Quinnipiac Business Magazine

QUINNIPIAC UNIVERSITY

business FALL 2010

STILL LOOKING Jobless await economic turnaround

Brain Drain

G.A.M.E. On

Wall Street Reform

Retired accountant Daniel O’Mara ’61 is a member of the Lancraft Fife and Drum Corps.

A former Quinnipiac accounting professor, Daniel O’Mara ’61 knows the value of a Quinnipiac education. After working in the accounting industry for seven years, O’Mara started his own practice, Daniel F. O’Mara CPA, in 1968. That same year, he accepted a full-time teaching position at Quinnipiac, where he taught until 1999.

O’Mara’s firm specialized in small business and tax accounting. He, along with his partner, Patricia Rehermann ’72, sold the practice in 2004 to the TM Byxbee Company. O’Mara stayed on as a consultant until 2009, when he retired.

These days, O’Mara has more time to devote to his music. He plays the snare drum with the Lancraft Fife and Drum Corps in North Haven, Conn. He is also the organization’s treasurer.

As a member of the reunion committee for his 50th class reunion in 2011, he is helping Quinnipiac to encourage others from the 1961 class to participate as class donors and attend Reunion Weekend June 24-26.

He returns to campus frequently to attend sporting events at the TD Bank Sports Center on the York Hill Campus. From the balcony of his Wallingford, Conn., deck, he can see York Hill. “At night, the campus is brightly lit against the dark horizon. I have a telescope on the deck, so I’m keeping an eye on Quinnipiac all the time,” he says.

Daniel O’Mara ’61 professor of accounting emeritus Quinnipiac University lancraftdrums@aol.com

Get involved!

“The most gratification I get from my experience with Quinnipiac is when I see students of mine become successful. I want to stay involved and continue to see students succeed.”

business.quinnipiac.edu

business Vice President for Public Affairs Lynn Mosher Bushnell Dean, School of Business Matthew O’Connor Editor Janet Waldman, MS ’09 Director of Publications and Design Thea Moritz FALL 2010 Assistant Editor Alejandra Navarro

features

Senior Graphic Designer Cynthia Greco Manager of Photographic Services Mark Stanczak

COVER STORY

Still Looking pg. 4

Contributing Writers Claire LaFleur Hall Steve Higgins Rhea Hirshman Donna Pintek Stephen P. Schmidt

Unemployed throngs wait for business to pick up

4

BY STEVE HIGGINS

CAREER Photographers Stan Godlewski John Hassett Robert Lisak Gale Zucker

Brain Drain 10

Quinnipiac University 275 Mount Carmel Avenue Hamden, CT 06518-1908 Tel 203-582-8200 email: business@quinnipiac.edu Quinnipiac University Business is published twice a year— fall and spring—by the School of Business and the Office of Public Affairs.

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Quinnipiac University does not discriminate in these areas in the administration of its educational policies, scholarship and loan programs, and athletic and other school-administered programs.

pg. 10

The relationship between multitasking and productivity explored BY DONNA PINTEK FINANCE

Wall Street Reform pg. 12 Alumni express cautious optimism about Dodd–Frank Act

12

BY ALEJANDRA NAVARRO

TRENDS

Less-Pampered Pups pg. 18 Hard times take small bite out of pet industry

18

BY CLAIRE LAFLEUR HALL

Economic fallout from oil spill

pg. 21

Business leaders to be honored

pg. 25

departments 2 Dean’s Desk

20 Faculty Research

G.A.M.E. Forum bringing

Professor Xiaohong He studies

Wall Street to QU

entrepreneurial successes in China, India

22 Department News 24 Students Making News 26 GradNews & Profiles Ryan P. Brown ’98

Target event draws student leaders; MBAs visit London

Tara Liscombe, JD/MBA ’06 Kenneth J. Pia Jr. ’85

Cert no. SW-COC-002556

32 Making Connections

dean’s desk

First G.A.M.E. Forum expected to attract national student and faculty interest MATTHEW L. O’CONNOR, DEAN

The G.A.M.E. Forum will bring students from around the country to campus to experience an incredible program of business and industry experts discussing such topics as traditional and alternative investments, portfolio management, economic and market analysis, and trading.

As you peruse the Fall 2010 issue of Quin-

and market analysis, and trading. The forum

nipiac University Business, we hope you will

is geared to both students and practitioners,

enjoy the informative and often thought-

so I urge you to consider attending.

provoking articles on the unemployment

tive ranks with the addition of Susan

Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Con-

McTiernan, PhD, as our new associate dean

sumer Protection Act, new research on mul-

of graduate programs and Edward Arnheiter,

titasking, and the interesting connections

PhD, as our new MBA director. It is a tribute

we have with our pets.

to Quinnipiac University and the School of

It’s been a busy summer, and we have

QUINNIPIAC UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF BUSINESS / FALL 2010

Business that we are strengthening our fac-

quite a bit of good news to relay. Most

ulty and administrative ranks even as many

important, I want to assure you that we

other colleges and universities reduce pro-

continue to invest in the future of our

grams and resources.

school and our students. In particular, we’ve

2

We’ve also strengthened our administra-

rate and the economy, an overview of the

I’m happy to announce that we have

been hard at work recruiting great new fac-

moved and completely renovated the Terry

ulty members. After completing several

W. Goodwin ’67 Financial Technology Center.

national searches, we’ve added new faculty

The state-of-the-art center now is located in

in economics, finance, entrepreneurship,

the Lender School of Business Center. It fea-

organizational leadership and marketing.

We are profiling one of our new faculty

tures 50 dual-screen workstations, 13 Bloomberg professional terminals, two fully

members in this edition. David Sauer, PhD,

equipped breakout rooms, and data feeds

has joined the finance department and will

for up-to-date market, economic, financial,

launch an innovative and exciting new pro-

and accounting data and information.

gram at the University. In Spring 2011, under

I am also pleased to note that the Stu-

David’s direction, Quinnipiac will host

dent-Managed Portfolio, the portion of the

G.A.M.E.––the inaugural Global Asset Man-

University’s endowment managed by our

agement Education Forum at Quinnipiac.

The G.A.M.E. Forum will bring students

finance students, has been increased from $250,000 to $500,000. This portfolio is only

from around the country to campus to

one of many hands-on, practical learning

experience an incredible program of busi-

opportunities we have woven into our cur-

ness and industry experts discussing such

riculum.

topics as traditional and alternative investments, portfolio management, economic

Our efforts to enhance our international network also continue. Over the summer we

visited universities in Turkey and China and held discussions on recruiting students for our MBA program, joint research projects, internship opportunities, and other collaborations. As a result, we have three Chinese students enrolled in our MBA program.

This past year we also organized MBA executive travel programs to Nicaragua, Hungary, China, and England. More than 30 MBA students participated in these overseas experiences. Next year we hope to expand the number of travel and international internship opportunities for our MBA students.

Our students also continue to impress us with their ongoing energy and commitment.

Business students are preparing to travel to León, Nicaragua, in January to work on our microloan program. Our Students in Free Enterprise (SIFE) team continues to enhance Café Cameroon, the student-run organiza-

School of Business offers online graduate programs

tion that sells fair trade coffee to help support the BAWA Health Initiative in Cameroon. SIFE students also are contributing to a program with the Metropolitan Busi-

The AACSB-accredited School of Business offers several online graduate programs to help you advance your career.

ness Academy in New Haven that teaches high school students about entrepreneurship and small business management.

In addition to service programs, other students are already preparing for academic competitions such as the FED Challenge, the

Earn an MBA, an MBA in health care management, a master’s degree in organizational leadership or a master’s in information technology by taking classes online while continuing your professional career.

(NYSSA) Challenge, the national student advertising competition, the IT Case Competition, the APICS Student Competition, and several regional and national student busi-

Full-time faculty members who have achieved distinction in their respective fields bring extensive business experience to their classes.

ness plan competitions.

None of these efforts would be as successful without the commitment of faculty, staff, alumni, parents, friends and our dedicated School of Business Advisory Board. Let

For more information about online graduate business programs, visit www.quinnipiac.edu/quonline or call 877-403-4277.

me again thank all of you for your efforts.

I hope to see many of you at the G.A.M.E. Forum and other alumni receptions we have planned for the year. And if you have not been to a School of Business event lately, I encourage you to come and introduce yourself to me and say hello to our professors. business.quinnipiac.edu

QUINNIPIAC UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF BUSINESS / FALL 2010

New York Society of Security Analysts

3

cover story

STILL LOOKING Unemployed throngs wait for slumping economy to turn around | STEVE HIGGINS

Statistics pour forth daily from govern-

far beyond the basic point that jobless

Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke in a late-

ment agencies and private entities, all

people don’t have money to spend in an

August speech.

purporting to shed light on the U.S. econ-

economy largely driven by consumer

omy, which is still struggling to recover

activity.

June 2009.

“The income of unemployed people is

the economy is churning and changing, and people are leaving one industry and

lower, but more important, their future

going into another,” Ball said. “When the

income is affected,” Ball said. “People con-

economy slows, the people coming out of

fact stands out: The number of workers

sume based on their expectations of future

jobs are not finding new ones, and there

unemployed for six months or more is at

income, not so much their current

are more people coming out of jobs. We

its highest level since the U.S. Department

income.”

really need strong growth to get the

Amid this deluge of financial news, one

of Labor began keeping track in 1948.

That loss of faith in the future also

unemployment rate down.”

Forty-five percent of unemployed Ameri-

affects people who still have jobs, Ball

cans have been out of work for 27 weeks

added, because widespread layoffs cause

Awaiting the recovery

or more, and 60 percent have been jobless

them to worry that they may lose their

“It takes companies a while to react to a

for 15 weeks or more, according to U.S.

jobs as well. “If you believe your income

recession once it starts, and after it ends,

may stop, you’ll start cutting spending

it takes time to respond to that as well,”

now,” he said.

said Matthew Rafferty, professor of

Department of Labor reports.

Long-term unemployment stifles economic recovery as the slowdown stretches

Ball thinks unemployment, currently at

economics.

to three or four years and longer, said

9.6 percent, will remain high because the

Christopher Ball, István Széchenyi Chair in

economy is growing at a very slow pace.

ket, and it takes the economy longer to

International Economics. The damage goes

Ball’s prediction was echoed by Federal

recover from severe shocks, so I wouldn’t

“The economy is driving the labor mar-

business.quinnipiac.edu

QUINNIPIAC UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF BUSINESS / FALL 2010

from the 2007 recession that ended in

“In a normal economy that is growing,

5

Businesses should continue to develop best practices within their employment functions or they will not be in a very good position when the economy turns around.

QUINNIPIAC UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF BUSINESS / FALL 2010

—MICHAEL H. IRONS ’73

6

Michael H. Irons ’73 is part of a human resources team that oversees 35,000 Bayer employees worldwide.

be surprised to see a mild recovery,” he

works when house prices are rising, but

said.

not when they fall, and that sudden

plummet cut spending, including at

decrease in wealth had a big effect. Then

restaurants and stores, which in turn laid

less rate is the result of three crises that

joblessness really skyrocketed after the

off employees. Businesses cut back on hir-

caused or deepened the recession: the

collapse of Lehman Bros.

ing when they couldn’t borrow money and

Rafferty pointed out that the high job-

housing market collapse of 2007–08, the

The crisis in the financial markets

financial market crisis in 2008, and the

restricted the ability of financial institu-

surge in oil prices in late 2008.

tions to make loans to businesses, which

People who saw their home equity

spent less on employee food and travel as gasoline prices rose.

“It’s a multiplier effect: A person who

affected business’ ability to hire. Then the

has to cut spending will fire their land-

an ATM, financing all sorts of things with

increase in oil prices further strained the

scaper or put off hiring a house painter, or

their home equity,” Rafferty said. “That

world economy.”

go out to restaurants less. This makes

“People had been using their home as

Retraining is an option

shocks to the economy worse,” Rafferty said.

