In This Issue
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| Professor Marucheck uses video game to simulate impact of business decisions in her course, "Service Operations" |
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Feature Stories
UNC Kenan-Flagler Plays Key Role in University's No. 1 Ranking in Entrepreneurship
UNC Kenan-Flagler played a key role in The University's No. 1 entrepreneurship ranking in the United States by Forbes.com and The Princeton Review. The 2004 survey ranked universities for fostering entrepreneurship across campus.
The No. 1 ranking in entrepreneurship includes many initiatives at the business school:
- UNC Kenan-Flagler offers an undergraduate business degree with a concentration in entrepreneurship. It also offers a concentration in entrepreneurship in the MBA Program which features more than 35 courses taught by senior MBA faculty. This program was recently selected as one of the top five programs by Entrepreneur magazine.
- "Launching the Company" is a course designed and delivered by the business school to help UNC students, faculty and staff who are committed to launching real commercial businesses or social ventures. MBA students from UNC Kenan-Flagler serve as coaches to help class participants succeed in launching their ventures.
- UNC Kenan-Flagler administers the University's Carolina Entrepreneurial Initiative (CEI), which was funded in part by the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation. CEI promotes entrepreneurship among faculty, staff and students across the UNC campus. Jack Kasarda of the business school's Kenan Institute directs CEI.
- The business school created the Venture Capital Investment Competition (VCIC), the premier, invitation-only strategy competition for venture-minded and entrepreneurial MBA students. VCIC annually hosts teams from more than 40 MBA programs from around the world, including teams from the top 10 business schools. The School also supports students' participation in business plan competitions.
- The Center for Entrepreneurial Studies and the Center for Sustainable Enterprise at UNC Kenan-Flagler jointly received the Kauffman Collegiate Entrepreneurship Network grant. The internship program places students in new and emerging social enterprises where they learn from mentors.
- The business school gives students entrepreneurial experience through internships with entrepreneurial ventures. In addition, through the Small Business and Technology Development Center, MBA students provide management consulting services to North Carolina businesses. They apply what they've learned in the classroom to real business challenges.
- The Kauffman Foundation awarded a grant to UNC Kenan-Flagler to fund a summer 2004 boot camp for junior faculty interested in research on minority and women's entrepreneurship.
- A number of prominent entrepreneurs serve as UNC Kenan-Flagler faculty.
- Events organized by the School's MBA clubs that focus on entrepreneurship are open to undergraduate students. These clubs include the MBA Entrepreneurship Club, the MBA Venture Capital Club and the MBA Business Technology Club.
- The Council for Entrepreneurial Development, Ernst & Young and UNC Kenan-Flagler annually host the Master Panel of Entrepreneurs. At this event, award-winning entrepreneurs share their success stories with students.
- The University and the business school have a "university entrepreneur in residence," Buck Goldstein. Goldstein mentors students and faculty interested in or involved with entrepreneurial ventures.
In "The 25 Most Entrepreneurial Campuses," Forbes.com quoted The Princeton Review and stated that at the University and at UNC Kenan-Flagler:
"Students are encouraged to participate in a variety of extracurricular activities, including The Carolina Entrepreneurship Club and Students in Free Enterprise, and to exploit school-sponsored programs like The Carolina Launch Program, designed to guide students through the process of starting up their own venture. The School also partners with a number of prominent companies, including Ernst & Young, which hosts the Master Panel of Entrepreneurs, during which award-winning entrepreneurs share their stories with students."
Forbes.com recognized the "real-life entrepreneurs" who teach on the faculty at UNC Kenan-Flagler. It cited as examples Clay Hamner, director of the Center for Entrepreneurial Studies and CEO of Montrose Capital Corporation, and Randy Myer, founder of Best Friends Pet Care.
"We are fortunate to benefit from the curriculum and programs of the business school's Center for Entrepreneurial Studies and the Carolina Entrepreneurial Initiative as we spur innovation and foster entrepreneurship at UNC," Kasarda said.
The top 10 universities that "show a commitment to creating programs to encourage young entrepreneurs on campus, as well as looking at how their alumni have fared in the real world" are:
- The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
- University of Notre Dame
- Louisiana State University and A&M College
- Northeastern University
- Indiana University - Bloomington
- Carnegie Mellon University
- Syracuse University
- University of Arizona
- University of Iowa
- University of New Hampshire
The Princeton Review solicited data from 357 top colleges and universities around the country. It asked a series of questions about the various ways they encourage and train undergraduate students to become successful entrepreneurs.
The full list of 25 campuses and editorial coverage can be found at http://www.forbes.com/home/lists/2004/10/20/04conncampentrepreland.html . The package includes an online video featuring UNC, brief profiles of each school and a full explanation of the methodology.
