Haas News

I like!

Undergrads spark social media campaign for YEAH Chevy Volt.

Four undergraduates, including Niranjan Kumar, BS/BA 14 (Bus./Econ.), won a competition to create a social media campaign for a Volt raffle to benefit Young Entrepreneurs at Haas (YEAH).

YEAH board member David Eckles, MBA 73, donated the Volt to raise funds for YEAH, a program for economically disadvantaged youth. Former GM Vice Chair Bob Lutz, BS 61, MBA 62, the Volt's chief creator, announced the competition winners at a raffle kickoff Nov. 4. The Volt winner will be announced in May.

Back to top

Power and dissent

PhD research wins national competition

Jessica Kennedy, PhD 12, won the prestigious INFORMS/ Organization Science Dissertation Proposal Competition on Nov. 12 for her proposal to investigate the effect of power and dissent on ethics within organizations.

Her work beat seven other finalists from schools that included MIT and Harvard. Kennedy plans to study how advancement in an organization's hierarchy affects people's willingness to dissent from the group.

But the eight judges and other finalists encouraged Kennedy to consider expanding her focus to explore other types of business practices.

"For instance," Kennedy says, "I may explore whether high-power individuals will also fail to dissent when the group is engaging in activities that put profits at risk."

Back to top

Berkeley-Columbia MBA Program to End in 2013

Haas to launch new executive MBA Program

The Berkeley-Columbia Executive MBA Program will come to an end in February 2013 when the current class graduates. Haas and Columbia jointly reached the decision to end their MBA program in recognition of each school's goals and future direction.

Haas plans to launch its own stand-alone Berkeley MBA for Executives Program in 2013.

The Berkeley-Columbia Program's more than 600 graduates will remain part of the alumni networks of both business schools and will continue to enjoy each network's benefits, including career services, lifelong learning opportunities, and networking activities.

"Both Haas and Columbia remain as committed to the BCEMBA alumni community as ever before," Tenny Frost, Haas executive director of alumni relations and development, and Janet Rossbach, Columbia Business School executive director of alumni relations, wrote in a joint letter to alumni. "The BCEMBA alumni community is an extraordinary one, and we look forward to continuing to support it on both coasts as well as around the world."

Back to top

By the Numbers: Haas Alumni Survey

In September, Haas Alumni Relations asked how you feel about the school and your alumni network in an online survey.

9/10 of respondents are "extremely likely" to recommend Haas to a friend.

80% agree state funding cuts make alumni support more important than ever.

72% have a strong emotional connection to Haas.

58% are neutral about the quality of alumni career services and support.

56% thought the Alumni Relations Office did a good job keeping alums connected to Haas.

Based on the survey feedback, we plan to:

1. Improve the alumni directory/database.
2. Provide more professional development and career services.
3. Offer more lifelong learning opportunities.
4. Target communications based on your interests and region.
   
   

Back to top

Feedback from our Readers

I very much enjoyed the fall edition of CalBusiness, especially the article entitled "Life Saver." I also liked the follow-up article "Why MDs Seek MBAs." You provided examples from 3 of 26 MDs who obtained Haas MBAs, but many more surely could have been provided, especially if the MDs who attended the full-time day program (such as myself—MBA 04 with a Certificate in Healthcare Management) were added to the count. I found my Haas daytime MBA experience incredibly rewarding (even with the added demand of continuing to practice medicine on weekends and in the evening) and especially enjoyed the student body as well as the breadth of classes available through Haas and the School of Public Health.

Chris Jaeger, MD, MBA 04 Vice President Medical Informatics, Sutter Health Assistant Clinical Professor, UCSF School of Medicine

Back to top

Speakers from the Front Lines

Marketing, finance execs share practical insights in MBA courses

Richelle Parham could have spent a recent evening with actor Brad Pitt. Instead, the chief marketing officer for eBay North America was discussing brand strategy with students over dinner and seemed delighted to do so.

Parham kicked off this year's Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) Insight Series, a spring semester Berkeley MBA course in which top marketing executives from such companies as Wells Fargo, Salesforce, and Genentech share wisdom in the classroom and in a more intimate setting over dinner.

Similarly, last semester students interested in finance heard from an amazing lineup of professionals— primarily Haas or Berkeley alumni—in the new Private Equity Speaker Series and Investment Management Speaker Series. These popular courses help to round out, tie together, and bring very practical and timely views to the school's finance and marketing curricula.

Parham's engagement at Haas happened to conflict with an online charity auction with Pitt for his New Orleans nonprofit. She spoke to Haas students about everything from eBay auctions for charities to mobile initiatives. During dinner, she talked about the importance of drawing youth, particularly girls, to technology.

Back to top