A DePaul Career Center survey shows promising employment trends for recent business school alumni.
Faculty Research Delves Into Downsizing and More
Why Do We Buy What We Buy?
Why will you buy a T-shirt for $29.99, but not $30? Who buys the bizarre items—for example, a replica of Gandalf’s staff from “Lord of the Rings”—offered in the airline magazine SkyMall?
These and other questions are pondered by Assistant Marketing Professor James Mourey in his book, “Urge: Why You Really Want What You Want (And How to Make Everyone Want What You’ve Got).”
“It turns out that knowing who buys what or why people buy isn’t nearly as straightforward as you think,” Mourey writes. “Some people buy products because they like them.
Others buy products because other people like them. People often buy products they don’t need (we’re all guilty of that), and some even buy products they may not even want…but if we dig a bit deeper, we can start to uncover some systematic consistencies that help us make better predictions about why consumers do the weird things that they do.”
Workplace Bullies Aim at Star and Subpar Performers
Workplace bullies most often target colleagues who are high or low performers, according to a study co-authored by Assistant Professor of Management Jaclyn Jensen for the Journal of Applied Psychology.
Low performers tend to be the focus of overt hostility, such as yelling, while high performers are more likely to be victimized by subtle aggression, such as backstabbing and sabotage.
“Although good performance is often emphasized,” the study notes, “these results suggest concern for high performers and whether or not they ‘have a target on their back.’” To defuse bullying, managers should avoid performance metrics that compare employees directly and mentor low performers, Jensen and her co-authors suggest.
Fifty Alternatives to Downsizing
“Organizational downsizing fails to achieve two major goals: increases in effectiveness and efficiency,” writes Associate Management Professor Marty Martin in a study he co-wrote for the International Journal of Business and Social Research. “Alternatives are warranted to achieve these two goals without resorting to organizational downsizing.”
Martin and his research colleagues offer 50 alternatives to downsizing, from furlough days and retirement incentives to asking employees, customers and suppliers for their ideas for reducing costs and generating revenue.
“There are times when downsizing is necessary and appropriate. There are also times when downsizing is not the best solution,” the authors note. “These differences should be squarely addressed by the key decision makers within organizations to lay out a decision-making model that includes alternatives.”
DePaul Marketing Professor Builds Real-World Connections
Zafar Iqbal remembers the exact moment when he discovered the depth of his identity.
He was a teenager in the 1980s living in the pensioners’ paradise of Pune, India, when he turned on his television and saw pop icon Michael Jackson “moonwalk” backward across a stage. It was an image that resonated for Iqbal—he wanted to share in the individuality that he saw in American culture.
Iqbal, an associate professor of marketing at DePaul, says seeing such visions of uniqueness and originality spoke volumes to him as he struggled to find his identity in the formal Indian culture, where familial ties often override individual desires. “I grew up Indian,” Iqbal says, “but, in my mind, I’m more American because I always wanted to be an individual.”
Today, Iqbal is helping DePaul students, faculty and alumni discover their identities, both globally and professionally. Because of his cross-cultural experience, Iqbal was tapped by university officials to spearhead DePaul’s educational exchange initiatives with Symbiosis International University in Pune. To date, more than 100 students have traveled to India with Iqbal and Marketing Instructor Luis Larrea to attend classes, visit businesses and nonprofits, meet students and faculty, and learn about Indian culture. Since the partnership with Symbiosis began last year, several DePaul graduates are now working with the likes of Amazon and Groupon on their Indian-focused business initiatives.
When he’s not traversing the globe helping members of the DePaul community live and work in India or teaching business classes, for which he has won multiple teaching awards, Iqbal is conducting essential research for marketing professionals. Currently, he’s working on a large-scale research project to identify and categorize different types of marketing careers.
“There’s not really much (information) out there about what different types of marketing careers exist today,” says Iqbal, noting that the field has expanded rapidly beyond advertising and sales in recent years. According to Iqbal, the job title of marketer is an opaque banner that obscures a host of extremely diverse job types.
Iqbal surveyed 400 DePaul marketing alumni about their careers to develop a career profile for what he has defined as the 14 categories of marketing jobs. “The research will serve as a repository for current students or alumni to understand the different job types that are in marketing and visualize a day in the life of those job types,” Iqbal says.
