Archive for June, 2011

Post by Ángel Cabrera

As we reach the end of the fiscal year, I am inspired more than ever by the leadership, energy and success displayed by our global community of alumni who continue to make a significant and lasting impact in our world economy.

Some of you are leading businesses and facing increasingly complex management decisions. Others are navigating a complicated global landscape through your work in various organizations. And many are facing unique challenges as entrepreneurs seeking to create sustainable businesses in an increasingly inter-connected world.

The rapid spread of globalization has created a global economy in which the fortunes of individuals, businesses and societies are inextricably linked. And never before has that been more apparent than in the past year when we witnessed the global impact of natural disasters, instability in our financial markets and political unrest in Middle East.

Thunderbird, by virtue of its heritage, expertise, and entrepreneurial vision, is uniquely positioned to meet the growing need for global leaders, like you, who can manage in this complex, inter-connected global environment. Now more than ever, the world needs T-birds.

In order to leverage our unique strengths, deliver on our mission and provide the best global management education in the world to the next generation of global leaders, we need your support.

I would first like to thank those alumni who have supported our school. Your gifts – large and small – have provided support for scholarships, internships, classrooms, technology, faculty and so much more. Investments in these activities help Thunderbird deliver on its unique mission and remain the No. 1 School of Global Business in the world.

Our world-class faculty is doing amazing work inside and outside of the classroom as highly-published thought leaders on global business issues and trends and as dedicated instructors who also provide innovative and transformational learning experiences for our students.

One such program is the Thunderbird Emerging Markets Laboratory (TEM Lab) which matches student consultants with business enterprises in emerging markets. This type of real time, practical learning sets Thunderbird apart. 

Supportive alumni strengthen the T-bird brand, energize our dedicated faculty and staff, inspire major donors and foundations to invest in Thunderbird, and show current students that alumni care about their careers and success in the world.

With less than two days remaining in Thunderbird’s first ever Global Giving Competition, the Southeast Asia team just knocked the U.K. team out of a long run in second place.

Still in first place is the China & Hong Kong team with 19.3 percent alumni participation. The Southeast Asia team is now in second place with 17.3 percent and the U.K. team is a close third with 17.1 percent.

As gifts come in from around the globe, the competition is close. Who will place in the final top three?

In the U.S., the Washington D.C. Area team remains in first, with the Indiana and Michigan team coming close to a tie.

Thunderbird’s current participation figure stands at 13.8 percent. The goal for the fiscal year, which ends June 30, 2011 at 11:59 p.m. is 17 percent. We need your help and support. Please make your gift today.

And to everyone else who has helped in any way – great or small – we thank you!

If you’ve already made your gift, please Tweet this message, e-mail it, post it on your Facebook pages and encourage T-birds on your team to support Thunderbird.

The winning team in this competition will be featured in the Fall edition of Thunderbird Magazine and will see their names published. They will also receive a personal thank you letter from President Dr. Cabrera and will be recognized during the 11-11-11 events. Two runner up teams will be recognized in summary form.

Most recent statistics:

Africa & MiddleEast  11.3%
South Korea 9.5%
China & HongKong    19.3%
Inda, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh 11.7%
Southeast Asia  17.3%
Taiwan  12.5%
Oceana, Indonesia, Malaysia 6.6%
Thailand 7.0%
U.K.  17.1%
Spain 14.5%
France  15.3%
Germany  13.9%
Northern Europe   15.3%
Central Europe  14.6%
Brazil  12.5%
Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador 14.0%
Argentina, Chile, Paraguay  14.3%
Peru, Bolivia, Suriname  15.0%
Oregon, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming  9.9%
Washington State 13.6%
Nevada, Utah, Mexico    10.7%
Colorado  11.0%
North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Minnesota, Iowa, Kansas 12.3%
Oklahoma, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Tennessee, Missouri  11.0%
Indiana, Michigan 14.1%
Kentucky, Ohio, West Virginia 12.2%
Rhode Island, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Vermont, Maine 13.6%
North Carolina and South Carolina 11.8%
California 11.3%
Arizona  11.5%
Texas  12.1%
Illinois   11.5%
New York     12.2%
Florida  10.9%
Canada    13.9%
Central America   10.7%
Hawaii, Puerto Rico, Virgin Islands, Guam, Alaska  10.9%
Eastern Europe & Russia   14.6%
Washington D.C. Area   14.2%
Delaware, Connecticut, New Jersey, Pennyslvania  13.7%