Detailed information about entrepreneurial studies at the business school and at UNC can be found at http://www.kenan-flagler.unc.edu/Programs/MBA/concentration/entrepreneurial/.
UNC Partners With European and Asian Business Schools To Launch Pioneering Undergraduate Program
UNC's Kenan-Flagler Business School is partnering with the Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) and Copenhagen Business School (CBS) to launch a pioneering international program in undergraduate business.
The schools, each recognized as among the very best in its region, will offer the innovative Global Learning Opportunities in Business Education (GLOBE) Program. GLOBE students from UNC, CUHK and CBS will:
- Study together at the campuses in Chapel Hill, Hong Kong and Copenhagen.
- Learn about international business from expert faculty at all three schools.
- Build and use teamwork and leadership skills.
- Extend their learning beyond the schools' borders through trips to corporations in Brussels, Berlin, Shanghai, Tokyo, Washington, D.C., and Research Triangle Park, N.C.
- Collaborate in their learning as members of virtual teams.
The first GLOBE students will be selected for the three-year programs at CUHK and CBS in fall 2005 and into UNC's two-year undergraduate program in fall 2006.
Students will spend the fall semester of their junior year at their home institutions, where they will participate on virtual teams for an introduction to international business.
CBS will host students from all schools for the spring semester of their junior year for classes in European business strategy and trips to corporations and European Union institutions in Brussels and Berlin.
During the summer of their junior year, GLOBE students will study at CUHK, where they will take courses in Asian business and marketing and visit companies in Shanghai and Tokyo.
They will study at UNC in the fall semester of their senior year and take study trips to Washington, D.C., and Research Triangle Park. Their U.S. studies will focus on new ventures and entrepreneurship. They will return to their home institutions for the spring semester of their senior year to complete their undergraduate degrees.
The GLOBE Program was officially launched Oct. 27 at the annual Partnership in International Management (PIM) Conference in Hong Kong.
Roots of the GLOBE Program can be traced to the ground-breaking alliance of five top business schools that created the global OneMBAŽ Program for executives. UNC Kenan-Flagler and CUHK along with three other top international schools are partners in the alliance that delivers OneMBA. Working in international virtual teams is part of the learning experience of OneMBA executive students, as it will be for GLOBE undergraduate students.
The GLOBE Program expands UNC Kenan-Flagler's international opportunities for undergraduate students. Nearly 50 percent of all UNC business majors earn academic credit while studying outside of the United States, and UNC Kenan-Flagler has set a goal of 100 percent of the majors to have overseas experiences by 2009. In fall 2003, the School began the Global Scholars Program, a unique living-learning program in which American and international students live and study international business together on a reserved floor in a UNC residence hall.
"GLOBE is an innovation in business education for undergraduate students," said UNC Kenan-Flagler Dean Steve Jones. "It goes far beyond the traditional undergraduate exchange program and adds firsthand exposure to foreign business operations and cultures. Students will develop a comprehensive global perspective by visiting nine locations in five different countries. And this globally dispersed and diverse class of undergraduates from some of the world's best business schools will become a network that each of them can rely upon in years to come."
"There is a need to break through the traditional model of business curriculum to extend the learning process and experience beyond national borders," said Dean T. S. Lee of the CUHK Faculty of Business Administration. "Through GLOBE, we will guide our students through the dynamic landscape of a convergent market place where international companies engage in fierce competition around the world. Increasingly, Asian influence in the world stage, both economically and politically, can no longer be ignored by multinational companies vying for global dominance. CUHK business professors are well placed to contribute their expertise in Asian-related issues to the GLOBE teaching curriculum. Together with our counterparts at UNC and CBS, a truly international team of faculty members will challenge our students, broaden their horizon and embolden them to think and act with a global mindset."
"GLOBE fits perfectly with Copenhagen Business School's strategic vision to train graduates who are competitive in the international job market and develop new research-based knowledge in partnership with companies and other institutions," said Ole Stenvinkel Nilsson, dean of the CBS Economics Faculty. "Our partnership with UNC and CUHK underscores the importance we attach to partnerships, and demonstrates our commitment to internationalizing our academic environment. It is an important step forward in our internationalization process, and we look forward to welcoming the new program's students in Copenhagen. We are convinced that GLOBE will be a stimulating and challenging experience for all involved."
For information about the GLOBE partner schools, visit www.kenan-flagler.unc.edu, www.cuhk.hk/en and www.cbs.dk.
MBA Curriculum Changes Prepare Students to Meet Market Demands
With the redesign of UNC Kenan-Flagler's MBA core curriculum this fall, first-year students have a more effective, integrated, efficient learning experience that better meets market demands.
MBA Associate Dean Valarie Zeithaml and staff met with corporate recruiters and talked to them in-depth about how to prepare students to be successful on the job and to hit the ground running - both with summer internships and upon graduation.
