Kelley School of Business Indianapolis

2 Ears and 1 Mouth

Tuesday, February 21, 2012 by Nate Canada

Alexander the Great. Plato. Martin Luther King Jr. Mahatma Gandhi. Obi Wan Kenobi. Can you tell me what all these individuals have in common? A mentor.

As a young professional, I am constantly having a inner debate about what I actually want to do with my career. What am I really passionate about in business? Should I go back to the Kelley School and get a entrepreneurship MBA or a marketing degree? How is my graduate experience going to translate into future professional opportunities? Should I wear the blue or red tie?

While I'm sure I will always have some form of these debates, its good to know that we were given two ears and one mouth. What do I mean? Its quite simple and yet complex at the same time: you were meant to listen more than speak.

Listening and mentorship go hand in hand like, "peanut butter and ladies" says Ricky Bobby. Faculty insights, professional wisdom, and past experiences of a mentor can help answer those tough questions about where you wind up in the future. Human beings are social creatures, we were not made to go through life alone. Picking an mentor that is invested in your success can make all the difference in your personal and professional life.

For me, I tend to have different mentors for different areas of my life. Dave Ramsey and more recently, Pete the Planner, generally have a stronghold on how I behave financially. Kris Gethin, trainer and nutritional expert, controls my eating and exercising habits. Ed Foreman, Jim Rohn, and Napoleon Hill have a fairly tight grip on my mental health and well-being. While this approach works for me, maybe you know someone you respect personally and professional who you feel would be a great mentor. If you don't, make it a mission to find someone. As a matter of fact, I know several Kelley School of Business professors who would serve as excellent mentors.

Alexander the Great had Aristotle. Plato had Socrates. Gandhi had Dadabhai Naoroji. Obi Wan Kenobi had Yoda. Who have you sought out to help you get to where you want to be?

-Nate

@NCanadaWeTrust

@PetethePlanner

@KelleyIndy

Valentine Day Bond?

Friday, February 17, 2012 by Ken Carow

A chocolate company has found a solution to the lack of credit from the banks. They borrow money and pay interest in Chocolate. The company pays 7% interest in chocolate.

http://www.marketplace.org/topics/business/british-chocolate-maker-offers-sweet-deal

I enjoyed sharing this article with my Finance MBA class this last week.

Who knows what college choices lurk in the hearts of men?

Monday, February 13, 2012 by Kurt Supe

So you have the FAFSA submitted, college applications in the mail, and you’ve met with Indy College Funding; now what? If you haven’t already, it is probably a good time to start talking with your child about career choices. I can hear your replies now, “it’s too soon” or “give them a couple of semesters to feel it out” but choosing a future career field has weight for todays’ decisions.

Some schools are great for engineering, but not so great for teaching. A school like the University of Kentucky is good for everything from football to business; so deciding on the right school has a lot to do with what your plans are for after college. Although nothing has to be set in stone, it is good to start your student talking about what their interests are, and what kind of job might fit them for the long haul. Too many times I have seen students change majors, career plans, and schools at the drop of a hat; leading to huge financial burdens, slim job prospects, and angry parents.

Deciding on a major/career path now can save a lot of time and money. The right major can also save a lot of worry about finding a job after college. A recent study from Georgetown University gives some great insight on unemployment rates and wages for graduates in certain fields of study. I have written an article that dives a little deeper into the statistics here: http://indycollegefunding.org/employment-and-earnings Check it out and let me know what you think.

Ultimately your students’ future is just that, THEIR FUTURE. Help your child get on the right track but don’t push them into what you want. Just imagine pushing your tie-hating, outdoors loving child into pursuing an MBA instead of a degree in Natural Resource Management, only to have them quit the business world in the first year and work at a National Park. That might be an extreme example, but you get the point. Encourage your student to go after what they love, but be sure you provide them with all the information and opportunities you have at your disposal.

Thanks for reading!

Kurt

Kurt Supe offers securities and advisory services through cfd Investments, Inc. and Creative Financial Designs, Inc, respectively. Member FINRA/SIPC. Indy College Funding is not affiliated with the cfd companies.

The Creative Process

Friday, February 10, 2012 by Kyle Anderson

Edward De Bono is a business management consultant whose primary focus is in fostering creativity in businesses and indivduals. To anyone interested in creative thinking (and everyone should be), I would highly recommend both "Lateral Thinking" and "Six Thinking Hats" as seminal works on purposefully creative thinking.

De Bono would appreciate the transformation going on in the Kelley Evening MBA program. In order to foster creativity, one of the techniques that he suggests is to examine a process, but purposefully omit a key part of it. That is, as a thought experiment, he would we look at the educational process and ask, "How could we have college courses without textbooks?" Then you would spend time coming up with alternative ways to accomplish the educational mission without something that is considered central to the current process. This creative pursuit may lead to a better and more creative way of teaching.

