provided BOTH a spotlight presentation by Al-Gal-Co, a hydrogen power generation technology AND a keynote address by Dr. Kuratko of IU Bloomington’s Kelley School of Business.
Al-Gal-Co promises an alternative to gasoline powered vehicles with its aluminum and water technology that creates clean burning hydrogen fuel. Whether as a retro-fit to cars and trucks, or through mobile, military power generation; Kurt Koehler touted his company’s successes in its seven year development. The intriguing, zero carbon emission energy offers exciting potential with its recycled lifecycle materials model, flexible application from vehicles to electrical generation, and the possible international and domestic markets it could serve. While all innovative energy technology faces hurdles with user adoption, if the price comparisons continue favorably, Al-Gal-Co could stimulate Indiana’s green energy impact!
Dr. John Kuratko of the KSB treated the audience to a passionate talk on the entrepreneurial “Revolution to Evolution.” By using humorous points, personal perspectives, educational facts, and his inspirational delivery, “Dr. K” held the attention of the mix of venture capitalists, aspiring entrepreneurs, business leaders, and motivated students. Key take-aways included:
1) The view of a mindset shift from institutional to individual reliance: where the power of individuals has redirected corporations, institutions, and even the entire economy.
2) The entrepreneurial mindset includes a dynamic process of vision, change and creation that utilizes the leaders’ energy, passion, and implementation skills.
3) The strategic priority of innovation through a people focused approach to utilize the strengths of personnel to improve and transform institutions everywhere.
The final 1 minute video clip on was an appropriate and appreciated finish!
From Ginger Connin - Kelley MBA - Marketing - June 2014
We visited a company here in Bombay named Bloom Energy. This company provides alternative energy applications. By visiting this company, our group learned so much. First, it is a reminder of the power of relationships. The individual leading the unit in India was in college with Prof. Dhanaraj. Years later, this relationship continues to actually strengthen and is an example of the true value of networking - not to just have contacts, but to meet people who may be a good friend in the future. Second, as Kelley MBA students, we were able to speak to the up and coming leaders at this company. What started off as us explaining where we were at in our journey as a leader, some of the leaders at Bloom then shared their's. It was amazing! The level of interaction between the two groups, the same struggles our group has is also the SAME EXACT struggles by some of the Bloom leaders. It was a powerful reminder, regardless of what country we reside in, the leadership challenges with people to people and manager to direct report are consistent. From this event, I was able to witness truths from, The Leadership Challenge (Kouzes and Posner), that we are reading for our Leadership Development class. Information the authors use is gathered from around the world. This visit was truly amazing and brought together many aspects of the MBA training and the time to just spend with people facing the same struggles we do.
From Ginger Connin - Kelley MBA - Marketing - June 2014
Prof. Dhanaraj spoke at the prestigious IIM in Bangalore. While we are here, he is a visiting scholar with this school. The class consisted of ~300 Indian students. He reviewed a case that involved actions of Bayer and child labor in India. It was very interesting to hear the class debate the merits of cultural acceptance of age old practices versus the values of firms in the age of corporate social responsibility. The students were required to think through Prof. Dhanaraj's questions as the responded as they may someday face the same value questions the leader in Bayer experienced. It was worth the experience to see how the Indian students view themselves, their country's practices and to hear Prof. Dhanaraj challenge them to evaluate their future actions. Will they take the easy way others before them may have traveled, or will they make a difference, even if it is for only one person at a time? This question posed by Prof. Dhanaraj rings true, regardless of nationality. Truly a boundaryless statement.
From Ginger Connin - Kelley MBA - Marketing - June 2014
Today we visited 3 different Indian companies - Zimmer, Bharti Airtel and Maruti Suzuki. The executives within each of these companies were very kind and explained how they do business in India and stressed not to take cookie cutter approaches when trying to enter new markets. While they stress that aspect for India, it is a great reminder for all new ventures being considered. As Prof. Charles Dhanaraj continues to remind us, this experience begins to build a framework in our minds from which to hang new ideas, a framework that did not exist prior to embarking on this journey.
