Smith Business Close-Up Archives: January - August 2008

August 21, 2008

Banking – What you need to know

How safe are your bank deposits, what does the FDIC insure and what can you do if your bank fails?

In this edition of Smith Business Close-Up with the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business, Elinda Kiss, Tyser Teaching Fellow of finance, talks about the banking industry and the continued fallout from the mortgage crisis.

Professor Elinda F. Kiss’ primary areas of research include bank regulation, the European Central Bank, and fixed income securities. She teaches corporate finance, banking, and international finance. She has extensive corporate experience, having worked at several banks (First Pennsylvania Bank, PSFS, City Federal Savings), investment banks (Citicorp Investment Bank) and U.S. government bank regulatory agencies. She worked for the Resolution Trust Corporation, the temporary government agency formed to clean up the Savings and Loan problems in the late 1980s-early 1990s.   Kiss served on the boards of directors of the Financial Management Association and the National Association for Business Economics. 

Video & Audio: [ Podcast | MP3 ]

August 7, 2008

Going for Branding Gold

The Summer Olympic Games in Beijing have marketers of many multinational companies tying their brands to the events that will capture the world’s attention for most of August. But with the opportunities come some risks.

In this edition of Smith Business Close-Up with the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business, Dr. Roland T. Rust weighs the opportunities and rewards for companies making a branding push around the Olympic games and its huge audiences with the potential risks advertisers face in affiliating their brand with these games that have been the subject of criticism and controversy because of some political policies of the host country, China.

Rust holds the prestigious title of Distinguished University Professor and he’s the David E. Bruce Chair in Marketing and the chair of the marketing department at the Smith School. Rust’s work is highly regarded worldwide. He presents regularly at major marketing conferences internationally, and his models are applied by top companies worldwide. He is the founder and chair of the AMA Frontiers in Service Conference, the leading annual international conference on service research. In 1998, he founded what has become the premier research journal in the service domain, the Journal of Service Research. Rust’s book, "Driving Customer Equity", won the 2002 Berry-AMA Book Prize for the best marketing book of the previous three years. Rust has received six lifetime achievement honors and he has won numerous “best article” awards for research.  

Video & Audio: [ Podcast | MP3 ]

July 24, 2008

Are Electric Cars the Answer to High Gas Prices?

With no end in sight for rising gas prices, alternative-fuel vehicles seem like the smart choice for savvy consumers and car makers. There is a buzz surrounding electric cars, with top and startup automakers working to introduce new models, but surprisingly electric vehicles are not a new innovation.

In this edition of Smith Business Close-Up with the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business, Dr. David A. Kirsch discusses the electric car’s century-old history, its future, and lessons learned from the past that could add up to success this time around.

Kirsch is associate professor of management and entrepreneurship at the Smith School. His research interests include industry emergence, technological choice, technological failure and the role of entrepreneurship in the emergence of new industries. His book, The Electric Vehicle and the Burden of History (Rutgers University Press, 2000), examined the history of the electric vehicle in the U.S. in the early 20th century and the implications of that history for contemporary transportation policy. His work on the early history of the automobile industry has also been published in Business History Review and Technology and Culture. In 2003, his co-authored article on the Electric Vehicle Company received the IEEE Life Members Prize from the Society for the History of Technology.  

Video & Audio: [ Podcast | MP3 ]

June 26, 2008

Developing Top-Notch Leaders

Why is important for companies — large and small — to invest in employees and develop them as leaders?

In this edition of Smith Business Close-Up with the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business, Dr. Paul Tesluk explains why leadership development is a competitive advantage for companies and for employees.

Dr. Paul Tesluk is Associate Professor of Management & Organization and co-chair of the department, as well as Associate Director of the Center for Human Capital, Innovation, and Technology at the Smith School. Tesluk’s primary research explores issues impacting work team effectiveness including the development of managerial talent and human capital through the use of work experiences, and implications for organizations and career development. His work has been published in many journals including Academy of Management Journal, Personnel Psychology, and Journal of Applied Psychology. Tesluk has received awards for his research on team effectiveness and work experience and development from the Society for Industrial/Organizational Psychology. He has worked with a number of private and public-sector organizations in both research and consulting capacities.

