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College of Business Administration

CAL POLY POMONA

E-Newsletter Winter 2012

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Global Debt Crisis -- Adjunct Professor Bob McClure

Greetings!

I hope the New Year finds you and your family in good spirits and in good health.

I am proud to say that we wrapped up a very successful 2011 that included reaccreditation from AACSB International - the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business, placement of our students with some of the country's top employers including Boeing, PricewaterhouseCoopers and AEG and the hiring of new faculty to further strengthen our academic programs, as well as hosting the largest Commencement ceremony in the university's history.

By every indication, 2012 will be just as exceptional. Construction of our three-building complex is nearly complete and it is shaping up to be a project that will be worthy of our alumni, students, faculty and staff. Not only will the complex reflect the modernity of the business world, it is being constructed and configured to reflect the polytechnic, interactive learning environment we provide our students. We will also have an opportunity to recruit more distinguished scholars and instructors for the 2012-13 school year to meet student needs in both our undergraduate and graduate programs.

There is more good news on the horizon that includes new events to better engage our alumni and, at the same time, prepare our students to become leaders. One of these is an executive leadership speaker series that will kick-off in conjunction with the opening of the new CBA building complex. I look forward to sharing more about this and other exciting developments with you in the coming months.

Best,

Richard S. Lapidus

Dean, College of Business Administration

COLLEGE NEWS

$3 Million NSF Grant Awarded to CBA and a Consortium of Colleges

The College of Business Administration will fast track its plans to create a West Coast cybersecurity league thanks to a $3 million grant from the National Science Foundation awarded to Cal Poly Pomona and a consortium of western colleges.

Grant money will be used to create CyberWatch West, a center dedicated to increasing the number of cybersecurity professionals among California, Washington and Oregon residents. The center will focus on strengthening academic programs, enabling professional development for faculty, promoting student development and encouraging partnerships between schools and industry. CBA expects to receive approximately $500,000 of the grant money and will focus on student development.

Funding Student Success

DMA Scholarship Winners

When Romyn Rezapour's mother was laid-off from her job as a special education teacher two years ago, the Technology and Operations Management (TOM) student had to help his family pay essential bills just as he was figuring out how fund his college education.

Thanks to a $1,000 scholarship from the Distribution Management Association (DMA), Rezapour will get a break from worrying about finances and will be able to focus more on his studies.

"I'm sure it's seems like a little bit of money for DMA but it goes a long way for students who are struggling," Rezapour says. "It's awesome that they're giving back."

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In Memoriam: Robert E. Willard

Robert Edward Willard, professor emeritus in the College of Business Administration, died Oct. 17 in San Diego. The longtime Cottonwood, Ariz. resident was 80 years old.

Willard taught at Cal Poly Pomona for 16 years from 1976 to 1992 where he oversaw the Accounting Department's taxation program and also owned a 300-client tax practice in Claremont. Willard is remembered among faculty as a student-focused professor who had extensive knowledge of his field of study.

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Students Use Grant Money to Help Pomona Community

A College of Business Administration club has received more than $8,000 in grant money to improve the lives of Pomona-area residents and empower small businesses.

The grant money encompasses four different projects that must be completed before the end of the school year. It is an ambitious effort for the 18 members of Students in Free Enterprise (SIFE) but club President Misael Hernandez says they are up for the challenge.

SIFE received its largest funding from the HSBC Financial Literacy Program. Students will work with small business owners from the Downtown Pomona Owners Association and help them implement accounting software and offer guidance on how to use it more effectively to manage their financial operations. Members also will conduct workshops for select high school students from The School of Arts and Enterprise (SAE) on how to create marketing plans. The high school students will use information from the SIFE workshop to collaborate with Downtown Pomona entrepreneurs on how to improve their digital, print and social media marketing efforts.

ALUMNI NEWS

Wealth Manager Donates to New Business Complex

For some people, earning an MBA degree is a surefire way to earn a six-figure salary but not for Dean "Dino" Tellone.

When Tellone (master of business administration, '87) began studying in the College of Business Administration in 1982, he was already a 30-something millionaire who drove nicer cars than most professors.

"I wanted to get all the necessary credentials to continue my success," Tellone says of his decision to pursue an MBA. "Plus, I thought if I could get through all these classes, I could get through anything."

FACULTY SPOTLIGHT

One professor's goal to increase his own productivity in academic research has dramatically changed the way business professors can access consumer opinions and behavior. In 2008, Associate Professor Jae Min Jung of the International Business and Marketing Department created the Behavioral Lab, modeling it after similar labs offered at other business schools.

Professor Jung met with CBA Public Affairs Officers Marisa Demers to talk about the lab and his ambitions to have it serve as a resource for businesses.

What is the purpose and mission of the lab?

Jung: The primary mission of the lab is to help faculty and students conduct research but there are additional benefits. Students who are involved as research participants have told us that they have a better understanding of marketing research, consumer behavior and other critical marketing concepts. Before each survey, we explain the proposal and, once the study is over, we debrief them so they have a better understanding of the study's purpose. Students say they like participating more than simply listening to a lecture about marketing research. Further, the lab can be a catalyst for collaboration between academy and industry, offering a space for businesses to test their ideas.

STUDENT SPOTLIGHT

From a young age, Rudy Andres Briseno has had a knack for numbers and a fascination with investing. The Covina resident has been so eager to join the business world that he graduated from high school in three years and is on track to graduate from Cal Poly Pomona in four with a 3.8 grade point average, all while working part time and leading the Finance Society, a student club in the Finance Real Estate and Law (FRL) Department.

In summer 2011, Rudy received an internship with NASA Jet Propulsion Lab in its business support division where he worked on budgets and helped cut administrative costs. JPL managers were so impressed with his job performance that they asked Rudy to work part time until his 2012 graduation.

Now in his final year at Cal Poly Pomona, Rudy met with Public Information Officer Marisa Demers to reflect on his CBA experiences and how he wants to be an active alumnus who gives back to the college.

Who inspires you at Cal Poly Pomona?

Briseno: I would have to say the professors. In the FRL Department, all of the professors care and there are several professors where you go to their classes and you can feel the passion they have for what they're teaching and what they're doing in life. It inspires me to find what I want to do and what I'm going to be passionate about.

FACULTY IN THE NEWS

"Political gridlock seems to be the major roadblock to any lasting and effective compromise." -- Adjunct Finance, Real Estate and Law Professor Robert McClure in The (San Bernardino) Sun article on President Obama's jobs plan.

"It will be a struggle going on because of over-regulation, and the banks themselves have a lot less resources now because of all the attorneys, politicians and accountants that have become involved. They're heavily regulated." -- Finance, Real Estate and Law Professor Michael Carney in the San Gabriel Valley Tribune on the recent trend of banks increase fees for customers.

"We believe cybersecurity can be a sport. In five years, we hope it will be on ESPN." -- Computer Information Systems Professor Dan Manson in the Pasadena Star-News on instituting a West Coast cybersecurity league in spring 2012.

"Everything has a cost -- somebody has to pay for it. The answer is the taxpayers, and they've already paid out in a huge bailout to Fannie [Mae] and Freddie [Mac] and to the banks." Finance, Real Estate and Law Professor Michael Carney in the Whittier Daily News on a proposal that would bind the government to provide every U.S. citizen a 30-year home mortgage at a 1 percent interest rate.