By Lisa Byrne ’77

I’m a Thunderbird ’77 graduate. Together with my sister, Pat Byrne ’80, we founded www.ItalyPerfect.com, dedicated to vacation rental properties in Italy. We collaborate with another sister who represents beautiful vacation homes in Paris and London.

We offer vacation rentals that we carefully hand pick for their location, furnishings and amenities that we can personally recommend and would want to stay in ourselves. We travel to Italy quarterly to inspect and stay in the rentals we represent, selecting special properties that offer charm, cleanliness and hospitable welcomes. We count the number of steps up to the property, check the size of the refrigerator, shower, listen for noise, inventory the kitchen equipment and even inspect the mattresses. And we offer exclusive insights and tips for tourism planning, restaurants and cafes, shopping insider secrets and tour guides.

While we work hard, we also get to enjoy the La Dolce Vita way of life while in Italy: Long delicious lunches, sipping a glass of Chianti while overlooking gorgeous views, shopping at the morning farmers’ market, catching the latest museum exhibit or tracking down fashion bargains. It’s a tough job but somebody’s gotta do it.

There is just one week left in Thunderbird’s first annual Global Giving Competition!

The China & Hong Kong team remains in first place with 18.5 percent participation – and the number is growing daily. The U.K. team has held its ground in second place with 16.8 percent participation, while the Northern Europe team knocked the Peru, Boliva and Suriname team out of third place by reaching 15.3 percent participation.

In the U.S., the Washington D.C. Area team climbed to the front with 13.3 percent, but is nearly tied with the Washington State team and all of New England who all stand at 13.2 percent.

Who is going to reach the top in the U.S.? The scores are close!

Thunderbird’s current participation figure stands at 13.3 percent. With just 7 days left to Campaign Thunderbird, we need all of the support from T-birds to reach our goal of 17 percent alumni participation. If you have not yet done so, please make your gift here today to help us reach this goal. Any amount will make an impact.

If you’ve already made your gift we thank you. Please Tweet this message, e-mail it, post it on your Facebook pages and encourage T-birds on your team to support Thunderbird.

The winning team in this competition will be featured in the Fall edition of Thunderbird Magazine and will see their names published. They will also receive a personal thank you letter from President Dr. Cabrera and will be recognized during the 11-11-11 events. Two runner up teams will be recognized in summary form.

This week’s statistics:

Africa & MiddleEast        10.4%   

South Korea        9.5%     

China & Hong Kong         18.5%   

India, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh            11.3%   

Southeast Asia     15.2%   

Taiwan    12.5%   

Oceana, Indonesia, Malaysia          6.6%     

Thailand             7.0%     

U.K. group          16.8%   

Spain     14.5%   

France   15.0%   

Germany   13.1%              

Northern  Europe    15.3%               

Central Europe   13.0%   

Brazil  12.5%     

Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador      14.0%   

Argentina, Chile, Paraguay          14.3%   

Peru, Bolivia, Suriname                 15.0%   

Oregon, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming             9.7%     

Washington State            13.2%   

Nevada, Utah, Mexico       10.5%   

Colorado            10.6%   

North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Minnesota, Iowa, Kansas      12.3%   

Oklahoma, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Tennessee, Missouri  10.8%   

Indiana, Michigan           13.0%   

Kentucky, Ohio, West Virginia        12.0%   

Rhode Island, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Vermont, Maine          13.2%   