Decades ago, Iqbal came to the United States seeking his true purpose. Now, he spends his days helping DePaul students and alumni find theirs. Iqbal says, “This is not work, this is a mission.”
The Momentum of Many Dreams, One Mission
When the Many Dreams, One Mission Campaign for DePaul University officially closed on June 30, gifts had topped $333 million, making it the largest fundraising effort in the history of the university.
“This Campaign has built a stronger DePaul,” says the Rev. Dennis H. Holtschneider, C.M., president of DePaul University. “Donors understand DePaul’s commitment to providing an excellent education to our students. Thanks to them, DePaul will continue to be able to attract and educate talented students from a wide array of backgrounds.”
Overall, Campaign giving to the business college surpassed $113.8 million. “Alumni and friends of the college who responded to this Campaign helped us to strengthen our faculty and our programs, our learning environments and tools, and our ability to help students fund their education,” says Ray Whittington, dean of the Driehaus College of Business.
Alumnus Richard H. Driehaus (BA ’65, MBA ’70, DHL ’02), the investment pioneer and philanthropist whose name now graces the college, made a historic $30 million gift to support an endowment fund to attract and retain top business faculty. The shortage of PhD educators needed to provide a high-quality education puts a premium on the salaries they can command and contributes to the challenge of keeping tuition costs in line. Recognizing this need, Driehaus endowed the fund to help DePaul remain nationally competitive and encourage other generous alumni to contribute so that incoming students can have the excellent classroom experiences they remember so fondly.
Campaign gifts also enabled the expansion of the business school’s Finance Lab, a virtual trading room that symbolizes the school’s innovation and academic excellence in blending leading-edge theory with real-world practice. The lab supports graduate and undergraduate courses in portfolio management, risk management, investment, financial engineering and quantitative methods by providing Bloomberg Terminals with live financial market information as well as other data sources and analytical tools.Additional donor support will enable the college to keep up with technological innovations and expand its business facilities and career services.
More than $106 million in new scholarship funding was raised during the campaign. Ryan Daliege (BUS ’11) expresses his gratitude for the generosity of Campaign donors:
“DePaul provided me with an excellent education in finance, but it never could have happened without my scholarship,” says Daliege, who is back at DePaul in the MBA program while working as a financial advisor for Ayco Company, a Goldman Sachs company.
DePaul thanks its many Campaign donors and invites other grateful alumni to continue the momentum of this historic fundraising Campaign.
DePaul Alumna Creates Path to Shape Future Leaders
Corliss Garner (’96 BUS) relished her years as an undergraduate studying finance at DePaul University. Garner, senior manager of Diverse Markets and Community Affairs at BMO Harris Bank, says the opportunity to work full time while attending a well-respected university in the heart of downtown Chicago was a gift. Yet, after graduation, she drifted away from her alma mater.
But in 2008, when a colleague at her bank mentioned an opening on the advisory board for DePaul’s Coleman Entrepreneurship Center, Garner seized the opportunity.
“Becoming a board member at the Coleman Center reintroduced me to DePaul,” says Garner. “I learned a lot about what was happening at DePaul, including about the entrepreneurship program, as well as other programs at the university.”
During her time with the center, Garner worked with Scott Young, chair of DePaul’s Department of Management, and several other professors, academic staff members and civic leaders. She says she was impressed by DePaul’s commitment to entrepreneurship, leadership and diversity.
When officials from the Chicago Housing Authority approached Garner about potential institutions to cohost the CHA’s summer leadership and financial literacy program for high school students, Garner instantly thought of DePaul and Scott Young, she says. “I knew about DePaul’s commitment to leadership and management and I thought they could lend some value to the CHA’s program.”
Hosted by the college’s Department of Management, taught by DePaul faculty, sponsored by BMO Harris Bank and coordinated by the CHA, the Financial Literacy and Leadership Institute held at the Driehaus College of Business in July offered teens who live in CHA housing a breadth of knowledge. The program featured skill-building lectures, field trips to financial institutions such as the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago, and guest speakers that included Stedman Graham, chairman and CEO of S. Graham & Associates, and John W. Rogers, Jr., CEO of Ariel Capital Investments LLC. The program culminated with a formal graduation and luncheon.
