UConn Business Magazine – Summer 2014

September 3, 2014

UConn Business MagazineThe latest issue of UConn Business is now available. In this issue, we focus on modern business education. Our feature article highlights the Storrs headquarters of the Connecticut Small Business Development Center. We also share with you “Insights on the Frontier of Marketing,” reflecting emerging communication trends; “Hall of Fame 2014,” introducing you to our five newest Hall of Fame members; “Giving Back with Pride,” one family’s generous gift to the School; and the Executive MBA summer business trip to South Africa.

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From Contest to Success: Following iQ Startups

September 2, 2014

Blue Edge Labs – The UCONN program is run by Dr. Richard Dino, a professor from the School of Business with an endless amount of enthusiasm and encouragement. Keith Fox, an alumnus of UCONN, provides iQ support from the national program level. In addition to Rich and Keith, there are twenty or more individuals both inside and outside the University who provide mentoring and other program support.

B-School Expands Professional Development Programs, Adds Finance for Non-financial Managers for Fall

August 29, 2014

Professional Development ArticleThe UConn School of Business will offer an executive education program this fall titled, “Finance for Non-financial Managers.”

The two-day, professional development program is from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. October 23 and 24 at the UConn Graduate Business Learning Center, 100 Constitution Plaza, Hartford.

The program is designed to enable mid- to senior-level business managers to better understand and interpret their company’s financial status, thereby offering depth of insight to make sound company financial decisions.

“Finance for Non-financial Managers” provides the essential elements of finance and accounting, whereby participants will learn about different financial principles, including value creation and value drivers, revenue and expense recognition concepts, ratio analysis, financial statement analysis, time value of money and capital budgeting and project evaluation.

In addition, the workshop will enable the participant to understand and interpret the major financial statements of the firm and to assess how the firm is creating value for its stockholders. Interactive exercises, based on nine public companies, across several industries, will be used to apply these concepts.

The program instructor is Robert Hoskin, associate professor emeritus of the Accounting Department at UConn. Hoskin is a leading expert and consultant in insurance and banking accounting, and an award-winning teacher. He was on the faculty at the UConn School of Business for 27 years and during that time directed executive programs. He holds a Ph.D. in Business Administration from Cornell University.

Register now! For more information please call (860) 728-2400 or email execed@business.uconn.edu.

The School is also offering Hands-on Lean Business Process Improvement program November 6-7. Registration for this program will open shortly.

execed.business.uconn.edu

David Bergman Receives Prestigious Association for Constraint Programming Doctoral Thesis Award

August 28, 2014

David BergmanDavid Bergman, an assistant professor of Operations and Information Management in the School of Business, has been selected as the winner of this year’s Association for Constraint Programming Doctoral Thesis Award.
The annual award is given to a researcher who has completed his/her thesis in the area of constraint programming. Bergman will present his thesis at this year’s 20th International Conference on Principles and Practices of Constraint Programming in Lyon, France, in September.

Bergman’s thesis is titled, “New Techniques for Discrete Optimization,” and it explores new methodological approaches to discrete optimization problems, an area of operations research which finds an increasing number of applications in fields such as finance, healthcare, and logistics, to name just a few. His thesis provides both theoretical insights and important algorithmic discoveries which together improve upon existing state-of-the-art technology.

He completed his Ph.D. in 2013 at Carnegie Mellon University in Algorithms, Combinatorics, and Optimization, a joint program administered by the Tepper School of Business, the Department of Mathematical Sciences, and the Computer Science Department. Bergman’s thesis advisors were John N. Hooker and Willem-Jan van Hoeve.

An abstract of “New Techniques for Discrete Optimization” is available here.

Grad Students on Verge of Exponential Change, Says Senior Executive, UConn Alumna Melinda Brown

August 27, 2014

What’s the key to staying competitive in a quickly changing job market?

Society Room Hartford EventBuild a strong skill set, distinguish yourself from your peers, and be a productive, likeable, and forward-thinking employee, said Melinda Brown, ’77, ’85 MBA.

Brown, the senior vice president and corporate controller of Coach Inc., a $5 billion company, directed her remarks to UConn’s graduate business students during an alumni-student networking event Aug. 21 at the Society Room in Hartford.

Brown earned her Bachelor of Science in Accounting from the School of Business in 1977 and her MBA from UConn in 1985. She is on the Board of Directors for the UConn Foundation, and in 2012 was inducted into the School of Business Hall of Fame. After 29 years as a top executive with PepsiCo, she joined Coach two years ago.

