich, 47 Neale Close, London N2
0LF. Natalie can be reached at nmt4@cornell.edu for further details.
December 2
Dallas, TX
Beer tasting! The Cornell Club of Dallas has had
some Chivas, some wine, now they are trying beer! Details to follow. Contact Amy
Hunt at ahunt@fortworthzoo.or.
December 3
New York, NY
The Johnson School, together with the Graduates
Club and Euler Hermes ACI, invite you to a morning of networking and discussion
featuring a presentation by Brian Fabbri, Chief Economist -- North America for
BNP Paribas, entitled "Post-Election Economic Review and 2005 Forecasts."
Location: The Plaza Hotel, 5th Ave and Central Park South. Time: 8:00 to 10:30
a.m. (breakfast at 8:00 a.m.). Cost: Complimentary! While there is no-charge to
attend this event, advance reservations are required and no walk-ins will be
admitted (space is extremely limited). To register, visit http://www.thegraduatesclub.com/cuevent-123.shtml For more
information, please contact our co-sponsor, the Graduates Club, at info@thegraduatesclub.com or
877.456.2127.
December 16
Sarasota, FL
Luncheon with Cornell Professor Richard
Burkhauser entitled “The Future of Social Security (see http://www.humec.cornell.edu/faculty/facultybio.cfm?netid=rvb1&facs=1).
Venue: Michael’s on East in the Ballroom. Reception begins at 11:30 a.m.,
followed by lunch at 12:15 p.m. To RSVP and for more information, contact Bob
Cutler at 941.907.0243
January 3
Portland, OR
Save the date! Student/Alumni
Happy Hour with free hors d’ouevres! More information will be
forthcoming. Alumni contact: Heather Kientz, heather.kientz@hp.com
View and search a complete listing of Cornell University events.
Johnson School specific events appear in red.