Spring 2005

Magazine
Brand
America
How to restore its
tarnished image
in an angry world

Orange
Revolution
At the center of
a reborn Ukraine

Setting a
new direction
Dr. Cabrera outlines
Thunderbird’s future
 ®

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 thunderbird : spring : 2005

4 Agenda
Alpine Retreat T-birds gather in Geneva for a reunion.
Tsunami Aid Alumni help in relief and rebuilding.
Global Citizens Afghan women learn to become entrepreneurs.
Private Equity Thunderbird moves into a growing field.
Global Campus Russia celebrates 10 years of success.

18 Is Brand America Broken?

Signs are that U.S. policies have adversely
affected sales by American companies abroad.
What can be done to reverse that?

26 On the Road to Transformation

Dr. Angel Cabrera was chosen president of Thunderbird due, in part, to his proven ability
to introduce change. After just six months on the job, it’s clear the selection committee
picked the right man.

On the Cover
As the United States 32 A Nation Born in Orange
follows an activist Thunderbird Global Council member Michael Bleyzer witnessed the beginning
foreign policy in the of Ukraine’s Orange Revolution in November and the birth of a true democracy.
world, it often
encounters a negative
kickback from many
cultures and many
38 Playing the Field
Sal Galatioto has been behind some of the biggest deals in U.S. sports history. How did
countries. Now it is this Brooklyn-born sports fan become the go-to guy for super rich team owners?
searching to find
how to turn the tide
of global public
44 Faculty Focus
opinion back in its Cultural advantage Foreign language and cultural savvy provide a distinct edge.
favor. Illustration by Brazilian samba Dell’s multistep dance brings a manufacturing plant to Brazil.
artist Robert Case.
51 Chapter News
Vintage Thunderbirds The 40+ Initiative gains momentum as more alumni start
attending events and more and more chapters introduce the concept.
Pole position Among all Thunderbird chapters, Detroit sets the fundraising pace in
2004 by increasing the number of donors by nearly 40 percent.

54 Classnotes
Golden life Rebecca Golden walked away from the good life she thought she wanted to
find the better life she needed: working for Doctors Without Borders.
It’s all in the cards Against long odds, Matthew Hilger has used his MBA skills to
become one of the best Texas Hold’em players in the world.
The sky isn’t the limit Keith Powers helped propel the first privately funded rocket
ship into space... and there’s much more to come. Buckle your seatbelt.
Alumna scores points As the highest ranking woman at the NFL, Kimberly Williams
quarterbacks the league’s finances all the way into the end zone.

64 Forum
Put Russia back on the map It’s time students take notice of Russia, says president
of CBSD Russia. There is a lot more freedom and opportunity than most people think.
letters
last year’s Innova- Thunderbird pro- the next leader. He
Proud of tion Challenge gram. Many of the has the right creden-
our Thun- but they also have initiatives at Thun- tials, background,
contributed to the derbird are targeted and ability to lead
derbird elevation of Thun- solely to the MBA the School well into
derbird’s brand students, overlook- the future. Given

I
READ THE re- among thousands ing the value of the the recent financial
port [in The Wall of students at 81 uni- EMBA experience. gift, his selection as
Street Journal versities in 17 coun- I would embrace the president, the recent TRULY GLOBAL
recognizing Thun- tries who took part knowledge, experi- rankings, I’m look-
derbird as the No. 1 in the competition. ence and commit- ing forward to an Thunderbird
school for academic Magazine
Anil Rathi ’02 ment of the EMBA exciting future for Volume 57, No. 2, Spring 2005
excellence in Inter- students as viable the students and the
national Business] With the Garvin and potential am- entire Thunderbird Editor
with excitement and endowment and bassadors of Thun- family worldwide.
D.J. Burrough
pride. It’s always Art Director
fresh leadership, derbird. We are Gary Brukardt ’72 Pat Kenny
nice to see my past Thunderbird has already in a position Photo Editor
decisions affirmed. redefined itself as to spread the word I was excited to Kristen Jarchow
I didn’t expect my a leader of interna- and send the mes- read about our new
Web Designer
Adam Kline
time at Thunderbird tional business edu- sage of Thunder- president, Angel Web Production
to be as valuable as it cation. My sense is bird’s program of Cabrera, in the last Belinda Gleason
has been over time, that we have a win- excellence. Thunderbird maga- Editorial Assistant
like a fine wine. Heidi Neeley
ning team in place C. O’Connor ’06 zine, especially the
Ed Miller ’82 and it is building a section on the De- Publisher & V.P., Marketing
Ken Lambert
There is much
more we need to do
successful strategy,
but it’s a huge job. Hail to ontological Oath for
MBAs. Wouldn’t it
Executive Director,
Thunderbird Global Network
to spread our mes- All of us need to the chief be a better world if Meredith Peabody

sage. I have worked give the School the not only MBAs, but Editorial Director
support it needs. S SOMEONE all managers and

A
with many Fortune Roger Toll

50 companies and Marshall Parke ’77 who benefit- leaders, could sign
most people I meet ed enormous- such a commitment. All editorial, sales and

still have not heard Our unique insti- ly from his Thun- David Landry ’88 production correspondence
should be addressed to:
of Thunderbird. tution brings special derbird experience, I Thunderbird Magazine, 15249
skill sets and global N. 59th Avenue, Glendale,
As alumni, we are
trying to spread the approaches to the
think it is important
that the School con- The right AZ, 85306-6000. Editorial
submissions and letters to the

message of how communities where tinue to communi- professor editor can also be emailed to:
editor@thunderbird.edu.
great T-bird is and we work and live, cate its value to the Advertising inquires should
and it is gratifying to international busi- be addressed to:

A
how highly we are TTRACTING editor@thunderbird.edu.
ranked. Nonethe- know that recruiters ness community, and retaining Changes of address and

less, we need to do continue to under- and I can’t think of professors other subscription inquires
can be emailed to:
more marketing to stand the value that any better salespeo- based on PhD status editor@thunderbird.edu.

get mainstream our students con- ple than its alumni. should not be such Thunderbird Magazine is a
business to know tribute to their As the new leader of a high priority. publication of the Marketing

how great we are! workplaces. Thunderbird, Angel Students can learn and Communication
Department of Thunderbird,
Nicole Larson ’98
Melissa Trimble ’01 Cabrera has an ex- more valuable les- The Garvin School of
cellent opportunity International Management.
sons from a manag-
The Innovation
Challenge gets
Executive to start fresh and
engage one of our
er who has been
working in the real
better every year. MBA biggest assets—our world and has closed
As a T-bird alum- global alumni base. real deals with real
nus, I can’t tell you HE EMBA clients than a profes-

T
C. Vaughan ’97
how proud I am of students sor who has more
the students of the should be I am absolutely education creden-
THINC Club. Not included and valued delighted that tials or has pub-
only did they bond as strong and viable Thunderbird select- lished more.
together to execute components of the ed Angel Cabrera as Tim Bergin ’98

2 spring 2005
 from the president

Daring decisions
require support
Thunderbird’s continued success can only happen if
the School builds on its strengths and embraces change

HE NINE MONTHS since I

T arrived at Thunderbird has been

an amazing period of discovery
for me. I’ve found a unique com-
munity that for all its incredible
diversity shares some common traits: a
passion for international business manage-
ment, for building cultural bridges and for
creating global prosperity through business
or philanthropic endeavors.
While I’ve spent a good deal of time
getting to know the faculty, staff, boards and
alumni, I’ve also been immersed in strategic
planning, team building and decision mak-
ing. We have shaped and articulated the
strategic plan elaborated under the leader-
ship of my predecessor, Dr. Roy Herberger.

Having been the leading school of Inter-
national Management for more than 50
years is no guarantee of our future success.
That can only happen if we build on our
legacy and strengths while making daring
decisions to maintain our edge and spread
our reach. We need to continue to expand
the number of degrees we offer so we can
be sure the people who most desire a
Thunderbird learning experience aren’t
turned away. We need to embrace the latest
technology so we can enrich the learning
experience of our participants and better
cater to their personal and professional
demands. We need to continue to brand
Thunderbird not as the first school of inter-
national management or even the best so
far, but as an institution that’s a sure bet to
always be on the leading edge. We need to
continue to build our truly global learning
network by strengthening our presence in
Geneva, Prague, Moscow, Latin America
and China, and by exploring ways to estab-
lish a solid foothold in new locations.
To do all this, we need the support of the
BRAD REED
entire Thunderbird community. During my In his nine months as
first nine months, the question alumni have president of Thunder-
bird, Dr. Angel Cabrera
most often asked me is, “What can I do to
has discovered a diverse
help Thunderbird.” alumni community that
My answer: Think Thunderbird, Talk shares similar passions.
Thunderbird, and Build Thunderbird.
Think Thunderbird first when you are
considering your business needs for training,
recruiting and advising. Talk Thunderbird
and help us spread the word about what the
School has to offer. Build Thunderbird, by
including our School in your philanthropic
activities, not only because investing in
Thunderbird helps strengthen the value of
your degree, but because it is simply a great
cause. When you support Thunderbird, you
help us educate a new generation of unique
global leaders who will help bring about
prosperity, understanding, wealth and peace
to the world.

thunderbird magazine 3
age An alpine
reunion
June 2-5 in Geneva
HE 2005 Thunderbird European

T Alumni Reunion, the first on the

continent since 2002, will be held
in Geneva June 2-5. The four-day
event is expected to draw several
hundred Thunderbirds. The basic reunion
package includes a welcome cocktail recep-
tion, dinner and dancing at Domaine de
Penthes in Geneva, a dinner cruise on the
lake, and an “au revoir” brunch. The Hotel
Royal, in the heart of Geneva, will serve as
the reunion headquarters.
Side trips include a journey in a 1915 “Belle
Époque” Pullman car from Montreux to
Gruyères, with tours of cheese and chocolate
makers; a boat ride to Yvoire, a medieval vil-
lage; a visit to Mont-Blanc and the Alpine
town of Chamonix; and a guided tour of old
town Geneva.
The reunion is
hosted by the Euro-
pean Reunion Com-
mittee and the Gene-
va chapter. The cost
is €270 for the basic
ST/SWISS-IMAGE.CH

reunion package, and

between €15 and €65
In the gardens of for each side trip. See
Europe’s U.N. head- European Reunion ad
quarters in Geneva. on the back page. Alumni at the European reunion can take boat excursions on Lake Geneva.

4 spring 2005
nda 28% T
The percentage drop
in graduate school
applications by
T-birds join efforts to
aid tsunami victims
HE TSUNAMI THAT SWEPT
through the Indian Ocean on Dec. 26
did not claim the lives of any of about
500 Thunderbird alumni living in the affect-
ed countries nor any Thunderbirds vaca-
tioning there at the time. But alumni did not
students coming sit idly by. In the days following the disaster,
from outside the USA no less than half a dozen alumni rushed
between 2003 and there to help survivors left homeless and in
2004, according to a need of clean water, food and medical care.
The ever-hopeful alumni got trounced by the current survey by the Council A number of other alumni contributed to
student squad in a Rugby Alumni Weekend match. of Graduate Schools. the relief effort through their work with
Alumni shooting and infor-
mal gatherings. A
The largest decrease
in applications was
non-governmental agencies.
Randolph Oudemans ’86 traveled to
show guts banquet followed from Chinese stu- Pematang Siantar, a small coastal village
and blood the match.
“This program
dents, down 45%
over the prior year,
on Sumatra, Indonesia, to see how his non-
profit organization, REACT, could help the
will grow as more followed by India, thousands of children left homeless by the

B
LOOD AND
mud mixed alumni and students down 28%, and disaster.
freely with get involved,” says Korea, down 14%. Jason Wares ’99 is managing a project
graying hair at the Chuck Hamilton ’91. for CHF International to build shelters in
2005 Fruit Bowl, an “We hope to double Sri Lanka for 3,000 families that were left
annual rugby match
that pitted the cur-
rent T-bird team
the number of alum-
ni here next year.”
The alumni team
19 homeless by the tsunami.
Bob Kimber ’91 paid his own way to Krabi,
a coastal village near Phuket, Thailand, on
against 45 alumni will take on local The number of the Indian Ocean, to help in the cleanup and
players who were clubs in Argentina countries that are rebuilding.
eviscerated 22-10 in a for 10 days in August represented by the Rachel Granger ’04 traveled to Sri Lanka to
hard-fought match. to help promote the full-time MBA class oversee relief efforts for AmeriCare, which
The Rugby Alum- School. More than that began studies at brought in medical supplies and more than 2
ni Weekend, March 50 alumni and sup- Thunderbird in the million water purification treatment kits.
3-5, also offered net- porters are expected month of January. To read the latest journal entries from alumni
working sessions, a to make the trip, in the field, go to thunderbird.edu, and click on
golf outing, skeet Hamilton says. tsunami relief effort.

thunderbird magazine 5
news & notes

important professions of our time.” Although he

President Cabrera feels strongly about the issue, he says students
stirs ethics debate need to lead the debate, not the administration.
Jim Samuel ’05, chairman of the Thunder-
RESIDENT DR. ANGEL Cabrera is bird Honor Council, says he is forming a team

P challenging Thunderbird students to

introduce ethics into business training
and to take an ethics oath at graduation. “Let’s
lead the way,” Cabrera says. “Let’s take a step
forward with this idea, write up our code and
talk about how we are going to act in business
after we leave here.”
In 2003, Cabrera sparked international
debate over the question of ethics training in
MBA schools when he wrote an article
advocating the practice for Germany’s leading
financial newspaper, Handelsblatt. He has since
President Angel Cabrera been quoted in articles on the subject in The
Wall Street Journal and the Financial Times.
Business graduates, Cabrera says, have the
same potential to do good or ill in their profes-
sion as attorneys or physicians do in theirs.
Both attorneys and physicians sign or recite an
ethics oath upon graduation.
“The kind of wealth you can create, the kind
of harm you can do, is second to no profession,”
he says. “We are involved with one of the most
to study the advisability of taking such an oath.
“It’s only a matter of time before an oath comes
into force for MBA graduates, as a profession,”
Samuel says. “We believe the corporate world
needs this, and the top schools are talking
about it. We don’t want to miss out on it.”
The oath Cabrera drafted with the World
Economic Forum (See Thunderbird magazine,
fall 2004, p. 21) may be too idealistic for most
corporations, Samuel says. The student team
plans on surveying business executives to
gauge their reaction to graduates who have
signed an ethics oath. Samuel says it will take
several semesters to get enough feedback for
students to vote on the matter.
Thomas Stauffer, executive director of
Thunderbird’s Lincoln Center for International
Management Ethics, says he is encouraged
by the student interest on the subject. “I take
that as a sign of hope for the future of this
profession,” he says. “Students have a bigger
interest in ethics than anyone else here.”

Mexico and China the Vorises hosted a

William and established the welcome reception
& Mavis World Business
Advisory Council.
in their home for all
incoming students.
Voris: in Mavis Voris initi- The Vorises were
memory ated the Thunder-
bird Invitational
last on campus for
the annual holiday
HUNDER- Balloon Race and party for faculty and

T bird lost two

of its most
ardent supporters
Silent Auction, the
Friends of Thunder-
bird program, the
staff in December,
and a special lunch
with Dr. Angel
in January when School’s first en- Cabrera and 30 peo-
Dr. William Voris, dowment fund and ple who served on
Thunderbird Presi- the student emer- Voris’ staff during
ARCHIVE PHOTO

dent Emeritus, gency loan fund. his administration.

passed away Jan. 6 She was known as Dr. Voris passed
at age 80. His wife the “Betsy Ross” of away after a brief
of 56 years, Mavis Thunderbird after illness. A memorial
Few have contributed as much to Thunderbird as hand-sewing more held on campus Jan.
Voris, followed 17 William and Mavis Voris, who passed away in January.
days later. than 20 flags for the 19 brought together
During his 18-year creased enrollment buildings. He start- first flag ceremony more than 200
tenure at Thunder- by 35 percent and en- ed the Winterim held on campus in friends and family
bird, Dr. Voris, who larged the campus program, launched the early 1970s. to honor his service
retired in 1989, in- with several new study programs in Each trimester, to the School.