Since she earned her MBA, Brown said, the world has accelerated at a rapid rate. While functional excellence is still important, today it is vital to spot converging trends, she said. To her parents, owning a microwave and TV was innovation. For today’s students she predicts they will someday be vacationing off the Earth.

“Today everything is feasible, everything is one moment away,” she said. “The next innovation is right around the corner.”

She urged the students to take advantage of every opportunity as they pursue their degrees.

“You can’t afford to come here to punch your ‘MBA ticket’ and become functionally literate and grab your diploma. This is a journey to learn both facts and ways of thinking and operating and well, frankly, about how to confront what you can’t even yet articulate. Those are the areas to explore, to dig into.

“The things that scare you the most are often the most rewarding. Develop your frameworks and paradigms, focus on creativity, EQ, collaboration and leadership—stretch yourself in ways you may have not previously contemplated. This is a safe place to practice being the next version and the next version and the next version of you.”

More than ever, organizations are seeking “design thinkers,” who can identify problems at their root cause. These are the people who will make the world a different place.

“I have one cell phone, two iPads and two computers. But if you asked me when I purchased my first Gateway computer in 1995, I would have told you that I thought it would be doubtful that any home needed more than one computer, let alone one person having multiple personal devices. The designers of all my mobile devices uncovered what I really needed, not what I told them I thought I needed. Henry Ford got it right—he said, “If I asked my customer what he wanted, he would have said, ‘A faster horse.'”

As her remarks drew to a close, she told the 150 graduate students that their future was certain to be exciting—and unprecedented.

“I know you’re going to get a wonderful education,” she told the students, “and I hope you’re ready for exponential times.”

Pictured: Mario Flores of New Britain, Alia Mahmood of North Haven, and Nicole Segretta of Bristol, all graduate business students at the University of Connecticut School of Business, speak with John A. Elliott, dean of the School of Business, and Melinda Brown, senior vice president and corporate controller at Coach Inc., during a student-alumni networking event on August 21 at the Society Room in Hartford.

Job Recovery Has Been Steady, But Slow, Under Malloy

August 25, 2014

New Haven Register – Malloy’s Republican opponent, Tom Foley, has suggested elimination of the business entity tax, a cut to sales tax and the creation of enterprise zones in the city’s hardest hit by the recession could resuscitate Connecticut’s economy and labor market. But Fred Carstensen, University of Connecticut finance and economics professor and the director of the Connecticut Center for Economic Analysis, isn’t sold on Foley’s ideas.

This archived article is no longer available.

Alumni News & Notes (Summer 2014)

August 22, 2014

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

1960s

Scott S. Cowen ’68, ’10H has been elected to the board of directors at Barnes & Noble. Cowen was also presented with the 2014 Maimonides Award by Hillel International for his dedication to higher education in promoting a deep commitment to Jewish and secular learning. Cowen is a member of the School of Business Hall of Fame. Ronald A. Pace ’69, ’72 MBA was elected to the Ariens Company Board of Directors.Pace is currently group president of interiors for the Kohler Company. He also serves on the boards of Road America as well as The Milwaukee Masterpiece. He is a guest lecturer and adjunct professor at Marquette’s Graduate School of Business. Mark R. Shenkman ’67 (CLAS) received the prestigious 2014 Renaissance Award by Hillel International for his advocacy of higher education and Israel. Shenkman is a member of the School of Business Hall of Fame.

1970s

David E. Sturgess ’78 has been appointed senior vice president, secretary and general counsel of Affinia Group Inc. Prior to his appointment at Affinia, he led all legal activities at ReCommunity Recycling.

