Roger Woods accepted the 2013 Teacher of the Year Award from Dean Klippel.

Each year the student body within the School of Business and Economics elects one faculty member as Teacher of the Year. Roger Woods has been selected as the 2013 recipient of the coveted award.  When asked what this award means, the Lecturer in Operations Management said, “I am honored to be selected given the great faculty that we have in the School of Business and Economics. It has helped that I have had some great mentors and support of other faculty to improve my teaching.”

During his time at Michigan Tech, Woods has proven to be a great asset to the School of Business and Economics.  He first won the Teacher of the Year Award in 2011 and that same year was inducted into the Academy of Teaching Excellence as a finalist for the campus-wide teaching award.  He was nominated again the following year,  was selected as a finalist, and became the recipient of the Distinguished Teaching Award.

Roger Woods has been instrumental in the execution of the Business Development Experience over the past 3 years.  His duties included: developing the program structure, finding team projects, and teaching the second semester of the senior capstone experience.  Woods notes that “it has been rewarding to see how the students have matured and are able to apply the various School of Business and Economics classes to their projects.”

The task Woods is assigned to is not an easy one.  The student teams are all working on different projects which may pull them in different directions.  The Business Development Experience is intended to be a practical application of the skills they learn throughout their time at Michigan Tech.  We hope that the students can draw on these experiences during an interview for a job, but also that they look back on it as a rewarding hands-on experience.

Now that the Spring 2013 graduates have completed their time at Michigan Tech, Woods is looking forward to seeing a new class of students coming to campus this fall and hearing the success stories of all the recent graduates.

Michael Morrison and Austin Kuttruff at the Century Center in Omaha, Nebraska.

Applied Portfolio Management Program members, Michael Morrison and Austin Kuttruff, gathered with thousands of stakeholders at the Century Center in Omaha, Nebraska over the weekend for the Annual Berkshire Hathaway Shareholder Event. The crowd in attendance was seeking an intimate exposure to Warren Buffet who is widely considered the most successful investor in the 20^th century.

Michael said that one of the biggest takeaways from listening to Buffett was “you have to love something to do well at it.” Being Finance majors, the two Michigan Tech School of Business and Economics students jumped at the opportunity to attend the shareholder event and learned about the passion that is required to be successful. The opportunity to meet Warren Buffett, his company, and its subsidiaries is highly coveted in the world of finance. Their itinerary included watching a movie about Buffett’s company, and the opportunity to ask him questions in an open forum.

Given the Warren Buffet is 82 years old, some shareholders had concerns about the future of Berkshire after he eventually steps away. However, Buffett addressed these concerns with confidence in his company and the people who work there, saying:

The priority is that all of us continue to zealously guard Berkshire’s reputation. We can’t be perfect but we can try to be. As I’ve said in these memos for more than 25 years: We can afford to lose money – even a lot of money. But we can’t afford to lose reputation – even a shred of reputation.

Buffet told an Omaha news crew that he’s not going anywhere anytime soon, but there is a solid plan for when he does eventually step down. The people who will continue his legacy know the steps they must take to continue to be successful.

Overall, the trip was a great learning experience for the two students which was financially supported by Joe Dancy and the LSGI Advisors Inc.

Director of APMP, Dean Johnson, prepares another group of students for APMP participation during their senior year.

On April 22nd, the Applied Portfolio Management Program (APMP) held the sixth Annual “Junior Day”. This special event serves to kick start the incoming juniors, as they take over as the new portfolio managers of the APMP portfolio. The juniors began their morning by attending the Spring APMP Advisory Board and watching the graduating APMP senior student portfolio managers present their year-end performance results.  After being introduced to the APMP Advisory Board, the juniors attended a series of guest lectures. This year’s guest speakers included: Ryan Layton, Tim Bailey, Larry Durland, and Paul Kasriel.

Ryan Layton and Tim Bailey are both APMP alumni and introduce the juniors to the program that led them to the careers they have today.  Ryan currently works as a portfolio manager with Main Street Investment Advisors in Chicago. Mr. Layton discussed the importance of asset allocation and the process used by Main Street Investment Advisors to determine a portfolio’s optimal asset allocation. Mr. Bailey works at Fortress Investment Group in San Francisco, which is a $44 billion Private Equity/Hedge fund. He discussed alternative asset investing strategies employed in the hedge fund industry with the new APMP students.

