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It has been a little over a week since I took the last final and left State College for a much needed break. Since then I have had a chance to reflect on my first semester at Smeal, and I still cannot get over the fact that so much happened in such a little time. Like one of my classmates said to me last mod, “a week in the MBA program is like a month outside of it”. So it’s no surprise to me that I feel like the last Semester was a year, with Mod 1 marking the first 6 months and Mod II the last six. As a class I feel like we have come a long way together since the first day of orientation. I have gotten to know some of my classmates on levels that I wouldn’t have thought possible when we first met in August. We have all had different trials and shared various successes with our respective teams. I believe I have already formed some of the proverbial friendships that will last way after Smeal and look forward to forming more of these friendships in the coming semesters.

As I sit at the airport in Frankfurt, Germany writing this, I keep on replaying some of the “highlight reel moments” from last Semester in my head; I remember our first meeting in the Business building atrium with 103 of my new best friends for the next two years. I remember getting that darn lion tail for talking after the bell… haha …I remember my first white out game against Illinois. I remember being excited when it occurred to me that no matter what topic or hobby I was interested in, there was someone in the first or second year class who could tell me everything I ever wanted to know and was willing to take the time to do so. I remember experiencing a historic US election, which was especially special for me since it was the first time I was able to vote in as a naturalized citizen. I remember losing the election I ran in to be the VP of Recruitment and being disappointed at myself. I also remember how gracious my opponent Dave Hoover was afterward and promising to help him in any way he needed. I remember taking a trip to NYC for the Wall Street initiative and being in awe of how much work Alum David Polansky did to make sure we got a good idea of different career paths on Wall Street. As I remember these things it’s dawning on me that it’s true what they say about a lot of your memories from Smeal happening outside of the classroom.

Having traveled to London and now to Berlin since I left, I keep on being pleasantly surprised at myself when I observe things and think about concepts from classes that I took just a couple of months and weeks ago. I also am surprised that I seem to remember concepts from classes I thought I struggled in. It’s obvious to me that I have learned even more than I realized, something you lose sight of in the middle of the semester when you feel like you are just trying to make it through the next team project or the next midterm.

All in all the first semester at Smeal for me has been as much a challenging experience as it has been a pleasant one. So as much as I am intrigued to see what the next semester offers I am enjoying the moment and relishing the opportunity to travel; who knows the next time I will get a month off from school and work again ever… Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all !!!!!!

Hector Tantoh, Class of 2010

A crew of Net Impacters set off for Washington DC on Thursday, November 13th. Matt, Colin, Jared, Chris, Rob, JP, and myself piled into various automobiles, mopeds, and rickshaws to make the trek down to or nation’s capital.  Our goal was to visit a few companies in the DC area who ultimately each practice what we like to call the Triple Bottom Line – People, Planet, and Profits.  Our first stop on Thursday morning was with PNC Bank to meet with Larry Miltenberger in order to discuss plans for their new Platinum LEED certified building.  We talked about not only the obvious benefits of creating a building that consumes less energy and water on a daily basis, but what went into convincing executives that undergoing this endeavor was worthwhile.

Next we dashed off to the metro (I still say it looks like a Stanley Kubrick film) and were off to the Calvert Group.  We met up with Ian Joseph, a former PSU MBA-er and active member of the DC Net Impact group and he joined us for our next visit.  The Calvert Group is a company that focuses on investing in sustainable and environmentally responsible companies.  We spoke with a panel of employees from various sectors of the firm who each shared with us how they go about analyzing a company to see if it’s right to go into their respective mutual funds.  They noted they were heavy in IT firms, which is not surprising considering it’s not a manufacturing industry but still dominant where investors may see a large return on their investment.

Later that evening we decided to wind the night down with the first ever (and probably last ever) Unofficial Net Impact Burrito Fest at Qdoba (mmmm Dos Manos y mango salsa).  We then stopped by Buffalo Billiards to talk to Ian Fisk and kick back with a couple of brewskies.  About two hours later about foundation chit-chat (by the way, have a business plan you want funding for?  Check out http://www.williamjamesfoundation.org), we were ready to hit the hay to get ready for a busy second day.

Day 2 began at NCB, a company first chartered by congress in 1978, that was created to help fund previously misunderstood company structures such as Cooperatives.  Both Diahann and Richard were great hosts informing us on how NCB functions as a lender and has even grown to launch a program specifically for funding solar energy systems.

After feeling reenergized by knowing that you could still work with money save the world, we headed off to ICF via our police escort.  Ok, no police escort… But it was an entourage.  We had an enlightening time at ICF hearing about how they are brought on by corporations and brands to help them strategize for product placement or increasing market penetration among other things.  We were joined by a troupe of eco-minded braniacs: Brian Carroll and his polar bears, Josh Smith who is a PSU grad working primarily with Energy Star, and Jackie Garet and Amanda Byrne both Penn State undergraduates who are working in Residential Energy Efficiency and with the Clean Energy Team respectively.  Each brought a unique perspective to the table that left me feeling nothing short of refreshed and rejuvenated when we left.

But alas, our trip had finally ended and it was back into the hatchback with JP for the arduous trip home.  Just kidding JP, you’re an excellent car-mate.  PS – I’ll get that Celine Dion cd back to you ASAP.

- Christy Conley, Smeal Class of 2010

This past Friday Wendy Graham from Honeywell was kind enough to visit with the WMBA here at her alma mater to talk to us a bit about what it takes for women to become executives in the modern workplace. We talked about how her prior experience in various company environments ranging from government work to non-profit to startups each played a role in her development as a leader, and of course spoke specifically about Honeywell’s corporate climate and what kind of specific traits she capitalized on to move ahead. The discussion was interesting and insightful and I’m sure each of us walked away with a few more ideas tucked away in our mental file for professional development.

Here were a few of the key pieces of advice I picked up from Wendy’s presentation.

Wendy’s Wisdoms – Top 7

1. You must want to be a decision maker
2. Stick with something and work on building credibility
3. Work on self-monitoring strong personalities (yours and others’!)
4. Be aware of how other personalities influence your own, and associate with those that bring out your best side!
5. Work on genuine relationship development and a mutual give-and-take
6. Have someone or something to ground you (ex: good friend, kickboxing, or just venting to your pup!)
7. Manage stress by being honest and transparent – don’t internalize!

Thank you so much Wendy for coming out to Old State – we are honored to have you as an alumnus. The advice you shared will take us far, now we just have to follow it! Next up – teaching women how to negotiate!

-Christina Conley

Smeal MBA Class of 2010

On November 19th, Penn State Smeal MBA Students were treated to two different events in New York City.  A group of students received an exclusive invitation from David Polansky (MBA ’87) to come and tour U.S. Trust, Bank of America’s Private Wealth Management unit. The tour started at noon, and the MBA students were introduced to various groups inside the bank.  Students met with executives from the Private Client, Trust, Business Support, Portfolio Management, and Wealth Strategy divisions. They also had a session with an internal recruiter at U.S. Trust that gave them some great tips on how to be successful in an MBA level interview.

