Calendar

August 5 - 6 - Student Orientation and Registration (SOAR) for the Orfalea College of Business

August 6 - 7 - Student Orientation and Registration (SOAR) for the Orfalea College of Business

Sept. 4 - End of summer term

Sept. 15 - 19 - Week of Welcome (WOW)

Sept 15 - Orfalea College of Business College Connection Day

Sept. 19 - WOW Block Party

Sept. 22 - Fall term classes begin

Oct. 15 - Dean's Advisory Council Dinner, The Cliffs Resort, 6 p.m., contact Tamara Vassey for more information

Oct. 16 - Dean's Advisory Council Meeting, Location TBD, 8 a.m. - 4 p.m., contact Tamara Vassey for more information

Oct. 16 - Dean's Advisory Council Luncheon, Sage Banquet Room, noon, Contact Tamara Vassey for more information

Oct. 17 - Homecoming Football Game, Spanos stadium, 6 p.m. vs. Southern Utah

Nov. 11 - Academic Holiday - Veteran's Day observed

Nov. 25 - 29 - Academic Holiday - Thanksgiving

Dec. 4 - Last day of fall term classes

Dec. 12 - Mid-Year Commencement, End of Fall term

Dec. 13 - Jan. 3 - Academic Holiday

August 2009 E-News

Catching-up with the MBA Program

Orfalea MBA SIM Team Competes in 42nd International Intercollegiate Business Strategy Competition

This past spring, a team of five graduate students from the Orfalea College of Business competed in the 42nd International Intercollegiate Business Strategy Competition at the University of San Diego’s School of Business, which attracted 19 teams from 12 universities in the US, Canada, and the Middle East.

This was the 13th consecutive year that Orfalea’s graduate students participated in the competition. This year’s team produced wine accessories for their fictitious company, “Mustang Vintage.” The purpose of the competition is to teach students the immediate effects of business strategy decisions from both an internal and external perspective. Students faced the challenge of making real business decisions at a rapid pace. Team members agreed that the competition was an ideal way to learn the consequences of business and ethical decision making, as well as the importance of creating and maintaining competitive advantage. “Part of this is called the ‘intensive phase’,” said CEO Marty Flores. “We make 3 years of business decisions in less than 3 days. That type of first-hand experience is what our MBA program is all about.

Team Members, (left to right) were MBA students Logan Travis, Marty Flores, Karen Pedersen, Eric White and Jose Razo (not pictured). The team was advised by Dr. David Peach.

Chris Carr, Associate Dean and Director of the Orfalea MBA program noted, “We are proud of this group of students. This team, as well as our MBA Ethics Team who competed in Los Angeles, are additional examples of how the Orfalea College MBA Program incorporates ‘learn-by-doing’ into our program and curriculum. Our graduate students have proven once again that they can compete with other high caliber MBA students from across the country.”

CAL POLY ORFALEA COLLEGE MBA STUDENTS COMPETE IN
BUSINESS ETHICS COMPETITION

This past spring, a team of four Cal Poly Orfalea College of Business graduate students won the Carol and Stanley Botts Award in Servant Leadership at Loyola Marymount University's National Business Ethics Competition. The annual event was hosted by Loyola Marymount University's Center for Ethics and Business.

Morgan O’Hara (MBA), Mark Polydoris (MBA), David McKinnon (MBA) and Patrick Johansing (MBA) competed against thirty teams, including LMU, Dartmouth University, Indiana University, New York University, University of Arizona, Illinoisan the US Naval Academy.

The Cal Poly students presented a compelling case about agricultural giant Monsanto’s marketing techniques in rural India, and covered the legal, financial, and ethical dimensions of the firm’s business practices in India. The team then offered a solution which embodied the competition’s mission: to show that it is possible to be both ethical and profitable at the same time.

From left to right: Morgan O’Hara, Mark Polydoris, David McKinnon, and Patrick Johansing

Regarding the competition, David McKinnon said, "As MBA students at Cal Poly, we are frequently asked to look at business cases in terms of ethics, as well as profitability. This competition gave us the opportunity to go in-depth with a current and controversial topic that deals with the duties multinationals have when setting up shop in emerging markets."

A panel of business leaders judged the case’s legal, financial and ethical dimensions, as well as the students' presentation skills and overall persuasiveness. The Cal Poly team impressed, with one of the judges commenting that it was among the best presentations he had seen in either a professional or academic setting.

The group’s hard work was appreciated by their advisor, Dr. Peach. “I’m delighted to have worked with this group of young men,” he said. “They are fierce competitors, and it showed.”

For more information on the competition, please visit: http://www.ethicsandbusiness.org.

MBA STUDENT PLACES FIRST IN 23RD ANNUAL CALIFORNIA STATE UNIVERSITY STUDENT RESEARCH COMPETITION.

MBA student Gregg Erickson was awarded first place in the Business, Economics & Public Administration category, at the 23rd Annual California State University Student Research Competition, held last May at California State University, Los Angeles.

This system-wide competition showcases the research conducted by CSU undergraduate and graduate students in the full range of academic programs offered by the CSU. Approximately 200 students from the 22 CSU campuses submitted written papers and made oral presentations before juries of professional experts. Gregg’s research on major online forum communities took top honors in the Business, Economics and Public Administration category and earned him a $500 award.

Gregg’s research topic “A Comparative Study of Large-Scale Consumer Electronics – Centered Online Forums” sprang out of his investigation of online communities and how flourishing forums differed from less successful ones. Gregg, along with MIS professor Kevin Lertwachara, plan to expand on this research during the 2009-2010 academic year.

Calling all Class of the 90’s Alumni

Orfalea College of Business alumni of the 1990’s are investing in students by establishing ten new scholarships, one in honor of each class of the 1990’s. These scholarships will be used to recruit and support exceptional freshmen in their academic pursuits at the college.

The goal is to grow each scholarship to exceed $100,000 in individual gifts and matching funds. Through proceeds from the Orfalea gift endowment, the college will match dollar-for-dollar the first $50,000 in contributions to accelerate these fundraising efforts.

Scholarship awards begin when a class endowment reaches $100,000. Endowed funds will grow in perpetuity, while providing annual support to deserving students.

For more information on the Class of the 90’s initiative, contact Beth Brenner at bbrenner@calpoly.edu or 805.756.2874.

For more information about making a gift to Cal Poly's Orfalea College of Business, visit the College's Advancement web page.