Archive for December, 2010

James Echle, ’72, has re-joined the U.S. Soybean Export Council (USSEC) as its Japan Country Representative in Tokyo. Echle previously served the American Soybean Association for 12 years, first as the ASA Southeast Asia director in Singapore from 1990 to 1998 and then the ASA Japan Director from June 1998 to September 2001. Echle left in 2001 to become Asian CEO of Biomin Laboratory, an Austrian feed additive company in Singapore. He was transferred to Vietnam in 2003 as COO of Biomin Vietnam to develop the market in South Vietnam and opened an office in Ho Chi Minh City. He retired from Biomin when he reached the mandatory Austrian retirement age in 2008 and was hired as a consultant on a two-year contract to Sojitz Vietnam, a large Japanese Trading House, to develop special projects at the Sojitz Panamax Port facility in Vietnam. Echle is a native of Indiana and also a past chapter leader of the Vietnam Thunderbird Alumni Chapter. 

Samuel Cotterell, ’76, has been named Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer effective Jan. 1, 2011 of Boise Inc. Cotterell brings a wealth of knowledge and company experience to his new role. He has been Boise’s Vice President and Controller since Feb. 2008. Cotterell is a certified public accountant and was recently appointed to the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants Auditing Standards Board. He served 10 years on the Idaho State Board of Accountancy, was the first Idahoan to chair the National Association of State Boards of Accountancy and was a member of the original Standing Advisory Group to the PCAOB.

Nan Hinton, ’86, has been named Senior Vice President and Manager of Treasury Management and Deposit Banking for Vectra Bank Colorado. She was previously Market President for the bank’s north metro Denver market. In her new role, Hinton – a 25-year banking veteran — will manage Vectra’s deposit banking and treasury management divisions.

Lin-Dai Yu-Shan Kendall, ’91, was elected by the Republican Women of Clifton as president of the group. Kendall immigrated to the United States 19 years ago from Honduras and is also a Fulbright Scholar.

Sanjay Sachdev, ’91, has been appointed President and CEO of Tata Asset Management Ltd. Sachdev comes with a strong financial services background and more than 23 years of experience in the industry. He spent 12 years in the Principal Financial Group – first in the U.S. as Global Manager/International Investment Officer and then from 2000 to 2006 in India as Managing Director/Country Manager of Principal – PNB.  

Mario Zaldivar, ’91, has been named President of Accountants Alumni Associations (AAA) for the Universidad Iberoamericana in Mexico City. He will be in charge of fostering the alumni network and relationships between alumni and the university for two years. Zaldivar is also President of Zaldivar Consulting.

Steve Chambers, ’95, has been appointed to the Board of Directors for Pentagon Protection Plc. Chambers is Vice President of IGS and prior to joining Pentagon worked with 3M within the Renewable Energy Division. Chambers also served 16 years in the U.S. Navy as an engineering officer.

Stephen Arnold, ’96, has been named Chief Financial Officer of Sensus Healthcare. Arnold brings with him over 15 years of senior and executive level financial accounting and operational experience working for public and private healthcare and technology companies. Arnold was most recently CFO of a medical device company based in Pittsburgh, PA.

Eric Henderson, ’97, has been selected as a regular contributor for Huffington Post. He will be writing on “Art, The Arts and Policy.”

Jay Neuhaus, ’98, has recently accepted a new role as head of marketing in the 2014 FIFA World Cup office in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Neuhaus brings with him six years of experience with FIFA in Zurich.

Larry Segerstrom, ’05, was recently appointed to the Board of Directors for Gold Bag Inc. Segerstrom has 30 years of experience in the mining industry. Since 2006, he was Chief Operating Officer of Paramount Gold and Silver Corp. where he led the discovery of more than 1 million ounces of gold and 75 million ounces of silver at its San Miguel Project in Mexico. Segerstrom has also worked for Freeport McMoRan’s Grasberg District Mining Camp, Layne Christensen drilling in Mexico, Newmont, Phelps Dodge and Noranda.