Later that night, Penn State students and alumni met at the new Bank of America building at 1111 6th Ave.  For people not familiar with the building, it is new construction that was recently Leeds Certified and is widely recognized as one of the world’s ‘Greenest’ buildings.  After a hour of cocktails and networking with 300+ Smeal Alumni, the attendees were treated to a panel of both Smeal Alumni and Wall Street Executives discussing the current economic crisis.

-Dave Noreen, MBA Class of 2009
dan171@psu.edu

In the world of Net Impact, Mark Albion is like a celebrity.  Here is a guy who was a Harvard Professor, started the Social Venture Network way back in 1987, and co-founded Net Impact before “green” was a hot topic.  He rubs elbows with the Mandela family on a regular basis.  And world leaders from Ronald Reagan to Mother Teresa (wow—that’s a big gap) have praised his work.  But most importantly, he is always willing to make time for every individual student.

When we initially discussed his visit, I was worried about creating a back-breaking schedule since Mark is only slightly older than our MBA’s.  His reaction?  He only sleeps 4 hours per night, he wants to meet with as many students as possible, he is here to serve, and please feel free to pack his itinerary as full as possible thank-you-very-much.  So in Mark’s whirlwind tour of just 22 hours in Happy Valley, he met individually with students, shared his success (and failure) stories about social ventures with Net Impact members over dinner, gave a lecture to a near-full auditorium about his book More Than Money and how MBA’s can ask the important questions to make the right career choices, shared drinks at the bar, and woke up early to discuss academia and politics over breakfast.

I still find myself humbled that someone as busy as Mark was willing to share so much of his time and expertise with our group—when you meet Mark, you can tell he is focused on you as a person and not thinking of the 300 things on his to-do list.  He is genuinely interested in every individual’s story and he takes the time to celebrate the successes of every chapter.  I know Mark has given me a lot to think about and I look forward to his future 3am e-mails offering career advice.

- Matt Holtry

Class of 2009

President, Net Impact

The Smeal movie night presented a nice break from the normal day to day hectic schedule. It started at 7pm in one of the MBA Classrooms. We were lucky to have Ram Kasamani (the VP of International Affairs for our class) planning the evening, because when I arrived I found out that he had picked up one of those large ‘movie theater’ popcorn popping machines. I love the popcorn that you get at movie theaters and it made the movie night seem more authentic. The movie that was viewing for the Smeal Movie Night was City of God (or as the title is officially pronounced in Portuguese, Cidade de Deus), a story about two boys growing up in Rio de Janeiro. The story follows the trial and tribulation of two boys as they grow older, with one becoming a Photographer and the other a Drug Dealer. I am really glad that I showed up to watch the movie because it wasn’t a title I would have selected on my own, but it turned out to be a movie that I felt was a pretty riveting story and I’m glad I was introduced to the subject. I also felt it was nice to get a chance to converse with both first and second year classes where we didn’t have to talk about school work! All and all, the evening was a fun and relaxing break from the strenuous life of an MBA student.

-Dave Noreen, dan171@psu.edu

Dave Noreen is the VP of Recruitment for the Smeal MBA Association

All across America and beyond its shores, viewers huddled around screens and listeners crowded around radios to hear Barack Obama’s acceptance speech on the evening of November 4, 2008.  Every person watching and listening had their own reaction to the speech and perhaps an even stronger reaction to the moment.  For me it was a moment of euphoria.  You see, I was born in Ghana and after six years in England I came to the US at the age of 11.  My introduction was a harsh one as I was met by the struggles and hardship of Black America in Washington D.C.  Ever since that initiation, I have tracked my American identity to that of Black America’s and as a result I have basked in the opportunities which that position has afforded me, but more times than not, I have combated the barriers it has presented.  So on that evening, I stood in awe of the moment and the possibility it represented.

Leading up to the evening, there were a number of election-night parties advertised and all looked tempting.  Additionally, my phone was abuzz with vibrations as the major networks announced the winner on the night of the election.  I chose to stay home that evening, not to shun my colleagues but because I wanted to enjoy the moment in solitude, I wanted to be left alone with my thoughts and emotions.  I also did not answer any phone calls, in fact I only made two phone calls once the winner was announced – I called my five-year old nephew and my thirteen-year old nephew.  I explained to them the magnitude of the moment as I saw it and discussed the individual pressure they had now inherited as constituents of a generation for whom the dream had become a reality.  They now had to discount all excuses in the face of the possibility which Barack Obama’s presidency had now actualized.

This historic moment was great for me, for my generation and generations that came before me, but in my eyes it was most significant for the generations still in their infancy and future generations to come.

-Carl Asher, President Minority MBA Association
MBA Class of 2009
caa139@psu.edu

On Friday November 7th Frank Simpkins, Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Kennametal provided a strategic overview of the finance and accounting functions that report to him and discussed how he coordinates them at the CFO level to provide a competitive edge in the global economy. As the CFO of a multinational company, Mr. Simpkins was able to provide insight into the challenges that fluctuating commodity prices and exchange rates pose to a publicly traded company. Having just presented Kennametal’s quarterly report at the Goldman Sachs Global Industrials Conference on Wednesday, Mr. Simpkins described how the market and its analysts are reacting to the current economic crisis, and what impact it may have on the company’s upcoming M&A activity.

The discussion was timely and informative for Smeal MBA’s who are assessing how the current economy is affecting businesses like Kennametal and how they can prepare themselves to support the finance and accounting functions.

Frank P. Simpkins is Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Kennametal Inc. (NYSE: KMT). In this role, Mr. Simpkins is responsible for the company’s accounting, finance, internal audit, investor relations, M&A, tax and treasury functions.

Mr. Simpkins joined Kennametal in October 1995, and has held a number of positions of increasing responsibility within the Finance organization. Additionally, he is a member of the Board of Directors of Kennametal India Ltd. Prior to joining Kennametal, Mr. Simpkins was CPA / Manager with the former Coopers & Lybrand (now PricewaterhouseCoopers), having joined Coopers in 1986.

-Ken Holmes, kdh206@psu.edu
MBA Class of 2009

The best teams are better than the best individuals and the worst teams are worse than the worst individuals – Good Advice from Teams Class

Last week, Smeal placed 1st in the fourth annual MBAE Minority Case Competition sponsored by Howard University and LMI Government Consulting.  Being a member of the team that brought home the Gold was a reward on to itself and I would never think twice about working again with Carl Asher and Tai Parks if the opportunity presented itself.

Smeal has and continues to do its part in preparing me for my career after school but it has been experiences such as this one that have reinforced my conviction in the strength of our MBA program and cemented by belief in the value of team work.  We were charged with providing short and long term solutions to an ongoing logistics problem that involved the untimely return of reusable intermodal containers for military supplies. What an interesting case this was going to be, I thought, especially having spent the past month in 3 Finance classes.  How would I add value to a supply chain case?