Ball commented that people with college degrees are better equipped to cope with economic downturns because they find it easier to land a new job when times

People who lost jobs in industries hit hard by the recession may

are slow. The U.S. Department of Labor

want to consider retraining to enter a new industry, said

reported in July that the unemployment

Christopher Ball, István Széchenyi Chair in International Economics.

rate for people with no high school

Computer programmers laid off from major corporations, for

diploma was 13.8 percent, compared with

instance, probably can land jobs as programmers with other

10.1 percent for high school graduates and

companies because information technology remains a growing field.

just 4.5 percent among those with a bach-

On the other hand, those who toiled in the finance or real estate

elor’s degree or higher. Any college atten-

industries may find there are not enough jobs to go around.

dance helps: Among those with an associ-

At its peak just prior to the start of the recession in early 2008,

ate’s degree or “some college,” 8.3 percent

the financial services industry had grown steadily until it accounted

were jobless.

for a full third of U.S. corporate profits, Ball noted. Since the massive layoffs on Wall Street, the sector is expected to permanently lose

Aldin Beslagic ’05, MBA ’06, founder and

about 15 percent of its peak job total.

“So even though financial services companies are starting to earn

president of BestLogic Staffing LLC in

profits again, the sector is much smaller,” Ball said. “That type of

Hartford, said the ailing economy has

‘sectoral shift’ extends high unemployment rates, because many of

made it difficult for people in his field

those who lost their jobs in that sector will not be able to find

to remain upbeat: “When everyone is

positions doing the same type of work, and it takes time to

laying off workers and people are calling

transition to a new sector.”

you to find them jobs, how can you stay positive?”

Beslagic, who earned his degree in international business and finance, said his clients are holding off in terms of hir-

Michael H. Irons ’73, director of human resources operations for Bayer HealthCare LLC, agreed. “People who are out looking for work need to think about their skill sets in a different way and try to see how their experiences can be more generally applied,” he said.

“We all tend to think of what we do as being very specific to the

ing, waiting for a definitive economic

last job that we had, but in this economy, people have to start

turnaround. In the meantime, “They give

thinking about their skills more broadly.” As an example, he said he

more work to their current workers,” he

has seen corporate sales trainers transition to teaching in a public

said.

school setting.

He thinks some companies have taken

“There are fewer opportunities in any one area, so if you are just

advantage of the economic downturn to

waiting for that one thing to come along, your likelihood of being

cut staffing levels further than necessary.

successful is pretty small,” said Irons.

“Everybody’s afraid they are going to lose their job, and some companies are abusing business.quinnipiac.edu

QUINNIPIAC UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF BUSINESS / FALL 2010

Taking advantage?

7

Ball said once layoffs become a necessity, business owners naturally opt to lay off the least productive people first. Once the economy improves, existing workers could see their workloads increase as company officials wait to make sure economic conditions truly warrant new hires.

But that is a temporary situation in most cases, he noted.

Rafferty said political uncertainty plays a big role in the hiring process. “If you are a company thinking about building a new factory, the tax and regulatory environment can significantly affect profitability,” he said. “Businesses try to maximize profits, and when economic conditions change, they respond to that. They have to stay in business.”

Hire with care As the econmic slowdown drags on, companies need to guard against letting their hiring practices stagnate in response to the increased availability of qualified job candidates, said Michael H. Irons ’73, director of global human resources operations for Bayer HealthCare LLC. Irons QUINNIPIAC UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF BUSINESS / FALL 2010

earned a degree in organizational behav-

8

ior. He is part of a human resources team that oversees 35,000 Bayer employees worldwide.

“Businesses should continue to develop best practices within their recruiting and

Aldin Beslagic ’05, MBA ’06, founder and president of BestLogic Staffing, says many of his clients are holding off on hiring until the economy improves.

employment functions or they will not be in a very good position when the economy turns around,” he said.

that,” Beslagic said. He knows of several

know from talking to company officials here

major companies that have taken on new

and overseas that they are really worried

projects but have avoided hiring new

about laying off people and they try very

turn, Irons said. “Global companies that

workers, sometimes turning to temporary

hard not to do so,” Ball said. “Companies

are diversified both across geography and

workers to keep the salary budget low.

don’t like to lay off people because it hurts

products are more likely to experience a

morale, and it’s expensive to rehire and

limited impact from the recession, as one

retrain workers.”

business tends to support the other.”

Ball and Rafferty point out that making a profit is the purpose of every company. “I

The size of Bayer’s labor force has not been significantly affected by the down-

Irons said Bayer is hiring people it

UNEMPLOYMENT

BY THE NUMBERS

believes will remain with the organization.

“In any company, one of the largest costs you have to deal with is the cost generated by turnover. To the extent you can keep turnover as low as possible, you are saving money, not only in recruiting but also in

14.9

training and other costs,” he said.

million

The role of government

6.2

In a Quinnipiac University Poll conducted

million

in July, 64 percent of Americans wanted the federal government to concentrate on reducing unemployment, compared with

1.1

30 percent who wanted the top priority to

million

Total unemployed persons Long-term unemployed (27 or more weeks) Number of discouraged workers no longer looking

be deficit reduction. Fifty-two percent of respondents believe the economy has not even begun to recover, while 23 percent

Management Professor David Cadden

say it’s getting worse, and 44 percent see no change.

In addition, thousands of jobs have

opment of aircraft and the space program.”

Cadden believes the federal bailout pro-

been lost permanently to globalization

grams that provided funds to financial

and technological innovation, and it’s up

institutions, auto makers and other busi-

to the federal government to stimulate job

nesses helped avert a far worse recession.

creation and help small businesses grow

“It’s not just that they saved GM and

again, said David Cadden, professor of

Chrysler, it’s how many thousands of other

management. “America needs to build new

firms and millions of jobs that are in the

industries,” he said.

“You have the ‘chicken and the

supply chain were saved,” he said. “If those two firms had collapsed, it would have had

egg’––businesses will hire people when they

a catastrophic impact on many other

think things are better, but as long as the

companies.”

economy is depressed, that will not occur,” Cadden said. “The government can do certain things to give businesses comfort.”

Specifically, Cadden said the government should support innovation through funding and tax incentives and should

JOBLESS RATES

Besides the financial effects, Cadden noted that people who go through extended periods of joblessness can suffer loss of skill sets and psychological damage.

“We’ve fired them or given them early retirement, and the longer the recession

ramp up financial support of retraining

goes on, the more skills are lost, and even

programs. He dismisses critics of govern-

if you hire these people back, they are like

ment activism, saying, “America wouldn’t

veterans of a defeated army–– they have

be America without federal support of the

lost their sense of identity and security,”

telegraph, the highway system, the devel-

he said.

9.6%

Overall

9.8%

Adult men

8.0%

Adult women

26.3%

Teenagers

16.1%

Blacks

12.4%

Hispanics

8.7%

Whites

6.4%

Asians

Sources: The U.S. Department of Labor and the U.S. Department of Commerce As of September 2010

business.quinnipiac.edu

QUINNIPIAC UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF BUSINESS / FALL 2010

say the economy is improving, 31 percent

9

career

brain N R I D A DRAIN Multitasking often leads to procrastination and inefficiency DONNA PINTEK

Having trouble focusing? Perhaps chronic

through the call, a co-worker pops into

ger, professor of psychology. “To some degree we’ve done this to ourselves.

a growing expectation in the workplace

puter chime indicates that a new email

We’ve become accustomed to being able

that employees should be able to success-

message has been received. In the midst

to contact anyone at any time with any

Over the past 20 years, there has been QUINNIPIAC UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF BUSINESS / FALL 2010

been on the rise, according to Carrie Bul-

your office to ask a question and a com-

multitasking is to blame.

10

project when the phone rings. Halfway

fully manage numerous projects or tasks

of everything, your BlackBerry buzzes, sig-

random thought, important or otherwise.

simultaneously. With the recent downsiz-

naling the approach of your noon meet-

And there is an expectation that we will

ing and restructuring of many businesses,

ing. Before you can resume work on your

receive an immediate answer.”

workdays are more hectic than ever.

project, you head off to the coffee

People strive to manage, organize and prioritize, even as they are increasingly bombarded with messages from multiple media sources. You may feel more pro-

Technology brings the multitasking

machine for some liquid energy before

concept to a whole new level, says Patrice

your meeting begins.

Luoma, associate professor of manage-

The modern workplace is structured in such a way that interruptions are the

ment. People can check email, send a text message, answer a phone call or update

ductive if you work on four or five proj-

norm, rather than the exception. And the

their Facebook status quickly and effort-

ects at once, but the reality is that con-

advent of wireless electronic devices,

lessly using a handheld device.

stantly shifting focus actually makes you

such as smartphones and laptops, makes

less efficient.

it possible to literally be connected any-

multitask. She prefers the term “task-

time, anywhere there’s a signal.

switching,” because people more often

The scenario is all too familiar. You are at your desk working on an important

The multitasking phenomenon has

In fact, Luoma says most people don’t

shift their focus from one task to another

and back again. “You can’t do two tasks

such as phone calls or email. In another,

slows us down and results in more

at the same time that your brain requires

scientists at Stanford University focused

errors.”

attention to complete,” Luoma says. “If

on a group of students—some who multi-

I’m on the phone and also answering an

tasked all the time and some who did

istic expectations, Bulger says. If your

email, I’m not giving my full attention to

not. In all the tests, the non-multitaskers

boss expects to be able to reach you at

either of those two tasks.”

performed better than their multitasking

any time, day or night, that impedes your

counterparts.

ability to minimize distractions. However,

A lot of procrastinating occurs during task switching. “People think they are

A Vanderbilt University study found

Some employees may need to set real-

you can establish some ground rules.

multitasking when very little actual work

that when the brain is subjected to stim-

is being done,” Luoma adds.

uli from multiple tasks, a “response

mail only three or four times a day,

selection bottleneck” occurs, which

for example.

Research also shows that people who routinely multitask are more easily dis-

results in lost time as the brain processes

tracted and less able to ignore irrelevant

and selects a task to perform.

information and take longer to switch from one task to another.

A study done by researchers at the

“The brain refocuses and tries to

Agree to check email and voice

In addition to reducing productivity, multitasking takes a toll on our wellbeing, Bulger says. “It results in job stress

remember what it needs for the new

and lower job satisfaction. Plus, an indi-

task, then has to go back and re-evalu-

vidual’s personal life suffers from this ‘always-on’ multitasking mania.”

University of California at Irvine reported

ate,” Bulger notes. “The result is a feeling

that workers took an average of 25 min-

of being scattered, distracted or lost. You

utes to resume work after interruptions,

don’t know what to do next. That’s what

“If you don’t allow yourself to focus, you will miss something,” Bulger said.

LET YOURSELF FOCUS To minimize distractions, productivity experts recommend the following: • Make a “not-to-do” list. Define distractions to clear your head of mental clutter so you can focus on the things you need to do.

• Make a short “to-do” list. It will help you focus and you won’t waste time thinking you are forgetting something.

QUINNIPIAC UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF BUSINESS / FALL 2010

• Turn off the sound on your computer.

Constant dings distract you from the task at hand.

• Turn off your cell phone and close your email window when you absolutely need to concentrate.

• Set computers and phones to check for new email at less-frequent intervals—say four times a day. That way, you can focus for several hours at a time and still respond to your messages in a timely manner.

• Allow yourself some down time away from digital devices to give your brain a much-needed rest and a chance to develop new ideas.

business.quinnipiac.edu

11

finance

Rescuing

Wall $treet Finance professionals not sure Dodd-Frank Act will shape up the industry ALEJANDRA NAVARRO

Two years ago, the financial crisis crippled

hauls. Over the next 18 months, parts of

industry that often flourishes on private

the U.S. economy, causing the worst eco-

this bill will become effective as regulators

deals. The law intends to regulate deriva-

nomic disaster since the Great Depression.

draft new rules.

tives, increase fiduciary responsibilities of

Like a Category 5 hurricane, it swept away

QUINNIPIAC UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF BUSINESS / FALL 2010

some of the nation’s pillar financial insti-

12

However, many in the finance industry and beyond question whether the new law

brokers, restrict proprietary trading and give the government the authority to take

tutions and left others struggling to stay

can succeed, or if it will cause more prob-

over failing financial institutions instead

afloat. The government tossed out a life

lems for this troubled economy.

of bailing them out—to name a few.

preserver in the form of bailouts and loans that have amounted to more than $2 tril-

“I think it’s going to take years before we really see the impact of this bill,” said

Government agencies, including the Securities Exchange Commission and the

lion to prevent some of the largest institu-

Mary Anna Baldino ’07, compliance analyst

Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., will have

tions from sinking and taking more of the

at Philips Consumer Lifestyle in Stamford,

expanded roles. In the Federal Reserve, the

financial industry with them.