While we are not abolishing textbooks, the MBA program has begun a transformation of its core classes by reducing the number of classroom hours in half. A 1.5 credit hour course meets only 4 nights over an 8 week period. As a professor of these courses, I have had to make some major adjustments to how I teach.

For the last six months, I have asked myself, "Why do I teach in this way?" and "Why do students need to be in the same room with me to learn this material?" This self-reflection and analysis has led to an adjustment in every part of the curriculum of my courses. I now rely on videos, podcasts, and exercises to engage my students much more strongly outside of class. While the number of hours we meet has decreased, the content and learning have remained strong.

Creativity doesn't just come from sitting around and trying to think up great ideas. Rather, there is a process, and one technique is to restrict what we already do. By restricting one aspect of my class (the number of times we meet), I have been forced to creatively come up with a different way of teaching.

And it is one that I believe will improve the educational experience of our Kelley Indianapolis MBAs. When all of the faculty have gone through this process, we will have dramatically improved the overall curriculum of one of the top part-time MBA programs in the country.

De Bono would have predicted it.

Super Bowl XLVI Economics

Thursday, February 9, 2012 by Kyle Anderson

Was the Indianapolis Super Bowl an economic success for the city? This question seems to be asked a lot these days, and the opinions are all over the place. My answer is a qualified "Yes".

Estimates will vary, but the overall impact is on the order of $100-$150 million to the area. Of course, some of that has already left town in the form of profits to the NFL and profits to the hotel owners and other businesses that do not reside in central Indiana. But that which remains will still exceed the costs of putting on the game.

The issue that makes the economics look worse is when you factor in the cost of Lucas Oil Stadium. While building the stadium did not ensure that Indy would get a Super Bowl, we surely would not have gotten it without a new stadium. Taxpayers funded about $600 million of the construction costs of Lucas Oil, and the financing means we will be paying for it for years to come. The economic benefits of hosting a Super Bowl certainly do not exceed this amount.

However, at this point (and when the Super Bowl was awarded) that was a sunk cost, one the citizens of Indianapolis could not recoup regardless of whether the game came to town. So the Super Bowl is economically beneficial to Indianapolis. Whether having an NFL franchise here is economically beneficial is an open question.

Personally, I would love to see the Super Bowl come back in the next 6-10 years. We've already built the stadium, the J.W. Marriott, Georgia Street, etc. Might as well get as much return on those investments as we can.

Choosy parents choose...

Monday, February 6, 2012 by Kurt Supe

When it comes to college there are a lot of choices. Determining which school is the best choice for your student (or yourself) can be a daunting task. I wanted to give you some quick tips on choosing a college, and then if you can stand anymore, I have included a link to an article I wrote that goes a little more in-depth.

Find a college you can afford: It’s a wonderful thing to have a student accepted to a school like Penn State, or NYU, but can you cover the costs? One of the issues I see most is families straining financially to get their student started at a school that is out of their range of affordability, only to find out at the end of the first year that the money isn’t there to go back the next. This is a huge issue, one of the leading causes of students not returning to school is financial troubles.

Don’t go just for the party: IU may have been the #1 party school in the nation in the past, and if that is your student’s focus, they may be moving back in with you sooner than you like.

Choose a school around your student: Ultimately your child is going to be the one attending the school. Find a school that suits their needs. If they do well in small settings, look for a school that fits that description. Some students do better with larger settings and more independent work time. Make sure you are sending your child to a school environment that is setup to work for them.

Those are a few quick tips; here is a link to another article I wrote on choosing the right college. http://indycollegefunding.org/foursteps

As always if you need help determining your best strategy to pay for college get in contact with us here at www.Indycollegefunding.org

Thanks for reading!

Kurt

Energy and Excitement

Monday, February 6, 2012 by Kelley Indianapolis

Submitted by Kelley Indianapolis' Melissa Seibert, 2007 Marketing and HR Alumna.
If you would like to share your Super Bowl Experience please take a moment and fill out our simple form.

While I am a volunteer for Super Bowl XLVI, I also want to experience the excitement as a guest. So, since last Friday, I've taken in Super Bowl Village twice and the NFL Experience.

In my first view of Super Bowl Village, I struggled to express all the emotions I was feeling. I'm a life-long Hoosier and a thirty-year resident of Indianapolis. I was and am so proud of my city and state and the way we have transformed into a true Super Bowl city.

The energy downtown is palpable. Everyone is smiling, having a good time, and who cares about the crowds and weather? Doesn't matter because our Hoosier hospitality is addictive and spreads fast.

Attached are a couple of pictures. I'm the one on the left in front of the NFL logo, a 2007 Kelley graduate. I was hanging with my sister, niece and friend.