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May 29, 2008

Competition Flies With Airlines

Here’s the paradox: the more aggressively a firm competes, the greater its performance. But by competing so aggressively, it also forces its rivals to compete more aggressively, thus improving their performance, too. At the same time, if competition is too intense, it can be difficult for any firm to make money. Case in point: the U.S. airline industry.

In this edition of Smith Business Close-Up with the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business, Dr. Curt Grimm talks about how the brutal pace of competition, while it may have negative as well as positive effects for individual firms, creates stronger and fitter industries as a whole. He points to the airline industry as an example.

Grimm, the Dean’s Chair Professor of Supply Chain and Strategy, has conducted extensive research in both supply chain and strategic management. His research has focused on the interface of business and public policy with strategic management, with a particular emphasis on competition, competition policy, deregulation and microeconomic reform both in the U.S. and overseas. This research has resulted in four books and more than 80 published articles.

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May 15, 2008

Human Resources: Waging the War for Talent

One of the biggest issues facing companies today is the war for top talent. Companies around the world are competing for the best and brightest employees. They have to work harder than ever before to recruit and retain the best, even in a contracting economy.

In this edition of Smith Business Close-Up with the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business, Dr. Joyce Russell uncovers why the war for talent exists and how to win.

Russell is a Distinguished Tyser Teaching Fellow and a senior executive education fellow in Smith’s management and organization department. She is consistently honored as one of the school’s top teachers. Her expertise is primarily in the areas of leadership and management development, executive coaching, negotiation tactics, training and career development, work teams, and change management. An author of more than 50 articles, books and book chapters, Dr. Russell is currently the associate editor for the Journal of Vocational Behavior and has served on the editorial boards of the Journal of Applied Psychology, Human Resource Management Review and Performance Improvement Quarterly.

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May 1, 2008

Africa Trip for MBAs

It was an undeniably powerful experience for two Smith MBAs – a trip to Africa to install solar panels in a rural community center, then watching children crowd under the electric lights to read.

In this edition of Smith Business Close-Up with the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business, Jason Lee, a student finishing up his first year of Smith’s full-time MBA program, talks about his work on a business project that recently took him and another Smith student to a remote village in Africa.

In January, the Smith students joined a group from the University of Maryland’s chapter of Engineers without Borders to travel to Dissin, Burkina Faso. They installed 11 solar powered lighting system in a local community center to provide access to an efficient, safe lighting source. Now the group is hoping to win a World Bank-sponsored grant competition to set up solar power systems in villages that would make some villagers into entrepreneurial power suppliers for their neighbors.

Watch the Video: [ Real Media ]

April 17, 2008

Job Outlook for Grads

Recession is the buzz word. Are students worried about how the sluggish economy is affecting the job market?

In this edition of Smith Business Close-Up with the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business, Jennifer Kinder of the Office of Career Management talks about the outlook for students preparing to enter the workforce in the current economy, and provides advice to workers already in the mix who may be looking for employment or thinking of switching jobs.

Kinder is the associate director of employer development at the Smith School and works closely with students and employers, mainly in the areas of consulting and finance.

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April 3, 2008

Personalization in Marketing

What if marketers knew what you wanted before you did?

In this edition of Smith Business Close-Up with the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business, Michel Wedel, the PepsiCo Professor of Consumer Science, talks about personalization in marketing and his groundbreaking new research that creates a technology that delivers what consumers want before they even know they want it.

Wedel’s research — conducted along with Smith marketing chair Roland Rust — created an algorithm that learns individual tastes and can zero in on the type of music a listener wants to hear to offer songs that fit that user’s taste, with very little input from the user. They call it an adaptive personalization system. They implemented the system to download play-lists of songs in to users’ mobile devices, but the technology could be used in many other ways, too, as marketing becomes increasingly personalized.

