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Deep in the Heart of Texas
Leave it up to HBS alumni clubs in Texas to plan events that leave big impressions on their members.
Houston Club President Andrew L. Waite (MBA '93), now in the second year of his term, rattles off the high-caliber speakers his club regularly features at its events -- Greg Brenneman of Continental Airlines, the mayor of Houston, Houston's leading entrepreneurs, HBS faculty members, and distinguished CEOs from energy, technology, and industrial fields.
"The way we keep the membership interested in the club is by having great programs and events," declares Waite, who notes that the club schedules 20 to 25 events every year with prominent speakers. "And we do everything we can to encourage people in the area, especially new grads, to become interested in the club." The Houston club holds a reception each year for HBS alumni who are new to the area; new members can join at special rates. Social events are also planned that are specifically geared toward those who have been out of HBS for five years or less. "Overall, we have a 30 percent participation rate, out of ap-proximately one thousand alumni in the area," says Waite, "and each year we try to increase that number."
Newly elected Dallas Club President Kenneth P. Winslow (MBA '76) cites the special activities and informal networking that mark his club's events. He recalls in particular a July 28, 1994, outing at a Texas Rangers baseball game, where pitcher Kenny Rogers retired all 27 California Angels batters in a 40 win -- only the eleventh regular season perfect game in the majors since 1900.
"We have about one-fifth market penetration," notes Winslow. With about one thousand alumni in the Dallas area, new members are enticed to join with events such as a brew pub tour at the Copper Tank Brewery. "The idea is to make the club more accessible to recent grads," he says. "Typically, our functions are luncheons downtown, and a lot of young grads can't get away at lunch." The club also hosts dynamic speakers, who draw a large audience. One recent speaker was Mark Cuban, who had just sold Broadcast.com to Yahoo! "for six billion and change," remembers Winslow. "He came to our club's event right before he bought the Dallas Mavericks. I remember sitting next to him and sharing my opinions with him about the ownership of the team. That's one of the nice side benefits of being president."
Other benefits of club leadership, according to Winslow, include being able to put into action "ideas of what the club could be doing." His "near-term tactics" include creating a club Web site (Houston's site was recently launched) and reestablishing the club tradition of contributing to charities. "I am personally looking for charities in south Dallas, which is more of an inner-city area," he says. "Long-term goals include higher member participation and a higher club profile" -- goals that the presidents of both clubs share.
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