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China, India topic of business symposium
Current business opportunities and challenges in China and India were the topic of a professional symposium in March at Purdue’s Burton D. Morgan Center for Entrepreneurship in Discovery Park.
Participants gained insight into how China and India relate to each other and with the rest of the world in the global economy. Introductions to Chinese and Indian business etiquette, society, and economic development were also presented.
Ping Huang, consul general of the Consulate of the People’s Republic of China in Chicago, was the keynote speaker. Stephen Akard, director of international development for the Indiana Economic Development Corp., delivered opening remarks.
Other presenters and panelists included Parasuram Balasubramanian, founder and CEO of Theme Work Analytics; Ananth Iyer, Krannert’s Susan Bulkeley Butler Chair in Operations Management; Quinn Frazier, international business development at UPS; and Prasad Joshi, Infosys’s Software Engineering and Technology Labs.
Purdue’s Confucius Institute, Discovery Park, Global Engineering Programs, and Center for International Business Education and Research (CIBER) were sponsors.
Kristeen Hudson and Brian Paplaski, a Krannert accounting student, outline Mission MatchUp’s strategies for success at the Burton D. Morgan Business Plan Competition in February. Their company claimed first prize in the division for Purdue undergraduates. |
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Krannert makes strong showing in Morgan competition
An Internet-based company that helps raise money for mission trips and a chemical and biological analyses concept were the big winners in February at Purdue’s 22nd annual Burton D. Morgan Business Plan Competition in Discovery Park.
Mission MatchUp won the $20,000 first prize in the Black Division for Purdue undergraduate students. Microfluidic Innovations was top presenter in the Gold Division for graduate students, claiming the $30,000 prize.
Led by Krannert accounting student Brian Paplaski and Kristeen Hudson, a computer graphics technology major, Mission MatchUp is a social networking Web site that provides custom interfaces for individuals to raise and distribute funds for service trips.
Presenters from Krannert also fared well in the Gold Division. MBA students Carlos Kemeny, Jimmy Cruse, and Derrick Deardorff claimed $7,500 for third place with their business plan for SiMetal, a company developing an LED manufacturing method that uses silicon wafers instead of sapphire or silicon carbide.
True North Performance, led by Krannert MBA student Brady Kalb, received $3,750 for its fourth-place plan to develop an Internet-based assessment tool for the market research industry.
In addition to the prize money, Ice Miller LLP will provide free legal and consulting services for the top three finishers in the Gold Division. The top three winners in each division also receive affiliate status at the Purdue Research Park, enabling them to access business services there. |
Gift from Deputy will provide scholarships
A $500,000 gift from the William Deputy Trust will endow a scholarship fund for management students in the
Krannert School.
William “Bill” Deputy (BSIM ’67) passed away in April 2008. He served as vice president of Godfrey Marine in Elkhart, Indiana, for 20 years and was actively involved in numerous community and educational initiatives.
“Bill demonstrated his commitment by privately helping fund college expenses for many young people in the area,” says his brother, Robert Deputy. “His generosity to the Krannert School will enable deserving Purdue students to receive a world-class education for generations to come.”
Annual summit spotlights sustainability
Purdue’s eighth annual Advancing Manufacturing Summit in March highlighted how U.S. manufacturers can be more cost-effi cient and profi table by deploying environmental measures.
The daylong summit, titled “The Economic and Environmental Benefits of Sustainable Manufacturing,” featured policy leaders from the U.S. Department of Commerce, the Environmental Protection Agency,
industry executives, and university and state government leaders.
Sustainable manufacturing is defined as the creation of manufactured products using processes that are non-polluting and conserve energy, as well as natural resources that are economically sound and safe for employees, communities, and consumers. |
Sales of ‘Unfinished Block P’ replicas to fund endowment
Replicas of Purdue’s “Unfinished Block P” sculpture are being sold to raise funds for an endowment honoring students who died during the academic year. |
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Limited edition bronze replicas of Purdue’s “Unfinished Block P” sculpture are now available for purchase by the public.
Proceeds from the sales will help fund an endowment to maintain the monument and purchase smaller versions of the replica to be given to families honored at Golden Taps, an annual ceremony to remember students who died during the academic year.
Two versions of the replicas are being sold through the Purdue Foundation: an 8-inch, 15-pound model for $2,475, and a 10-inch, 20-pound model for $3,190. Both were designed by the same artists who created the original sculpture, Rick and Rita Hadley from Moments in Bronze in Otterbein, Indiana.
Each replica purchased will be delivered with a certificate of authentication, and a “parchment” inscribed with the same wording as that etched on the scroll of the original statue.
Dedicated last October, the “Unfinished Block P” sculpture is designed to symbolize the importance of life long learning and self-improvement, says Purdue Dean of Students Tony Hawkins.
“It also encourages all students, alumni, and friends to keep the University close at heart and to remember those students who did not get the opportunity to complete the Purdue experience,”
Hawkins says.
More information about the sculpture and the replicas, including an order form, is available at news.uns.
purdue.edu/blockp.
School revises MBA curriculum
In an effort to better prepare students for the changing needs of businesses, Krannert is revising its two year MBA program curriculum.
OneAmerica Professor of Management Manu Kalwani, head of the school’s Department of Management, led the revision process with input from faculty and students. The Krannert faculty approved the new curriculum in January, and the changes take effect this fall.
The changes are geared to provide a more tailored curriculum, more experiential learning, more time to collaborate with other students and faculty in small groups, greater exposure to diverse teaching methods, and increased opportunities for global study trips.
“This ties in with Purdue’s overall strategic plan of making today’s students tomorrow’s leaders,” says Krannert Dean Rick Cosier.
The key idea in the new core curriculum is to simulate a quarter system, Kalwani says. Formerly there were two core courses in each functional area, totaling a four-hour requirement. Now these core courses will be converted into a single three-credit-hour course requirement.
Another revision is to extend spring break to two weeks by canceling classes during the week before Purdue’s spring break. Missed classes will be made up following the extended break. The extra time will give students an opportunity to visit companies, work on projects, or go on a global study trip, which also is part of the new curriculum.
“A lot of students have the opportunity for trips, but they’re usually only one week and the students often sit in lectures,” Kalwani says. “We want to give students an idea of what it takes to do business in other places around the world.” |
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