Business Networks

	.: SEPTEMBER, 2003		VOLUME 1, ISSUE 3 :.

BUSINESS INSIGHTS

.: Risk-sharing, says researcher, offers the best hurricane protection.

   Known as both the Sunshine State and Hurricane Alley, Florida is infamous for its weather, good and bad. There also is a dichotomy between theory and practice in implementing mitigation against catastrophic risk, said Professor of Finance Krishnan Dandapani. "In other words, everybody talks about hurricane risk, but no one does anything about it. It's perceived as too expensive."
   For more than ten years, he has issued technical reports to the State of Florida's Academic Task Force on Hurricane Catastrophe Insurance and the Department of Community Affairs. He recommends a cooperative relationship among homeowners, lenders, insurance companies, and state and local governments that, he said, will "synchronize benefits and create financial synergy to make costless mitigation feasible." The value-chain Dandapani proposes goes something like this—homeowners can get low-interest loans from lenders to install hurricane protection, such as shutters; the loans are subsidized by insurance company deductibles, and in return, cities, counties, and the state won't have to raise taxes on homes.
   So far, the State of Florida has committed half-a-million dollars to developing such financial incentives. Dandapani currently is transforming his ten years of research and reports into a journal article and a book.

.: Professor compares conflict and business strategy.

   Professor of Decision Sciences and Information Systems Tomislav Mandakovic sees some lessons in business strategy in the Iraqi conflict. He said that while the war’s short-term goals were “greatly achieved,” he has reservations about its achieving its long-term goals. “When looking to access unfriendly foreign markets," he said, "firms can learn from the U.S.’s experience by looking at critical factors like logistics design, local alliances, information quality, and productive capacity.” The U.S.'s more careful consideration of these critical factors, he argued, could have engendered a better environment for realizing its long-term goals.
   Also applicable both to the conflict and to global markets, Mandakovic said, is the notion that “the edge goes to organizations that can perceive and adapt to fundamental scenario alterations.”
   Mandakovic presented his paper, “Strategic Lessons Left by the Iraq War,” at the Taller de Ingenieria de Sistemas, at which he was a featured speaker. The workshop, hosted by the Facultad de Ciencias, Departamento de Ingenieria Industrial, Universidad de Chile, was held from July 15 to 17, 2003, in Casapiedra, Chile.

IN THE COMMUNITY

.: Weekend BBA students provide kids with 'Tools for School'.

These kids at the Downtown Miami Homeless Assistance Center are looking forward to their first days of school thanks to Weekend BBA (WBBA) Group 13 students. On August 21, the WBBA group delivered more than $7,000 in donations and enough school supplies for 450 students to the Homeless Assistance Center and the Salvation Army. One of the WBBA students, Ricardo Rios, said, "Seeing the joy in these children’s eyes definitely made the entire effort from Group 13 (WBBA) worthwhile." The class project, “Tools for School,” was part of the WBBA's required course, Business in Society, taught by Associate Professor Bob Hogner.

.: Change Intervention Plan helps students and firms.

Is your hospitality/food service, healthcare, or retail company seeking to make organizational changes? If so, undergraduate students in Associate Professor of Management and International Business Deborah Vidaver-Cohen's class can design a Change Intervention Plan for you. If you are interested in learning more, please send an e-mail to catoggio@fiu.edu.

IN THE WORKS

.: Chapman School hosts Open House on September 13.

On September 13, 2003, the Chapman Graduate School of Business will host an open house for anyone interested in learning more about the School and what it has to offer. Graduate program management staff will be on hand to present information and answer questions, including those about its MBA and Master's degree programs. For those wishing to pursue an advanced degree in business, the open house is the perfect opportunity to find one designed to further their career.
The open house will be held from 10:00 a.m. until 1:00 p.m. in the lobby of the Management and Advanced Research Center (MARC) Building on FIU's Modesto A. Maidique Campus—use the SW 107th Avenue entrance. Information and registration for the open house are available online at chapman.fiu.edu or by phone—(305) 348-7398.

.: New MSMIS advisory board sets strategy.

