From the Dean's Desk

Guest Column: Ryan Retartha

Martijn Cremers

Martijn Cremers

Monday, 12 December 2022
A very busy fall for Alumni Relations!
I’m pleased to report that this fall has brought hundreds of thousands back to campus and provided many opportunities for the Mendoza community to connect with its 46,000-plus alumni. Here are several areas where we saw the most alumni impact:
Community Building
With football games back to pre-pandemic levels, the challenge this fall was to create organic, meaningful collisions between our alumni and Mendoza’s faculty, staff and students. I’ve been very pleased with the success of our Weekend Welcome events, because they have brought the College community together and allowed our alumni boards, recruiters, prospective students and campus leaders to connect with Mendoza. I look forward to continuing them this Spring during the Blue and Gold Game Weekend.
I also had a chance to connect alumni and students of our Chicago programs by hosting two well-attended mixers for our MSBA and EMBA cohorts in the atrium restaurant of our beautiful Chicago building on Michigan Avenue.
We were able to create similar opportunities for community building outside of campus, hosting a fascinating panel discussion with Las Vegas business leaders as part of Shamrock Series Weekend and also a luncheon and presentation to our international alumni club directors as part of their annual meeting in London, which Dean Cremers detailed in a prior Exchange. 
Board Service
Many of Mendoza’s boards are full of alumni, and most of them had a chance to gather on campus this fall to meet with faculty and students.
The board that I manage, our Graduate Alumni Board, had a very successful slate of “office hours,” where students were free to stop by four different classrooms and chat with board members grouped by industry. We had a steady stream of students all afternoon in each classroom. The following day, they hosted a Navy game watch that drew over 300 students to the beautiful Foley’s Club in Notre Dame Stadium.
I’ve also started a series of “residencies” for our board members, where they can come to Mendoza individually or in small groups for 2 to 3 days of focused time with faculty and staff relevant to their industry or profession.
Admissions/Marketing/Communications
I’m pleased to report that more than 50 alumni have provided interview support for our prospective MBA students this cycle. Alumni have also been active in connecting with prospective students in various admissions events and through one-on-one interactions.
We’ve had many alumni profiled for our website and magazine this year, and I’ve been able to work with the Alumni Association in providing dedicated Mendoza content for the newsletters of the 260+ local alumni clubs.
Student Journey
There have been dozens of sessions, meetings and lectures that have given our students the chance to interact with our alumni. In particular, we saw strong alumni impact on orientations, MBA clubs and co-curricular projects such as practicums, capstones and experiential learning projects both here and abroad.
Career Development/Continuous Learning
Alumni play a large role in helping our students to discern their future career paths, and we’ve had dozens of alumni participating in career treks, panel discussions and networking opportunities. I’ve also partnered with Graduate Career Development and the Corporate Advisory board to engage with alumni from Notre Dame’s affinity groups to develop an MBA mentorship program for underrepresented students.
I’m thrilled to continue to build our suite of services for our alumni. This includes continuing to grow our Mendoza Alumni Book Club, promoting and workshopping IrishCompass, and establishing Mendoza groups amongst our international alumni clubs. Finally, I’ve partnered with John Gordon ‘98 and his career planning platform, Whomi, to provide both thought leadership and access to his innovative platform to our alumni. Far from another social media network, Whomi helps you to design a career plan and establish your personal “board of directors” to help you achieve your goals and hold you accountable to your plan.
Metrics
While I will always value quality engagement over quantity, it helps to know where we stand and how we’re growing our level of engagement between alumni and the College. I’ve developed “Alumni Impact Points,” which track individual instances of alumni directly interacting with current members of the Mendoza community. I’m pleased to report that we have more than 550 AIPs so far this fiscal year across 45-plus different programs and initiatives (a 175% YOY increase). I’m always working on aggregating and recording more alumni interactions that happen across the college, so please send them my way!
I’m so grateful for the partnership and support of so many across the College in helping to engage with our alumni and activate them to support Mendoza’s strategic goals. I look forward to a Spring semester filled with bold ideas and measurable impact.
Warm regards,
Ryan
Ryan Retartha (ND '07) 
Director of Alumni Relations