The other picture is the JW Marriott. No matter how many times I see this image on the building, I smile, and want to take pictures. This really could remain a permanent display, in my opinion.

Have a "super" day!

Stressing the Fundamentals

Friday, February 3, 2012 by Nate Canada

While I wish I had an attention grabbing, thought provoking, and mind blowing first sentence to my introductory blog career, I am ashamed to admit that I am suffering from something quite common in my department: stress.

First, allow me to introduce myself. My name is Nate Canada and I am the latest of bloggers for the Kelley School of Business Indianapolis. I graduated from the Kelley School with a Human Resources Management Degree and will most likely be pursuing an Entrepreneurship MBA in the future. I'm quite excited to interact with you, my reader, in the upcoming months of blog posts by yours truly.

A little bit more about myself, I am currently the youngest member of the Compliance and Ethics department of a local, Hoosier owned and operated corporation. While I realize this has nothing to do with my degree in Human Resources, I've come to understand that great personal and professional insight can be gleaned from any and all work experience in business.

One such experience relates to my earlier problem of stress. Anytime a company espouses and emphasizes ethics in the workplace, stress is bound to be nearby. The right way is not always the easiest and every person can relate to that truth. To make my job a little bit more difficult, I am a detail-oriented, perfectionist who struggles with beating myself up mentally when I make any sort of error.

Thankfully, I've been blessed to have picked up a few tips on dealing with stress from someone much wiser than myself: my boss. (In unrelated news, I am hoping to get a raise soon.) Seeing as we all deal with stress on a daily basis in some way or another, I thought I would share three suggestions that our team uses to deal with stress.

Prioritization - Each morning, our team huddles up and explains the top three tasks we will be working on for the day. I've found this to be incredibly helpful, especially when unexpected work gets piled on. Keeping your focus on the big picture makes filling in the details much easier.
Exercise - Nothing helps me blow off steam like an intense workout at the gym. I know this may seem cliche or even unexpected from a business related blog but I consider all areas of my life to be business related. The company I work for emphasizes the idea that an employee should work harder on yourself than you do on your job. I would agree wholeheartedly that we become better employees as we become better people. My work team shares insight on diet, nutrition, and makes sure each team member does not have any photos displaying our physique. Feeling the strain at work? Hit the gym.
"The Little Things" - One of the favorite movies among my co-workers is Zombieland, which reminds us about, "Rule 32: Enjoy the little things." One of these "little things" that our work team uses to relax is basketball. Several of us have mini-basketball hoops from Dave and Busters that are often used after an intense phone call, an unexpected email, or worrisome letter. I can't tell you how good it feels pull off a 360 slam dunk after a rough day at the office.

While I'm sure stress will always be a part of life, hopefully these tips and helpful reminders on dealing with the strain can be of use in both the personal and professional arenas of life.

Do you have any ways to keep stress at bay during the work day or at home? Feel free to share what works for you!

If you'd like to keep up with me outside of my blog posts, I can be followed at NCanadaWeTrust on Twitter. [Warning:Topics range from how great Kelley Indianapolis is to how much I despise Katherine Heigl films.] I am incredibly excited about this blogging journey and hope you'll stick around to see where it leads.

-Nate

Kelley Classes Continue Through Super Bowl

Thursday, February 2, 2012 by Ken Carow

The excitement of the Super Bowl is great and I am looking forward to joining the crowds downtown.

I have been impressed with the many ways that faculty have planned classes to overcome the difficulty of traffic and ensure the continuation of student learning.

During the Super Bowl classes in the Kelley School are not being held on Friday (Feb 3) and classes will not be held on Monday from 7 am to 4:30 pm. Faculty were still allowed to have classes on Monday evening. Similarly on Thursday evening. However, many faculty are using the Super Bowl as a test for our continuity plan. Our continuity plan considers how to continue even if campus would need to close.

Several faculty are using Adobe Connect (Breeze). This is a software program where I can have students join me in a virtual setting online. Students can view exactly what is on the faculty members computer or the faculty member themselves, much like Skype or Go-to-Meeting. Students can use a chat room to ask questions of the faculty member. Or in a smaller class setting, the faculty member has the option to turn the microphone over to the student to interact through a video dialogue.

Other faculty members have used Presenter, which permits a faculty member to record their voice and overlay it with a video of the PowerPoint presentation that they have on their computer. This allows a video production of a lecture to be presented. I like the use of Camtasia for my class. With Camtasia, I can record anything on the computer screen. So it allows me to record information that I might review not only from PowerPoint, but also from Excel and the internet. As a finance professor, I find Excel is a great tool for analyzing data and the internet has loads of financial data that can be used in the Finance MBA classes or the Finance Undergraduate classes I teach.