6 spring 2005
 news & notes

In Thunderbird's
computer lab, Artemis
fellows Marina
Hamidzada, Kamela
Khaliq, Wahida
Mohammed Zai, and
Arefa Haidary study the
uses of technology.
BRAD REED

Out of the a select group of 15

Afghani women to
with a real focus on
their ideas,” says Phoenix businesswoman Katie Pushor will mentor
shadows Thunderbird for Steven Stralser, Artemis fellow Zarghuna Walidzadah for two years.
business training. In Artemis program
Project January, the fellows and academic direc-
Artemis offers spent two weeks on tor. “The experience Artemis after a 2003
key business the Glendale cam- gave them a tangible trip to Afghanistan.
skills, and pus networking with take-away to use to “At Thunderbird “At Thun-
hope, to students and busi- advance their ideas we believe in busi- derbird, we
Afghan ness owners, visiting in the marketplace.” ness education as
believe in
women successful businesses The fellows in- a force of social re-
and taking courses clude women from construction,” says business
ATRIN Fakiri from Thunderbird medicine, business, President Angel education
K may soon be
helping her
fellow Afghanis to
professors. The costs
of the groundbreak-
ing program were
journalism, engi-
neering and commu-
nity development.
Cabrera. “An entre-
preneurial spirit,
backed by the skills
as a force
of social re-
find jobs via the borne by Thunder- Most fled the coun- and perspective construction.
Internet, Wahida
Mohammed Zai
bird and its partners.
“This was an
try or stopped work-
ing during the years
we teach, can be
a valuable tool in
An entrepre-
may be running a extraordinary oppor- the Taliban ruled the building peace and neurial spirit,
school for women, tunity,” says Fakiri, country. prosperity.” backed by
and Hamida Aman
may be recording
who hopes to set
up her country’s ver-
Each fellow was
paired with a mentor
Project Artemis
has generated much
the skills
and broadcasting sion of Monster.com for the next two interest in the U.S., and per-
the songs of musi- for the nation’s 12 years, a group that including newspaper spective we
cians who have been
silent for years.
million workers.
“Knowing the faith
includes Meredith
Peabody ’96, execu-
and magazine
articles. One of the
teach, can
This optimistic Thunderbird has tive director of the fellows, Homira be a valu-
future for Afghani- in us inspires us to Thunderbird Global Nassery, was seated able tool in
stan is closer to reali-
ty as a result of Pro-
make our dreams a
reality.” Each fellow
Network. A princi-
pal driving force be-
next to Barbara
Bush during the
building
ject Artemis, named created a plan for the hind the project was President’s State of peace and
for the Greek god- business she wants former Thunderbird the Union address. prosperity.”
dess and protector to launch to obtain Board President Read a profile of
of women and chil- financing. Barbara Barrett, who each of the fellows at
dren, which brought “The fellows left initiated Project thunderbird.edu.

thunderbird magazine 7
news & notes

Alumni “I played well, but

all I could think
was as much about
networking and
card about was whether fundraising as it
sharks or not my shaking
hands were a tell.”
was about playing
poker, Lee says.
join MBA Although none A networking party
poker of the Thunderbirds
made it into the
Saturday night, dis-
tribution of a book
tourney money, which with each player’s
(l to r) Roger Nelson, Pres., Scottsdale Sister
meant finishing in résumé and the Cities Asso.; Sibylle Andres, Pres., International

A
NEW BREED the top 20, Lee and presence of several Friendship Asso., Interlaken; Christian Blicken-
of poker tour- Singleton were recruiters were at- storfer, Ambassador of Switzerland; Pat Buchanan,
nament has among the top 50. tractive motivators. Dir., Sister Cities International; Max Haechler,
found its way to Las “I got knocked out At last year’s event, Swiss Consul and Chair of Ambassador's Ball.
Vegas, and Thun- pretty early on Sat- some students
derbird alumni were
there for the deal.
urday,” Abromovitz
says. “I had pocket
snagged interviews
while sitting at the
Gala adds raffle and an auction
combined to raise
“It’s about time kings and the other card table. More money to more than $90,000,
we competed against
the top B-schools
guy drew a flush on
the river.”
than $15,000 was
raised for the
scholar- which was donated
to the Thunderbird
in something other In Texas Hold’em, Alzheimer’s ship fund Endowment Fund
than rugby and case players are dealt two Association. Diplomats, by the Consular
competitions,” says cards down, then Lee hopes to re- sister city Corps of Arizona.
Ingrid Lee ’03, a share five common cruit more alumni, The donation in-
Las Vegas Chapter
delegates and
cards. They try to faculty and current renowned creases the endow-
member who served make the best poker students to create a chef join fun ment to more than
as team captain. hand from the seven permanent poker at Ambas- $500,000, which pro-
The MBA Poker cards. The last com- squad that would sador’s Ball vides scholarships to
Championship, now mon card dealt is play in a few events deserving students.
in its second year, called the river card. each year. ORE THAN Christian Blicken-
drew 300 MBAs
January 14-16 to
Binion’s Horseshoe
The event
M 450 people
sipped
champagne, delight-
storfer, Swiss
ambassador to the
United States, and
Casino. Six plucky ed in Swiss-style Franz Hunkeler,
Thunderbirds were roasted veal and Swiss Consul Gen-
among them: Lee, danced the polka eral in Los Angeles,
Quinton Singleton to the music of a 20- attended the gala,
’03, Bill Loux ’03, piece band at Thun- along with a 10-per-
Jeremy Castleman derbird’s annual son delegation from
’03, Mark Abromovitz Ambassador’s Ball. Interlaken, Scotts-
’02 and Eric Yaver “It was the biggest dale’s sister city.
’98. The Thunder- success in the 22- The organizers
birds paid up to year history of the also flew in a tradi-
$200 each to buy event,” says host, tional Swiss folklore
into the Texas Max Haechler, hon- band and the execu-
Hold’em orary Swiss Consul. tive chef from the
games. “We raised more acclaimed Victoria-
“It was the money, attracted Jungfrau Grand
first tournament more people and had Hotel in Interlaken.
I’ve ever played in,” more fun than at The event was at
Singleton says. any other ball.” the Scottsdale Hyatt
Sales of atten- Regency Resort at
dance tickets, a Gainey Ranch.

8 spring 2005
 news & notes
number of corpora-
T-bird pub Career tions represented
inspires Fair on was up a third. Al-
though the increases
two Latin Glendale could be taken as a
students campus is sign of an improving
economy, Harrell
to create a big hit believes the strong
business showing is more
ECRUITERS likely due to holding

A
LOT OF
Guinness-
assisted ideas
R representing
more than
30 corporations were
the event on campus
for the first time in
several years.
have been hatched present at Thunder- “It made it a lot
over the years in the A few post-exam beers in the Thunderbird Pub bird’s Spring Career easier for students to
Thunderbird pub in helped Arturo Perchemlian ’04 (left) and Santiago Fair at the Glendale get to,” says Mike
Mejia ’04 discover a winning business idea. Lavin ’05, who had
Glendale, but few campus Feb. 16-18.
have been as fruitful amenities. Their entered it in Thun- Students had 311 in- five interviews and
as the one dreamed tours would have derbird’s 2003 Global terviews and count- was offered a sum-
up by Arturo Per- concierge services Business Plan Com- less more informal mer internship with
chemlian ’04 and and would get their petition, which they discussions, during IBM. “It meant you
Santiago Mejia ’04. travelers into all the won. They used the the three-day event, didn’t have to miss a
It was there that happening local bars $25,000 prize money says Kip Harrell, day of classes.”
the two friends con- and nightclubs. as seed capital to associate vice presi- Corporate re-
ceived of the idea for “We had just start the tour com- dent of Professional cruiters also liked
Tours Gone Wild, finished a statistics pany, TGW Travel, Development and the change in venue,
an adventure travel exam and wanted Inc., which is now Career Manage- which allowed for
company that would to ease some stress based in Miami ment. “These are easier interaction
bring young profes- by kicking back,” Beach, Florida. great numbers,” with students. If
sionals to Latin Perchemlian says. Business is boom- he says. the Thunderbird
American hotspots, They worked on ing for the T-birds. The interviews Activity Center can
like Rio de Janeiro the idea in a Thun- In the second year, were more than dou- be cooled, the Fall
and provide them derbird entrepre- they’re on pace to ble the total from Career Fair also will
with more than the neurship business double the first-year last year’s spring be held on campus,
standard package plan class and later sales of $750,000. career fair, while the Harrell says.

To mark the end of the rainy season, members of the Bozo tribe
Bozo the tribe in the Ségou region of Western Africa hold a multiday festival.
A tribal leader dons this heavy wooden headdress and covers
his body with an equally bright costume and, through song and
dance, conveys tribal history, village life and ancient
fables. This authentic artwork—and a
whole lot more—is available at
the Global Market on the
Glendale campus.

thunderbird magazine 9
news & notes

Students Ettenson, who

teaches Internation-
Dollens, president
of GIO; James Con-
test their al Brand Manage- ner, president of the
branding ment at Thunder-
bird. “If a student
James Group; and
three Thunderbird
abilities can impress these alumni: Carol Schus-
judges, they will no ter ’83, of Ogilvy &
F THE branding doubt impress any Mather; Kelly O’Dea

I strategies 12
Thunderbird
students came up
potential employer.”
One of the
winning teams
’72, CEO of Alliance
HPL Worldwide;
and Martin Susz ’89,
with in a recent presented a strategy of Euro RSCG
competition are for Leal, a Dallas- Worldwide.
carried out, Iceland based company that The two other
may be inundated imports luxury Eu- teams in the finals
with Chinese ropean lingerie into devised a brand
tourists and Ameri- the U.S. market; revitalization strate-
can women may be the other presented a gy for Domino’s
wearing a lot more In the 2004 GlobalBrand competition, Sarah Cody '04 strategy for the Re- Pizza in Taiwan
European-style bras. and James Montero '04 were just two of the winning public of Iceland to and a brand strategy
teammates in the 2004 GlobalBrand competition.
In January, two draw more Chinese for Emyco, one of
teams of T-bird dents create brand- than to present their tourists. The judges Mexico’s largest
students shared the ing solutions for half branding solutions scored them just a shoe manufacturers
top spot in the finals a dozen companies. and be challenged in half point apart on and retailers.
of the 2004 Global- “I can’t imagine a front of a group of a 100 point scale. Thunderbird
Brand competition, better test of their judges who are Judges included: President Angel
which took place in skills, their analyti- world-class brand Sam Hill, president Cabrera congratulat-
New York City. cal thinking and professionals,” says of Helios; Scott Ler- ed the winners at
The Thunderbird their ability to com- competition organ- man, president of the Williams Club
competition had stu- municate effectively izer Dr. Richard Enterprise I.G.; Joe in New York City.

Another ethical standards

after revelations
those who have
passed before you
class highlighted a spate and will succeed you
graduates of crooked CEOs
from companies
at Thunderbird,”
Eckert said. “It’s
HIRTY-FIVE like Enron, Health- day one of the next

T countries were
represented
among the 192 grad-
South, Adelphia and
Martha Stewart.
“As you go to
chapter of your life,
and I’m putting my
trust in each of you.”
uates at the fall work, your top re- The festivities
commencement sponsibility should continued at a party
Dec. 10 at the be to build trust: to in Scottsdale, which
Sundome Center perform every day drew more than
for The Performing at the highest stan- 400 people and fea-
Arts, near the dards, not just for tured internationally
HARRISON HURWITZ

Glendale campus. yourself but for your themed hors d’oeu-

Commencement team, for your su- vres and desserts,
speaker Robert pervisor, for the con- a performance by
Eckert, CEO of sumer, for the com- Brazilian dancers,
Mattel, Inc., chal- pany’s shareholders, a steel drum musi-
Zorana "Jane" Yawapongsiri '04, from Thailand, is lenged graduates to for the rest of us in cian, dancing and
delighted to go into the world with an MBA in hand.
raise the level of business, and for celebrating.

10 spring 2005
 news & notes
director of Student business case mailed
Potential Services. “It helps to prospects before
students our recruitment their visit.
efforts to give people “They come pre-
get a feel a taste of the school. pared, so there is a
for school There is a magic on lot of interaction in
this campus.” the class,” he says.
life on Potential students “The idea is to give
campus who have shown them a taste of how
interest in Thunder- we teach at Thun-
HUNDER- bird are invited to derbird.”

T bird’s doors
opened to
prospective students
spend a weekend
on campus, with all
housing and meals
Approximately
two of every five
prospects who
three times during covered by the attend Hospitality
the first trimester of School. During their Weekends become
Susan Shiflett ’95 (left) and Lucy Close ’01 snack on
xiaolongbao with local Shanghai residents in a cafe.
2005, an expansion stay, candidates take Thunderbird stu-
of a popular Hospi- campus tours, find dents, Miller says.
Shanghai that featured a lion
dance. Business
tality Weekend
program that began
out more about
admissions require-
If you know a
potential student
reunion seminars focused just two years ago. ments and share a who would benefit
right mix on doing business in
China, while those
“They are very
well-received by the
lunch with Thun-
derbird professors.
from visiting the
Glendale campus,
of social on the social track people who attend,” The highlight is a email Joe Miller at
events & took advantage of
full-day and half-day
says Joe Miller, two-hour class on a millerj@t-bird.edu.

business tours. Everyone

came together for
CTOBER’S evening banquets

O Global
Reunion
in Shanghai was a
and parties. Many
revelers continued
with festivities in
Going global
P
ROPELLED BY
nearly $25 bil-
lion in foreign
truly global event: nearby nightclubs direct investment and
225 alumni from 27 and bars. an increase in the num-
countries attended “Shanghai had the ber of secure Internet
the four days of busi- right combination servers, Ireland ranks
ness meetings, social of events; it was a as the most global na-
events and tours to unique learning tion on earth, accord-
the mystical lake of experience with just ing to the 2004 A.T.
Hangzhou and to the right mix of so- Kearney/Foreign Policy
Zhouzhuang, the cial and networking Globalization Index.
Venice of China. opportunities,” says Countries are judged
“It was rich in Meredith Peabody on four criteria: eco-
cultural activities, ’96, who attended as nomic integration,
and it was great to an alumna and later technological connec-
meet other T-birds became executive tivity, personal contact
from around the director of the Thun- (international travel
world in a relaxed, derbird Global Net- and telephone traffic)
social setting,” says work. “It had a time- and political engage-
Susan Shiflett ’95. ly and informative ments (memberships
Dr. Angel Cabrera, business component, in international organi-
in his first official shopping, nightlife zations and U.N. contri-
event after assuming and culture—as well butions). Western Eu-
the presidency, as the usual sense of rope claimed six of the
welcomed alumni at celebration when T- top 10 spots for global-
a cocktail reception birds join together.” ly integrated countries.

thunderbird magazine 11
news & notes
was wide ranging,
School to featuring panelists
launch from Europe, Asia,
Latin America and
classes in North America.
private “Private equity
is a growth industry,
equity a new vertical for
Thunderbird to
Thunderbird’s embrace,” says
Private Equity President Dr. Angel
Conference Cabrera. “At some
eyes truly point, private equity
global reach will touch most
of industry professionals during
their career, so it on-
O CORNER ly makes sense that

N of the earth
went un-
touched at the Glob-
Thunderbird should
play a role in it.”
The PE industry
As a result of Thunderbird’s international reach, attendees saw how global
the private equity industry is and how well it plays to the School’s strengths.

alization in Private has become a major than 20 speakers, Echarri, director economies, emerg-
Equity conference force in the past 20 including Michael general of the Euro- ing trends in China,
hosted by Thunder- years. From 1998 to Bleyzer, CEO of pean Venture Capi- sustainability and
bird in September. 2003, more than $660 SigmaBleyzer tal Association; and clean-tech invest-
While most billion was invested Group; Dr. Kurt Dan Primack, an ments, institutional
private equity con- globally by private Geiger, head of Fi- editor at Thomson money flows, social
ferences focus on equity firms, much nancial Institutions Venture Economics investing, opportu-
specific geographic of it in emerging and Private Equity from New York. nities in central
areas or business markets. for the European “This conference and eastern Europe,
sectors, the Thun- The event drew Bank for Recon- had a very congenial power and infra-
derbird Private nearly 250 attendees struction and and functional structure projects
Equity Conference and featured more Development; Javier atmosphere,” says in Latin America,
John Cook ’79, legal tricks and traps
Thunderbird Global in Mexico, and mid-
Council member market buyouts in
and head of the the United States.
conference steering “Thunderbird is
committee. “By tap- ideally positioned to
ping into our vast be the preeminent
network of relation- learning institution
ships among alumni in global private
and industry practi- equity,” Cook says.
tioners from around Starting in fall
the world, attendees 2005, the School will
saw how global the offer private equity
industry is and how advanced course-
well the T-bird work for full-time
mindset matches MBA students,
that of private equi- programs for work-
Thunderbirds in close formation ty professionals.” ing executives, and
Four alumni were recognized at the Thunderbird Alumni Weekend in Conference topics a chair of interna-
November for their outstanding contributions to the Thunderbird Alumni included the indus- tional private equity.
Association. From left, Charu Modi Bhartia ’97 received the Rising Star try’s structure and For more informa-
award, William Burrus ’72 received the Career Achievement award, J. profile, the role tion on private equity
Kenneth Seward ’57 received the Volunteer of the Year award, and Carl Bach
’74 received the Jonas Mayer Award.
of private equity coursework, go to
in transition thunderbird.edu.