Watch the Video: [ Real Media ] [ Windows Media ]

March 20, 2008

Consumers Are Ready to Spend on Green Tech

Americans’ appetite for environmentally friendly technologies and consumer products is grossly underserved, with a potential $104 billion market waiting to be tapped, according to the 2008 National Technology Readiness Survey from the Robert H. Smith School of Business.

In this episode, Charles Colby, president of Rockbridge Associates, the research firm that conducted the survey, talks about this year’s findings and how marketers can capture the untapped green tech market.

The annual National Technology Readiness Survey tracks beliefs about technology and key behaviors related to e-service and is sponsored by the Smith School’s Center for Excellence in Service. The survey was co-founded by Colby, a senior fellow of the center.

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March 6, 2008

Going Global: Strategies for Every Business

With each passing day, every industry is becoming a global industry and every business a knowledge business. For most medium to large companies, globalization is no longer a discretionary option, but a strategic imperative. For businesses – large and small — there are many ways to become a global company.

In this edition of Smith Business Close-Up with the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business, Anil K. Gupta, the Ralph J. Tyser Professor of Strategy and Organization, talks about the how to go global and think globally with your company.

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February 21, 2008

Do you have to be an Innovator to be an Entrepreneur?

There is no denying that entrepreneurship is hot right now – the idea of running the show and working for one’s self holds great appeal for many people. But do you have to have a completely inventive new approach to a problem to really make it big, or is there still room for tried and true solutions to meet market needs?

In this episode, Asher Epstein, managing director of the Dingman Center for Entrepreneurship, talks about the role of innovation in becoming a successful entrepreneur. 

Watch the Video: [ Real Media ] [ Windows Media ]

February 7, 2008

Navigating the Digital Landscape

New technology has made it easy to create digital versions of music, newspapers, magazines, books, television shows and movies – but not without challenges, such as how to make the content readily available to consumers while fairly compensating the producers. This issue has been raised by striking Hollywood writers, whose demands include a cut of the profits studios reap from digitized content.

In this edition of Smith Business Close-Up with the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business, Professor P.K. Kannan discusses the opportunities and challenges created by the increasing digitization of content and how consumers, retailers and those that produce the original content can best capitalize.

Watch the Video: [ Real Media ] [ Windows Media ]

January 24, 2008

What’s the marketing strategy behind political advertising?

We’re well into the political primaries season, with Feb. 5 “Super Tuesday” elections or caucuses in 24 states and Maryland, DC and Virginia primaries coming up on Feb. 12. The races have political advertisements out in force and promising only to intensify leading up to the general election in November. Candidates, political parties and issue groups are expected to spend a record $3 billion on ads to sway voters, according to Campaign Media Analysis, which tracks politics and public affairs advertising.

In this edition of Smith Business Close-Up, Smith marketing faculty member Dr. Hank Boyd discusses the marketing strategy behind political advertising, how voters should interpret ads, and where to get accurate information on candidates

Watch the Video: [ Real Media ] [ Windows Media ]

January 8, 2008

Which stocks should you pick in 2008?

The uncertain economy and ripples from the subprime mortgage crisis have created waves in the stock markets that threaten to continue their choppy behaviors at least for the first half of the new year. Where should you put your money in 2008?

Second-year MBA student Bill Song gives his investment picks for 2008 and talks about the Smith School’s $3 million Mayer Fund and his role as the fund’s portfolio manager.

The Mayer Fund, established in 1993, has grown under the management of a select group of second-year MBA students at the Robert H. Smith School of Business. Each year the fund pays a dividend to the Dean’s office, used to support a variety of school programs. The Mayer Fund’s goal is to achieve capital appreciation by capturing the superior returns that equity investments have historically provided. The fund’s long-term performance goal is to outpace the appreciation of the S&P 500 index on a risk-adjusted basis.

Watch the Video: [ Real Media ] [ Windows Media ]