October 2001
Checking Out Future Hires
Pre-employment testing has been practiced for over 50 years by companies such as AT&T and GE, that subjected prospective managers to a wide battery of screening tools including personality and intelligence tests, stress tests, oral and written presentation skills, and integrity tests.
Perceptions Of Organizational Justice Vital To Workplace Ethics Programs
Many organizations are devoting substantial resources to formal ethics programs in efforts to discourage unethical behavior, but a new study shows that the success of those efforts will depend in part on whether employees perceive that their organization treats people in a generally fair way.
A Down Economy Could Mean An Upswing For Entrepreneurship
Although the economy is in a downturn, there are opportunities for entrepreneurs to start new businesses.
Penn State Continues Its Fall Distinguished Speaker Series On E-Business
Penn State's eBusiness Research Center continues its Fall 2001 Distinguished Speaker Series on e-Business on October 18 with a presentation from Dr. Steve Kimbrough of the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania. The event will begin at 2 p.m., Thursday, October 18, in 211 Keller Building at the University Park campus. The event is free and open to the public.
The Greatest Real Estate Movies
The Third Man, The Seventh Seal and The Battleship Potemkin all have very different plots but each is related. The movies all contain top real estate moments in the history of world cinema, according to a recent article on the topic authored by a real estate scholar in Penn State's Smeal College of Business.
Asset Pricing Models Do A Poor Job
The models most often used to form expectations about future equity returns do a very poor job, according to research authored by a faculty member in Penn State's Smeal College of Business.
Among Most Powerful Women In America Accounting Graduate Ranks
Fortune magazine has selected a 1974 graduate of Penn State's Smeal College of Business as one of the "Most Powerful Women In America."
Penn State Executive Programs Ranked Among The Best
Penn State Executive Programs at The Smeal College of Business were ranked in the top 15 for the Mid-Atlantic Region in BusinessWeek's 2001 "Executive Education Rankings."
Contrarian Investing-in People
Yes, the economy is at a low point and many companies are cutting costs and even people. Yet the economic downturn is uneven and there is some up-side news. For example, sales of greeting cards are up according to Hallmark by about 4% since September 11. The luxury jet industry and private jet travel has grown, with United Airlines buying 30 new business jets as it barrels forward with its plans to establish a new division catering to the wealthy elite. Teleconferencing stocks have been strengthened in recent weeks, and ridership on Amtrak is at an all time high.
About Corporate Integrity
It's the choices in the zone of gray, when decisions are not quite black or white, that keep parents up at night, and managers tossing in their sleep. Major newspapers run popular Q&A columns where the focus is not matters of love or friendship, but ethical choices in the workplace.
Mass Customization: The Holy Grail Of Marketing
A new modeling approach to mass-customization may allow customers to truly have it their way when ordering products over the Web. It may also assist a firm in achieving the "holy grail of mass customization"-manufacturing a product or delivering a service in response to a particular customer's needs, and doing it in a cost-effective way.
Area Businesses And Students Unite For 'PSU Nite Out' Fundraising Effort
Undergraduate students in Penn State's Smeal College of Business are teaming with area restaurants, eateries and other establishments to raise funds for recovery efforts in New York and Washington, D.C. with "PSU Night Out" on Thursday, November 8, 2001.
Alumni Return To Give Career Advice During Smeal College's "Student Mentoring Day"
Students in Penn State's Smeal College of Business can now sign-up for "Student Mentoring Day" so they can receive candid career advice from successful alumni. The Smeal College of Business Administration Alumni Association's Board of Directors presents "Student Mentoring Day" as an opportunity for business students to meet one-on-one with successful Penn State business alumni.
Vertical Differentiation Gets Mixed Results For Selling Information Goods
Many businesses and firms practice vertical differentiation when selling to consumers, creating multiple versions of a product with different quality levels and offer them at different prices. This separates the consumers into segments with different segments buying different versions and paying different prices.
Managers Should Take Advantage of Fasb's Goodwill Decision This Year
Managers should take advantage of the Financial Accounting Standards Board's (FASB) recent decisions on goodwill write-offs this year to clean up their balance sheets and create healthier income statements in the future.
Innovation In Quality And Manufacturing Management Is The Focus Of Upcoming Forum
The 50th Advanced Manufacturing Forum will take place November 1-2 at the Penn Stater Conference Center Hotel. The theme for this year's forum is "Innovation in Quality and Manufacturing Management: Lessons from the Frontier." The event is sponsored by the Center for the Management of Technological and Organizational Change in Penn State's Smeal College of Business.