1980s

Douglas G. Elliot ’82 has been named president of The Hartford. Elliot joined The Hartford in 2011 as president of Commercial Markets and was previously the president of Hartford Steam Boiler.Elliot is also a member of the School of Business Hall of Fame. Stephen M. Holcomb ’86 MBA has been appointed to chief executive officer at SmartPay Solutions. Holcomb is an experienced leader having worked with several companies in the insurance services and technology markets. Brian J. Kelley ’86 MBA has been named interim chief executive officer at Alteva, Inc., a premier provider of hosted Unified Communications as a Service (UCaaS). Kelley joined Alteva’s Board in November of 2013 and is currently the chief executive officer of Four Winds Advisors LLC. John C. Lent ’87 MBA has been appointed executive vice president and chief financial officer of Atlantic Coast Financial Corporation and its subsidiary Atlantic Coast Bank. Prior to his appointment, Lent served as the president of Temenos Advisory. Steven H. Mikel ’86 MBA has joined Caprock Oil Inc. as president and chief executive officer. Mikel has more than 30 years of experience in the industry’s financial and operating sectors. William H. Morgan ’81 has been promoted to co-head of healthcare financial services at Wells Fargo. Prior to his promotion, Morgan led the healthcare financial services in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeast regions. Thomas W. Prete ’84, ’01 MBA has been inducted into the Connecticut Academy of Science and Engineering. Prete is currently the vice president of engineering at Pratt & Whitney. Scott A. Trenholm ’82 has been named leader of the New England audit practice at Grant Thornton. Trenholm has more than 30 years of experience in auditing and financial consulting.

1990s

Brian M. DiBella ’92 has been named president of Legrand North America’s Electrical Wiring Systems division. Prior to his appointment, DiBella was the general manager of Wiremold and previously served as Legrand North America’s chief information officer. Daniel C. Dipillo ’99 has joined PricewaterhouseCoopers, LLP as an assurance partner. Dipillo will be focused on the industrial products and aerospace and defense sectors. John P. Gianukakis ’98 MBA has been appointed vice president and treasurer of Frontier Communications Corporation. Gianukakis has 25 years of experience in treasury, financial services capital markets, insurance, bank relationships, and investment and commercial banking and information technology.Most recently, Gianukakis was the senior vice president of finance and treasurer of Castleton Commodities International. Joshua D. Goldfarb ’96 has joined PricewaterhouseCoopers, LLP as an advisory partner. Goldfarb will specialize in finance, technology and operations, focusing on the financial service sector. Nicole M. Lindsay ’96 has published a new book, The MBA Slingshot for Women: Using Business School to Catapult Your Career. Her book is a gender-based road map for women to develop the knowledge, skills and relationships to succeed in business school and beyond. Robert T. Peterson ’95 MBA has been named chief executive officer at Millinocket Regional Hospital in Maine. Peterson is a seasoned healthcare executive with more than 25 years of experience. He previously served as patient care administrator for surgery and women and children’s services at Eastern Maine Medical Center in Bangor, Maine. Scott Wulinsky ’96 has been appointed to chief accounting officer of Affinia. Prior to his appointment at Affinia, Wulinsky served as the director of regulated accounting at Duke Energy Corporation.

2000s

Shelly Abdella ’05 MBA has been promoted to senior vice president of finance and profitability at Webster Bank. Abdella joined Webster Bank in 2001 and has held positions such as financial analyst and vice president of finance with the financial planning department. Robert Casey ’05 EMBA is currently the vice president and director of mutual fund compliance at Hartford Funds. Casey and his family moved from Storrs to Malvern, Pennsylvania in conjunction with the recent relocation of the Hartford Funds from Simsbury, Connecticut to Radnor, Pennsylvania. Wade A. Gibbs ’00 has been named the adult ambassador for the 2014 Greater Hartford Walk to Cure Arthritis by the Arthritis Foundation, New England Region. As an ambassador, Gibbs will help the Greater Hartford Walk to Cure Arthritis reach its fundraising goal of $104,580. Ryan J. Krueger ’06 has been appointed to managing director of equity research at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods. Prior to his appointment at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods, Krueger served at Dowling & Partners securities as partner and sector head. Jose C. Oliveira ’00, ’01 MSA has joined Moriarty & Primack, P.C. as a tax manager. Oliveira is also a member of the AICPA and the Connecticut Society of CPAs. Diana J. Piquette ’06, ’07 MSA has joined The Phoenix Companies, Inc. as second vice president, GAAP accounting and assistant controller. Piquette was most recently an audit manager at Deloitte & Touche, focused on life insurance accounts. Gregg B. Schuster ’05 MBA, former First Selectman of Colchester, Connecticut, was appointed township manager of Pocono Township, Pennsylvania.