From John R. Busenbark - Kelley MBA - Finance - May 2013
Well, the Kelley MBA (Emerging Markets: India) group is finally preparing in the imminent minutes prior to departure on our 15 hour flight to Dehli, India! After a substantial amount of time spent in cultural, psychological, and intellectual preparation for our trip, corresponding meetings, and consulting appointments, I feel I’ve generally surmised the following events will occur on the trip: First, I’ll find myself in a luxurious 1940’s cocktail lounge in Hong Kong (don’t ask how I arrived here), where I’ll be engaging in a reconnaissance mission to oversee the lead singer (don’t ask how I attained this mission); next, I’ll be whisked away in frenzy, fleeing from Chinese mobsters, in a car driven by a young boy who endearingly refers to me as “Dr. Jones”; then, I’ll crash my return plane in the middle of the Indian jungle, where a group of local rural villagers will enlist my help to resolve a problem they’re facing with a deranged religious group in a local temple; finally, after arduous internal reflection and physical awesomeness, I’ll have saved all of the villagers’ children and brought justice upon the cult’s prince.
Ok, so maybe I’ve derived that depiction of how our time in India will be from a different source? We can’t be sure either way. What I do know, however, is that we’ll be having an adventure – visiting Bangalore, Dehli, and Bombay, consulting with key players in several large firms, and investigating the cultural landmarks of the nation.
In these final minutes before we leave, I’m spending the time trying to reconcile the preparation I’ve received with how I anticipate India to actually be. I’ve spent so much time psychologically preparing for cultural and climate shock, that I’m now getting concerned that I’ve placed an overbearing load on my mind. Further, as I gaze upon our future home for the next 15 hours (the Air India Dreamliner), I’m attempting to recall all of the economic and financial research I’ve done in preparation of discussions with executives, economists, and managers at Indian firms and governmental systems. While meeting with the movers-and-shakers of any institution places a mental burden on the foreign individual, meeting those from a society of such drastic and idiosyncratic change places additional stress on the facilities of those in a similar position.
All of this, however, is what makes the trip to India so attractive. While we can read as many books and articles from economists as scholars as we’d like, there is no printing mechanism quick enough to parallel the speed at which India is transforming. The only optimal method for us to understand an economy, society, and business ecosystem growing (or emerging) with this inertia is to actually go, explore, inquire, and discover through first-hand accounts. Although there is a sincere uncertainty about what we’ll experience and how interpret and react to information absorbed, this uncertainty is what creates so much excitement about India.
As we board the plane, all I can think about is the plethora of learning opportunities that awaits for us. We’ll keep you updated as we explore the terrain and landscape of both the physical land and the intangible societal climate. Even more, we’ll posit some thoughts on our findings over the next week and how they can be connected to what we’d expect from emerging markets and how there are disparities from what we’ve read.
In the words of the great Bart Scott…”CAN’T WAIT!”
It's been a rough couple weeks for the makers and marketers of Maker's Mark whiskey. They are faced with a somewhat enviable problem: demand for their product is exceeding supply. While this seems great for the company, it is actually quite a challenge. The primary reason is that Maker's Mark is aged for 6 years in barrels prior to being bottled. So they can (and have) expanded production, but it will take a number of years before they can reap the benefits of this increase. That is not a supply chain/economic forecasting job that I would like to have.
So, in a letter to its ambassadors (i.e. loyal customers), Maker's Mark announced that it would be reducing the alcohol level (by adding extra water) of the bourbon when it comes out of the barrel to increase the production capability. The response was overwhelmingly negative.
Managerial mistakes make great case studies for learning about business. Let's see what can we learn from this debacle:
Protect the Brand. Maker's Mark is a premium brand with a very loyal following. The only reason to change the product is if you can convince your customers that you are improving the core attributes of the product. And convincing your customers can be difficult. However, Maker's Mark didn't even try. Instead they merely said that the new product would "maintain the same taste profile." In other words, you'll barely taste the extra water.
Control the Message. Maker's seemed to have done a pretty good job in notifying its loyal customers first of the changes. But virtually every news article on the switch included the phrase "watered-down." Not surprisingly this was not well received. If you want to water down your whiskey, you need to explain that a lower alcohol level will allow customers to better taste the flavors of the drink. In other words, you better frame the change as beneficial to customers, not just the company's profits.
Listen to Your Customers. This is what Maker's did best. After 10 days, they came out and announced that they were just kidding, and would keep the whiskey the same. As a result, the damage to the company and brand is minimal.
As I said, while this was clearly a mistake on the part of Maker's Mark, being responsive and apologetic can make up for a lot of sins in failed marketing efforts.
Some (random Twitter users) have suggested that this was all a well-planned campaign/publicity stunt on behalf of Maker's Mark. I can almost see their point. After all, over the last week there has been an enormous outpouring of support for the Maker's Mark brand among its most loyal consumers. There have been many articles, google searches, social media hits, etc. about the brand. Below is the index of Google searches for the brand in the last 12 months. In other words, they have received tons of free publicity, and much of it is about their core problem: their product is so good that they can't make enough of it.