12 spring 2005
 news & notes
tion Challenge drew
Winners’ Diskin, who also
served as a judge. nearly twice the
ideas are “Almost every one number of teams—
251—than in 2003, a
headed to of the ideas had a
kernel that will be growth rate expected
global expressed to our to continue.
The Vanderbilt
market- guests. They had a
lot of good insights, University team
place a lot of good ideas. It finished in second
was good to get that place, while Michi-
Global broader perspective.” gan State University
Innovation The universal (Broad) came in
Challenge docking station, a Global Innovation Challenge organizers ensure that
third. The other
attracts 251 multi-purpose iden- corporate sponsors find practicable solutions. final round competi-
universities to tification card hon- tors were: Uni-
Thunderbird ored by all Hilton sors found valuable they had weeks to versity of Arizona
competition partners and a li- ideas,” says Anil Rathi mull over a solution. (Eller), Brigham
brary of on-demand ’02, co-founder of Teams did much Young University
HECK into a learning DVDs— the Innovation more thorough mar- (Marriott), Emory

C Hilton Hotel
in the next
few years and you
yoga and stretching
exercises or foreign
language lessons—
Challenge (along
with fellow T-bird
alum Robert Lipton
ket research, created
richer presentations
and some built pro-
University, Stanford
Graduate School of
Business, Vanderbilt
might find a univer- were all ideas creat- ’03) and vice presi- totypes, Rathi says. University, Case
sal docking station ed by teams in the dent of business de- Sponsors are al- Western Reserve
for your laptop or a competition that velopment for Idea ready lined up for University, Indiana
selection of educa- have a good chance Crossing, which next year’s Thun- University (Kelley)
tional DVDs wait- of showing up in a organized the event. derbird Innovation and IESE Spain.
ing in your room. hotel room, he says. At last year’s Challenge, he said, Thunderbird placed
You can thank the “The whole pur- event, finalists had including Hilton two teams in the
MBA candidates pose of this year’s 12 hours to craft their and U.S. Postal Ser- top 50, but neither
who participated in competition was to final-round innova- vice, a new sponsor. made it into the
the 2004 Global In- make sure the spon- tions, but this year The 2004 Innova- final round.
novation Challenge
for those amenities.
On Nov. 20, a
five-man team from
Spain’s Instituto de Wine with a bite
Empresa beat out
250 other teams HITE WINES are all you’ll find among
from around the
world to win the
rapidly growing
W the offerings of Great White Wines
(greatwhitewines.com), an importer of
boutique wines started by Melanie Marks ’97.
event, which was She sets aside 10 percent of her profits toward
held on Thunder- the conservation of all sharks, in particular the
bird’s Glendale cam- endangered Great White Shark.
pus. The winning “Quite frankly, red wines would present the
team took home wrong image of the shark,” she says.
$20,000, but the title Marks started the company after diving with
sponsors—Hilton Great Whites in 2002 and becoming enamored
Hotels and Valvo- with the misunderstood fish. The first wines—
line—took away a chardonnay, chenin blanc and sauvignon
invaluable concepts. blanc—were produced from the 2004 harvest
“Ideas are price- from three different vineyards on the Western
less,” says Hilton Cape of South Africa. Marks already is selling
Hotels Senior her product to 15 stores and 10 restaurants in
Vice President Jeff California, and she has two national distributors.

thunderbird magazine 13
news & notes

Students’ Partners program

requires students to
internship work at least five
in Mexico hours a week.
Students prepared
a success everything from a
marketing strategy
S PART OF for the tequila

A the 2004
Guadalajara
Summer Program, a
distiller wanting to
open markets in the
United States to a
candy maker and a feasibility study
tequila distiller were for the candy maker
among the 17 Mexi- that wanted to
can companies that extend credit to
Thunderbird President Angel Cabrera (right) joined some of the School’s turned Thunderbird employees so they
earliest graduates for a breakfast during Alumni Weekend on the Glendale
campus. Pictured (from left to right): Dr. William Slemons ’48, Jorge Carrera
MBA candidates into could purchase per-
’51, David Wist ’54, Shelton Marlow ’51, Bob Moyer ’48, John Craft ’48, Lloyd part-time employees. sonal appliances.
Clark ’49, Ernie Garfield ’52 and Ken Nelson ’54. “Corporate Part- “I learned that es-
ners was designed to tablishing trust with
folks from 1948, the 20s,” he says. “There give students hands- the general manager
Pioneer first graduating year. were only a few on experience with is a lot different than
grads like “The event ex- women and proba- companies in Mexi- with the lower-
ceeded our expecta- bly fewer than 10 co,” says Priscilla tiered employees,”
School’s tions,” says Linda non-U.S. students. Wisner, assistant says Sean Daley ’05,
growing Jensen, assistant It is impressive to professor of Global who, with Owen La
director of Alumni see the significant Business and co- Farve ’05, developed
diversity Programs and Ser- diversity now at the director of the pro- a chain of command
vices. “People really School in both gen- gram. “Companies infrastructure for
T-birds turn enjoyed themselves der and nationality.” liked it because they EMEX, one of Mex-
out in large and liked seeing Ken Nelson ’54 en- got exposed to bright ico’s largest mango
numbers for all the changes that joyed the Golden Pi- and creative MBA exporters. “It was
2004 Alumni have occurred on the oneer Breakfast with students, often for particularly impor-
Weekend campus.” President Angel the first time.” tant to let the man-
Alumni arrived Cabrera. “It was Thirty-three MBA ager know that we
ORE THAN from Austria, Brazil, relaxed and casual,” candidates enrolled were there to help

M 200 alumni
from 10
nations and numer-
England, France,
Germany, India,
Mexico, Nether-
says Nelson, who
lives in Phoenix and
is often on campus
in the program, of-
fered for the first
time as part of the
her, not because she
lacked the ability
but rather time and
ous graduating class- lands and Thailand, as part of his work 10-week Guadalajara resources. After that,
es gathered Nov. 5-6 as well as the United with the Phoenix Summer Program, she treated us like
at the Glendale States. Alumni group. “I which has been family and commu-
campus for the 2004 Ron Burkard ’63, got to know a little operating for more nication was easy.”
Thunderbird Alum- who lives in Okla- more about him and than 30 years. Facul- All of the compa-
ni Weekend. homa, was surprised his vision for Thun- ty include Thunder- nies participating in
The strongest by the diversity of derbird’s future.” bird professors and the 2004 Corporate
alumni representa- the current student The weekend’s adjunct professors Partners program
tions were from the population. “The most popular events from the Universi- asked to be included
celebration years of class of 1963, about were the Meet and dad Autonoma de next year, Wisner
1954 (50th anniver- 150 people, was over- Greet evening in the Guadalajara. says. “It’s a testa-
sary), 1979 (25th) whelmingly Cau- Thunderbird Pub The Corporate ment to its success.”
and 1994 (10th). casian American on Friday and Asia
There were even males in their late Night on Saturday.

14 spring 2005
 global campus

Passing
the test of
time with
honors
Thunderbird
Russia CBSD
celebrates 10
years of dedi-
cated work
and creativity
HEN THE

W first cham-
pagne bot-
tle was uncorked
The team behind the 10th anniversary celebration for Thunderbird CBSD
“Our pro-
grams are
successful
Feb. 19 to celebrate
a decade of opera-
includes Julia Aleshkevich, consultant, Dennis Hopple, president of CBSD, Alla
Grochenkova, event organizer, and Yulia Meshcheryakova, marketing manager. because of
tion for the Center the unique
for Business Skills save CBSD. They CBSD and vice certification pro-
Development quickly turned to president of Thun- grams in compensa-
positions
(CBSD), it was also Thunderbird for aid. derbird Russia. “No tion and benefits. they have.
a toast to a business Since then, the other program in The CBSD also No other
survival story that is CBSD has grown Russia can compare creates individual-
case-study worthy. from its small office to the Looking Glass ized corporate pro-
program in
In 1993, telecom- on Moscow’s Ismai- Leadership Program. grams that have Russia can
munications giant lovo Island (the The reputation of drawn the attention compare to
US West and the childhood home of our project develop- and patronage of
U.S. Agency for Peter I) into one of ment and executive such mega-compa-
the Looking
International Devel- the most respected development cours- nies as Coca-Cola, Glass Lead-
opment combined business education es is unmatched.” General Motors, ership Pro-
forces to teach centers in the coun- The Looking Caterpillar, Motoro-
Western business try. Each year, more Glass Program, one la and Tefal.
gram. The
principles in Russia. than 8,000 students, of Thunderbird Rus- Even though the reputation
But goodwill and mainly managers sia’s most successful, CBSD has come a of our
grants were not from companies is a four-day inten- long way since those
enough. After 20 throughout Russia, sive program for early days, Hopple
courses
months and a flurry Kazakhstan and managers that hones says there still are is un-
of promising expan- Ukraine, come participants’ strate- many miles to go matched.”
sions, the CBSD through the doors to gic thinking and on the road to true
lost the support of participate in one of ability to recognize global development.
its founding organi- many programs. In opportunities. The As part of that
zations. Though six 2002, the American program is delivered dream, Hopple says,
of its seven facilities Chamber of Com- by U.S.-based con- the CBSD plans to
closed, some CBSD merce Russia named sultants from FGI help meet the pres-
staff kept working. it the “Small Busi- International. ent requirements of
Three key players ness of the Year.” Other specialized former Eastern Bloc
in the program— “Our manage- CBSD programs countries by extend-
Dennis Hopple, ment development include the Becker ing its courses to
Kevin Smith and programs are so CPA review, Soci- help company
Annemarie Wollam successful because of ety of Human managers and indus-
—got together and the unique positions Resource Manage- trial leaders in those
in 24 hours had they have,” says ment programs, emerging markets.
drafted a proposal to Hopple, director of and World at Work — Carrie Miner

thunderbird magazine 15
global campus
derson, a director of
Brazil an Executive Educa-
excellent tion. “Just as we
were gaining
option for momentum in the
Executive market, the huge de-
valuation tripled the
Education cost of the program
overnight.” While it

T
HUNDER-
bird is looking operated, about 25
for a new part- MBA candidates
ner for its executive graduated each year.
MBA program in The last group left
Brazil. in January 2004.
For three years, With a population
the School partnered of 170 million peo-
with the American ple, the largest econ-
Chamber of Com- omy in Latin Amer-
merce in offering a ica and commercial
21-month executive expansion into glob- MBA students from the Prague campus compete in a fajita-making contest at
MBA program. al markets, Brazil Thunderbird Glendale. “But what’s a fajita?” wonders one puzzled team.
But in January 2004, offers an ideal envi-
Thunderbird ended
the program, a vic-
ronment for Thun-
derbird, Henderson
partner would be a
top-tier business
have to find the right
form of partnership
A test in
tim of the economic says. A high quality school with an exist- to support our longer sizzling
downturn in which
the country has been
international execu-
tive MBA program,
ing infrastructure.
“We want to do
term goals in the re-
gion. These types of
teamwork
mired for four years. the kind that Thun- something in Brazil, opportunities don’t AJITAS WERE
“Our intentions
were great, but the
timing was against
derbird provides, is
an attractive offer-
ing in the Brazilian
but we want to find
the right fit,” he says,
“not just jump at the
come up everyday.
We want to do some-
thing that works out
F the task and
eating them
the reward for 23
us,” says Tom Hen- market. The best first opportunity. We for the long term.” MBA candidates
from the Prague
campus, who were
in Glendale in Janu-
ary for one of the 10
Igloos they were not modules that make
up their program.
O A PRACTICED Eskimo, they were The three teams—

T nowhere close to the real thing, but to the

new students on the Archamps campus,
they were towering symbols of teamwork.
given the same
ingredients and
limited time to whip
In January, more than 20 students squared together a feast of
off in an igloo-building contest near the ski Southwestern faji-
resort of Las Clusas, about an hour from tas—were judged on
Thunderbird’s Archamps campus just outside teamwork, presenta-
Geneva, France. The half-day exercise, held in tion and salesman-
freezing temperatures, helped foster teamwork ship. Teams with
and bond the students together, says Julie Americans familiar
Cook, senior director for Executive Education in with the dish had a
Europe. It certainly wasn’t about craftsmanship. distinct advantage,
“They made an admirable effort, but the but so, too, did the
igloos were not very good,” Cook says. “One team that bribed the
group made a great snow hole, but that was not judges with a bottle
New students at Archamps showed off rare talent the objective. The igloos would not have been of Russian Moskov-
for team building, if not for igloo construction. skaya vodka.
recognizable as real igloos to an actual Eskimo.”

16 spring 2005
 global campus

Teaching gram, “Reinventing

Corporate Culture:
change in The Key to Driving
corporate Successful Transfor-
mation Initiatives,”
cultures was held Nov. 15-17
at Thunderbird’s
Thunderbird Archamps campus,
& McKinsey just outside Geneva.
Europe offer “The seniority,
unique 3-day national and cultural Participants from 16 nations talk strategies for averting stasis in corporate culture.
program in diversity all com-
Archamps bined to give us a representative from the topics: the need land-based consult-
magical mix,” says the Saudi Arabian for developing a ing firm that special-
HAWING A Rory Simpson, head Royal High Com- strategy based on izes in energizing

T company that
is frozen in
place requires under-
of Thunderbird
Europe and vice
president for Execu-
mission on Tourism,
a team working to
improve the percep-
target market, the
systems and proce-
dures of change, and
moribund corporate
staffs. “Such an en-
vironment promotes
standing the barriers tive Education. tion of industry in the soft levers that learning better than
to change and how “We also were very South Africa and a can be used to a corporate setting.
to transform the fortunate to assem- representative of the embed change. The mix of back-
mindset and behav- ble a group that was Aga Khan Founda- “Doing this in the grounds in the room
iors of entrenched so eager to engage tion, a philanthropic Thunderbird envi- only reinforced the
employees. with each other.” non-governmental ronment allowed message that the
Those tenants Twenty-six peo- agency. participants to let topic is people-relat-
of successful change ple, representing Through work- their hair down ed, not cultural or
were part of the 19 companies and shops, the program and work in a more language specific.”
curriculum of the 16 nationalities, examined how relaxed, collegial A second Thun-
first three-day traveled from 10 corporate culture environment,” says derbird-Europe/
program between countries to be part impedes change and Matt Cooper, a McKinsey & Com-
Thunderbird Europe of the program. Ac- how to implement program participant pany program is
and McKinsey & cording to Simpson, strategies to over- and founder of scheduled for July
Company. The pro- attendees included a come stasis. Among ThEM, a Switzer- this year.