More than 300 students applied to the program, and the students selected were chosen based upon their academic achievement and leadership potential. They were also paid for their participation, thanks to a generous grant from BMO Harris Bank.
Garner says CHA officials have been singing the praises of the program and DePaul’s commitment to it.
“The feedback has been phenomenal,” Garner says. “They were really impressed with the DePaul faculty who worked with the kids over the summer. I received nothing but great feedback and when I attended the wrap session and heard the students present. I was thoroughly impressed.”
Garner said she is looking forward to next year’s program and seeing the relationship deepen between DePaul, the CHA and BMO Harris.
Students and Alumni Apply Sales Skills to Scholarship Fundraising
By Jennifer Leopoldt
A culture of giving back is built into DePaul University’s mission. In one undergraduate marketing class at the Driehaus College of Business, that idea is also part of the curriculum.
Students in MKT 377: Fundamentals of Sales & Networking learn and practice sales concepts by “selling” for the Sid Feldman Legacy Fund, which creates scholarships for Chicago Public Schools students to attend DePaul. The fund is named after Chicago businessman Sid Feldman, who believed in the power and necessity of education.
“Through this project students not only learn to sell and to provide financial means for someone to attend DePaul, but they come to the realization that they could truly make a difference in a person’s life,” says Adjunct Professor Clancy Ryan (BUS ’96, MBA ’02), who created and teaches the class each quarter and is the director of student relations for DePaul’s Center for Sales Leadership.
Early on, students in MKT 377 would pitch for DePaul’s sales programs or for community partners, such as StreetWise. The class switched to promoting the scholarship fund in winter 2010 and now has a yearly goal of raising $75,000 and funding two partial scholarships. For Fiscal Year 2013-14, ending with the 2014 spring quarter class, MKT 377 students raised $109,979.62.
Students Helping Students
The class introduces sales concepts and challenges students to polish their skills through individual and group work. Each quarter, students break into teams of four and are mentored by a sales team manager, a former student who completed the same class. Bringing alumni into the classroom allows students to learn from someone who has been in the same situation.
“It’s this idea of students mentoring students who are helping students,” explains Sarah Laggos (CSH ’05, LAS MA ’07), who began co-directing the fund while she worked at the Center for Sales Leadership. Now Laggos remains hands-on with managing the fund while being based in California as Alumni, Annual Fund & Corporate Relations Director at Santa Rosa Junior College.
Zaharoula Asimos (BUS ’12) was a sales team manager for four quarters after graduating. She has helped to coach the sales team leaders and serves on the effort’s advisory board. She says she appreciated how Ryan led class by example: “He showed us that you can have a corporate job and do something you love on the side, for the pure passion in your heart.”
Sales team manager Semir Delic (BUS ’11) returned because he believed in the fund and the skills the class taught him. “Everything that I learned in class I was able to apply in the real world while helping other students attend DePaul,” he says.
The advent of sales team managers shows how the course is constantly changing. One year when Ryan taught an MBA-level course on leading business development, he asked the graduate students how they would lead a team of undergraduates to success in a fundraising project. That feedback was implemented into MKT 377. In addition, each quarter the sales team managers are asked to discuss what does and doesn’t work so the course can continue to adapt.
Raising Money, Learning Lessons
Just like a sales force for a company, each student in class is given a sales quota. For FY13-14, the goals were higher: Each student had to bring in $300, with $150 raised individually and $150 raised with their teams. Within four years, the per-student fundraising average has more than doubled, from $220 in 2010 to $537 last year.
Students can raise money however they see fit, usually in a combination of pitching to friends and family and running team events. Those events can be anything from special sales days at local restaurants, such as the Chipotle nearest DePaul’s Loop Campus, to bake sales or other ideas. The challenge comes in picking something that can be implemented in just 10 weeks.
Students see the difference they’re making when past scholarship recipients—now DePaul students themselves—come to class and talk about what receiving the Sid Feldman scholarship meant to them.
“That is the thing that flips the light bulb on: These are real students at DePaul, and without this scholarship they would not be able to be here,” Laggos says. Videos of scholarship recipients also are available on the fund’s website.