In the end and even while we drafted our solutions, it was not simply our understanding of “bottlenecks”, “customer wait times”, or “intermodal logistics” that helped us present a formidable argument but the uniqueness of our backgrounds and our willingness to challenge each other that ultimately propelled us to victory.  Carl was from Marketing, Tai from Supply Chain and I was from Finance.  We all have to focus our academic careers at some point in the program but the opportunities to develop a practical understanding of “foreign” concepts are many and available to those who actively seek them out.  Today, even as I remain focused in Finance, I am certain of my ability to add value to solving problems outside my field of expertise.

It had been a busy week for the three of us – to say the least – and despite demanding class schedules combined with meetings that went late into the night, we were able to pull it off.   And it’s a great feeling to say we did it together!!! We are!!!

Reggie Amoa
Smeal MBA Class of 2009
ramoa@psu.edu

In October 2008, several of us prepared for a road trip to upstate New York and things just got silly, but that’s a story for another time.  Our first destination was Ithaca, NY to meet the MBA students of the Johnson School at Cornell University.  We attended a fundraiser that the Cornell Net Impact Chapter was hosting and had the opportunity to meet and interact with many MBA students from Cornell.  It was a great opportunity to discuss the VP debate between Sarah Palin and Joe Biden televised that night, the depressing state of the economy, and the awesome Los Angeles Dodgers with our colleagues at Cornell.  I was also able to see a friend who I interned with over the summer, so it was great!

The next day we caravanned with some of the Cornell MBA’s to NuCor Steel in Auburn, NY.  I was excited to visit NuCor Steel to tour their steel mill.  After a brief introduction with Ted Jeske, NuCor Auburn’s Sales & Shipping Manager, we received a tour of the steel manufacturing plant and it definitely did not disappoint.  We were able to witness the process of recycling metal scraps from automobiles into steel products.  The process in which they melted the metal scraps into steel was definitely a sight to see, although not quite like the steel mill in Terminator 2!  We then proceeded to have a great lunch with the department managers and the general manager of NuCor Auburn, who were very receptive to the questions we had for them.  After lunch, we discussed NuCor’s culture of environmental stewardship and their innovative approach to employee-management.  It was educational and reassuring to learn about NuCor’s responsible practices to promote sustainable cultural and business practices.  I had a great time on this trip and I hope to be able to participate in future events organized by the exemplary officers of Net Impact.

–        Hyung Kil, hxk253@psu.edu
MBA Class of 2009

Hyung received his bachelor’s degree from the University of California, Irvine in Economics.  Prior to attending the Smeal College of Business at Penn State, Hyung ran a small business and was an operations supervisor at a 3PL.  Hyung is concentrating in Supply Chain Management and Marketing.

Several corporate sponsors have stepped up to host tailgates with the MBAA this year. By contributing funding and representatives to the tailgates, corporate sponsors are able to gain terrific access to the Smeal MBA student community while enjoying the best football tailgating in the country. Beyond networking at the tailgates, the companies are also featured during a “Coffee Buzz” on the Thursday before game day and given the opportunity to host formal information sessions, 1×1 student interactions, Happy Hours, etc. in the days leading up to the game. Students have really appreciated the corporate sponsorships so far this season as we are able to interact with company representatives (including many Smeal alums) and learn more about the companies in a relaxed and fun setting. In addition to working with the MBAA officers to organize tailgate sponsorship meetings, the companies are paired with another MBA association in order to best coordinate logistics for the Saturday events. We look forward to having more companies team up with the MBAA to sponsor upcoming tailgates, and send a huge “thank you” to those companies who have sponsored games so far this season:

PNC Bank – Sept. 6^th vs. Oregon State with Net Impact

M&T Bank – Sept. 20^th vs. Temple with the Women’s MBA Association

Air Products – Sept. 27^th vs. Illinois with the Finance Association

Dell – Oct. 18^th vs. Michigan with the Supply Chain Association

-Jenny Moerschbacher, jdm444@psu.edu

MBA Class of 2009

Prior to coming to Smeal, Jenny was an Operations Manager in Phoenix, Arizona for a large private label food company. Jenny earned a B.A. in Engineering Policy from Lafayette College in Easton, Pennsylvania. Her areas of concentration include Strategic Leadership, Supply Chain Management, and Product & Market Development.

When we decided to enter the B2B Marketing Competition in Purdue, we were faced with a very tough decision, go to the Penn State vs. Michigan football game or participate in the competition. Our decision was made easier when Michigan started losing all of their games.

The trip to Purdue was exciting as we were all in very high spirits. Our conversations were vibrant, ranging from politics to well, politics… We never really knew how rural some parts of America could be until we drove through Ohio and let’s just say we are happy we live in State College.

Upon arrival, we attended the dinner reception where we met many of the other teams. The mood was friendly and open. We had a great time meeting the other schools. …maybe a little too much fun!

8:20 AM we arrive at the business building to have a nice breakfast before our case competition. At 8:45 a Krannert representative leads us to the war room and we ready ourselves for potential chaos. In 5 ½ short hours we will need to present a well reasoned case to a panel of judges from Amway and the Krannert School of Management at Purdue. We decide that at 1:00 we will finish our analysis and work on our presentation. 1:00 still analyzing…1:10 still analyzing…1:20 still analyzing…1:30 we really need to start working on these slides. 2:05 ok 2 of us will work on the presentation and 2 of us will finish the slides. 2:15 the representative calls us for our presentation. Oh god, we are worried!

We go in there and start our presentation, Sneha and Ilya are the presenters and they do a great job and present with poise and confidence. Then starts the all important Q&A, and we stick together as a team, defending our ideas and explaining our rationale. The Q & A goes well! Fast forward to the end of the presentation and Q&A, we breathe a sigh of relief as we walk out of room and back to our hotel. Now we must wait 4 grueling hours before the winners are announced. After a 9 hour long drive the previous day and all the excitement of the day, we are all exhausted. Ilya goes to sleep, Prashant answers emails, and Brent forces Sneha to watch the Penn State football game, which she thoroughly enjoyed. The awards dinner finally arrives and we anxiously head back to the business building. We didn’t expect much, and we are already discussing that regardless of the outcome, this was a great learning experience. After several speakers spoke about the competition, explaining the various strengths and weaknesses of the various teams, the speaker finally announces the winners. Third place goes to the team from Baylor. Second place goes to the team from ….PENN STATE! Wait…What??? Really??? WE WON AN AWARD!!! This is awesome! And first place went to Notre Dame.

Our excitement was palpable, we a team with no real case competition experience, had won 2^nd place!

I will refrain from discussing the details of the celebration party and leave it as “VERY fun.” In sum, although we have areas to improve, we are proud that we were able to quickly come together and present a case that was thoroughly analyzed. Moreover, we feel fortunate to have represented our school in such a positive manner at the Krannert B2B marketing competition.

We are…PENN STATE!