The program brought the combined resources of Thunderbird Europe and McKinsey & Company to the Archamps campus.

thunderbird magazine 17
 IS
BRAND
AMERICA
BROKEN? U.S. foreign policy can affect sales of
American companies abroad, andit may
have already. What can be done now?
By I.J. Schecter and D.J. Burrough
Illustration by Robert Case

T
IMES SEEM SOMEWHAT BETTER FOR
America on the global stage these days. The
nation has patched up some of the strained re-
lationships it had with key allies, displayed hu-
manitarian goodwill in the wake of the Indian
Ocean tsunami and, most dramatically, gar-
nered considerable credit for a swing towards
freedom and democracy in the Middle East to help assuage com-
plaints from around the world in the wake of the Iraq invasion.
What began as President George W. Bush’s secondary motive for
invading Iraq has evolved into a swelling pro-democracy trend, start-
ing with January’s successful elections in Iraq, continuing with sta-
bility in Afghanistan, street protests in Lebanon calling for Syria to
end its occupation, the orderly and civil elections for a new leader of
the PLO, local elections in Saudi Arabia, and Egyptian President
Hosni Mubarak’s decision to allow some opposition candidates to run
in the next presidential election.
Just months ago, the picture was much bleaker. America’s image,
Brand America, had lost much of its luster throughout the world in

thunderbird magazine 19
 recent years. It was measured in the torrent of
vitriolic editorials in foreign papers denounc-
ing the United States, in the steady stream of
street protests by angry students and in
downbeat poll after downbeat poll.
There are signs that the tarnishing of Brand
America spilled over onto American products
and companies, smearing them with an un-
flattering patina. The halo effect that Ameri-
can products and companies had been used to
getting from association with a “cool” and
“free” America has been damaged, and in
some circumstances it has been replaced with
negative kickback. For some companies and
products, being labelled “Made in the U.S.A.”
can now be a marketing liability in interna-
tional markets. There are signs that the ero-
sion of Brand America has made it more
difficult for U.S. multinationals to hold
their own, let alone expand, in the global
marketplace.
But President Bush has made some posi-
tive moves early in his second term to correct
the problem, perhaps partly in response to
concern from important global business con-
stituencies within his own party. First, he
named Condoleezza Rice, his most impor-
tant confidant, as secretary of state, the chief
instrument of his new diplomacy, and she
immediately visited more foreign peers in
“We, the major markets than any previous secretary of
state in that same period of time. He also
quintes- named his pivotal communications czar and
sential close friend, Karen Hughes, as assistant sec-
world retary of state for public diplomacy, a posi-
nation, are tion that gives her the task of ensuring a
strong and positive international recognition
perceived of Brand America.
to have In March, Bush made a bridge-building
turned our trip to Europe, not to meet with his most
backs on staunch ally during the Iraq war, Tony Blair,
but to break bread with French President
the rest of Jacques Chirac and German Chancellor Ger-
the world.” hard Schroeder, two of his biggest critics in
his rush to oust Saddam Hussein. Both hap-
pily posed with him following their success-
ful discussions and made friendly comments
about working together.
As the U.S. administration looks out at the
world, it appears to be taking stock of the
complexity of issues around the globe and of
the potential long-term danger in pursuing
the go-it-alone policies it adhered to during
Bush’s first term. Even if it had success in
some spheres, unforeseen negative fallout in
others needs fixing. The signs are that the ad-
ministration is moving in the right direction,
but will those efforts be enough to restore a
reputation that has been significantly dam-
20
aged in the eyes of millions around the
world? Even more grave, has the tarnishing
of Brand America endangered the nation’s
dominant position in the global marketplace?
A tarnished image
W
HILE SOME world lead-
ers seem ready to embrace
a kinder and gentler U.S.
government, many of
their citizens aren’t so
sure they want to hug America back. Those
people, who may once have regarded Ameri-
ca as a well-meaning bull in a china shop,
now see it as a schoolyard bully who refuses
to listen to its friends and indiscriminately
throws its weight around.
A poll taken at the end of 2004 by the Asso-
ciated Press found that just over half of the
people in France and Germany said they
viewed Americans unfavorably, and nearly
half in Spain felt the same way. Even in Eng-
land, the United States’ only steadfast ally in
its war in Iraq, a banner headline in London’s
Daily Mirror following the November re-
election of President George Bush reflected a
diminished attitude of the English: “How
can 59,054,087 people be so DUMB?”
“The fundamental problem with Ameri-
ca’s image in the world today has been the
perception, right or wrong, that we have cho-
sen a unilateral, ‘go-it-alone’ path of action,
that we disregard the opinion of other peo-
ples, that we disrespect international institu-
tions,” says Keith Reinhard, chairman of the
marketing services for DDB Worldwide and
founder of Business for Diplomatic Action, a
private group that aims to improve the Unit-
ed States’ image. “We, the quintessential
world nation, are perceived to have turned
our backs on the rest of the world.”
While Germany’s Schroeder was happy to
welcome Bush in March, his countrymen
weren’t so open-armed. Plans for a townhall
meeting in Mainz were cancelled when the
German government couldn’t guarantee
friendly questions.
A 2004 survey by Research International
found that 80 percent of the residents in 10
Latin American countries agree that “Ameri-
cans only care about themselves” and that
just 13 percent believe Americans “respect
other cultures.” Meanwhile, majorities in
Bosnia, Korea, Russia and Norway believe
that U.S. foreign policy has a negative effect
on their countries, according to a Gallup In-
ternational survey in 2002.
Dealings with Spain have become particu-
larly frosty since it pulled its troops out of
spring 2005
Iraq. Italian citizens became even more en-
raged with the United States in March, when
U.S. troops in Iraq killed an Italian intelli-
gence agent and wounded an Italian journal-
ist who had just been freed from insurgents.
In Bulgaria, citizen opposition to the Iraq war
boiled over after U.S. troops killed a Bulgari-
an soldier in a friendly fire incident. Whether
or not to withdraw its troops has become a
central issue in the run-up to June elections.
Even Switzerland and Canada, countries
whose feathers seldom get ruffled over any-
thing, have taken exception to U.S. dealings,
the former cutting back appreciably on im-
ports and exports, the latter threatening to
double tariffs in response to what Canada
claims are unscrupulous trading practices.
Evidence indicating that Brand America is
damaged has been building for several years,
but there also are signs that brand erosion has
begun to impact U.S. multinationals who sell
their products around the world, an even
more ominous development that could signal
the beginning of the end for U.S. brand dom-
inance.
In Hamburg, a group of restaurants have
refused to sell Coca-Cola and Marlboros,
both iconic American products, or accept
American Express cards. In France, protest-
ers marched in 2004 to the local McDonald’s
franchise and toppled Ronald McDonald.
Thirty-six thousand people from around the
world responded to a “Boycott Brand Ameri-
ca” Web site put up in British Columbia.
World: U.S. Foreign
Policy Stinks
S. America
N. America
Europe
MidEast
Africa
W. Asia
Asia-Pacific
negative positive no effect don’t know/no opinion
thunderbird magazine
U.S. companies affected
I
N DECEMBER, Global Market Insite,
an independent Seattle polling group,
surveyed 8,000 consumers in eight
countries and found that 20 percent of
Europeans and Canadians said their
anger over United States’ foreign policy would
deter them from buying American brands.
“A profound trust gap exists for American
corporations in Europe,” says Richard W.
Edelman, president and chief executive offi-
cer of Edelman U.S.A., the largest independ-
ent public relations firm in the world, with 39
offices worldwide. “It is brand players who
are particularly affected by this trend, while
technology companies seem to be immune,
as they are perceived to be more global.”
The recent performance of U.S. firms with
the most powerful global presence paints a
troubling picture. A study by market research
leader NOP World showed that consumer
trust ratings in 30 countries for such emblem-
atic behemoths as Coca-Cola, McDonald’s,
Nike and Microsoft had each dipped between
three and six percent between 2003 and 2004.
While it’s not unusual for consumers to say
one thing to a pollster and do the opposite at
the cash register, there are signs that all this
animosity toward the United States and U.S.
products has begun to influence not just what
consumers say but what they do.
“Americans show that they are people who
are afraid and distrustful of everything sur-
rounding them,” said a survey participant
Nearly half the world
believes U.S. foreign
policy impacts nega-
tively on their nations,
according to a 2003
Gallup survey that
represents the opinion
of more than 1 billion
people. In fact, only
three out of every 10
people believe that
U.S. foreign policy
has a positive effect
on their country. The
most critical public
came from Switzer-
land and Japan, both
with a 68 percent
negative rating,
while the most upbeat
came from Israel
Source: 2003 Voice of the People Survey,
(68%), Afghanistan
Gallup International Association (74%) and Kosovo
(88% positive).
21
 from Brazil, who was part of a 2003 study by
Research International. “Their products are
already not unique. The national debt is in-
creasing everyday. And all this has shaken
even their self-esteem, which was strong as a
rock. I think that today it must not be so com-
fortable being an American.”
According to another study by NOP
World, the total number of consumers
worldwide who used major U.S. brands in a
recent two-year span fell from 30 percent to
27, while non-U.S. brands held their ground
in the same period. And over the past year,
sales of signature U.S. brands—McDonald’s,
Coca-Cola, Marlboro, Wal-Mart, Disney
and Gap—have been weak or have fallen.
In Germany, whose population was decid-
edly opposed to the Iraq War (and who elect-
ed Chancellor Schroeder on a platform
against the war), Coca-Cola was down 16 per-
cent during the third quarter of 2004 com-
pared to the previous year. Meanwhile, Mc-
Donald’s blamed falling sales there for wiping
out what would have otherwise been a growth
year in Europe. Sales numbers for Altria (the
new name for Philip Morris Companies),
“At heart, maker of Marlboro cigarettes, were down
most peo- nearly 25 percent in France and 18.7 percent in
Germany in the third quarter of 2004 com-
ple know pared to the previous year.
there is a “Foreigners have a love-hate affair with
difference American companies and products,” says
between Michael Vanderkaden, current director of fi-
nance for a leading Canadian healthcare in-
American stitution and former consultant for a U.S.-
firms and based global strategy firm. He has observed
the Ameri- the issue from both sides. “To some, U.S.
can govern- firms are a great alternative to staid domestic
ones, providing new technology, innovative
ment… products and capital funding. To others,
Where American cultural insensitivity and overrid-
the value ing arrogance displace those benefits.”
proposition The falling dollar may for now be masking
the size of the problem, say experts, by inflat-
stacks up, ing repatriated profits and lowering the cost
people will in foreign countries of U.S. brands.
still buy How important is the global marketplace
American.” for U.S.-based companies? According to a re-
cent survey by Interbrand, 64 of the most
valuable 100 global brands belong to US-
based companies. An increasing number of
U.S.-based companies are relying on sales
outside North America for growth. Coca-
Cola does a whopping 80 percent of its busi-
ness outside the United States, and nearly 25
percent of all U.S. multinational profits come
from foreign subsidiaries.
For decades, American brands have bene-
fited from an unconscious—and sometimes
22
not so unconscious—brand association with
the United States. When the dimensions
that defined Brand America were “fashion-
able,” “modern,” “freedom,” “democracy,”
“tolerance,” “compassion” and “equality,”
U.S.-based companies flaunted their Ameri-
can heritage, riding the halo effect all the way
to the bank. Marlboro had its iconic cowboy
riding across the open West. Coke had U.S.
citizens teaching the world to sing in perfect
English harmony. And Ford pick-up trucks
became synonymous with the United States’
free-spirit culture.
But now much of the world perceives the
United States to be abandoning the princi-
pals that defined Brand America. Like a 100
pound anchor tied to a canoe, a tarnished
Brand America may risk dragging U.S.
brands down with it.
U.S. products vs. policy
B
UT SOME corporate leaders say
that any alleged soiling of Brand
America has not translated into a
corresponding hit on their foreign
business activities. Consumers
simply do not care where their new iPod or
Levi jeans come from as long as the perceived
value is high.
“At heart, most people know there is a dif-
ference between American firms and the
American government,” says professor Tim
Leunig of the London School of Economics.
“Where the value proposition stacks up, peo-
ple will still buy American.”
Globalization of the manufacturing process
also has eroded the idea that any product is
produced in one country. “Made in the
U.S.A.” has less meaning when a product’s
microchips were manufactured in Singapore,
the assembly was done in China, the packag-
ing in London and the customer service calls
are answered in India.
Corporate America may not be ready to ad-
mit that as Brand America goes, so goes
American products. But corporations are ex-
pressing concern about the country’s image.
Recently, a group of 150 of the most power-
ful and successful advertising and marketing
experts in the United States came together to
form Business for Diplomatic Action (BDA).
The nonprofit group, headed by Keith Rein-
hard, aims to return some of the luster that
has been lost from Brand America. Among
its members are some of the biggest power
brands in the United States, including Pepsi
and McDonald’s.
Polishing Brand America has been tried
before. In 2001, the U.S. government attempt-
spring 2005
ed to deal with its flagging image in the Mid-
dle East when it hired Charlotte Beers, for-
mer head of WPP ad agencies JWT and
O&M, to head up a $15 million ad campaign.
Most Middle East stations refused to air the
spots, and it only garnered derision from the
residents in that region. The “Shared Values
Initiative” was soon shuttered and is widely
considered to be an abysmal failure.
Some question whether any commission
—regardless of credentials or corporate pedi-
gree—can influence America’s global image
when it has no control over the prime mover
of that image: U.S. foreign policy. But BDA’s
Reinhard believes that U.S. multinationals
have a much greater influence over the image
of the United States around the world, that in
fact their brands come in contact with people
more than the government ever does. Con-
sider that both Coca-Cola and McDonald’s
spend more money, approximately $1.2 bil-
lion each annually, in selling their brands.
“We believe we can start to regain respect
and credibility for America with actions,
projects and programs created, funded and
implemented not by the U.S. government
but by the U.S. business community, which
in many ways is more qualified than the gov-
ernment and—at this moment in history, we
would argue—is certainly a more credible
messenger,” Reinhard says.
The less ugly American
Make friends in Tibet by sticking out your tongue, but
avoid waving like an American or you’ll insult people.
HAT’S JUST ONE useful piece of advice
T in the “World Citizens Guide,” a
unique travel book published by
Business for Diplomatic Action (BDA) and
Southern Methodist University. BDA distrib-
uted more than 200,000 of these booklets
on more than 800 college campuses across
the United States in the hopes of making
young travelers better global citizens.
“This may seem a small step toward
winning back friends for America, but who
better than our young people to be ambas-
sadors of what’s good about America, and
in the process learning to be good and
sensitive citizens of the world by adopting
attitudes and behaviors that will stay with
them for a lifetime,” says Keith Reinhard,
BDA president and chairman of DDB
Worldwide. “U.S. college students are a
thunderbird magazine
Identify with local culture
S
TRATEGIES THAT U.S. multina-
tionals should adopt in the face of a
declining Brand America should be
far more subtle than simply hiding
their point of origin, say marketing
and branding experts. The best response is to
identify better with the local markets, in part
by hiring more local managers and adopting
policies that show cultural empathy.
In 2004, Madison Avenue powerhouse Mc-
Cann-Erickson advised its clients to play
down their U.S. connections. Instead, they
should highlight their “strong local roots” in
each regional territory.
Visa International has taken that tact and
has avoided the Brand America backlash, say
company officials. Being seen as a local com-
pany is promoted, in part, because global cus-
tomers get their card from local institutions.
“We’re helped because we’re seen as local,”
says John Elkins, executive vice president for
Visa International, U.S.A. “In Korea, they
say we’re as natural as rice.” To maintain
their local identify, Visa does not use a global
advertising agency but only local agencies
and local media buying, Elkins says.
Some U.S. brands are so large or have been
established for so long on foreign soil that
generations of consumers no longer link
them with the United States; they only know
ready-made diplomatic corps to
help change perceptions over-
seas.” In 2003, approximately
167,000 U.S. college students
studied abroad, and hundreds of
thousands more visited foreign
countries.
No advice on where to stay or
what to see in this guide. Rather,
it offers suggestions like, “Smile.
Genuinely. It’s a universal equaliz-
er.” Or: “Assume resentment as a
default and play down your wealth, power
and status.” Or: “In Japan, it is considered
rude to look at a person directly in the eye
for more than a few seconds.”
Much of the content for the book came
from foreign nationals working in 130
DDB offices worldwide.
23
 that they’ve grown up eating Kellogg’s Corn
Flakes and drinking Coca-Cola.
In spite of its problems in Germany, and a
history of selling itself alongside Brand
America, Coca-Cola has more recently done
a better job of aligning itself with the local
culture, say marketing experts. A survey of
consumers in China, India, Korea, Indonesia
and the Philippines by Leo Burnett found
that 49 percent of the respondents viewed
Coca-Cola as a global brand, while only 31
percent saw it as a U.S. brand. Fifteen percent
even thought the brand was local.
A solid lesson can be learned from a com-
pany that has slipped seamlessly into foreign
markets despite the word “American” mak-
ing up half of its name, says Dr. Richard Et-
tenson, associate professor and area coordina-
tor of marketing at Thunderbird. “Living
near the Geneva border during G8 meetings,
I found it enlightening to observe the pattern
“The of various protests. Who are the protesters al-
ways targeting? McDonald’s. Yet they march
United right by the American Express office. AmEx
States is in isn’t perceived as an interloper like McDon-
a position ald’s because it provides excellent value and
that even avoids making waves with local traditions.”
the ancient Adapting the image
empires of
T
HE PERENNIAL targets have
Greece, localized in various ways,
Rome and however. McDonald’s has
adapted its menu, even adding
Egypt have Kosher and Halal versions of
never expe- the chain in countries like Israel, Argentina
rienced: a and Malaysia. Nike has won over the world
single by developing localizing strategies, cam-
paigns and messages. In Europe and Asia, the
country sports apparel giant concentrates on soccer,
wielding using famous stars from well-known teams
enormous like Real Madrid. In Australia, Nike created a
power due campaign around Cathy Freeman, the coun-
try’s most famous Aboriginal athletics star.
solely to its The best run U.S. multinational corpora-
economy... tions started to deal with the declining Brand
When you America years ago, say Harvard Business
have that School faculty members John A. Quelch,
power, you senior associate dean, International Develop-
ment, and Lincoln Filene, professor of Busi-
need to ness Administration. They hired more local
show extra executives and put more resources toward lo-
sensitivity.” cal“In
community relations, Quelch says.
my opinion these multinationals inoc-
ulated themselves from what would have
taken place if they had not gone down the lo-
cal adaptation route,” he says.
U.S.-based multinational corporations
need to have an even sharper awareness of the
cultures they are selling in and how Brand
24
America is perceived there, say marketing
experts. U.S. companies need to appreciate
the growing sensitivity of consumers in local
markets to all things American. Fail to do
that, say experts, and it could translate into
angry consumers who read cultural slights
into every piece of adverting.
“The United States is in a position that
even the ancient empires of Greece, Rome
and Egypt have never experienced: a single
country wielding enormous power due solely
to its economy,” says Tony van der Hoek ’89,
director of strategy and business solutions for
Coca-Cola’s global Wal-Mart account team.
“When you have that power, you need to
show extra sensitivity. Businesses need to tie
into the fabric of the countries in which they
operate. They need to develop a local pres-
ence by identifying with local sensibilities.”
Although it’s done very well in localizing
its message, Nike Inc. recently tripped over
its own fashionable feet in China with a cam-
paign featuring National Basketball Associa-
tion star Lebron James. The ads featured
James going up against and beating a kung fu
master and other Chinese cultural icons in a
video-game style battle. Nike’s intended
message was lost on a population sensitive to
American aggression.
BDA’s Reinhard believes that U.S. multi-
nationals should poll their own international
workforces to see whether their companies
are exacerbating the decline of Brand Ameri-
ca or doing something to reduce the problem.
“Once CEOs hear from their own people,
we believe they’ll become more engaged in
the issue,” he says.
While American multinationals can do
much to control their own image in the glob-
al marketplace and have considerable impact
on how Brand America is perceived, the
biggest player in creating an American image
overseas is the United States government.
If democracy, peace and economies are
well established in Afghanistan and Iraq in a
few years, if an independent Palestine and Is-
rael are living in peaceful co-existence, if the
United States can back up its stance as the
world’s moral arbiter with less rhetoric and
more policy changes, and if it can listen to its
allies and avoid taking unpopular unilateral
actions, then Brand America can once again
become the shining beacon it once was.
But that’s a lot of ifs.
How is Brand America perceived where you are
in the world? What can multinationals do to keep
from being dragged down with the image? Go to
thunderbird.edu and join our Brand America dis-
cussion group.
spring 2005
ON THE
ROAD TO

