Faculty Research: Consumer Reactions to Round Numbers in Brand Names

Posted on by Brian Kelleher

Marketing Letters (forthcoming)

Kunter Gunasti and Timucin Ozcan.

In a recent research Kunter Gunasti and his-coauthor show that consumers prefer products labeled with brand names including round numbers (e.g., Centrum 100 multivitamins) to those including non-round numbers (e.g., Centrum 103). A systematic investigation of alphanumeric brand names used in numerous product categories indicates that round numbers such as 10, 50, 100, etc. are over-represented in the marketplace. Regardless of the product category, consumers have more favorable judgments and higher preferences of brand names including round numbers.Continue Reading

White House Internship Incredible, Inspirational Says UConn Senior

Posted on by Claire Hall

How many student interns can say they attended a speech by President Obama, met several Cabinet Secretaries, and watched the Marine One helicopter land on the South Lawn of the White House?

David Rifkin, a UConn senior majoring in Business Management, has done all three, while spending this semester as a White House Intern, conducting research and writing reports for government officials.

Simultaneously, Rifkin is researching leadership styles of early presidents, as well as more recent administrations, as part of an independent research project. He plans to present his findings when he returns to campus in the spring semester.

“It is incredible to walk through the White House gates every morning on the way to work,” said the Glastonbury native. “It is truly inspirational to consider that I am working at the very same place as some of the greatest leaders in American history.

“The thrill has not remotely begun to wear off,” said Rifkin, who is also a member of the UConn Honors program. “I still feel the same magic that I did on the very first day.”

Rifkin is no stranger to public service. Last year, he interned for U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal, and also at the international human rights organization Lawyers Without Borders. He has also been active in student government at UConn.

“I thought that an internship at the White House would take my government and public service interests to the highest level,” he said. “My experience as a White House Intern is incredible. To say I’m enjoying myself would be an understatement. The work is quite demanding, but no work I have ever done has been so rewarding.

“On a more personal level, I hope my White House Internship will give me insight into what career path I want to pursue professionally,” he said. “I also hope to further develop my leadership and professional skills, to prepare myself for future personal and career endeavors.”

Rifkin’s research project is under the supervision of Management Professor Zeki Simsek, who describes Rifkin as focused, engaged, mature, observant, reflective and professional.

“I suspect that he will uncover some intriguing contrasts, as well as commonalities among the U.S. presidents in terms of leadership variables, such as openness to new information, belief systems, interpersonal styles, motivation and more,” Simsek said. He has asked Rifkin to explore whether presidents tend to display a dominant leadership style or a multifaceted one, and whether their styles shape their job performance.

Although Rifkin isn’t yet ready to reveal what he’s learned, he looks forward to presenting his findings upon his return.

“I intend for my research to be of value to all those interested in what constitutes effective leadership,” he said. “I aim to become better informed, through my exploration, of what factors contribute to successful management style at the highest level, in a way that can be generalized to leadership positions in all areas from business to government.”

Rifkin said his UConn experiences, both academically and in student government, helped prepare him for his internship.

Asked whether it will be hard to go back to being a student again, Rifkin said no.

“Although a White House Internship is a once-in-a-lifetime experience, I certainly miss college at the same time,” he said. “I think the skills gained from this internship will actually enhance my future academic experience. I don’t want this internship to end, but I look forward to being back with my college friends, attending classes, and, of course, watching UConn Basketball.”

 

Habitat for Humanity

Posted on by Brian Kelleher

On November 8, 2014 members of the Real Estate Society volunteered their time in Bristol, Connecticut to work with Habitat for Humanity. Students helped sand and paint newly constructed homes for individuals who would not be able to afford a home without the assistance of Habitat for Humanity and their donors. The students said it was a rewarding and enjoyable experience and look forward to working with the organization in the future.

habitatForHumanity

2014 Cornell Real Estate Competition

Posted on by Brian Kelleher
A team of real estate students from the University of Connecticut earned third place in a prestigious international case competition on November 4 in New York City, sponsored by Cornell University.The UConn team consisted of William Bartol, Drew Harney, Austin Smyth, Kristine Victor and Patrick Nista. Francesca Michel was the alternate
.UConn Students
John Glascock, director of the Center for Real Estate and Urban Economic Studies, said that the UConn students gave an excellent presentation and secured the honor despite fierce global competition from top-rated schools, including McGill, University of Sydney, Cornell, Brown and NYU.
To read more about the competition click here

PEAK Leadership Conference – Freshman & Sophomores

Posted on by Brian Kelleher

The Peak Leadership Conference is an interactive, three-day event that exposes college freshmen and sophomores to Prudential’s dynamic career paths and diverse, inclusive culture.

Students will have the opportunity to learn more about Prudential career paths in IT/digital, asset management, finance, marketing, accounting, and more. All travel and lodging expenses are covered by Prudential.

