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THUNDERBIRD Magazin e WWW.T-BIRD.EDU 54/1 / 2000 THUNDERBIRD Page 2 Beware the ROI 'Merger mania' has now gone global. But, beware! Cross-border M&As are often fraught with peril. Page 8 No Matter Where They Roam A single digital device could soon serve you in Miami, Madrid, Melbourne, and Medellin in ways you can't even yet imagine. Page 14 MIMLA Graduates First Class They were the first of a new breed ofT-birds. They remained in Mexico, yet earned joint degrees from two very impressive schools. Page 16 The Original Thunderbirds Before Thunderbird trained students for global business missions, it trained World War II pilots for missions of a very different sort. Page 22 Bonjour et Bienvenue Thunderbird Europe's French-Geneva Center expands and begins admitting full-time students Thunderbird is America's premier TABLE OF CONTENTS source of global management education with operations in the U.S., France, Russia, China, Japan, Mexico and Taiwan. Page 1 FROM GLENDALE TO GLOBAL Thunderbird increasingly takes its programs, professors, and students around the globe. Page 12 FACULTY VIEWPOINT Privatization was once seen as the 'cure all' for many nations, but is it? Professor Shoshana Tancer tells the tale. Page 20 CAREER FAIR 2000 World's best companies meet world's best talent at 'way cool' Thunderbird event. Page 24 NO RESTRICTIONS Don't tell these feisty T-bird women that the world wasn't - or isn't - ready for top female executives. Page 26 AMERICAS CONFERENCE When you can bring country presidents and scores of Latin America political and business leaders together in one room, Miami becomes the place to be. Page 28 HOMECOMING It was 'the night the lights went out in Glendale' but the Global Issues 2000 class, The Fall e2v Forum, the Pub, and other events still rocked. Page 33 EXECUTIVE EDUCATION DELIVERS Today's brightest global risers are having Thunderbird deliver degree and other training right to their regions, companies, and work desks. Page 34 EUROPEAN REUNION Page 36 THUNDERBIRD GLOBAL BUSINESS FORUMS IN ASIA Page 38 T-BIRD NEWS Page 40 NETWORK NEWS Page 42 UPDATES ABOUT OUR COVER Dr. Anant Sundaram is a leading finance and global strategy professor at Thunderbird. ~~------------ 54 / 1 / 2000 P AGE p . 1 ONE FROM TO GLENDALE GLOBAL For more than 50 years, Thunderbird has worked to bring the world to Glendale. The School works just as hard to take Thunderbird's programs, professors, and students around the world. As the world's only truly global management school. Thunder- " bi rd is reinvigorating its reach to all corners of the world," said John Seybolt. sen ior vice president for Academic Affairs at Thunderbird. "From executive education partnerships with companies small and large on four continents, to the Thunderbird Centers near Geneva and in Tokyo, to our programs in Mexico, China, and Russi a, to the Winterims we hold throughout the world, Thunderbird is, literally, spreading its brand of global management education to people and places where such opportunities were just a dream a few short years ago." During this past year alone: • Thunderbird trained 1,000 working executives in 10 non-U.S. countries as well as 3,500 others who were U.S. based. That training, which was delivered by Executive Education, included everything from three- to lO-day seminars on topics such as ebusiness, finance, and marketing; to multi-week, custom company programs. • The Thunderbird Center for Business Skills Development (CBSD) emerging markets team trained over 200 and 2,320 people in China and Russia respectively. That training included everything from skills-based Becker CPA reviews to custom corporate programs such as the School's Looking Glass management simulation tool. ness Forums - which were held in Shanghai, Tokyo, Singapore, Miami, Glendale, and Silicon Valley. These Forums are one-half-day or full-day topic-speci fic programs that are held in different regions every year. • 480 full -time 'traditional' MIM students studied in at least one of Thunderbird's overseas programs during the last year. • 440 students from 43 nations did internships in 20 countries. • Approximately 60 professors taught at Thunderbird's full-time faciliti es in France and Japan, at its summer program in Guadalajara, Mexico, in either its Latin America-based MIMLA program or Russia and China-based CBSD programs, or at one or more of the other custom programs Executive Education runs worldwide. • Fourteen Thunderbird professors took students overseas during last January's three-week Winterim session. Others hosted off-site courses in places such as Wall Street and Washington, D.C. According to Seybolt. Thunderbird has aggressively formed strategic alliances with major corporations, governments, and prominent business schools to better serve business leaders globally. Many of those people are already Thunderbird alumni who are retooling skills to remain competitive. Others are corporate champions who want to strengthen their global market edge by having their people trained. • Thunderbird graduated its first class of distance learning-trained students on June 30th. In fact, there is now one Master of International Management for Latin America (MlMLA) student (232 in all) for every six traditional MIM students at Thunderbird. MIMLA is a joint degree program Thunderbird's Dr. Roy Herberger is granted a formal audience with Jiang Six ian, secretary general of the Shanghai Municipal People's Government, "Executive Education is no longer an entitlement or simply a benefit. It is being used as a change agent in organizations to establish and reinforce company initiatives and growth," said Bud Robyn, senior vice president of Thunderbird's Exec. Ed. group. "Thunderbird likes to during his visit to China. offered in partnership with the Instituto Tecnol6gico y de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey (ITESM), a leading business school in Latin America. MlMLA students earn their two-year MIMLA degrees by leveraging distance leaming technology from seven ITESM sites. • The School launched its first regional Master in International Management for executives in cooperation with the Acer Group in Taiwan. This program serves working professionals throughout Asia who commute to Acer's Aspire Academy for eight professional development workshops. When combined with two modules on the Thunderbird campus in Glendale and interactive web-based instruction, executives can qualify for an MIM degree. Thunderbird is rolling out similar programs in cooperation with other leading organizations throughout the world. • 1,400 people attended one or more of Thunderbird's Global Busi-think of Executive Education as a strategic weapon that can be used by business managers around the globe." One of Exec. Ed's key strengths appears to be its ability to form close, long-term relationships with key clients. "By truly partnering with companies, we can provide services such as needs assessments, custom programs, evaluations, and consulting services," Robyn said. "Then, we act as a navigator, facilitating our partners through today's business challenges." According to Robyn, companies are asking Thunderbird to offer 'seamless training solutions globallY: They want everything from very 'high-touch' senior level and on-site custom programs, to full-fledged executive degrees, to mid-range, functional courses, to introductory-level culture, business, and language classes that might even be delivered directly to an employee's desk. • p.2 WWW.T-BIRD.EDU 54/ 1/2000 Cross-border M&As are often fraught with peril BY LINDSEY MICHAELS hile mergers and acquisitions (M&As) used to be mainly a U.S. craze, 'merger mania' is now exploding globally. But let the business world beware because although M&As are supposed to facilitate market entry, technology transfer, and the achievement of worldwide economies of scale, virtually every study shows that, on average, M&A costs and challenges often outweigh the short-term gains to the acquirer. For many, offshore M&As have even turned into full-blown nightmares. Those companies simply hadn't been prepared for doing due diligence abroad - where information access, reporting practices, business cultures, and communication styles can present major challenges. • So, how can global T-birds help their companies do M&As wisely? We asked a few experts. "Here at Delphi, which is a General Motors spin-off. we've been averaging one acquisition per month since 1995," said David Rocher '93, manager, mergers & acquisitions, at Delphi Automotive Systems. "The fIrst thing we've found is that you have to have a partner or someone on your own team who really speaks the language, understands the culture, and knows the local accounting practices. "For instance, if you don't understand the nuances and functions of certain contacts, you'll never fInd the right person to ask the real hands-on questions," he said. "Likewise, you have to understand exactly how numbers are confIgured and reported under that country's accounting standards, as well as how things like labor laws may affect a company's ability to hire or layoff workers." According to Rocher, truly successful M&As only occur in cases when you know your partners as well as you know their books. Do they have a history of getting into unsuccessful ventures? Do they share your approach to business, work style, and general ethics? Any of these factors can derail a merger that looks rock-solid fInancially. Rocher added that Delphi also employs a post acquisition integration team. "our implementation team is made up of people from different functional areas who have entirely different skill sets from the acquisition team." Rocher termed that group 'critical' and said they face many challenges, such as integrating legacy systems, and trying to consolidate people and operations into one cohesive team. As a Deloine & Touche consultant, Van Beer '94 has a slightly different view of M&As. He and his company provide third party due diligence and acquisition advisory services to companies. "On the 'buy' side, we look at the target company to see if it makes strategic sense, then analyze product lines, price points, and growth potential to determine revenue flow or cost savings. We also look at existing managers to analyze their strengths, weaknesses, and ability to fIt in with the new company." According to Beer, there are two types of acquirers: strategic buyers and financial ones. Strategic buyers are usually in the same or related industries and are looking for product and management synergies. Financial buyers are focused on returns, not synergies, and are more concerned about existing management because they are not good at operating companies. "We do financial analysis from both an accounting and tax perspective and, a lot of times, it's the tax consequences that drive or kill the deal," Beer said. Given that many countries have their own accounting standards, auditors really have to understand the intricacies of each system. "Depreciation is one of the biggest areas we look at. We need to know if the company is using the straight line or accelerated method so that we can back things out and make apples-to-apples comparisons." Beer's team also has to know a lot about country-specifIc nuances. "France, for instance, has a very tax-driven accounting system. That means that they tend to push revenue recogni- 54 / 1/ 2000 WWW.T-B1RD . EDU p .3 p .4 tion back and book expenses quickly. Once you understand that they work to minimize reportable income you can convert and compare more effectively." Beer added that U.S. public companies tend to do just the opposite; they post cash quickly to help drive up pershare prices. "But you can't stop after the financial due diligence is done," Beer said. "You have to do cultural due diligence as well." Beer has even found large cultural and industry variations to the due diligence approach. "We went into one French company for what we considered a very early information-only meeting and found that they were very much into finding out details. They wanted to know how each process worked from A to Z and, essentially, things that went right down to the daily job activities for each person." However, Beer's Mexican client approached things differently. Its people focused less on the financial due diligence process and more on getting to know their potential partners. "They were much more relationship driven and informal." Most experts say that relationships are critical success factors in MMs. "Europeans tend to react more slowly and to be more deliberate in their decision process than Americans. This has presented real problems for European companies - especially those that have acquired Silicon Valley-based high-tech fums," said Beer. "Many aren't working out because the Silicon Valley work culture simply doesn't tolerate having R&D sidelined for months while the corporate office back in Europe debates something." "Acquisitions of hightech firms, especially in Silicon Valley, have proved to be problematic for non-U.S. firms," LEFT David Rocher '93, who manages M&As at Delphi Automotive, says cultural differences can quickly derail a merger that looked rock-solid finan cially. Delphi employs a special post-merger implementation team. RIGHT Van Beer '94, who analyzes M&As for Deloitte & Touche cautions that financial due diligence is just the first of many factors to consider when looking at cross-border M&As. WWW.T-BIRD.EDU added Anant Sundaram, an associate professor of finance at Thunderbird. "With high-tech companies, your assets basically walk out the door each evening and you can only hope that they come back tomorrow. Those assets are information-based and reside in peoples' heads - which makes them much more difficult to value, acquire, and integrate successfully than equipment or cash flows," he said. "Those assets are also more difficult to retain and motivate." Sundaram added that in addition to cultural challenges, non-U.S. firms also face some very real financial challenges when acquiring hightech companies. "Non-U.S. firms traditionally don't offer stock options and bonuses that are considered a 'no-brainer' here. So what does a company like Ericsson, for example, do? If they offer stock options to U.S. employees they have to offer them to their other 100,000-plus employees worldwide. But doing so would cost some real money - not to mention the fact that it would tum their corporate culture upside down," he said. "Look at Sweden, where Ericsson is based. Employees would be taxed on the entire value of their stock options in the year those options were granted - whether they were exercised or not. How should company officials compensate for that fact when their U.S. employees are only taxed on the gains they realize when their options are exercised?" Stock-related challenges actually playa larger role in M&As. For instance, non-U.S. companies face the very real hurdle of having to list their stock on a U.S. exchange before being allowed to engage in stock-based MMs involving U.S. companies. But listing that stock opens them to numerous SECrelated (Security and Exchange Commission) and market fluctuation challenges. Curtis Fox '88, the London-based director of investor relations at Edelman Public Relations Worldwide and a TAA EMEA Council member, understands several of those challenges first-hand. "One of our clients, which is currently doing an IPO (initial public offering), has decided that it only wants its stock listed on Germany's Neuer Markt exchange, not on either U.S. exchange," he said. "The main reason is the SEC. Under SEC guidelines, companies have to honor a 'qu iet period' where they can't promote their company. Listing on the Neuer Markt doesn't bring that requirement. However, since they're not listing this stock on a U.S. exchange, we at Edelman can't promote or market our client to potential U.S. institutional and retail investors - not even those Americans who are living in Europe." 