TRANSFO
In less than a year as president,
Dr. Angel Cabrera has introduced
important changes that are moving
Thunderbird in new directions

By D.J. Burrough
RMATION
D
R. ANGEL CABRERA COULD BE MISTAKEN
for one of Thunderbird’s MBA candidates, and
FRONT & CENTER less for his youthful appearance than the time
President Cabrera he spends with them. It is as common to find
explains key program the 37-year-old president in the commons shar-
changes, including the ing a slice of pepperoni pizza and a frenetic
Global MBA On-Demand
program, to the School
back-and-forth conversation with students as
staff. He also covered to find him behind his paper-strewn desk. When the search commit-
the same topics with tee picked Cabrera from among the pool of potential candidates, they
students, faculty and saw him as a hard-charging achiever and transformative leader. In his
alumni. first nine months on the job, he has done nothing to belie that image.
Cabrera’s ubiquitous presence around campus is a reflection of his
engaging approach as Thunderbird’s leader. If students have found

thunderbird magazine 27
 him engaging, faculty, staff and board mem-
bers have been impressed with his energy
and his ability to quickly grasp issues.
“The speed with which Angel has gained a
handle on things is impressive,” says Craig
Watson, a Thunderbird board of trustee.
“He’s also formed a very positive bond with
the staff, which is critical in getting things
done. And I understand his relations with the
faculty are similarly strong.”
“Even before his first board meeting,” says
Maribeth Rahe, a trustee who also served on
the search committee, “he was well versed in
the issues facing Thunderbird. He has ex-
ceeded my expectations. We’re lucky to have
someone who is high-energy, hard-working
and collegial... who knows what it takes.”
Before taking up the presidency in Septem-
ber 2004, Dr. Cabrera had studied the strate-
gic business plan prepared under his prede-
cessor, Dr. Roy Herberger. “It is a good plan,”
Cabrera says. “A lot of thought went into that
plan, and a lot of people and stakeholders par-
ticipated in building it. The plan responds
very well to the challenges and opportunities
we face. Before we let it collect dust on the
shelf, we need to gear up and implement it.”
The thrust of the plan is to better brand the
A G LO B A L VO I C E School as the world leader in international
With a new brand in management, to reposition the full-time
hand—Truly Global—the MBA program among the best in the world,
marketing department
is advertising in
to diversify the portfolio of programs offered
prominent business and to increase our reach to other world mar-
newspapers and maga- kets. The first steps in carrying that out in-
zines around the world. clude streamlining the application process,
28
tightening the entry requirements, increas-
ing the selectivity of students, defining the
brand, improving marketing and communi-
cations, developing new programs for new
markets, and creating a new structure to bet-
ter serve the 35,000 alumni.
Truly Global
F
OR YEARS, Thunderbird devel-
oped brand awareness with a small
amount of advertising and public
relations, relying instead on infor-
mal word-of-mouth efforts of
alumni. However, with more business
schools encroaching into Thunderbird’s core
international business expertise, and with
fewer people applying to business schools, es-
pecially international students following the
9/11 terrorist attack, it became clear, Cabrera
says, that the School’s existing minimalist
marketing strategy was no longer functional.
“As mainstream business schools take on
international specialties, we need to better ar-
ticulate what makes Thunderbird so unique,”
he says. The first step to improving the mar-
keting effort was to better define the brand,
says Ken Lambert ’77, vice president and
chief marketing officer, “to find out just
what exactly the ‘Thunderbird Mystique’ is
all about.” Lambert was hired shortly before
Cabrera was named president.
In June 2004, Lambert organized a brand-
ing exercise that included students, alumni,
recruiters, faculty and staff. From the feed-
back of those participants and quantitative
analysis gathered over the years, the new con-
cept of “Truly Global” emerged as the core
brand concept.
“It is intended as a positioning statement,
but just like other great lines—Nike’s ‘Just Do
It’ or Coke’s ‘The Real Thing’—it morphed
into our marketing tag line,” Lambert says.
“The essence of Truly Global means that the
stakeholders in Thunderbird have a greater
potential for success in their careers and, in-
deed, in their lives than do people attending
any other higher education alternatives when
it comes to global opportunities.”
On its own, “Truly Global” differentiates
Thunderbird from other programs that claim
to offer international management. But the
positioning statement “becomes a very pow-
erful message with extraordinary saliency”
when it’s paired with the pillars that support
the concept, he says.
The five pillars, which came out of the
same branding exercise, define not only the
strengths of Thunderbird but also the people
who graduate from the program.
spring 2005

TA K I N G A B R E A K President Cabrera already is leading Thunderbird in new, creative and dynamic directions.
The five pillars, or concepts, upon which
Thunderbird stands include Global Thought
Leadership, Enterprising Spirit, Culture-
Business Fusion, Borderless Community
and Global Citizenship.
After completing the brand-defining exer-
cise, an integrated marketing campaign led to
a reorganization of the marketing staff with
seasoned professionals; an increase in the ad-
vertising budget; a redesign of the alumni
magazine and Web site; creating print and
Internet advertising campaigns; and intro-
ducing a program of lead generation, using
the Internet, enhanced marketing, sales tours
and direct marketing. In addition, an expand-
ed corporate communications program al-
ready has led to incremental coverage in some
of the world’s most influential business pub-
lications, including the Financial Times, The
Wall Street Journal and The New York Times.
In addition, Thunderbird has placed adver-
tising in a number of international publica-
tions, including The Economist and Business-
Week. Internet ads have appeared on sites for
U.S. News & World Report, BusinessWeek and
others. Radio spots are running in various
markets around the world, and a television
spot is being created for the Asia market.
The external Web site is undergoing a
complete redesign with new navigation to
better reflect the dynamic nature of the
School and more deeply engage visitors. It is
expected to debut in the fall, Lambert says.
thunderbird magazine
BRAD REED
At the start of 2005, Thunderbird em-
barked on a series of information tours
throughout the world, which attracted hun-
dreds of prospective students in Europe, Asia “The
and the United States. Early signs indicate
that the marketing push has worked; student
essence of
lead generation is up 70 percent over last year. truly global
“There is a buzz in the Thunderbird com- means that
munity around ‘Truly Global’ and the five the stake-
pillars,” says Lambert. “It has been embraced.
That’s an amazing sign so soon in the game.”
holders in
Thunder-
Global Network bird have
R
EENGINEERING OF the Thun- a greater
derbird Alumni Association be-
gan more than two years ago
potential
with a study titled, “Thunder- for success
bird Alumni Association of the in their
Future.” It included research of personal and careers
professional life management processes and
benchmarked Thunderbird alumni against
and,
top university and professional associations. indeed, in
It also included focus groups and surveys of their lives
T-bird alumni. From the research came a when it
concept paper for changes to the association,
for which the Thunderbird Board of Trustees
comes to
approved funding in November. global
“It’s less a change in structure than a oppor-
change in roles and responsibilities,” says tunities.”
Meredith Peabody ’96, who conducted much
of the research and helped draft the concept
paper, and who later accepted Cabrera’s invi-
tation to become the executive director of the
29
 new association. “It’s an alumni organization
that is being created by alumni for alumni.
It’s about fostering alumni engagement with
the alumni network and with the School.”
The research and surveys revealed that the
organizational structure of the association
“It’s an was confusing to alumni and, thus, not effec-
tive enough. There also was a lack of clarity
alumni about roles and responsibilities for the alum-
organiza- ni chapters and councils. “The alumni office
tion that had experimented with many structures and
is being had reached a point where alumni in general
did not understand the alumni volunteer
created by structure,” Peabody says.
alumni for The TAA and Alumni Relations Office al-
alumni. so tended to implement programs and servic-
The Thun- es that were responsive to the short-term de-
derbird mands of the School or alumni, but were not
the best for long-term strategic planning.
Global To address those issues, the Global Board is
Network being restructured to include two members
is about from each Regional Council, 10 at-large
members representing a diversity of geogra-
fostering phy, degrees, age and industry, and 10 mem-
alumni bers from the largest chapters. The change
engage- means chapters will be better-represented.
ment…” During the next year, alumni should also
expect to see changes in the look and feel of
My Thunderbird (MTB). “We are going to
redesign the Web site,” says Peabody, “and
make it more intuitive, relevant and easy to
access and navigate.” Plans call for a reintro-
duction of MTB, along with a program to en-
courage alumni to use it often.
A LU M N I L E A D E R
Meredith Peabody ’96,
executive director of the
Thunderbird Global
Network, is implement-
ing changes in its roles
and responsibilities.
30
The network will do more to support net-
working events among chapters, such as pro-
viding top-level speakers and hiring a man-
ager of Chapter Affairs and Volunteer Lead-
ership, Peabody says. Alumni also should ex-
pect to see more career programs and services,
among them a list of T-birds who are either
in the professional coaching or executive
search fields. The network also will assist
alumni on posting their résumés on MTB.
“If we get it right, people will choose to re-
main active for the rest of their lives,” Cabr-
era says. “We want to create a network that
has value for each and every person. There
are very few organizations that have the
reach that we have.”
Global MBA On-Demand
O
N SEPTEMBER 10, Thunder-
bird will welcome its first co-
hort of students in the Global
MBA On-Demand program,
a 21-month program that is a
blend of interactive, collaborative learning
via the Internet and face-to-face intensive
seminars on Thunderbird campuses in Glen-
dale, Archamps and Beijing.
“This is unlike anything Thunderbird has
done in the past,” Cabrera says. “The fastest
growing segment of the MBA market is in
distance learning, and now the technology
has advanced to the point where we feel we
can offer a quality experience. Thunderbird’s
goal is to extend our reach around the world,
BRAD REED
spring 2005
and that can only be achieved if we take the
lead in utilizing the new technologies in in-
telligent ways.”
The Global MBA On-Demand program
will be based on some of the same content,
curriculum and professors as the on-campus
degree. The program is designed for working
professionals worldwide. Coursework and
interaction between the faculty and students,
and among student peers, will be conducted
using an exclusive MTB intranet portal and
other new technologies, like Tegrity stream-
ing videos and e-learning modules.
“There is a market out there of individuals
who want to earn an MBA but don’t want to
take a financial hit by leaving their jobs and
relocating,” says Bert Valencia, director of the
Global MBA On-Demand program. “It’s
very difficult to devote all your time to study.”
On-Demand is modeled on the successful
Global MBA for Latin America managers
program, of which Valencia is director. The

program has brought distance learning to
nearly 600 Thunderbird MBA students since
it’s inception in 1998. Even though those stu-
dents spend only a brief time together on
campus, Valencia says, the experience has
been that they bond tightly as a group and as
Thunderbirds.
“They are some of the most intense alum-
ni I’ve ever met,” he says. “When they come
here, they connect with each other very
quickly, and they cherish the time spent on
campus. I believe we will give the On-De-
mand students that same experience and
they will root very quickly to the School.”
On-Demand students will have real-time
interaction with their peers and professors al-
most daily, Valencia says. They may work on
a case in a study group with six other stu-
dents or will work one-on-one with a profes-
sor on a negotiation exercise or, just like on
campus, receive a case study to analyze and
solve, he says.
“Students will sign on in the morning,
wherever they are, and have continued inter-
faces throughout the day,” he says. “The way
they will be working is just how multination-
al corporations are working today, where peo-
ple from, say, finance and marketing work on
projects as virtual teams and only meet once
or twice a year.”
The selection process for students will be
the same as it is for students in the full-time,
on-campus degree program. Furthermore, to
recreate the cultural mix that occurs on cam-
pus, the On-Demand program will pair stu-
dents of different cultures in work groups.
The time students spend on Thunderbird
BRAD REED
T H E M A N O N D E M A N D Administrator Bert Valencia has taken on the
leadership of the Global On-Demand MBA program, which begins in September.
campuses—a total of four modules of 10 in-
tensive days each—will comprise more than
a quarter of the course work, Valencia says.
On-Demand students will have a unique op-
portunity to blend their business training
with an invaluable global experience, learn-
ing in three continents and working with col- “Thunder-
leagues from around the world, he says. bird’s goal
With the On-Demand program, Valencia
says, Thunderbird is joining the growing is to extend
ranks of business schools that are offering our reach
distance learning, including Duke, Purdue, around the
Insead, IMD and Instituto de Empresa, world, and
Cabrera’s former school.
In the brief time he’s been president, Ca- that can
brera has created a vibrancy about Thunder- only be
bird among the students, staff, faculty, board achieved if
members, Phoenix leadership and alumni. we take the
Much of what has fueled the increased inter-
est has been the early initiatives he’s set forth, lead in
but it’s also being flamed by Cabrera’s per- utilizing the
sonality and the knowledge that he’s leading new tech-
Thunderbird on a journey whose conclusion nologies in
is uncertain but is sure to have some very in-
teresting sights to see along the way. intelligent
“We need to make some changes,” he says. ways.”
“Some of them will be mistakes, but most of
them will be great successes. There is no
question we need to act, that we need to make
decisions. The industry is changing so rapid-
ly, and we need to change with it if we are to
control our destiny.”

