Smith MBAs Attend National Black MBA
Association Conference and Career Fair
The 29th Annual National Black MBA
Association’s Conference and Career Fair was
held this year in Orlando, Fl., Sept. 11-15,
and was attended by over 12,000 students,
professionals and educators. The theme of
this years conference was "Relevance:
Staying Current, Creative, and Credible."
The programming gave students the
opportunity to hear from senior executives
at some of America’s top companies, talk
about what staying relevant means in
corporate America and how it is achievable.
Second-year Tekisha Harvey was glad that she
attended the event for the second year in a
row. “It was a great opportunity to develop
contacts with companies of interest and also
with other MBA students. Given my specific
area of interest, consumer product
marketing, I was able to really focus in on
my select target companies all in one
place.”
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Smith to Host
Inaugural
M&A
Case Competition
October 11-12
1524 Van Munching Hall
Teams from top U.S. business school,
including Carnegie Mellon, Chicago,
Columbia, University of Virginia, Yale, and
Smith, will compete for glory and $8,500 in
cash prizes in this competition that
simulates an actual mergers and acquisition
pitch meeting to Wall Street executives. The
free event includes a reception beginning at
4:30 p.m. on Oct. 12 that gives attendees an
opportunity to network with students, Smith
faculty and distinguished guests. The Smith
School community is invited cheer on the
Smith team.
►RSVP
Now!
Smith to Host 25th Annual National Women MBA Conference
Thursday, November 1
The Smith School of Business has the
honor of hosting the 25th Annual National
Women MBAs Conference and Career Fair, Nov.
2-3, 2007. The event is expected to attract
more than 1,000 MBA students and women
executives. The keynotes for this year's
conference will be Raytheon's Louise
Francesconi and Campbell Soup Company's
Irene Chang Britt.
►Full
Story/Register Now!
MBAs from Mid-Atlantic Region to Gather at
UM for Career Quest
Each year, the Robert H. Smith School of
Business, in conjunction with the
Washington, D.C., Graduate School MBA
Coalition, co-hosts Career Quest, a
MBA-level career fair. This year’s Career
Quest takes place on Friday, Sept. 28, 2007,
10 a.m. – 3 p.m. at the Samuel Riggs IV
Alumni Center on the University of
Maryland’s campus.
Essentially, Career Quest provides MBA
and other graduate business students a
first-class opportunity to interact with a
wide array of national corporate recruiters
on a one-on-one basis. Career Quest features
representatives from industries such as
finance, business, marketing, real estate,
IT, and many more. Prominent national
recruiters in attendance include BASF, BB&T,
ExxonMobil, Frito Lay, General Electric M&T
Bank, and T. Rowe Price.
►Full Story/Register Now!
Smith Awards $50,000 in China Business Plan
Competition
The
Smith School awarded $50,000 in prize money
to the three top winners in its 2007 China
Business Plan Competition on Sept. 10 in
Beijing. The winners were selected from five
finalist teams who made presentations to a
panel of judges including four
representatives from the Smith School’s
Dingman Center for Entrepreneurship: Tien
Wong and John LaPides, both
entrepreneurs-in-residence; Mark Levine, who
sits on the center’s board of advisors; and
Dan Goodman, the center’s technology
commercialization fellow. Senior Associate
Dean Anand Anandalingam was on hand to
deliver remarks and present the prizes to
the winners. Asher Epstein, the Dingman
Center’s managing director, and Melissa
Carrier, the center’s director of venture
investments and social entrepreneurship,
also participated. The audience included six
Smith School students who were in Beijing as
part of a delegation arranged through the
Dingman Center. Anandalingam and Epstein
also participated in a news conference,
attended by more than
20 Chinese news media and resulting in
significant news coverage.
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Smith Students Get Up-Close View of Chinese
Manufacturing
In
the wake of several U.S. recalls involving
products made in China, six Smith School
students to traveled China in early September
2007 to get an up-close look at
manufacturing in that country. The students,
including one second-year MBA and five
undergraduates, toured four factories as
part of the trip, which was arranged through
the school’s Dingman Center for
Entrepreneurship. Three of the factories
were in Hangzhou and included those for
Siemens, the global electronics and
engineering company; Mary Kay cosmetics; and
Ting Hsin International, China’s largest
manufacturer of instant noodles, bottled
water and biscuits.
►Full Story with Video Highlights
2008 Smith Leadership and Excellence Awards
Do you know a business leader who has made a
significant and positive impact on the
mid-Atlantic region? The Smith School is now
accepting nominations for the 2008 Smith
Leadership and Excellence Awards, which may
be submitted online. Deadline for
nominations is Wednesday, Nov. 21.
►www.rhsmith.umd.edu/awards
Smith School Hosts Inaugural Angel Investing
Event for Distinguished Alumni
The
University of Maryland’s A. James Clark
School of Engineering and Smith School of
Business hosted the university’s inaugural
Impact of Angel Investing seminar on Sept.
18
for distinguished alumni. The
private seminar provided an overview of
angel investing for alumni with limited
angel investment experience, as well as
experienced investors interested in
networking with other alumni.