–Brent Gee

MBA Class of 2010

bug132@smeal.psu.edu

Brent received his bachelors’ degree from The University of California at Davis in Economics and previously worked for PriceWaterhouseCoopers. At Smeal, Brent is concentrating in marketing and strategy.

On September 26, 2008, a lucky group of students sat down for an informal and informative breakfast with Scott Bohrer and Bob Wright of ETF Venture Funds.

This interaction, hosted by PSEN, allowed interested students insight into the complex and exciting world of Venture Capital. Scott and Bob spoke frankly about this industry and its challenges and rewards. Naturally resultant to a discussion about entrepreneurship is a discussion about emerging businesses and ideas, so we also chatted about the changing face of business and how this impacts entrepreneurs. Bob and Scott note that the rapidly evolving business landscape means that “the instant you hit ‘print’ on your business plan, it’s wrong.” They agreed that always having a plan B, plan C, and plan D is what makes an entrepreneur successful. Further, they were candid about their own roles in the investment group, noting that telling an entrepreneur that their business plan is a bad one is largely akin to “calling their baby ugly.”

This fresh view and inner circle insight into the world of Venture Capital stimulated students’ thoughts on the subject and, for many, allowed us to change to change our perceptions of both the industry and possible career paths for us in it.

Mary Gorman
Class of 2009

Mary Gorman is a second year MBA candidate studying Corporate Financial Analysis and Planning and Supply Chain Management. She has experience in startups in biotechnology and fashion industry.

It was a perfect confluence of career paths! On April 17^th and 18^th, the Supply Chain Management Association (SCMA) teamed up with the Consulting Focus Group (CFG) to host senior consultants with the Strategy and Operations (S&O) practice of Deloitte Consulting. Needless to say, we also had the continuous support from the Smeal Career Services team, without whose help this event would not have taken place. The events scheduled over the two days included one-on-one slots for mock-interviewing with the consultants, a company information session and a company-sponsored happy hour on Friday evening.

I had signed up for a one-on-one interview slot on Thursday. I was able to discuss about my fit with the company and also better understand what the company looked for among students who were interested in pursuing a career in Operations consulting. Each consulting firm has its unique “flavor”, if you may, and Deloitte’s culture came across as an extremely hard-working/competitive one and yet a social cohesiveness was also apparent. Even more interesting was their candidness in sharing their personal career paths through the firm. Later that day, the group of around 20 students attended a brief presentation setup by the executives. We students had varied expectations including among others - knowing more about the firm’s culture, getting deeper insights into the life of the “ever-travelling” management consultant, the opportunities for Operations consulting experiences and even just checking out all the options that the firm had to offer for us Smeal MBAs. The session was a highly interactive one and to which students had great positive feedback. A more informal gathering of a smaller group followed that evening and we got a chance to meet with the same executives in a casual setting. The incidents from their long consulting careers that flowed out were truly interesting and even helped us connect with them at a more personal level.

Deloitte Consulting greatly appealed to both the SCMA and the CFG memberships. With promises to come back during Fall 2008 for full-time recruiting and during the CSCR-sponsored Fall Supply Chain Career Fair at Smeal, the firm was very enthusiastic about Smeal MBAs. Additionally, the executives expressed their willingness to help develop better interviewing skills through further mock-interview sessions. I personally, and I am sure most of us Supply Chain enthusiasts do eagerly wait for an opportunity to meet with this firm yet again during Fall 2008.

Johny Paul

MBA Class of 2009

Johny is a first year MBA student who plans to concentrate in Supply Chain Management and Corporate Finance. He had been developing Decision Support Systems for global supply chains at several large organizations for nine years prior to joining the Smeal MBA program.

Dressed to impress wearing my slickest suit and tie, I embarked upon my first career fair as a Smeal MBA student.  While many career fairs require a lengthy drive to Washington or New York, this supply chain career fair was conveniently located on the first floor of the business building where I attend class.   Heavily armed with an arsenal of networking weapons including company research, my personalized selling pitch, and a slew of resumes, I ventured out into the jungle of high profile companies.  In my first two hours alone, I had already spoken with prestigious representatives and alumni from Dell, Target, Staples, Wal-Mart, Home Depot, and Johnson & Johnson.  By the end of the career fair, which lasted a total of two days and hosted over eighty companies, I had successfully made several promising contacts while scheduling two on campus interviews for the following afternoon.  For those of you who decide to join our family here at Smeal, please keep in mind that it is never too early to start the internship process (I’ve only been a part of the program for a grand total of eight weeks).

-Dave Hoover
MBA Class of 2010

Dave Hoover is a 1st year MBA student focusing primarily on Supply Chain Management.  Before coming to Penn State, he spent two years as an Operations Supervisor at distribution center catering to 3M products.  Despite fierce opposition, he strongly maintains that the Pittsburgh Steelers are the best football team in the history of time.

It was during the 1^st week of Module I when I was asked if I could go to the 1^st tailgate on Saturday.  I could not answer. I knew Football at Penn State was more like a religion than just sport.  But I still hesitated because I did not even know the rules of the game. At that very moment, I received the email about a Football Clinic, which I attended instead of an Accounting review session.

The 2^nd year student, Muhammad Abdullah who was previously a football captain at Illinois, provided the presentation. He handed over his helmet for us to feel how heavy it was and also drew some formations.  Most of all, the Youtube clips of real plays were the best teaching materials by which I felt how strategic and passionate the football game is.

Right after the event, we were able to practice on  the field in front of the Business Building.  My throw was without spin and the ball waivered.  However, It was worth it as I felt refreshed after the hectic week.  This weekend, I am going to my 1^st Tailgate!  International students who don’t know about Football at all, should Go to the Clinic!

- JungHo Lee
MBA Class of 2010

Last Thursday, the WMBA welcomed Tonya Olpin, the Executive Director of the National Association of Women MBA’s, to campus.  We ate, drank and talked about the many issues facing women in the workplace as well as the good work that NAWMBA is doing to help us all succeed.

In a world where only 13% of boards contain women and where only 16% of CEOs are women, NAWMBA is dedicated to helping women gain equality in the upper levels of management.  Tonya spoke for a bit about how NAWMBA does it.  She also answered our questions about work/life balance and how women can help each other in business.

Tonya also informed us that NAWMBA is hosting seven, $2,000 scholarships. Please go to the website and apply.  The deadline is October 1, 2008, so if you are interested, please apply soon.   Additionally, the national conference is from October 23rd to the 25th, and registration is open.  There will be about 75 companies represented at the conference’s career fair.

