Let’s take a look at some of the biggest stories from this week, including BU Questrom’s take on bad advertising, and more.
Darden of Carey Faculty Receives Johns Hopkins Catalyst Award – JHU News
The Johns Hopkins University Carey Business School recently honored Associate Professor Michael Darden with a Catalyst Award in acknowledgement of his early career accomplishments.
The awards were first introduced at Carey in 2015 to support the efforts of professors like Darden who have shown originality and impact in their fields. Darden, whose work focuses on the economics health care markets and tobacco regulation, will receive a $75,000 research grant. He formerly taught health policy and management at George Washington University and economics at Tulane.
Darden received his Ph.D. in economics from the University of North Carolina. He is currently a research faculty fellow at the National Bureau of Economic Research.
Carey Business School Associate Professor Michael Darden, winner of this year’s Catalyst Award \ Photo via carey.jhu.edu
On the news of the award, Johns Hopkins University President Ronald J. Daniels says, “There is no more urgent time than the present to renew our commitment to those whose ideas will improve the condition of our world and its people… By supporting the creative and ambitious research of early-career faculty, we are investing not only in the future of these exceptional scholars but of the entire academic enterprise.”
For more on the Catalyst Award and Michael Darden, read here.
Penn State Smeal Convenes Panel of Leading Infrastructure Experts to Discuss Challenges Facing the U.S. – Smeal College of Business News
The Penn State Smeal College of Business recently hosted a panel of some of the country’s leading experts in infrastructure and transportation. Members of the panel, convening in New York City, discussed some of the critical issues facing the country today.
David Welsh, Penn State Smeal alum and founder of Normandy Real Estate Partners, led the discussion. The panel included Sarah Feinberg, Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) board member and former U.S. Department of Transportation chief of staff; Anthony Coscia, chairman of Amtrak; Parick Foye, chairman of the MTA and Steve Plate, chief of major capital projects of the Port Authority of New York & New Jersey.
Larry Silverstein, chairman of Silverstein Properties and developer of the new World Trade Center in New York City, co-hosted the event. “Our experience here at the World Trade Center showed us how important it is for government to work hand in hand with the private sector on large infrastructure projects. We can’t do them alone; we have to work together,” he says. “Our country’s transportation infrastructure is the lifeblood of our economy and society.”
The event was organized by Penn State Smeal’s Institute for Real Estate Studies (IRES), a privately sponsored research institute within the University.
MBA Students Provide Insights for Global Water Projects – OSU Fisher News
Three teams of students in OSU Fisher‘s Global Applied Projects program partnered with OSU’s Global Water Institute (GWI) and Global One Health Initiative (GOHi) to help create strategies for clean water initiatives in Kenya and Tanzania. Using a franchise model, the student teams analyzed the ways in which the clean water solutions could be profitable.
Ohio State Fisher students, working with OSU’s Global Water Institute (GWI) and Global One Health Initiative (GOHi) / Photo via fisher.osu.edu
Erin Collin, a second-year MBA student and graduate assistant at the GWI says, “Our goal was to help address these issues by developing a franchise offering that could be used to specifically address the challenges outlined above by adding more structure, resources and accountability.”
The students’ input will remain valuable as the GWI develops strategies for franchising, along with partnerships with local East African governments and universities, the World Bank, and clean water advocacy organization WaterAid. The teams who worked with the Global One Health Initiative had the goal of developing clean water infrastructure in Ethiopia. Students traveled to the region to connect with residents, conduct interviews, and visit sites.
“GAP was absolutely a highlight of my MBA experience because it provided me an opportunity to bring together so many of my passions: international development, public health, strategic and analytical thinking, teamwork and international travel,” says Courtney Clark, a second year MBA. “Writing our final report felt like the most meaningful thing I have done so far in the MBA program.” Read more on the GAP and its international partnerships here.
Dave Owens Named the Evans Family Executive Director of the Wond’ry – Owen GSM News
Vanderbilt University’s Owen Graduate School of Management has announced a new director for its innovation workspace, the Wond’ry.
David A. Owens is a Professor for the Practice of Management and Innovation at Owen, but his expertise stretches across disciplines. He is faculty director for the Vanderbilt Accelerator-Summer Business Institute, in addition to professor in the School of Engineering. Owens also holds appointments in the Peabody College of Education and Human Development as professor of the practice of teaching and learning, and the School of Medicine as an Associate Professor of Radiology and Radiological Sciences.
“My goal is to help students, faculty and staff to be more effective innovators by making it easier to find tools, mentors, expertise and insights on innovation practice and design research. We will also increase the Wond’ry’s connections to Vanderbilt’s research centers,” says Owens of his appointment.
Owens has lent his product development expertise to a diverse group of organizations such as NASA, Nissan, Wrigley’s, LEGO, and Gibson Music. He has also served as CEO of Griffin Technology and as a product developer for IDEO.
Questrom Dean & Brand Expert Presents At Management Science’s 65th Anniversary Conference – Questrom News
Boston University Questrom School of Business recently hosted academic journal Management Science’s 65th Anniversary Conference, where Dean Susan Fournier headlined with a presentation on brand management.
In her talk, entitled “Taking Brand Seriously in the Age of Risky Business,” Dean Fournier discussed the ways in which brands can survive in an increasingly competitive landscape. Using such examples as PepsiCo’s failed ad campaign featuring Kendall Jenner in a protest scene, Fournier made various points on the success and failure of companies’ branding efforts.
Dean Susan Fournier’s presentation, “Taking Brand Seriously in the Age of Risky Business,” looked at the risks in advertising, including Pepsi’s advertising debacle, featuring Kendall Jenner.
Fournier, along with her leadership at Questrom, is also founder, president, and chair of The Institute for Brands & Brand Relationships, an international non-profit which promotes brand research and publications on the topic.
For more on the Management Science event and on Dean Fournier, click here.