McCombs BBA Alumni Network
Profiles
McCombs Monthly Vol. 9, No. 6 (Jun-08) Neal Meadows, BBA ’95 and MPA ’97McCombs Monthly Vol. 9, No. 5 (May-08) John Stuart, BBA ’58
McCombs Monthly Vol. 9, No. 4 (Apr-08) Robin Boesch and Robyn Sribhen-White, BBAs ’00
McCombs Monthly Vol. 9, No. 3 (Mar-08) Joe Griffith, BBA ’78
McCombs Monthly Vol. 9, No. 2 (Feb-08) Zach Petrone, BBA '05
McCombs Monthly Vol. 9, No. 1 (Jan-08) Sarah Dooley BBA '04
McCombs Monthly Vol. 8, No. 10 (Dec-07) Erin Koechel & Jeff Duchin, BBAs ’98
McCombs Monthly Vol. 8, No. 9 (Oct-07) Craig Hester, BBA ’71, MBA ’72
McCombs Monthly Vol. 8, No. 7 (Aug-07 Chris Ericson, BBA ’05
McCombs Monthly Vol. 8, No. 6 (Jul-07) Carrie Thomas, BBA '90
McCombs Monthly Vol. 8, No. 4 (May-07) Mark Rogers, BBA '07
McCombs Monthly Vol. 8, No. 3 (May-07) Terry Townsend BBA '57
McCombs Monthly Vol. 8, No. 1 (Feb-07) Alex Morales, BBA '07
McCombs Monthly Vol. 7, No. 3 (Dec-07) David Blackwell, BBA ‘80
McCombs Monthly Vol. 7, No. 2 (Nov-06) Kate Nanney, BBA 2007
McCombs Monthly Vol. 7, No. 1 (Nov-06) Anne & David Glover
McCombs Monthly Vol. 6, No. 9 (Aug-06) Brandon Calvo, BBA ’96
McCombs Monthly Vol. 6, No. 6 (May-06) Steve Vartanian, BBA ‘85
McCombs Monthly Vol. 6, No. 5 (Mar-06) Marjorie Cheng, BBA, MPA ‘02
Neal Meadows, BBA ’95, MPA ’97
Alumnus Follows Through on New Year’s Resolution to Reconnect with McCombs
New Year’s resolutions are notorious for being abandoned all too quickly. A few weeks into February, gym memberships are forgotten and piles of books sit unread next to the nightstand. But when Neal Meadows, BBA ’95 and MPA ’97, made a commitment this year to reconnect with the McCombs School, it was one resolution that stuck.
“My first few years out of school, it was just work, work, work,” says Meadows, who directs the state taxes division for Clear Channel Communications in San Antonio. “But now it’s time to give back. I want to get back on campus more and introduce my 3-year-old son to UT.”
As luck would have it, shortly after Meadows made his resolution, he started receiving information from McCombs about the new BBA Alumni Network. He saw it as the perfect opportunity to get involved.
Meadows is now a member of the San Antonio BBA Alumni Chapter Steering Committee and is the corporate relations chair for the chapter. He hopes to connect area executives with the chapter and eventually bring in financial support.
“UT grads bring so much value to an organization, so hopefully companies will be compelled to get involved with the chapter,” Meadows says.
Working in the tax field for 10 years, including stints at Ernst & Young and KPMG, Meadows has seen the value of a McCombs degree both as a job candidate and an employer.
“I hired two UT grads to be on my current team at Clear Channel,” Meadows says. “And while working for accounting firms and recruiting new staff, I spent time on the UT campus, interviewing students for open positions—partly because of a shared background, but also because I knew the quality would be there. And whenever I interviewed for a job, it was always a boost to be able to tell an employer I earned my degree from the top accounting program in the nation.”
John Stuart, BBA ’58
Alumnus Helps Reunite the Class of 1958
John Stuart, BBA ’58, graduated from the university 50 years ago, but he can’t seem to be away from campus for too long. Stuart is co-chair of the Class of 1958 Reunion, the latest in a string of posts dedicated to serving McCombs and the university at large.
The reunion, April 30-May 2, featured faculty panels and tours of campus facilities, including a stop by the athletics offices for a peek at the football team’s two Heisman trophies. Stuart hoped these experiences will resonate with his fellow alumni and remind them of their connection to the Forty Acres.
“We want to get people back on campus and rekindle their interest in the McCombs School and UT,” Stuart said days before the festivities got underway. “This reunion will be a smorgasbord of what UT is like today.” He is eager to reconnect with former classmates and demonstrate how McCombs has changed.
“The culture is really different, and the university is much more open now,” Stuart says. “When we were students, the education was really based on classroom work. But now, it’s much more interactive, and students are more involved with faculty.”