Another faculty member is requiring students to watch the movie Beer Wars. It is a 120 minute movie about the beer industry and the competition in the industry. The following class period, students will discuss the different strategies of the competitors and use the movie as the foundation for a case.

Other faculty have included readings for the day and assignments or group projects that can be done outside of the classroom.

The ingenuity of faculty to continue despite a campus shutdown and the technology available today is fantastic. It makes me proud to be part of the Kelley School of Business where our faculty have the confidence and expertise to teach in multiple contexts.

Enjoy the Super Bowl!

So, Does Marketing = Advertising?

Monday, January 30, 2012 by Kim Saxton

One of the key ideas I share in my marketing MBA and undergrad courses is that marketing is much broader than advertising. Yes, we use a lot of examples of advertising to help key concepts come alive. And yes, there are a lot of marketers who basically spend their days creating advertising or marketing communications of some sort. And, probably if you ask a bunch of salespeople what marketers do, they’d say, “create ads.” But, I do like to stress that “Promotions” is just one of the aspects of marketing.

Okay, I realize that some people will disagree with me right from the start when I tell students there are 4Ps in Marketing – Promotions, Product, Price and Place (Distribution). Of course, I also tell them (although I might not repeat it enough to really stick) that not everyone agrees about the 4Ps. Actually, what I say is that one way to think about Marketing is via the 4Ps. We can argue whether there are 4, 5, 6, 7 or an infinite number of Ps. But, really what I want them to realize is that there are multiple dimensions to marketing that should work together to accomplish a brand’s positioning and market goals. I suspect they kind of feel beat over the head with this idea based on an email I received last week:

I was reading this article this morning and noticed that a PROFESSOR at George Washington said the goal of marketing is to create some sort of buzz, create memorable campaigns, something edgy. But I associated these comments more with advertising than marketing. I know advertising is a part of marketing, but I thought it was interesting that the quote sounded like she was substituting advertising for marketing.
http://news.yahoo.com/nd-tourism-director-ad-wasnt-meant-racy-000559311.html

Right away, I was proud of this student for asking a great question. But being curious like I am, I went ahead and clicked the link to see what had caused this brouhaha for a Kelley student. That’s when a bolt of lightning struck me – in some markets, maybe the domain of marketing is mostly that promotions “P”. The quote above was about a campaign for tourism to North Dakota that was quite controversial. Well, let’s put on our North Dakota Tourism Marketer’s hat: you have no control over Product (ND either has fun places to visit or not, you don’t create fun places), or Price (individual locations set their prices), and very little over Place (actually, New Zealand has done an awesome job of helping people buy their NZ destinations online). So, what the marketer really controls is how it is promoted. To this marketer, it is possible that marketing=advertising.

I contrast to one of our Kelley supporters up the road in Carmel, IN – Delta Faucet (click if you want to check them out). The marketing group at Delta Faucet not only recognizes the importance of all 4Ps, but product development and R&D report into the marketing function. Great, innovative products are a key component of their brand strategy. So, it makes sense that product development should be tightly aligned with the rest of the marketing team.

So, I guess my new advice to our students seeking marketing degrees is to understand what the real domain of marketing should be in your product category. If it really is primarily advertising, then do it really, really well. But, if there is any way to see marketing more broadly, try to manage that too. So, what’s the domain of marketing in your product/service category?

Kelley grads launch new business in Indy - Crossfit Naptown

Friday, January 27, 2012 by Kim Saxton

One of the best parts about being a Kelley professor happens when your students reach out to tell you about the cool, new things they are doing. In the last few weeks, I have been lucky enough to re-connect with several of our grads.

But today, I want to share the story of Peter Brasovan and Jared Byczko, two friends who graduated from Kelley with their undergraduate business degrees a couple of years ago. Peter was a student in two of my undergraduate marketing classes. After graduation, he traveled the US doing event marketing for Sony Playstation. A couple of years of daily and weekly travel later, he settled in Chicago and worked in marketing for the Chicago WhiteSox. What a great way to put his marketing degree to good use. But, what's a young professional to do in a big city when he isn't incredibly busy with his marketing job? Peter's answer - take up Crossfit.

Now for those of you not familiar with Crossfit, it's the principal strength and conditioning program for many police academies and tactical operations teams, military special operations units, champion martial artists, and hundreds of other elite and professional athletes worldwide. CrossFit is a core strength and conditioning program. It's designed to elicit as broad an individual adaptational response as possible. CrossFit is not a specialized fitness program but a deliberate attempt to optimize physical competence in each person over ten recognized fitness domains:

Cardiovascular and Respiratory endurance
Stamina
Strength
Flexibility
Power
Speed
Coordination
Agility
Balance
Accuracy

Bottomline, Crossfit is a hard-charging, get your body in peak shape kind of workout. I don't know about you, but I am sure my body could stand some improvement. Of course, the key to being successful to these kinds of hard workouts is having a coach who teaches you proper technique and helps keep you from doing too much, too fast. As experienced Crossfitters and certified coaches, Peter and Jared are prepared to do just that.

