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The University of Texas at Austin
McCombs Weekly Vol. 7, No. 15 June 1, 2006   
McCombs School of Business
 
Editor’s note: McCombs Weekly is going on vacation. Once again, we will suspend our weekly schedule this summer, shifting to monthly updates for June, July and August. Please continue to send news items and ideas for media pitches to the Communications Office. Thanks to all who contributed to McCombs Weekly during this academic year.

Spring 2006 Commencement Ceremonies in Photos
At this time of year, we are especially proud of all our students—those in our undergraduate, graduate and doctoral programs, alike. This year’s graduates include talented students from 23 countries, 6 continents, 35 U.S. states and 63 Texas counties. We have compiled photos and speeches from the BBA, PPA/MPA and MBA commencement ceremonies. This month, we invite you to take a look back at this year's graduates and read some of their stories.
View the commencement special.

UT Marketing Team Paris-Bound Following U.S. L’Oréal Competition Win
They asked for it and they got it. A team from The University of Texas at Austin beat out rivals from NYU, Wharton, Michigan and Virginia to win the national L’Oréal Brandstorm competition May 5 in New York City. Now Elizabeth Fenton, BBA ’06, Laura Miller, BS Advertising ’06, and marketing senior Johannes Walker—collectively known as Team DynamUnique—are headed to Paris and the international finals June 15, where they will face off against teams from 30 countries in front of a jury led by L’Oréal CEO Jean-Paul Agon. “They asked for the opportunity to represent the USA,” said Herb Miller, the team’s faculty adviser and senior marketing lecturer at the McCombs School of Business. “The whole object is to ask for the order. This team made a commitment to make it happen and they did.”
Get the full story.

Master of Science Degrees Added at the McCombs School
Master of Science (MS) degree programs will be added to each of the five academic departments at the McCombs School beginning fall 2006. The school’s graduate advisors proposed the new degrees to the University’s Coordinating Board with the goal of enhancing the existing doctoral programs at McCombs. The MS degree is meant to serve as a milestone—Ph.D. students will be awarded the degree as soon as they complete the needed requirements, typically, at the end of their second year. “This particular initiative is one that has been discussed for several years, and it is wonderful news that it is now a reality,” said Dean George Gau.

In the News: Africa is the Next Big Opportunity, Says Mahajan 
Bizcommunity.com (South Africa), May 18, 2006
At a recent research seminar in South Africa, McCombs Marketing Professor Vijay Mahajan discussed the importance of Africa as an emerging market. “Companies simply can’t ignore the opportunities here,” Mahajan said. “One has to only look at the boom in the cellular industry on the continent. These are the so-called poor and destitute of the world, but we are seeing a massive growing consumer base for cellular technology.” Mahajan noted, however, that some firms from developed countries have stumbled in attempt to make gains in Africa. “They have launched products and pulled back, changed their branding, or seen their products undermined by local rivals. Therefore, new solutions are needed to tap into these markets.”
Get the full story.

In the News: Moss Ready to Return Home   
Texas Monthly, June 2006
In “A Soldier's Story: Part VIII,” second-year MBA student Jon Moss' June installment of his Texas Monthly dispatches from Iraq, he explains the difficulty of working with interpreters and and Iraqi contractors as his team helps repair schools in Iraq as well. “The news coming out of Iraq may be about bombings and fighting, but my day-to-day work involves more mundane struggles—and the truth is, I’m ready to go home.”
Read Moss' journal (subscription required).

In the News: India’s Top-Ranked B-Schools Are at a Crossroads 
Worldpress.org, May 12, 2006
In an in-depth article on the state of business schools in India, McCombs is cited in the section discussing the current quality of research coming out of India. “It seems that scholars from two fields in particular—Production and Quantitative Methods, and Information Technology—contribute about half of the Indian articles published in international journals, which is not surprising to us because Indians are known globally for their expertise in these areas. On the other hand, faculty in the core management areas—finance and accounting, marketing, behavioral sciences and so on—publish comparatively few articles in international journals. Compared to the publishing output of faculty at top B-schools like the McCombs School of Business in Texas or the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth in New Hampshire, I.I.M.’s [Indian Institutes of Management] faculty members have a long way to go.”
Get the full story.

In the News: McCombs Alum Delivers University Commencement Address
Austin American-Statesman, May 21, 2006
U.S. Ambassador to Mexico, the Honorable Antonio O. Garza, Jr., BBA ’80, delivered the keynote address at the 123rd spring commencement ceremony on the South Mall May 20. He reflected on his own undergraduate experiences at the university 30 years ago, emphasized the importance of family and encouraged graduates to reach out to people who might be different. “It is people—the real, human connections we make—that matter most,” he said to about 3,000 graduates in attendance. “Globalization is revolutionizing the way we live. But something in danger of being trampled in the stampede to the future is the delicate thread that draws us together as human beings.”
Get the full story.

In the News: Brandl Discusses the Stock Market's Ups and Downs
KXAN, May 29, 2006
In his weekly segment on KXAN’s morning news show, Michael Brandl, senior finance lecturer at McCombs, discussed the recent volatility in the stock market. “For most people, day-to-day fluctuations in the stock market really don’t matter.” Brandl said. “If you’re not going to be selling your stocks today or tomorrow, which is the case for most people, daily movement really is not that important. Year to date, the market is still up over 5 percent.” Brandl also talked about the spike in home foreclosure rates. “A number of people have these adjustable-rate mortgages,” he said. When they got those mortgages, Brandl said, they could just afford the payments; now that rates are going up, some can’t.
View the video clip.

In the News: MBA Alum Heads Up Major Development in Alabama 
The Atmore Advance, May 24, 2006
When the Atmore Industrial Development Board in Atmore, Ala. decided to pursue a large-scale commercial development called Rivercane, they knew they needed a project manager who would not only wake up every morning with Rivercane on the mind, but also dream of the development's potential. Jim Corman, MBA ’77, was selected as the project manager for the 643-acre site. “I think that part of what we are trying to do with Rivercane is to create an image that is number one, very attractive, and number two, very progressive,” Corman said. “That is why we want to use extensive landscaping, why we wanted water features and why we wanted all of the public and common areas, to create a kind of beauty.”
Get the full story.

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