54/1/2000 THE WORLD OF M&As According to Anant Sundaram, associate professor of finance, who teaches both MIM and Executive Education courses at Thunderbird, U.S. companies were involved in approximately 90,000 M&A deals between 1981 and 1999, with the value of those deals approaching US$8.0 trillion. That had made the U.S. the world's most active M&A market, but that gap is tightening. U.S. firms tackled US$2.5 trillion worth of MMs during 1998 and 1999, followed by the European Union (EO) with US$l.S trillion, and the four most active M&A countries in Latin America - Argentina, Brazil, Chile, and Mexico - which did a distant US$120 billion. However, M&A activity in the EU has nearly equaled U.S. activity year-to-date in 2000; it was US$987 billion in the EU, compared to US$1.08 trillion in the U.S., according to Securities Data Corporation. While the mega-deals typically garnered the lion's share of media and public policy attention, the average M&A was much smaller - about US$78 million per deal - although that average has been trending up. That average was between US$130 and 140 million per deal during the last three years. "The reality is that today's global managers are often involved in a series of smaller acquisitions throughout their careers, many of which happen at the divisional or country level - not corporate, • said Sundaram. He said that there is currently no conclusive research evidence showing whether a series of smaller acquisitions is ultimately more profitable for companies than one mega-deal, but his early research into the subject leads him to believe that this could be true. "For one thing, smaller acquisitions tend to be cash-based, rather than stock-based: he explained. "That means you pay the money upfront and go on. When you use your own stock as the medium of exchange in acquisitions, you give away ownership of future cash flows rather than preserving them for your current shareholders. You bring in a new group of shareholders that you have to pacify." Sundaram also said that when companies announce that they are planning to use their own stock as merger currency, they signal the market that they think their stock is overpriced - that even if they pay for all potential future gains with stock today, at today's price, they will still be getting a good bargain 54 / 1/2000 - and, because of that, the announcement effect is that their stock price almost always drops, relative to cash-based deals. "When you acquire a company, you basically do a present value (PV) calculation of all the future earnings - both base-case and synergies - you expect to realize, then you pay for them today. That money's gone," said Sundaram. "The target company's shareholders immediately pocket the PV of the full long-term value you've identified and walk away happy. It's the acquiring company that's left trying to realize all of the long-term efficiencies and gains it's already paid for. That's why when a merger is announced, the target company's stock price usually shoots up while the acquiring company's stock price drops, or at best, stays flat, n he said. Smaller cash acquisitions may work better for others reasons too. For one thing, post-merger integration is easier. ' Consider the example of Cisco, a company that has acquired over 60 companies in a lO-year period. Cisco is a master of the M&A. One reason it's done so well is that it has typically acquired smaller companies - and it's a lot easier to integrate 500 new people and their systems into a workforce of 20,000 than it is to bring in 10,000." Sundaram believes that size may also play a critical role in the upfront negotiation process. "When relative equals face off, the target company is able to exert more influence to extract more value and concessions than a small company could do. Smaller companies tend to have less negotiating power, so they get. beat down more." Smaller acquisitions also tend to be less driven by 'managerial hubris: or empire-building considerations. According to Sundaram, M&As were pretty much an Anglo-American phenomenon for the last two decades, but as the European M&A numbers show, that trend is now changing. 'Until a few years ago, European, Japanese, and Korean companies hadn't woken up to the fact that they would have to change and grow to survive in the evolving global marketplace for products, people, technology, and capital, n said Sundaram. "Like it or not, world businesses and their corporate governance practices are moving towards the contractarian AngloAmerican, shareholder-oriented, 'what have you done for me lately; business model." Governance styles in both Asia and Continental Europe had traditionally been WWW.T-BIRD .EDU much more stakeholder-oriented, relationship- based, and relied on what Sundaram calls a "communitarian style of doing business where employees, banks, suppliers, and so forth, played substantial governance roles." "Europe has been the fastest to change outside the AnglO-American countries of the U.S., Canada, UK, and Australia; with Northern Europe - especially Sweden and Finland - leading the way," he said. He added that Japan and South Korea need to get much more aggressively involved in M&As. "The biggest challenge to non-U.S. companies is that they can't do stock-based Thunderbird's Dr. Anant Sundaram says that most country level managers must now analyze and implement many small- to mid-sized mergers during their careers. Are they ready? FOR DISCUSSION AND ANALY IS of issues mentioned here, see: "Cross-border Acquisition of u.s. Technology Assets: in California Marutgement Review, Spring 2000, and "Purposes and Accountability of the Corporation: Corporate Governance at a Crossroads," in Law and Contemporary Problems, Summer 1999. A PDF version of the latter can be downloaded free of charge from Dr. Sundaram's AMTB profile at h ltp://papers.ssrn.com/paper.taf?ABSTRACT_J D=220570 p .5 acquisitions of U.S. companies unless their stock is also listed on a U.S. exchange. But if they list it, they become subject to the same U.S. laws, shareholder scrutiny, and market volatility as U.S. companies. That has basically come as a rude shock for many nonU. S. companies." So too has the concept of 'hostile' takeovers. While investment banker and lawyer driven hostile takeovers were fairly commonplace in the States during the 1980s. Sundaram said they fell out of vogue here as the market matured. ' With hostile takeovers, you usually pay a higher premium and have almost no inside-based due dili-gence data," he said. "They also take longer to complete and tend to bring more integration issues. On the other hand, when a takeover is openly hostile, you can be more ruthless, and thus faster, during the integration process." According to Sundaram, Europe's evolution through the hostile takeover phase is normal and should lead to the type of "restructuring, deconglomerating, and return to focus" that the U.S. began experiencing two decades ago. Although painful, those processes ulti mately helped spawn the economic boom the U.S. has enjoyed. So, will another region or country surpass the U.S. as the dominant global economic player during the next 10 years or so as they master M&As? Probably not, said Sundaram. "J think that throughout the next decade, the world will still be beating a path to the U.S:s door," he said. "For one thing, English is now the language of world business and the AngloAmerican style of corporate governance is becoming the world's standard. Even more of a reason, however, is the fact that the changes we're talking about, the sweeping cultural, legal, and tax reforms that, by necessity, come along with this process of driving towards enhanced productivity, will fundamentally change all aspects of life in the countries in which they're happening. This is going to turn governments, unions, and the social welfare systems upside down - and there will be a fair amount of push-back. So we're probably going to see the rest of the world taking one or two steps backwards for every three steps forward during the next few years, while the U.S. just keeps plowing on ahead." - LINDSEY MICHAELS p.6 Fox said that part of his firm's job involves knowing how each investment market works and what its unique communications-related regulations are. He must then help educate his clients and try to manage their expectations about what is - or isn't - possible given their budgets and the breadth of their new market place. "Given that it's so easy fo r people to access information now, we also have to really work with all parties, in all countries, to ensure message consistency and to coordinate when and what we ultimately release," he said. "Something that gets released into one market will almost certainly reach into others, and that can impact our client's sales as well as its stock price." According to Fox, small, established European companies have bee.n doing IPOs, then using their newly acquired capital for M&As. "This year has just been a boom time for M&As in Europe," he said. "Many European companies had economies of scale in their individual markets - France or Germany; for instance - but with the advent of the Euro and the trend towards globalizing. they're realizing that they need to play on a more regional or global basis to remain competitive. We try to help." Besides helping its clients generate publicity and brand awareness in each new marketplace, Fox said that his company must also counsel clients about the potential risks of IPOs. That's because hostile takeovers are in vogue in Europe, which means that companies that float might actually make themselves targets as well as potential acquirers. "We didn't use to have that many unfriendly takeovers here," Fox said, "certainly not across borders. But big investors are now encouraging outsiders to come across borders, take over local companies, then restructure all the pieces into bigger, better global businesses. What we're seeing is an industry by industry cycle," he said. "One company obtains TOP Bea Cueto '87 competitive advantage BELOW Dr. Franc;ois through an M&A and the Lhabitant others - whether around the corner or the world - have to fo llow, have to consolidate, in order to compete." That's just one of the many challenges of today's new global market place, where managing your brand, funds, culture, and investors are all critical to long term M&A success. Now, don't you wish you'd taken better notes while you were taking that course on Global Strategies? • WWW.T- BIRD . EDU 54 / 1/2 000 M&As. IPOs. AND GLOBAL WEALTH Private banking has been one of the hottest topics - and jobs - at Thunderbird of late. And no wonder! Over one million people became millionaires last year, according to the 2000 Merrill Lynch/Gemini Consulting World Wealth Report. That report predicted that high net worth individuals' (HNWI) wealth would grow by more than 12 percent per year through 2004, to US$44.9 trillion. It also said that more than 55,000 'ultra high net worth' individuals worldwide already have personal financial assets exceeding US$30 million each. 1\vo reasons were given for the growth. The first was global real gross domestic product (GOP) expansion, which helped create new businesses and markets. The second was the global stock market, which grew by 37 percent last year. There is little doubt that both the number of HNWls and their respective wealth will increase throughout the world as more and more family businesses and Internet start-ups do initial public offerings (IPOs) or get acquired. "Traditionally, most European businesses have relied on personal capital and bank loans to grow. Very few went to the next step, to an IPO," explained Franc;ois Lhabitant, an assistant professor of finance at the Thunderbird Europe's French-Geneva Center and the head of quantitative risk management at Union Bancaire Privee in Geneva, Switzerland. "In fact, until very recently, an IPO was considered a symbol of success in countries like France, Switzerland, and Germany." According to Lhabitant, few people in those countries understood equity markets. In fact, he said, many perceived the stock market as a casino, where only the very rich could play and win. And, with capital gains taxed at rates of up to 47 percent, it just made more sense for most people to invest in other ways. "For instance, when France Telecom went public, it offered its employees the opportunity to invest up to 25,000 francs, about US$4,000, in its stock," he said. "What's more, it offered to lend them the money at zero percent interest and provided the guarantee that it would buy back that stock at the original price after three years. That was a ter-rific deal and yet, relatively few employees took advantage of it. " Today, Lhabitant said, Europeans are becoming much more comfortable with stock and are, in fact, watching the proliferation of Internet start-ups, the increasing popularity of stock options, the trend towards IPOs, the impending tax law changes, and the influx of online brokerage services with great interest. Many are also cheering the recent creation of secondary stock markets in France, Switzerland, and Germany that have made it possible for smaller companies to get listed. Such changes have already helped fuel Europe's current M&A craze. They could also easily spark a new wave of wealth creation and significant cultural changes throughout Europe, according to Lhabitant. Similar trends are also starting to sweep through Latin America and Asia, which has 1. 7 million HNWls. "Argentina and Chile, where I work extensively, have a very sophisticated business environment with very highly educated global investors,' said Beatrice Cueto '87, a senior vice president at Salomon Smith Bamey in Miami, who provides financial advice and services to the ultra high net worth individuals, especially wealth generating entrepreneurs. "Chile, for instance, has benefited greatly from a large number of U.S. educated economists, known as the 'Chicago Boys: who studied in the U.S. then returned to Chile where they were influential in reshaping their country and transforming it into a very advanced economy: she said. ·One of their greatest merits was the privatization of the Pension Fund system, which, in turn, developed Chile's capital markets." Largely because of them, Cueto said, the entrepreneurs in Argentina and Chile have enjoyed a long history of doing business with multi-nationals, and have, therefore, been able to develop worldwide contacts. 