For my part, it's great to see our grads taking charge of their destinies and committing themselves to something they feel passionate about. So, check out Crossfit Naptown and say "hi" to a couple of our Kelley grads. http://www.crossfitnaptown.com/

Oh yeah, here's Peter showing off what Crossfit has done for him!

Watch Peter with fellow Kelley alumnus and business partner Jared Byczko discuss running their own business.

Climb the Smallest Mountain 1000 Times…

Thursday, January 26, 2012 by Kelley Indianapolis

From Kelley Indianapolis' Marc Lane, JD/MBA student

As the turn of the year presents me with new resolutions, career ambitions, and life challenges, I look ahead to the mountainous range of lofty ambitions I’ve set with promise, vigor, and even a bit of reserved apprehension. My journey these first few weeks begins, as past year’s journeys have, seemingly productive and positive, with the freshness of youthful purpose. But, each step towards a mountain presents a new perspective, a closer look; each goal becomes a bit more daunting and the mountain a bit taller. I’ve faced this realization in the past, and have come to know it well. Each year, its passion meets with demoralizing demise where reachable hill tops have become the Himalayan Summit.

While this illustration might seem embellished, I ask you to consider carefully the expectations and goals you’ve set for yourself, your significant others, and those within your reach at work. Personally, I’ve gained much through carefully considering my own abilities and managing expectations. However, I do not wish to quell the human spirit, to tread on the dreams of those passionate enough to challenge the mountains, the lofty goals we dream of achieving. My goal is only to provide an alternative perspective.

In my youth, my career goals often emulated the depiction presented above. Through experience I’ve gained a great appreciation for the value of meeting small goals, and an understanding that lofty ambitions always require a thousand steps in between departure and reaching the summit. Why do we so often overlook the small successes we achieve? These successes are like footholds in the mountainside; they are the foundations upon which we stand to take the next step towards the peak, towards our ultimate ends. Without recognizing and appreciating these small gains and the realization of progress in the midst of various struggles and minor defeats we lose perspective of where we’ve come from. We focus only on the distance between our current position and the lofty goals we’ve set. And, in time the negatives begin to weigh upon us; breaking us down.

Whether your goal is to become a CEO, president, the top sales person on your team, a better husband/wife, a better father/mother, a better friend, or even a better you, this practice remains equally invaluable. Dismantle lofty goals into logical, rational and reachable stepping stones. Develop an understanding of why each step is important, and celebrate the successes of reaching smaller mountain tops. I promise, you’ll come to find the road less daunting and in the end you’ll look back upon your journey with a greater appreciation for what you’ve accomplished.

Recommended reading: The Progress Principle; Leadership and Self-Deception; The Leadership Challenge; Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus.

...for lack of vision

Thursday, January 26, 2012 by Kurt Supe

The other night I walked into my kitchen and hadn’t turned on the lights yet. I ended up tripping on some toys my kids left on the floor and it reminded me of setting goals in my life. You might be asking what tripping on my way to the fridge has to do with goals (and I’m about to explain).

Walking through life without goals is like walking with the lights off. You may have an idea of where you’re going, but you can’t really see how to get there. When you set your focus on where you want to go, it is like the lights coming on. Setting goals helps you navigate around the obstacles standing in the way of you and your future.

When I was a kid, I loved to play football. Like most aspiring football stars, I had a dream to play in the NFL (we will call that a long-term goal). To reach that ultimate dream, I had to start by setting and filling some short-term goals. I made all my practices on time; I spent extra time in the gym so I could be in the best possible shape. I also set a goal to study hard so I could get into a good college to maximize my exposure to NFL scouts. By the time I graduated high school I had met or exceeded all of those goals and I ended up being accepted to the University of Kentucky with a scholarship to play football.

As my college years passed, I realized my dream of playing in the NFL might not be a goal I could realize. Circumstance and chance happen to us all, but whenever one dream fades another one is usually right behind it. I graduated from UK and went on to become a successful financial advisor, but behind all of that was a dream to help others. In 2005 I set a goal to make a not-for-profit company to help people find their best strategy to pay for college by 2006 that goal was fulfilled with the creation of Indy College Funding. But the buck didn’t stop there. To best serve people, I had to have the most knowledge, so I set out to become a Certified College Planning Specialist (CCPS) and achieved that in 2007. I became a CPA in 2011 and Lord willing I’ll complete my Master’s Degree in Accounting at the Kelly School of Business in 2012.