"Recruiters shared with us that it's not just what you know, it's what you can do," Zeithaml said. "They helped us to clarify the core competencies that all students need - communication, teamwork, leadership, analytic problem-solving, strategic thinking and a general management perspective - and to identify competencies that vary across students, such as an understanding of their chosen industry, functional skills and an international perspective."
First-year student Evelyn Contre said the changes to the core curriculum are important because they expose students to the skills they need before starting their internships.
"I'm a career-changer, so the ability to complete all of my core courses sooner gives me the flexibility to take more elective courses and to be better prepared when it's time to look for a job," Contre said.
First-year student Jimmy Rosen said in addition to the scheduling changes, he appreciates the devotion of the core faculty to teaching the material.
"Teaching is clearly a priority," he said. "UNC Kenan-Flagler faculty members are attentive and responsive to students which was a key goal of the administration and one they have clearly achieved."
Key changes made to the curriculum include the following:
- Specific skill sets for each competency were identified, as well as the various stages by which those skills should be mastered.
- Courses determined to be fundamental and foundational were placed into a "lock-step core" that all students must complete. The courses include analytical tools, financial tools, microeconomics, financial accounting, leading and managing, operations, finance, marketing, business strategy and ethics.
- Additional "custom core" courses were designed to be part of a customized followup as students pursue their areas of concentration. Concentration leaders were given more opportunity to tailor their offerings for first-year students by providing "custom core" and elective class requirements and updated descriptions.
- Management communication is now a required course, and custom-designed for small groups of 10 students.
- To ensure that students come in well-prepared, self-tests that students take prior to starting classes at UNC Kenan-Flagler were revised. In addition, many first-mod classes required students to prepare assignments for the first day of class.
- The core competencies are being built into coursework, and the coursework is being augmented with immersion activities that support the competencies.
Benefits of the new core curriculum changes include the following:
- The curriculum better meets core competencies required by industry.
- It allows students more flexibility for their job searches, more customization for functional and industry jobs and makes them more competitive for industry placements.
- Students will receive a more customized education, with the scheduling flexibility to get into elective courses.
First-year student Shams Tejani said the curriculum changes will make his class a
stronger one.
"In a culture such as ours at UNC Kenan-Flagler, where teamwork and collegiality are major components of the program, we as students are only as strong as the people sitting next to us," he said. "It is our fellow students who will push us to new limits and open our eyes to new opportunities and ideas."
"We will be going back to recruiters and asking them how well students are performing the skill sets identified in each of these core competencies," Zeithaml added. "And we're looking at additional opportunities to strengthen students' leadership skills."
Back to Class
Operations Professor Ann Marucheck's undergraduate course: "Service Operations"
In this second installment of our e-newsletter series, we take a page from some of the innovative courses and hot topics UNC Kenan-Flagler faculty are teaching.
Who knew that all those hours playing computer video games would pay off in business school?
Junkies of the Roller Coaster Tycoon video game counted themselves
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| Marucheck in class |
lucky when they signed up to take professor Ann Marucheck's undergraduate course in service operations management. Marucheck, tired of the ho-hum attitude some students showed in the end-of-semester projects she assigned, handed out copies of the popular video game and turned it into a semester-long assignment. It was fun with a purpose.
"They work harder, but they enjoy it more," said Marucheck, a professor of operations, technology and innovation management. "I get a lot of students who have played Roller Coaster Tycoon before or who have played the Sim City computer games."
In Roller Coaster Tycoon, players must create a successful theme park, deciding where to put their resources. Spend too much on building a great attraction at the expense of maintenance, and they risk the ride breaking down and being unable to take paying customers. If the lines in the simulated theme park are too long, concessions stands too few and benches nonexistent, they will have a lot of unhappy customers. When customer satisfaction plummets, so does profitability.
"There are a lot of different things you have to keep your eye on when you're managing a service," Marucheck said. "Roller Coaster Tycoon is a hands-on approach to applying these concepts."
Service operations as a course only emerged in the past decade. Prior to that, business schools focused more on manufacturing. In the early 1990s, the economy went through a shift, and many people found themselves working in service organizations. Even those who worked in manufacturing did so in a service capacity.
"It was obvious that service operations was going to be a key to the future," Marucheck said.
In class, Marucheck backs up her Roller Coaster Tycoon assignments with examples from real theme parks as often as she can, studying how Disney manages crowds, for example, or forecasts theme park attendance. All class discussions stem from real-world examples.
"Students tell me that when they go on interviews for internships or final placement, they've found that referring to what actual organizations have done impresses recruiters," she said.