2010s

John P. Bonora ’11 MSFRM has joined First County Bank as the senior vice president, chief credit and chief risk officer. Bonora has also recently been honored as one of the Fairfield County 2014 “40 Under 40” business executives for demonstrating extraordinary leadership qualities. Jeffrey R. Carlson ’14 Ph.D. (marketing) has successfully defended his dissertation titled “Exploring the Importance and Value of Studying Subjective Time in Marketing Management.” Carlson has accepted a position as assistant professor at the University of Richmond. Matthew D. Dean ’10 Ph.D. has been appointed to associate professor of business with tenure at the University of Southern Maine School of Business. Dean is also the director of the Maine Center for Business and Economic Research at the University of Southern Maine. Norman Massel ’14 Ph.D. (accounting) has successfully defended his dissertation titled “The Effect of Exemption from Mandatory Disclosure to the IRS on Firm Value and Behavior.” Massel has accepted a tenure track position as assistant professor at Louisiana State University. John Tartaglio ’14 MBA was featured on the cover of the 2014 spring issue of UConn Magazine: Portraits of Strength. His story appeared among those of eleven alumni who spoke out about their enduring spirit, sharing their darkest struggles as well as their greatest triumphs. Shuai Yang ’14 Ph.D. (marketing) successfully defended her dissertation titled, “Two Essays on Matching Strategy in Paid Search Advertising.” Yang has accepted a position at Donghua University in Shanghai, China.

Giving Back with Pride

Gift from Nayden Family Supports Business School’s Pursuit of Excellence

Giving Back with Pride
Pictured above: The Naydens were honored for their $3 million gift during the women’s home game on Dec. 5. From left: Coach Geno Auriemma, Denis Nayden, Britta Nayden, Uconn Board of Trustees Chairman Lawrence McHugh, Director of Athletics Warde Manuel, President of the UConn Foundation Joshua Newton, School of Business Dean John Elliott, and former UConn Husky Meg Culmo (UConn Foundation Photo)

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

A fondness for their days at UConn, and their desire to help young people have similar experiences, prompted Denis ’76, ’77 and Britta ’76 Nayden to establish a $1 million scholarship program specifically for college athletes who share the family’s interest in business, physical therapy or kinesiology.

“We are proud UConn grads and this is our way to share and give back, which we both believe in,” Denis Nayden said. Their $1 million gift for scholarships was part of a $3 million pledge to the University that includes $1 million for the Basketball Champions Center and a $1 million challenge grant to match support for the center from former Husky basketball players.

“Philanthropic support like this is absolutely essential to the School of Business and to UConn,” said Dean John A. Elliott. “Support for scholarships plays an absolutely vital role in recruiting the best students to UConn. The availability and generosity of a scholarship is often a crucial factor in a student’s decision about college choice. Private giving for scholarship allows the School of Business to continue to attract the most qualified students and support them while they are here.”

UConn President Susan Herbst also welcomed the generous philanthropic support from the Naydens. “UConn’s new academic plan sets impressive goals for the next decade for research, scholarship and undergraduate and graduate education, all designed to raise UConn to the ranks of the world’s greatest universities,” she said. “Private support from our alumni and friends, such as this gift from the Naydens, is absolutely essential in our journey.”

The Naydens graduated from UConn in 1976, Denis with a BA from the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences and Britta with a BS from the School of Allied Health, now part of the Neag School of Education. Denis received his MBA from the School of Business in 1977, and went on to a successful career with GE and Oak Hill Capital Management, where he currently serves as managing partner. He has served on UConn’s Board of Trustees since 2001 and also has worked diligently on a variety of committees for the UConn Foundation.

“Our donation to the basketball center is an investment in a great program. Our challenge grant is meant to encourage participation by former players, who fully understand the spirit of competition, and our scholarship gift is designed to support student athletes, who share our interest in business, physical therapy or kinesiology. Its support for a great program and for giving young people a shot at a great education, wrapped up in a big UConn bow,” Denis Nayden added.

The incoming freshmen in the Class of 2017 were the most academically accomplished group to enter UConn in its history. With an average SAT score of 1233, they outpaced the preceding year’s incoming freshmen, whose average of 1226 had set the previous record. The increase in high performing students is a key factor in UConn’s rise from number 27 in the 2010 US. News & World Report to number 19 in 2013, said Elliott.

“We are so grateful and so proud that our alumni understand that support for scholarship helps the School of Business attract the kinds of students and scholars who elevate its stature,” according to Elliott.


 

Note: Denis Nayden is a member of the UConn School of Business Hall of Fame and has been a distinguished speaker at recent School of Business ceremonies.