In fact, some foolish people probably went out and stocked up on Maker's Mark for fear of a shortage. (Note: OK, I was one of those fools that did this, and I don't even drink whiskey. However, I do host a great Kentucky Derby party every year and I don't want it diminished by serving watered-down whiskey - it's that kind of party.)
However, I'm skeptical that this was planned for two reasons. One, I'm generally skeptical about grand conspiracy theories. But more importantly, even if this has made the Maker's Mark brand stronger, it has certainly made management look foolish. And in my experience, manager's don't want to look foolish even if it strengthens the brand.
Please enjoy these insights responsibly.
(Thanks to MBA student Mallory Love and my friend, Paul Soderquist for their whiskey insights.)
A valuable graduate experience of the Kelley Evening MBA is to attend real business conferences and meetings that highlight the entrepreneurship program opportunities that exist between the business school and corporate partners. For instance, in the last week I attended both the Techpoint Innovation Conference, and the Venture Club November lunch.
On October 30, 2012, the Techpoint Innovation Summit was conducted in downtown Indianapolis at the Convention Center. By utilizing the large space as three distinct areas: expo booths, speaker theater, and lunch theater; an interconnected flow mixed with a separation of activities nicely. Exhibitors included a variety of players: from educational institutions, to young technology startups, and even major companies in the marketplace. Speaker highlights included a former Google executive, Frederick Vallaeys, who focused on 1) the corporate culture implications of how to manage for success, 2) continual innovation is better than trying for instant perfection, and 3) faster is better than slower. The "Rapid Fire Theater" offered new speakers every 10 minutes, which allowed for a diverse set of perspectives and information. The keynote speaker, Seth Godin, was a teleconference activity due to travel restrictions of the recent storm impacting him in New York. Yet, his topics were engaging as he gave his opinions on the implications of the internet as a form of social connection and contrasting it with other historical media developments. By focusing on the individulaization of business by taking risks and making art out of the ordinary products and services that exist, he attempted to inspire the attendees with reminders such as, "Don't race to the bottom, or you just may win!" He closed with a dozen questions that each business should be asking themselves as they strive to improve and innovate.
On November 1, 2012, the Venture Club keynote presentation was conducted by managing principals from Navidar Group, am investment banking firm that specializes in M&As and capital raises. The two Navidar speakers provided a large quantity information that was very specific to the venture and technology dominated crowd attending, as well as, offered quality insights from their unique perspective on the mergers and acquisitions market. By describing the drivers and inhibitors of the global M&A conditions, they effectively drove down through the North American, and even local situation within that market. While some may have found their fundamental information on private equity and venture capital preferences, it was helpful background to setup their next points. Specifically, their focus on software and technology seemed an appropriate topic for the lunch. Once again, some may have found the data on the best niches for those firms to be in a bit basic (mobile,SaS, online security, medical devices, Big Data, education technology), or the recap of past performances by the outperformers (Exact Target, Yelp, LinedIn) and underperformers (Facebook, Groupon, Angie's List) to be old news; yet, to many in attendance it was surely helpful as confirmation of their understanding. Some of the Q & A discussion was especially interesting as it pertained to the Indiana venture conditions compared with elsewhere when it came to performance success and ease of obtaining VC. Other impactful perspectives were provided on the significance of EBITDA's importance in these matters, and the value of presenting your company to VC's differently than you would to potential clients. Overall, this was the most informative discussion of the past few months at the Indiana Venture Club.
The November 1st Venture Club meeting at the newly opened Launch Fishers facility included a spotlight presentation by CheddarGetter. Their subscription management system for accepting recurring payments that focuses on smaller startups and SaaS companies was described by the founders with mixed results. While some of their established client and revenue references were encouraging, other aspects of the discussion were lacking.
Next month, I will be attending the social mixer event at the Governor's mansion with other venture community professionals...should be interesting, and I will let you know how it goes!
Most semesters I try to find a few guest speakers to share their hands-on insights with are marketing degree students. This semester, I invited Scott Wise (founder of Pots and Productions) to share his insights from starting a successful chain of restaurants including 6 Scotty’s Brewhouse locations, Scotty’s Lakehouse in Geist, Scotty’s Burger Joint in Columbus and Thr3e Wise Men in Broad Ripple, so far. I should point out that prior to this guest appearance, Scotty and I had only met via Twitter. In fact, I invited him to speak via Twitter. That’s one of the reasons I thought our marketing MBA students would appreciate his ideas – his success using social media to support his restaurants’ goals. And, let me tell you that we were not disappointed.