Stuart takes great pride in the prominent faculty at McCombs, and his friends and family endowed a chair in his honor. He has enjoyed building a friendship with marketing professor Robert Peterson, who holds the John T. Stuart III Centennial Chair in Business Administration.
Stuart also is a member of the McCombs Advisory Council and Hall of Fame and is a Distinguished Alumnus of the university. He has helped shape the picture of higher education in Texas, serving on the Commission of 100 and Commission of 125, the University of Texas Foundation and the Chancellor’s Council.
“I thoroughly enjoyed my time at the university as a student, and I wanted to volunteer to begin to pay back everything I gained from my outstanding education,” Stuart says.
Robin Boesch and Robyn Sribhen-White, BBAs ’00
Friends Use Their Lessons from McCombs to Open a Boutique
When Robin Boesch and Robyn Sribhen-White departed from McCombs, the college friends took opposite paths—literally.
Boesch’s BHP & finance degree took her to Wall Street, working in sales and trading for Goldman Sachs amidst the hustle and bustle of New York City. She was quenching the thirst for Wall Street she gained while interning at Goldman during college.
Sribhen-White used her marketing degree to land a job in retail management with Gap, Inc. on the other side of the country in San Francisco. After a brief tour in Ohio working for Hollister Co., a division of Abercrombie & Fitch, she ended back up in California as a senior merchant for Bebe.
These were two friends separated by thousands of miles, living their respective dreams, but the full-time commitment of their careers was taking a toll.
“We both had inflexible jobs,” Boesch says. “And after a few years, we decided we might want something with more balance.”
In college, the pair joked about starting their own business, and the farfetched idea resurfaced in 2005. But after their education and business experience, the notion didn’t seem too far-out there this time around.
After a whirlwind eight months of research and planning, in October 2006, the pair opened up y & i clothing boutique in San Francisco. The store name comes from their first names: Robyn and Robin.
Specializing in trendy women’s fashions that won’t break the bank, they have created a unique niche in the crowded retail market.
“To us, fashion seemed to be overpriced. We wanted a store where we could get an entire outfit for under $300. We wanted to provide more value for your money,” Boesch says. “At our store we want to attract people who could spend more, but who also enjoy being smart with their money and like knowing they’re getting something versatile for what they’re spending.”
While satiating their fashion desires, the store has also provided the balance they were looking for between their careers and their personal lives.
Robyn welcomed her first child in July and, with a flexible work schedule, the transition has been easy. Each work three days a week in the store and put in hours from home also.
“All women have same dilemma. We want full-time jobs and families and it’s hard to do both well,” Boesch says. “[Our situation] is really working out.”
Along with having the “cool” honor of owning a store, the two appreciate what they learned at McCombs and feel it gave them the necessary background to start a business.
“We knew all the components necessary to start a successful business,” Boesch says. “[McCombs] gave us a good background.”
Perhaps the most important gift of all from McCombs was reconnecting the future business partners and friends for life.
Without it, their current dream wouldn’t be happening. Check out y & i clothing boutique.
Joe Griffith, BBA ’78
Alumnus Describes Positive Aspects of Change
Joe Griffith has never been a stranger to change. Growing up the son of an Air Force pilot, Griffith, who now lives in Dallas, called everywhere from Austin to Niagara Falls to California home.
After graduating from McCombs with a BBA in finance, change followed him into his professional life—this time in the form of mergers.
In 1982, Griffith began working at Texas Commerce Bank in Austin, which was acquired by Chemical Bank in 1987. Then in the 1990s, Chemical and Chase Bank merged. Next JPMorgan and Chase joined forces and later, JPMorgan Chase and Bank One. JPMorgan Chase is now the largest bank in Texas, with 20,000 local employees and 445 Chase branches in the Lone Star State.
For the current head of JPMorgan Real Estate Banking nationwide, the flurry of deals and mergers only strengthened his business savvy.
“Any transition is difficult. But regardless of where you go, there are challenges and with challenges come opportunities,” Griffith says. “Given the breadth of the product capability and reputation of JPMorgan, I really can’t imagine a better place to be.”
Considering his history of constantly shifting addresses, Griffith learned the value of finding and holding onto familiar things in a changing world.
When he stepped foot on the Forty Acres as an undergrad, Griffith was unsure of what he wanted to do. He decided to take what he knew and run with it. Having worked as a teller and bookkeeper at a bank in Big Spring, Texas during high school, he got a taste for banking and the social opportunities that came with it.
Zach Petrone, BBA '05
The Big Apple Bleeds Orange for One Alumnus
Passing on knowledge has always been important to Zach Petrone. As an undergraduate he served as president of the University Investors Association, founded the Investment Banking Association and wrote columns on personal finance for The Daily Texan.