In an effort to restore confidence in the

Conn. She also serves on the School of

new Bureau of Consumer Financial Protec-

Business Student-Managed Portfolio

tion will monitor consumer financial prod-

U.S. economy and avert a future financial

Investment Advisory Council. “It went

ucts and services, from mortgages to credit

crisis, President Barack Obama signed into

through the approval process so quickly, it

card fees and check cashing.

law the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform

didn’t really give people a lot of time to

and Consumer Protection Act. The law

review it. We are in for some really big

“Today, regulators are no longer able to ignore emerging threats to the economy,”

attempts to improve regulations in almost

changes. Right now, I don’t feel any more

said Connecticut Sen. Christopher Dodd,

every corner of the financial industry and

protected.”

chairman of the Senate Banking Commit-

has been hailed as one of the most ambi-

The new law has many lofty goals,

tious and comprehensive financial over-

including increasing transparency in an

tee. “And financial operators from the trillion-dollar derivatives market to small-

time payday lenders are no longer able to operate in the shadows. Congress has more work to do to ensure this law is implemented successfully, but we have created a new, sound foundation for the 21st century economy.”

Given the number of unknowns in how the new law will be interpreted, and more important, how the rules currently being developed will be put into practice, Brett Amendola ’91 is optimistic, but cautious.

“Anything the regulators have done to hold my industry to a higher standard is probably a good thing,” said Amendola, a managing director at Charter Oak Insurance and Financial Services, an office of Mass Mutual.

Both Amendola and Baldino are concerned that companies may find it difficult to comply with new regulations and will move to markets in other countries.

“Transparency is great for the marketplace, but reform that chases capital out of

dola said.

Mary Anna Baldino ’07 thinks the Dodd-Frank Act makes some good changes in the finance industry but isn’t sure it will protect consumers.

Reining risk

ate a regulatory structure for the $614 tril-

their specific appetite for risk. A risk-

The law’s Volcker Rule, named for former

lion over-the-counter derivatives market.

averse party can sell risk to someone will-

Federal Reserve Chairman Paul Volcker,

Derivatives, such as credit default swaps,

ing and able to take on the risk. Financial

bans banks from proprietary trading,

have been blamed for fueling the financial

institutions, for example, can limit the risk

which involves investing its own capital on

crisis. As a financial instrument, however,

in their loan portfolio through credit

risky speculations. Banks, including J.P.

they are not inherently faulty, says Robert

default swaps and limit their interest rate

Porter, assistant professor of finance.

risk with interest rate swaps. Enabling

Morgan Chase, Morgan Stanley and Bank of America, are reducing their investments

“Derivatives are understood by very few

in hedge funds or private equity. Goldman

people, and people are afraid of what they

Sachs decided to close its proprietary trad-

don’t understand,” explained Porter.

improved risk management stimulates economic growth.”

In the sub-prime mortgage crisis, some big companies, such as AIG, took on too

ing business to comply; however, it’s the

“Derivatives are an innovation that enables

company’s largest revenue maker.

investors, corporations and financial insti-

much risk and became overwhelmed by

tutions to fine-tune their risk profile to

the number of mortgage defaults. At the

For the first time, the new law will cre-

business.quinnipiac.edu

QUINNIPIAC UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF BUSINESS / FALL 2010

the marketplace is not good. It remains to be seen what this reform will do,” Amen-

13

Robert Porter

I just don’t accept the fact that they were all naïve people who got duped into doing something by scurrilous bankers.

—PROFESSOR ROBERT PORTER

same time, some hedge fund executives

when others are greedy, and greedy when

made hundreds of millions of dollars

others are fearful.”

shorting the market and betting against subprime mortgages.

Baldino has mixed emotions about these investors. “Yes, it’s partially greed by

“The regulation was designed to take out systemic risk,” Amendola said. “Today,

known as Freddy Mac, whose loans cost

Money always finds a way.”

the taxpayers $400 billion. The two organi-

Root of disaster

who could not afford them and, not sur-

zations distributed home loans to families

smart enough to see what was going to

The challenge is to be innovative and take

prisingly, eventually defaulted on them.

happen and made money on it.”

risks in developing new ways to make

Promoting the American dream of home

money, but avoid being reckless with an

ownership was a noble gesture, but an

tives to be traded on an exchange (with

investor’s money, said Porter. “It’s a hard

unwise financial decision, Porter said.

standard pricing) to increase transparency.

balance to achieve,” he explained.

The new law now requires most deriva-

Derivative deals are typically conducted privately between parties. In the case of

pay their mortgages, but chose to default

AIG, no one knew which companies or how

on their loans once the value of the prop-

many companies would be in trouble if the

erty dropped. They were unwilling to pay a

insurance giant were to have crumbled.

mortgage that was more than the value of

Trading on an exchange would limit the

the property, Porter said.

It’s difficult to see how this law will

parties involved, Porter warned. “If the reg-

change the culture of Wall Street, although

ulators eliminated the possibility of pri-

it is attempting to change the way some

vately negotiated risk-taking abilities, they

people get paid.

could be making it harder for banks to QUINNIPIAC UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF BUSINESS / FALL 2010

Exasperating the housing market collapse were people who had the money to

ability to make a deal that benefits the

14

Mortgage Association, known as Fannie Mae, or the Federal Home Loan Corp.,

it’s very difficult to regulate fear and greed.

people making bets against the economy,” she admitted. “At the same time, they were

Porter noted that the law does not apply changes to the Federal National

The SEC plans to apply new “fiduciary

manage their risk,” Porter explained.

standards” requiring brokers to take into

While the new law encourages ethical

consideration a client’s best interest. In

behavior in finance, it can’t prevent

theory, brokers could suggest a mutual

some institutions from playing fast

fund with a high commission that may

with the rules.

The SEC is pressing charges against

Porter is not certain this law can pre-

have high charges for the client.

vent people from making bad financial

Many investors don’t understand the

Goldman Sachs for making a deal with a

decisions. “Part of my concern is that I

difference between investment advisers,

hedge fund and allowing it to profit from

think they tried to regulate away stupid-

who are paid a fee for their advice, and

betting against its subprime residential

ity,” Porter said. The subprime mortgage

brokers, who receive a commission for

mortgage-backed securities. Countywide

crisis was the fault of many people, from

providing the investor with a product,

Financial is under investigation for poten-

the lenders to the borrowers, all who

Porter explains.

tial securities fraud for its highly risky

should have been aware of the risks, he

mortgages to unqualified borrowers.

The discussion reminded Amendola of Warren Buffet’s famous quote, “Be fearful

The SEC also is proposing limits on

said. “I just don’t accept the fact that they

“12B-1” fees, part of which pay brokers.

were all naïve people who got duped into

Critics claim investors are often unaware

doing something by scurrilous bankers.”

of these fees. According to the Wall Street

Journal, brokers are expected to switch to fee-based charges to make up for losses in commissions. These changes did not surprise Amendola.

“The way we get paid is absolutely going to change over the next five years,” Amendola said. “It was heading that way, but the law probably sped it up by 20 years.”

Baldino is skeptical of the law’s plan to give shareholders voting rights on executive salaries. “Shareholders should be provided corporate and accounting transparency; however, compensation packages for the upper executives shouldn’t be exclusively subject to shareholder objection. The shareholders should not be given responsibility to veto compensation for the minds that drive the progress,” she explained.

As someone who works in compliance, Baldino praised the law’s expansion of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act protecting whistleblowers who have faced retaliation. It also includes a whistleblower incentive pro-

Brett Amendola ’91 hopes the new law does not encourage companies to leave the market.

anyone who contributes information about

the National Banking Act of 1863, signed

are always fighting the last battle. They are

problems in federal or state governmental

by President Abraham Lincoln, was

focusing on the problems we just had. The

agencies.

designed to create financial stability and

future problems probably will be the result

“Potentially, we can see a lot more people come forward and report issues before

fund the American Civil War; the Federal

of some kind of innovation, and I’m not

Reserve Act of 1913 created the Federal

sure regulators will be any more adept at

Reserve System and made emergency

solving them or stopping these problems

loans available to prevent banks from fail-

before they become a full-blown crisis

History repeats

ing; and the FDIC Act of 1935 distributed

than the past regulators were.”

The U.S. economic history is punctuated

emergency funds following the Great

with large, overarching legislation meant

Depression. In 1991, the FDIC Improvement

managed to rebound and thrive despite

to prevent financial crises. The fact that

Act responded to the savings and loan cri-

the turbulent periods.

they become major problems,” said Baldino.

the country continues to endure these

sis by creating regulations to prevent

crises proves that it’s a difficult goal to

banks from making bad loans.

achieve.

Porter rattled off a few of these laws:

“I think regulators are somewhat like military generals,” Porter explained. “They

Over the decades, the U.S. economy has

“Let’s take a look at the economic performance over the last 150 years,” Porter said. “The economic performance has been quite good.” business.quinnipiac.edu

QUINNIPIAC UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF BUSINESS / FALL 2010

gram, in which the SEC pays a bounty to

15

education

QUINNIPIAC UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF BUSINESS / FALL 2010

Professor David Sauer in the Terry W. Goodwin ’67 Financial Technology Center.

16

National ‘rock stars’ of finance industry convening on campus for educational forum March 31 JANET WALDMAN

on!

arena in the TD Bank Sports Center on Quinnipiac’s York Hill Campus.

worldwide investment community have a

The remaining two days of the confer-

our economy and markets,” he noted.

Industry leaders traditionally relish the chance to compare notes with their col-

chance to get into the G.A.M.E. in Spring

ence are for students and faculty only. They

2011.

will attend various breakout panels, “how-

They also enjoy positively impacting the

to” workshops and a career strategies forum

future leaders of the financial world, face to

short for Global Asset Management Educa-

led by successful industry professionals in

face, Sauer said. “They like tough questions

tion, will bring finance industry leaders to

various locations on the Mount Carmel

and like being challenged by students,” he

campus to explore the status of the global

Campus. Topics will include panels on pri-

said, noting that at a cost of $225 per per-

economy, stock markets, alternative assets

vate equity, hedge funds, equity and fixed-

son, colleges and universities traditionally

and corporate governance, according to

income portfolio management, to name a

send their brightest and most motivated

David Sauer, a professor of finance who

few. In the career strategies forum, they will

students to the forum.

joined the School of Business faculty this

hear what it’s like to work in various careers

fall.

such as asset management, banking, capital

ing G.A.M.E. manage portfolios within their

markets, and financial media.

colleges, but it is not a requirement. At

The first Quinnipiac G.A.M.E. Forum,

Sauer, managing director and program chair for G.A.M.E., expects students and fac-

Sauer comes to Quinnipiac from the Uni-

leagues on topics like these at the forum.

Many of the students who will be attend-

Quinnipiac, the Student-Managed Portfolio

ulty from more than 100 colleges and uni-

versity of Dayton, in Ohio, where he created

consistently has outperformed the S&P 500

versities, as well as QU alumni and profes-

a similar educational forum 10 years ago

Index, growing to $511,175 since it began in

sionals, to attend on March 31, the first day

with investment strategist and author Bob

2003 with $50,000 from the University’s

of the three-day event that will bring

Froehlich, senior managing director at The

endowment fund.

together between 500 and 1,000 people con-

Hartford. That forum was attended by stu-

nected by their common interest in the

dents from every U.S. state and six conti-

supervised grow from $25,000 to around $13

global financial markets.

nents, and Sauer is expecting QU’s G.A.M.E.

million. A large fund has several advantages.

That first day will feature 12 keynote

Forum to grow larger each year as well. In

“It gains the attention of the investment

speakers who are “rock stars of the financial

fact, New York City is being considered as

community and allows for a richer experi-

world, the people who appear on CNBC and

the venue for 2012.

ence for students––there’s more at stake,

Fox Business, the ones the markets listen to,” Sauer said. Speakers include: Joseph Bat-

Besides putting together the confer-

At Dayton, Sauer watched the fund he

they can hold more securities, and it’s like

ence, Sauer teaches Applied Portfolio Man-

going from the minor to the major leagues,” he observed.

tipaglia of Stifel Nicolaus & Co.; Richard

agement, the course in which Quinnipiac

Bernstein of Bernstein Capital Management

seniors manage an investment fund

LLC; Pat Dorsey, CFA, of Morningstar; Vin-

started with money from the University’s

ance of art and science–– and when you

cent Farrell Jr. of Soleil Securities Corp.;

endowment.

apply it, you learn important skills you

Thomas Keene CFA, of Bloomberg News;

Sauer is considered a pioneer in the stu-

“Investing is a complex activity––a bal-

would not otherwise,” he said, observing

Tobias M. Levkovich of Citigroup; Jeffrey

dent-managed portfolio movement. In 1999,

that his former students used different

Kleintop, CFA, of LPL Financial; Ronald H.