A Record Year

Dean Martijn Cremers

Dean Martijn Cremers

Monday, 5 December 2022
We recently held our annual Business Advisory Council (BAC) meeting, which was attended by 40 of our 59 BAC members (plus many spouses). The meeting had a lot of lively discussions and very impressive presentations led by several of our faculty that also prominently featured our students, showcasing the educational experience we strive to offer.
During the College update session, Lou Nanni, vice president for University Relations, shared some very good news with the Council regarding benefaction to the College — news that I am also glad to share with you.
Since July 1 (the start of our fiscal year), Mendoza College of Business has already raised $43 million in benefaction, which is an all-time record, surpassing the previous record of $41 million raised in the full 2014-15 fiscal year. These gifts represent the generosity and support of our advisory council members, and their faith in the mission and vision of the College to serve our students, advance our research reputation, develop innovative curricula and formative student experiences, and build a caring, inclusive community.
The gifts included these commitments:
Sean (BBA ’98) and Kim Klimczak made a $25 million commitment to name and endow our business honors program, to be named the Klimczak Family Business Honors Program. The gift consists of two parts: $10 million to advance opportunities for and representation of first-generation, Pell-eligible and other historically underrepresented groups in the program through financial aid; and $15 million to name and endow the program through direct support of student programming and courses.
Sean, the global head of infrastructure for the Blackstone Group, is a first-generation college student himself, so he especially wanted to provide the opportunity for other first-gen students to transform their lives at Notre Dame. During the BAC meeting, Provost John McGreevy recognized the significance of this gift in enabling us to attract some of the best undergraduate students in the world, which will have a ripple effect on the entire University.
Jim (BBA ’78) and Margaret Wade made a $5 million commitment to name and endow the faculty directorship of the Notre Dame Institute for Global Investing, plus another $1.5 million to support the Applied Investment Management program. Jim is a managing partner at M/C Partners, a private equity firm focused on small and mid-size businesses in the digital infrastructure and technology services sectors. A former executive at Coldwell Banker, Margaret serves on numerous boards, including the boards of the Catholic Schools Foundation (along with fellow BAC member Gary Kaneb), Belmont Hill School and Belmont Day School.
The ViBern Board, led by Cindy Hank Stark (BBA ’81), contributed $2 million to establish the ViBern Impact Initiative Endowment for Excellence Fund to support experiential learning opportunities offered through Mendoza with a preference for support for courses and content focused on design thinking and consulting for impact. Cindy, the current BAC chair, has served on the Council for more than 20 years, following a term on the Graduate Studies and Research Advisory Council. ViBern is a charitable board named in honor of her grandparents Viola and Bernard Hank, who have a remarkable story of being married young, overcoming poverty and being committed to serving others. The first College initiative to benefit from this endowment will be the Powerful Means Initiative led by Wendy Angst.
Perry (MBA ’87) and Sue Dellelce made a gift of $3 million to establish the Dellelce Fellowship Fund to support fellowships for graduate students in Mendoza with a preference for students enrolled in the MBA program and/or the Ph.D. programs. Perry is a founder and managing partner of Wildeboer Dellelce LLP, one of Canada's leading corporate finance and transactional law firms. Perry and Sue are active philanthropists who previously established the Dellelce Irish Hockey Shop in the Compton Family Ice Arena and endowed two MBA scholarships.
I’m very grateful for these gifts and especially want to thank our academic advancement director, Natalie Sargent, and the University Relations team for their continuing efforts on behalf of the College. I also greatly appreciate the fantastic efforts by so many others to make our Business Advisory Council meetings a success, including Jean Meade, Beth Smith and Candice Cleveland, and the faculty who led presentations: Shane Corwin, Jason Reed, Jim Otteson and Wendy Angst.
In Notre Dame,
Martijn