While at McCombs, he strove to connect students. In forming a new student organization, the Investment Banking Association, Petrone and his friends wanted to use their experiences with internships to help sophomore and junior students.
“After completing our summers as analysts, a group of my classmates and I felt we had a wealth of knowledge about the investment banking recruitment process,” Petrone says. “We were interested in passing on that knowledge.”
As a student, Petrone interned with Credit Suisse in Houston and Phillip Morris in New York City. After graduating with a degree in finance, the Big Apple beckoned him back.
He began his career at Greenhill & Company, a boutique investment bank that focuses on mergers and acquisitions and corporate restructuring. He stayed there until the summer of 2007 before jumping into the private equity game with Providence Equity. There, Petrone works as an associate, building financial models for investments and monitoring portfolio companies. The company completes media and communications deals, and in 2007 announced the largest leveraged buyout on record with the $48.5 billion acquisition of Bell Canada.
For Zachary Petrone, kicking off his career in New York City has not meant leaving behind his Texas roots. If anything, he feels a stronger affinity to his alma mater and home state.
“Anyone can get a great education from Wharton or Yale, but the atmosphere is not the same as at The University of Texas.”
He says the McCombs name is reputable on the east coast, and many companies regularly recruit Texas grads.
“The McCombs School name means something,” Petrone says, “The main schools that Greenhill recruits are at Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Wharton, Virginia and Texas. I’d say we’re keeping pretty good company.”
Petrone is excited about connecting McCombs alumni working in the area. With the creation of the BBA Alumni Network, Petrone sees an effective way to network with his fellow graduates. In January, he helped to organize a kick-off happy hour that drew over 60 alumni and created a buzz for the New York chapter’s official reception, which will take place in April.
Even though he is over a thousand miles away from Austin, Petrone and his fellow McCombs grads keep the Texas home fires burning.
“More and more UT alumni are working here, and there’s camaraderie,” Petrone says. “We get together and watch football games, and if there’s anything slightly Texan going on, we meet up.”
One alumna in particular, caught Petrone’s heart. This past summer, he and fellow McCombs grad, Rebecca Thacker, BBA ’06 and MPA ’06, were engaged. Thacker works for Deloitte, and the two will be married on November 15, 2008 in Austin.
Sarah Dooley BBA '04
Alumna Finds a Place on Old Stomping Ground
When the October issue of the McCombs Monthly electronic newsletter announced the formation of the McCombs BBA Alumni (MBBA) Network, Sarah Dooley took notice.
“I wasn’t actively looking for a different job, but when I saw the posting for this position in the McCombs Monthly electronic newsletter, and read the description, it sounded like a natural fit,” says Dooley.
Dooley, who received a BBA in marketing and a B.A. in Plan II Honors in 2004, has filled a new position at McCombs as assistant director of the McCombs BBA Alumni Network, and she’s pleased to bring the skills she learned at the business school back to her alma mater.
“I have so many great memories from my time at McCombs, and I’m pleased to have the opportunity to return to campus and work with such a prestigious group of alumni.”
Dooley will work with McCombs staff and alumni volunteers to launch a new alumni network that will model itself on the McCombs MBA Alumni (MMA) Network, which has successfully connected MBA alumni for the past 12 years. The network will connect alumni to each other and to McCombs, enhance the student experience through interaction with alumni, and provide communication and personal and professional development tools for graduates. These are tools Dooley sees as beneficial as a McCombs alumna. After all, it was through a McCombs communication that she found out about her new position in the first place.
“The network will connect McCombs’ 63,000 BBA alumni,” says Dooley. “It’s a diverse group that varies across industries, ages and geographic locations. This is intended to be a joint effort between the school and alumni and an interactive experience for those involved. There are many opportunities for those interested, such as participating in chapter leadership or attending local events like the Launch Receptions this spring.”
Dooley is up for the challenge. She previously worked as an account manager with On Your Mark, an Austin-based strategic marketing research firm. There, she specialized in understanding the female consumer and managed research for brands like Nestlé Toll House, Real Simple magazine, American Greetings and H-E-B.
With a mind geared toward research and a thirst for initiating projects, she was excited by the idea of being part of something new and making an impact on the value of the McCombs degree
“Both professionally and personally, I wanted to be a part of launching this network,” says Dooley. “I’m delighted to have an opportunity to truly impact the legacy of my degree.”
Erin Koechel & Jeff Duchin, BBAs ’98
Persistence Pays Off for Alumnus
As a college sophomore, Jeff Duchin probably didn’t figure his part-time job, one he held before earning his BBA in finance, would end up having such an impact on his life.
But it was while working in the business school’s office of development, calling alumni and soliciting gifts for the annual fund, where Duchin was presented with his first paid internship opportunity, met his future wife and gained an understanding of the importance of giving back.