Quinnipiac President John L. Lahey and the

strategies to deal with the 2003 recession,

Muhlenkamp, CFA, founder and president of

former School of Business dean visited

the tech boom, the dotcom bust and the

Muhlenkamp & Co.; Louis G. Navellier of

Sauer in Ohio to see how Dayton’s student-

2008 meltdown, and other periods of market

Navellier & Associates; A. Gary Shilling of A.

managed portfolio worked. Quinnipiac

volatility.

Gary Shilling & Co.; John E. Silvia of Wells

launched its own several years later.

Fargo Securities LLC; and Lawrence Yun of

Professionals who attend can log six con-

In managing a live fund, students learn about interconnectivity, for example how a

the National Association of REALTORS.

tinuing education hours. “To get all those

construction boom in China can affect

“Louis Navellier is involved with

hours in one venue in one day is unique,”

demand for cement worldwide and even

Sauer said.

benefit a company in New England, he said.

Kiplinger magazine; Pat Dorsey is director of equity research at Morningstar; Jeffrey

With real estate sales at a new low,

Although Sauer emphasizes that invest-

Kleintop is a chief market strategist; and

unemployment at a historical high, and the

Tom Keene has a TV show on Bloomberg

efficacy of government stimulus packages

isons to game-playing can be made: Rules

and does market commentary—they are

still being debated, the finance world is the

must be followed, risk and reward figure

huge,” Sauer exclaimed.

opposite of calm, according to Sauer. Glob-

prominently, strategy comes into play, there

ing money is “serious business,” compar-

ally, there are concerns about country-to-

are winners and losers, and cheating has

World Economic Forum in Switzerland in

country loans, emerging market countries,

consequences.

“We model this event after the annual that there are no PowerPoint presentations,

and the impact of the debt crisis in Greece

only dynamic dialogue between our speak-

and Europe’s strategies to address it. “The

ers and the audience,” Sauer said. The all-

high jobless rate here affects consumer

details and registration information at

day session will take place in the basketball

spending, which has a significant impact on

http://game.quinnipiac.edu.

If you’d like to elevate your own G.A.M.E., you can find conference

business.quinnipiac.edu

QUINNIPIAC UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF BUSINESS / FALL 2010

Students, faculty and professionals who want to keep abreast of developments in the

17

trends

PETS less pampered

Hard times take small bite out of pet industry | CLAIRE LAFLEUR HALL

Although she loved her mischievous,

cutting back on perks such as vacations,

2009-10 National Pet Owners Survey, up

7-month-old Doberman, one Connecticut

they are not skimping on the necessities for

from 56 percent in 1988. Despite the poor

woman found that the puppy’s annoying

their pets. That has helped pet businesses—

economy, the pet industry increased by 5

habit of grabbing food off the table left her

from dog walkers to pooper-scoopers, train-

percent from 2008–09 and is expected to

no choice but to eat all her meals in

ers and even massage therapists—ride out

jump another 5 percent this year, according

restaurants.

the recession.

QUINNIPIAC UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF BUSINESS / FALL 2010

Attempts to stop the dog were frustrat-

18

“People do spend money on their pets,

to predictions from the American Pet Products Association of Greenwich, Conn. The

ing––he weighed as much as she did! When

but today’s economy has taken a little ‘bite’

largest growth is expected in veterinary

the pet owner couldn’t tolerate the behavior

out of business,” said Richard Horowitz, for-

care, as animals are living longer.

any longer, she called dog behavior thera-

merly vice president of a large senior hous-

pists Richard ’76, MPS ’82 and Vicki (Koltz)

ing/assisted living complex in New Haven.

Horowitz ’79 of Bark Busters of Southern

Vicki Horowitz, who still works as a school-

cut Humane Society’s staff has heard far

Connecticut. The husband-and-wife team

based occupational therapist, uses her

more people mention that they must give

has trained some 1,000 dogs in the five years

expertise to assist in training “service” dogs

up their pets because they’ve lost their jobs

they have owned the franchise business.

to protect autistic or learning disabled chil-

and can’t afford them or they’ve had to

“I would say the No. 1 mistake pet owners make is spoiling their dog so that the

dren in their homes.

In this weak economy, Quinnipiac

Some pet owners are having trouble keeping their pets. Since 2008, the Connecti-

move into a place where pets are not allowed, according to spokesperson Alicia

animal has complete control over the

alumni working in the pet industry say they

Wright. The society’s Fox Memorial Clinic

household,” said Vicki Horowitz. “And giving

are marketing their services more aggres-

offers affordable veterinary services for low-

in to the dog’s attention-seeking behaviors,”

sively, offering a larger menu of options, and

income families, but scheduling a spay or

added Richard Horowitz.

adapting to constant changes in the indus-

neuter appointment could take three to four

People give in to pets because they love them. Often, cats and dogs are considered

try to survive.

Growing pet ownership also has kept pet

members of the family. So it’s not surprising

businesses afloat. More than 60 percent of

that even in lean times, when people are

U.S. households have a pet, according to a

months because of the increased demand for services.

Bark Busters also offers a discounted rate to owners of rescued dogs, part of the mis-

affected many of the breeders of purebred

“People shop around more. They are looking

dogs. Most purebred dogs cost about $1,000,

for options.”

Kenney said, but designer dogs can cost

Some businesses are offering more cost-

$1,800 or more. Most purebred dog breeders

effective services. Best Friends Pet Care

are invested in improving the quality of

branches have begun to offer pet sitting at a

their breed, and buyers need to be wary of

client’s home and pet walking services,

those who are newcomers, she said.

which are about half the cost of boarding a

Kenney only breeds her dogs once a year,

pet, said Tiffany Para ’98, director of

however, they are in such demand that she

accounting for the national chain based in

usually places all of them through word-of-

Norwalk, Conn. The average boarding cost at

mouth.

the Norwalk facility is $35 a day, compared

“It is hard to say goodbye to the puppies,

to the $20 daily fee for pet sitting.

sion established by company founders

but when you’re a breeder, it feels good to

Sylvia and Danny Wilson, Richard Horowitz

give them to someone else who will love

year, but certainly not anywhere near where

said. Shelter/rescue dogs comprise about 60

them. You’re sharing your satisfaction and

we were before the recession struck,” Para

percent of the Horowitzes’ clients, they said.

joy,” she said.

said. The popularity of other forms of care

ing prices depend on the dog’s breed and

Sniffing out a niche

of hope that her company’s financial num-

age, as well as its needs. “We don’t have a

In this economy, pet businesses are reaching

bers will bounce back.

In some cases, training is necessary. Train-

“We’re seeing an increase over the prior

such as day camps has provided a glimmer

magic wand. Training takes time. Say you

out to a wider audience. Most of Bark

have a dog that barks when the doorbell

Busters’ referrals come from veterinarians,

with pets, one of the perks of the job is being able to bring her animal to work.

rings. That usually can be resolved easily.

but people also find the company online or

But if the dog barks every time you leave

via the pamphlets the Horowitzes leave in

the house, that dog may have separation

pet stores and hair salons.

anxiety, and that takes much longer to resolve,” Richard Horowitz said.

Bark Busters offers a one-year or a life-

“In the small-business world, you have to

Although Para doesn’t work hands-on

“I often think everybody should be as happy and carefree as a dog. They love you even if you’re late, don’t get upset

be creative in the way you market yourself

that you didn’t call, and don’t stress about

and find customers,’’ said Richard Horowitz.

traffic,” she observed.

time program. Training a puppy, for example, could cost about $575 for the year and about $695 for the lifetime program. The lifetime program is a way to develop loyal clients for the Horowitzes.

Stretching haircuts A loyal group of customers keeps Janice (Ziembroski) Kenney ’78 of Monroe, Conn., in business. Kenney, who earned her bachelor’s degree in animal health technology, is a dard dachshunds.

Kenney once was affiliated with a fullservice pet shop, but she said the convenience of the Internet and large discount stores doomed that business. “People would come in and get all the information they needed from the staff and then go to Walmart to buy the 20-gallon fish tank,” said Kenney.

Today, many of her clients are trying to stretch their dollars. They are grooming their dogs every eight weeks, instead of every six, to save money, she said. The popularity of adopting rescue dogs and buying “designer dogs,” like labradoodles, has

Dog behavior therapists Richard Horowitz ’76, MPS ’82 and his wife, Vicki (Koltz) Horowitz ’79, with their dogs. business.quinnipiac.edu

QUINNIPIAC UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF BUSINESS / FALL 2010

dog groomer and breeder of smooth-stan-

19

faculty research

Professor He studies entrepreneurial successes in China, India XIAOHONG HE

which specific regions in the

PROFESSOR OF

country focused on one indus-

INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS

try— ranging from freshwater

XIAOHONG.HE@

pearls and specialty steels to

QUINNIPIAC.EDU

special fabrics and socks—and cornered the global market.

In Jiangsu province, she met

In August, China surpassed

with former village leaders who

Japan to become the world’s second largest economy with

have transformed agriculture-

a gross domestic product of

based villages into hubs of steel production, construction serv-

$1.33 trillion.

ices, food processing and alter-

“Chinese people have always been entrepreneurial,” said Xiao-

native energy, known as “institu-

hong He, professor of interna-

tional entrepreneurship.” The

tional business. “There is a

government priority now is to boost the economy in poor, rural

social structure, history and entrepreneurial culture in China that I don’t think any country

Professor Xiaohong He, second from left, stands beside executives from the China Pearl Group in the Zhejiang Province.

from its ascent to prosperity

“With the second largest

ment. Business decisions are

economic structure has blos-

made locally, He explained. In

somed from its intellectual elites

China, the economic transition

in urban centers. Moreover, these companies are “born” into

that began three decades ago. As a Galpin International Exchange

it’s important for people to

changed many incentives for

Fellow, He traveled East, from

understand China,” He said.

local governments. During the

a global market spurred by

decentralization process, local

recent technology, He explained.

The country has a long history of entrepreneurship from

governments received less budg-

mer 2010, to study the entrepre-

the trading posts along the

etary funds from the central

neurial elements of Chinese

Yangtze River to the Silk Routes

government. At the same time,

ness processing outsourcing and

society that have contributed to

that laid the foundation for an

they were allowed to keep more

knowledge processing outsourc-

its success. She spent time in

international trade network.

of the money they made. As a

ing in Hyderabad and Bangalore.

non-government owned compa-

In the past, China’s communist

result, the local government

She visited the Tata Institute of

nies in the Zhejiang and Jiangsu

government prevented entre-

benefited from economic growth

Social Sciences in Mumbai and

provinces near the city of Bei-

preneurs from entering the

and supported local entrepre-

the Deshpande Foundation, a

neurs, He said.

social entrepreneurship venture

March 2009, and again in Sum-

QUINNIPIAC UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF BUSINESS / FALL 2010

former Quinnipiac trustee. economy in the world, I think

December 2008 to the end of

20

had economic prosperity.

He found that in India, a new

can replicate.”

But other countries can learn

regions that historically have not

In India, she visited Infosys and other IT companies in busi-

jing. She also visited India,

marketplace. After the Cultural

another emerging economic

Revolution in the ’60s and ’70s,

power. Her travels have spawned

the country started to disman-

history as a socialist government

data for several research papers.

tle some government-run

also had engrained the idea of

entrepreneurship project,

industries.

working together for the pros-

Akshaya Patra, a large operation

The Galpin Fellowship

The country’s half century of

capital center in Hubli, where she learned about the social

perity of the entire village, which

providing school lunches in

entrepreneurs had a hard time

He calls “village entrepreneur-

remote rural areas in India.

research abroad, and funds vis-

getting started,” He said. “Once

ship.” And neighboring compa-

its to QU from faculty members

they started, they were booming

nies in the same industry can

visits from Galpin International

in other countries. The fellow-

and became a key driver for

co-exist. “When markets grow,

Exchange Fellows Jie (George)

ship is an endowed fund estab-

rapid economic development

several companies can do the

Jiao from Tsinghua University,

lished by Virginia Galpin Cross-

in China.”

same thing and they can sur-

an expert in international busi-

vive,” He said.

ness strategy, and Satyajit

enables full-time faculty members to teach or conduct

ley and her husband, Erskine

“In the early ’80s, those small

Modern China uses the com-

Crossley, in memory of her late

munist organizational structure

husband, Samuel A. Galpin, a

to support business develop-

The structure boosted the creation of “business clusters,” in

The professor is arranging

Majumdar from Tata Institute of Social Sciences.