This is a long way of telling you the importance of setting goals. Every goal I achieve has another one tied to the tail end. In life I have found you never really arrive, you just keep moving ahead. This statement is true for college planning as well. Begin by setting some goals early. What does you student want to do for a career? What schools are best suited to the degree your student wants? How are you going to pay for it? Answering these questions will give you a good idea of what direction to go. Some students want a small liberal arts college, some want Harvard, and some are still up in the air, but if you begin today with tomorrow’s end in mind your chances of success will greatly increase.

Here are some quick pointers for setting goals in all areas of life:

· Take some time to find out what you want to accomplish

· Set a timeline for reaching that ultimate goal

· Set some smaller goals in the middle so you can see your progression

· Review your goals often (this helps keep you focused)

· Don’t get discouraged and stay flexible (Sometimes our desires change and so should our goals)

· Read about people who set/accomplished their goals (Inspiration)

Thanks for reading,

Kurt

www.indycollegefunding.org

although not affiliated with Indy College Funding, Kurt Supe offers securities and advisory services through cfd Investments, Inc. and Creative Financial Designs, Inc, respectively. Member FINRA/SIPC

The last semester is easier the second time.

Wednesday, January 25, 2012 by Jason Shaw

When I started the Kelley MBA program two and a half years ago, I wanted to make sure that I didn’t repeat the same mistakes I made when I graduated from undergraduate school when it was almost impossible for me to find a job. As I enter into my final semester as an MBA student, I find myself in a much better position than I was when I was entering my final semester as an undergrad. For starters, I actually have a job, but even more important, I used the experience that I gained from all those failed interviews to structure my MBA experience. While the degree is essential, it is important to have substance to bring with it, which is something that I lacked as a new college graduate. All of the internships, volunteer experience, and extracurricular activities that I had during my undergraduate career gave me the opportunity to interview, but I didn’t have what it took to close the deal. I was more focused on adding to the list of things I have done, than taking the time to really think about and express what those experiences taught me and how they can relate to the job market.

While this was a tough lesson to learn at the time, it was something that stayed in my mind even after I found a job. That is why, throughout my time in the MBA program, I have continually asked myself “what can I talk about in a job interview?” Potential employers are going to look at my resume and see an MBA from the Kelley School of Business, one of the best business schools in the country, and be impressed enough to take the time to interview me. However, what am I going to say in the interview that will give me an upper hand? What can I say about my time at Kelley that will close the deal? An interviewer is not going to want to hear about what specifically I learned in class, or the formulas that I have memorized, they are going to want to hear about my experiences and, more importantly, how I can apply these to the job. Simply following the class schedule required to get the MBA credential and completing the degree as quickly as possible really wasn’t going to provide me with the story I want to tell. Instead I looked for opportunities to give me something I could talk about…”interview fodder”, if you will.

For instance, I took the opportunity to participate in DIVE, the entrepreneurship enterprise. DIVE was a valuable learning experience, and the type of “outside of the classroom” learning I was looking for. In addition, my DIVE project is a perfect example of something I did in business school that would be interesting to talk about in a job interview, something that a potential employer would like to hear about. The same can be said about why I joined the Student Advisory Board (formerly the Evening MBA Association). Not only do these things add to the list, but they will be what will lead my conversation about getting an MBA.

The Kelley School of Business provides countless opportunities to enhance a students experience in the program, from the enterprises, to overseas study opportunities, to mentoring and facilitation sessions. It is important to take advantage of these and begin to create interesting stories to tell in a job interview. Simply following the schedule to get the degree will only provide a credential that opens a door; it is the experiences you create and can relate that will give you the ability to land the job.

Profit with Honor

Tuesday, January 24, 2012 by Jaime Nieto

Hello Kelleygues!

Happy 2012! I cannot believe that we are already well into the second year of the decade, I remember when the year 2000 was coming (does this denote my age??) and the whole world was preparing for a catastrophe with computers turning to the beginning of the 20th century and some people believing it was the end of the world. This year is a bit similar, the end of the Mayan calendar is coming this December and, of course many people are trying to profit out of this event.

Hollywood is making movies, people are writing books, the Mexican tourism association is expecting circa 50 million visitors to the Mayan ruins and I am sure many people are doing many things as they may think the end is coming....

If you ask me, this is purely a marketing campaign in order to scare people and make money out of it.... See when we humans are afraid of changes or afraid of whatever, this fear creates anxiety and anxiety makes us do things we do not necessarily want, and fear also has some type of control over us......and companies know this!

Anyway, the point of this is that the business world is very complex and companies will, sometimes, do things to try to make a profit. As a Kelley student you must remember that ethics are utterly important- we have seen the massive impact of the many unethical behaviours with the mortgage industry and the massive impact it has had in most of the world. Thus, always be aware of your actions as you enter the corporate world and don't let the bottom line drive what you do.

