October 2010

Breaking News

Smith EMBA Program has been ranked #22 in the world by the Wall Street Journal.

Dean’s Message – Dr. Hugh Courtney, Vice Dean

Dear EMBA Alumni,

During a recent interview with one of the applicants for our EMBA 11 class, I was asked, “what do you think surprises students most about the EMBA program.” My answer? The power of the cohort.

As alumni of the program, you already appreciate just how transformational the cohort-based learning experience can be. I’ve seen how you have worked together to birth new businesses; explore new career options; rally around those who need support in times of crisis; develop deep and lasting ties with each others’ families and friends; and even learn a bit of accounting, finance, microeconomics and strategy! But, of course, this sort of intense, cohort-based learning experience is rare in academia, and most of our applicants just can’t imagine how important the cohort will be in their lives.

My hope for you all as alumni of the program is that you will continue to leverage the “power of the cohort.” It is true that you may never be able to recapture the intensity of the cohort experience you knew as EMBA students, but you can stay connected as EMBA alumni and continue to rely on the cohort as a source of insight, inspiration, support and fun. And as alumni, please keep in mind that the entire EMBA community – alumni from other cohorts, faculty, staff and current students – make up your cohort now. It is, indeed, a very powerful one!

Please let us know how we can help you better leverage the power of your cohort.

Best regards,

Hugh

Meet the Smith EMBAs of Today and Tomorrow

Dr. Yochelson - Current EMBA 10

Michael Yochelson is not only a Smith EMBA current student, he's a brain surgeon. His work at the National Rehabilitation Hospital is helping to provide specialized care for patients living with both severe and mild cases of traumatic brain injury ("TBI").

In Michael's own words - "The Smith EMBA has been a great experience for me. As I move up in hospital administration, the importance of understanding all facets of business becomes a critical piece to successful management. But I find that even in my day to day practice, the skills we learn in leadership and management classes comes into play regularly. The executive coaching experience has been great as it really helps me deal with day to day issues that arise as a manager in a hospital setting. The professors at Smith understand that we have our own careers already so they encourage us to write papers and do projects that relate to our current jobs. Incorporating work and school makes it more fulfilling and educational."

You can read more about Michael's real work in the August 2010 issue of US News & World Report or pick up his book Managing Brain Injury: A Guide to Living Well with Brain Injury edited by Michael Yochelson, M.D. and Penny Wolfe, Ph.D.. There is also a clip from a recent segment on Channel 4 regarding youth sports and concussions - September being National Concussion Awareness Month.

Incoming EMBA Cohort 11 Student’s Long History of Entrepreneurship

Elie Ashery will be joining the newest EMBA cohort beginning January 2011. Elie is a successful entrepreneur with a history of venture experiences. He is President and CEO of Gold Lasso, a tech firm focusing on product marketing and building association memberships. His company was recently profiled in The Washington Post and he also just closed a round of funding via The Dingman Center of Entrepreneurship at the Smith School of Business/CAN - Capital Access Network.

He's just one of the many exciting incoming students for Cohort 11, which is shaping up to be just as exciting and diverse as the first 10 EMBA cohorts.

We are accepting applications through November 1st for Cohort 11, and classes start January 2011. Feel free to pass along any potential future Smith EMBA students to Shelbi and/or pass along her contact information (Shelbi Brookshire 301-405-2386 or sbrooksh@rhsmith.umd.edu).

Follow Up on Sept. 23rd Finance Discussion

Thursday night, Sept. 23rd was the first session of this year's Fall EMBA Speaker Series. The room had a wonderful mix of alums, current students, admitted incoming future EMBAs and others to hear Dr. Alex Triantis speak about, among other things, the idea of successfully managing risk in this uncertain market. Insights ranged from on such topics as government debt to GNP ratio and to the current tendency of companies to hoard cash. Download the presentation.

Upcoming Events

I. Smith CIO Forum

Save the date - November 5th all day event at the Ronald Reagan Building. Smith EMBA alum Luke McCormack (Cohort 2) will be a panelist at the event titled Innovation 2.0: Information Technology in Government and Business. View a list of other speakers at www.rhsmith.umd.edu/cioforum.

II. Final Fall EMBA Speaker Series

Save the date - November 14th - Dr. Oliver Schlake will discuss Leading During Uncertain Times. As many of you know from his former innovation mastery sessions and corporate venturing elective, Oliver is not just a global citizen with enormous energy and the ability to engage his audience, but also an expert in scenario-based strategic planning and innovation strategy. No charge for the event but registration is requested. The registration site will be ready by October 15th.

III. Smith EMBA Alum/Current Student Networking Event

Network, network, network and reconnect on November 17th. In the past, many of you have attended events at the National Press Club and The University Club. Once again we would like to get everyone together over cocktails and appetizers. The plan is for alums, current students and incoming EMBA 11 students to join us on November 17th. Come get to know members of other cohorts and catch up with your fellow cohort mates. Feel free to bring along someone who may be interested in learning more about our EMBA program.

Location TBA but will most likely be in downtown/central DC. Registration will be ready by mid October. There is NO COST for the event but please do register for catering purposes.

Other Smith Events

• October 15, ThoughtLeadership@Smith: Shared Leadership in Teams
• October 29-30, The miniMBA2.0 Certificate Program – Social Media Marketing miniMBA2.0
• November 5, Smith Consulting Forum
• November 13-14, The Consulting Edge

Stay Connected

The Smith School launches the Smith Connector. The Smith Connector is a place to update your contact information and connect with other Smith Business School alumni professionally and socially. It links to Facebook automatically. And the Smith Connector can be used to search for jobs or to post jobs.

We have two areas where we ask you to make sure your email and mailing address are up to date.

1. UMD – Email university relations at bio_updates@ur.umd.edu. This is important if you want to keep getting the Smith Business Magazine and other UMD publications.
2. Smith Connector - www.smithconnector.com

Don’t forget to look for the Smith School on LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook.

Announcements

Dr. Jeff Kudisch has accepted the position of Managing Director of the Office of Career Services.
Although many of you know Jeff as an excellent teacher and one of those most sought after by our students, he brings to us years of working as a consultant for numerous companies around the country. Of course, Jeff will also bring his extensive knowledge of assessment tools, training and development and organizational change to the position. His great skills as a teacher will serve him well as he helps our MBAs and undergraduates manage the career search process. His work with executives in the EMBA program and elsewhere will be invaluable as he builds greater connectivity with employers.

In June 2010 Dan Pugh (EMBA 7) became Chief Operating Officer of 40billion.com, a startup company focused on helping entrepreneurs and small businesses raise seed-stage funds using social networking tools. In this position he is responsible for company operations as well as development and roll-out of our services, strategic partnerships, and fundraising. Check out www.40billion.com to learn more or set up a Raise, and feel free to e-mail me at dpugh@40billion.com for more information.

Al Dominick (EMBA 6) is now the Managing Director and Executive Vice President of Bank Director.

Finally, we would like to request personal updates to share with all of our EMBA alumni. We would like to highlight your successes! Please send any updates you want to share such as new job or new baby. Email the updates to emba_alumni@rhsmith.umd.edu.