Business Briefs (Summer 2014)

This article first appeared in the UConn Business magazine, Volume 4, Issue 3 (Summer 2014)

Faculty & Research

Tim Folta, professor and Thomas John & Bette Wolff Chair in Strategic Entrepreneurship, was named editor for an upcoming 2016 issue of Advances in Strategic Management on the topic of “Corporate Strategy and Resource Redeployment.” Folta was also appointed to the editorial board of Strategy Science and accepted as a fellow to the University of Strasbourg Institute for Advanced Study.

Hongju Liu, assistant professor of marketing, presented a research seminar on advertising spillovers in the pharmaceutical industry on May 2 in the School of Business.

Bill Ross, professor and ING Global Chair, along with co-authors Saerom Lee (University of Texas at San Antonio) and Karen Page (Penn State), were recently published in the Journal of Consumer Research for their research on the roles of empathy and justice in charitable giving.

Data released by Academic Analytics for the 2009-2013 period places UConn’s Management Department in first place (tied with Penn State) in per capita scholarly productivity. Known as the Faculty Scholarly Productivity Index, this ranking considers the research activity of 186 universities nationwide.

The Association for Information System’s (AIS) Senior Scholars’ Basket of Journals ranks UConn’s Operations & Information Technology Department in the top 15 schools worldwide for research productivity over the last five years and 10th in the top two premiere journals alone.

Faculty members retiring from the School this year include Walter Dolde, Linda Klein, Gim Seow and Jim Sfiridis.

Programs & Initiatives

The MS in Business Analytics and Project Management (MSBAPM) Program has been listed among the most prominent big data and analytics degree programs by BI Software Insight.

The School was recently recognized by Insurance News Net for its adaptability to the job market in expanding business programs at UConn Stamford, as well as strengthening its ties with the business community.

Fiserv, Inc., the Savings Bank of Danbury, and Greylock Federal Credit Union have partnered with the Financial Accelerator to develop a business case for enhancing the millennial banking experience through leading-edge technology from Fiserv.

IBM is partnering with the School as part of a nationwide education initiative to help expand and launch new curricula, as well as provide students with business knowledge and IT skills for data intensive careers.

The Financial Management undergraduate major at UConn Stamford has been accepted into the CFA Institute’s University Recognition Program, offering students exclusive support from institute member companies such as Barclays, CreditSights, and Atlantic Asset Management, including access to a wide array of research and financial analytic tools.

The School’s Connecticut Information Technology Institute (CITI) at UConn Stamford has been authorized to provide project management certification training for veterans and other eligible U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs beneficiaries.

The School’s Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) Program completed its 14th consecutive year with 68 student volunteers assisting 650 taxpayers in completing their income tax returns. The IRS-sponsored program provides free tax assistance and tax return preparation services for individuals who are economically disadvantaged, as well as for international students and scholars.

UConn’s new research partnership in sustainable energy with the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology was awarded a supporting gift from the Satell Family Foundation, founded by Ed Satell ’57.

The School has joined a newly formed Military & Veterans Employer Resource Group (ERG), a collaboration of employers, institutions of higher education and veteran groups dedicated to veteran-centered topics in the workplace, including deployment, resume sharing and buddy programs.

On June 25, the Board of Trustees approved a Master of Science degree and Advanced Business Certificate in Human Resource Management beginning fall 2014.

As of July 1, the Full-time MBA Program and Graduate Career Center have officially moved from the Storrs campus to the Graduate Business Learning Center in downtown Hartford.

Student Achievements

Two UConn teams (out of 200 entrants) placed in the 2014 Connecticut Business Plan Competition: UConn Stamford undergraduates Karlian Brown and Christian Tovar won three months of free co-working space in the Stamford Innovation Center; and Michael Maczka ’14 MBA won a $500 grant for Best Oral Presentation and $2,500 in legal services.

Doctoral student Margaret Luciano (management) was awarded a Society for Human Resource Management Foundation (in partnership with the HR Division of the Academy of Management) Dissertation Grant for 2014 to support her dissertation research.

Recipients of the 2014 Departmental Ph.D. Student Teaching Awards include: Biyu Wu (accounting); Yihong Xiao (finance); Wonseok Choi (management); Selcan Kara (marketing); and Gang Wang (OPIM). Wang also received the School’s Outstanding Ph.D. Student Teaching Award. Margaret Luciano (management) received the 2014 Outstanding Ph.D. Program-wide Student Scholar Award.

Event Roundup

On April 8, the MS in Business Analytics & Project Management Program hosted a career fair in Hartford with representatives from 10 companies and more than 60 students participating.

On April 24, the Accounting Department hosted more than 300 guests at its annual honors banquet and awarded 157 student scholarships.

On May 1, the 12th annual Real Estate awards banquet honored 28 students, alumni, faculty and businesses for their outstanding contributions and achievements.

On May 22, UConn Stamford hosted the first International Haitian Diaspora Summit on Education and Business to promote education, business and cultural exchanges between the State of Connecticut and Haiti.

On June 18, the School, together with Vichara Technologies, hosted “How Technology Can Drive Your Performance Edge,” a 100 Women in Hedge Funds® event at the Stamford campus.

In Memoriam

Ernest A. DiMattia, Jr. ’81 MBA, former faculty member of the UConn School of Business and president and chief executive officer of The Ferguson Library in Stamford, Connecticut, passed away on June 28, 2014.


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