Media Coverage: April 2004

Media Coverage is a listing of current media placements featuring Smeal College faculty, staff and students. At the end of each month, items are moved into the Archive , accessible via the link at the end of this page.

The Boston Globe , 4/25/2004 -- John Coyle , emeritus professor of supply chain and information systems, discusses the convergence of military thinking and industry in the area of supply chain management. "In 1964, I taught the first course at Penn State ever called Business Logistics," Coyle said. "I borrowed a lot of stuff from military logistics, because I thought the military was ahead of the private sector at that time." The article also quotes William "Gus" Pagonis (B.S. '64, MBA '70), senior vice president for Supply Chain for Sears, Roebuck & Company and a member of the Smeal Board of Visitors ( Supply And Command ).

Scripps Howard News Service , 4/23/2004 -- Albert Vicere , executive education professor of strategic leadership, discusses coaching and its role as a powerful developmental experience. Vicere writes: "Coaching is not a fad but an effective way to retain, energize and motivate talented employees. That's why it's a key responsibility of senior leaders" ( Coaching Is Key Element Of Leaders Job ). The column also appeared in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette .

The Daily Collegian , 4/23/2004 -- Phillip Bolda , director of development, and Andrew Krebs , senior manger of public relations, are quoted in a story about the $1 million donation by alumni J. Lloyd Huck and Dorothy Foehr Huck to support construction of the Smeal College's new business building ( PSU Announces $1 Million Business School Donation ).

The Associated Press , 4/22/2004 -- The Smeal College of Business and its new building are mentioned in a story about the donation of $1 million by alumni J. Lloyd Huck and Dorothy Foehr Huck. The new building is slated for completion in summer 2005. Its executive education suite will be named in honor of the Hucks ( State College Couple Gives $1 Million To PSU Business School ). The story appeared in the Philadelphia Inquirer , Centre Daily Times , and the Web site of WPVI-TV .

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette , 4/20/2004 -- Albert Vicere , executive education professor of strategic leadership, says in a column that the forces of globalization and the information technology revolution have altered the economic environment and challenged leaders to rethink their roles. Vicere writes: "... if you want to benefit from the upturn, look around your organization. Make sure your organization has a clear identity. Go after the best people. Give those people a chance to contribute and excel. Do the right things morally, ethically, and from a business perspective ( It Still Takes Good Leaders To Capitalize On Good Economy ).

BusinessWeek Online , 4/19/2004 -- Michele Kirsch , MBA admissions director, discusses in a Q&A the situation for admissions into the Smeal program. Says Kirsch: "We're looking for candidates with strong academic credentials that prove they'll excel in the classroom. We're also looking for solid work experience and a professional focus, someone who has enough experience to have gained maturity and insight into their personal strengths and weaknesses, and who knows how and where the MBA can take them ( For Smeal, Know Thyself 'Very Well' ).

Centre Daily Times , 4/18/2004 -- James Miles , professor of finance, writes in a guest column that the traditional pension is being replaced by 401(k) plans and other tax-advantaged accounts as the source for retirement income streams. Miles recommends following the 5 percent rule when determining how much to withdraw yearly from the account without fear of running out of money ( Personal Finance: Nibbling Safely On A Nest Egg ).

Scripps Howard News Service , 4/18/2004 -- Judy Olian , dean of the Smeal College, discusses in her twice-monthly column the functioning of corporate boards in Corporate America. "The essential driver of good board governance is not the SEC or Sarbanes Oxley," she writes. "it's the process the board itself institutes to select members, set expectations and consequences for board member engagement and performance, and conduct its meetings and due diligence. That's up to the board, and no amount of finger pointing will change that" ( Assigning Corporate Culpability ). The column also appeared in the Centre Daily Times and Pittsburgh Post-Gazette .

The Associated Press , 4/15/2004 -- J. Edward Ketz , associate professor of accounting and MBA faculty director, discusses the financial situation for Medical Protective and Pennsylvania Medical Society Liability Insurance Co., the state's second-biggest medical-malpractice insurer. "It's not a very good year on the insurance side," Ketz said. "The investment side looks much better" ( Insurers Say 2003 Malpractice Payments Down ). The story appeared in the Insurance Journal , Washington Observer Reporter (PA), the New Castle News (PA), the NEPA News (PA), the Web site Phillyburbs.com (PA), and the Pocono Record (PA).