Economics professor part of oil disaster panel | ALEJANDRA NAVARRO

The BP disaster in the Gulf Coast has been called the largest accidental marine oil spill in the history of the petroleum industry. While some of the immediate damage may not be as devastating as first predicted, the long-term biological, social and economic repercussions of this disaster are still unknown.

“Just because the impacts aren’t immediate doesn’t mean they won’t show up,” said Lisa Kaplan, associate professor of biology, noting that much of the oil has dissolved into small droplets that could still cause harm.

Kaplan joined Christopher Ball, István Széchenyi Chair in International Economics, and Melissa Weiner, assistant professor of sociology, for the interdisciplinary panel discussion, “Perspectives on Oil and the

Deborah Clark, professor of biology, at podium, with Lisa Kaplan, associate professor of biology, and Erik Johnson, assistant professor of economics, at Gulf Coast oil spill program.

Gulf Coast Disaster,” in September. large impact,” said Ball. The price of oil did

Weiner said. A blow to the fishing industry

he said. Weiner said other regions of the

has affected employment and hurt busi-

country could be affected by economic

not spike following the disaster that

nesses supporting the fishing industry. The

troubles in the Gulf region. The price of

caused about 4.5 million barrels of oil to

Wall Street Journal estimated that the

seafood is expected to rise. People may

gush into the ocean from April 20, when

region lost about 100,000 jobs—most of

move to find jobs (fishermen may look for

an explosion on the Deepwater Horizon

them in supporting industries. If the jobs

work in New England coastal towns). She

killed 11 people and injured 115, to July 15

don’t return, people will desert these small

also noted that many people are boy-

when the well was plugged. The amount of

towns on the coast, leaving municipalities

cotting BP stations in the U.S., which hurts

oil spilled was a fraction of the total

with diminishing tax revenues.

world’s petroleum—less than 1 percent.

But Ball cautioned that the data avail-

Currently, Alabama is asking for $148 million in lost tax revenues, Ball said. It is

able today is limited and in some cases

difficult to estimate how much this state,

convoluted. Unemployment figures, for

and others, will lose in the years to come,

local people who own these franchises and had nothing to do with the disaster.

BP is working to restore its image, and in some situations, is exceeding its legal obligations. Even though BP’s stock plummeted under the weight of widespread

example, may not accurately reflect the jobs lost because some people might be

negative publicity—losing billions in stock

working on BP’s clean-up efforts.

market value—Ball noted it likely will stay in business.

Even though these people are

Many of the towns hurt by the spill are

employed, they are not enhancing the economy. “Those are people who should

tight-knit communities, which will help

be productive doing other things,” Ball

them recover, Weiner said. But she is baf-

said. The moratorium on well drilling

fled that corporate executives are not held

eventually may affect the supply of oil and

criminally responsible for the tragic out-

perhaps spur interest in alternative ener-

come of this disaster.

She pointed out that if someone killed

gies, but it’s too early to know, he said.

11 people, injured 115 people and dam-

Damage to the ocean, coastline and

aged miles of coastal land and property,

estuaries affects not only marine and wildlife, but also businesses, tourism, real estate and quality of life for residents,

Professor Chris Ball discusses the economic impact of the Gulf oil spill.

“They probably wouldn’t see the light of day for a long time.” business.quinnipiac.edu

QUINNIPIAC UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF BUSINESS / FALL 2010

“Economically speaking, it didn’t have a

21

department news

ACCOUNTING William D. Brown Jr., assistant professor, co-authored (with Guy Fernando, State University of New York at Albany), “Whisper Forecasts of Earnings Per Share: Is Anyone Still Listening?” in the Journal of Business Research (2010).

Judy Gedge, assistant professor of business law, received the Women’s Business Excellence Award from the Central

ac

Connecticut State University School of Business in May. ECONOMICS In May, Chris Ball, István Széchenyi Chair in International Economics, led a trip to Hungary with nine MBA students. The trip included a private tour of the Hungarian Parliament as well as visits to several national and multinational companies.

Eric Brunner, associate professor, was named an associate editor for the Economics of Education Review.

ec

FINANCE Thomas S. Coe, associate professor, co-authored (with Kittipong Laosethakul, Sacred Heart University), “Should Individual Investors Use Technical Trading Rules to Attempt to Beat the Market?” published in the American Journal of Economics and Business Administration (Fall 2010). He also co-authored (with Laosethakul and Thaweephan Leingpibul, Western Michigan University), “Investigation into Gender Perception toward Computing: A Comparison between the U.S. and India,” for the International Journal of Information and Communication Technology

fin

Education (forthcoming).

INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY Richard McCarthy, associate dean, Leila Halawi, visiting professor at Quinnipiac, and Cyndy Jones and Bahaudin MujIntaba, Nova Southeastern University, co-authored “Utilizing the Technology Acceptance Model to Assess the Employee Adoption of Information Systems Security Measures” in Issues in Information Systems (2010). McCarthy also wrote, with Halawi and Sheila Cane, “Ready for Battle? A Phenomenological Study of Military Simulation Software” published in the Journal of Computer Information Systems (Spring 2010).

it

INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS In conjunction with the School of Business, the department hosted the Academy of International Business—Northeast Chapter Conference, Oct. 1–3 on the North Haven Campus.

Margaret Goralski, adjunct professor, published “Developing an IB Curriculum in Higher Education using the Great Decisions Series” at the annual meeting of the Academy of International Business.

ib

MANAGEMENT In July, associate professor Angela Mattie participated in the statewide initiative, “Code Jump Start: Energizing Patient Safety in Connecticut,” which focused on strategies to advance a statewide agenda for patient safety and medical error reduction. Mattie presented “Improving Medical Care for Detained Immigrants”at the American Public Health Association’s annual meeting in Denver, Colo. The paper was co-authored by Nicole Therrian, MBA/HCM ’08, who is serving in the Peace Corps in Africa.

Mario Norbis, professor, and Mary J. Meixell, associate professor, published “Using Knowledge in Seaport Selection to Enhance Supply Chain Security” during the seventh annual International Conference on Cybernetics and Information Technologies, Systems and Applications in Orlando, Fla.

mgt mgt

QUINNIPIAC UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF BUSINESS / FALL 2010

In April, undergraduate and graduate students participated in the second annual APICS Student Competition at

22

Bryant University. The undergraduate team took the fourth-place prize.

MARKETING AND ADVERTISING In July, Patricia Norberg, associate professor, attended Global Prepaid Exchange’s North American Gift and Prepaid Retreat in Toronto, Canada, and was invited to write an article about gift card satisfaction drivers for Paybefore Magazine. In August, she presented work on semantic price information (with Albert J. Della Bitta, University of Rhode Island), at the 2010 Behavioral Pricing Conference at Babson College, and presented “Evaluating Ratio Data and the Role of Consumer Processing Mode: Can Analytical Processing Bias Judgments?” (with Dipayan Biswas, Bentley University, and Donald Lehmann, Columbia University), at the 2010 American Marketing Association Summer Educators’ Conference in Boston, Mass. Norberg also co-authored (with Karen BeckerOlsen, The College of New Jersey), “Caution, Animated Violence: Assessing the Efficacy of Violent Video Game Ratings,” which will appear in the winter issue of the Journal of Advertising.

Professor Abhik Roy presented his paper, “Effectiveness of Information Sharing in Asymmetric Buyer-Seller Negotiations” at the annual INFORMS Marketing Science conference in Cologne, Germany, in June. The presentation summarized some of Roy’s findings from his sabbatical research project.

mkt

worked 11 years in the business world,

standing for American students and for

including six years in operational leader-

international students in our programs.”

ship roles. In addition to teaching at RPI,

EDWARD ARNHEITER

EDWARD ARNHEITER

As part of her duties in the newly

he also served as an administrator for the

created position, McTiernan plans to

school’s international program and was the

strengthen the school’s international ties

director of the Rensselaer Center for Lean

through both traditional and corresponding

Studies. Growing the reputation of Quin-

QU Online programs. She also wants to

nipiac’s program and seeing a correspon-

increase enrollment both on campus and

ding rise in the national rankings are on

online and build a stronger sense of com-

Arnheiter’s agenda. In addition to the tradi-

munity among graduate business students.

tional MBA, students may choose the spe-

Before Quinnipiac, McTiernan was a vis-

cialty tracks of supply chain management,

iting associate professor of management at

chartered financial analyst or an MBA in

the University of New Haven. Prior to that

health care management.

she worked at St. John’s as an associate

Arnheiter earned a bachelor’s degree in

dean after serving in a similar role at

MBA program director

mechanical engineering from Union Col-

Hofstra University. McTiernan is also a Ful-

edward.arnheiter@quinnipiac.edu

lege, and both a master’s in engineering

bright Scholar and continues to be active

While serving as an associate professor at

management and doctoral degree in indus-

with the Fulbright Association. In addition,

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute’s branch

trial engineering and operations research

she is a member of the Academy of Man-

campus in Hartford for the past 12 years,

from UMass Amherst.

agement, Beta Gamma Sigma and the

Edward Arnheiter was impressed by Quinnipiac from afar. That changed, though,

Financial Women’s Association of New

SUSAN McTIERNAN

York. She has been active in leadership roles in both AACSB International and the

last November when he attended a men’s

associate dean for graduate programs

hockey game between QU and UMass

and associate professor of management

Graduate Management Admission Council.

Amherst, his graduate school alma mater.

susan.mctiernan@quinnipiac.edu

She earned a bachelor’s degree from Vil-

While working as the associate dean of the

lanova University, a master’s from Hofstra

Before watching the Bobcats claim a

Tobin College of Business at St. John’s

and a doctorate in management and orga-

University, Susan McTiernan enjoyed a

nizational behavior from Case Western

Center and gazed at the tall vertical wind

sweeping view of Manhattan’s financial

Reserve University.

turbines that contribute to Quinnipiac Uni-

district from her office building in Queens,

versity’s electrical grid.

N.Y.—before Sept. 11, 2001.

“They almost looked like a piece of art,

On that day, she had a veritable front-

a sculpture, and then I took a second look

row seat to the biggest terrorist attack on

and said, ‘Wait a second, those are actually

American soil. As she watched the Twin

functioning wind turbines.’ I thought it was

Towers fall, she recalled that she had been

an interesting design,” said Arnheiter, who

scheduled to attend a meeting that day at

is the new MBA program director. This

the World Trade Center, but it had been

past summer, Arnheiter toured a wind tur-

canceled the previous Friday. Then another

bine facility in Italy while teaching a

realization formed, one that began to gal-

month-long class about renewable energy

vanize all her efforts as a veteran collegiate

for RPI. As the new MBA program director,

professor and administrator.

“I really started thinking a lot more seri-

ness develop an MBA track that addresses

ously than I had in the past about what

sustainability and renewable energy.

business schools needed to do toward

“I think students have a strong interest

developing greater understandings of

in that sort of thing,” said Arnheiter, whose

other countries,” she said. “It was an awful

14-year-old son, Alex, hopes to one day

morning in every respect, but it helped us

work in the wind turbine industry.

think about how we have to do a much

Before teaching at RPI, Arnheiter

QUINNIPIAC UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF BUSINESS / FALL 2010 QUINNIPIAC UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF BUSINESS / SPRING 2010

5–4 overtime victory, Arnheiter stood in the parking lot outside the TD Bank Sports

he would like to see the School of Busi-

new faculty

Graduate program gets new associate dean and MBA director

SUSAN M C TIERNAN

better job creating more levels of underbusiness.quinnipiac.edu

23

students making news

BRIEFS

Business students and campus leaders got some advice on leadership from a Target executive, and some might say it

pened that QU was looking for something

was for the birds.

similar as well,” Blair said.

