Media Coverage: July 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.

Detroit News , 7/25/2004— Judy Olian , dean of the Smeal College, says that companies like Nike, Target, and Tommy Hilfiger are examples of firms that have seen their businesses battered by Internet rumors. ?The level of irresponsibility on the Internet is not just tolerated, it?s protected,? Olian said. ?Corporations need to be proactive? ( Net Services Help Crush Web Rumors ). Read Olian's previous column on the topic at http://www.smeal.psu.edu/news/releases/may04/internet.html .

Scripps Howard News Service , 7/23/2004— Judy Olian , dean of the Smeal College, discusses in her regular column the emerging trend of transition services for displaced senior leaders. "Transition consultants spend a few days getting to know the executive, building a personal marketing plan, understanding personal interests, and identifying target opportunities," she writes. "They help put the right 'spin' on the CEO?s most recent involuntary departure, and create a concise message to market the strengths of the executive to CEO selection or board nomination committees" ( Helping Senior Executives Transition ... The Gentle Way ). The column also appeared in the Centre Daily Times . Read it at http://www.smeal.psu.edu/news/releases/jul04/transit.html .

Voice of America , 7/21/2004— Fariborz Ghadar , director of the Center for Global Business Studies, comments on China's oil-reserve situation. "The logical source of oil for China, other than the enormous reserves in the Middle East, is really either Kazakh oil, coming from the eastern side of the Caspian Sea, into China through a pipeline, or access to Russian oil, as Russian oil production increases dramatically, into northern China," he says ( China's Oil Imports From Sudan Draw Controversy ). The article appeared on the Web sites of PolitInfo.com , Chosun Ilbo , and Axcess Business News . Read more about the Center for Global Business Studies at http://www.smeal.psu.edu/cgbs/index.html .

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette , 7/20/2004— Judy Olian , dean of the Smeal College, discusses in a column the change to Europe's employment policies. "With European economies cracking under the weight of excessive unemployment and costly social protection systems," she writes, "a few European leaders are finally attacking the sacred cows of unemployment entitlements. This may be one area where they will come to appreciate the American system" ( Unemployment Benefits Falling Within Europe ). Read the column at http://www.smeal.psu.edu/news/releases/jun04/unemploy.html .

Albany Times-Union , 7/18/2004— Ralph Oliva , executive director of the Institute for the Study of Business Markets, discusses the common practice of upselling. "In the best sense of the word 'upselling' is a good marketer understanding an opportunity to create an additional value to the customer while harvesting new value themselves," he says. "If all you're doing is focusing on selling more, it can be a real pain in the neck and add to the noise in life" ( Upselling Can Benefit Customers, Businesses ). Read more about the Institute for the Study of Business Markets at http://www.smeal.psu.edu/isbm/index.html .

Scripps Howard News Service , 7/17/2004— Albert A. Vicere , professor of strategic leadership, writes in his regular column that a company's success depends on having leaders who understand the life cycle stages of an organization. "Being an effective leader comes down to seeing and understanding the patterns in your organization," he writes. "The key to maintaining success and sustaining performance is to recognize your organization's life cycle stage and who, if not you, might have the leadership qualities needed at any given time" ( Don't Get Burned By Your Company's Life Cycle ). The column also appeared in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette , the Seattle Post-Intelligencer , and The Commercial Appeal . Read it at http://www.smeal.psu.edu/news/releases/jul04/oped.html .

Centre Daily Times , 7/13/2004— The Smeal College is mentioned in a business brief about the college's new name, which was approved by Penn State's Board of Trustees. The word "administration" is dropped to better reflect Smeal's mission of teaching leadership and in-depth analytical skills in different business disciplines ( Smeal College Gets A New Name ). Read more about the name change at http://www.smeal.psu.edu/news/releases/jul04/namechng.html .

Sunday Patriot-News , 7/11/2004— Linda Treviño , the Franklin H. Cook Fellow in Business Ethics, addresses the myths surrounding ethics management in a guest column. "Ever since Enron became synonymous with ethical malfeasance, available space in the corporate doghouse has been shrinking. Adelphia, Worldcom, Arthur Andersen, Rite Aid and numerous other firms have joined the fray, harming millions of employees and investors, and sending shock waves through the business world," she writes. "While ethical behavior has been in seemingly short supply, opinions about what it takes to be ethical have not" ( Giving You The Facts: Ethics Are Complicated ). Read about the study that supports the column at http://www.smeal.psu.edu/news/releases/mar04/trevino.html .

Associated Press , 7/09/2004— J. Randall Woolridge , professor of finance, says that individuals and companies that falsely promote penny stocks via e-mail often do not actually explain why a company is so successful or what it actually does, instead distracting readers with extraneous information. In response, the SEC is increasingly taking legal action ( SEC Battles Online Get-Rich-Quick Scams ). The story appeared on the Web sites of Kansas City Star , Chicago Daily Herald , Contra Costa Times , Hartford Courant , Salt Lake Tribune , San Francisco Chronicle , Chicago Sun Times , Houston Chronicle , Seattle Post Intelligencer , The St. Louis Post-Dispatch , Centre Daily Times , Winston Salem Journal , Columbus Ledger-Enquirer , Philadelphia Inquirer , Los Angeles Daily News , and more than 20 other outlets. For more on Woolridge, visit http://php.smeal.psu.edu/smeal/dirbio/displayBio.php?t_user_id=jrw .