Over the course of two hours, Scott shared a lot of ideas about why his restaurants are successful. So, here’s a collection of his ideas:
Pay attention to the details. Find the right people to help implement your ideas. But, you still have to be the advocate of what you want done: how it should look, how it should taste, where it goes on the table, and all of the other details. Recently, he got an idea for a version of chicken & waffles. He told his food technologist what he wanted and they worked at it until they had exactly the dish he wanted – tastes and looks good, fits with the restuarant format and can be carried out by the kitchen. Personally, I can't wait to try it.
Experiment and test your ideas. Scotty’s uses temporary menus, email marketing and social media to try new food concepts and sales approaches. Then, watch the numbers to see what’s working and what’s not. Listen to customer feedback. Then, move forward with the winners. Added fish tacos a couple of years ago and then decided it was done. Took it off the menu, but customer requests will be bringing it back soon.
Look at what competitors are doing, especially in other markets, then figure out how to do something similar but better. Many, many ideas implemented at Scotty’s have come from other restaurant.
Don’t be afraid of failure. Try a bunch of ideas and keep the ones that work. Walk away from the ones that don't.
Measure everything. Use the data to help make choices. For example, past menus were set up to put high profit items in the right visual periphery and those items had the highest sales. Now, the menus have been more traditionally set up as lists with fewer pictures. Different items are selling better. Small changes can be detected in measures.
Know what you do well and stick with it. Scott knows the target market his restaurants serve. He has a strong sense of what they are looking for. This is basically a premium college burger format. Don’t try to be more upscale than that. Make sure you know what people want from this type of format and keep delivering it, better than others.
Internal marketing is key too. Each month, they plan what they want customers to buy. Then, they invest in making sure hostesses, servers and even the kitchen knows what each restaurant is trying to accomplish. They do “Four Walls Marketing” making sure that employees and customers can see current messages – on doors, via window clings, in restrooms, on the menu, and even on the flower vases in the center of the table. Employees following the plan are also incentivized and rewarded. It takes an integrated approach to accomplish their goals.
Give Back to the Community.Scott was told when he was young that when you are successful, you need to reach back and pull someone up with you. So, his organization does some type of community sponsorship every other month or so. These activities are a way to bring employees together, do something for someone else and feel good about the community where the restaurants are located.
Scott noted that in some ways he felt he was lucky to get into social media early. It just seemed interesting to him. But, it gave Scotty’s a way to keep promotions going during the recession when traditional advertising became unaffordable. He sees social media as a multifaceted channel:
Lets him talk to customers in a personalized way
Can convert customer complaints to customer advocates by immediate attention
Throw articles out that customer might enjoy
Share personal details about himself
Place to see the next big thing
Bottom-line though, Scott has created exactly the kind of restaurant he likes to go to. He looks at each restaurant through his customers’ eyes. He has an intuitive feel (that he backs up with data) for what people want from his restaurants. So far, it looks like it’s working, very well. Thanks for sharing with us, Scott.
From Kelley Indianapolis' Cassie Coble, Marketing - Class of 2013
As a Kelley student, it is only expected to excel beyond the average undergrad student. Before moving to Indianapolis to attend IUPUI, I was like most college students. I would go to class, work my part-time job, and go home. Going through the motions everyday wasn’t going to put me where I wanted to be professionally. I needed to take a step back and reevaluate my position.
Now you may ask yourself; where can I find the time? How do I meet people? Where do I begin to look? How can this benefit me?
Well, I am here to tell you from personal experience that getting involved can open many doors. Kelley School of Business has so many great opportunities. I recently had the opportunity to hear Sarah Harris, founder of Incite, a division of Emmis Communications, speak during my summer course with Professor Plaskoff. As she talked with our class she pointed out one thing that continues to stick out in my mind. She talked about how people are very willing to lend a hand and share their experiences. By getting involved you can meet other professionals in your field and determine the goals you want to achieve.
“Don’t let the business world be intimidating – we are all people and we are all working to accomplish something,” Ms. Harris told us. “Listen and observe what people are trying to do, find ways to help them.” I think about this a lot during our networking events at Kelley. From a student prospective, I think most of us do not think of people of power, such as professors or staff, to be people we could relate to. If you are not connecting with these people you are truly missing out. By being a volunteer in the community, on campus, or attending Kelley events you can build your professional network.
Not only can this help your social and professional circle but getting involved can also enhance your leadership and communication skills. I know that my involvement on campus and with Kelley will appeal to potential employers. This gives me a chance to stick out among the hundreds of graduates of the same major. The people I have met so far in the Young Alumni Council and Women’s MBA Alumni Advisory Board have already taught me a lot about different companies they represent and what they do. It is always fascinating to learn about other people’s experiences knowing that will be me in less than a year.