Koemi Valencia (BUS ’14) says being a sales team manager is a learning experience, one where she can learn from the students while also helping them succeed. “Having that dual-learning relationship while keeping this amazing cause alive—helping CPS students go to college—is almost an invaluable experience.”
Even as the professor, Ryan says he gains new insight from each class. “I tell the students that they’ll teach me more in 10 weeks than I’ll ever be able to teach them.”
Professional Development Keeps You in the Driver’s Seat
Owning a home and investing in stocks and bonds are common strategies people use to boost their financial security, but some overlook what could be the working adult’s most valuable asset: their income earning potential.
An investment in one’s career could easily generate more than an investment in the stock market, and it is one over which employees have much more control.
Professionals pursue continuing education to advance their careers, change industries or stay ahead of rapidly evolving technology. Social media, for example, has transformed many professions and requires an entirely new set of skills than those taught just five years ago.
Steve Kelly, director of the Kellstadt Marketing Center (KMC) in DePaul’s Driehaus College of Business, has seen this revolution firsthand. “Social media, digital display advertising, search engine marketing and competing on analytics were not in the vocabulary for most of our students when they received their undergraduate degrees,” he says. “Today’s marketing is being driven by predictive and web analytics, social media listening and marketing, customer relationship management, database development, individual targeting and return on investment accountability. Only experts who are practicing this today can keep up with the changing marketing landscape.”
Tim Weaver (LAS ’97), account manager at ESPN Local in Chicago, returned to DePaul in 2013 to pursue the KMC Integrated Marketing Communications Certificate. “I needed something to prove that I had a knowledge base for internal and external career opportunities,” he explains. “I didn’t have the time to do a full-blown MBA program, but did want it to be at an accredited university. I found the IMC program was the perfect balance of all the elements I was looking for.”
Kelly notes that the advantages of pursuing professional development over a full degree program include students’ ability to target specific skills and just-in-time learning in the format that best suits them. KMC courses range from a single class on one day to a course spread over 10 evening sessions to a multiple-course certificate program. To accommodate professional travel schedules, an increasing number of these courses are available online.
Weaver’s strategy worked.
“My clients and co-workers look at me in a different light, as a real expert in the digital marketing field who they can come to for help,” he says. “My managers come to me to discuss best practices when developing new sponsorship and program elements.”
A study DePaul commissioned in 2009 estimated more than 1.4 million people in northern Illinois, northwestern Indiana and southeastern Wisconsin pursued career-related, noncredit professional education. In a typical year, upward of 3,000 students enroll in programs at KMC and DePaul’s Continuing and Professional Education (CPE).
Harry Bryant, CPE director, says those who pass through his doors are mostly people in midcareer or middle-management jobs. A third to a half have taken classes or earned a degree from DePaul. Alumni receive a 15 percent discount on all KMC programs and some CPE courses.
“The demographics are shifting toward professional education,” Bryant notes. The number of high school graduates in America peaked between 2007 and 2011. These students have already completed or soon will complete college. “What are they going to need to take the next step forward in their careers?” he asks. “They will seek specific skills to advance, differentiate themselves or break into a new industry.”
CPE students take a range of programs that span from three-hour seminars to 180-hour certificate programs addressing the latest trends and techniques in financial planning, human resources and management, among other topics. Because Chicago has become an operational and logistical hub, Bryant says certifications in supply chain management, project management and Six Sigma process improvement are very popular.
As Weaver’s experience illustrates, professionals who take ownership of their careers by updating their skills can become management’s go-to staff members, a role that can enhance future earnings.
Visit the Kellstadt Marketing Center for more information on professional development opportunities. For details on Continuing and Professional Education visit learning.depaul.edu.
By the Numbers
How far does the Driehaus College of Business alumni network extend? You’ll find alumni working in Chicago and around the world, in the office down the hall and in the c-suite, in traditional corporations and entrepreneurial ventures. The following graphic illustrates our alumni network reach in numbers:
Alumni Profiles
Global Risk Management Director Savors Role at Diageo
Name: LaToya M. Lacey, CPA, CFE (BUS ’01)
Residence: Stamford, Conn.