'The 'Bigger is Better' trend has spread to this Southern Cone of Latin America," said Cueto, "where they have experienced a large volume of mergers and acquisitions during the past years. This trend has touched most sectors of the economy, including financial services, health care, and telecommunications." Cueto added that because of all of the above factors, ultra high net worth Argentineans and Chileans have been active global investors for many years. She believes they have paved the investment path for those who follow. - LINDSEY MICHAELS p.B WWW.T-BIRD.EDU NO MATTER WHERE THEY ROAM 54/1/2000 Global telecommunications systems help people transact business and keep in touch '94(above) and Kirchdorfer 'S7 of Ericsson say personal communications devices will create entirely new business and personal opportunities. Bjorn submitted this picture using a digital camera attachment to his Palm Pilot, then emailed the shot. (right) BY LINDSEY MICHAELS he flies from Miami, to Madrid, to Melbourne, then back home through Medellin - 5 using a single cellular phone throughout her three-week trip. That phone - or personal communications device (peD) - doesn't just allow her to send and receive telephone calls, photos, and emails, it also alerts her that a favorite friend is also in Madrid. Then since both have also pre-programmed in their fondness for fish, the peD provides a list of nearby Sushi bars - along with their directions and menus. Sound farfetched? Well hang on to your horses because that same peD will also allow our global traveler to access the Internet, watch movies, make online purchases, inventory the family 'fridge; then reorder from afar. It will also function as a global positioning system as she moves from place to place, and will even allow her to turn on the heat and lights at home upon landing. Welcome to the telecommunications (telecom) industry in the year 2000! While not all of the aforementioned features are fully functional as yet, many are here - or near - at least in some regions. Think what you will about them, but the experts say that all should substantially change the way people communicate and work. Europeans, for instance, had long been seasoned mobile telephony users, but today they're embracing the Internet. Americans, who had long-leveraged fixed wireline and cable for telephone and Internet, are finally roaming freely from coast to coast - and overseas - with a single wireless. Japanese, who hadn't had much personal computer access, are now going wild for the new Mobile Internet. Mexicans, Brazilians and many others who barely had telephone access, are now enjoying widespread wireless and growing Internet access thanks to privatization, the global telecom consolidation trend, and new technology. industry is all about the Mobile Internet," Masle '94, vice president of market-communications for Ericsson, one of the ications industry's leading companies. about the 'three anys': any time, any place, how." ng to Masle, Finnish and Swedish youths already sending several million text messages over hand-helds each day. And in Japan, where percomputer ownership rates are low, an unexpected million people already use the new I-mode Mobile access that's being offered by Japan-owned NIT. "I personally expect to see more wireless than hard-wired users within three years," he said. "There are many different things one should look at when 54 / 1 / 2000 WWW.T - BIRD .E DU p .9 p . 1 0 talking about the Mobile Internet. Imagine that you're driving down a remote and unfamiliar road when something goes wrong with your car. A registered wireless device that's embedded in your car first runs a diagnostic program to see if it can detect, then fix, the problem. If it can't, it scans for nearby garages and sends out a call for help, using its global positioning system to transmit your exact location as well as its analysis of what's wrong with your car. Or suppose you're in an accident. Your personal mobile device doesn't just call for an ambulance, it also transmits your entire medical history to the team that is en route." Masle said that people should also be able to book airline reservations, download 'infotainment: and shop using their mobiles. "Within five years, I think we're going to see an alI-communicative world where people are going to be able to control their communication access and stay connected to the people who are important to them - be they family or business colleagues - in the ways that they want to." ·Convergence is coming and it will revolutionize the way we socialize and do business, but voice is still the primary telecom need in many parts of Asia and Latin America," added Bjorn Kirchdorfer '87, vice president of a global customer team at Ericsson. "We're talking regions and countries where there is still no telephone access for a large portion of the pop- WWW.T - BIRD . EDU ulation - period," he said. "Imagine the economic growth that will occur in China, for instance, once farmers and families outside of Beijing get communications access." Kirchdorfer said that Sweden-based Ericsson partners with telecom providers across the globe to plan and deploy telecommunications solutions for each market. "It isn't economical to run copper wire throughout China, but the good news is that with wireless, there's no need to," he said. "Wireless allows emerging markets to quickly play 'catch up' and 'leap frog' ahead with technology in ways that would actually be more difficult if they had to evolve from traditional fixed-wire technologies. " In basic terms, that means giving people for whom modern day communications was, at best, a luxury, regular phone access simply by installing repeater towers throughout their countryside. Brazil and Mexico, which have both privatized their telecom industries in recent years, have already begun experiencing that boom. Whereas it used to take new Brazilian businesses up to two years to get a fIXed-wire phone, phone access today is more immediate. People are simply using wireless until fIXed-wire catches up. As a result, there are already more wireless than wired telecom users in Brazil and, as the country is being wired, Brazilians are exploding onto the Internet. "Obviously, once voice access is established, 54 / I / 2000 our next challenge becomes one of getting people connected to the Internet and addressing their other data needs," Kirchdorfer said. "Giving individuals immediate access to their 'stuff is what it's all about, regardless of location. Beyond person-to-person and person-tomachine communications, we also expect a significant growth in machine-to-machine data transactions - in the home as well as in the commercial sector." According to Kirchdorfer, industry experts expect the number of worldwide wireless users to surpass hard-wired ones by 2003, then keep growing exponentially. Thus, the industry is focused on delivering content over a wireless network. 'Today, data is still significantly slower over wireless than it is by wireline. That's why delivering high-speed voice and data over a wireless environment is the next major inflection point for society," he said. "Companies like Cisco already receive up to 80 percent of their orders online. Imagine what's going to happen to world commerce once that small businessman in China, or that Scandinavian reindeer meat supplier, or that Venezuelan entrepreneur can access world markets quickly and cost-effectively right through their PCD." Long a leader in mobile telephony, Europe is already betting big on bandwidth since it is the apparent key to content delivery. In fact, some 54/1/2000 countries are auctioning off bandwidth spectrum - and scoring big! Great Britain recently received US$30 billion for the license to its nationwide spectrum. Germany reportedly received about US$40 bi llion for its license. Given that 3G isn't even scheduled to go live until 2001, in Spain, the partnerships that purchased those licenses are enduring incredible market entry costs and risks today in hopes of high returns on those investments later on. "Ericsson and our clients are investing heavily in new 3G, or third generation technology that addresses speed and volume issues and works across all of the world's network protocols," said Kirchdorfer. In fact, globalization has totally become the industry watchword. As people steadily become more global in their communication needs, they are absolutely demanding cross-border synergies. As a result, telecom companies have been forced into an aggressive expansion mode, merging capital, equipment, technologies, and client pools. They've also been forced to work together on 3G and other new technologies. WWW.T - BIRD .EDU costs." Lillelund added that the next MEMS switch will have a 1,024 by 1,024 mirror field that will boost capacity 2s0-fold by 2005. "We're also working on shooting streams of light directly through the air and into homes and buildings using non-damaging lasers - which means that you might not even have to wait for fiber optic cable to be installed." Lillelund just participated in the first collaborative video editing demonstration at the recent digital Hollywood trade show, which connected movie industry post-production facilities in Beverly Hills, Calif., Toronto and New York City for online editing. "People at all three sites were seeing the same thing at the same time and doing the actual editing online," he said. "This technology will help the entertainment industry significantly collapse development times and costs, and has great potential for other industries," he said. "In the pharmaceutical industry, for instance, it typically costs US$700 million and takes 10 to 12 years to get each drug through the FDA approval process. We're talking truckloads and truckloads of images, x-rays and other supportFor Mads Lillelund '87, vice president of New Media at Lucent, staying at the forefront of technology is his full-time job. As such, he works across borders and vendors equally. III T'S ALL ing documentation being shipped back and forth between labs, etc., that can be transmitted online. With this system, regulators can see, say, a brain tumor that's been treated over a five-year period and watch it as it actually shrinks during a time-condensed 30-minute video. That's powerful! Or imagine auto designers at DaimlerChrysler working online ABOUT THE 'THREE ANYS': "Technology is advancing so quickly that optics and wireless capacity is doubling every nine months," said Lillelund. "To put that in perspective, computer chip capacity is only doubling every 18 ANY TIME, ANY PLACE, AND ANY HOW:' months - which means that we have to get content creators, developers, and service providers to work together." Lillelund defined 'new media' as the 'Economy of Light: encompassing digital, broadband, and rich media. ''We're basically talking about everything you and I will want as content: video-on-demand, online entertainment, elearning - the list is virtually endless." Given that bandwidth is the Holy Grail for content delivery and that fiber optics is today's best source of it, fiber optics manufacturers worldwide are working 24/7 in a headlong rush to catch up to demand. But, innovation certainly isn't stopping there. "We are already using new technologies like Lucent's MEMS-based (Microelectromechanical Systems) optical switches that transmit data by light using 256 by 256 microscopic mirrors that are placed on a single chip," he said. "And since they're beaming light, not data - which have to be converted into electronic impulses, then back again - we can significantly increase transmission speeds which, in tum, reduce transmission from both Strattsgart and Detroit on a new car model, who can collapse the time from concept to reality from three years to a few months." Advances such as these aren't science fiction, according to Lillelund. He predicted that entertainment industry executives would make and save money using collaborative editing techniques this year. He also said that Global Crossings has already begun deploying MEMS chips in some markets, and that laser channels are currently being tested in four markets. "New York's largest financial companies already have this technology. I believe that most businesses in major cities like New York and London will be wired within five years and that businesses in most of the world's metropolitan areas will have it within 10," he said. "Ultimately, we're looking to provide a link to every single person and a light beam directly to their PCD or desk. .. . Within five years? I think it's safe to say that you will be communicating and conducting business in a real-time, livevideo format, from just about any where and at just about any time you want." • p . I I world of Bluetooth, at work, at home, and everywhere. estimate that there will be more than 1,000 Bluetooth-enabled products on the market by 2004. Bluetooth is a joint project of 3com, Ericsson, IBM, Intel, Lucent, Microsoft, Motorola, Nokia and Toshiba, but nearly all other companies are adapting its standards. You can learn more by visiting www.bluetooth.com. Broadband (bandwidth) is the 'pipeline' through which video and other increasingly sophisticated forms of media wUI be delivered to a mobile world. 'rich' media, as it is termed, service (QoS) is a critical issue, requires cooperation across platforms, says Bradford commercial director at Enron Services who is in charge demand technology. more about the Ins ~ band, cable, flbe _P._12 _________ ---l~~I~~~OI~;If--------------S-4/-1/-20-00 PRIVATIZATION Every decade has a 'buzzword: and in the 1990s it was definitely privatization. Privatization was dearly perceived as the cure-all for nations - whether they were already developed or still developing. This process - and privatization should be understood to be a process - basically stood for the changing from complete government ownership and control to something less than that. Privatization is, therefore, a term that covers a variety of outcomes: from change of ownership to change of management. In each case, the government ends up with less ownership or control than it previously had. Today privatization and deregulation - which is its U.S. equivalent - is under attack because end results have frequently not met expectations. To understand why, one has to review the reasons why governments seek to privatize in the first place. There are three basic drivers for privatization: ideology, finance, and technology transfer. Ideology played a major role in the privatization of government-owned enterprises in both Great Britain, under Margaret Thatcher's leadership, and the U.S. during Ronald Reagan's term. Thatcher believed not only in limited government, but also that privatization would re-ignite England's entrepreneurial spirit, and thus, end stagflation. Reagan believed that government should playa lesser role in people's lives. He also believed that governments are never as efficient as the private sector. These two leaders sought privatization/deregulation as a means of getting government out of areas in which the private sector could better operate. In emerging nations, privatization allowed governments to show their commitment to reducing their own role while also creating a more level playing field for the private sector. After all, decades of government involvement in the economy had not brought about significant growth, so many government leaders no longer subscribed to a 'dependency theory' that absolved their countries from responsibility for living standards. The World Bank and International Monetary Fund were also factors in these nations lessening the role of government BY PROFESSOR SHOSHANA TANCER in the economy. In the former Communist bloc nations, which moved quickly towards privatization, the primary motivation was to demonstrate that they had indeed broken with the past. Financial considerations also played an important role in the choice to privatize. Governments saw privatization as a way to remove industries and/or sectors that were a drain