Recent Asian Economic Crisis Provides Managers Lessons For Weathering This Fallout
Within an imminent recession, the events of September 11 have ushered the United States into economic downturn. However, there are lessons from the recent Asian economic crisis that may help managers weather the economic fallout.
Smeal Ph.D. Program Gets High Grades In Doctoral Survey
Graduate students in Penn State's Smeal College of Business gave the Ph.D. program high marks-including an "A" for overall satisfaction-- in the recent National Doctoral Program Survey. In the survey, which was conducted by the National Association of Graduate-Professional Students, more than 32,000 students from across the country graded their doctoral programs in several categories. The Ph.D. program in Smeal College received higher grades in every category than the national average for business and management Ph.D. programs in the survey.
The Lack Of IPOS: Is It Surprising?
The absence of IPOs following the attacks on the World Trade Center is due to the economic downturn, investor uncertainty, and possibly to investors being overly pessimistic regarding firms' values.
Spontaneity, Access Key To E-Learning
E-learning's real potential as a tool for developing leaders is around interactivity and networking, but accomplishing its potential is going to take dynamic e-platforms.
What Insiders Know Of Future Earnings
Two Penn State accounting professors are co-authors of a new study that offers strong evidence that insiders anticipate earnings trends up to two years in the future, and trade to profit from this information.
Davenports Give $3 Million To Penn State's Smeal College Of Business & Eberly College Of Science
Penn State alumni Ronald R. and Judith Loftin Davenport of Pittsburgh have committed $3 million to be distributed equally between the Eberly College of Science and The Smeal College of Business Administration. Their gift will endow a faculty chair in each college.
FASB Decision In World Trade Center Goes Too Far
The Financial Accounting Standards Board's Emerging Issues Task Force has gone too far with its decision not to allow companies to treat costs and expenses related to the World Trade Center as an extraordinary item in the financial items filed with government regulators, says Edward Ketz, associate professor of accounting in Penn State's Smeal College of Business.
Accounting Research Colloquium
Professor Dan Dhaliwal of the University of Arizona is the guest presenter at the upcoming Accounting Research Colloquium in Penn State's Smeal College of Business.
Penn State Continues Its Fall Distinguished Speaker Series On E-Business
Penn State's eBusiness Research Center continues its Fall 2001 Distinguished Speaker Series on e-Business on October 18 with a presentation from Dr. Steve Kimbrough of the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania. The event will begin at 2 p.m., Thursday, October 18, in 211 Keller Building at the University Park campus. The event is free and open to the public.
Financial Management Association To Honor Penn State Professor
The Financial Management Association is honoring a Penn State professor's research on corporate bond pricing during its upcoming meeting.
Businesses Should Ramp Up Abilities Protect To Domain Names
Domain names on the Internet serve the same function as vanity phone numbers and simplify the process of connecting the user to a product. Unfortunately, many firms may be behind the curve when it comes to owning domain names on the web, and CPAs, lawyers and business managers need to devote more resources and energy to keep current with the latest legal developments in domain name practice.
Investing In Today's Markets Topic Of Upcoming Panel Discussion
Investment, venture capital and legal experts will share their expertise on investing in today's dynamic markets at the upcoming "The Lion & The Bear" panel discussion hosted by the Los Angeles Chapter of the Penn State Alumni Association. The event begins at 6 p.m., Saturday, November 10, and takes place at the Los Angeles Marriott Downtown.
Penn State's QMM Graduates Are In High Demand
When Stephanie Washburn took on a new managerial assignment with Kodak several months ago, she felt confident because of her background in Penn State's Quality and Manufacturing Management (QMM) program.
S&A Homes President Receives Penn State "Alumni Fellow Honors"
Robert E. Poole President & CEO of S&A Homes and its affiliate companies, has been named an Alumni Fellow by Penn State's Smeal College of Business.
Going Global
There is growing demand for staff who work internationally. According to the latest hiring survey conducted by Management Recruiters International (MRI), 42.5 percent of corporate respondents have increased their international staffs over the past five years. Of the more than 2,800 executives surveyed, 47.5 percent anticipate that they will increase their international headcount even more in the next five years. With consumer markets, supply chains, and financial channels becoming truly global, many U.S. - based companies see growth opportunities in upcoming years from significant overseas expansion.
Identical Units, Different Rents
Tenants may be able to save money on their rental fees by finding their apartments early.
Pizer Scholarship Makes Critical Difference To Accounting Students
Donald and Marcia Herr Pizer are helping Stacy Lynn Furjanic to focus on her accounting and business law courses in Penn State's Smeal College of Business and they are keeping her motivated, thanks to the scholarship in accounting that the Pizers created.