Brenda Adelson, ’08, has been named marketing director of Organizational Design and Development Associates, a management consulting firm that specializes in organizational development services. She brings 15 years of experience in strategy, analysis and design for print, web and social media marketing.

by Keith C. Kerber, Assistant Director Annual Giving

‘Twas the week before Christmas, and all throughout Thunderbird,
Not a student could be seen nor a professor be heard. 
To the ends of the earth they all went in a flash,
No hesitation with three weeks sans class. 

Why bother reading for the semester ahead?
While visions of distant lands danced in their heads.
Why should they spend the time studying in the IBIC,
When diverse and wild cultures await their first visit.

Now Melinda, now Alan, now Arvind and Jenny!
Go Marie, go Gonzalo, go Jaseem, and Haley
To Kilamanjaro, to Machu Picchu, or to the Great Wall,
Dash away! Dash away! Dash away all!

Practice those languages and cross-cultural skills,
You’ll put them to use for business or thrills. 
See you next semester; we trust you’ll return.
For without you, there’d be no Thunderbird.

But don’t stay here forever ‘cause we’d rather you go,
Creating prosperity all over the globe.
You’re all so amazing, there’s no doubt about that
The world needs more T-birds and I’ll drink to that!

In addition to a drink I’m giving a gift to ensure the world has more Thunderbirds? Will you give a gift today? Thank you.

SOMERSET  by J.P. Cunningham tells the story of an extraordinary family

By J.P. Cunningham, ’82

Set initially in northeastern Arkansas, it builds upon the loss of a husband and father to suicide and the effect this has on his wife Emily and daughter Amanda.  Judge Emily Somerset raised a family, practiced law, and has served for years as a judge.  Her daughter Amanda,  living in the shadow of her mother’s accomplishments, pursued law school, survived divorce, and established herself in a professional career on Capitol Hill.  Amanda’s older brother, Bogan, has completely lost touch with the family.  After leaving his wife and children, he is rumored to have run off to South America– to Peru during a civil war stirred up by a revolutionary group called Sendero Luminoso.

“Somerset” is a story about a quest: a search for a particular person but then also a search for purpose.  It involves a quest for redemption: with different characters struggling in their own ways to correct what each sees as a life of misplaced priorities.

Contact the author at jpauthor@jp-cunningham.com. “Somerset”, in trade paperback, is available for sale online at Amazon.com (ISBN no. 1453839518),  and through additional wholesale and retail channels worldwide; and will be available in electronic format for Kindle users and through other channels.

About the Author

J.P. Cunningham, originally from a small town in Northeastern Arkansas, where his father’s family had lived since 1873 and his mother’s since the 1840’s, is fluent in Spanish and has traveled widely throughout Latin America.  Prior to that, he worked as an aide for the United States Congress specializing in foreign affairs.  Visit his website or follow him at jpcauthor@twitter.com.

Jorge Moix, ’82, was recently named in Financial Times as a board member on Barcelona’s football (soccer) team. The article discusses how the 15-person board contains seven members with graduate business degrees.

DO: Use our databases. Are any alumni affiliated with your field/company of interest/objectives? Find them now by searching the my|Thunderbird database or the professional network on GlobalConnect.

DO: Read magazine articles. Search for professionals who have been quoted in articles related to your purpose. Let them know that you read about them in the magazine and would like to speak further with them about the highlighted topic.

DO: Seek out professional associations. Major libraries have lists or directories of professional associations. Set goals of making contact with 10 people per meeting, or take a leadership role in the organization.

DO: Build a pyramid of contacts.  Never end a networking appointment without asking, “Do you know anyone else I should contact?” This is how your network continues to grow – like a pyramid.

Like to play rugby or even just watch? Come back to Thunderbird with the Thunderbird Alumni Rugby Association (TARA) or join them in Iceland for the Mjöður Old Boys Rugby Tour.