on their current budgets - as well as a means for disengaging from activities that were not competitive in world markets. Whereas governments had previously accepted their role as the 'employer of last resort' and the fact that protected markets often led to lower quality of goods, they began exammmg those beliefs during the 1990s when globalization and open access to markets became the rule. They realized that productivity and quality standards had to increase, but that they could neither fire workers directly nor initiate and enforce necessary productivity gains. Privatization was, therefore, their answer. There were other financial benefits as well. For one, privately owned companies pay taxes - which increase revenues. Governments could also receive an immediate inflow of capital from the sale of each business or asset. Such money could be used - as it was in Mexico - to pay down external debt, or used to create new programs for which funds had not previously been available. A third driver for privatization was the potential for technology transfer. Through privatization, countries could get modern equipment and/or licenses and obtain access to the latest processes. When Mexico privatized TELMEX, it decided to permit foreign as well as domestic ownership. The government also solicited significant ownership from two foreign telecoms: France Telecom and Southwestern Bell (now SBC). At the time, France Telecom had the industry's most advanced interactive system, Minitel, which provided consumers with access to restaurant and airline information and reservations. SBC, a U.S. company, had faced challenges similar to what awaited it in Mexico - having provided service to both major metropolises and vast geographic areas with low population density in the U.S. As a result of this infusion of cash and the latest technology and know-how, TELMEX quickly became a significantly more efficient telecom player. Given Mexico's level of success, most nations have now privatized - or are in the process of privatizing - their telecom sector. Although landline domestic service has frequently been kept out of foreign hands, there is no dearth of competition for buyers of mobile and cellular licenses. Privatization, however, is a process. It will fail if there is a lack of planning and if the appropriate steps are not taken sequentially. Privatization can, in fact, be an initial success in terms of 54 / ' / 2000 removing a government's financial burden, but it can still fail in the longer term. For the initial privatization to succeed, each country must conduct a careful study of its society. First they must do an accurate assessment of the culture. Who are the people? What is their level of education? Their attitude toward work? Motivating factors? Has capitalism ever existed? There are many who contend that one of the reasons the Russian privatization effort faltered was that the nation jumped from feudalism to communism and that the people had never experienced the problems - as well as the benefits - which arise from the economic risk-taking that is an inherent element of capitalism. There also has to be an existing institutional framework for privatization efforts to succeed. By that, I mean a legal framework that protects creditors and debtors alike, and which permits failing businesses to actual ly fail and dosure to occur. There have to be capital markets and financial institutions, so that there can be liquidity in the share holdings, potential buyers who can sell at will, and credit that is made WWW.T - BIRD .E DU will most likely be directly and indirectly impacted by these efforts. The government must, therefore, begin by determining how to maximize acceptance of the privatization by those in government, by workers in the companies that are to be privatized, by those who would be competitors, and by the public at large. In making lhese preparalions, the government must develop a dear and comprehensive plan for privatization. It must make sure that it has legal authorizalion for such activity. In some instances, governments have had their constitutions amended to provide this certainty. In other instances, new legislation and/or the creation of a new agency may be sufficient. The government then has to dearly define its intentions. Is it going to privatize a sector or a company? Is it going to transfer ownership or transfer management? Are foreign entities or individuals going to be permitted to participate and, if so, to what extent? Once these issues have been resolved on a policy level, the government must ensure that delegation of authority is dear and specific, that funding exists, and available to the new or reorganlhat agency personnel believe ized entities. Privatization also requires a judicial system that is recognized as fair, open, and able to help resolve disputes on a timely and equitable basis. "T HE SOCIETY in the new goals and can act without government intet- HAS TO TOLERATE vention. Timetables and schedules must be prepared and adhered to. Goals must be seen as credible. And the public must be kept informed so that charges of corruption are unlikely to occur. People must also recognize that every DIFFERENCES AND The society itself has to tolerate differences and be comfortable with dispute resolution techniques. It is also useful if there are non-governmental organizations that can mediate between the interests of specifBE COMFORTABLE WITH DISPUTE RESOLUTION TECHNIQUES:' privatization - even in a single nation - is different. There is no such thing as a cookie-cutter or one-size-fits-aH approach to privatization. Each effort must be evaluated and the method that is chosen must correspond to the goals and objectives of the nation at the time that privatization takes place. ic groups and the government, much as environmental groups in the United States speak on behalf of a large number of individuals who might otherwise not make an impact on government policy-making. Finally, the government that is embarking on or implementing privatization has to have legitimacy and stability. A totalitarian government or dictatorship may have short-term stability and be able to mandate privatization. However once that administration ends, its acts are frequently questioned and, sometimes, overturned. A democracy, on the other hand, has more difficulty in initially carrying out a privatization effort because it needs the support of the populace, but its efforts are more likely to endure once implemented. Canying out a privatization requires significant research, a determination of the impact of alternatives, and the creation of a coherent government policy framework. It is essential that planned goals and objectives are dearly thought through and articulated. The public must know what the government hopes to achieve and who Looking at privatizations over the past decade, one readily sees that privatization for the sake of privatization is not effective. Governments have to recognize the role competition and regu lation play in a capitalistic setting. Without competition, the restructured company has little incentive to perform differently than it did before. Even with competition, there is no guarantee that the public will be better served if effective regulations are not also put in place. That is one reason we are now seeing a backlash against privatization in many countries - like the Czech Republic - that had initially been viewed as successful. Governments, however, are becoming ever-more-sophisticated at understanding the ramifications of privatization and are working to make them more successful in the future. • p . , 3 WHO SHOULD ATTEND p.14 WWW.T- BIRD .EDU MIMIA Distance Learning Program Graduates First Class BY LINDSEY MICHAELS They were the first of a new breed ofT-bird graduates. All reside in Mexico, have full-time jobs, and now have joint degrees from Instituto Tecnol6gico y de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey (ITESM) and Thunderbird. There were 104 of them and on June 30, they became the first graduates of the new Masters of International Management for Latin America (MIMLA) distance learning degree program. "With MIMLA, students were able to get simultaneous degrees from two world dass universities," said Bert Valencia, MIMLA director and an associate professor of marketing at Thunderbird. "ITESM has the top-ranked MBA program in Latin America, while Thunderbird has the top-rated international program in the U.S. Our students also get to stay at home, continue gaining work experience, and they don't have to uproot their families." The MIMLA program leverages distance learning technology to link high potential Latin American executives with some of today's top teachers of global skills and strategy. This two-year 'lock step' program combines in-person and live, broadcast lectures with the type of hands-on, real-company case analysis that helps facilitate success in to day's global economy. MIMLA students focus specifically on Latin Amer- ICa s unique cultures and business needs and are taught by professors from both schools. They also learn from and network with their working peers - who are located throughout Mexico and in Peru. "Watching this graduation was one of the most exciting professional experiences of my life," said Dr. Tony Dieck-Assad, director, MIMLA program ITESM and a professor of operations management. "I am very proud of these executives; they have worked very hard. And seeing all of them receiving their diplomas made me very emotional." Despite the fact that all graduates were from Mexico, more then 300 of their friends and family members attended the graduation ceremony in Glendale - which was also broadcast live to Mexico for those who couldn't make the trip. Graduates even got to speak with their Mexican-based loved ones during the festivities. The MIMLA degree is modeled after Thunderbird's proven tripartite program, and combines courses in international business, international studies, and English Business Communications. It is particularly well suited for students who want to continue gaining work experience while obtaining leading edge skill sets that apply directly to their current jobs. Students begin by coming to Thunderbird for about 10 days, 54/1/2000 TOP MIMLA 2000 class president Eugenio lee proudly addresses his fellow graduates. ABOVE Dr. Tony Dieck of ITESM and Dr. Bert Valencia of Thunderbird nurture the MIMLA program and partnership. LEFT MIMLA students participate in the Flag Parade. Their graduation ceremony was broadcast live to ITESM sites in Mexico where family members who couldn't come to the u.s. had gathered. ~E FACULTY ALONE IS A GUARANTEE OF A SUCCESSFUL MIMLA EXPERIENCE. 54/1/2000 during which time they meet each other and their teachers, and get acquainted with the technology they'll be using for the next two years. Classes then meet every other Friday afternoon and Saturday at an ITESM site. WWW.T - BIRD . EDU According to Dieck, graduating students rated MIMLA's program content, methodology; and overall value quite highly - which Incoming MIMLA 2002 class members celebrate at the Pub during the last night of their lO-day Thunderbird orientation. today," said Alejandro Marti, a relationship managerwith Citibank, Mexico. "As MIMLA graduates, I believe we have many advantages that people graduating from the on-campus program do not have. Namely the work experience that you don't lose, the knowledge about technology that you gain, was especially important to ITESM given that half the initial MIMLA class held ITESM undergraduate degrees. Dieck also finds it significant that over 90 percent of all MIMLA students who began the program completed it. "It took a very forward thinking group to take the risk of being the first MIMLA program class and I think it pulled us all together," said Ruben Dari6 Trevino, an operations director with Asista.com in Mexico. "Both Thunderbird and ITESM have taken this endeavor very seriously and have appointed the best of their teachers for the program. This is an opportunity that no one should miss." "My MIMLA degree gives me the best of both worlds," said Eugenio Lee, class president for the MIMLA 2000 graduates. "ITESM is the recognized leader in MBA education in Mexico so everyone here knows the value of my degree - whereas people in Mexico who are not exposed to the global market may not know Thunderbird. Outside of Mexico though, it's the other way around. People may not know ITESM, but they do know the value and reputation ofThunderbird." Lee works in the global sourcing department of General Electric, where, he says, contacts and knowing where to go for product and raw materials is critical. "One of the greatest strengths of the MIMLA program is the network you develop. There is such diversity in your class, very experienced people who are all in different classes, of different ages, and working in different companies. This is an opportunity you don't usually get in Mexico." Lee added that he already knows that one of his new bosses is from Thunderbird, as are a local coworker, a Brazilian co-worker, and one in the U.S. "Knowing them and sharing a Thunderbird connection is very powerful to me," Lee said. There is now one MIMLA student for approximately every six full-time Thunderbird students. They also already account for more than one of every three known alumni in Mexico. That means that the MIMLA program will play an intricate role in rapidlyexpanding Thunderbird's network and name recognition in Mexico - as well as in Latin America - as the program expands throughout the region. "I think that everyone is satisfied with what we've done in the past two years and what we're finishing and access to some of the very best professors. "I'm joining the Thunderbird Alumni Association Latin America Council because I believe that as alumni of Thunderbird, we still have to be involved in all the activities that take place on-campus and off," said Marti. "In Mexico for example, there are going to be 100 new alumni graduating each year from the MIMLA program. That's an explosion of growth that will eventually give Thunderbird a lot of presence in this country and in other Latin American countries." Given that ITESM operates 29 facilities in Mexico and eight other Latin American countries, the MIMLA partnership could - and should - expand exponentially. The 2001 MIMLA class already includes students who live in Peru and both ITESM's Dieck and Thunderbird's Valencia said they expect to continue adding students from other countries to the MIMLA mix shortly. "In our three years, we already have students from Belize, BraziL Colombia, Germany, Mexico, Panama, Peru, Spain, United States, and Venezuela. "I expect next year to be a banner year," said Valencia. "And by 2005, I hope to have the 20 or 30 best corporate students in each of the largest 10 to 15 cities in Latin America enrolled in our program. Just imagine it," he continued. "Directors or vice presidents of major corporations in five to seven countries working together on group projects and opening doors for one another throughout Latin America. That's the potential we're talking about here." THE MIMLA PARTNERSHIP Thunderbird and ITESM each bring unparalleled strengths to the MIMLA program. Thunderbird has been ranked number one in international business by U.S. News and World Report for five consecutive years. The School and its faculty are recognized experts in global management education and have adapted the MIMLA program to focus