Media Coverage: February 2008

TheStreet.com, 02/28/2008—Article mentions Smeal's Trading Room. "Penn State University's Smeal College of Business built a 1,600 square-foot trading room for students in 2001. It boasts 54 work stations, stock boards and real-time tickers." (Kellogg MBA Students Learn Defense With ETFs And Blue Chips).

The Daily Collegian, 02/25/2008—Article on a mock baseball salary arbitration co-hosted by the Center for Sports Business Research. "Smeal's Center for Sports Business Research and Dickinson's Institute for Sports Law, Policy, and Research hosted the mock salary arbitration meeting last night. Pittsburgh Pirates second baseman Freddy Sanchez's salary was the topic of debate as Pirates Vice President and General Counsel Larry Silverman overheard the presentations." (Students Learn To Negotiate Salaries).

WTAJ-TV, 02/25/2008—Andrew Bergstein, associate director of the Center for Sports Business Research, explains the mock baseball salary arbitration event to viewers of the 11 p.m. newscast.

The Daily Collegian, 02/25/2008—Andrew Bergstein, associate director of the Center for Sports Business Research, writes in an op-ed about the history of THON. "It was so loud that I couldn't hear in whose memory D.J. Larry Moore was dedicating the song as he raised a finger aloft, but I immediately thought of my friend Kevin, who gave his life 'for the kids' in 1977—the first year the Dance Marathon changed from a weekend of social recreation into a charitable event." (31 Years Later, Thon Leader Remembered).

Centre Daily Times, 02/24/2008—News brief on an award given to Gary Lilien, Distinguished Research Professor of Management Science. "The American Marketing Association has named Gary Lilien ... as the 2008 recipient of the AMA Irwin/McGraw-Hill Distinguished Marketing Educator Award, the highest honor a marketing educator can receive." (Business People: Organizations).

Centre Daily Times, 02/24/2008—News brief on an award given to Marvin Goldberg, Bard Professor of Business Administration. "A paper co-authored by Marvin Goldberg ... has been selected as the winner of the 2007 Thomas C. Kinnear/Journal of Public Policy & Marketing Award by the journal’s editorial board." (Business People: Education).

ClickZ, 02/22/2008—Arvind Rangaswamy, Anchel Professor of Marketing, comments on his research about marketing during a recession. "Not all businesses should proactively market during a recession, warns Arvind Rangaswamy, a marketing professor at Penn State's Smeal College of Business and coauthor of the 2005 study, 'Turning Adversity Into Advantage: Does Proactive Marketing During a Recession Pay Off?'" (Recession Marketing: Avoid The Fear Factor).

CBC Radio One (Canada), 02/20/2008—Sajay Samuel, clinical assistant professor of accounting, is interviewed regarding his research on the intersection of scientific knowledge and common sense. (Ideas: How To Think About Science).

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 02/17/2008—J. Edward Ketz, associate professor of accounting, comments on the accounting projections of Massey Energy. "If I were an investor, I would be perplexed," Ketz said. "They have to be making the argument that they will be successful on appeal." (Massey Energy Estimates $240 Million Judgment Will Cost It $16 Million).

Centre Daily Times, 02/17/2008—News brief on a new book by J. Edward Ketz, associate professor of accounting. "A new book, Fair Value Measurements: Valuation Principles and Auditing Techniques, was co-authored by a Penn State Smeal College of Business professor." (Business People: Publishing).

The Vancouver Sun, 02/16/2008—Article on research by David Harrison, Smeal Professor of Organizational Behavior and Human Resource Management, and Ph.D. student Ravi Gajendran. "Ravi Gajendran and David Harrison ... conducted an extensive review of 46 studies on the subject featuring 12,883 employees. Their results show that working from home is good for business and for staff." (Telecommuting A Win-Win Situation, Study Finds). This article also appeared in The Gazette of Montreal.

The Associated Press, 02/15/2008—J. Edward Ketz, associate professor of accounting, comments on the audit of AIG. "In the post-Enron era, it is imperative for auditors to have more courage and power, which is what we are seeing here," said Ketz. (Sarbanes-Oxley's Power). This article appeared in several newspapers and on more than 50 news Web sites.

CentreDaily.com, 02/14/2008—Patrick Cataldo, associate dean for executive education, writes in his blog about a new book on discovering one's strengths. "The book Now, Discover Your Strengths by Marcus Buckingham and Donald O. Clifton, both of The Gallup Organization, challenges the notion of where you focus to improve," Cataldo writes. "The research is based on a 25-year, multimillion dollar investment by Gallup to survey over 2 million people." (Strengths Vs. Weaknesses ... Where To Focus?).

Bloomberg News, 02/12/2008—J. Edward Ketz, associate professor of accounting, comments on the accounting lapses at AIG. "[AIG CEO Martin] Sullivan's accounting overhaul didn't catch the latest accounting weakness because 'either these are new problems or more likely, these are problems that existed before and the regulators didn't go far enough,''' said Ketz. (AIG's Sullivan May Find Job At Stake After Writedown).