- Sara Paige
MBA Class of 2010

Things do not exactly slow down over the summer. Like most MBA’s, I am working at my internship, trying to exercise a little more and spend some time with family and friends. A few weeks ago I received an email regarding an opportunity to participate in the Philadelphia LIVESTRONG Event as a member of TeamMBA. LIVESTRONG is the foundation started by Lance Armstrong devoted to fighting cancer, and TeamMBA is an organization designed to encourage and feature the community service of MBA students, faculty and staff. Since I had been riding regularly again, I figured I’d go big and sign up for the century. This meant I had to raise $250 dollars in short order and get ready to ride 100 miles up and down the hills of Montgomery County, PA. What I didn’t anticipate was the outpouring of support that I have received or the chain of events that would follow. Not only have I surpassed my fundraising goal, TeamMBA is far and away the leader in the team fundraising contest to date. As a result, there is talk that we will be invited to have dinner with Lance and get our pictures taken with him. As an avid and long time fan, I am in shock. Now, I just need to get ready to ride those hundred miles. Yeah, things do not exactly slow down over the summer.

If you would like to donate, please visit my homepage before August 21,  https://www.kintera.org/faf/donorReg/donorPledge.asp?ievent=262613&supId=226134007

 - Ken Holmes
MBA Class of 2009

This summer I interned at PNC bank’s Corporate and Investment Banking(C&IB) Division, in the Corporate Finance department as a Junior Relationships Manager (RM). My department lends credit to and deploys PNC’s tools and services in large corporations with annual revenues of $500MM and higher. PNC was named the Middle Market Investment Bank of the year by Investment Digest in 2008, was ranked amongst the “Most Admired Companies” in Fortune 2006 and PNC now is the number one lead arranger of market syndicated loans in the North East..

As an intern and Jr. RM, I spent a lot of time prospecting new clients. What that meant is I would review the 10-Ks, 10-Qs and credit ratings of customers that PNC would like to do business with and rate them based on their credit worthiness, liquidity, outstanding debt and overall risk profile. PNC has very stringent lending standards and its this risk averseness that has led PNC to book a 20% Net Income growth in 2Q08 compared with Net Income a year ago, while other banks and financial institutions are booking subprime related losses. My team and manager encouraged me to meet with other departments and locational teams of PNC. I went to Pittsburgh and Philadelphia locations of PNC C&IB and met with other businesses like Treasury Management, Capital Markets, Business Credit, Credit Policy, Asset Backed Securitization, Loan Syndications etc. My other job functions included, sitting on prescreen meetings (to screen new or existing clients), learning about PNC’s portfolio of clients, tools and services, developing a Formalized and Business Independant Client Acquisition strategy and developing a mechanism to get any RM’s portfolio breakdown by location, clients and facilities.

Thankfully within 6 weeks of my being with PNC I was offered a full time position within the C&IB. I am looking forward to the remaining weeks in PNC and am equally eager to go back to State College and to the blessed life of a second year MBA. A word of advice to the incoming class, if you are interested in Corporate Finance or in PNC, please give your 100% to Dr. Muscarella’s and Dr. Fisher’s classes. All the concepts taught in those classes come back to you while interning.

-Amishi Patel
MBA Class of 2009

I spent my summer working for Johnson & Johnson Pharmaceutical Research & Development, L.L.C. in the Global Pharma R&D Sourcing division, specifically supporting Clinical Services. I was tasked with developing two high-level budgeting tools, which allowed me to interface with both internal and external stakeholders. The tools will result in a significant time savings for the company and will provide consistent, accurate results on an ongoing basis. They also provide the ability to do more analytics on the tracked data and will aid in controlling scope and price creep on projects.

Aside from my actual projects, I had ample opportunity to learn about other areas of J&J through various Procurement Leadership Development Program events. One of the major highlights of my summer was the open access and exposure to top executives, ranging from Directors to Vice Presidents, and even included both the CEO and CPO. J&J is all about passion and purpose, both driven by our Credo, and it is certainly a culture that I would be thrilled to build my career in. Overall I had a wonderful summer and am grateful for the opportunity that I had to join the 250+ Johnson & Johnson family of companies!

Emily MacPhail

So what was happening in the MBA Program Office over the past few months as our incoming first-year students were preparing to arrive on campus and while our second-year students were busy with internship activities?

One primary focus has been working on the launch of the newly redesigned MBA website, Student Exchange, http://mbastudents.smeal.psu.edu The Student Exchange is designed to be your one-stop website for the resources you need as an MBA student. As a matter of fact this very blog is on that site now. We think you will find the site to be quite beneficial and we solicit your feedback to ensure that the site is meeting your needs.

We said goodbye to some very good friends and colleagues who have moved on to new endeavors — Brooke, Kristin and Lauren will be greatly missed.

We welcome some new smiling faces to the 220 family, please be sure to stop by to meet them.

Stacey Dorang, Assistant Director, MBA Admissions

Sandy Simler, Staff Assistant, Primary Receptionist

Dulin Clark, Associate Director MBA Career & Executive Coaching

And, obviously, there has been a flurry of activity in planning and managing a variety of activities geared to benefitting our students such as company information sessions, tailgate sponsorship, MBA Alumni Advisory Board meetings and mentoring planning, Global Immersion preliminary negotiations, curriculum changes, career workshop planning, company visits, marketing and promotional planning – printed and web-based, ramping up for another successful admissions season, professional development conferences to attend and the list goes on and on.

Now the time is here to put many of these plans into action and to say:

“Welcome – Class of 2010” and “Welcome Back – Class of 2009”!

-Robin Brouse
Director of MBA Student Services

      There he sat across the conference room from me; room 218 to be exact. Clean cut, professional suit and a persona that makes others listen with curiosity. While eyeing each of us in the eye, his words of wisdom flowed stating, “Trust you hunches, ladies and gentlemen. Don’t move until you have resolved the funny feeling.” 

      The words rang deep in me and made complete sense. It sounded so easy! But I knew that only years of elevant experiences could bring one to such understanding. Well, Jim Stengel, the Global Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) of Proctor and Gamble (P&G) is definitely the one who can confidently speak such words. On April 11th, 2008 I had the fantastic  opportunity of sitting in on a Marketing Association Executive Breakfast Q & A session with the man. A total of 14 of my classmates sat along with us and it was an open forum setup.  He briefly started off explaining his background and how through the production of desirable results he attained the Global CMO position back in 2001. He went on to explain that P&G  was the largest advertiser in the world and how it differentiated itself by understanding the  subconscious desires of the consumer.         

      He went on to answer various inquiries that the students presented. He explained  several different aspects of marketing such as the types of innovation; disruptive, sustaining, and commercial innovation. It was all really interesting to me because this is the first  semester that I have actually started taking marketing classes. And so, listening to an  individual in his position was a truly enlightening experience. And the biggest takeaway  which could be applied in other functions as well was that one should trust their instincts.  I think that spoke volumes to most people in the room because it is a fundamental piece in understanding business strategy and yet, the hardest to follow at most points. Overall,  it is a truly knowledgeable experience and one which left my classmates and me with great  respect for the man.