specifically on Latin American issues. ITESM offers the number-one-ranked MBA program in Latin America. It also has considerable expertise in distance learning education - with a full vi rtual university infrastructure at its disposal. The MIMLA program leverages that expertise and technology to deliver outstanding international programs and faculty access to senior-level Latin American executives. _ THIS IS AN OPPORTUNITY NO ONE SHOULD MISS:'- Ruben Dari6 p.15 MIMLA 2002 ARRIVES One hundred fifteen students In the Master of International Management for Latin America (MIMLA) class of 2002 began their coursework on August 11 with a lO-day Orientation and leadership seminar on Thunderbird's Glendale campus. Ninety-three men and 22 women comprise the new MIMLA group. which represents SIX nations including MeXICO. the United States. Peru. Cuba. Canada and Belize The students attend their classes via distance learning technology at seven different campuses In Latin America. Including six sites In MeXICO. and one in Lima. Peru. Plans are In the works to begin transmitting MIMLA courses to sites In Buenos Aires. Argentina and Santiago. Chile as soon as next year MIMLA seeks the top students In each target city. and ludglng from the class of 2002. MIMLA has found them The new students share an average of five years of profeSSional work experience: their average PAEP (aptitude test In Mexico) scores put them In the top qUintile of test-takers: and their computerIZed TOEFL score average of 247 (eqUivalent to 597 on the paper TOEFL) proves the group has excellent English language skills. Many members of thiS new crop of students work for top companies such as ALAS (Aeromexlco). IBM. HP. CEMEX. VITRO, and Proctor and Gamble. "By pooling together the best bUSiness students In Latin America. we have a tremendously rich environment for learning International business." says MIMLA di rector Humberto ValenCia. "Look out for several top CEOs and outstanding entrepreneurs (from the MIMLA program)" With the 117 students who are continuing In the MIMLA 2001 program. this enthUSiastic and promising group of new students brings the total MIMLA population to 232 for this year They were the" original Thunderbirds, a hardy, driven bunch of predominantly men who came to Thunderbird Field #1 for flight training before being sent to storm the unfriendly skies of World War II. On October 12th, 55 former students and instructors brought their friends and families to what might be the last, tri-annual 'Helmets and Goggles' Pilots Reunion Weekend at the school that has carried on their traditions now for more than half a century. For those of us who had the pleasure of spending time with them, they served as an unshakable reminder of just how genuine friendship and commitment can grow throughout the years. 54 / 1 / 2000 If you haven't already heard the story, Thunderbird began as a u.s. Army Air Force field nearly 60 years ago - having been built purely on patriotism and private funds. You see, the u.s. Congress had refused to fund the massive build-up of the airplanes, airfields, and such that America, Great Britain, and China needed for the war. So a very determined General Hap Arnold approached fellow patriots such as Hollywood screen legends Janet Gaynor, Jimmy Stewart, Henry Fonda and Hoagy Carmichael, as well as fellow visionaries Leland Hayward, John Connelly and John Swope, for some much-needed philanthropic help. Without so much as a written contract, those people coughed up more than $1 million - in 1940's era dollars - to build the base, which opened on March 23, 1941, and which helped over 16,000 U.S. Air Corps Cadets learn how to fly through war's end in 1945. But that was just the beginning; the group had to keep on investing - up to $25,000 a month for aviation fuel alone - for a year-and-one-half before Congress finally appropriated funds. The one-square-mile Thunderbird airfield was, literally, carved out of the Arizona desert, thanks to the unbelievable generosity and unprecedented vision of some undisputed patriots. And so was Thunderbird the School. With the 'war to end all wars' now ended and millions of soldiers headWWW. T- BIRD . EDU Student Binita Choksi from the u .S. was the f irst recipient of the Butch Jackson Thunderbird Pilots Memorial Scholarship. Butch's son Frank (left) and Gerry Oppenheimer challenged the pilots to keep their legacy alive by building their scholarship into the biggest and most prestigious fund at Thunderbird. p . 1 7 preventing future wars. So Yount and his band of devotees petitioned Congress, bought the base on July 8, 1946, assembled a faculty, curriculum, and student body, and began dasses at the then American Institute of Foreign Trade just three months later on October 1. Fifty-four years later, Thunderbird, The American Graduate School of International Management, has remained true to its charter. The School is still attracting pioneers, equipping them with the language, culture, and business skills they need to succeed on global missions, then sending them forth to help forge that ever-more-present single world economy. "The men and women who are here this weekend represent us at our best. They are a generation that was asked to put off personal dreams and ambitions for a greater, common purpose," said Dr. Roy A. Herberger, Jr., president of Thunderbird. "It is an honor for those of us at Thunderbird today to host the 'Helmets & Goggles' reunion ." Pride and a deep-rooted sense of kinship that time hasn't dimmed a bit were evident all throughout the weekend as old friends gathered, shared revelries, and mourned friends they'd lost along the route. This year's event appeared especially marred by the recent loss of Butch Jackson, an instructor pilot, who had long been the reunion's driving force. There was even ing home, it was Thunderbird Field's commander, Lt. General Barton Kyle Yount, who first envisioned a private business school. In the wake of the World War's utter devastation, Yount believed that building global relationships and a worldwide economy offered mankind its greatest hope of talk of this reunion being the pilots' last given Butch's death. Yet, this remained a very honored and upbeat group. Having honored their fallen leader by creating the Butch Jackson Thunderbird Pilots Scholarship, they seemed pleased to meet Binita Choksi, the American LEFT British and u .S. pilot program instructor Don Posser was profoundly moved by his experiences at Thunderbird. All five living members of his six member instructor team came to the reunion. CENTER Squire Storrs says that Thunderbird Field's commander, Gen. Barton Kyle Yount, would be very proud of what Thunderbird the School has become today. RIGHT Norb Lypps is still being kidded about the student pilot who bounced out of the cockpit and wound up clinging onto the plane's tail section for dear life. p . I 8 WWW.T- BIRD . EDU 54/1/2000 student who was the scholarship's first recipient. They also met Butch's son Frank. who expressed his heartfelt thanks on behalf of his family. Gerry Oppenheimer then asked the pilots to create a truly lasting legacy by helping to make their scholarship the largest one at Thunderbird. Highlights of the Year 2000 'Helmets & Goggles' Reunion included dinners with Thunderbird's Board of Trustees and current students, a special John Swope Bombs Away photo exhibition, and a tour of Luke Air Force base and Falcon Field - where the pilots had also trained. While Luke's sleek. modem fleet of F-1G fighter jets certainly held some appeal for the aviators, it was at Falcon Field's Champlin Fighter Museum in Mesa that the pilots really came alive. They dined surrounded by nostalgic planes then made their way outside to where a Stearman PT-17 biplane - like the one they'd f1ownhad just landed and stood awaiting their inspection. That plane triggered memories. dent pilot of his who wound up hanging outside the plane. "We were coming into the traffic pattern at about 500 feet and he had to roll into a 90 degree tum for home," Lypps said. "Well, when he pushed in on the stick, it jerked and he went right out of his seat because he'd forgotten to fasten his safety belt. He wound up with his parachute braced against the tail fin and clinging on for life." Lypps said he quickly climbed to 3,000 feet and told the student to clamber in, reminding him that the added height would provide ample time for his parachute to deploy if he failed. "I don't know how, but he made it in," Lypps said, adding with a malicious pilot's grin, "and we never even scratched the plane." Don Prosser, the distinguished flight commander of both the advanced and British training programs, lovingly inspected the cockpit of his old friend, then Gerry Oppenheimer gives a 'thumbs-up' from one of his favorite places - inside the cockpit of a Stearman PT-17 biplane like the one he flew at Thunderbird. Oppenheimer was one of the main 'unsung heroes' who helped make this year's 'Helmets & Goggles' pilots reunion a reality. PHOTO BELOW Fighter Gunner, Arizona, 1942 "1 have over 17,000 hours of flying time in a Stearman plane," said Squire Storrs, the sen iormost of the pilot instructors at age 90, who also doubled as base barber. "I was here from the day Thunderbird Field opened in March of 1941 until the day it closed in '45. I'm proud to say that 1 got to know General Yount quite well during that time and I've got to tell you that from what I've seen of proudly posed with all five surviving members of his six-person flight instructor team. To those of us left watching. it was like seeing seasoned warriors time-warped back into their glorious twenties. "We were only here in Arizona for four precious years of our lives, from '41 to '45, but those years left an indelible impression upon our lives that is still very much here with all of us today," he said as his eyes welled up with tears. "I still get very emotional." Prosser, who, like many of the instructors, remained active in aviation throughout his life, remembered one terrible storm that blew through Falcon Field, ripping row after row of planes from their moorings and leaving 35 of them piled three-deep in the adjacent citrus grove. He also spoke softly of the single cadet pilot he lost during flight training more than 50 years ago, and you somehow understand that for this tall and stately man, who was raised long before random violence reigned, respect for human life remains forever resolute. But, there were funny stories too. Norb Lypps was still being kidded about the stu- Thunderbird this weekend, I think he would still very much approve." We hope so. Thunderbird is one of the world's leading graduate business schools, having been recognized by US News & World Report as the number one school for international management during each of the last five years. The School has already helped 32,000 alumni take flight for challenging international careers with 12,000 companies in 135 countries. Approximately 1,500 new students from 70-plus countries enter its gate each year with new dreams of their own. Just like their financi ally-challenged Thunderbird Field forefathers, Thunderbird's current school officials are now seeking out some modem patriots who can help fund the facility, faculty, and other program improvements currently needed to ensure that Thunderbird retains its Top Gun title. • TO LEARN MORE ABOlIf Thunderbird's history or to become part of its financial future, please contact Laurel Kimball, assistant vice president of individual giving. at email@example.com (G02) 978-7309 . "THANK YOU FOR PERPETUATING THE NAME 'THUNDERBIRD: FROM THE TIME THE SCHOOL WAS FOUNDED, IT WAS THE SYMBOL OF ACADEMIC EXCELLENCE EMBRACING THE AREAS OF HIGHLY SPECIALIZED TRAINING-FLIGHT TRAININGTO FULFILL THE NEED FOR WARTIME PREPAREDNESS. NOW, YOUR ENDEAVOR IS PROVIDING THE WORLD WITH HIGHLY SKILLED AND TRAINED PEOPLE IN THE AREA OF INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MANAGEMENT:' -EDGAR MATTSON, PILOT, IN A POST-EVENT LETTER TO DR. HERBERGER LE T hey met at Thunderbird, have lived and traveled the world together, and believe that both their daughters might follow them to Thunderbird. They are Bob '79 and Melanie '80 Franko and they are long-time financial supporters of Thunderbird . "First and foremost, Thunderbird holds special meaning to me because I met my wife there," said Bob Franko, who founded and runs the Californiabased Generations Trust Bank. "But beyond that, everything I've been able to accomplish has been as a result of my education, particularly my experience at Thunderbird. It was a very unique educational experience." The Frankos have both lived and worked overseas. Bob has served as the BECOME A LEADERSHIP DONOR To invest in Thunderbird: • Give online at Thunderbird's secure https://secure.t-bird.edu/gift Web site. • Print the online form and fax it to (602) 978-8238. • Use the return envelope in this magazine. For more information or to give by phone. contact • Office of Individual Giving (800) 457-6981 (U.S. only), (602) 978-7309, or via email at firstname.lastname@example.com • Office of Corporate and Foundation Relations (800) 457-6957 (U.S. only), (602) 978-7641, or via email at cfr@t-birdedu s p chief financial officer and chief executive officer at several banks and invest-ment companies. Melanie has worked extensively in private investing, initially with Citibank and then Security Pacific Bank, more recently with high net worth families. ratt "I've found Thunderbird to be a ... Anne-Marie, Melanie '80, Caroline, and Bob Franko '79 passport to a whole new world of possibilities," said Melanie. "To new Bob and Melanie Franko and their Franko Family Foundation have long been leadership annual donors to jobs, to a new per-spective on every job, to every new person that I meet. Bob and I are working very hard to ensure that our daughters have some of the experiences we both had at Thunderbird - but Thunderbird. They've consistently donated each year during the School's annual Thunderbird Fund campaign, earning them President's Council Benefactor stature. JJI've found Thunderbird to be a passport to a whole new world of possibilities. " "We've always believed in charitable giving," said Bob. "Now that we have the girls, much earlier in their young lives." Both of the Franko children attend the highly respected Lycee Fran<;:ais de Los Angeles where they are receiving a bilingual education. "We think that is important. We're definitely doing everything we can to put them on a track that could take them to Thunderbird," Melanie said. we're especially interested in seeing Thunderbird's continual strides toward excellence." Bob has also recently joined the Thunderbird Global Council, where he will help direct the School's strategy. p . 