thunderbird magazine 31
A NATION
BORN IN
ORANGE
ALL PHOTOS: MICHAEL BLEYZER

Thunderbird Global Council member

Michael Bleyzer was in Kyiv, Ukraine,
in November and witnessed, and
here reports on, the beginning
of the Orange Protest and
the birth of a true democracy
 N
OVEMBER 23 LED BY OPPOSI-
tion presidential candidate Viktor
Yushchenko, as many as 1 million peo-
ple march on parliament, turning the
narrow brick streets into a sea of or-
ange flags and ribbons. The protest
springs up as a result of the outcome of the second round of
the presidential elections, held November 21, which declared
the Russian-speaking Prime Minister Victor Yanukovich
the narrow winner. Exit polls indicate widespread fraud,
and international observers call the election results tainted.
We are in the middle of the Orange Revo-
lution in Kyiv. It is an incredible experience to
be here. We have been spending a lot of time
on the streets and on the main square, Maid-
an Nezalezhnosti, Independence Square. No
news footage can do justice to the feeling of
being surrounded by a million people. It is
amazing how incredible this crowd is. Think
of an unhappy crowd—cheated by politicians,
betrayed by the system—and you expect an-
gry, agitated people. Think again! This is the
happiest, friendliest, most incredibly loving
and supportive group I have encountered, and
there are a million of them! People smile,
sing, laugh and offer help and support to each
other. There are no police in sight. Imagine
that! There are not even any reports of crime in this huge metropoli-
tan area. Everyone is a friend, everyone is a neighbor, everyone is a
A SEA OF ORANGE brother. We are in the middle of a miracle. The people of this country
The peaceful revolu-
came out on the streets to say, “We have had enough! Enough of crim-
tionaries of Kyiv flood
Independence Square inals running the country, enough of corruption, enough of lawless-
to listen to Mykola ness. We want to be free, we want to be clean and civilized, we want
Tomenko, a central to be a part of Europe and the World.”
figure in the Orange
Revolution. Tomenko is NOVEMBER 24 Tens of thousands of Orange Protesters vow to stay
now Vice Prime Minister
of Ukraine for Humani-
camped in Independence Square until reports of election fraud are examined.
tarian Policy, the result It is cold out here. Most nights the temperature goes well below
of his support for Viktor freezing. But the tent city that has gone up in the middle of Kyiv, now
Yushchenko. with thousands of tents, is very warm. There are mountains of warm
clothes everywhere on Khreshchatyk, the main street of the city, do-
nated by Kyivites. Food, hot coffee and hot tea are abundant and free
everywhere. But you do not see any alcohol. This is the most sober
one million Ukrainians you will ever meet. The crowd is completely
self-organizing and is improving its collective behavior continuously.
Every new day brings better organization, improved conditions and
communications, and good behavior. Where are the sociologists? We
are living one of the finest examples of crowd behavior in history.

NOVEMBER 25 Despite freezing temperatures and worsening living con-

ditions, protesters remain in Independence Square, saying they’ll only leave
when a new presidential election is held and Yanukovich agrees to step down.

thunderbird magazine 33
E X P EC TA N T C R O W D
People jam Maidan
Square at the heart of
Kyiv, while Ukraine’s blue
and yellow flags
intermingle with the
orange flags of change.
 It is clear to any observer that this crowd
will win. There’s no way to stop it without a
massive blood bath, which cannot happen in
Europe in this new century, with all the
world’s TV cameras turned on Ukraine.
Over the last five days, the opposition has
been winning continuous victories. The
crowds are growing bigger, and demonstra-
tions are all over the country. Famous ath-
letes, actors, artists and high ranking military
and police officers are joining the opposition.
When Ruslana, the most famous Ukrainian
singer and the 2004 Eurovision contest win-
ner, and Vladimir Klitchko, the heavyweight
champion, joined Victor Yushchenko on the
podium three days ago, the crowd went wild.
The following day brought Lech Walesa, sen-
ior officers of SBU (formerly the KGB) and
the police and several formerly neutral “oli-
garchs” to the podium.
NOVEMBER 27 The Ukrainian Supreme
Court declares the presidential election null until it
considers the claims that the vote was rigged.
The media are free once again in Ukraine.
Until now, only one channel was covering
the events from Maiden Nezalezhnosti 24
hours a day. Our Volia Cable also was deliv-
ering its signal to some 1.5 million viewers in
Kyiv despite the pressure, including 10 days
in July when some of our managers went to
jail. All the other channels have been ignor-
ing the people on the streets and instead
showing cartoons, music concerts and trav-
el destinations. Most TV journalists had
been fired or had gone on strike because they
refused to continue broadcasting lies, so al-
most all stations had ceased operations. For
three days, most of Ukraine had no TV
news, for there was no staff left to produce
the news.
Last night it all changed. The owners of the
major channels gave in to the demands of
their journalists and allowed honest news re-
porting for the first time in the history of in-
dependent Ukraine. Some ran their evening
news broadcast with a group shot of all jour-
nalists standing together, with one of them
reading a statement in which they swore to
report honest news only. It was an unbeliev-
able and inspiring sight. And then the mira-
cle happened: They showed a direct feed of a
million proud Ukrainians on Maidan Neza-
lezhnosti in Kyiv to the whole country. If
there was a defining moment in the birth of
this nation, that was it!
NOVEMBER 28 In a day of tension and loud
protests both on the street and in parliament cham-
thunderbird magazine
bers, the democratically-elected body declares the
election results invalid. Three days later, the par-
liament votes to fire the entire presidential staff.
Today was another exciting day with the
extraordinary session of the Ukrainian Rada,
or parliament. It started four hours ago and is
being shown live on television all over the
country. We are all glued to our television
screens. The Rada already voted to consider
the runoff elections invalid, and it expressed
no-confidence in the Central Election Com-
mittee, along with other important actions.
They are still debating, but they are progress-
ing well. Things are looking up! The Orange
Revolution continues!
DECEMBER 23 The Ukrainian Supreme
Court invalidates the presidential election results
and orders a new elec-
tion to be held Dec. 26.
DECEMBER 26
Election results show
that Viktor Yushchen-
ko has won with 52 per-
cent of the vote to just
44 percent for Victor
Yanukovich.
JANUARY 23 Yush-
chenko is sworn in as
president. Inauguration
balls are held through
Kyiv.
Blazing a trail
ICHAEL BLEYZER is the founder of SigmaBleyzer, a multinational fund
M manager with a focus on Southeast Europe. The company provides in-
vestment banking, research, and economic development consulting
to both companies and governments. The 100+ person firm, based in Hous-
ton, Texas, has created a model for investing in former Soviet-bloc countries. .
SigmaBleyzer offers clients a family of Ukrainian Growth Funds. The firm
looks for newly privatized companies, startups and strong turnaround candi-
dates that are undervalued and have high growth potential. The company has
controlling interest in several companies across a spectrum of industries, in-
cluding technology, energy, manufacturing, food and consumer products.
Born in Kharkiv, Ukraine in 1951, Bleyzer was raised and educated in the So-
viet Union, graduating from the Kharkov Institute of Radioelectronics with a
Master of Science in digital electronics and quantum physics. His career took
him to Russia, Ukraine, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan, before coming to the
United States in 1978, where he became a U.S. citizen. Bleyzer then embarked
on a career in finance and management.
When the USSR dissolved in the early 1990s, Bleyzer responded quickly to
the opportunities presented, utilizing his business experience to invest strate-
gically in the emerging region.
35
 Now what?
The Orange “revolutionaries” are in charge,
but will they lead with transparency and
honesty, and bring stability to the country?
I
WROTE THESE DIARY ENTRIES
in the last days of November 2004 at
the height of the Orange Revolution
in Kyiv. It was the most exciting
time of my life. I did not know what
the final outcome would be, or if vi-
olence would erupt despite the opti-
mism, or how power would be transferred if
the revolution did succeed. But I knew that I
was witnessing one of the most incredible
events of recent years.
Now, many months later, we know that
the Orange Revolution was a resounding suc-
cess, greater than even the most optimistic
expectations in November. The long term
consequences for Ukraine and the world now
depends on what the
Orange revolution-
aries do with their
new power. Many
challenges lie ahead,
not least of which is
the difficult legacy of
10 years of slow and
painful transition to
a market economy.
The “revolution-
aries” are in charge
of all government in-
stitutions and agen-
cies. It is amazing to
realize that the revo-
lution was accom-
plished without any
violence nor a single
shot fired. The
J OY F U L T I M E S largest peaceful revolution in history had a
Author Michael Bleyzer quick and victorious end, with power trans-
(right) shares the fun ferring to the Orange team with little resist-
with new street friends.
ance. It took less than three months in all.
The Orange Revolution was exciting and
full of energy and color despite the cold, drea-
ry days of Ukraine’s winter. Even a revolu-
tion staged by MTV would not have seemed
hipper, happier, nor more photogenic. The
chants razom nas bahato, nas ne podolaty (to-
gether we are many, we cannot be defeated)
and svobodu ne spynyty (freedom can’t be
36
stopped) should be taught in every school.
These incredibly powerful chants were
turned into inspiring songs by bands during
the revolution.
The three months of the Orange Revolu-
tion was the great awakening of the Ukrain-
ian nation and an incredible cleansing of its
civil society. A democratic nation was born.
The new rulers were anointed by the street,
and Ukrainians are better off now because
they can always remember nas bahato, nas ne
podolaty! What happened was even better for
Ukraine than if Yushchenko were simply
elected cleanly and transparently in the first
round. People came out in the streets and
said, “We do not want these guys any longer.
We want those guys!” And they got them!
What can be more democratic?
The Ukrainian people and the world ex-
pect a lot from the new government: Sim-
plicity. Transparency. Predictability. As an
investor, I want simple and effective solu-
tions that can be explained to the Ukrainian
people. I want frequent and open communi-
cations between the new government and the
people. The government needs to listen
closely to what the people say. And I want a
stable and predictable business and legal en-
vironment where local and foreign investors
feel secure deploying new capital without
surprises and sudden shifts.
The government needs to take care of the
bulging budget deficit left by the previous
government’s efforts to get re-elected at any
cost, the overgrown and unruly government
bureaucracy that needs reform; strengthen-
ing the rule of law, deregulating businesses to
further liberalize the economy, promoting in-
ternationally a strong image for the nation to
attract foreign direct investment that will
help sustain and accelerate economic growth.
Yes, there are challenges ahead, but there is
also a new government with lots of young,
dedicated, energetic and patriotic people. I
am optimistic about the future in Ukraine.
The Orange Revolution was a beautiful and
heroic movement. It will not go to waste.
Ukraine will succeed!
spring 2005
 PLAYING
THE
FIELD The man behind the biggest deal in
U.S. sports history has become the
go-to guy for super-rich team owners
By David Sweet

H
E LOVES SPORTING EVENTS
more than anything else. So
why did Sal Galatioto ’77 turn
down invitations to the NBA
ST I L L T R U E TO All-Star Game, NHL All-Star
H I S R O OT S
Despite his enormous
Game and the Super Bowl last year, along with
success, Sal Galatioto
seems like just another
any number of other games that most sporting
guy from Brooklyn. His enthusiasts would give their right arm to at-
favorite actor is Robert
DeNiro; among his tend? Simple. Business conflicts.
favorite movies is “The Before feeling sad for Galatioto, consider what the Brooklyn-raised
Godfather” trilogy.
52-year-old does for a living. He deals with the likes of Washington
Redskins owner Daniel Snyder, New York Yankees owner George
Steinbrenner, Los Angeles Angels owner Arte Moreno and other top
power brokers in the world of sports.
Galatioto is one of the leading financial advisors to the owners of
professional sports teams in the United States. He has advised and/or
arranged the financing on dozens of professional sports franchise
CHRIS CASABURI

transactions in the past decade, including Snyder’s $800 million pur-

chase of the Redskins, the biggest deal in American sports history, and
the $401 million sale of the Phoenix Suns, the largest in National Bas-
ketball Association history. He has become the go-to guy in a multi-

thunderbird magazine 39
 billion dollar business segment that barely ex-
isted 20 years ago.
In February, after more than four years as
the managing director of Lehman Brothers’
Sports Advisory & Finance Group, Galatioto
launched his own financial advisory firm,
overlooked industry segment. Not only did
sports qualify, but it was uniquely attractive.
“It’s sexy, unlike mining and minerals,”
Galatioto says.
In the zone

Galatioto Sports Partners. The firm, based in
New York City, will pursue financing for po-
tential owners and will arrange and under-
write even the largest sports financing trans-
actions.
So how did a man who emigrated from
Sicily as a child and never dreamed he’d be
able even to meet a professional ballplayer
end up such a significant player, so signifi-
cant that the entire New York Yankees squad
autographed a jersey for him?
“He’s very smart, but he doesn’t wear it on
his sleeve,” says New York Mets owner Fred
Wilpon, who has worked with Galatioto on a
number of transactions, including buying
former owner Nelson Doubleday’s share of
the franchise. “He’s on top of what’s happen-
ing,” Wilpon says. “And he’s the most non-
typical investment banker you’ll find.”
Bred in Brooklyn like Galatioto, Wilpon
offered the borough’s highest compliment.
“He’s one helluva guy.”
Galatioto started tackling the most com-
plex financial issues—leveraged finance, spe-
cialized insurance lending—first at Westpac
Banking Corp. and then at SG Cowen. By
the mid-1990s, he began searching for an
T
ODAY, THOUGH Galatioto
rubs shoulders with major
sports stars and billionaire own-
ers, he still seems true to his
Brooklyn roots. His favorite ac-
tor? Robert DeNiro. Favorite movie? “The
Godfather” trilogy. Most sentences start
with the word, “Look,” like a finger pushed
into your chest.
“Look,” he says, explaining why team
owners and executives choose to deal with
him over his competitors, “it comes down to
this: I’ll walk away from a fee. And 90 percent
of what we make is a success fee. Even if it
costs me $4 million in fees, I’ll speak up if it’s
a bad deal for them, unlike all too many peo-
ple in this business who chase the fee.”
Take the time two years ago when the Walt
Disney Company hired Galatioto to help
them unload the Anaheim Angels baseball
team (now the Los Angeles Angels of Ana-
heim). He knew that Arte Moreno, a Phoe-
nix executive who made hundreds of mil-
lions of dollars in the billboard advertising
business, was itching to own a competitive
team in the West. Galatioto called Moreno,
flew west to meet with him, and the deal was

2004 $401
Net worth Phoenix Suns
2002 $360
The value of profession- Boston Celtics
al sports teams has 2004 $300
been rising exponential- Charlotte Bobcats* New Jersey Nets
ly over the past 20 years. 2001 $200
Seattle SuperSonics
European football teams
Real Madrid and Man- 1998 $158
Sacramento Kings
chester United, as well
1995 $125
as the Washington Red- Memphis Grizzlies*
skins and Dallas Cow- Toronto Raptors*
boys, are worth about 1993 $75
San Antonio Spurs
$1 billion.
1988 $32.5
The purchase price Miami Heat,* Orlando Magic*
for basketball teams, Minnesota Timberwolves*
New Orleans Hornets*
shown here in millions,
has been driven in 1985 $18.5
Milwaukee Bucks
part by revenue-
1983 $10.5
generating arenas Indiana
and the potential Pacers
for the league to
expand globally.
* Expansion team, fee set by league.