USA Today , 7/09/2004— Steven Huddart , professor of accounting, comments on the private sale of stocks by former Enron chief Ken Lay, which deprived the public of an important signal of potential problems at the company. "The (SEC) complaint is pretty damning," Huddart says ( How Lay Sold Stock Kept Public In The Dark ). Read more about Huddart at http://php.smeal.psu.edu/smeal/dirbio/displayBio.php?t_user_id=sjh11 .

Scripps Howard News Service , 7/09/2004— Judy Olian , dean of the Smeal College, discusses in her regular column the dominant focus for CEOs, which is no longer cost cutting. "Today," she writes, "it's about building on the internal process enhancements accomplished over the last few years to then exploit the global economic recovery" ( What Are CEOs Thinking ). The column also appeared in the Centre Daily Times . Read it at http://www.smeal.psu.edu/news/releases/jul04/ceo.html .

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette , 7/05/2004— J. Edward Ketz , associate professor of accounting, discusses a measure by the Financial Accounting Standards Board that would require companies to reflect the expense of issuing stock options against their net income. According to Ketz, estimating the financial impact of stock options is already standard procedure for companies. "They all estimate it to get a tax break," he says. "It can't be that hard" ( Heard Off the Street: Counting option expense may be the next reform ). Read more about Ketz at http://php.smeal.psu.edu/smeal/dirbio/displayBio.php?t_user_id=k55 .

Scripps Howard News Service , 7/02/2004— Albert A. Vicere , professor of strategic leadership, writes in his regular column about the importance of storytelling to solid leadership. "Is storytelling an option for your company?" he writes. "With some focus, it can be an effective way for leaders to share and learn from wisdom and experience. And it is from those interactions that an organization's context, meaning, character and culture evolve" ( Storytelling CEOs Generate Success ). The column also appeared in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette . Read it at http://www.smeal.psu.edu/news/releases/jul04/vicere.html .

Centre Daily Times , 7/01/2004— The Smeal College and its new building, now under construction on the University Park campus, are mentioned in a business brief about a $1 million challenge grant from The Kresge Foundation, which will be awarded only if the college raises $28 million of its original $29 million private fund-raising goal by Dec. 31, 2005 ( Grant Supports Smeal Construction ). Read more about The Kresge Foundation grant at http://www.smeal.psu.edu/news/releases/jun04/kresge.html .

Michigan Radio , 7/01/2004— Fariborz Ghadar , director of the Center for Global Business Studies, discusses the emerging trend of customization, which ranges from how people read newspapers and watch television to what they buy and how they buy it. Ghadar suggests that through customization, we might be missing something along the way ( Stateside ).

FastCompany.com , July 2004— David Lenze , director of MBA corporate relations, says that focusing the job search can help MBAs free up time to improve their skills. "If you apply for an international position, focus on a second language," he says. "And improve your interview skills before you apply for your first job. It is a rare opportunity to have the time to do this" ( MBA Summer Blues ). For more on the Smeal MBA program, visit http://www.smeal.psu.edu/mba/index.html .

Human Resource Planning , July 2004— Albert A. Vicere , professor of strategic leadership, discusses in an interview ARAMARK's story of transformation and performance. "Senior management (at ARAMARK) recognized that although they were profitable, they just weren't growing their top line," he says. "I was called in to discuss some ideas on how to spur growth through leadership development and that's where their Executive Leadership Institute (ELI) came from" ( Current Practices: Conversation With A Change Agent: Al Vicere On ARAMARK ).

Workforce Managment , July 2004— Albert A. Vicere , professor of strategic leadership, comments on the importance of company picnics. "In today?s business environment, we work far more in ad hoc teams than in formal structures. We rely on colleagues for help, information and support," he says. "Picnics facilitate the development of such social networks. Effective teamwork is much easier when you have met and gotten to know the person you?ll be working with" ( The Company Picnic Is Alive And Well ).

SmartPros , July 2004— J. Edward Ketz , associate professor of accounting, takes issue in his regular column with the American Assembly's assertion that the "brittle illusion of accounting exactitude" is to blame for many of the current problems confronting the auditing profession. "We shall never rid accounting of estimates," he writes, "so let's quit trying. Other than educating investors, not much else can be done. On the other hand, we can improve the psychological and social and economic forces at play in the world of financial reporting and independent auditing. Let's focus on what we can improve—and improve them" ( The Brittle Illusion Of Accounting Exactitude ).

The Presidency , Spring 2004— Judy Olian , dean of the Smeal College, co-authors an article on the shortage of well-trained business research faculty. "Ultimately, the continuing and growing shortages of business research faculty will affect not just business schools, but also universities and their key constituents—students and alumni.," the authors write. "And the costs may spread far more broadly, given the important contributions of business school scholarship and teaching to market practices and organizational leadership" ( Supply, Demand, And The Making Of Tomorrow's Business Scholars ). Read about the AACSB study on which the article is based at http://www.smeal.psu.edu/news/releases/sep03/olian.html .

Archive

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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