Applications are being accepted from now through December 15th. Students can learn more at www.prudential.com/peakleadership

The Peak Leadership conference will take place at Prudential’s corporate headquarters in Newark, NJ from May 17-20, 2015.

Because Prudential is committed to the power of an inclusive workplace, students who are Black, Hispanic, Native American, LGBT, female, as well as veterans and students with disabilities are encouraged to apply.

A ‘Smart’ Idea Wins UConn Students Praise, Award at Travelers Challenge

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Travelers CompetitionA team of UConn students that proposed a ‘smart-home’-style device for small businesses placed second in the 2014 Travelers IT Case Challenge on November 7 in Hartford.

“Our team was poised and prepared, earning second place and representing UConn well,” said Wei-Kuang Huang, the team mentor and a professor in the Operations and Information Management department.

The student team included: Khaly Huynh, Eddison Buenano, Jeffrey Avery and Rubi DeLeon. All are seniors majoring in business data analytics, except DeLeon, who is majoring in business administration. They will divide a $700 award and each has the opportunity to participate in a job interview with Travelers.

First place and a $1,400 prize was awarded to the Carlson School of Management from the University of Minnesota. Other participating schools included: Bentley University, Central Connecticut State University, Quinnipiac University and University of Wisconsin.

“The competition at Travelers was both challenging and rewarding,” Avery said. “Professor Huang was a great mentor and the group really came together as a whole to achieve an awesome result.”

For their case competition, the students had to determine what new investment would benefit the company’s business insurance division. They chose a “smart home technology” paired with a mobile encryption technology and pitched it as a service for small businesses.

The UConn team’s recommendation to Travelers was to utilize it to create new business value, allowing a small business owner to lock doors, view video and audio, control appliances and other tasks from a smartphone. In turn, this would benefit the insurance company because it would lower an insured company’s security risk profile.

“We had only about two weeks from the time we received the case to the time we presented to Travelers, but even before the case, we met weekly to research current IT trends in the insurance industry,” Avery said. “This came in handy during our question-and-answer session, following our presentation, because we were quite well-versed in issues surrounding IT. Secondly, it turns out that Travelers is currently implementing smart-home technology with some of its clients, so our case turned out to be highly relevant.”

Avery said the team had tremendous support from peers at UConn as well as alumni, who took the time to view practice presentations and provide valuable advice and insight. All four students were enrolled in Huang’s OPIM 3103 class, where they had already been given a case study relevant to the insurance industry. It turned out to be valuable practice when the Travelers’ case competition arose, Avery said.

The competition was open to IT students with high GPAs. The students spent more than 40 hours researching, meeting and rehearsing, Huang said. The teams presented their findings to a panel of Travelers senior management. They also had a chance to network with the executives during the competition, which was held at the Travelers’ headquarters in Hartford.

Pictured L to R: Wei-Kuang Huang, Rubi DeLeon, Khaly Huynh, Jeffrey Avery, and Eddison Buenano.

Yale Professor Vineet Kumar Visits UConn

Posted on by Brian Kelleher

vOn the invitation of the Marketing Department, Professor Vineet Kumar from Yale School of Management gave a research seminar about “The marketing impacts of operations and technology: the case of movies by mail” on Friday, November 7th. This research examines the rental-by-mail (RBM) business model, often called the “Netflix” business model. By developing a dynamic structural framework that is applicable for a variety of RBM services that include movies, games and books, he investigates consumers’ consumption and purchase decisions. His analysis suggests that consumers are forward-looking and strategically plan their consumption to maximize inter-temporal utility under the constraints of instantaneous quota and mailing time. Based on these insights on consumer behavior, he uncovers the optimal pricing and plan menu for the firm.

Vineet Kumar is Assistant Professor of Marketing at Yale School of Management. He received a Ph.D. in Industrial Administration from Carnegie Mellon University and taught at Harvard Business School as Assistant Professor of Business Administration from 2010 to 2014. His research interests focus on digital and social strategy. He has published in Marketing Science, Marketing Letters, and Harvard Business Review.

 

Vote for UConn by 11/21!

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PwC ChallengeTime is running out! Your vote can send our team to another national championship!

The UConn Trailblazers—a team of five talented accounting students—is hoping to compete in the prestigious PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) Challenge national case competition in New York in January.

To get there, the team must defeat Villanova, Texas, Arizona and Gonzaga by getting the most votes on Facebook. Only the top vote-getter may attend.

Trailblazer team members include Katie Pontoniec, Lauren Consoli, Jack Murphy, Giovanni Ninivaggi and Daniel Francoeur.

“There are five semifinalist teams, and the team that has the most votes when the polls close on Friday will go to New York in January to make their presentation to the national leadership of PwC,” said Professor David Papandria of the Accounting Department. “This is a big deal. Dozens of teams participated in the challenge, and our UConn team is so close.”

You can click on the link below to vote. Please vote once a day through Friday to help our team. Thank you!

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