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Alumni Notes
1940
David Rea, BS, of Stockton, Calif., writes, "At age 92 I've had to give up golf, but I still play a lot of bridge. My driver's license has just been renewed for five years so my wife, Liz, and I will still be making frequent trips to our beach home in Aptos."
1957
Robert Hearther, BS, of Pioneer, Calif., is retired. After living in North Lake Tahoe for over 30 years, he and his wife have been living in the Gold Country since 2004. Both of their sons, Bill and Mike, are graduates of the U.S. Naval Academy. Bill ('92) is currently a full commander stationed onboard the USS Ronald Reagan and Mike ('94) is a store manager at a Home Depot in the Sacramento area. Robert and his wife have four granddaughters and a grandson. He writes, "Gosh, it's tough to be getting on the old side of life! But, so far, so good!"
John Vanderveen, BS, of Denver, Colo., has been a Foreign Service Officer, McKinsey consultant, World Bank consultant, and president of VSA International Corp., a general management consulting firm. Lately he has specialized in the health care field with states and providers of services to adults with developmental disabilities and mental illnesses. John has three grown sons who work in medicine and television.
1960
Larry Tessler, BS, of Moraga, Calif., has been a volunteer for SCORE for the past dozen years. SCORE offers low-cost workshops and free counseling to people starting a new business or already in business. His wife, Carol, class of 1964, is in her seventh year volunteering with Tony LaRussa's Animal Rescue Foundation after having volunteered for the zoos in San Francisco and Oakland, the Oakland Museum, the Lindsey Junior Museum, and the John Muir Hospital.
1961|CAL HOMECOMING
OCTOBER 13-16, 2011
1962
Robert McNulty, BS, of Washington, D.C., has served as the CEO and president of Partners for Livable Communities for 30 years. Partners for Livable Communities is an international nonprofit dealing with livability, quality of life, economic development, and social equity in this country and abroad. Partners for Livable Communities focuses on showing that "going green" is not a political agenda, but, rather, relates to the livability and sustainability of communities. In the fall, he was appointed a senior visiting researcher in the School of Geography and the Environment at Oxford University and served as a tutor to 10 graduate students in the master's program, teaching a course on community mobilization around issues of air, energy, arid lands, air quality, species protection, and environmental policy. Robert's appointment will continue for the next several years.
1964
Schuyler Bailey, BS, of Berkeley, Calif., writes, "Susie and I have been privileged to be two of the three primary caregivers for our dear granddaughter, Eliana (14 months). Our RV travels since my retirement in 2003 to all 49 of the 50 states one can drive to have been put on hold (at 37 covering 50,000 miles so far). Susie, son Peter, and I continue to attend lots of Cal sports: men's and women's basketball, women's volleyball, men's and women's gymnastics, and football (just me!). Go Bears!"
1965
Vijay Kumar (Pandit), BS, of Mountain View, Calif., writes, "I continue to be a shareholder and on the board of advisors of Internet Speech of San Jose, Calif. Internet Speech sales in the United States have been static, but they have had success overseas. Internet Speech closed an important deal in Thailand in March 2011 and has potential deals in Africa, China, India, and Brunei. My granddaughter Linden is now almost 3 and a great joy. Linden's mother, my daughter Amba, continues to sell properties in Santa Cruz. My son, Jay, has announced his wedding to his fiancée in September. The wedding will be held near the Sierra Nevada Mountains within sight of Mt. Whitney, which he and his fiancée climbed a year ago."
1966|CAL HOMECOMING
OCTOBER 13-16, 2011
1967
Richard Lyon, BS, of Sacramento, Calif., operates Chef Lyon Chef-at-Large, which specializes in food pairings for wine. He has more than 30 years of culinary experience working in restaurants and hotels and as a personal chef.
1969
Daniel Asera, BS, of Las Vegas, is the new regional representative of Nevada for the Haas Alumni Network. He is also president of the Class of 1969 at Cal and is president and founder of Cal Spirit of Las Vegas, the UC Berkeley alumni club of southern Nevada. Cal Spirit of Las Vegas has been an active club since 2005 and holds monthly networking mixers with other alumni clubs in Las Vegas, football viewing parties, and new student recruitment events. While a student at Cal, Dan was a California Alumni Scholar and served as a legislative intern to Sen. Ted Kennedy in Washington, D.C., under the Cal in the Capital program. He is currently a professor at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, where he received the 2008 TLC Fellowship Award from the UNLV Teaching and Learning Center in recognition of his demonstrated commitment to his teaching practices and his concern for student learning outcomes. He has also served as faculty advisor to the UNLV ice hockey team and Kappa Sigma Fraternity. In the community, Dan serves as a Clark County Hearing Officer for property tax appeals, as a member-at-large of the Community Development Advisory Committee for homeless shelter programs and senior affordable housing, and continues his private consulting practice in commercial real estate finance.
1970
Richard Owen, BS, of Bakersfield, Calif., retired as attorney in charge from State Compensation Insurance Fund in December 2010 after 25 years of service.
1971|CAL HOMECOMING
OCTOBER 13-16, 2011
Cora (Toy) Woo, BS, writes, "As we approach our 40th reunion this year, I am completing my 20th year working in development at Stanford. My husband, Victor Woo, MBA 72, retired from Levi Strauss a number of years ago, so I think I see my retirement on the horizon as well. I look forward to having more time for friends and family as well as extended travel. I hope to catch up with many of my Cal classmates during reunion activities this fall. As always, go Bears!"
1973
Bradford (Sturgis)
MacLane, BS, of Benicia, Calif.,
is president of MacLane and Co. Inc.,
a real estate consulting and valuation
firm. Brad has worked more than
35 years as an appraiser and consultant,
including time with Bank of
America and Wells Fargo Bank. He is
a member of the Appraisal Institute,
holding the MAI designation, and
serves on the executive board of
the northern California chapter. A
former member of the city of Benicia
Economic Development Board and
Planning Commission, Brad has also
served on a city committee working
to reuse water in the community. He
is married with three children and is
also a grandfather of two. He writes
that he is still looking for a hobby, but
just became a Capo for the high-risk
bocce ball team that plays in the
local Benicia bocce league.
1974
Alan Fong, BS, of San Francisco, completed 23 years of service with the State Compensation Insurance Fund. His wife, Charlene, is a nurse manager at UCSF Medical Center in San Francisco. Their son, Jordan, graduated from UC Davis in June 2009 with a BA in political science, and their daughter, Dana, graduated from UC Davis in June 2010 with a BA in architectural interior design. He writes, "We actually found time to travel to Washington, D.C., last fall and just recently to Hawaii and Hong Kong. We remain active at our church, the First Chinese Baptist Church in San Francisco."
Thomas
May, BS, of
Foster City, Calif.,
started the consulting
business,
StrategyFifty,
focused on
helping businesses
find
innovative
cost-reduction
and efficiency
solutions. He is also launching lockdowel.com, a patented
technology used to assemble
products without the use of screws,
nuts and bolts, or glue.