Working as a student caller, Duchin remembers one alum who was particularly hard to track down. The alum’s contact information was out of date and pointed him to Miami. After some digging, Duchin found the alum had actually moved to Austin. When Duchin was able to get in touch with his elusive prospect, the alum was so impressed with his persistence that he offered Duchin the opportunity to interview for an internship with investment firm Morgan Keegan. Duchin interned there after his sophomore and into his junior year, gaining experience in sales, making initial calls to prospects on behalf of the broker for whom he worked.
It was also around this time that Duchin met Erin Koechel, a finance and Business Honors major one year younger than him. The two hit it off and continued dating after they graduated in 1998. In 2004, they were married. Today, they live in Dallas with their black lab, Murphy, and both use their McCombs degrees in the field of finance.
Duchin brokers bonds for institutions as a vice president with Southwest Securities. He used the cold calling experience he gained in his internship and part-time job to approach Southwest Securities while he was still a student. Initially, his future boss told him they didn’t normally hire graduates fresh out of school. But Duchin’s persistence once again paid off, and he joined the company soon after he graduated. Erin works in portfolio management for Hudson Advisors, the asset management company for global private equity firm, Lonestar Funds.
Thankful for their experiences at McCombs and the University, both Koechel and Duchin understand the importance of giving back. They are recognized as Dean’s Associates donors to the school.
Duchin says, “As alumni, we feel it is our responsibility to share our prosperity with the business school in order to provide current and future students the same level of benefits and opportunities we were able to enjoy.”
Duchin also volunteers his time serving on the advisory board for the Texas Exes, and for the alumni organization's Dallas chapter, he serves on comittees and as past president. In these roles, he has exercised fundraising skills, chairing the chapter’s Texas Exes Scholarship dinner and securing sponsorships for the golf tournament that coincides with the university’s annual football game against the University of Oklahoma.
It seems his days spent calling alumni as an undergrad stuck with him, as Duchin has not ruled out development as a possible future career option.
“It's a challenge, and fundraising work is enjoyable,” Duchin says.
Craig Hester, BBA ’71, MBA ’72
Grad Talks Investments—in Stocks and McCombs
Craig Hester has been hitting the business news circuit, making rounds on Bloomberg Television, Bloomberg Radio, CBS Radio and most recently CNBC’s “Closing Bell.” During his appearance on that show in October, Hester discussed his picks for value stocks, a subject he handles with aplomb from 19 years of experience running Hester Capital Management.
The Austin firm manages just under $1.6 million for individual and institutional clients. Since Hester founded the company, the firm has grown steadily, starting with just one employee in 1989 to 17 today. His client base comes mainly through referrals and though his firm is successful, Hester’s desire isn’t to grow the company so large that it becomes impersonal.
“Money management is a relationship business at the end of the day,” Hester says. “It’s built on trust and credibility, and my team and I work hard to preserve that.”
Before starting out on his own venture, Hester began his career as a financial analyst with the Texas Retirement System of Texas and Republic Bank. Later, he gained experience in money management with the Texas Municipal Retirement System and InterFirst Investment Management. In all of these roles, he cultivated relationships with people across the state, many of whom would later become clients of Hester Capital Management.
In part because of his own successes and because he’s a strong believer in education, Hester remains involved with McCombs. He serves as a member on the Advisory Committee for the MBA Investment Fund, where he interacts with student managers and faculty.
“I think advisor participation was designed to be educational for the MBAs,” Hester says. “But I’ve learned just as much from the faculty and students and been introduced to very bright people.”
Among those bright stars, Hester counts three of his current employees—former McCombs MBA students who worked on the MBA Investment Fund.
“Being involved with McCombs is a winning situation for me. We employ interns from McCombs and hire grads. I buy the McCombs product and am proud to come to work with these people every day.”
When he isn’t managing money for his clients or giving back to McCombs, Hester splits his time between a small Texas ranch and traveling to Colorado to hike. In 1998, Hester made it a personal goal to climb the 54 Colorado peaks that reach over 14,000 feet. He’s managed to meet that goal half way, climbing 27 of those peaks thus far and has plans to complete the remaining in the following years. For Hester, raising new heights is equally important in both his personal and professional lives.
Chris Ericson, BBA ’05
Alum Suggests Taking Full Advantage of McCombs’ Offerings
Classes officially begin for the fall semester on August 29. For incoming freshmen this means new dorms, new books, new student IDs and new roommates. Chris Ericson, BBA ’05, has a few words of advice for the nearly 1,400 freshmen and transfer students who will enter McCombs and learn to navigate the UT campus.
“Take as many classes, as many electives and get involved with as many organizations as possible.”