A good read is "Profit with Honor."

On a business trip in Hawaii at the moment, cant think of a better place! More updates soon. All the best on the new semester!

Jaime

DIVE-ing in with the Indy venture community

Monday, January 23, 2012 by Todd Saxton

This is always one of my favorite times in the semester—when the DIVE project teams meet with their ventures to kick off projects. What is DIVE? DIVE is an acronym for the Discovery, Innovation, and Ventures Enterprise. It is made up of students in our Evening MBA program with an interest in venturing in some way —which might include starting their own company, joining a high-growth venture, or working with investors and entrepreneurs as a service provider (e.g., attorney, banking, consulting, etc.). The Evening MBA program of the IU Kelley School also has enterprises in supply chain management (gSCIE) and finance (FIND). The enterprises are key components of our graduate experience. Projects typically run from January through May/June.

As Director of DIVE (though I prefer “DIVE Master”) I accept about 20 folks each year who have gotten through most of the core classes—strategy, accounting, finance, economics, marketing, and operations—and are prepared to lend their expertise and training to a venture. DIVErs get real-world exposure to venture challenges such as funding, market focus, and operations with lean resources. It is a big step from the classroom to the venture world. Through the DIVE experience, these folks learn a lot more about the world of venturing, and if they really want to join that world! Of course, our DIVErs are the best of our top MBA students—which is saying a lot. DIVE is also a key differentiator in our entrepreneurship program.

What do the ventures get out of it? Well, these founders typically have limited managerial “bench strength” and face a variety of barriers to launch and/or growth. Our DIVE students not only have strong training in core functional areas, but also great experience in industry—including current active connections and a network. That is one advantage of the Kelley School locating its Evening MBA program in Indy—great access to the business and venture community and associated network.

We have connected with DeveloperTown this year for a number of DIVE projects. DeveloperTown (DT) is a really cool IT and software development company based in Broad Ripple. By partnering with clients, often young high potential start-ups, DT helps develop a robust technology infrastructure necessary for growth—but takes an equity position so it doesn’t cost an arm and a leg. DT also has a unique and really interesting structure. Each Developer has his or her own “house” in DeveloperTown to decorate and call home. When projects require collaboration, the developers can literally roll their houses together. Of course, having our DIVErs work with serial entrepreneurs like Michael Cloran and John Wechsler (partners at DT) is a big bonus.

As usual, we have a great range of projects and ventures to work with this year. We have some pre-revenue true start-ups like:

Musical DNA, who is developing a new approach combining 3D graphics and gaming elements for music education
uFlavor, a customized beverage company
TransitionU, a venture helping students bridge the transition from high school to college successfully
FAST Biotech, taking a revolutionary technology for assessing kidney function real-time to market.

Other projects will involve helping high growth ventures figure out new markets and opportunities—such as Triton Brewing, a craft brewery with strong momentum, and Courseload, a venture working with universities on eTexts to help lower the exorbitant costs of college textbooks and take advantage of enhanced interaction through technology as well.

Rounding out the mix is a social venture in the Dominican Republic called EcoBricks, for which the students will help develop a sustainable business model to transform waste into building materials.

In coming weeks I hope to share more about each of these projects—in the meantime, I love hearing about the cool things going on in our local venture community, and learning more about our DIVErs and how they plan to help these ventures. These companies will do great things, and we hope DIVE can play a part. So DIVErs down—and game on!

Igniting Recruiter Interest by Being Interesting

Monday, January 23, 2012 by Jesse Kilgore

Students looking for undergraduate business internships, one of the best bits of advice or recruiter memes is "If you want to be interesting, be interested."

Meaning that if you're really passionate about something you'll likely be learning more about it or be actively involved in it. This is HUGE for recruiters, passion really dazzles in an interview. The new trend in recruiting is hire for attitude, train for skills. Companies can hire endless amounts of average workers, they're really searching for interesting and talented people that are good at a lot of little things. So do your homework on the company you're contacting or interviewing with, odds are they have something about the culture of their company on their website. If you make an effort to be interested in them, they might reciprocate.

If that whole reciprocation thing doesn't happen make sure to not end the relationship on bad note, because that recruiter might be keeping you in consideration for a future position or might suggest you to another recruiter. Odds are that they'll say something about your background starting with experiental education, something that the Kelley School of Business Indianapolis excels at. A little tip that recruiters find thoughtful is to send a handwritten letter after the interview to thank them for the opportunity.

Kelley Indianapolis students have a unique opportunity to network with recruiters because all of the professors have strong ties in business the community, they know all the right people to connect with. Tip #2 is to chat with your professors and dare I say engage in class.