1975
Craig Denton, BS, has returned to Ascent/Sotheby's International Realty in Vail, Colo., to become a managing broker after selling out of his partnership nine years ago. He writes, "Oldest son, Kyle, has been with me for six years and is weathering the new real estate market. Second oldest son, Kevin, is a golf professional here in Vail. Son Keith graduated from OU in spring 2011, and daughter Katie will be finishing up at CU in Boulder in 2012. After 15 years as president of the Vail Junior Hockey Club, I've taken a hiatus from boards and am content with sitting on ad hoc advisory panels to help guide projects and developments in the Vail Valley through these tumultuous times."
1976|CAL HOMECOMING
OCTOBER 13-16, 2011
Michael Peter, BS, see MBA
1977 notes.
Lily (Yee) Quisol, BS, of Burlingame, Calif., is working for Genentech Inc. She is married and has twin boys.
1977
Mabel (Chin) Tung, BS, of Chicago, is a senior vice president at Northern Trust Co. She leads a global client servicing team, which supports Asian Sovereign Wealth Funds clients. Mabel writes, "My degree was in accounting, but I ventured into technology and later moved to client servicing with profit and loss responsibility. Luckily I chose an excellent employer, Northern Trust, which has over 120 years of history with a sterling reputation as a strong financial institution where I continue to learn and grow to this day. Working very hard for sure, but I get to see the fruits of the labor, and work remains stimulating and engaging. My husband, Reynold, in the meantime, started his own investment advisory firm with a value orientation a few years ago, utilizing his 30 years of investment skills helping friends and families invest for the long term. We are empty nesters now; our son is grown and works at Cisco as a corporate strategy manager. He was also a Cal graduate from Haas and got his MBA from Kellogg."
1980
Sheryl Hawes, BS, writes, "I am still appreciating my finance and accounting degree from Cal over 30 years later. What I learned is still applicable and relevant. I have been with AT&T for 30 years, and there are many opportunities to use solid business concepts and analytical thinking. I have recently moved to Concord, Calif., and enjoy my new home with a lovely garden and a jacuzzi. I also have a new puppy who keeps me very busy. She is a Yorkshire terrier and has grown from 1 pound 4 ounces to 2 pounds 8 ounces. She is a lot of fun and very energetic. Long lost friends: Come by and have a glass of wine!"
1981|CAL HOMECOMING
OCTOBER 13-16, 2011
John Spilman, BS, of Mill Valley, Calif., was recognized by the Daily Journal as one of the top 25 clean technology lawyers in California for his two decades representing renewable energy developers, especially wind energy projects. John also serves as general counsel to Solar Land Partners, as well as Gridflex Energy, while maintaining his of-counsel relationship with Cleantech Law Partners, a boutique law firm.
Joann (Martens) Weiner, BS, of Washington, D.C., joined Bloomberg as an editor in February. She is on the board of Stoddert soccer as treasurer and the board of Lafayette Tennis Association as secretary. She is also the finance chairman on the board of Community Tax Aid.
1985
Christa Pedersen, BS, of Danville, Calif., provides resourcebased consulting services through Robert Half Management Resources. She writes, "I also wear a recruiting hat, so please contact me if you are seeking a new position. I would be happy to help. We've started a quarterly nonprofit forum for executive directors to network, and I'm looking for more members. christa.pedersen@ rhmr.com. Join me on LinkedIn."
1986|CAL HOMECOMING
OCTOBER 13-16, 2011
Michael Belkin, BS, of
Bainbridge, Wash., writes, "I've been
advising hedge funds, via the Belkin
Report, for 20 years, since prop
trading at Salomon Brothers. For
the human race, I'm an advocate for
vaccine safety and choice (having
lost a child to a vaccine adverse reaction).
See the new book, Vaccine Epidemic. I wrote a chapter on the
vaccine bubble and the pharmaceutical
industry. The theme of the
book is that vaccination choice is
a fundamental human right. Also
see www.therefusers.com for my
original rock band and newsroom
capturing that old Berkeley spirit of
the anti-war movement—this time
against medical tyranny. Vaccination
über-Alles!"
Jeff Myers, BS, of Washington, D.C., writes, "After 20 years of consulting to governments as part of KPMG and then Booz Allen Hamilton, I've moved to a smaller company that focuses on government transparency. As a principal with REI Systems, I help get information to the public about government operations via websites, including www.data.gov, www.USAspending. gov, www.ITDashboard.gov, and the upcoming Performance.gov—all of which REI developed and operates. Let me know if you'd like to learn more (JMyers@reisys.com). In an effort to combat the continuing confusion about my work, KPMG is not a radio station, Booz Allen does not promote alcohol, and REI Systems does not sell sleeping bags!"
1987
Jonathan Wu, BS, of Alameda, Calif., recently launched NAVinture, which provides business intelligence consulting services and solutions. NAVinture helps companies improve their performance by creating actionable information solutions through the use of advanced analytics and closed loop business intelligence.
1991|CAL HOMECOMING
OCTOBER 13-16, 2011
Belinda Martinez-Canez,
BS, of Oceanside, Calif., writes,
"I've come full circle with my 10
years of corporate experience in
buying, inventory management,
sales, and marketing. Demanding corporate life changed to demanding
family life with the birth of my two
boys, Julian and Lucas. As a result,
I needed the flexibility of creating
my own schedule and being able
to work from home. So, for the last
six years, I've pioneered a newly
developed beach services program in
Oceanside, and have owned Cafecito,
an organic coffee shop located right
on the beach. I never thought I would
wear so many hats in my life, but it's
been an exciting process. I meet the
four corners of the world at my establishment
as I did once in Berkeley as
a student and can appreciate all the
doors that Berkeley opened up for
me. Thank you Cal."
1992
Jennifer Gandin, BS, of Los Angeles, and her husband, Peter Tontonoz, welcomed their first child, Eve Rachelle, on Jan. 7, 2011.
1993
Kevin Crow, BS, writes, "Eighteen years since I graduated? Wow. I'm doing great here in Sacramento with my wonderful wife, two kids, two cats, two dogs, one fish, and our hamster, George. Professionally, I'm working for Intel trying to educate the world on how solid state drives can save a lot of money in IT budgets. I still have season tickets and make all the football games that soccer coaching allows. Go Bears!"
1994
Regina Eberhart, BS, see MBA 2005 notes.
Loc Huynh, BS, of Oakland, Calif., is studying acupuncture and Chinese herbal medicine.
Eric Wold, BS, of San Francisco, Calif., writes, "After five years working out of the New York office, I relocated back to San Francisco and am glad to be in the Bay Area again. I will continue as director of research with Merriman Capital while also heading the Global Consumer and Media Group, with my coverage focusing on the movie industry and associated technologies. I look forward to catching up with everyone now that I'm back in town and am ready to watch the Cal Bears dominate this year as I'm living only a few blocks from AT&T Park. Go Bears!"