Occupation: Director of Global Audit & Risk at Diageo, a premium drinks business with brands that span spirits, beer and wine. In this role, I am responsible for conducting and leading advisory reviews and internal audits, including assessment of overall risk management activities. I also lead the anti-fraud agenda within the Global Audit & Risk group at Diageo.
Education: A family friend suggested I consider a degree in accounting since math was my favorite subject. I took an accounting course during my senior year at Morgan Park High School and enjoyed it. I decided to pursue my degree at DePaul because of its excellent accounting program and because I was really impressed with the school after attending the open house.
Vital stats: During my time at DePaul, I worked in the law school’s admissions office and held two internships at Arthur Andersen and one at Abbott Laboratories. After graduation, I accepted a position at Abbott in their Financial Professional Development Program and subsequently worked in their U.S. Customs Compliance group. I left Abbott to join the Internal Audit department at Altria and went to Kraft Foods as a result of the spinoff. At Kraft, I worked in internal audit, finance training and special investigations. I have an 18-year-old son who plans to obtain a pharmaceutical sciences degree at the University of Illinois at Chicago.
What I like best about my job: Over the past two years, no two assignments have been the same. I really enjoy the constant changes and challenges, and the opportunities I have to change the way we work. I also enjoy traveling all over the world and working with people with diverse backgrounds and perspectives.
My DePaul experience: I was a full-time student, a student officer and mentor in STARS (Students Together Are Reaching Success, a DePaul support program for first-year students). I also worked part time while being a single mom, and I graduated with honors. My experience at DePaul taught me the importance of time management and that with determination and hard work, I can overcome any obstacle. That has helped me tremendously with various challenges
I have experienced both personally and professionally.
Lacey’s Advice for New Alumni
“Embrace and overcome challenges, rather than run from them, and learn from mistakes. These experiences will prepare you for a bright future.”
“Find what truly motivates you and pursue that in your career. This will allow you to have the energy to always give your best and drive for more.”
“Expand your horizons as much as possible. When you have the opportunity to work in another part of the world, learn about the economy, culture and history.”
“Balance is important, so don’t forget to have fun and enjoy time with those closest to you.”
A Double Demon Recognized For His Leadership in Accountancy
Name: Joe Adams (BUS ’77, MBA ’79)
Residence: Carol Stream, Ill.
Occupation: Managing partner and CEO of McGladrey LLP, the fifth largest assurance, tax and consulting firm in the United States and the largest focused on middle market businesses and the entrepreneurs who run them. Accounting Today recognized Adams as one of its “Top 100 Most Influential People in Accounting” in 2013.
Education: Adams attended St. Joseph’s High School in Westchester, Ill., before becoming a DePaul Double Demon. “My brother attended DePaul, and he was the primary influence on my choice to attend DePaul and to pursue an undergraduate degree in accounting. I also wanted to stay close to home to be able to work and earn the money to pay for my education.”
Vital stats: “I am fortunate to have spent my entire career at McGladrey, beginning as an entry-level auditor and advancing to partner in 1987. Since then, I have held a variety of leadership roles at McGladrey that have led to my current position.” Adams and Cheryl, his wife of 36 years, have five grown children and five grandchildren.
What I like best about my job: “I like the short- and long-term challenges that consume my day. Overseeing a complex business provides me with an opportunity to be involved in a variety of areas, from strategy and vision to financial and operational results. I also enjoy working closely with the outstanding people who work for McGladrey or are clients and friends of our great firm.”
The biggest challenge I face in my job: “Working to stay ahead of our competition and positioning our firm as uniquely better and the first-choice advisor to middle market leaders. This means constantly working to attract and develop diverse talent and providing them with a working environment that is second to none so they will, in turn, provide our clients with an experience that is second to none.”
My DePaul experience: “DePaul gave me a solid educational foundation not only in accounting and business, but also in nontechnical skills that have served me well throughout my career. The relationships I built at DePaul have aided me in my business and personal goals, and I am especially grateful to the DePaul career placement office for helping me get my job at McGladrey in the first place.”
Adams’s Advice For Young Alumni
“Don’t be afraid to get out of your comfort zone or make a mistake; just be sure to learn from it.”
“Stay relevant. Learn something new every day, and impart your knowledge to and coach others.”
“Listen respectfully and challenge others about what can be better; then do your part to make it better.”