At a late-September student sympo-

At one of two breakout sessions, titled

sium, Joe Collins, a district team leader

“Building Relationships through Effective

who oversees 11 stores in Connecticut,

Communication,” students focused on the

said: “If you want to soar with the eagles,

positive and negative effects of different

you can’t hang out with the pigeons.” His

types of communication.

point: It’s important to find the right social

from the School of Business took

networks to become a well-rounded indi-

session leader Matthew Battista ’08, who

part in “The Business Strategy

vidual.

graduated with a business management

tion, as part of the curriculum for a senior-level capstone course in strategic integrated management.

Bart Wilinski ’10 shown above

“It’s all about relating to people,” said

degree. “Everyone’s

But the words that stuck out the

got their different

most to the approx-

way to communi-

imately 75 students

cate and their pas-

in attendance were

sion toward things.

Luoma and Dean Matthew O’Con-

his last two: “We’re

It’s the way we

nor, ended up with the highest

hiring.”

come to mutual

with associate professor Patrice

stock price of anyone worldwide

agreements and

For the first

who used the simulation program

time, Target joined

decisions that

during the spring semester. As a

the School of Busi-

allows us to have

result, Quinnipiac had the highest

ness to host the

that collaboration

collective ranking as a school.

symposium on the

we need to be a

STUDENTS LEARN IN LONDON Thirteen MBA students spent

Mount Carmel

business.”

Campus. It afforded

July 16-25 in London, observing the

students a chance

United Kingdom’s economic cli-

to enhance their

mate and meeting with business

leadership skills

leaders.

and qualities. Tar-

The trip’s primary objective was to give students the opportunity to experience another culture’s business customs and to acquaint them with travel abroad, said

Battista worked as an intern for

Matthew Battista ’08, of Target, standing, leads a session on building relationships through communication during the Target Leadership Symposium.

the Target store in North Haven, Conn., during his

get also informed students about future

junior year, and now works as an executive

employment opportunities with the

team leader of Target’s Guest Experience in

national retail chain. In Summer 2010,

Meriden, Conn.

Target awarded a $5,000 grant to Quinnip-

In the other session, “Leadership and

iac for the event. Student leaders of cam-

Team Work,” students evaluated the vari-

finance who accompanied the stu-

pus organizations were invited to partici-

ous aspects of their respective organiza-

dents along with School of Busi-

pate.

Robert Porter, assistant professor of QUINNIPIAC UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF BUSINESS / FALL 2010

“This is an idea that I’ve wanted to put together for a while, and it just so hap-

TOPPING THE CHARTS Last April, a group of students

Game,” a global online competi-

24

Event ‘targets’ leaders

ness Dean Matthew O’Connor. But

“They hear [leadership advice] in class

tions and teams—such as what makes them effective or ineffective and what

the recession gave students the

from their faculty. They hear from me in

expectations they should have going for-

chance to view different recovery

career services, but I think when they

ward—all while emphasizing the impor-

strategies, too. While the U.S. is

hear it from outside people who are actu-

tance of giving and receiving feedback.

relying primarily on economic

ally using that in everyday work, it makes

stimulus as a recovery tool, the

it more real for them,” said Jill Ferrall,

preneurship, gained some useful informa-

’94, MAT ’96, assistant dean for career

tion at the symposium and enjoyed learn-

U.K. is focusing on cutting deficits.

The group’s itinerary included presentations at London-based Killik & Co., a high-end brokerage firm; at KPMG, an accounting and consulting firm; and tours of the

Ben Wald, a senior majoring in entre-

services in the School of Business. Ferrall

ing about the opportunities at the com-

and a group that included Dean Matthew

pany. He also serves as the president of Hil-

O’Connor, Melinda Formica, director of

lel and is a senior class representative.

development, and other staff members

“I think it’s great because Target has a

Bank of England and London’s

worked with Brittany Blair, Target’s cam-

great reputation and being a senior, you’re

financial district.

pus recruiter for the New England area, to

looking for a strong training program upon

coordinate the event.

graduation,” said Wald.—Stephen P. Schmidt

JANALYNNE GIUS ’95

CHARLES SAIA ’91, MBA ’94

Business Leader Hall of Fame

KEITH LEVINE ’09, MBA ’10

STEPHANIE NORRIS ’11

2010

The Quinnipiac University School of Busi-

Banker magazine as one of the top 10

CHARLES SAIA ’91, MBA ’94

ness will host its eighth annual Business

banking CEOs nationwide. For two consec-

Deloitte and Touche

Leader Hall of Fame on Nov. 9. The event,

utive years, she was recognized by U.S.

As a partner at Deloitte & Touche LLP in

sponsored by Marcum LLP, benefits the

Banker magazine as the second most pow-

New York City, Chuck Saia leads the Risk

school’s endowed scholarship fund.

erful woman in the industry.

Advisory Services Practice, a group of

Patterson has a BA in political science

HALL OF FAME INDUCTEE PEYTON R. PATTERSON Chairman, President and CEO NewAlliance Bank As chairman, president and CEO of the

with risk and governance issues. He has

George Washington University.

more than 16 years of experience advising financial services clients on corporate gov-

OUTSTANDING

ernance and risk and control at the finan-

BUSINESS ALUMNI AWARDS

cial, operational and technological levels.

third largest bank in Connecticut and the

JANALYNNE GIUS ’95

fourth largest in New England, Peyton Pat-

Virtus Investment Partners

terson has established herself as one of

Janalynne Gius has more than 15 years of

the most dynamic and successful individu-

experience in the financial services indus-

als in the community banking industry.

try, including positions in product devel-

In 2004, Patterson orchestrated the

opment, marketing, sales support and

largest initial public offering in U.S. banking

client service for retail and institutional

history when she simultaneously converted

markets.

the former New Haven Savings Bank to a

She joined Virtus Investment Partners

public company and acquired two other

in 2009 as assistant vice president for

Connecticut community banks to form

strategic planning and initiatives. She over-

NewAlliance Bancshares, Inc. In August, she

sees the company’s strategic and business

announced the merger of NewAlliance Bank

planning process, and manages numerous

with First Niagara Financial Group, head-

internal projects, ranging from new busi-

quartered in Buffalo, N.Y., to create the 25th

ness to product initiatives, and mergers

largest bank in the nation. The transaction

and acquisition integration.

is expected to be completed in 2011.

1,100 practitioners who help clients deal

from Kenyon College and an MBA from

Prior to her current position, Gius was

Prior to Deloitte, Saia was a financial systems analyst at Sikorsky Aircraft.

Saia is also an active member of the New York City business alumni advisory committee. He maintains his connection with Quinnipiac by periodically hosting events such as a business school alumni dinner or panel discussion with current students. He also helps to secure internships and actively recruits graduates for positions in New York City.

Saia earned a BS in accounting and computer science and an MBA from Quinnipiac. He was a participant in the Rockefeller Fellows Program.

EMERGING LEADER AWARD

director of mutual funds at Hartford Finan-

KEITH LEVINE ’09, MBA ’10 of Bloom-

Savings Bank in 2002 as chairman, presi-

cial Services Company. She has extensive

field, N.J., and STEPHANIE NORRIS ’11 of

dent and CEO. She has more than 25 years

product and investment knowledge of

Nantucket, Mass., both accounting majors,

of commercial and thrift banking experi-

mutual funds and private placements using

are the recipients of this award that recog-

ence with Dime Bancorp, JP Morgan Chase

traditional and alternative investment

nizes two business students who demon-

in New York and CoreStates Financial.

strategies.

Patterson joined the former New Haven

Patterson was named Community

Gius earned a BS in finance summa

strate excellence both in and out of the classroom, including leadership roles on

Banker of the Year by American Banker

cum laude, and went on to earn an MBA

campus and/or significant community

magazine and has been recognized by U.S.

from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.

service.

To register for this event, visit www.quinnipiac.edu/events.xml business.quinnipiac.edu

QUINNIPIAC UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF BUSINESS / FALL 2010

PEYTON R. PATTERSON

25

grad QUINNIPIAC UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF BUSINESS / FALL 2010 26

news

1940s John A. Gromala ’49

selected as a 2010 Behavioral

Kinsey ’74 EC of North Hills,

has been an economic develop-

BUS of Fortuna, CA, is a self-

Health Champion, an honor

CA, is president of the

ment specialist with Hawaii’s

employed, semi-retired media-

that goes to the most active

Healthcare Financial

Department of Business,

tor in Eureka, CA. He has been

and accomplished executives

Management Association—

Economic Development and

in the mediation business since

and leaders in the fields of

Southern California Chapter. He

Tourism for the past 10 years.

1992 after retiring from the

community mental health care,

is an account executive at

She coordinates programs to

practice of law. He specializes

substance abuse treatment and

Grant & Weber in Calabasas,

support the development of

in the growing field of preven-

recovery. He was featured in

CA. Terry Kenny ’78 MKT of

science and technology to pro-

tive mediation. 1960s Gail

the July/August issue of

Millville, NJ, retired as the vice

mote statewide economic

(Dinan) Vogel ’63 BUS

Behavioral Healthcare.

president of logistics at

expansion and diversification.

of Middle Village, NY, is senior

George Pertesis ’69 EC, ’83 AC

Burberry USA. In 2009, he start-

Prior to this, she was the state’s

business intermediary for the

of Branford, CT, retired from a

ed a custom garage remodeling

small business advocate and

Gottesman Company in New

40-year career in public and

company, Garage Concepts of

program manager for the Small

York City, one of the largest

nonprofit finance. He and his

New Jersey. His wife, Kim,

Business Utilization Council

merger and acquisition firms in

wife, Helen, enjoy spending

serves as the vice president

and the Small Business

the country. Last summer she

time at their Bonita Springs, FL,

and treasurer, while his two

Regulatory Review Board. She

closed a deal for a client inter-

vacation home. 1970s

sons manage the installation

also holds a JD degree from

ested in a Canadian organic pet

Richard Ippolito ’71 MGT is a

teams. 1980s Albert J.

Concord Law School in Los

food company poised to

Realtor at Weichert Realtors in

Carfora III ’80 MGT of Branford

Angeles, CA. Jeff Austin ’86

expand to the U.S. Stu Grove

Stamford, CT, where he lives.

is a sixth-grade teacher at

MKT of Middletown, CT, is the

’67 AC of Hamden is a financial

He has owned his own firm

Joseph Melillo Middle School in

owner of Austin Insurance

adviser for Charter Oak

specializing in building and

East Haven, CT. A member of

Agency, which he began 23

Insurance and Financial

renovations for 35 years, and is

the International Association of

years ago. He qualified for the

Services Co. He conducts finan-

an active member of the real

Authorized Basketball Officials,

2010 Chairman’s Conference

cial and retirement planning

estate industry. Gary J.

he has officiated in the girls

and Leaders Forum. Gary Serio

seminars at universities, busi-

Fappiano ’74 MKT, MBA ’80,

state tournament semifinals for

’86 MKT, senior vice president

nesses and corporations. In

of Wallingford, CT, is general

the past two years. He also offi-

of investments at Merrill Lynch

2009, he earned the National

manager of Global

ciates at football and boys

in Fairfield, CT, was recently

Quality Award from the

Environmental Technologies,

lacrosse games. Dan Biagioni

selected by Connecticut

National Association of

which has been named a mas-

’82 MKT of Oxford, CT,

Magazine as one of the “Top

Insurance and Financial

ter distributor by KX

launched Spice Catering Group

Financial Advisors” in the state

Advisors. Frank Lisnow ’68

Technologies for the USA and

in Durham, CT, this past spring.

and will be featured in the

BUS is executive director of the

the Middle East/Africa. KX

Spice caters corporate events,

December 2010 issue. Merrill

Center for Dependency,

manufactures water filtration

company picnics and special

Lynch management also select-

Addiction and Rehabilitation at

equipment. GET has offices in

events, weddings and other cel-

ed him to be a “Peer to Peer”

the University of Colorado

the U.S., Jordan, Saudi Arabia

ebrations. Dori E. Palcovich ’83

faculty member, a position that

Hospital in Aurora, CO. He was

and Egypt. Christopher J.