1996|CAL HOMECOMING
OCTOBER 13-16, 2011
Eleen (Hsu) Agustin, BS, of Alameda, Calif., finished her first full year as a retail storeowner and first-time employer last year and is looking forward to what her second year will bring. She recently celebrated her three-year wedding anniversary with fellow Cal grad Jimmy Agustin, BS 98, and now also plays a role in Delivering Happiness, the company launched by Zappos CEO Tony Hsieh and run by yet another Cal grad, Jennifer Lim, BS 88. Eleen invites you to stop by her shop, Modern Mouse, in Alameda, where talented crafters and artists sell their fun and unique handmade items.
Robert Boyer, BS, of Los Angeles, finished the first draft of his first novel in January and is currently working on editing it as well as starting on the sequel.
1997
Aisha (Kelley) Hunt, BS, writes, "I'm very excited about 2011. My husband, Andrew, and I continue to enjoy living in Moraga, Calif., with our two wonderful dogs, Titan and Cujo. I've just launched Budinger Hunt PC, an investment management law firm in San Francisco with fellow Cal alum Kim Tomsen Budinger. Kim and I are enjoying leveraging our collective 20 years of investment management legal experience to help investment managers comply with post-Madoff laws, including the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act."
Sybil Yang, BS, writes, "It's been so long since I've been back to the Bay Area, but I look forward to making it my home once again. I am currently finishing my Ph.D. at Cornell University, and will soon start an assistant professorship at San Francisco State's School of Business. I will be within the hospitality and tourism department teaching food and beverage management and service operations management. I welcome anyone who wants to collaborate and give back to higher education. Cheers!"
1998
Rachel (Silberman)
Kruse, BS, of Milwaukee, is the
founder and CEO of Organicville
Foods Inc.,
a full line
of organic
items in over
7,500 grocery
stores
nationwide.
Organicville
Foods
products are
also carried
in stores
in Canada,
Mexico,
Asia, and the
Middle East.
1999
Scott Orn, BS, of San Francisco, writes, "As a side project, I've been building a network of patient-to-patient support sites called Ben's Friends (www.bensfriends.org) for people with rare diseases. After two years we've grown to 25 networks and serve almost 10,000 patients with rare conditions who have no other options. It's been incredibly rewarding to give people a place to go to find information and support when they need it the most."
2000
Dave Silverberg, BS, of
Pittsburg, Calif., got married two
years ago in his wife's hometown
of Tlacotalpan, Veracruz, in Mexico.
They are enjoying spending time
with their son, Jack (10 months).
David Wilson, BS, of New York, was recently promoted to CEO of Watts Capital Partners, a boutique wealth management firm serving individuals, families, and trusts. Despite the volatile market, the firm has had success growing the business and helping clients with wealth management issues. David joined Watts Capital Partners in fall of 2009 after nine years at Barclays Capital and Lehman Brothers.
2001|CAL HOMECOMING
OCTOBER 13-16, 2011
Michel Theodas, BS, of Singapore, has been at Citi Private Bank for eight years. In his present role, he advises clients on constructing and maintaining tactical and strategic investment portfolios. He writes, "I tied the knot with my best friend and lover, Jocelyn, in February."
2002
Jennifer
Landig, BS,
of New York,
writes, "Since
graduating from
Haas, I have been
seeking experiences
to combine
business
and international
relations by using
my business skills
for social good. I moved to Madrid
to conduct marketing research for
a small startup seeking to bring and
retain women in the workforce and promote a work and life balance.
After leaving Madrid, I received a
contract to manage the operations
of an ancient abbey in France that
hosted study abroad students,
master musicians, and theater
programs. After nearly two years
in Europe, I decided to return to
California, where I joined the team at
a cultural exchange organization in
San Francisco. In this capacity I traveled
the world working with international
students and training overseas
partners. I pursued my master's
degree at NYU's Center for Global
Affairs, where I studied in Cuba,
explored South America, interned at
the United Nations, and traveled to
Turkey for a business development
consultancy. I returned to Turkey to
conduct field research for my thesis,
evaluating European Union funding
for women's empowerment projects,
which combines my passion
for women's development and my
background in private enterprise and
entrepreneurship. My article was
due to be published in the spring of
2011. I am consulting in New York
and hoping to find a career opportunity
that brings me back to the Bay
Area. http://www.linkedin.com/in/
jenmarielandig"
Jacqueline Leao, BS, of
São Paulo, Brazil, writes, "I'm back
in Brazil after 21 years of living in
the USA. Brazil is growing at a high
speed, but the regulations, bureaucracy,
corruption, and the lack of
infrastructure makes it complicated.
I am working for an importing
company, and I have to deal with
all types of barriers. I am also trying
to validate my diploma from the
United States in Brazil, which has
been very difficult. The Ministry of
Education makes the whole process
cumbersome and expensive. On
the other hand, Brazil is a wonderful
country and full of opportunities. I
love the fact that I can just drive to
my family's house and enjoy the
farmland, parties, good meals, and
lots of love. You can contact me at
jacqueline_leao@haasalum.berkeley.
edu. Go Bears!"
Christopher Zobrist, BS, of Saigon, Vietnam, writes, "Hi fellow alums from Vietnam! I'm starting an angel investors group as well as a seed fund that I hope will help to develop the entrepreneurial ecosystem here. As always, if you're ever venturing out this way, please drop me a line at czobrist@cal.berkeley. edu. Go Bears!"
2003
David Galich, BS, of Huntington Beach, Calif., recently married Jenna Russell on Jan. 8, 2011, and will soon complete his MBA at USC's Marshall School of Business. He will be starting a new career as a senior consultant with Deloitte Human Capital in August.
Victor Pineda, BS, of Los Angeles, was awarded the Mark Bingham award for Exceptional Achievement by a Young Alum by the University of California Alumni Association during the 2011 Charter Gala. With partners, the Victor Pineda Foundation has dedicated over $1.5 million toward educational, arts, and training programs for disabled youth. One program, the Youth Ability Summit, done with the Open Hands Initiative in Damascus, launched the world's first Muslim disabled superhero, the Silver Scorpion. The mission of the Victor Pineda Foundation is to educate, inspire, and inform a global audience on the capabilities and potential of young people with disabilities. Victor writes that his experience as a person with severe disabilities informs and inspires all the work he does.
Yacy Zand, BS, writes, "Living in Washington, D.C., in case anyone passes through here. (Please do come and help us with the federal budget!) I got married last year to my sweet French husband with a cherished Haas friend in attendance to help celebrate. I am working at the World Bank and happy to connect with anyone interested in our financial and private-sector development work."
2005
Yvonne Chen, BS, of San Francisco, writes, "Life is really good. I've been at Facebook for the last three years and have worked in several different departments. Starting off in an operations role, I then moved on to account management, then did a bit of training, and now I'm in product marketing. I am lucky to have been able to see so many areas of the business. My current role is very interesting as I'm focused on our suite of local business products and am gaining many new skills and working with very intelligent and experienced people. On the weekends, I'm still hanging out with Cal friends, traveling when I can, and volunteering for an organization called Upwardly Global that helps educated immigrants find good jobs in the Bay Area."
Varun Paul,
BS, of Berkeley,
Calif., writes,
"Since graduation,
it has been
an adventure.