Ericson should know. Like many ambitious McCombs grads, he was active in numerous student organizations and credits that involvement with helping him to plan his future. Through participating in organizations like the Financial Analyst Program, the University Finance Association, the University Investors Association, and the Texas Investment Banking Association, Ericson discovered his true interests. Early in his undergrad career, he focused on asset management, but by graduation Ericson felt his skills were better suited to investment banking, which he discovered through three internships and his involvement in various activities.
“It’s important to really get involved with student organizations and not just attend meetings,” says Ericson, “but serve as officers, socialize with other members, talk to seniors in the organizations, and take opportunities to talk to corporate speakers when they visit.”
Ericson notes mentoring and networking as skills that develop while at McCombs. As an underclassman he looked up to older students who served as officers for the organizations in which he participated and felt an obligation to mentor students below him when he served in senior roles. Socializing and networking through student organizations also helped Ericson land his current job.
While interning with Lehman Brothers in Houston, Ericson decided to trade in breakfast tacos for bagels, and make a move to New York City. He learned of a position with Credit Suisse from a friend at McCombs, and currently is a second-year analyst with the company. He works with media and telecommunications companies, helping to arrange financing and provide them with strategic advice regarding buying or selling assets.
Ericson says New York is definitely different than Austin, or anywhere in Texas. He foresees himself returning to Texas eventually, but for now is looking forward taking full advantage of his McCombs degree and pursuing more opportunities in the investment management industry.
Carrie Thomas, BBA '90
Alumna Connects with McCombs through Interns
Carrie Thomas remembers her experience at McCombs fondly, which is why she is excited about helping today’s undergraduates enhance their collegiate experiences.
Thomas, a marketing manager with management and technology consulting firm BearingPoint, Inc. in Austin, coordinates an internship program that is only open to McCombs students. She says it was natural to open the program to McCombs as the school is only two miles away from BearingPoint and the quality of students is high. Thomas points out the program’s advantages for both students and the company.
“We’re able to provide a meaningful paid internship for students, for required credit or work experience, and in turn, BearingPoint is able to get a sneak preview at upcoming graduates.”
The BearingPoint McCombs School of Business Internship Program has been in effect for the past year and a half. In that time about 40 students have participated in the program, and out of those, BearingPoint has hired nine of the former interns full-time upon graduation.
BearingPoint’s Austin office primarily provides technology consulting services for local and state government. Thomas’s interns help the Austin practice with such programs as TexasOnline, the state of Texas website http://www.texasonline.com/, by working in a variety of marketing, software development, outreach, technical and project management roles.
“It was important to me to drive a program that would expose interns to a wide variety of career paths and give them experience in areas beyond low-level type work,” says Thomas. “We place interns in large groups so they gain networking experience, and we bring in speakers from other areas of the company so they can learn about BearingPoint and consulting.”
In addition to the internship program, BearingPoint participates in various recruiting activities with McCombs, including on-campus interview days, career fairs, information sessions and Mocktails—simulated cocktail receptions that teach students networking skills.
Mark Rogers, BBA '07
Graduating Senior Reflects on McCombs Experience
Commencement on May 18 will mark the end of textbooks, note-taking, and class lectures for many of the 785 McCombs graduating seniors. Mark Rogers is one student, however, who will still be hitting the books while working his new job. For his position in loan sales with Morgan Stanley in London, Mark will be required to take Russian classes four days a week. Working with a client base made up of mostly Eastern Europeans, the Business Honors, Finance and Spanish Literature major looks forward to the challenge of learning a new language and living in a different country.
Rogers landed his job at Morgan Stanley after completing an internship with the company last summer. He describes his internship as one of the most humbling experiences he’s had.
“There are so many smart people working there who are so good at what they do. They don’t mind if you ask questions, and they empower you.”
With graduation coming up, Rogers is taking this time to reflect on his experiences at The University of Texas.
“I feel privileged to have gone to UT. While I was here, we won a national football championship, I was able to represent the school at international competitions, and I learned from well-rounded professors and classes. For me, the experience was really unrivaled.”
As a student, Rogers was a member of the winning teams at the Marshall International Competition at the University of Southern California, earlier this year, and the Thammaset International Case Competition in Bangkok. He also represented McCombs at a case competition in Hong Kong and served as a student host with the Texas Blazers.
Rogers credits his personal successes on his education and experiences at McCombs and UT and although he’s quite excited about moving to London, he says there are things about Texas he’ll definitely miss: “Family, friends, football games, sunshine. Of course, I’ll miss BBQ, because BBQ is just awful in England. And Mexican food. They really don’t have it over there.”
He's already making plans to come back for next year's OU game.
Terry Townsend BBA '57
Much has changed in 50 Years: One 1957 Alum Reminisces
Tuition was just $25 a semester, the Korean War had recently ended, and a class of 60 students was an anomaly. It was 1957, the year Terry Townsend graduated with a BBA. After graduating, he was elected to the Texas House of Representatives in 1958 and continued his education at UT, receiving a law degree in 1959. He has remained connected to the University ever since.