Guest Column: Kara Palmer

Kara Palmer

Kara Palmer

Monday, 28 November 2022
Updates and a Look Ahead
It’s incredible to think how quickly the fall has come and gone and the countdown to Christmas is officially on! 
As the senior director of Administration & Program Management, I’m highly committed to staff engagement and culture across the College. In spring 2022, staff participated in the University’s eighth ND Voice Survey, which measures engagement around topics such as communication, diversity and inclusion, leadership effectiveness and trust. Following the survey, the Dean’s Cabinet reviewed the results and identified three priorities with the themes of Community, Climate and Communication. (Not to be confused with Martijn’s 3 Cs for the Purpose of Business, of course!)
During the past few months, these priorities have been a top focus for me and I’m excited to provide an update on just a few initiatives of the many we have recently rolled out in an effort toward progress and to also share what’s ahead!
Flexible Work
The desire for more flexibility was the No. 1 topic in the ND Voice comments (and also a common theme in previous pulse surveys and even in the surveys we conducted with staff as part of the strategic planning process). In response, the College introduced a pilot presenting new options for flexible work for staff and incorporated it as a key objective for the year in our strategic plan. The feedback we have received thus far has been very positive and, as evidenced by so many accomplishments across all of our programs over the past few months, our productivity has not slowed down!
What’s Ahead? In our ongoing commitment to be transparent and communicative about work locations, in the coming weeks, all staff members will be receiving a Mendoza branded sign for their cubicle/office spaces which will help to communicate to others their work location. A very special thank you to Candice Cleveland, Brian Connelly, Katie Price, Kalynda Hamilton, Chis Grenert and Lucas Eggers for their creativity and coordination to make this happen! In addition, Martijn and I will be hosting an On the Menu with Martijn meeting in December with a diverse group of staff across the College to solicit input and feedback on this important initiative.
Business Encounters
In September, we launched Business Encounters as a series of optional one-hour monthly meetings in an effort to improve two-way communication across the College and to provide staff with a greater opportunity to discuss key College strategic priorities with members of our leadership. The goal of this conversational forum is to help staff better understand key strategic initiatives and progress being made toward College objectives, and to have the opportunity to ask questions and provide insight.
In the first session, we learned about the high-level strategic plan from the dean, Rob Kelly and myself. In the second, we heard about the current landscape and potential direction of our graduate programs with Craig Crossland, Katherine Spiess and Joe Sweeney. On November 30, Kristen Collett-Schmitt, associate dean for Innovation and Inclusion, will discuss the Inclusive Campus Survey. These sessions have been well attended and have sparked some great conversations during the session and beyond.
What’s Ahead? Our next set of topics will be a deeper dive into each of the six goals of the strategic plan: Research, Teaching and Learning, Graduate Programs, Undergraduate Programs, and Talent and Culture. Leadership will discuss the key results identified under each goal and objective, our progress and the metrics we have identified to measure success. We will also have a very special session in the spring to present next year’s Dean’s Excellence Awards. (A call for nominations will be coming in the new year!)
Diversity, Equity & Inclusion
In late September, Kristen Collett-Schmitt provided an update in a guest column on her efforts toward inclusive excellence as the associate dean for Innovation and Inclusion. I am incredibly grateful for her partnership along with the close collaboration with the staff DE&I Council, to identify College-wide opportunities for engagement across our community and to coordinate DE&I-related events that connect faculty, staff and students, both internally and with other colleges on campus. I’m particularly proud of Mendoza’s first Show Some Skin event earlier this month when we featured a sampling of 11 years’ worth of Notre Dame Show Some Skin performances.
What’s Ahead? The following initiatives are currently in the works for the new year:
  1. Enhanced recruiting efforts to expand our reach to more diverse job seekers across higher education and our community.
  2. Launch of a new Recruiting Ambassadors program – Ambassadors will meet with final candidates to create connections and discuss the climate and opportunities of working at Mendoza.
  3. Hosting of a special viewing of the movie "Hesburgh" in the Jordan Auditorium in January in alignment with the University’s Walk the Walk Week. This is anticipated to be followed by an opportunity to continue the dialogue around Father Ted’s impact and how we may continue to follow in his footsteps.
  4. Partnership with our students, faculty, alumni, board members, the University’s DE&I Practitioner group under the leadership of Hugh Page, and other campus partners to identify speakers, social and cultural events to host and participate in to include hosting the University’s Show Some Skin event in the Spring right here in the Jordan Auditorium.
Suggestion Boxes
While we always encourage open dialogue, we understand that not everyone feels comfortable sharing ideas publicly from time to time. In order to ensure that we don’t miss out on great ideas, we will be installing suggestion boxes across the College in January. The purpose is for members of our community to provide feedback on what we're doing well in the College, to share ideas for improvement as well as any other suggestions or generalized feedback. The boxes will be located in the Mendoza Faculty and Staff Lounge, the Faculty Support Center and the Stayer Staff Lounge (Room 310). To learn more, visit one of the suggestion box locations and scan the QR code or click here.
I’m grateful to Dean Cremers along with Rob Kelly, Craig Crossland, Kristen Collett Schmitt and Ken Kelley for their leadership and championship in their commitment to making staff engagement an important priority for the College. 
As I reflect on the work that has been accomplished and read the Mendoza Exchange newsletter each week, I’m reminded this is only a small sliver of all of the incredible work that is being done by so many across the College. I’m so grateful for the commitment and dedication to our students, to each other, to the College and to Our Lady’s University! As we move into the holiday season, I do pray that things begin to slow down a bit for all and, in the coming weeks, every one of you may find time for respite, reflection and rejuvenation.
Best wishes for a wonderful holiday season,
Kara

Kara J. Palmer
Senior Director of Administration & Program Management

Guest Column: Father Oliver F. Williams, C.S.C.