I worked for a
Fortune 500
energy firm
for three years
and took time
to work on the Obama 2008
campaign, nationally organizing
and leading volunteers in various
states. It taught me a great deal
about motivating people and organizational
structures, and employed
some of the management and
finance concepts from Haas and my
career. I then had the good fortune
of administering small portions of
the Stimulus Act and then jumped
into biotech consulting with the
opening of my small consulting/
staffing startup, Analytix, eventually
leading to a finance role with another
biotech powerhouse here in the
Bay Area. Now I'm at the stage of
pondering the conundrum that is
graduate school. Who knows what
will happen in 2011? I look forward
to catching up with old friends at the
next alumni event. varun1@haasalum.
berkeley.edu. Go Bears!"
Lonnie Yates, BS, of Chicago,
writes, "I recently started a new position
with Huron Healthcare. I provide
operational improvement solutions
to health care providers. Specifically,
I work in contract services focused
on non-labor cost reduction through
strategic sourcing and process
improvement. It's a great job with a
great company. If you have experience
with health care and a desire to
create change, this is a great place
to work. I'm also recently engaged
and will be marrying my amazing
bride in August. I think she is the
best, even though she's an Oregon
Duck. We love Chicago and live in the Bucktown neighborhood with
our two dogs, Buford and Dixie. I
would love to connect with alumni,
so please feel free to get in touch.
layates@gmail.com."
2006|CAL HOMECOMING
OCTOBER 13-16, 2011
2007
Anna Dickstein, BS, writes, "After staying in the Bay Area for four years after graduation (working in pharmaceutical market research and consulting), I'm very excited to join UCLA Anderson's Class of 2013. If you are in the Los Angeles area, please reach out."
2008
Benjamin Wu, BS, of Portland, Ore., works in strategic planning at Nike Inc.
2009
Kourosh Zamanizadeh, BS, of San Francisco, writes, "After graduating from Haas and moving to San Francisco I wanted to find a way to keep in touch with my old classmates and friends. I recently cofounded a professional networking organization called Young Professionals of San Francisco (YPOSF) with my two colleagues David Smith, BS 08, and Jeff Whitlow. YPOSF is a nonprofit that seeks to provide a forum for motivated young professionals to share ideas and network in an enjoyable environment. Our events are hosted at restaurants in San Francisco's Financial District on the last Wednesday of each month. Our members include graduates from all across the country, but I'd love to have some more Bears at our next monthly event. Learn more about YPOSF at: http://www.facebook. com/YPOSF."
1962|50th MBA Reunion
April 26-29, 2012
Donald Fraser, MBA, was elected chairman of the Robert Louis Stevenson Museum in St. Helena, Calif. He writes, "Our museum has the largest museum collection of Robert Louis Stevenson artifacts in the world. We have over 11,000 items, and many of them are on permanent display. The RLS Museum is part of the St. Helena Library Complex and located on Library Lane in St. Helena. To learn more check our web site: www. StevensonMuseum.org. We are open Tuesday through Sunday from noon to 4 p.m. There is no admission charge, and everyone is welcome."
1967|45th MBA Reunion
April 26-29, 2012
1969
John Longinotti, MBA, of Berkeley, writes, "After 20 years in the asset-backed finance business in San Francisco and then serving as CFO in several venture-backed firms in the Bay Area, including one bubble-driven IPO, I have found a niche doing interim CFO engagements for companies working through special circumstances. I am engaged at Arbonne International in Irvine as the full-time interim CFO. Arbonne makes and markets botanically based skin care and nutrition products, which it sells through a network-marketing system. Having reorganized through a Chapter 11 process in 2010, the company needs to complete a tough audit, maneuver tight loan covenants, and reestablish its financial infrastructure. I previously served in a similar capacity with iREIT, a Houston-based company that was set up with venture backing to arbitrage on Internet domain names. It got into trouble when it overextended its capital. Other similar experiences have included Loyalty Matrix, Pendergast Logistics, and UltraDNS."
1970
Michael Dove, MBA, of Corral De Tierra, Calif., retired after a 35-year career in management information systems. He now devotes his volunteer time to running and youth fitness. He recently won a National Jefferson Award for developing the nationally acclaimed youth fitness program, Just Run (www.justrun.org). It's free to schools and is now used in 17 states with over 7,000 children participating. He is on the board of directors of the Big Sur International Marathon and several other races in Monterey County. He also writes a running/fitness column in the Monterey Herald and has recently published a book, The Running Life, with co-writer Donald Buraglio.
Lee Miles, MBA, of Cartagena, Colombia, writes, "I feel like the MBA who took the road less traveled. Although I started in the international banking division of Citibank upon leaving Cal, I soon realized that my interests were not corporate but entrepreneurial, and left to found a precious metals and jewelry supply company in the Bay Area. Six years later the move was to the eastern plains of Colombia and a ranchland development deal. Within a year, still back in the '70s, came a final move to Cartagena, a magnificently preserved Spanish colonial city on the Caribbean coast of Colombia. Here I have been involved in manufacture and sale of fine emeralds and jewelry, as well as tourism development, tour operations, and publishing. Five years ago I was the president of the American Chamber of Cartagena when it was hosting several of the negotiating meetings for the U.S./ Colombia Free Trade Agreement that may, at long last, secure ratification by the U.S. Congress in the next couple of months. Whether it is emeralds that you are interested in, or having a Haas contact with deep local knowledge of the business and cultural landscape of Colombia, you are all welcome to get in touch. It is always short-sleeve sailing weather in Cartagena."
1971
E. Ray Gamble, MBA, writes, "My professional career started as a consultant and CPA with Accenture, a global management consulting, technology services, and outsourcing company, and progressed as controller, vice president of finance, and chief financial officer for high-technology medical companies in Silicon Valley and San Diego. I was startup CFO for three of the 10 medical device companies that went public in 2000, as well as vice president and CFO, and later chairman of the board, of Strategic Information Group International, a systems integration and software consulting firm for life science companies. I currently serve as chairman and acting executive director of the Let Us Be Well Foundation, as well as managing director of MD Partners LLC, providing advisory services to medical device, pharmaceutical, and biotech companies. My last assignment was in the group controller's office of Genentech's 2 million-square-foot manufacturing plant in Vacaville, Calif. Being semi-retired in a small rural community, an avid Craigslist and eBay buyer and seller, and a Certified Natural Health Professional, I am planning on pursuing a laterlife career as a natural health doctor. Living on a six-acre ranch/farm 10 miles southeast of Red Bluff, Calif., my immediate family consists of me, my lovely wife, and my specialneeds brother. In addition, I have two stepdaughters, two sons-in-law, three cute granddaughters, four dogs, and two horses. More animals will be added soon. Life is good!"