“Change is constant and accelerating—accept it and use it to your advantage.”
“The relationships you build at DePaul and the ones you build after you graduate can make all the difference. I had no idea where my career would take me, but with the help of some extraordinary mentors, I have been involved in some amazing things.”
Investing in Financial Literacy
As a child growing up on the South Side of Chicago in the 1970s, Richard Smith (BUS ’77, MBA ’83) knew he wanted to be a “business man.” Yet, Smith struggled with variables and formulas, as well as with the stigma others placed upon him as the poor son of a cafeteria worker. He felt like he didn’t belong in the finance world.
Smith’s DePaul education helped him enter this world, and after 20 years of building his own investment firm, Smith created The Wall Street Program to help others follow in his footsteps. The free finance and investment education program teaches Chicago-area middle schoolers the ins and outs of finance and investing through virtual investment accounts set up on Yahoo! Finance.
Nearly 1,000 students have gone through the program. “I’m the type of person that if I learn something, I want to teach others,” says Smith. “I want the kids to know that despite having little knowledge of the finance world now, you can learn and make a good living in this area. I truly found that investing is a great way of building wealth and I want them to learn as much as possible.”
Forging Career Connections
Rob Pasquesi (MBA ’10) began brainstorming a better way to foster professional relationships while he was studying entrepreneurship at DePaul. Now his idea of taking one’s online network offline has grown into NextIntro.com, a free website that helps young professionals form connections online and suggests ways for them to meet face to face.
The site allows members to create a personal page based on their LinkedIn profiles or from scratch. Members get emails suggesting other professionals they might want to meet, and the site even recommends nearby restaurants or coffee shops that could serve as meeting places. The site, which launched in 2013, now has nearly 10,000 members in Chicago, Boston, Denver and Austin, Texas.
Pasquesi, who works as an audit senior manager at a top-six international accounting and tax firm, credits DePaul’s business professors with helping him refine the website concept and putting him in touch with students.
“When I started talking to college students and young professionals, they mentioned a need for receiving mentorships and understanding more about certain professions,” Pasquesi says. “A lot of current members saw the same problems when they were students four or five years ago and now want to offer their suggestions and help.”
To read more DePaul alumni news and submit class notes, visit alumni.depaul.edu.
Joe Silich’s Measure of Success
Joe Silich (BUS ’92) is one of the preeminent wealth advisors in the nation. But he has never forgotten his working-class roots on the southwest side of Chicago or his first-generation college experience at DePaul.
“DePaul allowed me to identify that gift inside of me—in my case, a gift for numbers,” he says. “My teachers helped me find it, nurture it, and build my knowledge. In the process, they helped me build confidence. That foundational education is a kind of ‘muscle memory’ that has served me well in my career and in life.”
As executive director at Morgan Stanley, he leads the Silich Group of wealth advisors for the firm. He has garnered numerous accolades throughout his career. He was named one of Barron’s magazine’s top financial advisors nationwide in 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2013. He makes frequent appearances on MSNBC, CNBC, Bloomberg and other media outlets. Throughout his career, he has been careful along the way to share his gifts and his success with the community.
At DePaul, Silich serves on the DePaul University Finance Advisory Board and the Driehaus College Campaign Committee. He works with the college to develop intern-ship opportunities for students, and personally coaches and mentors DePaul students and young alumni. His community commitments are numerous and wide-ranging. To name a few, he serves on the Chicago-based board of UNICEF, the Midwest Board of the USO, and the advisory board of Operation Homefront, which provides support for families of service members and wounded warriors across the country.
In 2010, as part of the Many Dreams, One Mission campaign, Silich established the Silich Family Endowed Scholarship for talented DePaul students in finance who, like him, grew up in Chicago and attended city public or parochial schools.
More than one-third of DePaul students are the first generation in their families to attend college. “I worked throughout school, as most DePaul students still do,” Silich says. “But I never lost sleep over midterms or finals or papers. What I did worry about was paying the semester tuition bill. I know what my education has meant to me. If I can ease that financial anxiety for talented students, help them focus more effectively on their studies, help them gain practical experience and develop their gifts, help them succeed and take their education out into the world to benefit their families and communities—that is how I measure true success.”
By Chris Anderson