APMP Advisory Board Chairman Larry Durland, discussed the thoughtful development of an investment philosophy and strategy, during his time with the APMP teams. In addition to talking to the APMP teams, Mr. Kasriel also opened his presentation to the entire School of Business and Economics.  Over 60 students attended his guest lecture on the current macroeconomic decisions facing the Federal Reserve and investors. A resident of Door County, Wisconsin, Mr. Kasriel serves as the President of Econtrarian, LLC and is a senior economics and investment advisor with Legacy Private Trust Company of Neenah, Wisconsin.

Junior Day give the students exposure and experience talking with professionals working in the world of finance. As APMP team members, they will be responsible to the APMP Advisory Board as they manage over $1 million during their senior year at Michigan Tech.

Financial support for Junior Day was provided by James and Dolores Trethewey.

Michigan Tech’s School of Business and Economics has made it to the top 10 videos in the iOMe Challenge. As a part of the 3rd annual iOme Money Smart Week Video Contest, our students have a chance to win $250.00 for first place.  Vote for the winner by Liking the “Ome Challenge” Page and vote in the pole found on the wall of their Facebook Page.

Our team needs your votes because the winner will be selected through voting on Facebook. Take a minute to vote and spread the word to your friends!  Click here to Vote the for the Michigan Tech Team!  Go Huskies!

Voting ends TOMORROW Thursday, May 2nd at Midnight CST.

Finace Club advisor, Emanuel Oliveira, names Student Organization Advisor of the Year.

Each year the Student Leadership Awards celebrate and reward the individual and group efforts of students involved in organizations across campus. There are awards for student employees, residence halls, and student organizations.

Congratulations to the following students, student organizations, and advisors for inspiring community, scholarship, possibilities, accountability and tenacity within Michigan Tech as well as our community.

Within the School of Business and Economics Senior Lecturer in Economics, Emanuel Oliveira, was selected at this year’s Student Organization Advisor of the Year. Emanuel participated and motivated the Finance Club organization’s membership and is respected by members of the organization. However, the greatest activities contributing to this award was the Finance Club’s FinanceU event last semester.

Yu Summer Gu, an MBA student, was also selected as an award recipient from the School of Business and Economics.  Summer was actively involved and enthusiastic in campus activities .  She was the driving force behind a greatly improved Chinese Night which had a larger attendance this year, almost tripling participation from any year prior.

Here are your 2013 Student Leadership Award recipients:

• Melanie Hoffman, President’s Award for Leadership

• Michael Adler, Provost Award for Scholarship

• Claire Meneguzzo, Vice President’s Award for Service

• Kevin Cassell, Exceptional Leadership in Student Governance

• Yu Summer Gu, Exceptional Enthusiasm as a Student Leader

• Jason Cattelino, Student Employee of the Year

• Hannah Altscheffel, Rising Star of the Year

• Caleb Vogt, Undergraduate Research Expo, Exceptional Program of the Year

• Society of Women Engineers, Most Improved Student Organization

• Leo Ureel II, Breaking Digital Barriers, Exceptional Community Service Project

• Memorial Union Board, Student Organization of the Year

• Emanuel Marcos R. Castro Oliveira, Student Organization Advisor of the Year

Business and Economics students from Michigan Tech had another successful showing at THE Project, taking 2nd and 3rd places respectively.

Two Michigan Tech teams competed in the second West Michigan Project Management Institute THE Project 2013 competition. There were seven collegiate teams competing for $10,000 prizes, and both Michigan Tech teams made it to the Final Four.

Michigan Tech Team B placed 2nd overall and received $3,000, and Michigan Tech Team A placed 3rd overall and received $2,000. Team B consists of Danielle Boettger (Economics), Evan Beckner (Operations and Systems Management), August Skultety (Operations and Systems Management). Team A consists of Kira Eck (Marketing), Mitch Fedie (Management), Amanda Halonen (Operations and Systems Management), and Mandi Severn (Management). All students were enrolled in BUS4950 Advanced Project Management this semester.

Details about the competition are located at: http://www.wmpmi.org.

The School of Business and Economics led a student group to Silicon Valley for an Alternative Spring Break trip.

Alternative Spring Break trips are all the rage at Michigan Tech!  These trips enable students an affordable way to get away from Houghton and have some fun over Spring Break.  The School of Business and Economics offers a students the opportunity to tour the high tech companies of California’s Silicon Valley.

“Going on the Silicon Valley trip was a great way to spend break because I got to meet a lot of cool and inspirational people, while touring top-notch technology companies,” says scientific and technical communications major Armando Flores. The School of Business and Economics organized this trip to give students a backstage pass to tech giants like Google, Autodesk, Cisco and Brocade Communications. The visits came with plentiful opportunities to network, learn about business strategies and explore a whole new world of career options.