David Jones, MBA, of Renton, Wash., writes, "I retired from Boeing's test and evaluation group in March, in my 'second career' after my first retirement from United Airlines in San Francisco in June 2003. My wife, Linda, and I moved cross-country to the Washington, D.C., area where I joined Boeing's air traffic management group. A little over a year later we moved again to Seattle for another Boeing position. My last job at Boeing was director of flight operations of the future, and it involved working with our pilots and engineers defining changes to Boeing airplane flight decks and how customers fly the airplanes. Our move to the Northwest enabled me to get serious about skiing, as we live within about an hour of two Cascade ski resorts. I improved my technique in a weekly night skiing clinic and skied every Tuesday with a senior group. Being close to Vancouver, our entire family was able to enjoy a once-in-a-lifetime experience attending five events at the Winter Olympics in 2010. To share my passion for airplanes with others I serve as a docent at the Seattle Museum of Flight, giving tours to visitors and working with school groups and Boy Scouts. I also serve as a mentor to students at Aviation High School, a public high school opened in 2003 to serve area students interested in science and engineering."
1972|40th MBA Reunion
APRIL 26-29, 2012
1974
Gale Wrausmann, MBA, of Carmel, Calif., writes, "When you visit Carmel, be sure to come on my popular walking tour featuring its history, architecture, and artistic heritage. I have been giving 'Carmel Walks' for 15 years. The website www.carmelwalks.com has details."
1976
Sharon (Murchison) Hayden, MBA, of Oakland, Calif., retired in 2005 from the University of California Office of the President, where she served 28 years. In the last half, she was assistant director of labor relations, representing the university in collective bargaining contract negotiations for academic and staff units and managing related litigation and policy for labor relations at all locations. She volunteers for an Oakland schools tutoring project and is a board member of All for Villages, working with the humane society in the tsunami-affected area of Thailand and assisting with HIV-AIDS health concerns of Burmese immigrants. She lives part time in Los Barriles, Baja Sur California, Mexico, and contributes to humane society activities and the local Baja Shakespeare festival. She writes about Haas, "I appreciate the school's reputation for corporate responsibility and wish that they did not charge so much for the business school tuition. I was a recipient of some assistance, and the low tuition was most helpful in mid-'70s. Our class had a recession to face as the last few did."
1977|35th MBA Reunion
April 26-29, 2012
Joseph Carlson, MBA, of
Monument, Colo., retired a couple
of years ago after a 30-year career
as a CPA and business owner in
Alaska, Oklahoma, and Colorado.
He and his wife, Kathy, have three
young children: Michael (7), Andy
(6), and Lily (4). He writes, "Our days
are filled with family activities, such
as Cub Scouts, dancing lessons, school, church, riding bikes, etc.
Our other five children (Randy, Karin,
Cynthia, Jessica, and Jamie) are now
grown with families of their own. Last
year we spent six weeks in Costa Rica
enjoying the beaches, and this year
we're planning on a trip to Uruguay to
try the beaches there. Every year is a
new travel adventure. Laughlin River
Run in April—love the motorcycle."
Joi Grieg, MBA, of Washington, D.C., was appointed assistant director of research and development for the Library of Congress Information Technology Services in the Office of Strategic Initiatives. Joi writes, "It's an awesome institution covering a broad range of activities, and I'm truly proud of being there. On the personal front, we expect to have our first grandchild in November."
Michael Peter, MBA, of Chula Vista, Calif., writes, "I have started my own firm, Bravo Zulu Business Financing Inc. We are commercial loan brokers, handling commercial mortgages and business loans for clients of all sizes. We are affiliated with Commercial Capital out of Atlanta, which includes over 300 net branches across the country. Our nationwide funding sources allow us to handle loans that local lenders cannot or will not fund."
1978
Jerry Butzer, MBA,
announced the launch of a website
www.NewportBayPrivateEquity.com
to bring together private capital
with promising
commercial real
estate projects.
Butzer and Jane
Persh, MBA
94 (Civil Eng.)
founded their
firm Newport Bay
Private Equity in
2008. (Butzer is
the acquisitions
partner in Dallas
and Persh is the acquisitions partner
in Los Angeles.) Butzer writes,
"Large development and investment
projects in all sectors of commercial
real estate will be funded
by Newport Bay's various partners
and affiliates. The first NB private
equity fund will be structured later
this year (2011), to acquire various
properties and real estate companies
throughout North America. The
financing and production of motion
picture projects is being planned for
2012 in Los Angeles.
1979
Lora Martin, MBA, of Santa Cruz, Calif., was named a fellow by the American Association for the Advancement of Science. She is director of strategic policy initiatives and government affairs for the California Council on Science and Technology. She has extensive experience working with academia, industry, and the policy sectors and has been involved with projects involving climate change, biodiversity, and oceans, as well as land use, groundwater remediation, and military base conversion. In addition, she has led the development of the California Science and Technology Policy Fellowships program, which places PhD scientists and engineers in the California legislature.
1980
Mark Coles, MBA, of McLean, Va., has been the deputy director for large facility projects at the National Science Foundation since 2003. He was previously observatory head at the Caltech/MIT Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory near Livingston, La., a National Science Foundation-funded experiment to test a prediction of Einstein's formulation of general relativity. He held previous positions at the Superconducting Super Collider, Schlumberger, and in the physics department at Carnegie- Mellon University. He writes, "I've always been interested in the intersection between big science and management. I'm grateful to the Cal Business School for making possible the opportunity for me to complete an MBA thesis on this subject, which was squeezed into what little spare time I had while completing my Ph.D. in experimental high-energy physics in the Berkeley Physics Department. I'm pleasantly surprised that science and management turned out to be a continuing theme in my career. Most of my current focus is on project management issues in NSF's major multiuser research facilities (telescopes, research vessels, major laboratories, the IceCube neutrino detector at the South Pole, etc.), but I also enjoy contributing to federal government science policy discussion in Washington, D.C., and especially to considerations of how to foster international collaboration in the domain of large-scale scientific research."
Michaela Rodeno, MBA, of Napa, Calif., writes, "In April we celebrated the 21st birthday of Women for WineSense, a national organization I cofounded with Julie Johnson in 1990 to foster responsible enjoyment of wine. I'm proud to report it is still going strong. In August our family is reintroducing its artisanal Villa Ragazzi Sangiovese, long absent from the wine scene due to a vineyard replant. This has brought me back to my earliest go-fer days in the wine business. It's been a long time since I undertook some of these tasks personally, and much has changed. Thanks to social media, marketing is now cheaper and faster. Digitization makes printing labels cheaper and faster. Tech makes everything from organizing supplies to scheduling tastings more efficient. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco & Firearms has morphed into the Trade & Tax Bureau, but its new online application has not improved the lead time for label approval. (I'm already worried about missing our bottling date.) Direct shipping is now legal in 37 states, though compliance with 37 sets of rules is wildly complex. Competition is global and fierce. The good news is that more Americans than ever (one-third of the adult population) are enjoying wine. If you'd like to review my first attempt at creating a website, go to www.villaragazziwine. com. We're on Facebook, too, with tech support from the ragazzi. Twitter is not for me, as you can tell by the length of this note. For relief from all the wine activity I serve on trade association and corporate boards, work that I particularly enjoy. I have just wrapped up 10 years on the board of Silicon Valley Bank Financial Group, an outstanding company with a highly engaged board. I hope to find another as good."
1982|30th MBA Reunion
April 26-29, 2012
After 19 years away and stints at Apple in Paris, Compaq in Munich, and SAP in Boston, Douglas Draper, MBA, is returning to the Bay Area as head of sales enablement and leadership development at Equinix. The company is a leading provider of international business exchanges (basic infrastructure and ecosystem on which the Internet and cloud computing rest).
