Review highlights of recent news coverage of Georgia Tech College of Management's people and programs.

May 2009-November 2009

• Rising to the Challenge: Georgia Tech College of Management has received an anonymous commitment of $25 million, reported multiple media outlets, including The Atlanta Journal Constitution, Atlanta Business Chronicle, WXIA-TV (11 Alive News), and the Associated Press. Of the total commitment, $20 million is a 1-to-1 challenge grant designed to inspire charitable gifts and commitments from other donors to the College's endowment. The remaining $5 million will provide funds expendable at the discretion of Dean Steve Salbu.

• Prescription for Innovation: Strategic management associate professor Frank Rothaermel published an op-ed article in The Wall Street Journal discussing his holistic study of strategies employed by pharmaceutical firms for innovating in the realm of biotechnology. Published in The Wall Street Journal’s special section on “The New Face of Innovation,” the article was titled “Finding Innovation Strategies that Work." Many firms employ multiple strategies to innovation at once, but that grab-bag approach may actually lead to decreases in innovative output, Rothaermel wrote. “Some strategies don’t mix well, and companies risk wasting valuable resources if they pursue them together."

• Attitude Adjustment: David Herold, professor emeritus of organizational behavior, appeared in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, discussing the role that psychology plays in dealing with recessions. "People look to the right and the left to see how they should feel," Herold said. "People will be more confident if their neighbor feels more confident."

Still in Demand: Laura Hall, who earned her Georgia Tech MBA in spring 2009, was prominently featured in the Atlanta Business Chronicle for her success at finding at a job. She started her human resources position at Mckesson Corporation, a health care technology consulting firm, just two days after graduation. According to university career services directors, medical and technology companies have continued to hire, despite the recession.

• Underleveraged?: Charles Mulford, professor of accounting and Invesco chairholder, discussed a new accounting change in The Wall Street Journal. The change, which affects the way some companies report noncontrolling interests, could make some companies appear less leveraged than they really are, Mulford said. But he noted that before the new rule went into effect, many analysts already did their own leverage calculations to account for noncontrolling interests.

• World Class: Georgia Tech’s Center for International Business Education and Research (GT CIBER) was recently awarded the 2009 Governor’s International Award in the International Education Program category, reported the Atlanta Business Chronicle. These awards honor individuals, companies, and organizations that have made a significant contribution to Georgia’s position as an international business hub.

• Self Sabotage: Seeing and considering a healthy option on a menu actually leads people to order more fattening choices, reported WebMD Health News. Georgia Tech marketing assistant professor Koert van Ittersum commented on the findings, saying they confirm "that we are sometimes are our own worst enemies. Once we feel we have done something right – as in thinking about a salad – we feel we deserve more." He didn't conduct the study.

• Bucking the Trend: BusinessWeek interviewed Georgia Tech MBA admissions director Paula Wilson about enrollment trends for the academic year starting in fall 2009. Applications for admission were up significantly at Tech, unlike at some other schools.

• Hard Road: For commentary on the bankruptcy of General Motors, CNN Radio turned to Narayanan Jayaraman, professor of finance at Georgia Tech College of Management.

• Coming Out on Top: AccelerEyes, winner of the 2008 Georgia Tech Business Plan Competition, continues to impress judges. TechView reported that in 2009 the software company won the GRA/TAG business launch competition's top prize, including $100,000 in cash and $200,000 in various business services. AccelerEyes' technology enables supercomputing on a standard PC.

• Degrees of Success: In a special section on local MBA options, the Atlanta Business Chronicle prominently featured Vinod Singhal, associate dean of Georgia Tech's MBA programs. He discussed Tech's various programs, including Full-time, Evening, Executive MBA in Management of Technology, and Global Executive MBA.

• From Lab to Market: TechView ran an in-depth article on the Technological Innovation: Generating Economic Results (TI:GER) program. A collaboration between Georgia Tech and Emory Law School, TI:GER brings together PhD, MBA and law students in the classroom and research lab to learn about the challenges of commercializing innovative technologies. "The purpose is not so much to incubate companies as to teach these teams the process," said program director Margi Berbari. "We have graduates who take intrapreneurial positions. It's more of a mindset we teach rather than evaluating it solely by the number of companies we form."

 • Historical Perspective: The College of Management's new "Timeline of Wall Street, Business and Technology" was featured in a two-page spread of the Atlanta Business Chronicle. Assembled outside the Ferris-Goldsmith Trading Floor, the 30-yard timeline exhibit features various finance-industry artifacts donated by retired executive Tom Asher. Dean Steve Salbu said its "dynamic presentation should go a long way toward strengthening student interest in finance careers."

 • Impeding Progress: Georgia Tech research showing how the development of new and innovative pharmaceuticals is being stifled was covered my numerous media outlets, including Pharmaceutical Technology Magazine, Science Week, and MedPage Today. The study was conducted by strategic management assistant professors Stuart Graham and Matt Higgins. They found that U.S. law and successful patent challenges embolden generic competition, decreasing incentives for pharmaceutical innovation and contributing to productivity and revenue declines in the pharmaceutical industry.