Studying Abroad: McCombs Student
Featured on UT Home Page 
Gene Huang, an undergraduate majoring in supply chain management, is profiled within the current banner story on the UT home page. Huang, who spent six months oversees at Shanghai Jiao Tong University, challenged himself by taking six courses, some taught in English and others taught in Chinese. One course that amplified his business acumen was “Cross-Cultural Management,” which focused on how Chinese history, culture and business habits influence business management in the country. “In America, we value quality and merit,” Huang said. “In China, they value connections, so it’s a completely different business world. It’s a cultural difference we need to understand in order to be good managers there.”
Read more.

Undergraduate Leadership Program Receives Accolades in First Year
The McCombs School’s Leadership Certificate Program (LCP), launched at the outset of the 2007-08 academic year, received a Bronze Award from NASPA, the leading organization for student affairs administration, policy and practice. A class of 76 undergraduate students was accepted to the LCP in its inaugural year. The LCP is a unique program among undergraduate business schools. It strives to enhance student learning and development as it relates to self-knowledge and leadership competence. “The Leadership Certificate Program is destined to become one of the hallmarks of the McCombs undergraduate program,” said Paula Murray (right), associate dean for undergraduate programs. “Now we have a venue to allow select students to develop their leadership skills as well as their academic skills. This sets us apart from other top undergraduate Bachelor of Business Administration programs.”
Read more.

Executive Education Hosts Third Executive Leadership Institute
Executive Education is hosting its third Executive Leadership Institute, a three-week program that runs through Jan. 24. The program is produced in partnership with the Construction Industry Institute (CII). Offering an intense leadership curriculum, the program is custom-designed for senior executive candidates in the engineering and construction industry. This year’s class of 28 represents 23 national and international companies, hailing from Panama to South Africa. In addition to construction industry professionals, the program faculty is enriched with the expertise and knowledge of the following McCombs and UT faculty: Michael Brandl, John Daly, Janet Dukerich, Jim Dyer, Britt Freund, Richard Grant, Pamela Haunschild (left), Jim Nolen, Gaylen Paulson, Tim Ruefli and David Spence. CII, based at UT, is a consortium of more than 100 leading owner, engineering-contractor and supplier firms from both the public and private arenas.

Gu Wins Award for Paper on E-Commerce
A paper co-authored by Bin Gu, IROM assistant professor, was named Best Paper in Track at the 2007 International Conference on Information Systems held in Montreal. The paper, "Estimating Menu Costs in Electronic Markets," examines the costs online retailers incur when they make price changes. Gu said that common wisdom suggests that IT advances allow online retailers to change prices quickly with less cost. In the paper, however, Gu measured the price adjustment costs of a major online retailer and found the company actually incurred significantly higher costs for each price change. But the price change costs were spread across a larger quantity of products, reducing price adjustment costs per product. In sum, Gu found, scale economies rather than IT enables online retailers to change prices more often.
Read the paper.

Green Team at McCombs Ramps Up with Kickoff Lunch
Did you make a New Year’s resolution to be more environmentally conscious? Are you concerned about the eco-footprint that McCombs leaves in our community? Join the GreenTeam@McCombs as they work to improve the sustainability and resource conservation at McCombs. Faculty and staff are encouraged to bring lunch and join the 2008 Kickoff Meeting Jan. 23 from 12:00 to 1:00 in the Technology Training Lab (GSB 3.128). An introduction to the organization as well as the 2008 goals will be discussed. If you have any questions, please contact Ben Bond at Ben.Bond@mccombs.utexas.edu.
Learn more.

Media: Parrino Says Luby Dissident Faces Difficult Proxy Fight
The Houston Chronicle, Jan. 10, 2008
The New York investment firm dueling Luby's management over leadership issues got a boost when two leading proxy advisory firms sided against the Houston-based company. But history suggests Ramius Capital Group, which wants to place four directors on Luby's 10-member board, still faces a tough task. "Proxy contests fail a very large percentage of the time," said Robert Parrino, McCombs finance professor. "It's like someone in Congress — the advantage is with the incumbent."
Read more.

Media: Brandl Gives Tips on Paying Off Holiday Debt
KXAN, Jan. 17, 2008
Michael Brandl, senior finance lecturer, doles out some practical advice to television viewers who may have overspent during the holidays and who are now facing hefty credit card bills arriving in the mail. "It can often take years for people to pay off one Christmas," Brandl said. "The best thing you can do is pay as much as you possibly can, and that's going to require sacrifice."
Watch the story.