1985
Michael Henry, MBA, is vice president of business development at Athena Diagnostics Inc., a part of Thermo Fisher Scientific. At Athena, he collaborates with gene hunters who discover new disease genes, launches new genetic tests, and serves on the senior leadership team that is selling Athena to Quest Diagnostics for $740 million. Having played in Dow Jones and the Industrials, the Haas rock band from 1983 to 1985, Henry plays bass in the Artifacts, the Massachusetts Biotechnology Council band that recently rocked the MassBio annual meeting. He lives in Needham, Mass., with his wife, Patricia, and sons, Mickey (15) and Alex (13).
1987|25th MBA Reunion
April 26-29, 2012
Pamela
Moraga,
MBA, of
Ashburn, Va.,
writes, "Life
is great in the
Washington,
D.C., metro area.
My husband and
I enjoy traveling
and visiting
family and
friends. My current
employer is
Hewlett-Packard Co. I work as a business
development executive in the
U.S. federal business, which is part of
HP's Enterprise Business Group."
1990
Manoj Goel, MBA, led a
Cisco (USA) Research delegation
to leading Indian Universities for
industry-academic collaboration and
was felicitated by New Delhi Chief
Minister Sheila Dikshit.
Hugues Ogier, MBA, writes, "I am almost done with my assignment as a consular officer for the State Department in Seoul, Korea. I will be relocating to Tokyo this summer where I will run the American Citizen Services unit of the U.S. Embassy. I will finally be reunited with Joyce, who will have finished her one-year assignment in Kabul by then. No. 1 son (who was around during my time at Berkeley) is at the Naval Academy and No. 2 will move to Japan from Korea with me. Hope everyone is doing fine. I am looking forward to spending time with the Nakamura family in Honolulu this summer. Go Bears!"
Christopher Seefer, MBA, of San Francisco, writes, "During 2010 I served as director of investigations and deputy general counsel for the Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission, which was formed by Congress to examine the causes of the financial and economic crisis in the United States. During that time we held 19 days of public hearings, interviewed more than 700 witnesses, and reviewed millions of pages of documents. Our final report was presented to President Obama, Congress, and the American people on Jan. 27, 2011."
1991
Jerome Lerman, MBA, of Foster City, Calif., writes, "I'm in my 29th year at Wells Fargo, but I've converted to a part-time position, enjoying four-day weekends every week while still contributing as a risk management consultant in small-business lending. My wife, Eve, continues teaching English as a second language, now in her 34th year at Skyline College. Our son, Jacob, has taken a new sales position with Right Now Technologies, and our daughter, Beth, is working in New York at Brooklyn Law School. My 'other career' playing competitive Scrabble continues unabated: I just returned from Calgary, Alberta, where I was one of seven on the U.S. team, challenging Canada in the annual Can-Am competition. Our teams tied 49-49, with the U.S. team retaining the Can-Am Cup."
Ozdil Nami, MBA, of Nicosia, Cyprus, writes, "My wife, Sibel, and I are living in our hometown, Nicosia, Cyprus, together with our son Volkan (14). I am a member of Parliament since 2004 and until a year ago was the chief negotiator to resolve the Cyprus issue from the Turkish Cypriot side. Aside from politics I am lecturing at a university on a parttime basis. We recently moved into a new house, which has an extra room always ready for friends who would like to come and visit!" MBA alumni from the class of 1991 held a 20th reunion party in Tokyo in April.
Jon Tanaka, MBA,
writes, "We had a wonderful gathering
as most of us have not seen
each other in several years. Rest
assured that these Haas MBAs are
positive and confident about Japan's
prospects and are doing whatever they can to accelerate the recovery!
They were also very kind to make a
collective donation of JPY 150,000
for Haas."
Editor's Note: In light of the recent disasters in Japan, Dean Rich Lyons was greatly moved by the chapter's generosity and support.
Yasunori Nakagami,
MBA, of Tokyo, Japan, writes, "It's
already been six years since I started
a fund management business after
almost 20 years as a management
consultant. These years were a
very tough environment, but luckily
enough, we have outperformed
stock indices over 50 percent for
these three years. I am now getting
a bit confident of our approach, not
just investment but also providing
hands-on work. Hope I can continue
this until I become an 80-year-old
experienced investor with philosophy
and wisdom. Family-wise, I
am very happy with my wife, Coco,
and 13-year-old daughter, Kyoko.
Kyoko wants to study in the United
States and now works hard to learn
English. Private-wise, I became a
hard-core surfer, riding waves every
weekend even in cold winter. I wish
I would have started this while I was
in Berkeley."
Steven Ramirez, MBA, writes, "I have the pleasure of working with Tony Pines, MBA 90, Shaw Taylor, MBA 92, Brandon Purcell, MBA 09, and our talented team to grow an industry-leading management consulting firm. Beyond the Arc Inc. is based in Berkeley, and we have over a dozen professionals on staff. Forrester Research recently recognized us as one of the top 15 firms in customer experience consulting, and we specialize in the rapidly emerging field of predictive analytics. We have significant traction helping Fortune 50 companies build stronger customer relationships via Voice of the Customer programs. We've been able to pinpoint actionable insights from customer feedback, including comments mined from social media. We're always interested in talking to recent grads and look forward to adding a few more Haas alumni to our team."
1992|20th MBA Reunion
April 26-29, 2012
Peter Aronson, MBA,
writes, "Greetings from the Pacific
Northwest! Wife, Julie, daughters,
Lizzie (16) and Maddie (12), and I
have now been in Lake Oswego,
Ore., for eight years and while the
climate may not always be suitable
for Bears, we've managed to
survive and even thrive in the land
of Ducks and Beavers. After 10
years of consumer brand marketing
work with a few Haas-related companies
(Dreyer's Ice Cream, Red
Envelope Gifts, and Fresh Express
Salads), I ventured into franchising
with Great Clips hair salons initially
in the Bay Area and now in
Oregon, Washington, and Idaho.
I've enjoyed my association with
the company and have even managed
to put some of our Markstrat
experience to use, though hardly
on the same scale we envisioned
at the time. Now's the time to visit
the Northwest, so drop me a line if
you're coming to town."
1994
Art Altman, MBA, has been featured in recent issues of Energy Risk magazine, on topics such as electric industry implementation of wind, solar, price-demand response, and electric vehicles, as well as implications of federal regulations. He welcomes contact on related topics at aaltman@epri.com (Electric Power Research Institute, Palo Alto, Calif.).
Koji Asada, MBA, of Tokyo, writes, "I visited Berkeley after 17 years since I finished my MBA. I was given a wonderful opportunity to participate in a panel session as one of the panelists at the Haas Asia Business Conference on April 2. The session focused on PE and VC activities in Asia, and I commented on the situation of Japan after the recent earthquake and the prospect of investment initiatives. Berkeley was splendid as ever. I was very happy and impressed at the same time to find everything unchanged. The Haas/Berkeley spirit was alive and it gave me power to move on!"
