First West Coast MBA for Executives Class Graduates
The Wharton School held the graduation of its first West Coast class of MBA for Executives students on August 24, 2003, in the San Francisco War Memorial and Performing Arts Center’s Herbst Theater. The 59 graduating students began their MBA studies in August, 2001, when the School opened its West Coast facility — Wharton West — in San Francisco. They commuted to the residential program from all over the country, bringing an average of 10 years’ experience in industries ranging from finance and manufacturing to telecommunications and entertainment.
The graduation keynote speaker was Jon M. Huntsman, W’59, H’96, founder and chairman of the Huntsman Corporation. Huntsman is the chair of the School’s Board of Overseers and namesake of a new $139.9-million state-of-the-art facility on the School’s Philadelphia campus.
“This graduating class represents the fulfillment of an important outreach goal of the School to reach new student populations and bring the highest quality of management education to the West Coast,” stated Dean Patrick Harker. “I congratulate the students for completing a rigorous academic curriculum in an equally rigorous format.”
Wharton West Vice Dean Leonard Lodish added his congratulations, stating that he is “particularly gratified to see how these students already have added significant value to their sponsoring companies using new knowledge they have obtained at Wharton.”
Whether based in San Francisco or Wharton’s home campus in Philadelphia, the MBA for Executives Program www.wharton.upenn.edu/wemba offers qualified candidates the same program, faculty and degree as Wharton’s world-class MBA program. The two-year program is designed for the working professional and provides the value of a full-time Wharton MBA education to experienced managers with high growth potential.
The MBA for Executives Program was one of the School’s first programs launched at Wharton West. Successive classes of students have come from California, the western U.S. and as far away as Asia. The incoming class size has grown to more than 80 students.
In addition to serving as the West Coast base for the School’s MBA for Executives program, Wharton West also offers non-degree executive education programs. It is located in the historic Folger Building at Howard and Spear Streets, near the San Francisco business and financial district.
Knowledge@Wharton Announces Partnership with Economist.com
Knowledge@Wharton, the online business analysis and research journal of the Wharton School, and Economist.com have entered a partnership to launch a series of web-based briefings on current business topics. The seminars will be accessible from Economist.com and Knowledge@Wharton websites, reaching a combined audience of nearly 1.8-million senior executives around the world. These online events will reside in a new section of both websites to be called The Global Business Report.
“Wharton is delighted to work with Economist.com on this project,” said Dean Patrick Harker. “Our shared commitment to advancing global business practice by delivering cutting-edge knowledge to executives makes this a great partnership. We hope everyone will take advantage of the opportunity to learn from the world’s top business research faculty through these seminars.”
“This is an exciting opportunity for us to bring our authoritative global brands together”, commented Paul Rossi, publisher of Economist.com. “It will allow us to offer our audience of internationally-minded senior business people insight into the issues facing global organizations.”
Each online seminar — or “Business Briefing” — will feature Wharton faculty, journalists from The Economist, and other industry experts. The format will include audio interviews, readings, and online panel discussions. After each seminar, Knowledge@Wharton will produce a conclusions paper highlighting findings from the event.
Topics will focus on issues that business leaders have indicated are crucial challenges their organizations must confront over the next decade. These range from strategic approaches to business process outsourcing, new competition for the pharmaceutical industry, the crisis in health care coverage, shifting business climates in Asia and Europe, and the role of small business in a global economy. The series is scheduled for launch in the fall of this year.
Knowledge@Wharton is free and can be accessed at http://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu.
Kleindorfer
Faculty Award Honor Outstanding Teaching
Paul R. Kleindorfer, Anheuser-Busch Professor of Management Science, was this year’s recipient of the Helen Kardon Moss Anvil Award for teaching in the MBA division. The winner was elected by the MBA student body using a weighted average number of votes that takes into consideration the number of students he or she has taught in the past year. In addition to receiving a cash award, Kleindorfer was recognized at Spring Salute and graduation.
In the Undergraduate Division, Anne Cummings, assistant professor of management, and William F. Hamilton, Ralph Landau Professor of Management and Technology, were named the 2003 recipients of the David W. Hauck Award for Outstanding Teaching. The David W. Hauck Award for Outstanding Teaching, the most prestigious in Wharton’s Undergraduate Division, is given to recipients for their ability to lead, stimulate and challenge students, knowledge of the latest research in the field, and commitment to educational leadership.