      Sahil Asthana, MBA Class of 2009

After graduating from Temple University, where he majored in management information systems, Sahil joined Accenture, LTd. and then, moved on to a boutique consulting firm. He brings his five years of consulting experience and perspective to the MBA program and hopes to apply it effectively within his studies.
Sahil chose to pursue his MBA at the Smeal College of Business because of the strength of the marketing and entrepreneurship portfolios and the chance to learn from well respected faculty. Along with the leadership position of vice president of corporate and alumni relations, Sahil is an active member of the MBA Entrepreneurship Association.

We just had our last Mod Squad meeting and in many ways the process
mirrored my first year at Smeal. As a Mod Squad representative, I had
the responsibility and opportunity to give feedback to the faculty and
staff in real time. Once a Mod we sat with all of the professors, the
dean and a representative of the staff and conveyed the anonymous
feedback we collected from our classmates. Delivering critical
feedback to professors in front of the dean the day before midterms
might seem problematic, but not at Smeal. While there was tension in
the room at times, the real driver of discussion was an unmitigated
desire to make the program as good as it can be. Changes were made in
real time in response to our feedback that improved the program. As
for my personal growth, I have met several people whose dedication to
their craft and to their colleagues make them role models to all of
us. Just like the first year has been as a whole, the Mod Squad has
been a challenging and rewarding experience.

Kenneth Holmes, MBA Class of 2009

Kenneth Holmes is the 2009 President of the Finance Association as well as a Mod Squad representative. Before returning to get his MBA, Ken held executive level positions in startups and small companies in three industries.

kdh206@psu.edu

One of the Citi Group Penn State alumni, Krishna Nadella gave a presentation of current Wall Street banking situation and career search strategy last week. It’s has been a priceless opportunity to get insights from the people who directly deal with sub-prime products, witness the asset write down and involve in the major Citi Group issues in the recent couple of months. 

For the 1^st year MBA, it is valuable to grasp the big picture of sub-prime mortgage and related such product with current finance class topics. For the 2^nd year students, in such difficult market situation, opinions from real bankers regarding to career search strategy in finance industry is crucial. During the conversation we all had the same question–what’s our value to the company when facing economy recession and people lay-off? Krishna gave us a great example of how he reacted effectively and efficiently to this situation.  

In addition to his working experience, he shared a lot of personal experience in job searching. He had strong interest in banking, and moreover, he had strong will to get a job in Wall Street. I was very impressed that during his MBA, he went to New York biweekly to meet with alumni and learn about career in Wall Street! His effort in continuously building network during his MBA and his career distinguished himself from other strong competitors in the market.  

It’s great time for me to meet with alumni who is so truthful. The next step is to improve my networking and work harder.     

-Paul Wang

 MBA Class of 2008

Paul wang is a second year student who has strong interest in investment and portfolio management. Originally from China, he believes that there is huge potential in China financial market and he would like to contribute his knowledge to the improvement of that market.

On March 27, 2008, Nat Stoddard, Chairman of Crenshaw Associates, was
a guest speaker for the Smeal MBA Program’s Personal Development
Series. Over a casual lunch, several dozen Smeal MBAs were treated to
Mr. Stoddard’s own fascinating career history and the history of
Crenshaw Associates, specialists in career management for senior
executives. Mr. Stoddard’s personal and industry-gleaned wisdom will
almost certainly prove invaluable to all those who attended this
interactive and informative luncheon. Most saliently, Mr. Crenshaw
noted that while many MBA students are focused on getting A job or
getting THE job when they leave school, it is most advantageous to
focus instead on one’s desired end result, and to search for positions
that are clearly on the path to that result. This shift in thinking
was, for me, a simple one to make, and has helped me already by
enabling me to hone in on precisely where I’d like to do my internship
– saving me time in my search efforts. Mr. Stoddard’s simple speech
is sticking with me and, I am sure, will shape what career moves I
take this summer and as I move to plan to leave Smeal next year.

Mary Gorman

MBA Class of 2009 

Mary Gorman managed a global supply chain the fashion industry for six
years before coming to Smeal for her MBA. She is concentrating in
Supply Chain Management and Corporate Financial Analysis and Planning.

“Let me guess, you didn’t tell them about your 15 minutes of fame with the P-Funk,” my wife asked me after I told her the good news. She was referring to an old Andy Warhol comment and my former employment as a musician in LA; I was telling her about the Career Fair we had on campus. Over 50 Supply Chain companies had come to the Business Building recruiting for internships, co-ops and full time jobs. Because of the large number of companies who attend, success comes from knowing what you want and which companies are offering it. I was looking for an internship. I had already scheduled an interview with Dell later in the week, but I wanted one for a different department there as well. I also wanted to talk with ExxonMobil – my Dad worked for them his whole career and so I knew what a great company they are. I went to the Coffee House we had Monday night before the 2-day career fair where several companies each gave a short presentation and then met with students. We rotated through companies every 30 minutes. I met with the ExxonMobil recruiters and I was able to schedule an interview. Two days later at the Career Fair in the atrium, I met with the recruiters for Dell and I was able to schedule the second interview I wanted so much. Recruiters look for so many different things from students that it’s hard to know what they want. The best approach is to talk with other students who have interned or worked there to find out what the company is like. You can also find a lot of information on the web about the operations, locations and cultures of all of the different companies. Alumni are always willing to help also – so don’t be afraid to cold call them and ask questions. Career Services gets you ready for these events so you can hand your resume to potential employers with confidence knowing that they will like what they see.

I spoke with the ExxonMobil recruiters at the Coffee House just after they told the group they would collect resumes, review them that night and then call the people they would like to interview. However, I had done enough research on the company that I knew what to say and how to write my resume so that they would want to interview me. I got to sign up for a slot right then. Dell was no different; I knew exactly how to approach them. What took me by surprise, though, was where the conversation went – I don’t know how, but we got onto the topic of my musician days in LA and the recruiter not only ended up knowing who the Parliament Funkadelic was, but he was also impressed that I had once done a gig with their drummer. Yes, my experiences before coming to Smeal range all over – but I never thought (and neither did my wife) that I would be using that one to sell myself to a company.

I don’t think it matters who you are or what your background is – Penn State has such a diverse group of students and a broad range of companies who recruit here that you will be able to make the most of what is offered and companies will show up looking for you. My wife has teased me for our entire marriage about how nobody knows who the P-Funk is and how playing a gig with their former drummer won’t ever be of benefit to my new career – now when she pokes fun at it, I remind her that it was instrumental (no pun intended) in landing a great internship.

-Sammie Markham

MBA Class of 2009

Sammie Markham is a 1^st year Supply Chain student in the Smeal MBA Program. He has a background in facilities management and funk music.

Women in the Workplace:

A group of Smeal MBAs spent a couple of hours discussing the context of “Women in the Workplace”. Despite the female context of the session, a few brave male students contributed greatly to the session as well as Smeal MBA faculty and staff. Co-sponsored by the WMBA and Minority MBA clubs, the session was facilitated by Peggy Lorah from Penn State’s Student Affairs Department. A selection of Valentine’s Day desserts helped to bring in the crowd.