2 0 WWW.T-BIRD .EDU 54/1/2000 CAREER FAIR 2000 World's leading companies meet world's leading talent More than 70 · companies came calling. There were so many, in fact, that Thunderbird's Career Management Center (CMC) rented out a nearby hotel's conference and tradeshow turf - and space was still at a premium. Some companies came early to do information sessions. Others simply came for the three-day event, staffed tradeshow booths, and interviewed both pre-selected candidates and strong walk-ins. Consider it a Thunder-bird- exdusive Career Fair, where the world's leading companies came looking for some of the worlds' leading talent for jobs that spanned nearly every geographic region and business function. And where 700- plus of Thunderbird's current 1,300 Master of International Management (MIM) candidates went looking for that perfect fit. "ProFit (Thunderbird's Career Management database software system) processed over 11,000 job applications during Career Fair week. That's about onethird of what we used to process during an entire year, and it indudes 1,300 applications that we handled during one single crazy hour preceding the event," said Joe McVicker '98, director of application development at Thunderbird. "This was the best run Career Fair of any that I've attended in the nation," said Richard Davenport of Alltel, who was hiring for his leadership development program. "The organization prior to the event was outstanding, as was everything once we got here. Having students assigned as corporate liaisons was also espedally helpful - an excellent idea." "Student liaisons were a direct connection between each company and CMC," said Kay Keck, vice president for professional and career development at Thunderbird. "If a company had any need, from technical help with a PowerPoint presentation, to arranging a quick interview with a walk-in candidate, to 'Hey, could I get some bottled water in my booth?; the liaisons were there for them," she said. BY LINDSEY MICHAELS TOP Texaco was one of more than 70 companies recruiting at this year's Fair. ABOVE Peter Petrik (left) was one of the student liaisons charged with aiding each company. Thunderbird's lindsey Korell (right) helped drive the Fair's success. BOTTOM Intel looks for the best and the brightest among Career Fair participants. Keck said that this year's Fair was especially successful from both the employers' and students' points of view. "Many of the employers told me that they really liked the three-day format of company presentations, booths, then interviews," she said. "They didn't have to spread things out and travel back to Glendale. Companies like Texaco and Hilti also said that they felt they got much more exposure at the Fair itself then they would have if they had just done information sessions. They got to talk to students who may not have made it to their sessions, and that added contact led to some very good interviews." "Bristol-Myers Squibb attended the Thunderbird Career Fair to introduce our organization to Thunderbirds and engage the students in conversation about their career interests, our company, and the opportunities we have available worldwide," said Michele Marmet, a recruiter with Bristol-Myers Squibb. "The Career Fair exceeded our expectations with terrific attendance and lots of interest from graduating T-birds as well as students looking for internship opportunities. Bristol-Myers Squibb will definitely be back in February to recruit for summer internships in our global strategy group." According to Keck, this year's Fair was organized primarily by Lindsey Korell, an assistant director at the CMC, who along with David Martin, Laura Hinau, and the entire CMC staff. did a terrific job of planning, marketing, and managing this year's event. "We had 29 companies here two years ago, 48 last year, and we actually had to cut off registration at 70-something this year because we just didn't have room for more," said Keck. "That's a real tribute to the job our people did in getting out the word that this Fair was an excellent place for employers to find not just globally-minded leaders with great skill sets, but ones who have already lived and worked abroad for years as well." "We're interviewing for 20-25 corporate finance positions and have found this to be a really good for- 54 / 1/ 20 0 0 mat," said Tracy Barclay with Bank of America. "Thunderbird offers a great talent pool, a well-rounded curriculum, and well-rounded individuals who have great interpersonal skills and who learn as much about diversity outside of class as they do inside," she said. 'i-birds just have a really good balance of qualitative and quantitative skills." "I heard a lot of good things from the recruiters," said Peter Petrik, a Slovakian ebusiness student who worked as an IOMEGA liaison. Petrik got eight interviews with six companies. "They talked about the high quality of our students, the organization, and were impressed by the sheer number of students who stopped by their booths to talk. They also got to experience something at the dinner that they will never experience at any other business school - the Global Sounds talent presentations - which really seemed to open their eyes to just how diversified and unique our students are," he said. Global Sounds is a very high quality student-organized talent show that is held twice each year at Thunderbird. Six acts gave preview performances during the Career Fair, and included an operatic duet, an a cappella rendition of Summertime, classical guitar, and a piano concerto. Those acts noticeably blew the audience away! Petrik said he also heard a great many positive comments from students. "The most common one was that this Career Fair was far superior to any they have ever seen at Thunderbird. They also felt that they had more opportunities to interact with employers this time around. At the reception at the Pavilion, at the WWW.T- BIRD . EDU TOP Richard Davenport of Alltel called the Fair the best-run in the nation. ABOVE Student Ifeoma Onmughalu wows employers during a Global Sounds performance. BOTTOM An American Express recruiter talks to students about Londonbased opportunities. p . 21 information sessions, at the booths. They got to learn more about companies they hadn't known anything about, and in many cases talked about positions that recruiters hadn't posted. "For new students, this was a chance to see a lot of different types of companies in a very short amount of time that they can now spend the next year interning with and learning more about. For older students, it was an opportunity to focus their job search and get serious about finding that right job." Employers posted 160 positions and interviewed 1,100 students during the Fair. In talking to the students, many also found candidates for full-time and internship positions they hadn't thought to post. In addition to the Fall Career Fair, Thunderbird also hosts a major Internship Fair each Spring. This year's event is scheduled for February 21-23, 2001 and employers may contact Chas Brennan at brennanc@tbird. edu or (602) 978-7981 for details. Internships are incredibly popular at Thunderbird - with students and employers who view them as an excellent opportunity to gain valuable work experience and to check each other out. Thunderbird interns are available for three- to nine-month project-oriented assignments beginning in roughly January, June, and September of each year. Nearly 450 T-bird students from 43 countries did formal internships in 20-plus countries during the last 12 months. Roughly 40 percent of them received onthe- spot full-time job offers from the companies they interned with. • p. 2 2 TOP Dr. Yahia Zoubir, director of the French-Geneva Center, leads a class of eager students in one of the Center's most beautiful classrooms. BELOW Rodolfo Bay of Spain says that studying in Archamps gave him the opportunity to "get to know my continent better from its heart, Geneva." WWW.T-BIRD.EDU 54/1/2000 BONJOUR et BIENVENUE The Thunderbird Europe French-Geneva Center expands and begins admitting full-time students BY LINDSEY MI CHAELS Nestled just outside Geneva near the French town of Archamps, Thunderbird Europe's French-Geneva Center has long attracted students wanting a trimester-long European immersion experience. Now, for the first time in its eight-year history, the Center is expanding to receive incoming students who can spend one, two or three of their four Thunderbird trimesters in Europe as they pursue their Masters of International Management (MIM) degree. "Beginning in Fall 20m, qualified applicants from Europe and elsewhere will be offered the opportunity to begin their Thunderbird experience at the Thunderbird Europe French-Geneva Center," said Dr. Earl Gibbons, assodate vice president of overseas programs at Thunderbird. "Since the Center is strategically located near many Geneva-based multinational companies, finandal institutions, and international organizations," Gibbons said, "Thunderbird's new European admissions program will provide students with a unique, hands-on opportunity to study Europe's rapidly changing business climate as well as to pursue European internships and post-graduation jobs." The French-Geneva Center's format and curriculum will exactly mirror that being offered at Thunderbird's main campus in the U.S., right down to the two-week Foundations for Global Leadership orientation course that all students take upon arriving at Thunderbird. Students will also proceed through their Flexi-Core program in cohort groups - just like their Glendale, Arizona counterparts. Flexi-Core courses are common, sequenced, and non-waivable courses that all Thunderbird students must now take during their first two trimesters. Students can then take internships or begin branching into their areas of spedalty. "As the premier school in international management education, Thunderbird sees its mission and its market 54 / 1 / 2000 as global," said Roy A. Herberger, Jr. president ofThunderbird. "The decision to expand Thunderbird Europe's French-Geneva Center allows the School to better serve the strategically important European market. The build-out of the French-Geneva facilities will also provide the platform for expanding Thunderbird's European activities and diversifying its product offerings." Herberger added that the expansion, which includes construction of a new 15,000 square foot classroom and office complex facility, also allows the School to offer its Executive Master of International Management (EMIM) degree program in Archamps, as well as to make the school's renowned short-term Executive training programs more easily accessible to Europeanbased corporate customers. "The new Center will be home to Academic Affairs' European MIM Admissions program, Executive Education, alumni life-long learning initiatives, and numerous other activities that were previously only available in Glendale," he said. Word of the expansion was received enthusiastically by current students and alumni who had experienced Archamps. "In my life there will always be a time before Archamps and the one after," said Rodolfo Bay, a Spaniard who was one of 104 French-Geneva Center students last summer. "Not only did I get to learn from some of the School's best teachers, I also had time to get to know my continent better from its heart, Geneva. The program also gave us ample time to discover the continent's new eastern frontier, with all of its opportunities and challenges, and to get together with very friendly and interesting people from throughout the world," Bay said. "To me and many others, that time will always be one of the most special of my life and the names Prague, Marseilles, Venice, Split and Mallorca will always have special meaning." "As more and more companies expand globally, they need managers who not only possess excellent business skills, but who also possess an in-depth understanding of various cultures and the ability to speak several languages," said Natalia Kremer, a Russian student with six years of Silicon Valley, California work experience who is fluent in Russian, English, and French. "The Archamps experience is invaluable because it allows students to live and learn in a highly international environment where they experience cross cultural communications and negotiations every day first hand. It also provides students with regular access to the United Nations' impressive library in Geneva for group and research projects." "Thunderbird Europe's French-Geneva Center offers students an unparalleled opportunity to study international business in a small, intimate setting while simultaneously exploring Europe and experiencing the ebbs and flows of its daily life," said Dr. Yahia Zoubir, director of the French-Geneva Center. "I'm extremely proud of our faculty, this expanded facility, and the overall MIM and Executive programs we can now offer at Archamps, and I invite you to join us. Coming here will truly change your life." Thunderbird Europe students typically either live in WWW.T - BIRD . EDU student housing in a nearby mall that is part of the Site d'Archamps business complex, or else they live right in the nearby town of Gaillard, which is on the French/ Swiss border near the coveted tram line. They pay the same tuition as their Glendale counterparts and can pursue French, Spanish, and German up through the third of the four required levels - or Business English - directly at Archamps. While Thunderbird Europe students are required to complete a minimum of 21 credit hours in Glendale, those credits may be earned in combination with credit-bearing internships, Winterims, and Interims. _ TO LEARN MORE ABOUT becoming part of Thunderbird's first French-Geneva Center class, please contact Cynthia Zoubir, Thunderbird's European admissions representative, at +33.4184.108.40.206 or Zoubirc@tbird. edu or Thunderbird's Glendale- based dean of admissions, Judy Johnson, at (602) 978-7596 or email@example.com p . 2 3 TOP Thunderbird is adding a 15,000 sq.-ft classroom and office facility to the site. LEFT The French-Geneva Center affords students the opportunity to practice what they've learned during frequent outings throughout Europe. RIGHT Natalia Kremer of Russia frequents the United Nations' famed library in Geneva for research and relaxation. BOTTOM Leandro Finol of Venezuela enjoys studying on the shores of Lake Geneva. p . 2 4 EYES AROUND 54 / 1/ 2000 THE WORLD NO RES I RlcriONS Alumnae share viewpoints on international business from the female executive's perspective No Restrictions. It's not just the new branding concept developed by alumna Judy Vlastnik '78 and her team for Dockers Europe, a division of Levi-Strauss & Company. It's also the attitude that landed her the title of brand president for Levi's Dockers, Europe - and the personal mantra of two other alumnae who have found great success in the world of international business. Vlastnik's branding campaign centers around the non-restrictive and uninhibited characteristics associated with Dockers ... featuring a series of advertisements that portray people doing things they wouldn't normally do - a group of men walking across a busy city street with a canoe atop their heads .. . a man who has pitched a stylized tent amidst a city landscape ... The message - that Dockers ignite impulse and produce a sense of confidence - and the ad campaign itself are mirror images of the way Vlastnik, and alumnae Olga Reisler '78 and Charlotte Kennedy-Takahashi '76 have tackled the world of international business ... with gusto, enthusiasm and no restrictions whatsoever. Reisler, the regional vice president of Nissan North America, northwest region in Pleasanton, Calif. says that companies look for the best person to do the job - male or female - even in the traditionally male-oriented automotive industry. 