From Kelley Indianapolis' Wilfred (Wil) Myers, JD/MBA - Class of 2013
A Kelley MBA is the first step you may take to distinguish your professional career, but academic excellence is but one feather in your hat. Soon enough, you will be working in the field with other business-minded people; by positioning yourself as a high-potential, you can move past and lead your colleagues to tackle bigger problems and to create more value. Here are five ways to shape your competitive advantage:
Leverage the Kelley core curriculum to understand yourself. Consider yourself as a career entrepreneur even if you work for “the man”… Apply the administrative principles Kelley teaches you to apply in a business context to yourself… What is your personal vision? What are your core values? How do you demonstrate ethical leadership? What business are you in as a person? What is your personal brand? What is your target market?
Believe in yourself. You have a career, family, friends and many commitments. Kelley teaches you to balance all of those and provides you the strength to dig deeper as a graduate student. You have to be your own #1 advocate in life. To that end, you have to believe that you have the capabilities and hold the capacity to tackle bigger problems and to create more value at work. You have to believe that you are smart enough, but realize that this doesn’t mean that you know everything. You must have the ability and the curiosity to find answers to unresolved problems. Finally, you have to believe that you deserve the opportunities afforded to high-potential employees.
Create a network. Kelley develops your ability to communicate ideas both individually and in a group setting. Continue to meet people—colleagues, customers and even competitors—to understand the business landscape. High-potentials have the ability to pull the right resources together at the right time to execute a vision. Deepen your internal relationships to understand personal strengths and to know whom to call upon when you may need help.
Get in the game. Kelley drives you to demonstrate excellence. Move beyond just doing your job description; the organization will recognize and reward your contributions. Show initiative. Be visible. Listen to your peers. Solve their problems. Focus on top priorities of your boss, team, function and organization. Become indispensible.
Document, document, document. Develop a portfolio of your work product that documents business results or unique experiences. For each bullet point in your resume, have a document that may serve as a visual aid that you can use during an interview to help tell your value story. If needed, be sure to black out any company confidential information.
Following these recommendations will help you to shape your competitive advantage and position yourself as a high-potential in the marketplace with a Kelley MBA.
From Kelley Indianapolis' Cassie Coble, Marketing - Class of 2013
On Saturday, I had the opportunity to join fellow students and Kelley alumnae at the Personal Branding: Image Inside, Out workshop hosted by the Women’s MBA Alumni Advisory Board. It was great to be among women who were undergrads, Evening MBA students and alumnae all working toward the same goal.
The workshop attendees were all responsible for completing an online DiSC behavior assessment prior to Saturday’s workshop. This assessment measured individual behavior styles in addition to how we are perceived by others. At the workshop, the DiSC facilitators divided us in to groups based on our highest dimensions on the DiSC graph; (D)ominance, (I)nfluential, (S)teadiness and (C)onscientious. The groups were asked to come up with strengths, weaknesses, and tips for other groups on how to best communicate with each group. My group, the I's, was the influential group. We were by far the most energetic and talkative, which shows how much we love engaging in new relationships, but often have trouble getting tasks completed. On the other end of the DiSC graph were the C's, the conscientious group. They were very organized as they sat around a table diligently making a plan of underlined and bulleted points. This exercise really taught me a lot about myself and others. We all have different styles of interacting with our peers and colleagues. While it is important for an organization to have a combination of employees from the four DiSC categories, I think it would be just as important for the different personality types to better understand strengths and weaknesses of one another to be the most effective. For example, in my iCore group last semester, one person was good at PowerPoint and another was great with Excel spreadsheets. How I perceived this according to our DiSC assessment is PowerPoint represents creativity in I’s, and Excel represents the C’s attention to detail. We used this to our advantage by delegating tasks according to their strong point. By recognizing our individual strengths it helped our team grow.
Using our behavior styles, Certified Image Consultant and founder of ImageCube, LLC, Sola Adewolo presented to the group on how to take our “home base” behavioral patterns and use fashion to mold ourselves into how we want others to view us. As the extrovert who flies by the seat of my pants, I tend to dress the part of my personality style. Sola used the word “artisan” to describe my particular style. Most artisans strive to be flashy and different, which is me. However, I would like to be taken more seriously in the workplace. Sola’s suggestions to me were to tone my wardrobe down by wearing straight cut collars and more bold colors. Because I already have an energetic personality, I don’t need to express myself through loud textures and bright colors.