1997|15th MBA Reunion
April 26-29, 2012
Yiannis Galanakis, MBA, of Athens, Greece, writes, "Given the current debt crisis in Greece, my personal venture is not flourishing. However, as always we will prevail over the difficulties and will exploit new opportunities coming out of the crisis. The world in our close neighborhood is in huge turmoil. Hope something good will come out of this, and will not be disappointed that all these things are happening because of the oil business. Looking forward to get together with any Haas alumni who will visit Greece during the coming summer."
1998
Nancy Hazlewood, MBA, writes, "I moved across the bay to Oakland two years ago and am enjoying getting to know my new community and the weather. I've been playing lots of music with my own group and others throughout the Bay Area. I continue to provide health care consulting services through Hazlewood Consulting Inc., most recently working on the frontier of health care reform on bundled payment and administrative simplification projects."
Michael Trigg, MBA, of Menlo Park, Calif., founded a new startup company, Spitball Entertainment, developing interactive, animated content for kids. He is also a board member of the Palo Alto Community Fund, a community endowment that makes grants to local nonprofit organizations.
1999
Keita Mori, MBA, of Cupertino, Calif., "The company that I founded 10 years ago, SanBio, was selected one of 'Northern California's Top 5 Biotech Innovation News Stories in 2010.' We develop regenerative medicine for cerebral stroke and are currently conducting clinical trials treating patients at Stanford (sorry, no medical school at Cal)."
2000
Rodrigo Prudencio, MBA, writes, "I've rounded 10 years at Nth Power, a pioneering venture capital firm that practically invented the clean-tech category. I am now a partner and leading deals primarily related to energy efficiency solutions. My daughter, Xiomara Kim, is nearly 5 and doing all the things a 5-year-old should do. My partner, Christina, works in public health doing good work in the VA system. Living in Oakland and working in San Francisco, I get to see lots of Haas friends in personal and professional life. Go Bears!"
Charlene (Son) Rigby, MBA, of San Francisco, writes, "My husband, Ben Rigby, and I are happy to share news of the birth of our son, Luca. The birth announcement and too many pictures are at http://about.me/lucarigby. I am one of the few folks from my class who are still at the first company they joined out of school, Oracle. I am responsible for Oracle's internal customer relationship management systems and processes. Ben is CTO of a micro-volunteering startup, Sparked.com."
Atsushi Sakahara, MBA, of Tokyo, Japan, writes, "My accomplishment last year was getting my autobiography published. The book is available only in Japanese. The title is "Sarin Gas and Bean Cake" (Kodansha). I am developing a feature screenplay about an over 40-year-old lady with an MBA, who desperately tries to get married. I am also in preproduction of a documentary about Ashesi University, founded by two Haas MBAs. I personally believe someone should introduce the impact they created. I need supporters for this project. If you are interested please let me know. Lastly, we have disastrous earthquakes in Japan at this moment. However, luckily I am fine and I have not lost any spirit yet."
Sonja (Winckler) Velez, MBA, of San Francisco, writes, "After a wonderful 13-year career in finance at Charles Schwab, I've decided to take some time to focus on my personal goal of completing an MFA in writing."
2001
Vivienne Hsu, MBA, of Los Altos, Calif., writes, "Having worked almost seven years at Charles Schwab Investment Management, I finally took my sabbatical in March, although work was mixed with play. After speaking at the World MoneyShow in Shanghai, I got to spend a few days touring the city and took a day-trip to Hangzhou. I also spent another week on a Mexican Riviera cruise with my mom, which was wonderful! It's amazing how four weeks could fly by so quickly!"
Emily Miller, MBA, and Patrick DeNeale, MBA, of Oakland, Calif., welcomed twin girls, Bodie and Lucy, on Feb. 11. They write, "We are enjoying midnight feedings, slinging diapers, and explaining away funky new stains on our clothes. Looking forward to introducing them to our class at the reunion picnic."
Jorge Viera, MBA, of Caracas, Venezuela, writes, "It's been a year since a benign but sizable tumor was removed from my chest. I'm feeling pretty well and planning to run the Chicago marathon this year. Our twins, Luisa and Clara, are now 3 and are super fun to play with. On the job front, I'm working full time as CEO of Cenco Zotti, a chemical distributor in Caracas, and working hard to establish operations in Bogota and Lima."
Melissa Weinstock, MBA, of Arlington, Va., writes, "Jeff and I are excited to announce the arrival of Zachary Aidan on Sept. 6, 2010 —two weeks early, but arrived fittingly on Labor Day. A big thank you to Jonathan Weinstein, MBA 98, and his wife, Stacie, for taking care of our older son, Max, when we went to the hospital. Things are great, but chaotic with two little boys running around. I returned to work at the FHLBanks Office of Finance in February, where I continue to supply the Federal Home Loan Banks with bond market research and analysis. Look us up if you plan to be in the Washington, D.C., area."
2002|10th MBA Reunion
April 26-29, 2012
Seong Chen, MBA, writes,
"Sue and I have spent four years
working and living in Switzerland.
The most exciting change for us
is the addition of a new family
member, Ruth Ling-Ru Chen, who
was born in June last year. I still work
for Roche Diagnostics but will take
up a new role as a project leader for
pricing and reimbursement in Basel.
It is very likely that we will spend
the next four years here, so please
drop me an email if you are visiting
Switzerland. Auf Wederluege!"
Chris Sklarin, MBA, of Cleveland, Ohio, joined Edison Ventures as an investment manager. Chris writes, "I generate investment opportunities and cultivate relationships with deal referral sources in Ohio and western Pennsylvania. Some of my areas of focus include mobile, health care IT, and e-commerce. I am also continuing my role as director of business development with BioEnterprise, a Cleveland area venture accelerator, where I advise health care IT companies on business formation, capital access, and growth."
2003
Karl Pisor, MBA, writes, "Hello all from Tokyo! We've had a rough few weeks with a huge earthquake, but the family is safe and doing well. I took over as Japan sales director for Lux Research, a U.S. hard-science research firm, in January. Business is growing in Japan, and despite the news to the contrary, I think Japan will emerge stronger than ever from this current crisis. Go bears!"
Hitoshi Koide Toshi, MBA, of Toyko, Japan, writes, "Hiromi delivered a boy on March 14, just three days after the devastating earthquake. We named him Shunsuke, hoping that he climbs up steep roads with courage. Kaito, his elder brother, Hiromi, and I welcome the new member to our family."
2004
Ross McConnell, MBA,
of Auckland, New Zealand, and
Hollie welcomed the arrival of son
Jed Isaac, Feb. 11, a little brother for
Niko (4) and Alec (2 1/2). He writes,
"We look forward to introducing the
boys to their Berkeley MBA 'cousins'
sometime in the future."
2005
Don Barnetson, MBA, of Berkeley, Calif., writes, "After working in the semiconductor industry for 15 years, I wanted to see if I could make it as an entrepreneur. Last fall, I cofounded DDT Software to develop an app that would allow users to get all of their favorite video on their mobile device for free, regardless of network availability. It has been quite an education, but in Q2 we will launch an app called TVAnytime. Look for us on iTunes and Android or at www.ddt-software.com, or drop me a line at don@ddt-software.com."