'The fact is that you are responsible to the stockholder, and whoever beefs up your bottom line is the one to hire." Today's companies, she says, recognize this and aren't concerned with gender. One of seven regional vice presidents throughout the United States, Reisler is the direct link between the dealer network and the Japan-based Nissan corporation, supervising the parts, sales, service, consumer affairs, marketing and advertising for her region. Under her leadership, the Northwestern Region has become one of the fastest growing areas of the U.S. automotive market. "The automotive industry is a wide open field," she said. "And, there is not one specific area that is more suited to women than another - our service departments employ more women than ever and we have more women in the dealer industry, too - in particular, the luxury car industry. Women have found that this is a lucrative profession." Vlastnik, who is responsible for supervising the creative, mens and women's brand, and retail marketing aspects of Dockers, has also seen a shift in employment demographics. She notes that her senior management team includes female executives heading the sales, legal, and human resources departments. "I BY MELISSA CRYTZER FRY think there is more of a tendency for companies to hire women for senior positions today," she said. "Women have a good track record and have proven that they can hold such positions." She also attributes this shift to each woman's instinctive drive to achieve everything her male counterpart does in the business world - a drive that is equally as strong in her today as it was 10 years ago. Kennedy-Takahashi's experience has been similar in Japan. "Being a foreign female was actually a tremendous benefit," said the founder and president of Oak Associates, a human resource company in Tokyo which is now expanding into the United States. The Japanese people, she explained, have an admiration for individuals who are well-educated and who work hard. Indeed, her work ethic has been witnessed in the business sector where she trains thousands ofJapanese citizens for overseas assignments, dispatches international employees to all reaches of the world, and works with 12-15 nationalists on any given day. She has also been recognized in the political arena where she launched a campaign with the United States government to assist in Japanese labor union reforms. "As a foreigner, I was a special creature and was able to call and speak directly with presidents of companies because I was unique - a female with an MBA, foreign and a business owner," Kennedy-Takahashi said. Reisler recalls a similar experience. ") had the advantage of enlightened bosses, " she explained, "who spoke with a lot of men with names like Dave, Joe and Tom. The Daves and Joes had to do a lot to distinguish themselves, but, with a name like Olga - and being a female - ) was remembered." Vlastnik, too, who was employed by Estee Lauder after earning her MIM, found gender to be an advantage while working in the Middle East - an area stereotyped as providing few opportunities for women. She explained that a typical business practice in the Middle East was for distributors of beauty products to invite all competitors to one room where each shared his/her product. "I was the only woman, and it was customary for Estee to be introduced after the Lanc6mes and Pierre Cardins," she said. Instinctively, though, she was able to secure her own private consultations by requesting a "less threatening environment" that excluded her male competitors. "My competitors knew what I was doing and joked with me about it when we would get together afterwards, but they knew it was all part of selling the product." Women who are anticipating careers in international business can take note from these distinguished 54 / 1/ 2000 WWW.T-B IRD .E DU p . 2 5 female executives - that attitude is everything. "You are judged on your merits, what you deliver and what you bring to the company," said Vlastnik. "I would never approach an employment situation expecting anything less." TRENDS IN INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS "In my area of Tokyo, there are 7,000 women business owners," said Kennedy-Takahashi. "They own mostly small fashion shops, but the trend I'm seeing is that more Japanese women are earning an education that will support business activities in all areas - many are getting their MBAs and more female tax accountants are coming through the education system. Within the next five to 10 years, I foresee more Japanese being armed with the right education to do business." Kennedy-Takahashi feels that highly technical roles are the most accepted for women to enter in Japan because it is easier for them to demonstrate what their competencies are - for example, tax accountants and lawyers can demonstrate their success in quantifiable terms. "The soft areas of marketing and PR are harder to demonstrate competence in, and aren't as accepted for women." The reverse appears to be true in Europe, according to Vlastnik, who notes that women tend to land positions in brand marketing and human resources. She observes, however, that women are much more selective in the types of branding opportunities they pursue. "Women are more inclined to work with a product they like, while men are more driven by the content of the job." "One trend I see," said Reisler, "is that the Internet has been the great equalizer of us all - domestically, internationally, ethnically and from a gender perspective." With dot-com companies and the advancement of computer usage, business transactions and employment opportunities have been conducted so lely through technology, which doesn't recognize gender, race or culture. "In the automotive industry, we are also hiring people from other industries into ours so we can broaden our reach to the consumer," she emphasized. "It's about finding the best talent out there to get the job done." Reisler adds that a challenge for women in the automotive industry in the past has resulted from the industry's culture which frequently moved employees from one city to another. "As women developed a home life, they weren't willing to uproot their families, and self-eliminated themselves from upper-level positions." Today, Reisler says this is less of a problem and has, herself, been offered the opportunity to accept an international assignment. "It's not unlikely that I would go overseas," she said. Perhaps the greatest advice, articulated by KennedyTakahashi, but intimated by all, was to "truly believe that everyone is equal and that each person brings something to the table. Having an open mind is what being international is all about - and it's something that Thunderbirds have truly achieved - regardless of gender or ethnicity." • p . 2 G WWW.T -B IRD .EDU Colombian President Andres Pastrana addresses Miami Herald Conference Andres Pastrana's arrival sparked a media frenzy as journalists jockeyed for shots and interviews. The Colombian president was welcomed privately by Bud Robyn, senior vice president of Executive Education at Thunderbird, and Alberto Ibargiien, publisher and chairman of The Miami Herald, before being ushered into a sell-out luncheon during the final day of the Americas Conference. There, he moved easily and informally towards the dais where he was greeted by dozens of well wishers and, eventually, seated next to the U.S. general in charge of Southern Hemisphere forces. Despite the 100 or so protesters who had gathered outside of the beautiful Biltmore Hotel in Miami, Pastrana had less visible security than did then-Argentinean President Carlos Menem last year. He also appeared amazingly relaxed and jovial. Pastrana's visit and speech were arranged by T-bird alumnus Luis Moreno '77, who is the current Ambassador of Colombia to the United States and based in Washington, D.C. "For starters, Colombia is not in the midst of a Civil War," Pastrana stressed. Saying that he doesn't consider his country to be divided, he maintained that while the guerillas have definitely gained in military strength, they have lost all but 3 or 4 percent of the popular support. "The guerillas cannot overthrow our democracy," Pastrana emphasized. "In fact, we would already be a nation at peace if it weren't for the obscene profits of the drug industry." The soft-spoken Pastrana outlined his "Plan Colombia," a three-year, US$ 7.5 billion program that will focus three quarters of its resources on social, rather than military, issues. Approximately $4.5 billion of the money required for that plan will be provided by Colombia and $1.3 billion by the U.S. According to the Colombian President, the rest will come in the form of loans and credits - hopefully, from the European Union, which Pastrana said he hoped would help him more. Pastrana pointed to President Clinton's recent visit to Colombia as a positive sign but added that without greater U.S. investment and trade, his country's rebound will be slower. The U.S. is Colombia's leading trade partner. According to Pastrana, 48 percent of Colombia's exports go to the U.S. Half of its imports also come from the U.S. • 54/1/2000 LEFT Thunderbird's Bud Robyn welcomes President Pastrana on behalf of Thunderbird, which was a major Americas Conference sponsor. ABOVE Myra Garcia was one of many staffers who answered questions at Thunderbird's trade booth. BELOW Chapter leaders like Argentina's Gustavo Gurgulino de Souza '92 attended a special T-bird workshop. ABOVE Brazil's John Mein '70 meets Colombia's Alejandro Espinal '95 during the T-bird sponsored dinner. BELOW Recent MIMLA graduate Alejandro Marti '00 attends his first TAA Latin America Council board function. IICOLOMBIA IS NOT IN THE MIDST OF A CIVIL WAR .... WE WOULD ALREADY BE A 54 / 1 / 2000 KEY SPEAKER POINTS If trade growth with Mexico continues at the same rate, U.s. trade with Mexico will surpass its total trade with all European Union community members and Asia within 10 years. • Twenty-eight percent of Brazil's exports now go to Europe. South America is second. The U.S. is third. • The U.S. invests more in Brazil than in any other emerging market, including China. It now invests 50 percent more in Brazil than it does in Mexico. • Mexico has the lowest telephone per capita density of all Latin American countries. • The wholesale market for cable in Latin America should reach $3 billion by year-end 200t • Telecom is the single biuest driver of growth in Latin America. • The average AOL Latin America customer spends 30 minutes per day online. • Approximately one-third of Coca-COla's worldwide sales are in Latin America. The company's per capita sales rate is higher in Mexico than in the U.S. and is highest in Mexico City. • Latin American tax and labor laws can make doing business difficult, but the region has a great deal to offer companies that do the work. • Ninety percent of businesses in Latin America are small businesses. Internet proliferation could playa significant role in sparking economic growth by helping these companies find suppliers and customers more cost-effectively. WWW.T-BIRD . EDU p. 2 7 Thunderbird Both Contributes to and Benefits from Recent Miami Herald Americas Conference Latin American politics and business issues, attracting keynote speakers such as Colombian President Andres Pastrana; Domingo Cavallo, Argentina's Former Minister of Economy; Luis Lauredo, U.S. Ambassador to the Organization of American States; and Alejandro Toledo, Peru's charismatic presidential candidate. It is The Miami Herald's annual Americas Conference - which is held in partrJership with Thunderbird. This year's conference was held September 14 and 15 and attracted 500 attendees, dozens of business leaders, and much of the world's Latin America-focused media. Now in its fourth year, the Americas Conference is considered a 'must attend' event for many of those involved in business in Latin America. It is also a critical marketing event for Thunderbird - which can thank T-bird alumnus Willie Cone '79, general manager of The Miami Herald, for the opportunity. The School promotes the event, offers its alumni a significantly discounted program rate, and provides high level speakers. Thunderbird, in tum, gains a tremendous amount of publicity and brand recognition among Latin America's leaders. Thus, School officials use the conference as a major Latin America outreach opportunity, staging numerous alumni functions, hosting assorted dinners, staffing a trade show booth, and convening a Thunderbird Alumni Association (TAA) Latin America Council meeting immediately after the public program. This year's conference featured panel discussions on Investing in Latin America; The Internet. Ecommerce, and Ventures; Brazil 2000; Media and the Changing Consumer; and Country Updates: Central America & Caribbean. It also induded keynote addresses by Adolfo Aguilar Zinser, Mexican president-elect Vincente Fox's senior foreign policy adviser; Jorge Quiroga, Bolivia's vice president; and Ambassador Richard Fisher, Deputy U.S. Trade Representative. Seven of this year's speakers were Thunderbird alumni. At least two others were recruited by Thunderbirds, induding Colombia's President Pastrana, who spoke courtesy of Luis Moreno '77, Ambassador of Colombia to the United States. This year's T-bird speakers were: • Hector Gorosabel '87, VP, Central American Region Manager, Coca-Cola Latin America • Travis Good '84, VP, Technology and Operations, AOL Latin America • John Mein '70, President. The American Chamber of Commerce, Brazil • Scott Douglas Hollingsworth '77, President/ CEO-Latin America, Foote Cone & Belding • W. Gary McBride '77, President - Latin America, Bates Worldwide • Alexandre Blochtein '88, President, Emerson Electric S.A. Brazil • Carlos Eduardo Berdegue '89, General Manager, lllimani de Comunicaciones. ABOVE LEFT TAA Latin America Council president Marcos Garay Velasco welcomes people to the T-bird sponsored dinner. ABOVE Members of the world media await President Pastrana's arrival. LEFT Peru's possible next president, Alejandro Toledo, is mobbed by the media after it became apparent that Peru's embattled president Fujimori would be forced to resign. NATION AT PEACE IF IT WEREN'T FOR THE OBSCENE PROFITS OF THE DRUG INDUSTRY." p . 2 8 WWW.T-BIRD .EDU 54 / 1 / 2000 HOMECOMING 2000 Challenges, triumphs, and good 'ole T-bird tenacity YOU can plan for many contingencies, but a catastrophic power failure that knocks out all lights, electricity, phones, computers, and emergency back-up systems campus-wide - on the very eve of Homecoming - simply isn't one of them. So, if Homecoming 2000 is remembered as the night the lights went out in Glendale, it must also be remembered as the day hundreds of students, speakers, faculty, staff, and alumni stepped up to the plate - and with typical T-bird grace, levity, and 'can-do' initiative - delivered an outstanding ebusiness Forum as well as numerous opening day activities .