Sola shared with the group that her DiSC assessment categorized her as introverted and detail-oriented. By her presentation, I would have never guessed this. This just shows how it’s possible to adapt yourself based on different responsibilities and situations. She described this as emphasizing her style by using bright colors to make up for her domineering personality.
One of the most insightful things I learned at the workshop was the possibility for people to jump in and out of each dimension by the way you present yourself. It’s about turning the other side of you up. Successful people are continuously reevaluating their position; trying to minimize their weaknesses and maximize their strengths.
I attended a party with a coworker who works in the Career Planning Office. He stated that there are over 100 employment opportunities, both internships and permanent positions, that were yet unfilled. I was taken aback. I said, "None of those positions are in accounting, are they?" To which he smiled and said, "Oh, no. With the accounting students, all I had to do was sit back and watch."
Am I proud of the accounting students? You bet! The MSA and MST students hear it from the beginning at orientation—go to the Meet the Accounting Recruiter event. Meet with your professors. Stay involved. Why? Competition. With over 400 accounting students on this campus alone, you have to distinguish yourself. And how can you do that? Instead of staying in for a 5 year undergraduate degree, pursue your master degree in either accounting or taxation. You should be taking the courses that will help you not only pass the CPA exam, but also help you not only secure a job, but help you in your chosen career path.
The MSA and MST programs feature classes that are only offered at the graduate level. In addition, you will have some access to classes offered through the MBA program and the law school. Employers are becoming more discerning. Some recruiters will even review your transcripts, looking for specific classes.
Interested in tax? Both the MSA and the MST program offer classes in S-Corp Taxation, Partnership Taxation and fiduciary taxation. Is auditing a better fit? We offer classes in Corporate Financial Reporting and Financial Statement Analysis.
The job market seems to be improving. That means even more competition for coveted positions at prestigious firms. Now is the time to go the extra mile and get your graduate accounting degree!
After a 17 hour flight to South Africa, I was happy to get off of the plane. I smiled to myself. I was finally in South Africa. I took a deep breath and tried to take in all the around me. The weather was beautiful and so was the scenery. I would be joining my other 7 classmates and Professor Lyles for 10 days in the country of South Africa. After months of reading, discussing, and researching the country, I was finally there. I could not wait to experience all the country had to offer.
Before I give you my experiences in South Africa, please allow me to introduce why I'm here. My name is Yvonne Gilbert and I am a current Evening MBA at the Kelley School of Business. I have a concentration of Marketing and Supply Chain Management. This is my last semester at Kelley because I will be graduating in May. When I first started at Kelley I only knew that I wanted to hone my marketing skills. Since then I have gained so much valuable experience from Kelley through different enterprises and consulting projects. These experiences will make me more valuables as a potential job candidate and stand above other applicants. I currently have my sights set on international experience, which brings me to the reason for this blog.
In the spring, I started taking the Emerging Economy class taught by Professor Marjorie Lyles. This semester the class focuses on South Africa. As the name implies, the course focuses on the emerging economies around the world. Previous classes have focused on Russia and Brazil. The first half of the class consists of studying the emerging economy of a country. We read different books and articles, watch documentaries, and produce papers about the economy. To supplement our learning, we have different speakers to talk to us on different aspects of the emerging economy. The second half of the class consists of seeing the country first hand. We will be visiting various businesses and government offices in the country to see how they operate in the country. The culmination of the class is a group paper centered on a specific issue relevant to the country.
I chose to take this class for various reasons. Here are a few:
Companies are looking outside of the US for growth opportunities. Most of these opportunities come from emerging markets. Learning about different aspects of the emerging economy will allow you to be more marketable a potential employee.
Getting international experience. We are able to learn about and from several international companies in South Africa. Being able to ask these companies about their strategies in different countries is priceless.
Learning about different Cultures. I have traveled internationally before and I enjoy learning about other ways of doing things. You can always learn a thing or two from other people.
Getting to visit South Africa. It's a beautiful country. I jumped at the chance to visit it.
Now that we have gotten all the introductions of myself and the class out of the way, the next blog entry you will see from me will be about my experiences in South Africa. Until next time....