North Carolina and South Carolina             11.3%   

California            10.9%   

Arizona       11.3% 

Texas         11.7%   

Illinois      11.1%   

New York         12.0%   

Florida             10.1%   

Canada          12.8%   

Central America           10.7%   

Hawaii, Puerto Rico, Virgin Islands, Guam, Alaska    10.9%   

Eastern Europe & Russia           14.2%   

Washington D.C. Area      13.3%   

Delaware, Connecticut, New Jersey, Pennsylvania    13.2%

H. Tony Hartmann ’87 was recently named as a member of the advisory board for the Wisconsin Institute for Sustainable Technology at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point. The 12-member board will provide guidance to the institute as it shapes priorities and works to transfer new technology from the laboratory to commercial use. Hartmann is Chief Executive Officer of Great Lakes Ag Energy. He has worked in the field of bioenergy since 2003 and is past President of the Wisconsin Biodiesel Association and Green Diesel Wisconsin Foundation.

Paul Simpson ’92 was recently hired as the International Sales Manager for Wilcoxon Research products. Simpson’s 15 years of international technical sales experience and his ability to speak multiple languages will be a great asset to customers in Asia, Latin America, Europe and the Middle East. In his new role, Simpson will focus on all aspects of international sales, such as devising and implementing sales strategies and serving as the account manager for strategic international customers as well as selecting and managing international resellers globally. Simpson is fluent in Chinese and Spanish and has a working knowledge of Portuguese.

Judith Lu ’01 has recently joined the Private Client Services team in Los Angeles of City National Bank. Lu has more than 15 years of experience and will serve as a Senior Vice President, Senior Private Client Advisor and will focus on new client development and service to the bank’s high-net-worth clients in Los Angeles. Lu previously served as Executive Director and Senior Client advisor for UBS Wealth Management International where she has worked since 2002 in locations such as as Zurich, New York and Miami. Prior to that, she worked for Deloitte & Touche.

Sam Drennen ’04 was recently promoted to Group Vice President of Retail Banking for First American Bank and Trust. In addition to his work for First American Bank and Trust, Drennen also serves the Board of Directors for the Economic Development Foundation and Project Safe.

Siobhan MacDermott ’05 was recently announced as one of two founding Directors to the newly-formed Advisory Board of The Global Leaders Holdings LLC. MacDermott is in charge of Investor Relations for AVG Technologies and is their Chief Policy Officer. She has extensive experience working on U.S. and global policy matters across a variety of information technology, wireless and security markets. She has co-authored a book designed to help parents discuss internet safety with their children and speaks five languages.

Now More than ever…
The world needs T-birds — and T-bird needs your help!

In the final weeks of Campaign Thunderbird, please visit this page for daily updates on what has been accomplished and how far we have to go.  

DAYS REMAINING:  2

ALUMNI PARTICIPATION RATE:  13.7 %

Campaign Thunderbird is a way for alumni and friends to ensure that the next generation of T-birds has the same great experience. Because tuition only covers a portion of the cost to educate a student, gifts from alumni are vital to bridge that gap and ensure access to the scholarships, technology, programs, and faculty necessary for that great Thunderbird experience.

 Questions, comments? Let us know by posting your comments here or contact Keith Kerber, Assistant Director Annual Giving: keith.kerber@thunderbird.edu; 602.978.7426

“If starting or growing a business weren’t hard enough before the financial crisis, try doing so today,” says successful entrepreneurs Sherwood Neiss (’96), Jason Best (’96), and Zak Cassady-Dorion (’10).  According to a petition on their website www.startupexemption.com, they state small businesses represent over 99% of the employer firms in the U.S., and employ half of the private sector employees.  Between 1993 and 2009, those businesses accounted for 65% of the 15 million net new jobs created.  

According to the Department of Labor, prior to the financial meltdown, 76% of small businesses received traditional funding (ie: bank loans, credit card advances, finance companies, etc).  Any entrepreneur will tell you that cash is king.  Without it you cannot grow or hire employees. However, since the financial meltdown traditional financing has virtually disappeared. The money might be out there but it is not flowing from the people who have it to the people who can use it.

