Update
"Rising
to the Challenge" Program Addresses Post-9/11 Issues
Student
Conferences Spark Discussion, Promote Interaction
New
Director of MBA Career Services Focuses on Power of Alumni Network
Professorship
Brings Brierley's HBS Connection Full Circle
John
Mulroney: Center Stage at the Opera
Dean
Clark Visits Alumni in Europe
"Rising to the Challenge" Program Addresses Post-9/11 Issues
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It was no doubt the first time in HBS history that those who gathered for a community event at Burden Auditorium were provided with lifesaving medical supplies. As they filed throug the door, each member of the audience that arrived to participate in a panel discussion with seven leaders in the field of humanitarian relief and development was handed a packet of oral-rehydration salts.
The January 15 panel, one of a series of presentations in the School’s “Rising to the Challenge” program organized by the Dean’s Office and the MBA Program in response to last fall’s terrorist attacks, was cosponsored by the HBS Social Enterprise and International Business and Development Clubs. In his dramatic introductory remarks, moderator Reynold Levy, president and CEO of the International Rescue Committee and an HBS senior lecturer, stated, “Dehydration is the leading cause of death among refugees. Before this panel ends, nearly eight hundred children will die of dehydration caused by diarrhea.” Noting that the mortality rate for Afghan children under the age of five is 25 percent, Levy informed the audience that the salt packets they were holding, which could save many lives, cost just ten cents per package.
In introducing the panelists, who represented a variety of nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), Levy said that “NGOs are critical sources of information and catalysts for change” and that their influence has risen significantly since the end of the Cold War. Panelist Nancy Aossey, president and CEO of International Medical Corps, was a sophomore in college when the Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan in 1979. Her primary memory from that time was of the U.S. boycott of the 1980 Summer Olympic Games in Moscow. “I never thought this would become my life’s work,” remarked Aossey, whose organization, formed in response to the Soviet invasion, trains medical personnel around the world in order to create a sustainable health-care system. “The attacks on September 11 underscored the interconnectedness of the United States with other parts of the world and the voice we have as NGOs,” she said. “I felt I had to speak out on behalf of the Afghan people.”
“Communication really became the name of the game,” agreed Peter Bell, president and CEO of CARE USA. “We’ve done more work with the media than ever before. These events provided a teachable moment regarding our role as global citizens and the importance of ending poverty.”
“We know that all the might in the world won’t end the war on terrorism,” added Neal Keny-Guyer, CEO of Mercy Corps International, an NGO founded in 1979 that works in 25 countries to provide emergency relief and support community development and civil society initiatives. “There’s a direct connection between economic and social stability. September 11 pushed NGOs into the gray area of politics.” The sector needs new ideas and new talent now more than ever before, continued Keny-Guyer. “Put aside the consulting firms and investment banks for a while,” he exhorted students in the audience. “We need you now!”
Charles MacCormack, president and CEO of Save the Children, changed his own career path as a student. In 1962, at the time of the Cuban missile crisis, MacCormack was planning to enter the medical profession. With the United States on the brink of nuclear war, he wondered, “What use will I be as a doctor if the world is not a betterrun place?” He shifted his field of study and went on to receive a Ph.D. from Columbia University in political science. Since September 11, MacCormack said that his organization has been working harder than ever to exert influence over public policy. “We don’t want aid to Afghanistan to be spent at the expense of fighting HIV/AIDS in Africa,” he remarked. “These funds should be supplemental, not diverted from other important issues.”
Panelists agreed that speaking out in the emotional days and weeks following September 11 was difficult. “The communications environment was treacherous,” said Raymond Offenheiser, president of Oxfam America. “It wasn’t clear what the message should be, if we spoke out at all.” Even so, heightened awareness about Afghanistan and other countries created an unprecedented opportunity for action, he noted. Recalling how the Marshall Plan “provided a grand vision for U.S. involvement in the world” after World War II, Offenheiser emphasized the need for similar foresight at a time when the United States is dangerously complacent with its place in the world.
Marc Lindenberg, dean and professor at the Daniel J. Evans School of Public Affairs at the University of Washington, observed that today’s challenges are structural, ethical, and operational in nature, qualities that should engage the intellect and entrepreneurial drive of any HBS student. “Think about these problems,” he urged students in the audience. “Then start your own organizations.”
— Julia Hanna (send e-mail
to the author)
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Student Conferences Spark Discussion, Promote Interaction
Beginning in late January, the School’s student clubs host a series of annual conferences that explore a wide variety of specialized business issues. Organized and staffed by hundreds of hardworking HBS student volunteers, the conferences bring in provocative speakers and expert panelists to discuss areas of interest ranging from opportunities in Asian markets, to managing work/life balance, to the impact of wireless technology on business strategy, to the achievements of African Americans in business. Highlights of some of this year’s events follow.