FIN, MBA ’92, of Honolulu, HI,

teaches best practices to other continued on page 29

AC Accounting ADV Advertising AS Associate’s Degree BUS Business Administration CIS Computer Information Systems EC Economics ENT Entrepreneurship FIN Finance IB International Business ISM Information Systems management MBA Master of Business Administration MGT Management MKT Marketing MOL Master of Organizational Leadership

Sales Representative Medtronic Inc.

By Janet Waldman

GRAD PROFILE

RYAN P. BROWN ’98

It’s not unusual for surgeons to use up to 200 different instruments in a single

Although he thinks the world of the medical teams he has worked with, he

do it without Amy’s support,” he says.

Quinnipiac provided the couple with

would not want to be a surgeon. “They

many good friends and memories, and

are working within millimeters of the

Brown is grateful for his four-year ath-

spinal cord utilizing sharp instru-

letic scholarship. A few months ago, he

ments,” he says with a laugh.

and alumni pals Tim Ludwig ’98 and

Before joining Medtronic eight years

Ted Madru ’98 attended a basketball

ago, Brown sold pharmaceuticals for

game at the TD Bank Sports Center.

spinal procedure, and Ryan Brown ’98

Schering-Plough, then medical devices

They decided that night to collectively

is familiar with all of them.

to alleviate chronic pain for St. Jude

endow a scholarship to be given to a

Medical. His job often means long

senior student athlete with a minimum

Medtronic Inc., Brown not only sup-

As a sales representative for

hours away from his family: wife Amy

3.0 GPA from the School of Business or

plies orthopedic surgeons with instru-

(Tober) Brown ’99, and children Devin,

College of Arts and Sciences. Having

ments and implants, but has a role in

Avery and Cooper, ranging in age

participated in athletics at Quinnipiac,

the operating room. Garbed in scrubs,

from 2 to 6. The family lives in Canton,

the trio felt that student athletes are

he uses a laser pointer to guide the

Conn. In return for the demanding

adept at managing time and striking a

surgical technician in the choice of

hours, Brown notes he is well

balance between sports and studies.

instruments he or she will hand to the

compensated.

surgeon.

“We are working with many implants, such as pedicle screws, tita-

“It’s an extremely interesting field,

“And most occupations in the business field rely on teamwork, so athlet-

and I enjoy my job––this is what drives

ics plays a huge role in molding some-

me to be successful. I certainly couldn’t

one’s work ethic,” Brown says.

nium rods and locking caps used to stabilize the spine. Part of my role is to meet with surgeons to review cases before procedures and order the necessary devices,” he says. In the OR, they rely on Brown to anticipate their next move and make sure they have the correct instrument at the right time. “We go in as a team,” says Brown, a team player from way back when he played forward on the basketball team at QU. He attends one or two surgeries a day, covering six hospitals in Connecticut with three other partners. He’s also on call for trauma cases. Extensive training has prepared him for the decisions he makes on his feet during operQUINNIPIAC UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF BUSINESS / FALL 2010

ations, some of which last eight to 10 hours. Recently, Brown’s cell phone rang at 11 p.m. A 21-year-old man had fallen from a zipline and fractured his spine. “I began running around to the various hospitals we serve to gather the appropriate instruments and implants and met the medical team at Hartford Hospital around 3 a.m.,” Brown recalls.

After the surgery, which went well, Brown headed directly to the surgery he was scheduled to attend that day.

business.quinnipiac.edu

27

Twenty-five years after earning his accounting degree from Quinnipiac, Kenneth J. Pia Jr. ’85 is a nationally known expert witness on the analysis and valuation of privately held businesses.

Pia, 47, took his name from the class rolls to the corporate marquee at Meyers, Harrison & Pia LLC in New Haven by identifying opportunities, setting goals and working hard to turn his goals into reality. His advice to anyone embarking on a career: Find a niche and make it your own.

As director of valuation services at the accounting firm, Pia serves clients all over the country. A Wallingford native, Pia currently lives in Guilford with his wife, Christine, and their sons, ages 21, 17 and 14.

The first move Pia made on the road to success was to choose the right major. “I was always good at math, and I liked accounting,” he said, crediting his high school accounting instructor with igniting his interest in the field.

After graduation, Pia worked at several area accounting firms, where he learned the basics of the profession. In 1990 he struck out on his own, becom& Associates, LLC. It was at that

KENNETH J. PIA JR. ’85

with an infant son––that he made a

Director of Valuation Services Meyers, Harrison & Pia LLC New Haven

decision that changed his life.

By Steve Higgins

time––26 years old and newly married

GRAD PROFILE

ing a founding partner in Marenna Pia

“I decided to specialize in business QUINNIPIAC UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF BUSINESS / FALL 2010

valuation, and I focused on getting all

28

the right professional designations,”

resolve disputes about the value of a

skills. The key is to build confidence by

said Pia, who became interested in the

business in a divorce case or in estate

truly learning your chosen specialty,

area while handling a divorce case.

and gift taxation matters. In addition

said Pia, who is now speaking and

“You have to find a niche that you like.

to being a certified public accountant

teaching nationally on the topics of

I enjoyed the courtroom, and for me

licensed in Connecticut and New York,

business valuation and employee stock

business valuation cases are never the

Pia is also an accredited senior

ownership plans.

same, there is always something dif-

appraiser, a certified business

ferent and new.”

appraiser and is accredited in business

youngest son’s baseball team and pre-

valuation.

viously coached his other sons’ hockey

Business valuation theory and models are used to determine the worth of

As a student in the early 1980s, Pia

In his spare time, Pia coaches his

and baseball teams. He also enjoys

a privately held business and what

was nervous about speaking in the

golfing and reading and continues to

price a buyer or seller might be willing

classroom. Over the years, however,

cruise down the road to success in his

to accept. It also can be used to help

he worked on his public speaking

1975 steel-blue convertible Corvette.

advisers. He lives in Guilford, Dix Hills, NY, is a retirement planning specialist at AXA Financial in Melville, NY. In May

SAVE THE DATE

he was interviewed by CNBC for a story on estate tax plan-

grad news

Reunion 2011

CT. Craig Silverman ’88 FIN of

June 24–26, 2011

ning. The article is online at www.cnbc.com/id/37088214/.

Milestone celebrations for Golden Bobcats, the classes of 1961, 1966, 1971, 1976, 1981, 1986, 1991, 1996, 2001 and 2006. All alumni welcome!

George Sweeney ’88 MGT is an account executive at Comcast Spotlight in Guilford. He handles advertising sales in New Haven, Middlesex and New London counties. Lauren (Festo) Villecco ’88 MKT is the president and founder of

needed by physicians and allied

ESPN, supporting the compa-

Children’s World Languages,

health professionals during

ny’s publishing business,

MGT owns Excellence

Inc., in Cheshire, CT, where she

emergency medical situations

including ESPN Magazine and

Performance, which sells per-

lives. The organization is a non-

in the event a patient is inca-

ESPN Books. He also manages

formance parts and accessories

profit afterschool foreign lan-

pacitated. Maureen McIntyre

the accounting for ESPN’s inter-

primarily for Japanese and

guage academy for elementary

’99 HA of Dorchester, MA, is a

national and domestic con-

European vehicles. Responding

school children. 1990s Linda

registered nurse at Bay Cove

sumer products business. He

to consumer demand, the com-

J. Wooster, MBA ’90, was

Human Services in Boston. She

lives in Meriden, CT. Janine

pany has begun servicing cars.

inducted into the Quinnipiac

graduated in June from UMass,

Garofalo ’02 MKT was promot-

Megan (Schaefer) Reda ’03

Athletic Hall of Fame in

Boston, with a BS in nursing

ed from marketing manager to

MGT, a human resources gen-

October 2010. Linda worked in

and passed her nursing boards

director of marketing commu-

eralist at Niche Media Holdings

Athletics from 1984 until 2009

in July. Previously, she worked

nications at the Financial

LLC, in New York City, was

and continues as a professor

at Brigham and Women’s

Times/Money-Media office in

given the lead position in the

emeritus in the School of

Hospital in the finance depart-

New York City. She oversees

human resources department.

Health Sciences. Gregory Sim

ment. Ken Schutt ’99 CIS is

five staff members who handle

Lonnie Rosenbaum ’03 MGT of

’93 MGT was promoted to sen-

working for Palo Alto-based

the marketing of finance publi-

Hoboken, NJ, co-founded

ior director of headwear and

software company, VMware in

cations and events. Marco

Introspectr, a tech startup that

apparel licensing in June at

San Francisco, CA, where he

Nardelli ’02 MGT of Prospect,

enables a person to search

Major League Baseball

lives. Ken leads VMware’s busi-

CT, owns Nardelli’s Grinder

across all of his or her personal

Properties in New York City. He

ness development efforts in the

Shoppes, which has locations

accounts on the Web from a

has been with the organization

area of cloud computing. Jon

in Waterbury, Naugatuck and

single location. In summer

since 1996. He lives in Orange,

Terry ’99 EC, MBA ’02 is assis-

Southbury. Nardelli’s was voted

2010, the company was one of

CT, with his wife, Kim (Faust)

tant director of facilities at

“Best Grinder” by readers of

five selected to participate in a start-up accelerator program

Sim ’92, and their 4-year-old

Quinnipiac. He oversees facili-

Connecticut Magazine for the

daughter, Katherine. Michael J.

ties operations at the

11th straight year. Melissa

called SeedStart in New York

Chaffee ’97 FIN is a senior

University’s York Hill Campus.

(Skrapits) Wagner ’02 MGT of

City (www.introspectr.com).

financial adviser with Michael J.

He lives in Hamden. 2000s

Scarsdale, NY, has returned to

Cory Nadilo ’05 ENT opened a

Chaffee & Associates, a finan-

Brian Dirschel ’01 MGT, MS ’07

the Rye Neck School District in

second Wings Your Way restau-

cial planning practice of

of Hamden is the Connecticut

Mamaroneck, NY, as a first-

rant in downtown Manchester,

Ameriprise Financial, in

IT site coordinator at Energizer

grade teacher. She has a daugh-

N.H., in June 2010. The first

Stratford, CT. Philip M. Goldfeld

in Shelton, CT. He manages all

ter, Caitlin Rose. Jeffrey Caprio

restaurant in North Hampton,

’97 BUS is president and CEO of

IT projects between the compa-

’03 FIN, MBA ’04, of New York

N.H., was voted “favorite sea-

LifeCard Plus, a document

ny’s production plant in Milford

City is controller of Pharmakon

coast restaurant” by New

information and records man-

and the corporate office in

Advisors, LP, in NYC, a private

Hampshire Magazine in 2010.

agement system. Its primar-

Shelton. Michael Aiello ’02 AC

equity fund. He also became

Taste Magazine’s readers’ poll

function is to provide records

is an accounting manager at

certified as a CPA in New York

and, for a fifth year in a row, continued on page 31

AC Accounting ADV Advertising AS Associate’s Degree BUS Business Administration CIS Computer Information Systems EC Economics ENT Entrepreneurship FIN Finance HA Health Administration IB International Business MBA Master of Business Administration MGT Management MKT Marketing MOL Master of Organizational Leadership

business.quinnipiac.edu

QUINNIPIAC UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF BUSINESS / FALL 2010

State. Joshua Lockwood ’03

29

keting from Salve Regina University under her belt, Tara Liscombe, JD/MBA ’06, figured the next step would be a

Senior Contract Negotiator Louis Dreyfus Highbridge Energy LLC Wilton, Conn.

By Rhea Hirshman

GRAD PROFILE

TARA LISCOMBE, JD/MBA ’06 With an undergraduate degree in mar-

business career and even envisioned herself pursuing an MBA. And then a friend preparing to take the LSAT convinced her to take the test with him. “I did well enough to consider applying to law school,” she says.

“When I was accepted at Quinnipiac School of Law, I thought, ‘Why not?’— especially after learning about the JD/MBA program.”

“I may not have slept enough during those few years,” says Liscombe, “but the differences between the two fields of study made completing both degrees at the same time manageable.” She began her MBA courses during her second year of law school.

The combination degree has been ideal. Although she works in the corporate world as a senior contract negotiator for Louis Dreyfus Highbridge Energy LLC in Wilton, Liscombe’s law school internships were related to family law, with additional concentration in alternative dispute resolution.