Neiss, Best, and Cassady-Dorion believe one of the answers to getting out of the recession is small businesses and entrepreneurs.  Economists and politicians are in agreement as well: jobs create prosperity. President Obama stated, “Startups bring a wealth of transformative innovations to market, and they also play a critical role in job creation in the United States. Those entrepreneurs who are intent on growing their businesses create the lion’s share of these new jobs.”  Jobs create taxable wages and spending which stimulates the economy and replenishes the government coiffeurs. 
Read more »

The Alumna-led Arlington Street People’s Assistance Network (A-SPAN) was recently named Nonprofit of the Year by the Arlington Chamber of Commerce in Virginia.
The nonprofit’s Executive Director is T-bird Kathleen Sibert ’83.
The organization was selected for the award because it has proven to be a viable, ongoing, full-time business that has experienced significant growth. It is also well-known and delivers exceptional service, is a leader in its industry in Arlington and displays an interest in the Arlington community.
Sibert is among the many Thundercouples in our alumni. She is married to Mike Rugala ’84.

U.S. teams stepped up this week in Thunderbird’s first annual Global Giving Competition.

Although not enough to make it into the top three slots, U.S. teams are moving forward as the fiscal year comes to a close in just 15 days.

Still in first place is the China & Hong Kong team with 18.3 percent participation. The U.K. team is in second place with 16.2 percent and the Northern Europe team and Peru, Bolivia, Suriname team are still tied for third place with 15 percent.

In the U.S., the Washington State team is still leading the way.

Thunderbird’s current participation figure stands at 12.7 percent. One week ago our figure was 12.3 percent. The goal for the fiscal year, which ends June 30, 2011 is 17 percent. We can get there, but we need your help! Please make your gift today.

This week, we’d like to extend a special thank you to our Chapter Leaders who have supported this competition and to our Thunderbird Alumni LinkedIn members who have posted enthusiastic messages in the discussion board as well as made gifts themselves.

And to everyone else who has helped in any way – great or small – we thank you and please let us know so that we can recognize you in next week’s blog!

If you’ve already made your gift, please Tweet this message, e-mail it, post it on your Facebook pages and encourage T-birds on your team to support Thunderbird.

The winning team in this competition will be featured in the Fall edition of Thunderbird Magazine and will see their names published. They will also receive a personal thank you letter from President Dr. Cabrera and will be recognized during the 11-11-11 events. Two runner up teams will be recognized in summary form.

Most recent statistics:

Africa & Middle East 10.4%
South Korea 9.5%
China & Hong Kong 18.3%
Inda, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh 11.3%
Southeast Asia 14.8%
Taiwan 12.5%
Oceana, Indonesia, Malaysia 6.6%
Thailand 6.7%
U.K.  16.2%
Spain 13.2%
France    14.3%
Germany   13.1%
Northern Europe  15.0%
Central Europe   13.0%
Brazil  12.5%
Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador 14.0%
Argentina, Chile, Paraguay    14.3%
Peru, Bolivia, Suriname  15.0%
Oregon, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming  9.4%
Washington State   13.1%
Nevada, Utah, Mexico 10.3%
Colorado   10.4%
North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Minnesota, Iowa, Kansas 11.5%
Oklahoma, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Tennessee, Missouri  10.2%
Indiana, Michigan  12.8%
Kentucky, Ohio, West Virginia 11.9%
Rhode Island, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Vermont, Maine  12.9%
North Carolina & South Carolina 10.9%
California 10.5%
Arizona   10.9%
Texas 11.4%
Illinois  10.9%
New York   11.9%
Florida  9.8%
Canada 12.8%
Central America   10.5%
Hawaii, Puerto Rico, Virgin Islands, Guam, Alaska  10.9%
Eastern Europe & Russia  13.8%
Washington D.C. Area  12.4%
Delaware, Connecticut, New Jersey, Pennsylvania  12.4%

In light of the ongoing discussion taking place regarding the “No Vacation Nation” in the Thunderbird Alumni group on LinkedIn, today we’d like to share with you the top 25 companies that provide the best work-life balance.