Fr. Ollie Williams

Fr. Ollie Williams

Monday, 21 November 2022
Thanksgiving: The Key to Happiness
Thanksgiving as a festival holiday has a long tradition in countries and cultures throughout the world. In the United States, Thanksgiving Day is most often traced to the Pilgrims and Puritans who came to the U.S. in the 1620s from England.
In 1621, at Plymouth, Massachusetts, after a good harvest, the Pilgrims celebrated with a tribe of Native Americans, the Wampanoags, who had assisted them in their struggle to find a life in the new world. Thankful for all the blessings of that past year, the celebration was an expression of gratitude.
Thanksgiving proclamations by church leaders, as well as political leaders, perdured through the centuries. George Washington, as president of the United States, announced that November 26, 1789, would be “a day of public thanksgiving and prayer, to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many and signal favors of Almighty God.”
In 1863, Abraham Lincoln proclaimed that a national Thanksgiving Day would be celebrated in all states on the last Thursday in November, expressing gratitude for the good fortune of the Union and its military successes. He called on the American people to “fervently implore the interposition of the Almighty hand to heal the wounds of the nation …”
Today, Thanksgiving Day is most often a day of celebration of family with good food, football and even parades. Most look forward to a great feast of turkey, pumpkin pie, potatoes and stuffing. Although it is largely thought of as a secular holiday, for Christians, the occasion has a much more profound meaning, touching the very core of their spiritual beliefs.
Thanksgiving is at the heart of the Christian message: “Thanks be to God for his inexpressible gift!” (2 Corinthians 9:15). As followers of Christ, Christians are thankful for the love and mercy of God. The life, death and resurrection of Christ is the greatest of all gifts. As the popular TV commercial says, “Only pay for what you need: Liberty, Liberty, Liberty.” What Christians celebrate is what we really need, eternal life, has already been paid for - -by the life, death and resurrection of Christ.
Christians celebrate Thanksgiving every time they go to Mass. In fact, the word “eucharist” comes from the Greek word for thanksgiving (echaristia). Gratitude to the Lord brings a fulfilling and joyful life as we share our gratitude and blessings with others, especially the less fortunate.
As we approach Thanksgiving Day, let each one of us plan to spend quality time with our loved ones as a way of living out our gratitude to God. Perhaps we can also donate to charity, volunteer to assist the poor or help the less fortunate. Thanksgiving is the key to happiness.

Fr. Ollie Williams, C.S.C.
Associate Professor
Management & Organization

Research Roundup

Martijn Cremers

Martijn Cremers

Monday, 14 November 2022
I’m pleased to recognize the following faculty members for their research articles that were recently accepted or published by top journals in their disciplines:
Shijie Lu, Howard J. and Geraldine F. Korth Associate Professor of Marketing
“Does Topic Consistency Matter? A Study of Critic and User Reviews in the Movie Industry” (Journal of Marketing)
The research shows that the content overlap between critics’ and users’ reviews is positively associated with movie demand and that this association is the most prominent for movies with mediocre review ratings. Hence, movie producers and advertisers should consider inducing a common topic or theme for critics and users to discuss.
Paul Schultz, John W. and Maude Clarke Professor of Finance
“The Response to Share Mispricing by Issuing Firms and Short Sellers” (The Journal of Financial and Qualitative Analysis)
Short sellers profit from overpriced stocks by borrowing shares and selling them in the hope of repurchasing later at a lower price. When it is difficult or costly for short sellers to borrow shares, stocks can become overpriced. The study shows that companies are far more likely to sell new shares when short selling is very costly. They are also less likely to repurchase shares.
Katie Wowak, Robert & Sara Lumpkins Associate Professor of Business Analytics
Corey Angst, Jack and Joan McGraw Family Collegiate Professor of IT, Analytics, and Operations
Ken Kelley, Edward F. Sorin Society Professor of IT, Analytics, and Operations
“Strategic Sourcing of Multi-Component Software Systems: The Case of Electronic Medical Records” (Decision Science)
This study examines whether and how an organization’s IT sourcing strategy affects performance. We examine this in the context of hospitals’ sourcing strategy for electronic medical record (EMR) systems. We find that closeness to single-sourcing impacts conformance quality, a critical measure of hospital performance and the HITECH Act, mandating EMR adoption, may have created unforeseen advantages for hospitals with single-sourced EMR systems.
Yang Yang, Assistant Professor of IT, Analytics, and Operations
“Gender-diverse Teams Produce More Novel and Higher Impact Scientific Ideas” (Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences)
Gender diversity plays an important role in the workplace, and this study examining 6.6 million medical papers supports that in the realm of scientific research. In particular, the publications of gender-diverse teams are more novel and impactful than those of same-gender teams of equivalent size. The novelty and impact advantages persist when considering numerous controls and potential related features, including fixed effects for the individual researchers, team structures and network positioning.
Thank you to Shijie, Paul, Katie, Corey, Ken and Yang for your contributions.
In Notre Dame,
Martijn

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