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

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


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

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.


Second Annual UConn School of Business Conference to “Celebrate Women Entrepreneurs” in Connecticut

Stamford, Conn. – Connecticut’s second annual statewide conference celebrating and supporting women entrepreneurs* will be held Friday, September 19, 2014, at 8:30 a.m., at UConn’s Stamford campus. Similar to last year, this event is sure to sell out and keynote speakers include: Continue Reading


UConn School of Business Announces Inaugural Class for MS HRM Program

The UConn School of Business is proud to introduce its inaugural class for the Graduate Programs in HR Management. 24 students have been admitted into the MS HRM program, and five students in the ABC HRM certificate program. The MS HRM students will be joining our HRM team in Hartford on Friday and Saturday, August 22-23, for our in-residence program kickoff. The weekend will consist of special guest speakers, including Dean John Elliott, industry speakers, and program faculty that also serves as the launch for the cornerstone course, Business Acumen and Strategic Human Resource Management. Greg Reilly, Academic Director of the Graduate Programs in HRM, will be leading the event. Other special guests include Susan Spiggle, Chair of the Management Department; Peter Diplock, Assistant Vice Provost for eCampus; and Suresh Nair, Associate Dean of Graduate Studies for the School of Business.


SC2 Hartford Challenge

The SC2 Hartford Challenge is a US EDA grant-funded program offered through the President’s Strong Cities, Strong Communities (SC2) initiative.  The SC2 Challenge is an opportunity to create an economic development strategy and actionable plan—one that includes game changing policy, infrastructure and programming—to drive positive change for Hartford and impact revitalization efforts for other cities. Hartford’s goal is to become internationally known as the city where entrepreneurs come to start and stay to grow their businesses.

The City is calling for the formation of qualified teams by July 24thto submit their proposals. The top three proposals will share $100,000 in prize money. The top six teams will each be tasked with developing detailed, actionable economic development plans. These six teams will share $800,000 in EDA-funded prizes. The top prize is $500,000. UConn’s School of Business is honored to be a member of the review panel.

If you would like more information, please contact Stephen Cole at the Hartford Economic Development Division  at COLES001@hartford.gov or 860-757-9071. Please note: SC2 Hartford registration closes July 24th, and proposals are due September 22nd.  Learn more at hartford.sc2prize.com/


U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Martin Dempsey to Headline Auriemma UConn Leadership Conf.

Martin DempseyStorrs, Conn.  – The nation’s highest-ranking military officer will deliver the keynote address at this year’s Geno Auriemma UConn Leadership Conference, Oct. 22 to 23 at the Mohegan Sun Convention Center in Uncasville, Connecticut.

U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman General Martin Dempsey is scheduled to address conference attendees on the first day of the event. Coming on the heels of Geno Auriemma‘s 9th NCAA National Basketball Championship, this conference will focus on Leading for Innovation and Change.Continue Reading


International Business Society Visits Thomson Reuters

International Business SocietyEach year, the International Business Society participates in an annual corporate visit to gain access to, tour, and learn more in-depth about a particular company. This spring, the society’s trip was to Thomson Reuters in Times Square, New York.

Thomson Reuters was chosen because of its high level of interaction in the international business world. The company serves a global customer base as the world’s leading source of intelligent information for businesses and professionals.

“The students met with Benjamin Goodband, VP of Investor Relations, and learned about Thomson Reuters’ business structure, company culture, and methods for product development,” said Kelly Kennedy, career coach and instructor at the School of Business Career Center.

The students also received an in-depth introduction to one of Thomson Reuters’ products and a demonstration of how it impacts business decisions in real-time.

“Exposure to Thomson Reuters has given us a fresh, in-depth perspective on how international business is conducted in this ever-evolving business environment,” said Courtney Hong, one of the students who participated in the tour.

Students interested in joining the International Business Society can reach out to uconnibs@gmail.com.

Companies who may wish to host a visit from some of our best and brightest business school students are encouraged to contact Kelly Kennedy at kelly.kennedy@business.uconn.edu.

Pictured: Students Caroline WarrenPatience BearseSarah BiedermannDana ChoCourtney HongErica Hanner, and Kelly Kennedy from the Business Career Center.


12th Annual Real Estate Center Awards Banquet

The 12th Annual Real Estate Awards Banquet was held at the South Campus Ballroom on Thursday, May 1. The special occasion recognized outstanding students, alumni, and scholarship recipients.

The following alumni and students were recognized for their achievements:

 

  • Lifetime Achievement Award: Daniel Ferraina, Ferraina Companies

 

  • Distinguished Alumni: Michael Riccio, CB-Richard Ellis Capital Markets

 

  • Alumni of the Year: Bradford Wainman, Simon Konover Development Corp.

 

  • Early Career Alumni: Kelsey Rath, Talcott Realty Investors, LLC

 

  • Organizational Partner: Greater New Haven Association of Realtors

 

 

  • Students of the Year: Frances (Frankie) Gibbons and Andrew Kelly

Other student award recipients included: Nicolas Chapman, Tyler Cormier, Julia Dumaine, Andrew Harney, Scott Howard, M. Connor Lyman, Matthew McCandless, Cole McQuilken, Johncarlo Morales, Benjamin Napoli, Bridget O’Malley, Laura O’Malley, Ryan Powers, Peter Rodriguez, Colby Schaefer, Austin Smyth, Melissa Touger, Kristine Victor, and Hui Zhang.


MSFRM 3rd Annual Risk Management Conference, “The many faces of Enterprise Risk Management (ERM)”, March 20, 2015

Save the date:

The MSFRM Program will be hosting its 3rd Annual Risk Management Conference on March 20, 2015 entitled “of “The many faces of Enterprise Risk Management (ERM)”.  More details will be posted to the MSFRM website as soon as they are available.