Peggy really left the floor open to discussion regarding a few topics that are seldom broached in everyday business conversation. Participants reflected on whether they had a preference for a male or female boss and, if they had a preference, what made them more inclined to work under one sex over the other. Conversation soon turned to the fine line that female managers sometimes face – how to balance competence with compassion. Peggy explained how female bosses are typically viewed as having to forego relationships with coworkers in order to maintain an expected level of respect and allegiance. However, a few of the participants were able to share management experiences where they were able to develop comfortable relationships with subordinates and still be respected for their competence as a leader. The discussion approached several other topics regarding “Women in the Workplace”, specifically the sometimes dilemma of work/life balance and how to be recognized for the work ethic that you have regardless of sex. By the end of the session, all participants seemed to have learned something more about the framework of women in the working world.

- Jenny Moerschbacher

Prior to coming to Smeal, Jenny was an Operations Manager in Phoenix, Arizona for a large private label food company. Jenny earned a B.A. in Engineering Policy from Lafayette College in Easton, Pennsylvania. Her areas of concentration include Strategic Leadership, Supply Chain Management, and Product & Market Development.

Robert J. Pasterick

The MBA Finance Association hosted a breakfast with Robert Pasterick, the CFO of Boeing Commercial Airplanes to allow members to speak up-close and personal with a C-level executive.  I took the opportunity as a member to participate in this breakfast, which quickly proved to be a great event.  Robert was very open to discussing Boeing’s current business and the changes occurring in the commercial aircraft arena.  One area of interest in the focus was regarding China and intellectual property.  It was very interesting to hear about the Chinese building aircraft and the challenges Boeing has been facing in maintaining protection of their patents within these aircraft.

Another area of focus was regarding immerging markets and their demand for aircraft.  The BRIC countries are posed for a lot of growth and Boeing is well positioned to take advantage of the situation with new products such as the Dreamliner.  Robert also spoke about Boeing’s corporate responsibility through projects looking to use less fuels than currently in place today for their fleet.  The breakfast was a great chance for a small group of Finance Association members to learn more about how a CFO handles a company the size of Boeing.

-George H. Benham III

MBA Class of 2008

Before coming to Smeal, George worked for nearly four years in the Financial Services sector with MBNA and Bank of America holding various positions that focused on leadership, strategy, and operations. He holds a BS degree in Operations and Info Sys Mgmt from Penn State and is currently focusing on Corporate Financial Analysis and Planning in his second year.

24th of January was an exciting day for many of us. Lots of internship
action around. Sears had come in for summer 2008 internship
interviews, and DuPont had also invited us for a day long DuPont visit
early next morn. But the most exciting part of the day for us women was
getting together that Thursday evening to celebrate the success of the
existing WMBA board of officers and welcome the new board members for
2009.We were also excited to elect our new VP -Communications for WMBA.

The event was organized at one of the local Indian restaurants in the
downtown area. Since most of us love Indian food around here, we couldn’t
wait to reach the venue. A bunch of us huddled together in Jodie’s car
(thanks Jodie for the ride that night) and reached Indian Pavilion just
in time to taste some wine and chat with the girls before we began the
main elections event. Marcela, WMBA President 2008, addressed us with
warm touching words to kick off the events. She welcomed the new board
members and encouraged us to keep WMBA as a special and a safe space for
women in the MBA program. Amy, our newly elected President for 2009 took
the stage next and enthused us all with her energy and excitement for
the year ahead. After each one of the new board members had shared with
the group their vision for WMBA in the coming year, we voted for the
post of VP-Communications. With most of the “business” for the night out
of our way, the fun began. We celebrated a second year WMBA member, Jess
Berger’s birthday, ate some cake, drank some more wine and eventually
enjoyed the scrumptious spread of Indian appetizers and main courses
that were served. To add to the merriment, we had an exciting round of
lucky draw with special gifts of Penn State memorabilia for the
winners, Kat and April.

Finally, no WMBA event can be complete without a photo session for the
ladies. Both the incoming and the outgoing board members had a great
time clicking away for the official group pictures as well as some fun
shots with all the WMBA members to remember the evening with. Overall, a
fantastic time spent well with girlfriends and colleagues from 220.
Robin and Carrie, thanks to both of you for your continued support to
our group, and ladies, let’s keep up the good work in 2009!!!

-Priyanka Dwivedi

MBA Class of 2009

Sunday was a fabulous day for me and 4 other Smeal MBA students. It was our first meeting with our adopted THON family, the Seibert’s, during the THON Family Carnival on December 9, 2007. It is truly an amazing thing to see the miracle of THON at work. Hundreds of children, parents, and volunteer students met in the White Building gym, decorated as a jungle, to share a fun afternoon together. We came to the event as strangers to the Seibert’s, but left as good friends. The Seibert children had a wonderful time. Katelyn, 8, John who is 6, Mark, 5, and Matthew, 3, were running around and having the time of their lives. Games, arts and crafts, music, and stage performances kept the children’s attention and gave Mr. and Mrs. Seibert a break from trying to entertain them. Although John has leukemia, you wouldn’t know it by the way he enjoys playing with his siblings and being around others. He even has more energy than any of us MBA students, as we were quite tired after the 4-hour long event, but John was still running around, wanting to continue playing with us. Fortunately for him, we will see John and the Seibert’s again, hopefully sooner than later. I think the Seibert’s are thankful to have the MBA students, as well as the entire THON family, as new friends and supporters.

-Rich Krauss, MBA Class of 2008

Rich Krauss is a 2nd year MBA student in the Smeal College of Business focusing on Corporate Financial Analysis & Planning, as well as Investment Management & Portfolio Analysis.  He has been very involved with THON since he was introduced to it as an undergraduate student at Penn State and believes student involvement is the key to THON’s success.

For an unbelievable Thanksgiving event all you need is 23 lbs Turkey, 9 lbs Duck, 3 lbs Chicken, 3 different stuffings and some good friends. These were the ingredients some inspired Smeal MBA students combined to celebrate the onset of a well earned Thanksgiving Break. “You really haven’t cooked until you’ve deboned a 23 pound, partially frozen Turkey” said Ralph Vartan, a participant in the endeavor. “I have been talking this up for months and the effort was definitely worth it” said fellow MBA Brad Updegrove. While the event was a success, its participants recommend leaving lots of preparation time as the 30+ pound preponderance of poultry required more than 9 hours to cook.

–Tom Aichele, twa111@psu.edu

Tom received a B.S. degree from Cornell University and served four years in the U.S. Navy prior to his MBA.

This was the first time I’ve heard of Diwali, the Indian Festival of Lights. I was honored and excited to participate in a traditional dance with classmate Amishi Patel. She’s a talented choreographer and picked moves that complimented both of our dancing styles. Let me tell you, Indian dancing is complicated if you’re not used to it! Your legs are in constant motion one way while your arms are gracefully twisting in another. The kicker was, every motion was supposed to be a picture opportunity. Let me give you some examples of good shots and bad shots:

Evidence aside, it was a lot of fun learning the moves – and a great aerobic workout! My exposure to Diwali has been fantastic and the song Barso Re-Guru will always recall treasured memories of friendship, mis-steps, and laughs.