For more coverage, visit the “Special Reports” section of HBS Working Knowledge at www.workingknowledge.hbs.edu.
Technology and Tradition at Cyberposium
If
attendance at the 2002 Cyberposium is any indication, student
interest in the high-tech sector remains intense despite the dot-com
economy’s downturn. Over one thousand students representing
25 top MBA programs attended the conference, which brought together
some two hundred speakers and panelists for an exploration of
new-economy topics that ranged from the wireless Internet to digital-rights
management in media and entertainment. The lineup of keynote speakers
included Internet guru Esther Dyson, chairman of EDventure Holdings;
Matthew Szulik, president and CEO of the open-source software
company Red Hat, Inc.; and Dean Kamen (7th OPM), chairman and
CEO of Segway LLC and creator of the Segway Human Transporter.
A Saturday morning panel featured speakers from corporations described as “American icons” by moderator Tom Davenport, director of the Accenture Institute for Strategic Change. Jack Duffy, SVP of corporate strategy at UPS, noted that the process of integrating technology into the company’s infrastructure has been part of a gradual shift. “Now it encompasses how we think about everything,” he remarked.
“Information technology has to march in lockstep with business,” agreed Verizon CIO Shaygan Kheradpir. Software that automates complex transactions and expanding customer service on the Web are both ripe for high-tech development, he noted. “We’re getting back to basics,” said Bruce Harreld (MBA ’75), SVP of strategy at IBM. “Our goal is to increase the efficiency of organizational systems by creating software that remaps how processes work together.” Steven Elterich, president of Fidelity eBusiness, who expects that technology will one day allow brokers to talk to Internet customers in real time, cautioned that advances in quality and service should be introduced over time. “It’s important to stay on the leading edge with customers without falling off,” he concluded.
“Technology has always been a major source of both evolutionary and revolutionary advances in business,” said John N. Maxemchuk, who, with Marie-Laure Goepfer (both HBS ’02), cochaired the three-day February conference, sponsored by the High Tech & New Media Club. “This year, in addition to addressing the keen ongoing interest in entrepreneurship and high-tech advances, the conference examined the application of technology in traditional businesses and the innovations that will influence the everyday activities of a broad spectrum of companies.”
WSA: Focus on Work/Life Balance
“Women have always been dynamic, and they’ve always been in business,” declared HBS professor Nancy F. Koehn in the opening keynote address at the Dynamic Women in Business Conference, held at HBS in late January. Organized by the HBS Women’s Student Association, the eleventh annual event attracted a sold-out crowd of nine hundred attendees.
In her talk, Koehn drew on examples from the history
of women in business to give her audience some perspective on
the transformational effects of economic independence. Among the
first places U.S. women worked outside the home were textile factories
in Massachusetts, she noted. The work was often arduous and the
hours long, but the upside for women was the power to control
their own money and time. Koehn quoted Josephine Baker, a factory
worker who, in 1847, wrote, “The money we earn comes promptly
and comes to us. When we are finished we feel perfectly free until
the time to commence again.” Koehn also drew on the lives
of women who had carved out business opportunities despite formidable
odds, including Madam C.J. Walker, a
daughter of slaves who founded a million-dollar hair-care enterprise.
Gail J. McGovern, president of Fidelity Personal Investments in Boston, asked audience members at the afternoon keynote, “How many of you would be fifteen minutes late for an appointment with your CEO?” A cautious few raised their hands. “Now, how many of you would be fifteen minutes late for an appointment with a friend or family member?” she inquired. About half of the audience slowly raised their hands. Her point on the importance of balance in work and family life was well made. McGovern, named one of Fortune magazine’s fifty most powerful women in corporate America in 2001, smiled and nodded knowingly. “Treat the appointment with a friend or family member as you would a meeting with your CEO. It is just as sacred.”
Participants enjoyed sessions on topics that ranged from biotechnology to media and entertainment to social enterprise. A panel of six entrepreneurs, moderated by HBS professor Lynda M. Applegate, discussed their experiences in light of the recent economic downturn and agreed that whatever the climate, entrepreneurs have to make tough choices all the time. Andrea C. Silbert (MBA ’92), founder and CEO of the nonprofit Center for Women & Enterprise, advised, “Don’t go with your gut without doing analysis.” In contrast, Roxanne Quimby, founder, president, and CEO of the personal-care products firm Burt’s Bees Inc., adopted a different approach, recounting how a twenty-minute yoga session recently helped her make a difficult business decision. “Follow your bliss,” she told attendees.