On Friday March 2nd, Kelley hosted its 66th Annual Business Conference in downtown Indy. I always look forward to attending this conference as it gives me a chance to take a deep breath and think about something more than what’s going on in my classes. But, this year I was especially excited given the theme of “Incite Innovation”. You know it’s going to be a great day when you start by hearing what John Kao and Ray Kurzweil are thinking (click on their names if you want to see what they are up to). And, they both had some very interesting and futuristic ideas to share. But as a marketer, I really enjoyed the luncheon talk by Don Knauss, Chairman of the Board and CEO of The Clorox Company. He shared several ideas that anyone working on their undergraduate marketing degree or marketing MBA needs to remember:
It’s not competition that will kill your business, it’s not paying attention to customers that will kill it. So many companies seem to focus on what others are doing instead of understanding what customers are doing. Customers’ needs change. If you don’t keep up with them, they’ll find their own alternatives and fire you.
In order to innovate, you have to start with what problem customers are trying to solve. Then, apply advanced technologies to help them solve that existing problem. My favorite example was how Clorox has improved Glad Bags. People want to send less plastic to landfills. But, trash bags that rip are a nightmare. So, Clorox borrowed collaborated with P&G to bring diaper technology to create a stretchy, thinner trash bag.
Be careful when you are trying to understand what customers want. Often, they aren’t great at figuring out what they really want or need. But, they are great at complaining. So, figure out what problems are causing them to complain. We used to call this Problem Detection research. It’s still a great idea for existing products and services. Sometimes now, we refer to this as focusing on the Customer Experience.
Let’s not forget the macroenvironmental trends. Since innovations are only good when people want to buy them, it helps to look forward at trends that might be impacting your customers. Clorox apparently looked at future trends and identified four that they think will affect their products: 1) Increasing concern for health and being healthy, 2) Making sure that what we are doing leads to a sustainable future, 3) Keeping products and services affordable (a nice way to say we are more price-sensitive), and 4) An increasingly multicultural US consumer. As they choose between innovations to move forward, they compare them to this set of trends and tweak their improvements or prioritize them against future potential.
Thanks, Don. It was great to be reminded about how to understand customers and innovate solutions to keep them happy and productive using our products. So marketers, let's create the innovations that add value and excite our customers to support our brands!
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?
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?
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.
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!
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."
I expected to use the skills I've acquired through four years of study in a new job. I hadn't expected these very skills to be so critical in the application process.
Three months ago, I applied for a job with Robert Bosch, LLC, the U.S. subsidiary of the German manufacturing giant. I first discovered the job on the Kelley Careers website, an incredible resource of job, internship, and interview postings open to all Kelley students. The job, very nearly my dream job, is a 24-month rotational finance development program called the Professional Development Program. Through four six-month rotations, the position allows the trainee to experience different functional roles in finance (cost accounting, product forecasting, internal auditing, etc.) while working in different regions and with different teams. I saw the job as an amazing opportunity to gain exposure to different functional roles before finding the optimal fit as well as a chance to see more of the country. With the resume and cover letter I'd created with help from the Career Placement office, I applied for the position. Like applying to a "reach" school, I had hope but little confidence.
A few weeks later, I was contacted by Bosch to set up an initial telephone interview. In addition to standard background questions, the interview was primarily behavioral-based. For those unfamiliar with the concept, behavioral-based interviewing seeks to understand the applicant by asking for examples from work and school of specific events and qualities. I had thought Kelley's insistence on practicing and role-playing answers to behavioral-based questions to be a tad excessive. I'm very glad that I was wrong. I answered maybe a half-dozen questions constructed as: "Tell me about a time that you did [something]" or "Tell me about a time you demonstrated [a quality]." The time spent in class practicing answers to questions very similar to this was immeasurably valuable.
A few days later, I was invited to complete the next phase of the interview process: a finance case study. This is truly where I appreciated my education at Kelley Indianapolis. In I-Core, the integrative core classes when students take Finance, Operations, and Marketing together, I completed what seemed, at the time, to be an endless series of financial case studies. I lived and breathed in Excel for months, and I resented it. Now, serving as the gatekeeper to my dream job, I found myself staring down a case very similar to those my team and I had completed in the introductory financial management class. Scenario testing and cash flow analysis, concepts I had never even heard of prior to college, were the basis of my deliverable. So much of what we do in higher-level courses at Kelley is case-based. Not only does it allow us to learn from the real world, the skills we gain are incredibly applicable.
I met with my financial management professor and shared what I'd prepared. He made suggestions and provided the kind of mentorship and faculty insights that I've come to value from my Kelley instructors. Then, I submitted the case and waited.
A few weeks later, I received word that I'd made it to the final round. Bosch would be flying me out to Farmington Hills, Michigan to interview and present my case. The PowerPoint presentation skills I'd developed in many of my Kelley classes would be a major factor in whether I was able to attain the job I so dearly wanted.