Bloomberg News, 02/11/2008—J. Edward Ketz, associate professor of accounting, comments on the accounting lapses at AIG. "It raises the question about whether management is in control of what's going on with their derivatives,'' said Ketz. "The uncertainty as to whether additional losses are coming is as unsettling as anything.'' (AIG Falls On Concern Losses May Have Been Understated). This article appeared in several newspapers including the Los Angeles Times, Philadelphia Inquirer, and Sydney Morning Herald.

B to B, 02/11/2008—Article on a recent study by the Institute for the Study of Business Markets on business-to-business marketing trends. "The No. 1 challenge is that b-to-b marketers need to learn and bring to their organizations new approaches to better understand customer needs," said Ralph Oliva, executive director of ISBM. "This includes the ability to truly make the connection between customer needs and the core competency of the enterprise." (ISBM Study Reveals Top B-To-B Trends).

BNet.com, 02/06/2008—Blog entry on research on marketing during a recession by Gary Lilien, Distinguished Research Professor of Management Science, and Arvind Rangaswamy, Anchel Professor of Marketing. "If the U.S. economy is about to take a dirt nap for a quarter or four, time to cut the marketing budget, right? Not necessarily, according to a 2005 report out of Penn State's Smeal College of Business, 'Turning Adversity into Advantage: Does Proactive Marketing During a Recession Pay Off?'" (Should You Up Your Marketing During A Recession?).

The Washington Times, 02/03/2008—Wayne DeSarbo, executive director of the Center for Sports Business Research, comments on the rivalry between the New England Patriots and New York Giants in light of the Super Bowl. "They play in different [conferences], so it's tough," said DeSarbo. "It might be two or three years before they play each other again." (Patriots, Giants Produce Less Ire).

The Patriot News, 02/03/2008—Fred Hurvitz, instructor in marketing, comments on the cross-marketing opportunities that exist between Hershey Entertainment and a nearby casino. "Hurvitz suspected there might be 'some type of joint promotions that will be done from time to time that will benefit both of them.' He said joint promotions would help the casino establish its presence in the market." (Hershey Could Benefit From Casino).

Centre Daily Times, 02/03/2008—Patrick Cataldo, associate dean for executive education, writes in his column about leading a business during uncertain economic periods. "Our heads spin from the prospect of a recession as the federal government works feverishly to come up with a plan to deflect the economic pain on businesses and consumers," Cataldo writes. "How do you chart a prosperous course in these days of disquieting unpredictability? How do you manage amid the mayhem?" (Charting A Prosperous Course In Uncertainty).

CentreDaily.com, 02/03/2008—Patrick Cataldo, associate dean for executive education, writes in his blog about leading a business during uncertain economic periods. "Headlines help influence the actions and reactions of business leaders," Cataldo writes. "These responses, in turn, directly or indirectly affect the confidence and morale of employees in any organization." (Managing Amid The Mayhem).

CFO, 02/01/2008—Article paraphrases J. Randall Woolridge, professor of finance, regarding carve-outs. "The carve-outs that perform best, says J. Randall Woolridge, professor of finance at Pennsylvania State University's Smeal College of Business, are those in which the parent makes it clear to investors that a complete separation between spin-off and parent will happen some time in the future." ('Partial' Success).

The Sydney Morning Herald, 02/01/2008—Article mentions research by Donald Hambrick, Smeal Chaired Professor of Management. "Professors Gerard Sanders and Donald Hambrick analyzed the performance of 950 companies, finding that the chief executives who received most stock options were more likely to 'swing for the fences,' i.e., make risky decisions that were more likely to end in failure." (Putting Pay To Risky Business).

Marketing News, 02/01/2008—Gary Lilien, Distinguished Research Professor of Management Science, is profiled in an article announcing his receipt of the 2008 AMA/Irwin/McGraw-Hill Distinguished Marketing Educator Award. "I've received three honorary degrees, but I put this in another category," Lilien said. "This is recognition by my peers, and to me that's a much broader honor." (Penn State Professor Wins Irwin Award).

Pennsylvania Business Central, 02/01/2008—Article on Smeal's new Center for Sports Business Research. "Penn State's Smeal College of Business announced Jan. 16 that a new research center has been established, dedicated to the study of sports business." (Penn State Launches Sports-Business Research Center).

SmartPros.com, February 2008—J. Edward Ketz, associate professor of accounting, writes in his column on principles-based accounting. "In recent years there has been a growing call for the standards-setting process in the United States to become more principles based. CEOs, managers, financial executives, directors, auditors, investment bankers, investors, creditors, lawyers, members of Congress, the SEC staff, labor unions, and others have joined this chorus." (Demand For Principles-Based Accounting: The American Accounting Idol).