40 spring 2005

CHRIS CASABURI
Galatioto's office is festooned with mementos of some of the major transactions he's brokered.
done. Disney shed a financial burden, Mor-
eno got his dream, and Major League Base-
ball welcomed its first Hispanic owner.
In the most expensive transaction in Unit-
ed States sports history, Galatioto represent-
ed Redskins owner Daniel Snyder. He agrees
that Snyder bought the team at a high valua-
tion, given the prices paid up to that point,
but today, just five years later, he is convinced
the team is worth more than $1 billion be-
cause of Snyder’s marketing savvy and his
ability to lure high-profile talent to the team.
When New York Mets owners Fred
Wilpon and Nelson Doubleday were pub-
licly at each other’s throats over how to man-
age the team, Galatioto stepped in and both
negotiated and financed the deal that gave
Wilpon full control of the team. Galatioto al-
so represented Bob Johnson when he took
over the expansion Charlotte Bobcats of the
National Basketball Association, becoming
the first African-American owner of an
American professional sports franchise.
Though Galatioto cannot reveal specific
details of the deals he’s played a part in, he did
say that each one is unique. “Some buyers
look closely at economics. Some want an as-
set that’s fun to have. Some use their teams as
marketing vehicles, letting their best clients
meet the players,” he says.
Negotiating in the niche industry of sports
franchises—where typically fewer than a
thunderbird magazine
“Look, it
comes down
to this: I’ll
walk away
from a fee.
And 90
percent of
what we
make is a
dozen transactions a year take place—is not
success fee.
like typical investment banking deals, Gala- Even if it
tioto says. “The difference here is we’re deal- costs me
ing with the principals,” he says. “They’re all $4 million
private transactions, not public companies. in fees, I’ll
There’s less bureaucracy. You don’t have
shareholders to worry about. I prefer this a speak up if
thousand times more.” it’s a bad
Though hashing out the economics of deal for
sports deals can be more difficult than a stan- them, unlike
dard investment banking transaction, Gala-
tioto says, it’s a more interesting product, es- all too many
pecially since he’s negotiating with some of people in
the wealthiest people in the United States. the business
Still, regardless of their wealth, financing is who chase
almost always needed in sports deals. Gala-
tioto’s Sports Partners sets up financing, he the fee.”
says, and also provides direct financing.
Though he’s proud to bring new owners in-
to the sports world, Galatioto knows there are
pitfalls to owning a sports team, especially
making money year to year. “There are
many other investments that give you a bet-
ter short-term profit,” he says. “You get a lot
of pressure to spend money. The community
only wants a winning team and doesn’t care
if you make a profit or loss. This is a business
where every move you make is scrutinized
by the press. There’s extreme visibility.”
Galatioto, who has turned down deals with
Japanese baseball franchises because they
were too small, just $30 million or so, is inch-
41
 ing his way into the European market. He re-
cently helped finance Wembley Stadium and
has spoken with a number of European soc-
cer clubs about possible deals. But any major
move to the continent is still a few years
away. “The problem is that we’re a small
group, and there are quality-control issues.
One bad deal and we’d lose our reputation,”
he says. “There are different league struc-
tures in Europe and different legal structures.
You have to go slow there.”
Sports aside
F
OR SOMEONE whose life is so in-
tertwined with sports, Galatioto’s
office walls are surprisingly free of
autographed photographs, sports
memorabilia and the sports pages
of newspapers touting big transactions (ex-
cept for a photograph of Galatioto and George
Steinbrenner standing side by side). Instead,
the walls of his midtown Manhattan office
display nearly 100 Lucite tombstones, ubiqui-
tous in most investment bankers’ offices, tes-
timony to as many successful deals for clients.
One transcription, for instance, reads: “The
Walt Disney Company has sold the Ana-
heim Angels to Moreno Baseball, L.P. and
Moreno Family Baseball, L.P. The under-
signed [Lehman Brothers] acted as financial
advisor to The Walt Disney Company in this
transaction.”
It’s not that Galatioto isn’t a fan of sports
memorabilia. He cherishes the Yankee jersey
signed by team players and another signed
solely by Derek Jeter, the star shortstop for
the New York Yankees. But on the fateful
morning of Sept. 11, 2001, Galatioto’s office sat
First team
S al Galatioto ’77 wasn’t the only Thunderbird involved in the
$401 million sale of the Phoenix Suns in April 2004.
Two Thunderbirds, Sam Garvin ’88 and Francis Najafi ’77, were part
of the investment group that made the record-setting purchase of the
team. Garvin is the second largest investor, behind Robert Sarver, a
banking and real estate investor who is the group’s managing partner.
The Phoenix Suns commanded such a high price—despite one of
the worst records in the National Basketball League—because of
Arizona’s huge population growth and the likelihood of Phoenix
residents to attend sporting events, Galatioto says. “What sold that
franchise was the city of Phoenix and Jerry Colangelo,” he says.
If you look closely during games, you can find Garvin and Najafi
filling courtside seats.
42
across from the World Trade Center and
everything was lost: a signed Phoenix Coy-
otes jersey, an autographed photo of hockey
great Mario Lemieux holding the Stanley
Cup and baseballs signed by Don Mattingly,
Sandy Koufax and Yogi Berra.
One month later, Galatioto experienced
his greatest moment in sports before the third
game of the World Series in which the Yan-
kees played the Arizona Diamondbacks.
“President Bush strolled out of the dugout,
baseball in hand. He stood on the mound,
with all that security around, and he threw a
strike,” Galatioto says. “I’ll never forget it.”
It’s appropriate that Galatioto’s favorite
sports moment is drenched in history. A
World War I and World War II buff, he also
spends time reading about constitutional law.
Not all his pastimes involve quiet study,
however. Although living in Long Island
makes it hard to satisfy his passion for hunt-
ing and shooting, he does find time to occa-
sionally visit a nearby shooting range. “I’m a
Westerner trapped in the East,” he says.
Galatioto also has found joy in teaching. At
Columbia University’s graduate business
school, he leads a class of 68 students in the
ups and downs of sports business.
Because of his standing in the industry,
Galatioto is able to attract some of sports
most influential businessmen to the class, in-
cluding Yankees President Randy Levine and
then-sports agent and now Arizona Dia-
mondbacks owner Jeff Morad.
“He has put together a great group of aca-
demics and people from the real world,” says
Ron Douglas of the Rothschild Bank, who
won a lottery to get into the popular course.
“He shared his own experiences and his ex-
pertise. He was always personable.”
Since Galatioto travels on average three
days a week for work, getting a call from him
in January while he sits in his New York of-
fice is a surprise.
“I was stuck in the Midwest,” says Gala-
tioto. “My plane was seven hours late. To-
day’s been a mess. I never get to go to the
Midwest in the summer and Florida in the
winter. It’s always the other way around.”
Although there was a ticket waiting for
him, Galatioto did not make the trip to Jack-
sonville for Super Bowl XXXIX, setting
aside his love of the game over the need to ap-
pear impartial to current and future clients.
For Galatioto, the frustrations that are part of
his job—long hours, long miles, airport
food—are nothing but the price of admission
into a game he was made for. “I have the
greatest job in the world,” he says.
spring 2005
faculty focus
Video Generation
20-somethings are succeeding in the workplace using
skills honed by countless hours of video game playing
XPECT THE unexpected to be hands of the player who is most skilled at

E lurking around the corner. That

guy above you is trying to hold you
down. If you fail, hit the reset but-
ton and start over. Such are some
of the lessons learned by 20-somethings
from playing countless hours of video games
like “Asteroids,” “Doom” and “Rainbow
Six,” according to a new book by Thunder-
bird adjunct professor Dr. John C. Beck.
Got Game: How a New Generation of
Gamers is Reshaping Business Forever is
based on a study of 2,000 young profession-
als. According to the book, young people are
applying the principles learned from video
game-playing to their lives. “They know the
gaming world expects them to succeed, so
they learn to expect success from them-
selves,” Beck says. “They are self-confident,
highly motivated and teamwork-oriented.”
Young gamers learn teamwork when they
gather to play, Beck says, and when playing
as a team against the computer or other
teams. During a game, they pass the con-
troller from player to player or into the
playing that section.
It was during the Internet boom of the
mid ’90s, when investors clamored to invest
in almost any dot-com, that the gamer gen-
eration began applying video game rules.
“The new rules were just the old rules
gamers have always played by,” Beck says.
“Go as fast as you can, from venture capital
group to venture capital group, picking up
the bags of money.” Video game principals
served the gamer generation just as well
when the dot-com boom went bust. “This
event follows the rules of every game they’ve
ever played,” Beck says. “When you lose,
you push the reset button and start over.”
Born after 1970 and comprising a larger
percentage of the United States population
than baby boomers, the number of active
gamers in the United States is expected to
reach 126 million by 2008. Gaming is grow-
ing even faster in other countries. During
the past five years, annual video game sales
grew by 56 percent in China and 49 percent
in India.

liver on three key di- Melbourne, where

New mate became senior vice
president of Acade- mensions: learning he led the creation
joins T-bird mic Programs, mov- outcomes, student and growth of 13
FTER a search ing to Arizona from satisfaction, and fi- master’s degrees and

A of more than
a year, Thun-
derbird has filled a
Melbourne, Aus-
tralia, where he was
the chair of Market-
nancial soundness,”
says Thunderbird
President Dr. Angel
grew enrollment
from 131 to 628,
while entry require-
key faculty position ing at the University Cabrera. ments became more
with a candidate of Melbourne. Formerly, Widing stringent.
from down under. Widing’s mandate was associate dean Read more about
In March, Dr. Rob- is ensuring that “all of Graduate Studies Dr. Robert Widing at
Dr. Robert E. Widing II ert E. Widing II of our programs de- at the University of Thunderbird.edu.

44 spring 2005

The Competitive
Advantage
By Christine Uber Grosse
O PROFICIENCY
D
in foreign lan-
guages and
understanding
of different cul-
tures offer an
edge in the global
economy? Or is English enough
for doing international business
today? In a world in which
many believe that English is
the language of international
business, what advantages have
executives gained by knowing
foreign languages?
A survey on the competitive advantage of
foreign language and cultural competence of
581 graduates of Thunderbird, The Garvin
School of International Management found
that those MBAs feel that these skills have
been a great benefit in their careers.
Eight-two percent of the respondents said
they gained a competitive advantage in busi-
ness from their foreign language skills. And
even more, 89 percent, said they received an
edge from their knowledge of other cultures.
Although competitive advantage is difficult
to quantify, many Thunderbird alumni
defined in specific terms the edge that
foreign languages and cultures have given
them in their careers.
The alumni who participated in the study
all graduated from Thunderbird between
1970 and 2002 with a Master’s in Business
Administration & International Manage-
ment. For nearly 50 years, all students at
Thunderbird have been required to take a
minimum of four semesters of foreign lan-
guage or demonstrate equivalent proficiency.
In the business world, competitive advan-
tage refers to the edge that a company or
individual has over competitors. It might be
in lower costs, higher quality, better service
thunderbird magazine
faculty writings
or faster distribution. In terms of language
and cultural knowledge, competitive advan-
tage refers to the perceived and real benefits
that set apart people who possess them.
What experiences, opportunities, rewards,
recognition and personal satisfaction come
to people as a result of their foreign language
proficiency and cultural understanding?
Researchers asked the Thunderbird gradu-
ates what languages they spoke and how
they acquired their foreign language skills
and cultural competence. Many graduates
are multilingual, with 38 percent speaking
one foreign language, 31 percent speaking
two foreign languages, 18 percent speaking
three, 9 percent speaking four, and 3 percent
speaking five or more foreign languages.
The most popular foreign languages of Christine Uber
Thunderbird alumni are: Spanish (50%), Grosse
French (37%), German (25%), Portuguese Dr. Christine Uber
(11%), Japanese (11%), Chinese (9%), Grosse has been a
professor of Modern
Russian (2%), and Arabic (1%). Languages at Thunder-
The most valuable source for learning a bird since 1994. She
foreign language, for those surveyed, was received her Ph.D. in
living abroad, according to more than 70 Romance Languages
percent of the respondents. They also cited from the University of
North Carolina at Chapel
school or classroom settings, Thunderbird, Hill. The full article
travel and friends and family as other originally ran in The
sources of language learning. Modern Language
The large majority of those surveyed Journal, 88,iii (2004).
(82%) responded that foreign language skills
and cultural knowledge gave them a compet-
itive advantage in the workplace. More than
half of them (53%) claimed a significant ad-
vantage from their language skills. Another
28% believed they gained some competitive
edge, whereas 18% said they received none.
These figures give strong evidence of the
value of foreign languages and cultural
competence in the workplace. In their
comments, the alumni gave examples of
how foreign languages and cultural knowl-
edge had benefited them and their careers:
“Language skills and the ability to adjust
to multiple cultures raise the level of effec-
tiveness significantly. It becomes much easi-
er to ‘get things done’ and lowers the stress
45
faculty writings
level associated with being an expat to
manageable proportions.”
“Language and cultural skills are manda-
tory for local acceptance and setting one
apart in a foreign setting. Those that do
not make an attempt to learn the [local]
language are looked down upon not only
by the locals but also by the expatriate
community which has taken the time to
learn the language and, with it, the culture.”
Data analysis suggested that the better an
alumnus knew a foreign language, the more
likely it was to be helpful at work. A large
percentage (64%) of the respondents self-
reported a high level of proficiency in
these languages. One fourth of them self-
described their language competence as like
“There is a native, while 40 percent rated themselves
so much of as fluent in most business and social situa-
tions. More than one-fourth communicate
the world’s fairly well in the second language.
beauty that The great majority of respondents (89%)
I would received a significant or some competitive
advantage at work from their cultural com-
miss with- petence. Almost half (48%) of them gained
out even a significant competitive edge, whereas 41
percent of them acknowledged receiving
knowing it, some competitive advantage. Only 11 per-
had I not cent of the participants derived no competi-
studied lan- tive advantage from cultural understanding.
One male respondent commented:
guage from “Cultural understanding, and the enhanced
an early cultural understanding that language studies
provide, is vital to success in the internation-
age. It liter- al business community.”
ally opened Thunderbird alumni reported that compa-
nies rewarded their foreign language skills
up entire and cultural knowledge in a variety of ways.
new worlds The most popular acknowledgements: travel
for me.” opportunities (41%), overseas assignments
(33%), written or oral recognition (30%),
promotion (18%), and raise (14%). The
percentage as well as order of most popular
acknowledgements were nearly identical
for cultural knowledge.
Although the study focused on profession-
al competitive advantage, for many alumni
the personal advantages mattered as much,
if not more:
“Learning foreign languages is a labor of
love, and what they can return to someone is
truly priceless.”
“While I value this knowledge in my
business life, I feel that the study of language
has added an incredible richness to all facets
of my life. There is so much of the world’s
46
beauty that I would miss without even
knowing it, had I not studied language from
an early age. It literally opened up entire
new worlds for me.”
“Knowing another language is equal to
gaining another soul in the richness and
depth it adds to my life.”
Of those alumni who said they used their
foreign language skills at work, the most-
cited areas of use are: conversation (81%),
meetings (62%), e-mail (59%), presentations
(52%), negotiations (47%), and reports (37%).
The ways that cultural knowledge helps
alumni at work are: to feel comfortable with
people and cultures (86%), to understand
the business environment (77%), and to
gain respect and credibility (65%).
Respondents were more likely to use their
cultural knowledge at work—daily (44%),
frequently (26%), occasionally (17%),
seldom (8%) and never (4%)—more often
than their foreign language skills—daily
(38%), frequently (13%), occasionally (15%),
seldom (21%) and never (13%).
Despite the career advantage most alumni
said they receive by having language skills
and cultural knowledge, a number of them
pointed out that U.S.-based companies seem
to have a blind spot when it comes to seeing
the advantage of having employees with
language skills and cultural knowledge:
“Many managers give lip service to
wanting to understand other cultures,
because that is the thing to say, but that is
not a true interest.”
“I have found that, unfortunately, U.S.
companies would prefer to send a non-for-
eign language-speaking, non-cross-cultural-
ly trained employee who was perceived as
either knowing the business or who was
politically connected within the company,
than send someone trained for an interna-
tional position. I have watched this take
place again and again with my clients.
Then they would wonder why they did
not get the results they expected.”
Given the tightness of the job market
and the state of the global economy, the
competitive advantage of foreign languages
and cultural knowledge could help MBA
students and others in their careers. More
graduate and undergraduate business
programs should consider adding foreign
language and cultural studies to the
curriculum, in addition to sending
students abroad for study or internships.
spring 2005