Asia Business Conference Looks Ahead to Economic Recovery
Five
years after the first rumblings of the Asian financial crisis,
students from the HBS Asia Business Club and the Harvard Asia
Law Society hosted “Phoenix Rising,” a two-day conference
with some seven hundred participants that focused on the future
of sustainable economic growth in the region.
The annual conference, held on the first weekend in
February, featured a keynote address by Ambassador Charlene Barshefsky,
who, during her tenure as U.S. Trade Representative from 1996
to 2001, pursued an aggressive agenda to open foreign markets
around the world. Barshefsky, currently senior international partner
at Wilmer, Cutler & Pickering, discussed China’s inclusion
in the World Trade Organization (WTO).
As a member of the WTO, Barshefsky said, China is moving
from a protectionist position to a more active, strategic role,
an international function it hasn’t played for the last two
hundred years. In forecasting the possible effect of this development
on Sino–U.S. relations, Barshefsky was cautiously optimistic.
“I think the Chinese will make a strong, good-faith effort
to implement the WTO agreement,” she told the audience in
Burden Auditorium. “We have to work with China and the international
community. I do think this evolution will take a healthy direction,
with the end effect of helping both of our governments manage
crises more efficiently.”
Additional keynote speakers included Jin Liqun, China’s
viceminister of finance, and Jeffrey R. Shafer, managing director
of Salomon Smith Barney and vice chairman of SSB International.
Saturday’s discussion panels examined four main themes: restructuring
and economic reforms, humancapital development, industry adaptation
in Asia, and multinational corporations and entrepreneurship.
A plenary panel on leadership in Asia’s recovery,
moderated by HBS associate professor Yasheng Huang, opened with
a spirited presentation by Ko Kheng Hwa (AMP:ISMP 152), managing
director of the Singapore Economic Development Board. “Asia
is not just China, you know!” he said. In addition to highlighting
Singapore’s contributions to what he called “rising
Asia,” Hwa noted that India’s economy is the secondfastest
growing in the world and that Japan, despite its troubles, is
the world’s second largest.
Panelist Richard Smith, president of Eli Lilly’s Asia division, noted that China seems to be the odds-on favorite for leading Asia’s recovery, but cited potential for social unrest as the disparity between rural and urban populations widens. Wanda S. Tseng, deputy director of the IMF’s Asia and Pacific Department, offered an overview of Asia’s current economic strengths and weaknesses. “There are no quick fixes,” she stated, an observation echoed by other participants. “The strongest results will come through the consistent pursuit of policies that streamline the judicial process, strengthen corporate governance, and liberalize markets.”
Fitzhugh Conference Marks Three Decades of Achievement
In
celebration of its thirtieth anniversary, this year’s African-American
Student Union (AASU) conference was renamed in remembrance of
H. Naylor Fitzhugh (MBA ’33), a leader in industry and a
pioneer in business education honored for his role as a mentor
to generations of African Americans. Held the last weekend
in February at the Cambridge Marriott, the conference, titled
“Excelling in the New Competitive Landscape,” brought
together some 450 participants to focus on challenges arising
from the current political and economic climate.
Given the prominence of Fitzhugh’s legacy throughout
the weekend’s events, it was a particularly fitting time
for the PepsiCo Foundation to announce an additional $100,000
donation to the H. Naylor Fitzhugh Professorship, a capstone contribution
for the three-year, $5 million fundraising effort that included
earlier gifts from PepsiCo, alumni, and corporate donors. “H.
Naylor Fitzhugh left a legacy of achievement as a business executive
and a business scholar,” said Maurice Cox, PepsiCo’s
vice president of corporate development and diversity. “Helping
to endow the chair at HBS, as well as establishing the fellowship
program in his name, is a small way for PepsiCo to acknowledge
his many, many contributions to our business and community.”
In a break from tradition, the Civic Commitment Award
— usually given to an alumnus — was presented to HBS
professor emeritus James L. Heskett for his role in creating the
Summer Venture Management Program (SVMP). Founded sixteen years
ago, the SVMP, a weeklong session held at HBS, exposes talented
minority college juniors and seniors to general management issues
through the case method and encourages them to consider careers
in business.
A
Saturday morning packed with sessions covered topics ranging from
consolidation in the media industry to privatization of the public
education system. Ann M. Fudge (MBA ’77), recipient of the
Bert King Service Award, delivered the lunchtime keynote address.
In her talk, Fudge, a former group vice president at Kraft Foods,
emphasized the importance of community service and strong values.
“Hold on to honesty, integrity, and respect — for yourself
and everyone else,” she said. Material goods are all well
and good, she continued, but the value of “stuff” doesn’t
last. “What happens to it all?” she asked. “The
real wealth is family. The true currency is love and friendship.”