Steve Cobbs, MBA, of Irvine, Calif., has been promoted to vice president, acquisition underwriting, at KBS Realty Advisors. During his four years with KBS, he has closed over $1.75 billion in real estate acquisitions."
Regina Eberhart, MBA, of San Francisco, writes, "We just welcomed our first children, David Robert and Nicholas Ryan, on March 2. They arrived a month early, weighing in at just under 5 pounds, but they are gorgeous and very healthy. Mom and Dad are thrilled." Regie is on leave from her job at Williams-Sonoma, where she is a senior manager, running the brand's catalog and Internet finance operations. In between feedings and diaper changes, she is working with MBA classmates Michelle Lewis and Kevan Corbett, both MBA 05, on the Rashell Young Fellowship supporting Haas students with an interest in health care careers, in honor of classmate Rashell Young, who passed away last November."
As CTO of Decade Software, Bradley Irby, MBA, was challenged to reengineer the architecture of the company's main application, more than doubling the productivity of the team and dramatically increasing the quality of the system. Having achieved that goal, he moved on to be the CTO of Financial Navigator, a company that publishes financial management software tailored for partnerships, trusts, and other wealth management vehicles. He still lives in Burlingame, Calif., with his wife and two boys. He no longer must travel to Fresno for work and would love to reconnect with classmates.
Raymond Wang, MBA, of Shanghai, China, merged his IT consulting service shop with Capgemini China and formed the largest CRM/ eCommerce consulting service practice among the tier-one IT consultancies in China. He serves as associate vice president of Capgemini China.
2006
Qing Li, MBA, of Mountain View, Calif., writes, "I am running a startup called Blueberry Genie. We are building exciting life-changing applications. We are constantly looking for talented game developers, designers, illustrators, and animators. Let me know if you know someone interested in working on products that will literally change people's lives."
Jennifer Quan, MBA, of San Mateo, Calif., writes, "I am happy to share that my family has expanded with the addition of Riley Abigail Quan on Nov. 17, 2010. Big sisters Jordan (3 1/2) and Chloe (2) are thrilled. Other exciting news is that my husband, Eric, will be part of the EWMBA class of 2014."
2007|5th MBA Reunion
April 26-29, 2012
Russell Bernstein, MBA, of Washington D.C., writes, "We recruit entire teams of athletes to volunteer in the community as a part of their career development timeline outside and beyond sports. Visit us at www. teamplayers.org."
2008
Catherine Ellis, MBA, writes, "My family and I moved to Dededo, Guam, to launch a new office for the engineering and science consulting firm Kleinfelder. The move to Micronesia has been exciting, and the business challenges are very different from those on the continental mainland."
Grant Olsen, MBA, of Oakland, Calif., writes, "After five years of running M&A for a division of EMC, I've joined Zynga in the corporate development group (M&A). If you know any talented teams in the social gaming space, interesting tech companies, or are looking to join Zynga, please reach out (I'm on LinkedIn and the alumni directory). On the family side of things, my wife and I now have two young children, and my wife recently started her own business called Best Mom Products. Her flagship product is a talking CPR kit safety product (http://www.talkingcprkit. com)."
Preston Smalley, MBA, of
Danville, Calif., writes, "I left eBay last
year to become the general manager
for Plaxo. Upon arriving, I refocused
the business on the address book
space and in March 2011 was
proud to launch a new service that
automatically maintains your contacts'
info and refreshed our whole
product line. It's an exciting time for
me to be able to apply the tools we
learned at Haas in this new broader
role. At home my wife, Jeanine, and
I are doing well and expecting our
third little one this September. Our
son, Domenic, starts kindergarten
that same month. Our little girl (1½) is
just as beautiful as her mother."
2009
Omar Garriott, MBA, of San Francisco, left Adobe's education marketing group after nearly two years to join Apple in a similar role.
Antony Passemard, MBA,
of Palo Alto, Calif., writes, "Since the
end of the MBA, I have been able to
experience a scale that I never really
grasped before. I have spent almost
two years at Yahoo! going from
product manager to business lead of
the travel property, the largest travel
information site on the Web. Two
months ago, I changed course and
went back into the B2B world by
joining Salesforce.com as a director
of product management. The fast
pace of Salesforce.com is exhilarating
and the cloud is my new
home. Post-MBA, I've simply been
able to enjoy a world of possibilities.
My wife, currently at Genentech,
and my two daughters, 6 and 2, are
also enjoying the Bay Area. Coming
from France we find this region
brings an incredible balance of work
opportunity and family life."
Rags Srinivasan, MBA, of Cupertino, Calif., writes, "I recently published a book for small-business owners to help them make better decisions about the latest social commerce craze-—Groupon. In my many conversations with businesses it was clear that they lack the tools and expertise to do the math. I am excited to share my knowledge and experience through a book."
2003
Chris Phenner, BCEMBA, of New York, writes, "I resigned from Thumbplay after five years to launch Typejack, a private social network of folks who refer jobs to one another. If you're reading this and you're into helping folks find work they love, send a blank email to hi@typejack.com to join us. Otherwise Erika and I are on New York's Upper West Side and watching 15-month-old Will grow up along the mean streets of Riverside Park."
2005
Benjamin Phillips, BCEMBA, of Salt Lake City, writes, "Most recently, I have launched a new clean-tech company called RadianTorre. We are developing new technology for the conversion of biomass into biocoal via a process known as 'torrefaction.' This new effort is in response to the rapidly evolving biomass energy markets in which coal plant operators seek to displace a percentage of coal with a coal-like renewable fuel rather than raw biomass. In addition, I have also begun to teach on a volunteer basis at the University of Utah and Salt Lake Community College on the topics of bioenergy and biofuels."
2006
Juergen Schmidt, BCEMBA, of Munich, Germany, is working on a new business model in health technology to improve processes and lower costs in health delivery. He writes, "Given the aging population trend, that is the minimum I can contribute. Unfortunately, it is not easy."
1952
Julian Anabo, of Tustin, Calif., writes, "Today marks the beginning of my 56th year of success in the engineering and selling of meat processing systems throughout this continent and across both oceans, obviously due in part to the work that I accomplished at UC from 1952 freshman year and beyond in engineering and business colleges. What a great institution and what a great life. Go Bears!"
1972
Hans Wiik, MPH, of Louisville, Colo., is president of the Integrated Physician Network, sponsored by Centura Health in Colorado, a clinically integrated network of medical practices and providers, including more than 200 physicians and 22 multi-specialty practices in 35 different sites across north Denver. They use one common electronic health record platform with one common medical record. He writes, "We are well positioned for Accountable Care Organization (ACO) status for regional health care delivery and payment reform with several sites NCQA Level 3 certified for Patient Centered Medical Home. Vision and focus is on the triple aim of the Institute for Healthcare Improvement: improvement in the patient experience, patient quality and lowering the overall cost of health care. In 2010, IPN received the NextGen national award for best large practice electronic health record implementation in the nation."
"Alumni News" Table of Contents