Rugby Alumni Weekend (RAW) will kick off on March 3, 2011 and last until March 6. During this time, participants and guests will play golf, enjoy a night out at the Pub, catch a spring training ballgame, go skeet shooting and, of course, play rugby. This event is a great time to meet up with fellow T-bird alumni and enjoy some good old fashioned competition!

The next event is the Mjöður Old Boys Rugby Tour, which will take place July 1-8, 2011. The weekend will consist of one to two matches against the Iceland club and another visiting club from Europe. On off days, the group will sight-see, hike, visit museums and just enjoy Iceland’s volcanic hot springs and 20 hours of daylight.

For inquiries regarding either event, or to be included on the Rugby Alumni e-newsletter, please contact Chuck Hamilton ‘91, President, Thunderbird Alumni Rugby Association at chuck.notlimah@gmail.com

Finding a Thunderbird alumni chapter is now easier than ever!

Whether you’re looking to attend a First Tuesday or locate a chapter leader online, it’s all just a click away on our new Google Map.

Take a look at 168 T-bird alumni chapters that span the globe and click on a point to view chapter leaders and their e-mails for that location.

The map will be updated regularly as chapter leadership changes and new chapters form.

Now you can access the number one global business school network whether you are moving to a new place, traveling for business or vacationing.

A letter from Ryan Renner, ‘08, to his fellow T-birds:  

At Thunderbird we were taught to create sustainable prosperity worldwide. Doing so when resources are few and far between can be quite difficult. But, eliminating a single key constraint can free many individuals to act on their own to achieve sustainable prosperity.

For the past 10 months I’ve worked on a project called Light Up Malawi.  Our goal is to provide 100 percent access to energy in Malawi via renewable resources. As we progress toward this challenging goal and refine our model of engagement, we look for projects that will unlock great potential for energy accessibility, teach us more about the cultural and economic environment, and provide immediate positive impact in people’s lives. At this time, we have a project before us that will lead to these opportunities, and we request your assistance in opening the door to many valuable resources and information.

I’m working with Malawi’s Deputy Minister of Agriculture, Honorable Margaret Mauwa, in addition to the Ministry of Health and Traditional Authority/District leadership. The Mauwa Health Centre is currently un-powered, and while the Centre serves more than 30,000 people. But due to fear of safety at night, many patients avoid coming to the clinic for proper care.

Our Plan: First, we’ll build a strong, secure wall.  Once we secure our patients and future investments from loss, we can install the energy the Centre needs.

Please share us on Facebook, e-mail us to five of your friends or consider a donation to help.

Ryan Renner, ‘08
Co-Founder and Executive Director
Light Up Malawi

With the holidays upon us and shopping in full force, here is one perspective from the blog of Ben Malki ‘10 and his fellow bloggers on Microsoft’s marketing of the Kinect, a new accessory for Xbox 360. Read the post here.

Dear Thunderbirds:

Each year, the Phoenix Chapter of Thunderbird’s Alumni Association sponsors a volunteer event a local St. Vincent de Paul (SVDP) Society Dining Hall to feed needy individuals and families.  Our next is scheduled volunteer event is this Sunday, December 12^th, 2010, from 9:30AM to 1:00PM.  The demand for SVDP’s charitable services is higher than ever, so we’re looking for 25 to 30 volunteers to support them!

Please take a few hours out of your busy schedules to give back and support your local community dining hall.  Feel free to forward this to any fellow T-Birds, friends and family.  Use the link below for more details about the SVDP and the Volunteer Event. 

For further Event Details and Volunteer Registration, click on the following link:

https://www.123signup.com/event?id=vzxzs

For more information on St. Vincent de Paul’s charitable works, click on the following link:

http://www.stvincentdepaul.net/PS-CharityDiningRooms.htm

For questions that can’t be answered on the web page, contact the T-Bird Volunteer Coordinator, Anthony Gloria at 480-748-5802 or anthonygloria@global.t-bird.edu