Later that afternoon, teams of entrepreneurs presented
business plans to a panel of leading venture capitalists. Taking
top prize were Kareem Howard (HBS ’02) and Olufemi Omojola
with VehicleSense, a venture that will manufacture wireless magnetic
sensors for use in the telematics area of the transportation industry.
Pamela Thomas-Graham (MBA ’88/JD ’89), president and CEO of CNBC, received the Professional Achievement Award and addressed participants at the black-tie banquet that evening. Calling on the audience to realize their full leadership potential, Thomas-Graham said, “Be visible — lead in a visceral way, even if it means putting yourself at risk.” (For a profile of Thomas- Graham, click here.)
Another highlight of the conference was the announcement
of a partnership between the HBS African-American Alumni Association
(HBSAAA), the AASU, and the Boys & Girls Club of America to
launch “Connecting Through Caring,” an initiative led
by Ann Fudge that focuses on improving literacy in children from
kindergarten through fourth grade. The first phase of the initiative
— an on-campus book drive led by Matthew S. Fields and Marleta
Y. Ross, both HBS ’02 — has resulted in the collection
of nearly one thousand books. In its second phase, the initiative
will include a reading and coaching program staffed by HBSAAA
volunteers in Atlanta and Boston, the initiative’s pilot
cities.
“We hope this positive, hands-on approach to reading
will extend the horizons and imaginations of our youth and will
favorably impact their academic performance,” said Kenneth
A. Powell (MBA ’74), president of the HBSAAA. “This
will give HBS African- American business leaders and their colleagues
the opportunity to have a direct and positive influence on the
development of children, our most important resource for the future.”
A number of potential MBA students who participated in the conference also attended a Prospective Students’ Day on the HBS campus Friday afternoon. The oversubscribed event included a case study led by HBS professor Thomas J. DeLong and a talk by Lillian Lincoln (MBA ’69), the first African-American woman to graduate from HBS. “Prospective Students’ Day is an integral part of the School’s diversity outreach efforts to provide minority students with an opportunity to visit HBS and get to know the community better,” said Brit K. Dewey (MBA ’96), managing director of MBA Admissions and Financial Aid. “This year the event was particularly successful due to the terrific energy and collaborative spirit of alumni and the School’s minority student leaders. We’re very grateful for their support.”
New Director of MBA Career Services Focuses on Power of Alumni Network
The
outlook for MBA job seekers was bright when Matthew S. Merrick
(MBA ’96) was a student in search of a summer internship.
The Pittsburgh native knew he wanted to be in his hometown, so
he sent his résumé to three companies with HBS graduates
at the helm. Two of the three executives agreed to interview Merrick
immediately; both offered him jobs. After graduation, he accepted
a position at Parson Group, a Chicago-based consulting firm he
learned of through a previous contact. That was then, this is
now, but Merrick’s approach — what the recently appointed
director of MBA Career Services refers to as a “network job
search” — is just the sort of strategy he’s advising
current MBA students to use as they confront today’s considerably
less hospitable market.
“In this climate, students will need to work harder,”
Merrick states. “They’re going to have to be more creative
and more flexible in their choice of industry and function. It’s
a tough year — you can’t dress it up.” Industries
that have been hit hardest by the economic downturn include consulting
and investment banking, two areas that traditionally hire a significant
number of HBS students, he notes.
All indicators suggest that the MBA student body is adapting
well, with counseling and career search workshops being offered
for those who have less experience with job searches. “We
have a very independent student body that is used to taking the
initiative,” Merrick observes. “When students are here,
they want to cast a wide net in their career search. We need to
ensure that they continue to have a broad set of opportunities
to choose from and help them consider those options — it’s
a way to explore and confirm their interests.”
In response to this year’s challenging environment,
Merrick and his staff of twelve are stepping up alumni outreach
efforts and contacting organizations that have not typically recruited
at HBS. “We’re asking graduates of the School to think
about our young, energetic, talented students when they’re
making their hiring plans and decisions,” Merrick says. “Alumni
know that the economy is in a difficult place now, and our students
can be part of the effort to help turn it around.”
Just a few months into his new job (landed, incidentally,
through the HBS Career Services Web site), Merrick is finding
some good news in the midst of doom and gloom. For example, students
are getting a head start on developing the expertise required
for a successful network job search, a skill that will be even
more useful later in their careers. The process also requires
more time and thought. “People are less likely to automatically
follow the herd when it comes to choosing a field,” he remarks.
“In the long run, I think this situation could have a positive
impact on students’ careers.” For his part, Merrick
relishes the tasks before him. “I love what I’m doing,”
he says. “The focus on Career Services and the challenges
our office faces in today’s economic climate make this a
very stimulating and rewarding job.”
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