Video games actually may become more valuable as organizations increasingly use simulations to test strategies and solutions, she said. With the Roller Coaster Tycoon assignments, students become comfortable simulating their ideas before proceeding with tangible resources. This hypothesizing and testing is the scientific method applied to business, Marucheck added.
Contact Marucheck at (919) 962-3193, .
Marucheck's takeaways:
- Investments in good service design might not make a theme park immediately profitable. However, over the long run, those investments pay off in higher levels of performance, including profitability. Students learn that if they "cheap out" in building the theme park in order to avoid a negative cash flow, they pay by the end of the game with lower customer satisfaction and lower profitability and cash flow.
- Although the theme park caters to the thrill-seeking customer who wants the biggest and best roller coaster, that customer segment gets bored unless the rides and attractions are constantly refreshed and updated.
- Often the best-performing team has developed the best maintenance policy. Sound maintenance affects the safety of the rides, which is important to the customer, but it also keeps the rides running at high utilization rates. Utilization affects the number of customers who can be accommodated on the ride during peak periods as well as the length of time a customer must wait in line for the ride.
Recommended reading:
"Measuring Performance in Multistage Service Operations" by Ann Marucheck and PhD alums Joanne Sulek and Mary Lind, who are now on the faculty at North Carolina A&T. Currently under editorial review at the Journal of Operations Management.
"Successful Service Operations Management" by R. Metters, K. King-Metters and M. Pullman.
"Welcome to the Experience Economy" by B. Pine and J. Gilmore. Harvard Business Review, July-August 1998.
"The Theme Park Challenge" by M. Higgins, The Wall Street Journal, Aug. 3, 2001.
"Managing Capacity and Flow at Theme Parks" by R.H. Ahmadi. Operations Research, 45:1.
"Flow Management to Optimize Retail Profits at Theme Parks" by K. Rajaram and R. Ahmade. Operations Research, 51:2.
Citigroup VP Provides Financial Solutions for Largest Corporate Clients
With a career path as calculated as the financial solutions she provides her Fortune 500 clients, Helen Ding (MBA '98) continues to build her portfolio of experience as a Citigroup vice president in the e-solutions division based in New York.
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| Helen Ding |
When Ding's clients turn to her to address their e-payment needs, she works with Citigroup's global teams to conduct due diligence and evaluation on payment service providers in multiple international markets. Ding works to form strategic alliances to develop a product suite to satisfy her clients' needs.
"Essentially, we provide one-stop shopping solutions in e-payments for Citigroup's largest corporate customers," Ding said. "Business models change and e-commerce trends change, so our customers turn to us for a product suite to cover their growth needs, not just in the U.S., but in other countries as well."
Ding's interests in financial analysis and strategic international business planning, which are daily fare for her now, are what led her to enter business school after moving to the United States from her native China in 1995.
"I worked in China for a joint venture distributing high-tech products into the Chinese market. I came to the U.S. to work for an American company as a consultant helping them break into the Chinese market. I really wanted to get into international business, and felt I needed the disciplined study of business school to do that."
A business school case study piqued Ding's interest in Citigroup while she was still a student. "I went to the library and did research and learned all that I could about Citigroup. I did very well on the case study in the class, but more importantly that knowledge helped prepare me to interview with Citigroup."
Citigroup selected Ding as part of its Global Emerging Markets Management Associates (GEMMA) Program, which provided two-and-a-half years of rigorous training and job rotation throughout the world to an elite group of 13 recruits. "The GEMMA Program exposed me to all major aspects of corporate and investment banking - corporate finance/mergers and acquisitions, capital markets, credit and risk management, treasury and transaction services. The rotations helped me identify my interests and what I wanted to focus on. And I developed a very strong network of resources to help me grow professionally."
Ding's GEMMA experience included an investment banking rotation in Miami working closely with Salomon Smith Barney - Citigroup's investment banking arm - on private placements and merger and acquisition deals in Latin America. She traveled to Latin American countries and developed financial models to value companies and prepared prospectuses for potential investors. In many deals in which she participated, Citigroup was selected as the lead.
Ding did her credit and risk management rotation in New Zealand, working with senior bankers in that region. She performed detailed financial analyses for companies involved in spin-offs, asset disposals and acquisitions. She also was part of the team that crafted Citigroup's strategy roadmap in the Chinese market.
"Challenging myself is just part of my personality. I've put myself through rigorous challenges with my education and my career. And I'm always looking for the next step," Ding said in explaining her latest achievement - passing the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) exams. Ding began working toward her CFA designation two years ago to increase her knowledge and skills in the areas of capital markets and investment management.
"This is a credential to help me grow professionally. What I enjoy most about my work is using my strengths in financial analysis while working with people. I have exposure to Citigroup's largest corporate clients, but the opportunity to work personally with their staffs to achieve growth goals is what excites me," Ding said.
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Feature Stories
