Author: Claire Hall


Thrive or Falter?

Stressed business man looking at a computer with his hands over his face.

UConn Professor Finds that ‘Emotional Intelligence’ May Determine Whether Young Managers Succeed

UConn Management Professor Yuntao Dong and two of her colleagues believe they may have uncovered possible reasons why some young managers thrive in challenging new jobs, while others become frustrated and discouraged.

In an article published on the Harvard Business Review web site, Dong and her colleagues revealed the findings of their research that analyzed the “emotional intelligence” of 214 study participants. While all were highly intelligent, some of them were identified as having a better ability to deal with frustration, uncertainty and other challenges associated with new, demanding tasks.Continue Reading


CEO Evolution

Graphic with the text "Your exclusive invitation. 2015 CEO Evolution."

Top CEOs to Share Business Insight, Success Secrets at ‘CEO Evolution’ Program in Stamford

Three exceptional CEOs will reveal the secrets to success at the second annual “CEO Evolution” at 6 p.m. June 15 at the University of Connecticut’s Stamford campus.

The program is presented by Citrin Cooperman, the University of Connecticut School of Business and the Fairfield County Business Journal.

The panel will include:Continue Reading


MBA Program Deemed ‘Best Value’

Poets & Quants MBA ranking logo.

 

The full-time MBA program at the University of Connecticut School of Business is among the “Best MBA Programs for Value” in the country, according to Poets and Quants, a news website specializing in business-school evaluations.

In an article released May 9, the web site highlighted the program after reviewing research by several other studies that evaluate programs using different methodologies. The UConn program ranked No. 13 by Value Colleges and No. 21 by GraduatePrograms.com.Continue Reading


A Day of Celebration

Nobel-Prize Winning Professor Robert Shiller, speaking from a podium at 2015 Commencement.

Nobel-Prize Winning Professor Tells Business Graduates to Do Well, Do Good

The business world can sometimes seem like a vicious place, but as UConn School of Business graduates begin their professional careers, they should stay faithful to their moral compass and never lose sight of the well-being of the communities they serve.

That was the advice offered by graduation speaker Robert J. Shiller, the winner of the 2013 Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences. He is also the Sterling Professor of Economics and a professor and fellow in finance at Yale University.

Shiller spoke Sunday May 10 to an enthusiastic crowd of undergraduates, parents and friends under the dome of Gampel Pavilion. UConn President Susan Herbst and members of the Board of Trustees were also present. This year nearly 700 undergraduates received their bachelors’ degrees in business.Continue Reading


Business Hall of Fame Induction

2015 Hall of Fame Recipients group photo.
Pictured L to R: 2015 Hall of Fame inductees David B. Greenfield ’84, Norman W. Lacroix ’72 MBA, Wendy Reeves Watkins ’74

Alumni Say Though Campus Has Changed, the Camaraderie at UConn Remains the Same

The School of Business welcomed four new members to its Hall of Fame and paid tribute to veterans of the U.S. Armed Services in a May 8 ceremony at the Connecticut Convention Center in Hartford.

Among the inductees were: David B. Greenfield ’84; Norman W. Lacroix ’72 MBA, Wendy Reeves Watkins ’74. The late Brigadier Gen. James S. Creedon ’53 was inducted posthumously.

Dean John A. Elliott noted that this year’s inductees have not only achieved tremendous success in their careers, but have made a personal commitment to the betterment of their communities by advocating for and supporting higher education, theaters and museums, food banks and many other deserving institutions.Continue Reading


50 Years of Excellence

UConn Center for Real Estate 50th Anniversary Gala awards on a table.

Gala Evening Celebrates Accomplishments of UConn’s Prestigious Real Estate Program

Some 300 people—from real estate legends to revered faculty to soon-to-be graduates—filled the Rome Ballroom on the Storrs campus to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Center for Real Estate and Urban Economic Studies.

The tight-knit commercial real estate community came out to laude the program’s accomplishments, honor those who have shaped its success, reminisce about the growth of the program over the decades, and to look enthusiastically toward the future.

The UConn Real Estate program has long been regarded as one of the best in the country. Director John Glascock announced that the program’s Advisory Council has secured $2 million in endowed funds for the program during the last four years. At the dinner it was announced that an endowed scholar position would be created in honor of William Kinnard, the first director of the Center. Long-time Professor John Clapp will be named as The William N. Kinnard Research Scholar. Continue Reading


Alumna Named SUNY Dean

Rowena Ortiz-Walters Becomes One of the Few Hispanic-Americans to Lead a U.S. Business School

Portrait of Rowena Ortiz-Walters.
Pictured: Rowena Ortiz-Walters. Photo courtesy of Quinnipiac University.

Rowena Ortiz-Walters, a two-time UConn graduate who earned her Ph.D. in 2005, has been appointed Dean of the School of Business and Economics at the State University of New York—Plattsburgh.

Ortiz-Walters is only the ninth Hispanic-American dean of a business school in the United States, according to The Ph.D. Project, a program designed to foster more diversity in corporate America and higher education administration. She will begin her new job on July 1.Continue Reading


Creating a Better World

Duo photo of John Elliott and Jeff Brown from the Social Enterprise Conference.
Pictured L to R: School of Business Dean John Elliott and Jeff Brown, EVP at Newman’s Own Foundation.

Mission-Focused Businesses Subject of Recent Conference

Business partners Spencer Curry and Kieran Foran go to work at their FRESH Farm Aquaponics business in South Glastonbury every day, believing they’re one step closer to solving world hunger.

When Justin Nash was a Captain in the U.S. Army in Afghanistan, his soldiers looked to him for guidance. Now a civilian, he’s using those leadership traits at Til Duty is Done, an organization he created which seeks to provide housing, employment training and career opportunities for returning veterans. Til Duty is Done, Nash said, gives him a renewed sense of purpose.Continue Reading


‘Accelerate UConn’ Begins

New Program Prepares to Welcome Inaugural Teams of Inventors

The University of Connecticut is launching a new program, called Accelerate UConn, which will encourage and fund student and faculty teams interested in developing technology-focused start-up companies.

The program is made possible by a $100,000, one-year grant from the National Science Foundation Innovation Corps (I-Corps), that may be extended for two additional years.Continue Reading


Real Estate: The Practical Approach

David Reilly speaking in front of a presentation slide with the text "What is a Capital Stack?" and representative models.
Dave Reilly, former CEO of Cornerstone Real Estate Advisers, one of the most prestigious firms of its kind in the world, instructs UConn students in a course he initiated, called “Real Estate: A Practical Approach.”

International Real Estate Moguls Share High-Stakes Tactics with UConn Protégé

As the CEO of one of the largest real estate advisory firms in the world, David J. Reilly has plenty to keep him busy.

His company, Cornerstone Real Estate Advisers, is immersed in the development of the much-anticipated Fan Pier—an upscale, 21-acre office, retail, residential and restaurant complex along Boston Harbor.

But despite his many commitments, the man at the helm of a $44 billion, Hartford-based real-estate empire, along with three members of the company’s executive team, devotes one evening a week to teach a realistic, challenging and pragmatic course to UConn real estate students.Continue Reading