–Amy Hsieh
Born and raised in New York City, Happy Valley is the first occasion Amy has living away from her home town. She holds both an AA and BA from NYU and worked as an Account Manager at an internet advertising agency prior to attending Penn State. Amy is pursuing the Product & Market Development and Corporate Finance portfolios at Smeal.

What should a company do with investors’ money? If a company gives back to the community, how do managers gauge how much is enough? Can it ever be too much? These are some of the questions we discussed at the inaugural “Ethical Pizza” luncheon. The debate, which was moderated by Dean Sheehan, gave me the chance to hear the opinions of about 40 students and faculty members regarding the ethics of corporate social responsibility.

Just as I had anticipated, the debate at times became quite spirited, but the informal setting allowed everyone a chance to participate. It was interesting to hear the varying viewpoints from all participants; first-year students had as much to say as chaired professors, and all points seemed to contribute to the development of the conversation. Although we did not conclude with one collective answer, the lunch did provide a novel learning experience and a great new way to interact with the faculty.

The Ethical Pizza luncheons are a series of bi-weekly events that invite members of the MBA program to discuss ethical issues that are currently making headlines.

-Matt Michaux
Matt is first-year student in the MBA program. He graduated in 2006 from the Smeal College with bachelor’s degrees in business administration and economics. Most recently, he worked for Duff & Phelps in Philadelphia in their international corporate value consulting division.

Recently, as a member of the MBA Finance Association, I had an opportunity to attend the Smeal Wall Street Initiative at the Princeton Club in New York City.  This initiative was created in 1999 as a way for Penn State alumni who work on Wall Street to connect with other alumni and help strengthen ties with the University.  Our membership sought to get involved with the event so we could share our experiences in the MBA program while having an forum to network with alumni working in the New York City area.

The event started out with a cocktail reception where my classmates and I had the chance to speak with alumni from many top firms, including Merrill Lynch, Goldman Sachs, Bear Sterns, Pfizer, and others.  All of the alumni were very open to sharing their experiences and providing points of contact for conversations after the event.  It was also a great opportunity to start building relationships with those on Wall Street to help in the career search.

After the reception, there was a very informative presentation centered around the Trading Room and specifically, the Nittany Lion Fund.  This fund, a $5 million student-managed investment portfolio has had a great performance thus far and they were seeking new investors for additional growth.

Overall, the event was a great opportunity for us as MBA students to get out to Wall Street and interact with the firms who place a high emphasis on Finance careers while also giving us some time to speak with others who are looking to eventually pursue an MBA degree.

-George H. Benham III

MBA Class of 2008

Before coming to Smeal, George worked for nearly four years in the Financial Services sector with MBNA and Bank of America holding various positions that focused on leadership, strategy, and operations. He holds a BS degree in Operations and Info Sys Mgmt from Penn State and is currently focusing on Corporate Financial Analysis and Planning in his second year.

The Supply Chain Management Association met on Oct 30 and Brad Updegrove shared information about the activities planned in the coming weeks. The Supply Chain Career Panel is scheduled for Nov 9 wherein alumni from leading firms will share their industry experiences and guide the 1^st year students on potential career options in the Supply Chain sector. A facility tour is being planned around early spring. This will be a great opportunity to witness the various elements of Supply Chain in action.

The election for the 1^st Year Officer position was held during this meeting. Candidates had an opportunity to speak extempore for 2 minutes describing their background and what they planned to do in the position if elected. The 1^st Year Officer is responsible to gather the ideas of the 1^st year SCMA members and drive them toward implementation with the help of the steering committee of the association.

-Rohit Gurtu, MBA Class of 2009

Officer, MBA Supply Chain Management Association

Prior to Smeal, Rohit has worked for more than 15 years in the automotive industry. He has undertaken various roles in manufacturing, purchasing, and procurement with Maruti Suzuki, Honda Siel Cars, Delphi Automotive Systems, and Saud Bahwan Automotive, LLC.

What happens when a group of female MBAs sit together, each with a cosmetic mirror, and follow professional guidance to try over ten different kinds of make up? A lot of fun! The Women’s MBA Association organized this activity to help female MBAs to improve our makeup skills and have a little girls-only fun.

After over one hour of hard work on our faces, we were all excited about our new appearances. So what followed next? Well, of course nobody wanted to go back home and wash it off. So, it was off to Tony’s Big Easy (a local bar) where there was a networking event for MBAs and JD (law) students. With our new looks, we showed the law students how energetic and pretty women MBAs could be.

I had heard of the make up session during the orientation week and had been looking forward to it for weeks. I have taken part in many activities and this one, believe me, is a must if you are a female MBA. After the make up session, I was excited about exploring the magic of eyeliner, which I had always skipped. Now, I’m sacrificing some sleep time every morning (I’m sleep deprived already, so what’s a little less?) to stand in front of the mirror and add that extra little touch.

–Chao He
Originally from China, Chao attained her Bachelor’s Degree in English there and has over six years working experience in international education. At Smeal, Chao plans to focus on Product & Market Development, Strategic Leadership, and Corporate Innovation and Entrepreneurship.

After what I deemed the most stressful week of first mod (count them: two accounting projects, stats quiz, teams quiz, first communications speech, SIPs) we finally had some time to breathe. A visit to 2nd year, Jodie Vanderman’s apartment was exactly what I needed. A glass of wine, appetizers, and our first informal get-together as women leaders of the future was born. Well… not so dramatically. It was a great opportunity to relax and just be girls in the midst of a male dominated education. Jodie instructed us on proper make-up application and color choices from her Mary Kay kit and caboodle. We all listened intently as she unveiled the cosmetic secret to covering those nasty dark-under-eye circles. Let me tell you – the results were gorgeous and the celebrated success carried itself downtown to a mixer.

–Amy Hsieh
MBA Candidate 2009

The SCMA held its inaugural meeting on September 6. The meeting served to welcome the class of 2009 to the Smeal SCMA and to describe the variety of career opportunities for Supply chain students upon completion of the first year of the program. Brad Updegrove, President of the SCMA, addressed the group and discussed upcoming events. The second part of the meeting consisted of the class of 2008 describing their Supply chain responsibilities and accomplishments during their internships. Smeal students had wide array of experiences. The sample of the Supply Chain internships included participation in the computer, automotive, aerospace, pharmaceutical, and transportation industries.

-Preston Charles, MBA Class of 2008

Preston Charles is a second year MBA student majoring in Supply Chain Management and Strategic Leadership. He serves as the acting office manager for Office of Diversity Enhancement. He is also the acting Vice President of Student Affairs for the Supply Chain Management Association.

VP Student Affairs, MBA Supply Chain Management Association