   This summer, the Master of Science in Management Information Systems (MSMIS) program formed a corporate advisory board, which, after its first meeting in June, was ready to jump into action. In July, the MSMIS Advisory Board met to discuss how well the orientation and the mission of the program are reflected in the curriculum and how to ensure that it produces technically-proficient and managerially-competent graduates.
   Decision Sciences and Information Systems Associate Professor Irma Becerra-Fernandez, who also serves as faculty director of the program, said "We're delighted that we have been able to attract such an energetic group of information technology (IT) thought-leaders to the MSMIS Advisory Board.” She said their insights and support already have been invaluable in helping the program’s faculty adapt the curriculum to ensure that it continues to serve the needs of our business community.
   Corporate members of the MSMIS Advisory Board include Alicia Blain, Vice President of Information Systems, Visa International Latin America and Caribbean; George Bofill, Management Consultant & Business Analyst; George Bracket, CIO, City of Hialeah; James (Jim) Bussey, Stratasys (Chairman of Advisory Board); Carlos Covarrubias, CIO, DoleFresh Flowers; Guy Desautels, Senior Director of IT Applications Services, Citrix Systems, Inc.; Miguel Angel Espinosa, Director of Sales and Marketing, Johnson & Johnson MD & D Group Latin America; Daniel Foster, InfraGard Coordinator, FBI; Ulma Gonzalez, Director, Applications Development Division, Miami-Dade County; Mark Grossman, Chairman, Technology Law Group, Becker & Poliakoff, P.A.; Bill Hicks, Senior Vice President and CIO, Precision Response Corporation (PRC); Tery Howard, Director of Information Technology, Miami Dolphins; Richard Linhart, CIO, Astral Communications; Eugene Lukac, Partner, Strategic Services Group, Computer Sciences Corporation; John McGowan, Vice President & CIO, Florida International University; Juan Poggio, Systems Administrator, Xerox Corporation; Lincoln Rodon, Vice President of Information Technology Systems, Amadeus North America Distribution; Diane Sanchez, President & CEO, Americas Exchange; Robert Sanchez, Senior Vice President and CIO, Ryder Systems, Inc.; Maria Villar, Vice President, Information & Business Intelligence Transformation, IBM.

FOCUS ON ALUMNI

.: Alumni Circle tackles its first initiative.

   The College’s Alumni Circle has taken on the development of a Pilot Mentoring Program as its first project. Using data collected from the College’s previous mentoring initiatives as well as from their personal experiences as mentors, Circle members hope to design a mentoring program structure that suits the needs of and provides lasting benefits to both students and their mentors.
   In the Pilot Program, which will begin in November, 2003, each Circle member will mentor from one to three students.
   For more information about becoming a member of the Alumni Circle and/or about the Pilot Mentoring Program, call or e-mail Monique Catoggio, 305-348-4227 or catoggio@fiu.edu.

.: Alumni Chapter adds new event to its 2003-2004 line-up.

   The Business Alumni Chapter’s Board of Directors has designed a new event for its members which will provide for a high level of networking, corporate and/or services promotion, and professional development.
   The event will take place on Friday and Saturday, November 14 and 15, 2003, at the Miami Airport Hilton. On Friday night, the Chapter will feature its version of “Speed Networking.” FIU alums in attendance will have the opportunity to greet one another and give their desired pitch. Saturday's daytime agenda features a variety of business workshops, hosted by special guest speakers, and a business expo, which will allow participants to enhance their business skills and promote their services and/or companies.
   Details about and a registration form for the event will be posted soon on the CBA Alumni Chapter’s Web site. In the meantime, if you would like to be added to our “I’m interested” e-list, please e-mail the Chapter’s secretary, Senen Garcia, at senen@alphmega.com.

.: It’s time again for a little mixin’.

If this summer’s Business Alumni Chapter mixer at John Martin’s Pub in Coral Gables was any indication of attendance at future socials, then expect another successful get-together in September! You are invited to join other College of Business Administration alumni at Señor Frogs in Coconut Grove on Thursday, September 18, 2003, from 6:30 to 8:30 pm. As always, drink and hors d’oeuvre specials will be featured. Cheers!
To view the Chapter’s 2003-2004 Calendar of Events and to register to attend the events, click here.

ALUMNI UPDATES

.: Interested in what your fellow alumni are up to?

Alfredo Cepero (BACC ’88), one of the College's Alumni Circle members, has been named Audit Partner with BDO Seidman, LLP in Miami. He serves clients in a variety of industries, including distribution, manufacturing, technology, and not-for-profit. He is responsible for generating business opportunities for the firm and for overseeing the recruiting and various administrative functions of the Miami office. Before joining BDO, Cepero was with Ernst & Young, LLP.

Rita Ferro (MIB ’03) has been promoted to Vice President, International Advertising Sales, at ESPN Latin America in Miami.

Miguel Rabay (BA ’81), President and CEO of e-Globalnavigators, Inc., a global consulting firm focused on implementing and delivering global strategies for start-ups and mid-sized companies, has joined the College of Business Administration's Alumni Circle.

Albert Santalo (MBA ’97) has been named CEO of Avisena, a healthcare management company in Miami. Santalo is co-founder of Avisena and has served as president of the company since its inception in June, 2001.

Read more alumni updates.

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BUSINESS NETWORKS is published by the Marketing, Communications, and Publications Office and developed in conjunction with the College's Alumni and Partner Relations Office in the College of Business Administration at Florida International University.