The flexibility of my professors was invaluable in making preparations to fly to Michigan. Falling as it did the week before exams, the interview conflicted with a number of assignments and presentations in my courses. With enough notice and flexibility, however, all of my instructors were willing to work with me to ensure that I could both complete my assignments and make it to Michigan. Without their support, I would never have been able to get the job.
My time in Farmington Hills is nearly a blur. I was impressed by the quality of the other applicants, both undergraduates and MBA candidates, but working with the bright and talented students at Kelley had prepared me and I did not feel overly intimidated. A series of interviews preceded the presentation of my case study. I believe it was my case study presentation which truly set me apart. Rather than focusing strictly on academic concerns, finance education at Kelley mixes theory and practical application. My ability to focus on pragmatic concerns was appealing to the working professionals evaluating my work.
The final aspect of the interview process was a smaller case study, but built as a group assignment. Two other candidates and I had twenty-five minutes to read and present a mini-case. Five or six company representatives, in HR, finance, and other disciplines, watched and evaluated both how we worked together and what we ultimately presented. I've heard students complain that too many classes at Kelley Indianapolis involve group work. As I sat down with two strangers to read and present the finance case, I silently thanked every single one of my past group members for the experiences I'd had.
I returned to Indianapolis excited and hopeful, but set thoughts of Bosch aside as I entered final exams. A week later, I received the call. I'd gotten the job.
It's so easy to take for granted everything we learn through our years at Kelley Indianapolis. Attending one of the top 10 business schools is a privilege, but it's more than a sense of honor and accomplishment. The education I've received at Kelly has prepared me in ways I never realized for what I hope and expect to be a bright and exciting future.
provided BOTH a spotlight presentation by Al-Gal-Co, a hydrogen power generation technology AND a keynote address by Dr. Kuratko of IU Bloomington’s Kelley School of Business.
From John R. Busenbark - Kelley MBA - Finance - May 2013
So, in a letter to its ambassadors (i.e. loyal customers), Maker's Mark announced that it would be reducing the alcohol level (by adding extra water) of the bourbon when it comes out of the barrel to increase the production capability. The response was overwhelmingly negative. 
As a Kelley student, it is only expected to excel beyond the average undergrad student. Before moving to Indianapolis to attend IUPUI, I was like most college students. I would go to class, work my part-time job, and go home. Going through the motions everyday wasn’t going to put me where I wanted to be professionally. I needed to take a step back and reevaluate my position.
A Kelley MBA is the first step you may take to distinguish your professional career, but academic excellence is but one feather in your hat. Soon enough, you will be working in the field with other business-minded people; by positioning yourself as a high-potential, you can move past and lead your colleagues to tackle bigger problems and to create more value. Here are five ways to shape your competitive advantage:
On Saturday, I had the opportunity to join fellow students and Kelley alumnae at the Personal Branding: Image Inside, Out workshop hosted by the Women’s MBA Alumni Advisory Board. It was great to be among women who were undergrads, Evening MBA students and alumnae all working toward the same goal.
Using our behavior styles, Certified Image Consultant and founder of ImageCube, LLC, Sola Adewolo presented to the group on how to take our “home base” behavioral patterns and use fashion to mold ourselves into how we want others to view us. As the extrovert who flies by the seat of my pants, I tend to dress the part of my personality style. Sola used the word “artisan” to describe my particular style. Most artisans strive to be flashy and different, which is me. However, I would like to be taken more seriously in the workplace. Sola’s suggestions to me were to tone my wardrobe down by wearing straight cut collars and more bold colors. Because I already have an energetic personality, I don’t need to express myself through loud textures and bright colors.
I attended a party with a coworker who works in the Career Planning Office. He stated that there are over 100 employment opportunities, both internships and permanent positions, that were yet unfilled. I was taken aback. I said, "None of those positions are in accounting, are they?" To which he smiled and said, "Oh, no. With the accounting students, all I had to do was sit back and watch."
After a 17 hour flight to South Africa, I was happy to get off of the plane. I smiled to myself. I was finally in South Africa. I took a deep breath and tried to take in all the around me. The weather was beautiful and so was the scenery. I would be joining my other 7 classmates and Professor Lyles for 10 days in the country of South Africa. After months of reading, discussing, and researching the country, I was finally there. I could not wait to experience all the country had to offer.
On Friday March 2nd, Kelley hosted its 66th Annual Business Conference in downtown Indy. I always look forward to attending this conference as it gives me a chance to take a deep breath and think about something more than what’s going on in my classes. But, this year I was especially excited given the theme of “Incite Innovation”. You know it’s going to be a great day when you start by hearing what 
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.
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. 
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.
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