For the next six years, Terry practiced law and continued to serve in the legislature representing his hometown district of Brady, Texas—125 miles northwest of Austin. One of his first assignments as a representative was acting as a point person for the Texas Exes on matters of interest and leading the student’s fight against approval of a tuition hike, doubling it to $50 a semester.
In January 1966, Terry returned to Austin, where he lives still, and put the skills he learned in business school to use, working as a trade association executive, first as president of the Texas Motor Transportation Association for 20 years and later as the president and CEO of the Texas Hospital Association until his retirement in June 2001.
“Business school not only taught me, it helped me to think practically and be successful in my career,” Terry says, “When I was in school we had great tenured faculty, and we also had retired generals from the Korean War who had really done and seen a lot. I learned a great deal from them.”
While in school, Terry held a 40-hour a week job, first at a bank and later with the legislature. He was also involved with numerous college activities and fraternal organizations.
“Being able to balance a limited amount of time and money and make the necessary grades made me so much more prepared when I began my career. At the time, I didn’t appreciate that,” Terry, “but later I realized it was good training, and especially great to get from UT.”
His affinity for UT surpasses the business school to admiration for his fellow classmates. Out of his graduating high school class of 60 students from Brady, Terry says five of them attended UT.
“We were the original Brady Bunch.”
That bunch all went on to be successful—as medical, legal, and business professionals—some of the most accomplished from that area of Texas.
And as most UT alumni, Terry is huge fan of Longhorn athletics. As a freshman, he played on the tennis team. He jokes he was ninth out of a team of eight. His love for the sport and UT, however, prompts him to regularly attend matches as well as hold season tickets for Longhorn football, basketball and baseball. Attending UT football victories in two Rose Bowls and baseball championships twice in Omaha remain highlights of his retirement.
Along with his wife and other classmates, Terry will reminisce about his UT experiences at the upcoming Class of 1957 50-Year Reunion on April 26-27. For more information on the 50-Year Reunion, visit the Texas Exes web site.
Alex Morales, BBA '07
Leverages FAP Experience for Fun and Profit
Thanks to the training he gained in the Financial Analysts Program (FAP), a unique undergraduate experience that pairs finance majors with the MBA students who manage the real-money MBA Investment Fund, Alex Morales was able to turn his penchant for trading into a budding career.
This is a guy who had his own brokerage account in middle school!
The opportunity that the FAP affords for students to learn about money management is unparalleled. Aside from taking two semesters of specialized classes, undergraduates in the program conduct research using Wall Street resources and learn how to present pitches and defend their stock selections to MBA Investment Fund managers. “The MBAs were a valuable resource,” Alex says. “They were very open to meeting with us and they gave us a lot of good feedback.”
What’s more, it was their Investment Fund mentors who helped Alex and two teammates prepare for and win a stock pitch competition at NYU last October. The 4th Annual Stern Summit on Global Business focused on emerging markets, and the competitors’ charge was to select and defend a stock from such a market. With the help of MBAs Jyrhong Soo and David Miller, Alex, Katie Ross, and Mark Tait selected Chinese sports apparel manufacturer Lin Ning and provided a persuasive presentation that blew away the competition. “We call it the Nike of China,” Alex says. “It’s got a lot of growth potential, it’s been making aggressive changes, and it’s moving into bigger markets at a time when China’s disposable income is rising and basketball is growing in popularity.”
Alex and his teammates brought back a trophy for the case in the McCombs School, and they each received $400 in prize money. That experience, coupled with his FAP participation and a summer internship at JP Morgan in New York last year, earned him a position as an analyst at MHT Partners in Dallas after graduation. And it didn’t hurt that he wears his passion for the stock market on his sleeve. “I’m really excited for the opportunity to work at MHT. It’s a small firm, so you can do a lot of different things and you have more direct access to managing directors,” Alex says. “You can learn a lot from them.”
Ultimately, Alex’s goal is to start his own money management firm if he can find the right partners—and he’s not really worried about finding partners. “Business school is all about meeting people, and I already have a great network to call on.”
David Blackwell, BBA ‘80
BBA Alumnus Brings Economic and Educational Powerhouses Together
As Vice President and CFO of Wal-Mart Global Procurement, David Blackwell (BBA Accounting ’80) has a gargantuan job. Not only is Wal-Mart the 19th largest economic entity in the world, each of its divisions, if they were stand-alone companies, would be one of the largest in the world in their fields—Logistics, Information Services, Real Estate, International Retail, and Global Procurement.
So, it’s Blackwell’s job to think big, and it was with that frame of mind that he instigated a partnership with The University of Texas.