“I loved the work and got invaluable experience, but knew that family law was not what I wanted to pursue,” she says, “nor did I want to be a litigator.”

Inspired by one of her business professors, she sought a job that would combine her negotiation skills with her busiQUINNIPIAC UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF BUSINESS / FALL 2010

ness background. She calls her position

30

“a perfect mix of business and legal

she puts it, “those who find resources

work.”

in their backyard.”

Her company’s activities include the

The negotiations are complex and

Liscombe relaxes by hanging out with family and friends, making jewelry, and exercising as much as possible “to

storage, merchandising, marketing and

can be lengthy, Liscombe notes, since

counteract the effects of sitting all day.”

transportation of a wide range of

Louis Dreyfus Highbridge “looks to

Still, she says, “Getting both degrees

energy and energy-related products in

negotiate master agreements so that

has absolutely paid off. I couldn’t have

domestic and international markets. Lis-

products can continue to be traded

crafted a better job to make use of both

combe negotiates purchase and sale

without requiring new contracts every

my business and legal backgrounds. I

agreements of coal, power, oil and nat-

time a commercial opportunity arises.”

work with intelligent and dedicated peo-

ural gas from producers to end users,

The job involves overseas communica-

ple, and I’m always learning. It’s not

such as other energy companies, or

tion, dealing with foreign legal systems,

often that someone can say they found

utilities. The producers can range from

and working odd hours due to involve-

the perfect job soon out of school, but I

large, multinational companies to, as

ment in international markets.

think I did.”

the New Hampshire Magazine’s

years. Since joining Beiersdorf

fan pages, augmented reality,

readers’ poll, named Wings

in May 2007, he has managed

and all aspects of digital

recently was promoted to

Your Way as the restaurant

the logistical launch of Nivea

design. Zemina Jusic ’09

account executive for Madison Square Garden Sports in New

Sahr ’09 MKT of Hoboken, NJ,

Lip Care that involved a spon-

IB/MKT is an alternate chan-

sorship during the New Year’s

nels business account execu-

York City. He had previously

a position at The Blackstone

Eve in Times Square event.

tive at Comcast in Derby, CT,

served as an inside sales repre-

Group in New York City, where

Michael Bohmerwald ’08 MGT

where she lives. She was pro-

sentative for the company.

Ric Wallace ’09 FIN of New York

he lives. Scott Worroll ’06 MKT

is an account executive at

moted to the position in May.

of Middlefield, CT, is a market-

Indeed.com in Stamford, CT,

She handles marketing and

City is a business analyst and

ing manager at Square 9

where he lives. Joshua P.

sales. Amanda Kline ’09 ADV

project manager for the global

Softworks in New Haven.

Grenier, JD/MBA ’08 of Lyme,

of Hamden is a major account

credit trading middle office at Deutsche Bank in Manhattan.

Anthony Ciccone ’07 ISM is a

CT, recently was promoted to

manager at Dattco, Inc. She is

financial adviser for MetLife in

senior tax associate at

in charge of Dattco’s account

2010s Nicholas Fazio ’10 ISM

Brooklyn, NY, where he lives. In

McGladrey, an assurance, tax

with Quinnipiac University’s

of San Antonio, TX, is employed

2009, he was given a MetLife

and consulting firm based in

varsity athletic teams and has

by Teach For America as an

Super Starter Award and was

New Haven. Robert Macchi ’08

an office in the Quinnipiac

eighth-grade math teacher at

named a MetLife Leaders

FIN is a senior specialist in the

Recreation Center. Gilberto

Tafolla Middle School in San

Conference Qualifier.

business governance managed

Rosario, MS ’09, of Meriden, CT,

Antonio. Richard Kuchcicki ’08,

Christopher Dowd ’07 AC is an

solutions group at Merrill

is a systems engineer at Aetna,

MOL ’10, of Hamden is assistant

energy derivatives broker at MF

Lynch in Jersey City, NJ. He lives

Inc. in Hartford. He works with-

director of admissions at

Global in New York City. He

in Ridgewood, NJ. Adam

in Aetna’s Systems

Quinnipiac. Fernando Pires,

deals in natural gas and crude

Mileikowsky ’08 FIN of

Performance Management area.

MBA ’10, passed the June 2010

oil. Jason Goldstein ’07 MGT is

Stamford, CT, is a collections

Kasey Rosenberger ’09

Level I CFA exam. He works at

a marketing associate for

analyst at Glencore

FIN/MKT of Fairport, NY, is a

MetLife. Jill Seward ’08, MBA

TheLadders in New York City,

International AG in Stamford.

quantitative strategies group

’10, of Watertown, MA, is a web-

where he lives. He began there

He works with the oil traders

research assistant, working in

site content writer/editor for

in 2007 and is responsible for

and their counterparts to sort

equity research for Manning &

NESN. She provides nationwide

running both the job board and

out the exact costs involved in

Napier Advisers. Previously, she

sports coverage with a spotlight

affiliate marketing programs

the trades. Mario Pacelli ’08

worked as a reconciler in the

on Boston for the New England

for the company. Lina (DiGioia)

MKT is a bronze level sales

operations department. Evan

Sports Network website.

Pacelli ’02 BUS, MBA ’07, of

specialist at Beekley Corporation in Bristol, CT. He specializes in the sale of prod-

Hospital. She works closely

ucts that help treat and diag-

with the chief compliance offi-

nose cancer. He lives in Derby,

cer/counsel to implement and

CT. Andrea Rafala ’08 ADV is

monitor the Norwalk Hospital

an assistant account manager

corporate compliance plan.

at Keiler and Company. She

Erin Sullivan ’07 MGT of

lives in South Glastonbury, CT.

Wilmington, MA, is a contract-

Jared Daniels ’09 ENT is an IT

ing specialist with the U.S. Air

advisory associate at KPMG in

Force at Hanscom Air Force

New York City. Bobby

Base. She is pursuing an MBA

Emamian ’09 ENT of Cheshire,

at Marist College. Andrew

CT, is CEO of Prolific Interactive

Videira ’07 IB was promoted

in Hamden and New York City,

to product manager for

a new media digital agency he

Beiersdorf, Inc.’s Eucerin Skin

founded in April 2009 with Eric

Care. He will manage the roll-

Weber ’08. Prolific’s client serv-

out of a new brand strategy

ices include websites, mobile

that is expected to double

applications, social media mar-

annual sales in the next five

keting campaigns, Facebook

Meet us in the City Guest speaker: Ashleigh Banfield, broadcast journalist Visit with fellow alumni, Dean Matt O’Connor and professors

Nov. 17, 2010 • 6–8 p.m.

Cornell Club 6 E. 44th Street New York City $20 in advance, $30 at the door, includes cocktails and hors d’oeuvres

register at www.quinnipiac.edu/events.xml

AC Accounting ADV Advertising AS Associate’s Degree BUS Business Administration CIS Computer Information Systems EC Economics ENT Entrepreneurship FIN Finance IB International Business ISM Information Systems Management MBA Master of Business Administration MGT Management MKT Marketing MOL Master of Organizational Leadership

business.quinnipiac.edu

QUINNIPIAC UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF BUSINESS / FALL 2010

Derby, CT, is a corporate compliance coordinator at Norwalk

grad news

with the “Best Buffalo Wings.”

Brian Batten ’06 FIN accepted

31

department news

Making connections 1–Enjoying the men’s lacrosse alumni game in early October, from left: A.J. Alessi ’10 (public relations), Alex DeAlmeida ’10 (finance), James Gianfelice ’10 (accounting), Drew Falkenhan ’10 (marketing), and Garret Kerr ’10 (economics).

2–At the August Young Alumni Night outside the Stonebridge Restaurant in Milford, from left: Allison Tait ’04 and Paula (Rembac) Miller ’96 (both health administration), and Kimberly (Piazza) Bean ’04 (marketing).

3–From left: Steve Preisig ’02, MBA ’03, Joseph Karwosky ’05 (computer science/financial management), and Luc-John Pentz ’08, MBA ’10

1

at an August reception.

4, 5–Among the School of Business alumni attending the 28th annual QU Night at the Red Sox were Scott Quagliariello ’00 and Kristen (Sangster) Quagliariello ’01, MPT ’03, in photo 4; and in photo 5, Sharon Muldoon, MBA ’07, center, her guest, and former Red Sox outfielder Billy Conigliaro, right.

6–Head men’s basketball coach Tom Moore,

3

2

left, at the President’s Cup Golf Tournament with QU trustees and School of Business alumni Dennis Flanagan ’72 (marketing) Bill Ayers ’70 (marketing), and David Nelson ’81 (health administration).

7– David Darst, left, managing director and chief investment strategist with Morgan Stanley Smith Barney, chats with trustees M.S. Koly and Terry W. Goodwin ’67, and senior Ben Wald before a lecture in October.

QUINNIPIAC UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF BUSINESS / FALL 2010

4

32

6

5

7

Connect with the School of Business ADVANTAGES TO STAYING IN TOUCH • Establish a permanent forwarding email address that goes wherever you go • Search for colleagues by specialty, class year or location • Post a job, search for positions or publish your resume • Keep in touch with alumni all over the world • Update your employment information • Visit the career center • Sign up for alumni events • Volunteer to speak with students • Hire students and graduates for internships and jobs

NOT A MEMBER YET? NO PROBLEM! REGISTER NOW BY FOLLOWING THE EASY STEPS BELOW: • Go to www.quinnipiac.edu/qunet.xml and click on register • Read and follow the on-screen instructions.

For questions about registration, you can email alumni@quinnipiac.edu or call 877-582-1929.

To get involved with the School of Business, contact melinda.formica@quinnipiac.edu

Ken Hutchinson ’81, left, operational director at Connecticut Lighting Centers, serves as a mentor to Megan Doyle ’11.

That’s one way he stays in touch with Quinnipiac. Other alumni participate on educational panels, provide shadowing experiences for current students or hire interns and graduates.

School of Business 275 Mount Carmel Ave. Hamden, CT 06518-1908

Nonprofit Org. U.S. Postage PAID

Burlington, VT Permit No. 151

alumni events

receptions, games, etc.

CHANGE SERVICE REQUESTED

W

November 3, 2010

University-wide Career Fair 11 a.m.–3 p.m.

Recreation Center, Mount Carmel Campus

TU

Nov. 9, 2010

Business Leader Hall of Fame Inductee: Peyton Patterson, chairman, president and CEO, NewAlliance Bank Alumni Honorees: Janalynne Gius ’95 and Charles Saia ’91, MBA ’94 Student Honorees: Keith Levine ’09, MBA ’10 and Stephanie Norris ’11 6–9 p.m.

New Haven Lawn Club Cost: $250, includes reception and dinner

W

November 17, 2010

New York City Networking Reception Guest speaker: Ashleigh Banfield, broadcast journalist 6–8 p.m.

Cornell Club 6 E. 44th Street, New York City Cost: $20 advance, $30 at door Includes cocktails and hors d’oeuvres

SA

December 4, 2010

W

December 8, 2010

Pregame Reception & QU vs. Harvard Men’s Hockey Game 5–7 p.m. Pregame reception 7 p.m. QU vs. Harvard men’s hockey game, Bright Hockey Center, Cambridge, MA Cost: $25 includes reception and game ticket Hosted by the Greater Boston Alumni Chapter

March 31, 2011

Alumni Reception & Rocky Top Tours before QU vs. Clarkson men’s hockey

TH

Special guest: Manny Carreiro, vice president and dean of students 5–7 p.m. reception & tours of Rocky Top Student Center, York Hill Campus 7 p.m. QU vs. Clarkson men’s hockey game, TD Bank Sports Center Cost: $15 includes reception and game ticket $10 reception only Cash bar Hosted by the New Haven Alumni Chapter

Global Asset Management Education For students, faculty, and business professionals 8 a.m.–4 p.m.

TD Bank Sports Center, York Hill Campus Cost: $225; 6 CE hours available http://game.quinnipiac.edu

For details, updates and to register for these events, please visit www.quinnipiac.edu/events.xml or call the Office of Development & Alumni Affairs toll-free at 877-582-1929.

Quinnipiac University G.A.M.E. Forum

F–SU

June 24–26, 2011

Reunion Weekend 2011 Milestone reunion celebrations for the classes of 1961, 1966, 1971, 1976, 1981, 1986, 1991, 1996, 2001 and 2006.

All alumni welcome!