• To all who pitched in and persevered during a day of unbelievable - and, oddly enough, galvanizing - challenges, Thunderbird, the Alumni Relations Office, e2v organizers, and Aramark extend their most heart-felt expressions of gratitude_ Global Issues 2000: I eVolutionary Business Strategy' Attracts 33 They graduated during six different decades, represented 11 countries, were more than 30 strong, and took full advantage of Thunderbird's second annual alumni-exclusive preHomecoming Executive Education program. Entitled Global Issues 2000: eVolutionary Business Strategy, this year's two and one-halfday program analyzed high-profile companies in ecommerce such as Amazon.com, eBay, Cisco Systems, Dell, and Tesco and examined how traditional industries are reengineering their business processes to maximize the reach of the Internet without sacrificing current customers or strategy. Leaming modules included Strategic Challenges in the New Economy, Issues in B2B Business Models, Global Branding and Internet Marketing, Creating Sustainable Advantage, Globalization Factors in Ebusiness, Technology Leadership, B2B Enablers, B2C, and Value Based Management. During those modules, participants learned to evaluate how traditional value disciplines such as customer relations, product superiority, and operational excellence could impact their companies. They also focused on the ways in which global ebusiness is restructuring markets and introducing new competitors. Global Issues 2000 was designed and led by Dr. Michael Moffett, an associate professor of finance at Thunderbird. Other instructors included Dr. Kannan Ramaswamy, Dr. Bill Youngdahl, Dr. Andrew Inkpen, and Dr. Lauranne Buchanan. The program was offered to alumni at a special $1,550 price - about 50 percent of what similar Exec. Ed. programs cost. "We specifically designed Global Issues 2000 so that it would build on the unique strengths and perspectives Thunderbird alumni were bringing with them to class," Moffett said. "That commonality provides a tremendous advantage in a program of this nature. So, too, does the fact that participants came from several countries and six graduation decades. Six decades - I think that fact alone speaks volumes about the nature ofT-birds who just seem to have an insatiable desire to always keep themselves on the cutting edge." Program participants got a hands-on demonstration of the School's password-protected Alumni My Thunderbird (AMTB) network on Thursday - after which those who hadn't "I'VE ALWAYS HAD HIGH EXPECTATIONS FROM THUNDERBIRD, BUT THIS PROGRAM HAS SURPASSED THEM ALL. BEING IN A CLASS WITH FELLOW T-BIRDS, ESPECIALLY WHEN ONE-THIRD OF THEM WERE FOREIGN AND ONE-THIRD WOMEN, BROUGHT A PERSPECTIVE WE CERTAINLY DIDN'T HAVE WHEN I WAS A STUDENT HERE FIVE DECADES AGO:' - Class of '55's George Tregea (right) dines with Global Issues 2000 instructor Dr. Kannan Ramaswamy. Tregea came in from Brazil to improve his ebusiness skills, along with T-birds from six graduation decades who returned to share their knowledge and learn more about 'eVolutionary Business Strategy.' 54/1/2000 WWW.T-BIRD . EDU ABOVE T-bird alumni from six decades attend Global Issues 2000. ABOVE RIGHT The Wall Street Journal credited Phil Samper '61 with single-handedly salvaging Sun Microsystems core computer business when he was at its helm_ The cyber savvy exec., Thunderbird Jonas Mayer Outstanding Alumnus award winner, and father of two T-birds, also served as keynote speaker at this year's e2v Forum. Alumni may read his speech on AMTB_ RIGHT Motorola's Bill Austin tells how Bluetooth technology will make local wireline connections obsolete. already signed on for their free account did so. Six Global Issues participants who hadn't originally planned on staying for Friday's formal Homecoming-related ebusiness conference, chose to do so. Special thanks go to Dr. Michael Moffet and Executive Education director Marty OToole '96, and the entire Exec Ed. team for the Global Issues 2000 course. elv FalllOOO Forum - Global Issues in the New Economy If you wanted to know about Global Issues in the New Economy, Thunderbird was the place to be on Friday, November 3 during Homecoming. That's the day current Thunderbird e2v (formerly eVe) dub students and Thunderbird brought some 350 leading global ecommerce executives, business students, academians, returning alumni, media, and guests to Glendale to discuss challenges facing ebusinesses as they expand worldwide. The Forum was organized primarily by Thunderbird's extremely esavvy student group then sponsored as a Thunderbird Global Business Forum. It featured speakers from industry mainstays - Cisco, Lucent, eBay, Intel, and Motorola - as well as those from major New Economy concerns such as Global Crossing. eStreet Capital, Concero, AvantGo, Gabriel Venture Partners, and Knowitall.com. Topics ranged from the role of infrastructure develop-ment, global flows of venture capital. and the development of mobile commerce, to an indepth discussion of the issues facing ebusinesses in each region. e2v is an acronym for ebusiness, entrepreneurship and venture capital - three crucial components of the New Economy. e2v created the Forum in the fall of 1999 to bring these issues to the forefront at Thunderbird, and has held a day-long. twice-yearly event attracting speakers from leading edge start-ups, Fortune 1000 ecommerce executives, venture capitalists and other visionaries, ever since. This year, the group spent five months in preparation, teamed up with Thunderbird's Alumni Relations office, then rescheduled its original program for Homecomjng so that more alumni could participate. That partnership proved strong. Some 150 alumni benefited from a truly dynamic day of leading-edge ebusiness insight for an almost unbelievably low $75 program fee. Hundreds of students, faculty and staff attended for just $20, as did many non-Thunderbirds, who paid just $100 each. The resulting 'community' mingled throughout the day, at the post-event dinner, and at the Pub dance later on, forging what appeared to be stronger and deeper relationships than we've ever seen before. One possible reason for the unusually strong bond: the entire high-tech 'e' Forum was held without even the most basic of 'e' functions - electricity. That's because Thunderbird suffered a total. catastrophic power loss just hours before p. 2 9 ABOVE Cisco's Peter Penfield tells e2v attendees that Cisco began 'laying track' for the Internet with an 'if you build it , they will come' mindset. BELOW Okay, so seeing friends is still the best part of Homecoming! p . 3 0 ABOVE French sculptress ANNJA is surrounded by leaders from the Class of '60 - which commissioned the statue to commemorate its 40th reunion. Pictured (I to r) are Jack Donnelly, ANNJA, Gene Wick and Mike Santellanes. RIGHT The e2v Forum was planned and organized almost entirely by current Thunderbird students. Student leaders (I to r), Mike Rubel, Ifeoma Onwughalu, Josephine Gilmore, Mathew Fleming, and Brett Grossman, did a fantastic job! BELOW Two members of the Class of '55 and three from the Class of '60 gather WWW.T - BIRD .E DU the event when its main underground power supply shorted out, surged, and blew out almost all campus electricity, phone, computer, and emergency back-up systems. What followed was a little bit like 'the best of times - the worst of times: e2v organizers didn't miss a beat. On-line registration conformation gave way to low-tech paper lists. The planned high-tech AT&T venue was abandoned for the sun-lit World Business Building Atrium - into which, hundreds of folding chairs were quickly brought. Speakers from some of the world's most prestigious global firms were escorted by flashlight to non-tech speaking posts. Multi-media-rich laptop presentations 54 / 1/2000 morphed into much warmer and more personalized info chats. Generators got ordered. Everyone stayed cheerful. And, in the end, good content once more proved that it was king. Special thanks go to all of the amazing speakers and attendees who took everything in stride. They also go to e2v Fall 2000 Forum main organizers, Mike Rubel, Josephine Gilmore, lfeoma Onwughalu, Mathew Fleming, and Brett Grossman. Elegant The Continents' Sculpture Graces Campus thanks to Class of' 60 Gift It weighs 1.5 tons, stands 15 feet tall, rests within the 30-foot reflecting pool, took four years for French sculptress ANNJA to complete, and absolutely united the Thunderbird community during a well-attended Friday evening ceremony. It is the elegant 'The Continents' sculpture which stands beautifully on the front lawn of the Merle A. Hinrichs International Business Information Centre (!BIC). The sculpture was unveiled during the Class of 1960's 40th reunion amid a festive ambiance of champagne, hors d'oeuvres, Global Sounds music, a student flag parade, and a wonderfully sung rendition of the French and U.S. national anthems. Based on the belief that borders frequented by trade seldom require soldiers, the sculpture's outer layer features the five inter-connected "ART FOR ME IS THE MEANS TO REACH A HIGHER LEVEL OF CONSCIOUSNESS ... TO OPEN UP TO OURSELVES, TO REALITY, TO OTHERS, TO THE WORLD AND TO THE COSMOS IN ORDER TO BECOME MORE UNIVERSAL. .. " - ANNJA, with 'The Continents' 54 / 1/ 2000 continents - which symbolize movement, communications and exchanges between countries and cultures. The sculpture is a gift from Class of 1960 members, who have been some of the most philanthropic at Thunderbird. "The Class of 1960 couldn't have chosen a more fitting and elegant means of immortalizing their feelings towards Thunderbird," said Dr. Roy A. Herberger, Jr., President of Thunderbird. "The Continents reflects the 135 countries our alumni come from and work in. The nucleus epitomizes the feeling of oneness that permeates throughout the Thunderbird campus and community." Led by Thunderbird Trustee Jack Donnelly, who has already committed to giving the school one of its largest planned gifts, Gene Wick, who has pledged a sizable sum for scholarships, and Mike Santellanes, who has been one of the school's most consistent annual President's Council donors, the Class of 1960 wanted to do something visible to commemorate their 40th reunion. Class members had already donated the Pavilion. "My classmates and I all remember our semesters at Thunderbird as some of the best times of our lives," said Donnelly on behalf of his classmates. "We had a lot of fun while we were here. In addition, we learned skills and ideas that have served us well throughout our careers and we were inspired to conduct business with an awareness of other cultures and other ways of doing things. It would give us great satisfaction to know that this sculpture will serve as inspiration for future generations ofT-birds. " WWW.T - BIRD . EDU 2000 Global Alumni Awards Announced The Thunderbird Alumni Association (TAA) proudly announces the 2000 TAA Global Alumni Awards recipients. The awards were presented during the Homecoming Gala, held at the Pointe/Hilton grand ballroom Saturday night. The winners are Phil Samper '61, George Fugelsang '63, G. Kelly O'Dea '72, Charlotte Kennedy-Takahashi '76, Luis Moreno '77, Walter Joyce '99, and Mark Leslie '00. Alumnus Jeff Martin presided over the ceremony. Each year at Homecoming awards are presented to extraordinary graduates. They represent various continents, disciplines, T-bird contributions, and civic activities, and are nominated by faculty, staff, alumni and students. The categories are Rising Star, Distinguished Alumni - given in the fields of banking &. finance, marketing. public service, and entrepreneurship - and the Jonas Mayer Outstanding Alumnus Award. RISING STAR AWARDS Geared towards alumni who have graduated within the last ten years, Rising Stars are selected based on their initial professional achievements and positive contributions to Thunderbird, the community, and international business. This year's winners were Walter Joyce '99 and Mark Leslie '00, who were founding members of the highly-successful student-led eVe technology Forums that are now held twiceyearly at Thunderbird under their new name, e2v. Joyce is chief operating officer, Inculab, Inc. a New York-based Venture Capital group and Incubator. He is also the chairman and founding CEO for eVe Global Group, Inc., a New p .31 LEFT AND ABOVE Classmates gather and reconnect at a variety of dinners and social functions during the reunion. BELOW Student Ozgur Berkmen of Global Sounds performs. York-based global consulting firm. Joyce has been quoted in the New York Times and Silicon Alley Reporter. Leslie is a product marketing manager with RightWorks Corporation, which was founded in 1996 and a partner in the Internet Capital Group network and a leading provider of nextgeneration ebusiness applications for customers such as CSC, Fujitsu, Industrial America, Juniper Networks, and Wells Fargo Bank. DISTINGUISHED ALUMNI AWARDS Targeted towards alumni who graduated more than ten years ago, Distinguished Alumni are recognized in each of four categories for their professional contributions globally. BANKING & FINANCE: GEORGE FUGELSANG ' 63 Fugelsang is president &. CEO of Dresdner Kleinwort Benson North America Inc. (an investment banking firm) and regional chief p.32 executive overseeing Dresdner Bank Group's North America activities - including Dresdner Bank Mexico, S.A. and Dresdner Bank Canada. He holds a number of outside board memberships, including the Board of Trustees at Thunderbird, and has been an outstanding host for Thunderbird's Winterim on Wall Street program. MARKETING: G. KELLY O'DEA '72 O'Dea is president of FCB Worldwide, one of the advertising industry's leading global companies, where he helps develop and integrate brands across communications channels and borders worldwide. O'Dea has worked for corporate giants such as Ford, Jaguar, Unilever, Shell, TWA, Kraft, Pepsico, Microsoft, AT&T, and IBM, and also serves on the Board of Trustees at Thunderbird. PUBLIC SERVICE: LUIS MORENO '77 Appointed Ambassador of Colombia to the United States in September 1998 by President Pastrana, Moreno has had a distinguished career in both the public and private sectors. In addition to holding several other government posts, he was the President of the Instituto de Fomento Industrial, the main financial corporation of Colombia. Moreno is a frequent Thunderbird speaker and helped arrange President Pastrana's address at the recent Miami Herald Americas Conference. ENTREPRENERUSHIP: CHARLOTTE KENNEDY-TAKAHASHI '76 Chairman and founder of Oak Associates K.K., Kennedy-Takahashi provides international search outsourcing, executive assessment, and executive contracting services in the U.S. as well as search consulting, executive outsourcing, career consulting, and training and performance management in Japan. She is a frequent guest on British, U.S., and Japanese television and radio shows, has been on the American Chamber of Commerce Board in Japan for ten years, and is vice president of the Tokyo American Club. JONAS MAYER OUTSTANDING ALUMNUS AWARD This award is presented to one alumnus who has demonstrated incredible professional achievements during his or her career, as well as civic service, and a commitment to Thunderbird. The Wall Street Journal credited Phil Samper '61 with turning around Sun Microsystems' WWW.T- BIRD .EDU 54 / 1 / 2000 ABOVE TAA 2000 award winners gather at the gala. They are from left, Mark Leslie '00, Walter Joyce '99, Charlotte Kennedy-Takahashi 76 and George Fugelsang '63. Alumnus Jeff Martin '90 (right) presented the awards. Award recipients not pictured are G. Kelly O'Dea 72, Luis Moreno 77 and Phil Sam per '61. BELOW Outgoing TAA North America Council members Bruce Olson '82, Annette Cazenave 79, Michael Stitt '89, and Chris Johnson '86 are honored for their incredible efforts in helping Thunderbird create and launch regional councils that have begun reconnecting T-birds worldwide. core computer business. Today, he's the managing director and co-founder of Gabriel Venture Partners, and a recognized expert on emerging trends in the information technology, Internet, and communications arenas, as well as business and strategic development. Samper now serves on the boards of Sylvan Learning Systems, The Interpublic Group of Companies, the Johns Hopkins Medical Center, iTango, SalesHound.com and all Gabriel portfolio c
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