“I noticed that the company did not actively recruit at UT and was missing a major opportunity across several disciplines where it needs talent to support its rapid growth,” says Blackwell, who is Wal-Mart’s Executive Sponsor for UT. “Wal-Mart is all about ‘one stop shopping,’ so I lobbied senior level management in several functional and divisional areas of the company to engage in developing a long-term relationship with UT.” The interaction between the education and economic giants will involve recruiting, speaking to classes, funding programs, participating in practica, and more.
Launched this September with a team of 12 executives and senior-level managers, the initiative seeks to identify ways Wal-Mart can develop programs that are beneficial to both UT and the company.
Blackwell notes that UT’s slogan, “What starts here changes the world,” is also apt for Wal-Mart. Wal-Mart’s impact on the world is indisputable: the company serves more than 170 million customers a week in 15 countries, generating $300 billion in sales and growing at $25 billion per year. And it is now taking a leadership role in the arena of business sustainability. “Our business sustainability initiative incorporates environmental and social aspects into our business and supply chain that will also generate economic benefits for our customers and stakeholders.” Blackwell points out, “This is a major issue for all of us on this planet and a passionate topic for students today.”
It was the business school’s quality and the diversity of the student body and faculty that Blackwell says helped prepare him for the global business world in which he now works, and reconnecting to his alma mater to find the next generation of innovators was only natural. Students are always studying business cases on Wal-Mart, he says; what better way for them to learn about the leader than by working directly with the company and its top brass on issues that matter most to everyone.
Kate Nanney, BBA 2007
Kate Nanney has already experienced many an alumni event in her role as director
of alumni relations for the Texas Exes Student Chapter during her sophomore year
in school. So when she officially becomes an alumna in a few months, she’ll know
what to do! And she’s looking forward to becoming one of YOU.
“I think it would be great to have more mechanisms for informal interaction among students and alumni,” says Nanney, a Business Honors student who’s also in UT’s challenging Plan II program. “I have often met alums at meetings and business functions, but the most interesting conversations happen in less formal settings.”
The featured student speaker at this month’s McCombs Advisory Council luncheon, Nanney talked about how the business school really enhanced her ability to communicate with diverse groups of people, a skill she knows will serve her well as she continues on a career path that will take her on a two-year stint with Teach for America and then on to law school.
“One of the best things about being in the McCombs School is interacting with other business students,” says Nanney. “These students are always taking on amazing internships and going for valuable leadership opportunities. They’re very driven.”
As Nanney moves from the student to the alumni ranks, there’s no telling how she’ll use those great networking skills and far-reaching McCombs network. “I’ve never been one to set the goals too far out, but when I see something that needs doing, I do it.”
Anne & David Glover
When David Glover (BBA ’80) retired from a successful career in real estate,
his wife Anne (BBA ’81, MBA ’86) decided to put her MBA to work and build a
business. After nine months of researching start-ups and franchises, Anne
discovered and jumped on a franchise opportunity—Massage Envy, a nationwide
chain of membership-based massage therapy clinics much like a health club.“We wanted to get her [Anne’s] UT MBA back into action and we liked the business model found in Massage Envy," said David. She found out about the opportunity and within two weeks she was choosing locations for the first of her now four stores.”
Those locations, along with good therapists, have been key to their success. Her River Oaks and Galleria stores are currently No. 1 and No. 2 in the city among all Massage Envy franchises in number of massages given and total store revenue, and are nationally ranked in the top ten. And she is about to open one more store.
Another key to her success has been latching onto an industry that is experiencing high national growth (Massage Envy just got rated one of the top five retail concepts in the United States by the International Council of Shopping Centers). Fourteen percent of Fortune 500 companies now offer massage as an employee benefit, while individual consumers spend between $5 and $7 billion annually on massage therapy.
“The franchise concept is perfect for a budding entrepreneur,” Anne said. “Because you’re putting your name, money and reputation at risk an upcoming franchise with a solid business model is a less risky endeavor. You can really be involved in the growth phase, but it probably has a reputation somewhere that helps you hedge your bets a little.”
As to advice for new entrepreneurs? “Find something you’re interested in,” said Anne, a self-proclaimed massage junkie. “You need to make certain it’s a business you’re interested in and can be excited about.”
And don’t be afraid to go back to the books.
“I couldn’t have done this without the business discipline I learned at UT and the alumni support network. From analysis to spreadsheets to theories, everything from my education played right into the number crunching and natural abilities I had to run a successful business,” said Anne.
Brandon Calvo, BBA ’96
A move to Minneapolis made all the difference in a career path for one McCombs
alum, Brandon Calvo (BBA ’96). “I moved to Minnesota to pursue a job, but when it fell through, an opportunity with a start-up company came open, and I jumped on it,” said Calvo.