Aside from connecting with industry leaders, the students got to experience a culture that differs from what they are accustomed to. “I caught a glimpse of what life is like in California. It really is a melting pot of people, culture and innovation,” Flores says.

The trip wasn’t strictly business, however. The students also had time for fun, creating memories that will last a lifetime. “The most memorable experiences for me were visiting The Gallery at Autodesk, riding a G-Bike at Google and then visiting the Hacker Dojo,” says Flores. “Swimming in the ocean was pretty cool too.”

These thrilling experiences may have made returning to classes a challenge, but they also gave Flores something to strive for. “The trip put everything into perspective and motivated me to keep working hard. One way or another, I will go back,” he says firmly.

Click here to read the full Tech Today article that describes other Alternative Spring Break opportunities Michigan Tech students engaged in this year.

Alice Stuhlmacher will be presenting on, 'Gender in Negotiation: Lessons for Men and Women' on Wednesday, April 3rd

As part of Michigan Technological University’s Visiting Women and Minority Lecturer/Scholar Series, the School of Business and Economics will welcome Alice Stuhlmacher to campus April 1st – 3rd, 2013. During the visit, Stuhlmacher will visit classes in the School of Business and Economics as well as the department of Cognitive Learning Sciences. Faculty and student groups will participate in presentations and round table discussions throughout the visit.

The campus community is invited to attend an open presentation titled, “Gender in Negotiation: Lessons for Men and Women.” The event will take place on Wednesday, April 3, 2012 at 1pm in the Alumni Room of the Memorial Union Building.

Alice F. Stuhlmacher is a Professor of Psychology at DePaul University in Chicago.  Her research interests include negotiation and conflict in organizations, particularly relating to gender,  labor mediators, and virtual communication. She has been active in applying meta-analyses to summarize existing research and has also published research relating to personality, workplace safety, and decision making. Her Ph.D. is from Purdue University in Industrial-Organizational Psychology. She has served as program director of the Ph.D. program in Industrial-Organizational Psychology and as affiliated faculty in the M.S. in Human Resources at DePaul’s Graduate School of Business. In addition to conference presentations and publishing, she has been an invited speaker to various groups such as Women in Science, Women in Business, Georgetown University’s Gender in the Workplace Research Initiative, and Harvard University’s Gender in Negotiation Research Seminar, and is excited to join us to discuss gender issues in the workplace.

Stuhlmacher’s visit is part of the Visiting Women and Minority Lecturer/Scholar Series. This event is funded by the Michigan Tech President’s Office and a grant to the Office for Institutional Diversity for the State of Michigan’s King-Chavez-Parks Initiative.

For more information about Alice Stuhlmacher, see her profile on the DePaul University website.

In 2013, Michigan Tech students qualified and competed in the CFA Institute Research Challenge for the first time.

Students in the Applied Portfolio Management Program are expanding their resumes by competing in another investment competition and gaining valuable real world experience.

The CFA Institute Research Challenge was introduced to a global audience in 2006 and is considered, “the investment Olympics” for university students.  The event which hosted more than 3,000 students from over 650 universities, 89 businesses, and 106 societies in 55 countries and territories.  This challenge is an annual global competition which provides hands-on mentoring and intensive training in financial analysis and professional ethics.  Despite 2013 being the first year they competed in this challenge, our finance and economics students were able to advance to the global final of the event.

By compiling the highest combined report and presentation score and winning the regional competition, Michigan Tech qualified for global final.  ”As a team we set aside many hours of our time to research, compile, analyze, prepare, rehearse, and finally present our findings to a panel of judges. The true amount of work this project entailed is staggering, however we are thankful for the opportunity afforded to us,” said senior Finance major, Justin Wilson.   Joining Justin to represent Michigan Tech was fellow Finance major Jessica Zaiki as well as economics majors Eli Karttunen and Anna Paul.

Each student was tested on their analytic, valuation, report writing and presentation skills and gained real-world experience as they assumed the role of a research analyst.   Upon the team’s return, Jessica Zaiki noted that having the exposure to the CFA institute, investment professionals, and the high caliber of competition at the Americas competition expanded her knowledge of stock analysis and furthered my interest in pursuing a CFA in the future.

The experience was valuable for our students and it is a competition we look forward to having continued participation and success at in the future.  Financial support for the student participation was provided via the James and Dolores Trethewey APMP Professorship.