The New Faculty
This fall, Wharton welcomed thirteen new faculty to its roster. They include:
Sigal Barsade
Associate Professor
Management Department
Jennifer Blouin
Assistant Professor
Accounting Department
Philip Bond
Assistant Professor
Finance Department
Xavier Dreze
Assistant Professor
Marketing Department
Skander Essegaier
Assistant Professor
Marketing Department
Nicolae Garleanu
Assistant Professor
Finance Department
Kartik Hosanagar
Assistant Professor
Operations and Information Management Department
Brigitte Madrian
Associate Professor
Business and Public Policy Department
Albert Saiz
Assistant Professor
Real Estate Department
Stephen Shore
Assistant Professor
Insurance and Risk Management Department
Uri Simonsohn
Assistant Professor
Operations and Information Management Department
Geoffrey Tate
Assistant Professor
Finance Department
Anita Tucker
Assistant Professor
Operations and Information Management Department
Entrepreneur in Residence Program Returns with New Roster of Company Founders
Wharton’s “Entrepreneur in Residence” program, which allows University of Pennsylvania students the chance to tap the brainpower and expertise of successful entrepreneurs, has announced a new slate of successful business owners participating this year. Penn students are provided one-on-one, 30- minute sessions with the Entrepreneurs in
Residence, gaining the opportunity to access their insight, experience and business advice.
Entrepreneurs arrive nearly every Tuesday while school is in session and represent a full range of industries and life experiences. In all, there are ten visiting entrepreneurs for the fall semester.
“We are delighted that students get involved in this program for such varied reasons such as an industry interest or to solicit feedback for a business concept, or to simply gain inspiration,” said Nicole Righini, associate director for Wharton Entrepreneurial Programs.
Entrepreneurs coming to campus this fall include:
– John Osher, who sold his SpinBrush toothbrush to Crest for $475 million and also helped produce “Hairspray” on Broadway
– Michelle Peluso, W’93, founder of travel website Site59, and now COO of leading online travel agency, Travelocity
– Rebecca Mathias, a Penn alum, who launched maternity apparel maker Mothers Work and is on Penn’s School of Arts and Sciences Board of Overseers
– Dennis Weiss, WG’70, family business member and owner of West Central Produce of Los Angeles
– Chris Ingram, founder of British advertising agency CIA, which he sold to WPP for £64 million.
For more information, visit: www.wep.wharton.upenn.edu/student_involvement/entrepreneur_inresidence.asp.
Recent Alumni Publications
The Old Girls’ Network
By Sharon Whiteley, Kathy Elliott, and Connie Duckworth, WG’79
Basic Books (2003)
“The ‘old girls’ speak wisely and directly, offering shrewd recipes for successful business creation that will make any budding entrepreneur feel she has an angel by her side.” –Rosabeth Moss Kanter, Harvard Business School
IP Storage Networking: Straight to the Core
By Gary Orenstein, WG’97
Addison-Wesley (2003)
“Unlike traditional storage networking analysis, IP Storage Networking goes beyond technical descriptions to the business reasons and justifications for implementing a storage architecture.” –Doug Ingraham, Senior Manager, Cisco’s Storage Technology Group
The Experience Economy: Work is Theatre & Every Business a Stage
By B. Joseph Pine II and James H. Gilmore, W’81
Harvard Business School Press (2003)
“Pine and Gilmore confirm our sense of excitement about the Experience Economy and the role experiences play in building stronger, more personal relationships with employees, corporate customers, and consumers.” –Marilyn Carlson Nelson, President, CEO, and Vice Chair, Carlson Companies, Inc.
Valuation: Maximizing Corporate Value
By George M. Norton III, WG’72
John Wiley & Sons, Inc. (2003)
“George Norton has made the complex subject of business valuation and value creation understandable.…For a business book it is not only a ‘good read,’ it is a ‘must read.’” –Craig Lentzsch, President and CEO, Greyhound Lines, Inc.
Never Climbed His Mountain: A Retailer’s Journey to the Heights and Disaster
By Julian Gladstone, W’48
Infinity Publishing (2002)
“…A memoir like no other.” –Publisher
Software Product Management Essentials: A Practical Guide for Small and Mid-Sized Companies
By Alyssa S. Dver, W’87
Anclote Press (2003)
“A solid treatise on product management techniques and practices, the majority of which are applicable well beyond just software product management.” –The Product Development & Management Association (PDMA)