So remember "If you want to be interesting, be interested." Do your company culture/identity homework. Network your face off. Be confident in yourself and your abilities. Showoff your passions. Never stop learning. If you can manage to do all those things some sparks should fly in your internship search.

If any inspiration came from these little thoughts of mine...tell me via twitter @jckilgore.

Kodak Was a Snapshot in Time

Friday, January 20, 2012 by David Hosick

The news of Kodak going belly up this week came as a surprise and an affirmation.

At the Kelley School, students hear a lot about innovation. Top MBA students are consistently challenged to become the next great business minds, people willing to take educated risks and stand ready to capitalize on the rewards and opportunities they create.

The economist blogger Schumpeter has a great take on Kodak's fate. It really hit home with me as I regularly deal with students and faculty and their visions of the business world. Because Kelley embraces experiential education and is one of the most respected entrepreneurship programs in the nation, it makes complete sense that our programs should be talking about the points Schumpeter is trying to make here.

Shouldn't an industry giant like Kodak have been ahead of the curve and anticipated changing trends in the industry? Kelley certainly has been involved in the dialogue about changes ahead for accredited business schools today.

How can a business that set the standard be so unprepared to embrace change?

It really is a scary concept that such an massive company failed to reverse its fortune even when the future became so apparent in the 2000s.

Certainly tech companies have the highest burden to overcome when it comes to staying ahead of the curve, but the lesson here is really about boundary scanning by industry leaders. True leaders must continually innovate their company and be willing to fail to remain innovative. I have a lot of respect for leaders willing to take on those risks and effectively overcome them--especially in light of Schumpeter's final statement here: "Market dominance is only a snapshot in time."

Carpe Diem Boss!

Welcome Back...to me?

Friday, January 20, 2012 by Peter Brasovan

Hello again Kelley world! I do not know most of you, but if any of you have been following the Kelley Indianapolis Biz Blog since its origin then you might remember me. I was an undergrad student/athlete from 2003-2008 when the Kelley School of Business-Indianapolis started the Biz Blog. I have a Marketing Degree and Supply Chain Management Degree; I also played soccer at IUPUI. I have found my way back to Indianapolis via my career path and I have been asked to rejoin the Biz Blog team.

I am very excited to be a part of this team again. WOW, The Kelley School here in Indianapolis has grown tremendously in the few short years since I graduated.

I have had some pretty amazing jobs in my young career (Manager of event marketing tours for PlayStation, EA Sports, LG, and Sony). These jobs along with my passion for fitness have led me to becoming a business owner here in Indianapolis. Jared Byczko (another Kelley alum) and myself opened CrossFit NapTown back in October of 2011 at 609 N. Delaware St. Indianapolis, IN 46203. www.crossfitnaptown.com

I never truly thought I would become a business owner while sitting through all of my Marketing courses, but my various career choices led me in the direction of becoming an entrepreneur.

Over my next few weeks/post I will talk about the trials and tribulations that my business partner and I encountered while opening CrossFit NapTown and how the Kelley school prepared us for our endeavor. I can say with 100% honesty that we both felt very prepared for our venture due to our course structure as undergrads. We talked many times how our I-core project became real and how the steps we took during that semester in college become real over the course of 6-8 months while we prepared our new business.

As with any new business there have been a few speed bumps in our path, but for the most part our planning and preperation has paid off. Jared has a management background and I have a marketing background; when we combine our skill sets we have a pretty well oiled business machine.

Until next time stay warm and stay healthy.

Telling your story

Thursday, January 19, 2012 by Nehemie Gentillon

I have often found myself having the most exciting day. Then, as I said it out loud, I realized it wasn’t as interesting as I originally thought. I have come to the conclusion that I’m not the only one who has felt like that. I’ve noticed other people feel like they don’t have anything interesting to mention. I was talking to one of my best friends and asked her what she had been up to. She replied, “Oh nothing interesting, I guess. The usual.” Once I got her to give me a real answer I was wondering what her definition of boring was? I found what she had to say to be captivating because she was so fascinated with what she was talking about.

I wasn’t expecting her to say she spontaneously decided to sky dive, but if everyday was like an action movie it would be considered mundane to have the most exciting story to tell. What is wrong with the everyday things? If it were not for those days we wouldn’t enjoy those more “exciting” days. I guess it’s all about perspective. What might seem boring to you might be interesting to someone else. I think it is important to be able to tell your everyday life with excitement. I’m not saying to embellish because there are only so many ways you can make doing laundry sound exciting, but instead tell your story with confidence. If you have a good attitude about the “usual” it is amazing how refreshing it is for others to hear something from a positive outlook.

Do you ever wonder how are you presenting yourself to others? I think it is crucial to be able to tell your story in a captivating way for the listener. You should never downplay yourself or your accomplishments. I’m not saying to be egocentric, but instead define and deliver your unique message.