Centre Daily Times , 4/15/2004 -- Judy Olian , dean of the Smeal College, discusses the calm approach of students participating in the annual Smeal Survivor competition. "I'm just in awe of how they do, first of all, in front of the judges," Olian said, "and second, in front of this audience." The article likens the competition -- in which students assume the roles of CEOs of real companies -- to a marriage between "The Apprentice" and "Survivor" ( PSU Features 'Smeal Survivor' ).

The Daily Collegian , 4/14/2004 -- Jackie Fowler Wood , assistant director of corporate relations, discusses the Smeal Survivor competition and its value in expanding what undergraduates learn in the classroom. According to Wood, the competition is "unique because (students) are completely responsible to themselves" for the decisions they make ( Penn State Graduate Twists 'Survivor' Concept Into Smeal College Business Competition ).

American Way Magazine , 4/15/2004 -- Fariborz Ghadar , director of the Center for Global Business Studies, discusses the usefulness of futurism to organizations. It helps them "see perils and opportunities," he says. Ghadar gives the example of the world's 20 megacities in 2015, meaning cities with upwards of 20 million people. Only three of those megacities will be in the industrialized world (New York, Los Angeles, Tokyo). Says Ghadar: "Those concentrations of people will need significant infrastructure, and somebody, probably not government, will put it in place. Just think about the opportunity involved in putting in wireless networks in these cities. The possibilities are very positive for businesses that grasp the fact that these changes suggest needs that will be met by open-minded organizations" ( Business Feature: Which Way Do We Go? ).

WPSX-TV / WPSU-FM (Central Pennsylvania), 4/6/2004 � Judy Olian dean of the Smeal College, hosts "About Business," a call-in show focused on the changing population demographics in the U.S. and the impact on Corporate America. Joining Olian as guests are Graham Spanier, President of Penn State University; Gordon DeJong, distinguished professor of sociology and demography at Penn State; and Richard Jackson, director and senior fellow of the Global Aging Initiative at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. 

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette , 4/5/2004 -- J. Edward Ketz , associate professor of accounting and MBA faculty director, discusses the methods companies have to cover stock options exercises: use cash to buy back existing shares and give the repurchased shares to executives or issue new shares, forgoing the money they would have received selling the shares to the public. According to Ketz, "part of the clamor over this (Financial Accounting Standards Board) accounting rule has been that some firms don't want public investors to know the full extent of what top managers are getting" ( Heard Off the Street: New FASB Rules Take Bloom Off Stock Option Rose ).

Scripps Howard News Service , 4/4/2004 -- Judy Olian , dean of the Smeal College, discusses in her twice-monthly column the formation of ethical cultures. Olian writes that "it rests upon the leader to shape the culture by touting high values and, more importantly, by making tough choices that reveal the company's ethical DNA" ( Sarbanes Oxley Trickling Down Through Companies ). The column also appeared in the Centre Daily Times and Pittsburgh Post-Gazette .

BusinessWeek , 4/01/2004 -- J. Edward Ketz , associate professor of accounting and MBA faculty director, discusses opposition to the Financial Accounting Standards Board plan to require companies to expense the value of employee stock options. Ketz says that "Washington will not interfere as it did in the 1990s.... Neither party wants to be painted as aiding and abetting future accounting scandals" ( Expensing Options: An Overblown Storm ).

REPORTERS & EDITORS: For more information, please contact Wyatt DuBois in the Smeal College of Business Media Relations Office at 814-863-3798 or wed112@psu.edu .

Penn State's Smeal College of Business offers highly ranked undergraduate, MBA, executive MBA, Ph.D., and executive education opportunities to more than 5,500 students at all levels. Featuring academic departments of accounting, finance, marketing, insurance and real estate, management, and supply chain and information systems, the college is also home to major research centers such as the Center for Supply Chain Research, the Institute for the Study of Business Markets, the eBusiness Research Center, the Farrell Center for Corporate Innovation and Entrepreneurship, the Center for Global Business Studies, and the Center for the Management of Technological and Organizational Change.

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