That opportunity was with Cosentino® North America, a company established to market and distribute Silestone® natural quartz surfaces in North America that now includes a network of 90 distributors, including 16 company-owned fabrication shops throughout the United States, Canada, Mexico and Puerto Rico. Calvo, one of Cosentino’s first employees when the company was formed in 1998, has played a large part in growing the flagship brand-Silestone natural quartz from a single sector competitor to an industry leader in the countertop market.
Due to a recent restructuring of Cosentino® North America, Brandon Calvo was named South-Atlantic Division President for Cosentino® North America. Calvo is responsible for managing all current business activities and assets for the South-Atlantic division such as sales and marketing as well as financial performance.
“My biggest piece of advice for new graduates and alumni is to find something you like to do and just go for it,” said Calvo. “If you work hard and persevere, you’ll be successful.”
Calvo also credits the lessons he learned at McCombs as a large part of his success.
“The major thing I took away from my time at McCombs was direct correlation between leadership and work ethic and success in your career. Tom Campbell’s (former McCombs senior lecturer) demonstration and teaching of leadership was so impactful, I recently asked him to come speak at my company,” Calvo said.
To have current faculty and staff come speak at your company, you can contact the McCombs Corporate Relationship Management team, or the individual professors.
Pictured: Brandon Calvo and his wife and former UT cheerleader, Alyson Calvo (BA '96) at the Rose Bowl this past year.
Steve Vartanian, BBA ‘85
On January 4, 2006, Steve Vartanian (BBA ’85) buttoned up his Shine Boy (the
traditional white and burnt orange outfit), walked out on the Rose Bowl field,
and ran the Texas Flag with other Alpha Phi Omega (APO) members and alumni.
“It was such a great moment, mainly because I still fit in my Shine Boy!” said Vartanian. “Here in California, I’m just trying to keep my Longhorn pride in the midst of a sea of USC fans.”
An active member of APO while at The University of Texas at Austin, Vartanian was in charge of the Texas Flag as a student. He also worked on numerous service teams for APO including the “rat patrol,” a group that helped clean up the streets in East Austin.
His personal philosophy about service and teamwork, “anybody can talk to anybody at any level,” is reflected in his current community activities. Fourteen years ago, Vartanian started a not-for-profit media group, MOORE Photography and Writing.
“I got the idea for MOORE after attending a function in Orange County,” said Vartanian. “I was inspired by the other attendees at the event, and wanted a way to channel that inspiration for young people.”
Through MOORE, Vartanian and his partner photograph, interview and write about celebrities, athletes, politicians, concerts and events. He then uses the interviews and collections to develop displays and speeches to inspire southern California youth to stay off drugs and out of gangs.
Over the years, Vartanian has interviewed and photographed hundreds of celebrities including Christopher Reeve in one of his first public appearances, former Presidents Ford and Bush, Coach Mack Brown and Dale Earnhardt, Sr.
Currently in residential and investment real estate, Vartanian has worked for Prudential California Realty for the past five years.
Photo: Steve and his wife, Kristen, at the Rose Bowl.
Marjorie Cheng, BBA, MPA ‘02
Marjorie Cheng (BBA, MPA '02) may only be three years out of school, but she is
already giving back to McCombs through her involvement with Urton Anderson's
Managerial Auditing class. Each semester, Cheng, a staff auditor for
ConocoPhillips, visits the class and runs through a mock audit process with the
students and Anderson."It gives the students a higher-level view of the auditing process and enables them to apply what they've learned in class at that point in the semester. This usually results in them pushing for higher learning and higher concepts as the semester continues," said Cheng.
While a student at McCombs, Cheng enjoyed these types of group projects, as they gave her a chance to work with a diverse group of people applying classroom concepts in a higher level of learning. These experiences (and a chance meeting with Anderson at a recruiting event) are what motivated her to give back to the school.
"The best way to get involved is to reconnect with old professors. From speaking to a class, helping with group projects to mentoring students, there are just so many opportunities out there that actually connect back to your job and what you’re doing at the workplace," added Cheng.
This "real-life" supplement to classroom instruction is a welcome addition for both students and professors.
"Marjorie's and her company’s willingness to work with me allows me to really enhance the experience students have in the management audit and control’s class," said Anderson. "She brings a fresh perspective of current practice and also provides a great opportunity for students to understand the experience they will have early in their careers and the expectations employer’s have of them."
And Cheng uses the students as inspiration for her own career.
"I really enjoy volunteering my time at McCombs. It’s just interesting to see the students and see where they're headed. It pushes me to stay focused on my career and networking," said Cheng.
Interested in providing career advice or talking with students? Check out the McCombs Online Resources, or contact one of your favorite professors.