“The university hosted a great event,”
says Ron Luzier, Clark School alumnus, class
of 1972 and former senior vice president and
chief technology officer of Alliant
Techsystems Inc.’s Space Division. “It was
part history lesson, part tutorial, part
introduction to ventures in need of support,
and a great networking opportunity. The
event was a win-win for the university,
entrepreneurs, angel investors and the
community at large.”
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Dean Frank Profiled in Baltimore Examiner
Dean Howard Frank was interviewed in a Q&A
profile that appeared in the
Baltimore Examiner Sept. 17. The
piece highlighted the Robert H. Smith School
of Business and the strides the school has
taken under Frank’s leadership during the
past decade. The package also included
a story about Smith’s Undergraduate Fellows
Program, which provides students with
hands-on educational experiences. The news
package is part of an Examiner series
of profiles of colleges and universities
throughout the state in an effort to help
parents and high-school seniors consider
higher-education options.
►Full Story
More Events
Professional Programs Open House
Saturday, September 22
9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.
Van Munching Hall
Pass it on! Professional Programs and
Services is holding an "Open House" this
Saturday! Attendees can learn more about the
full-time MBA, evening and weekend MBA,
executive MBA, and evening MBA executive
track. Find out more online and send
prospects to this Web page:
www.rhsmith.umd.edu/mba/openhouse/
Technology Start-Up Boot Camp
Friday, October 19
UM Stamp Student Union, Grand Ballroom
Should you take the leap into technology
entrepreneurship? What are the best ways to
fund your new venture? Is your incredible
idea a real venture opportunity? How do you
build a "dream team"? What’s the key to a
killer business plan? The University of
Maryland's Technology Start-Up Boot Camp is
an intensive, one-day workshop and
networking event about launching new
ventures. This event is free for faculty and
staff.
►www.bootcamp.umd.edu
The New New Internet: Web 2.0 for Business
Thursday, November 1
Hyatt Regency, Reston, VA
The Smith School has teamed up with
ExecutiveBiz to present the region’s major
annual Web conference, featuring a
nationally recognized lineup of engaging
speakers and panelists, two tracks for
industry and government attendees, a Web 2.0
application competition, and much more. The
Smith community may register at the
discounted Smith School rate of $495 using
discount code: rhsmith.
►Register Now!
Innovation and Globalization
Conference
November 8-9
Learn how to manage the challenges involved
with research and development, intellectual
property and other concerns related to
innovation and globalization at this
conference sponsored by the Smith School’s
Center for International Business Education
and Research (CIBER).
►Find out more
8th Annual CIO Forum: Technology and
Innovation
Friday, November 9
How do CIOs inculcate an innovation culture
in the organization? How do they evolve new
business models and new business practices
that are built on the capabilities of new
information technologies? Find out at the
8th Annual CIO Forum, featuring keynote
speaker Lemuel Lasher, CIO and president of
Computer Sciences Corp.’s Office of
Innovation.
►Register Now!
University
Update
► UM Pres. Dan
Mote's State of the Campus Address
"My principal topic today is to speak
about our strategic planning process and
especially about the context we set for it.
But before I go into this critical topic, I
would like to say a few words about how we
are doing. The short answer is—quite well
indeed. Of course we have much to do and in
reality we never actually arrive.
Achievement is a journey not a destination.
But let me highlight some milestones along
our trail, said" UM President Dan Mote in
his State of the Campus address on Sept. 17.
►Full Story
►Safety
Certification Classes
Campus Recreation Services is now offering
safety certification classes. Learn the
knowledge and skills necessary to prevent,
recognize, and provide basic care for
adults, infants and children! The classes
being offered are:
Sat, Oct. 6, Infant/Child CPR, 10 a.m. -
2:30 p.m.
Tues, Oct. 9, Adult CPR/AED, 5:30 - 10 p.m.
Wed, Nov. 14, Adult CPR/AED, 5:30 - 10 p.m.
Sat, Nov. 17, Standard First Aid with AED ,
8:30 a.m.- 3 p.m. Sun, Dec. 2,
Infant/Child CPR, 10 a.m. - 2:30 p.m.
►Register Online now! www.crs.umd.edu
Video
greetings from Dean Howard Frank as we begin
another exciting year at Smith! The video
includes construction footage from inside
the
Dustin
Hodgson has been with the Robert H. Smith
School of Business for a year and a half,
but two months ago he switched into his new
role as program manager for professional
programs and services. Before making the
transition Hodgson worked in student
services. Now he is working in the
admissions department where he has become
the primary contact for scholarships,
graduate assistants and fellowships. He will
also be involved in the admissions process
for potential incoming MBA students. 
Nick
Morosoff, MBA candidate 2008, thinks that if
you are part of a community, it is important
to play an active role and get involved.
That’s what led him to run for the position
of vice president of external relations in
the MBA Association (MBAA) as a second year
student. Nick feels that his role allows him
to reach out to alumni and employers in an
effort to strengthen their ties to the Smith
Community. He feels that doing this is a
benefit to both the Smith School at large as
well as to the student body. 
.
What do the recent manufacturing
problems in China mean for U.S.
businesses and consumers? In the next
edition of Smith Business Close-Up,
Smith School Professor Anil Gupta,
discusses the outsourcing of
manufacturing to China, how this impacts
U.S. business and China’s role in the
global economy. 
How
Corporate Messages Influence the Product
Portfolio