Dell Computer’s
Brazilian dance
By Roy C. Nelson
XECUTIVES AT
E
Dell Computer
Corporation faced a
setback in January
1999. They had al-
ready chosen a site
in the state of Rio
Grande do Sul, Brazil, as the
location for Dell’s first manufac-
turing plant in Latin America.
Rio Grande do Sul’s Governor,
Antonio Britto (1995-99), had
promised the company generous
incentives to lure Dell’s $108
million investment in the plant.
Yet to the Dell executives’ chagrin, Britto
lost his bid for re-election. The new gover-
nor, Olivio Dutra (1999-2003) of Brazil’s
socialist Partido dos Trabalhadores (PT),
or Workers’ Party, took office Jan. 1, 1999,
and was vehemently opposed to granting
incentives to large foreign transnational
corporations (TNCs). It appeared likely that
he would rescind Dell’s agreement with the
prior government.
Fortunately, Dell’s executives in Brazil
found a way to turn what could have been
an unfortunate situation into a positive out-
come for both Dell and Rio Grande do Sul.
Dell’s experience in this case offers lessons
for international managers as well as for
governments seeking to attract foreign
direct investment (FDI) to advance their
own economic development. In order to
understand how both Dell and the state
managed to achieve this positive outcome,
some additional background is useful.
Brazil was a logical place for a Dell manu-
facturing plant. In the late 1990s, sales of
personal computers were growing faster in
Latin America than anywhere else in the
world. Brazil, the largest Latin American
country with a population of more than 170
thunderbird magazine
faculty writings
million, was a very attractive market.
Moreover, Brazil was a member of Mercado
Comun do Sul (Mercosul), which would
allow Dell to export to other countries in
the customs union—Argentina, Uruguay,
Paraguay, Chile and Bolivia—at zero tariffs.
Like Dell, Ford also had negotiated a gen-
erous incentives package with the previous
governor for a proposed plant in Rio Grande
do Sul. After Governor Dutra took office,
executives at Ford attempted to renegotiate
the deal with him, but to no avail. Since
Ford had not yet begun construction on the
manufacturing plant, it began to consider
alternative locations within Brazil.
The state of Bahia emerged quickly as a
viable alternative. The state government
there, determined to win Ford’s investment
for this state in the impoverished northeast
part of Brazil, offered incentives identical to
those the Britto administration had prom-
ised. Another plus was that Bahia was part Roy C. Nelson
of a federal government program that gave In 1993, Roy C. Nelson
special incentives to automobile manufac- came to Thunderbird as
turers locating their plants in Brazil’s poorer a visiting assistant
professor and two years
northeastern region. later joined the staff as
A strong point in Bahia’s favor was that an assistant professor
Antonio Carlos Magalhães (ACM), then- teaching international
president of Brazil’s Senate and one of the studies. In 2000, he was
most influential politicians in Brazil at the named an associate
professor and academic
time, was from the state. With his enor- director for Thunder-
mous clout, ACM was able to push through bird’s Executive MBA
the Congress a modification of the legisla- Program in Sao Paulo,
tion on incentives for manufacturing Brazil. He received his
automobiles in the northeast, so that Ford Ph.D. and MA from
Cornell University,
could still take advantage of it, even though another MA from Yale
the deadline for additional companies to University and his BA
do this had passed. from Stanford University.
The federal government also approved
additional incentives in order to make up for
the extra costs Ford would face by putting its
plant in Bahia rather than the more conve-
niently located Rio Grande do Sul. Brazil’s
national development bank, Banco Nacional
de Desenvolvimento Económico e Social
(BNDES), provided a low interest loan of
over USD $300 million to Ford after it an-
47
faculty writings
nounced it was moving to Bahia. This was
far more than BNDES had planned to give
for Ford’s investment in Rio Grande do Sul.
Too late, Dutra realized that Ford was now
likely to pull out of Rio Grande do Sul and
go to Bahia instead. Aware of the negative
political consequences that could ensue,
he attempted to negotiate with the Ford
executives. But Ford had already decided
to withdraw from Rio Grande do Sul. The
company soon signed a contract with the
Bahian state government.
Ford’s departure was a political disaster for
Dutra. Residents of Guaíba, the town where
the plant was to have been located, were
especially upset and marched in protest,
carrying signs critical of the governor. Edito-
Dell rials and articles in the press attacked Dutra.
achieved Naturally, Dutra’s political opponents em-
phasized repeatedly the negative impact the
this positive loss of jobs would have on the state.
outcome Not wanting to lose another major TNC
because investment, Dutra took a different approach
when Dell executives approached him to
its local renegotiate their incentives package. Britto
executives had promised Dell very generous incentives
in order to attract its proposed USD $108
knew Brazil million plant: a 75 percent reduction in the
well… they state value-added tax for 12 years, plus a
were able USD $17 million loan, to be paid back over 10
years, with a five-year grace period. Yet now,
to find a facing the loss of these incentives, Dell con-
creative sidered doing what Ford had done and locate
its plant elsewhere. Other states were ready
way around and willing to receive Dell’s investment,
the prob- and on highly favorable terms. One possible
state was Minas Gerais, which Dell had
lem that looked at earlier. The state met Dell’s basic
allowed all selection criteria and was ready to offer an
to benefit. incentive package similar to what the com-
pany had received in Rio Grande do Sul.
And there didn’t seem to be the same level
of partisan differences, at least in regard to
attracting foreign direct investment.
However, in spite of their alternative
options and Ford’s failed attempts to renego-
tiate with Dutra, local Brazilian executives
working for Dell decided to approach the
governor again.
Dell’s Director of Corporate Affairs in
Brazil, Fernando Loureiro, devised a face-
saving strategy for the governor to let Dell
keep its incentives. When Loureiro and his
team met with the governor, they explained
that Dell was not a typical TNC. Personal
computers (PCs), the products Dell
48
produced, were highly beneficial to society.
By using PCs, people could obtain access to
the Internet. The Internet provided people
of all social strata with access to informa-
tion. Thus, Dell’s products would actually
help to create a more egalitarian social struc-
ture. For this reason, Dell’s goals and those
of the governor from the PT were actually
closely aligned! While it might make sense
not to offer incentives to companies such as
Ford, Loureiro explained, Dell was different.
Dutra certainly did not want to lose
another major investment. He had experi-
enced the ire of the Rio Grande do Sul popu-
lation firsthand after Ford decided to locate
its plant in Bahia. Thus, political calcula-
tions may have influenced his actions at this
point. But whether persuaded by Loureiro’s
reasoning, motivated purely by political fac-
tors, or a mixture of both, Dutra decided to
let Dell keep all of the original incentives
they had been offered, along with a few
additional minor conditions, such as Dell
donating some computers to poor areas. Dell
stayed. And in many of his public speeches
thereafter, Dutra used Dell as an example of
the sort of company his government would
like to attract to Rio Grande do Sul.
Dell achieved a positive outcome because
its local executives knew Brazil well and un-
derstood the needs and concerns of the man
with whom they were negotiating. Thus,
they were able to find a creative way around
the problem that allowed all to benefit.
For its part, despite its new approach, the
Dutra government still had difficulty luring
investment to the state in the years that
followed Ford’s departure. Few TNCs were
willing to invest in a state whose governor
seemed, at the very least, to have an ambiva-
lent attitude toward FDI, and one that could
so quickly change the rules regarding
foreign investment.
This may help explain why Dutra lost
even the internal primary election to run as
the PT candidate for governor in 2002 and
why the candidate finally selected to repre-
sent the PT in that election lost to a politi-
cian from the more moderate Partido do
Movimento Democrático Brasileiro
(PMDB). More important, however, Rio
Grande do Sul’s experience further under-
scores the benefits—both political and
economic—that FDI can provide, and why
most governments are so eager to attract in-
vestments like Dell’s manufacturing plant.
spring 2005
2004 Thunderbird Globalization in Private Equity Conference
With Special Thanks To The Following Sponsors, Participants And
Individuals for Their Contributions To A Successful Event!
EVENT SPONSOR

PANEL SPONSORS

MEDIA SPONSOR

PARTICIPANTS

Lincolnshire

STATE OF ARIZONA LAW OFFICES

THUNDERBIRD, THE GARVIN SCHOOL OF INTERNATIONAL MANAGEMENT

STEERING COMMITTEE
John Cook, Jeff Shippy, Akhil Kishore, Regula Schegg, Josh Dunivant, Keith Cooksey, Peter Lundy
 Since its inception nine years ago, T H U N D E R B I R D C O R P O R AT E
C O N S U LT I N G G R O U P ( T C C G ) has grown to become a highly-respected
and sought-after global consulting firm. Why? ... by delivering comprehensive solutions and
tremendous value.
YOUR Working both for and in cooperation with Thunderbird alumni, TCCG services offer a
fresh, global perspective and reach at a tremendous value. TCCG is:
● Established 140 projects have been completed for clients ranging from small

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SUCCESS ● Qualified Contemporary academic theory is combined with real-world experience in

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www.t-bird.edu/tccg

T-bird Tuesday at 8,038 ft.

Alumni Relations introduces the
Thunderbird Alumni Travel Program
Customized trips for T-birds and guests

Upcoming Trips
2005-2006

Inca Trail to Machu Picchu

September 2-11, 2005

Trips operated by

Serengeti Safari & Exotic Zanzibar

January 20-29, 2006
+ optional Kilimanjaro climb

Visit the Alumni Travel webpage at www.thunderbird.edu/alumnitravel for details

chapter news
Vintage T-birds
HEN A GROUP of Thun-

W derbirds gathered in early

February at the Asian Art
Museum of San Francisco,
the wine and cheese weren’t
the only things at the event that had grown
better with age. As part of the 40+ Initiative,
the get-together continued a string of
business and social meetings for T-bird
graduates who are 40 or more years old.
“The objective of the 40+ Initiative is to
reengage alumni with the Thunderbird
network locally and globally and thereby
improve the value of the Thunderbird net- So far, events around the country have Enjoying an evening at
work worldwide for alumni of all ages,” says included a seminar on the Latin America the Asian Art Museum
for the San Francisco
Julianne O’Dwyer ’99, the 40+ Initiative business climate in Dallas, a gathering at 40+ Initiative are group
global coordinator and a member of the the Museum of Science in Miami and a members Russell Walter
TAA North America Council (julianneod- Chinese New Year’s celebration in ’80, Chris Casselmann
wyer@ hotmail.com). “The 40+ alumni really San Francisco. The Paris group met for ’83, chapter president
appreciate the opportunity to network with dinner following a visit to a technology and 40+ Initiative
coordinator Patty
peers who are close to their age and who showcase Trosclair ’90, Jeff Nigh
share their professional status.” “T-bird Tuesdays are enjoyable, but the ’77 and Anne Webster
Since the effort began a year and half ago, 40+ Initiative offers an additional gathering Hayden ’69.
other alumni chapters have formed 40+ Ini- place with professional and social events
tiatives, including Chicago, Dallas, Denver, geared to our interests,” says Patricia
Hilton Head, Los Angeles, Miami, New Trosclair ’90, San Francisco chapter leader
York City, Paris, Phoenix and San Diego. and 40+ coordinator.

New York merized the crowd packable, multi-use sional development vice president of the
Acclaimed fash- with details about clothing and her event hosted by the Sara Lee Corpora-
ion designer Norma her 40-year career, move into the Chicago chapter. tion.
Kamali, who be- her retail store wellness and beauty The panel was made
came famous with
her “Sleeping Bag”
operations, and
her insights into
category. up of Dr. James A.
McClung, former
North
coats and her stun- the latest trends in Chicago senior vice president Carolina
ning swimwear, interior design and Three members of FMC Corpora- In November,
spoke to a group of high fashion. of the Thunderbird tion; Noe Kenig, more than 50
New York chapter Kamali set the Global Council former chairman of Thunderbirds from
T-birds at the fashion world were the featured Motorola Interna- throughout the Car-
Williams Club in abuzz lately with speakers on Feb. 22 tional; and Miles olinas gathered for a
March. She mes- her new line of at the first profes- Greer ’75, former Brazilian-themed

thunderbird magazine 51
chapter news
party at the family even borrowed all increasing alumni with another Texas to raise at least
home of Teresa the grilling utensils participation in a chapter that is at a $50,000 to establish
Johnson ’99 over- from a local Brazil- chapter. The con- similar stage of an endowed scholar-
looking the woods ian restaurant just clave, organized by development. ship fund to aid
in Chapel Hill NC. for the occasion. Peter Petrik ’00, “It was an excel- deserving students
Alumni came from Everyone had a the Dallas-Ft. lent way to leverage of the School.
as far away as great time, regard- Worth chapter each other’s experi- Sponsorships for
Charlotte, more less of the year they leader, was attended ences, enhance the the event run from
than 140 miles south graduated or the by Matt Romero Texas spirit and $10,000 for title spon-
of Chapel Hill. type of work they’re ’99, Jaideep Potnis strengthen the sorship, $750 for the
The event featured doing. Thunder- ’99, Greg Fitzgerald Thunderbird net- beverage cart, $500
a churrasceria-style birds just know ’96, Scotty McNutt work,” says Petrik. for the closest to the
dinner and free- how to have fun, ’88 and Kathryn The leaders now pin contest, and $150
flowing Caipirinhas, especially when you Newth ’94. Some plan to hold similar for the tee and green
a concoction of lime, throw in those great of the shared ideas meetings twice a signs.
sugar and cachaca Caipirinhas.” that were generated year in Texas For their $200
that is the official included the cre- chapter cities. entry fee, players
drink of Brazil. Texas ation of a mentor- receive a gift bag full
“We had every Leaders from ship program with Seattle of golfing goodies,
side dish imagina- alumni chapters in the 40+ Initiative More than 60 lunch, dinner,
ble, in true Brazilian Texas met for two group, providing people attended a awards and the
style,” said Fredrik days in early March links to the Web November panel chance to win items
Carlegren ’01, a for- to share ideas and sites of other Texas presentation on that include a $45,000
mer chapter leader. best practices on chapters on MTB, the latest trends in vehicle, $25,000 in
“Teresa’s father improving and and partnering offshore outsourc- cash, full tuition for
ing, hosted by the a Thunderbird
Washington State degree program,
chapter and the Goodyear tires for
World Trade Club life and a ride in the
of Seattle. The event Goodyear blimp.
Riding for a friend is the first of many
such jointly spon- South
and fellow alumnus sored seminars
for Seattle area
residents. Event
Florida
More than 220
N A CHILLY MORNING last September, a group of T-birds ranging

O
organizers included
Thunderbirds gathered for a 100-mile bike ride to Ken Tousley ’03 and from the class of
celebrate the life of Bob Miller ’82, who succumbed Matt Couch ’02, 1966 to 2004 came
to brain cancer in April after a valiant two-and-half- along with support together for the
year battle. The Bob Miller Memorial Bike Ride was from chapter leaders chapter’s annual
part of the North Shore Century 2004 Ride, which was held in Amy Lyndon ’88 holiday party Dec. 4
Elburn, Illinois, where Miller lived with his wife, Judy, and their and Jules Miller ’88. in Miami Beach.
children, Rebecca and Brad. Brad, a sophomore in high school, The Latin-themed
rode his father’s bike in the event. More than 15 Thunderbirds
joined the family members and other friends.
Orange event featured a live
flamenco dancer,
Jim Guthrie ’82, who flew in from Denver for the bike ride, County regional dishes from
says that Miller kept the positive attitude he was always known More than around the world—
for through eight operations and countless cancer treatments. $100,000 in prizes are including a tradi-
“He was just such a positive guy,” Guthrie says, “and an avid bi- being offered at the tional roast suckling
cyclist. He was never down, just always upbeat, great to be third annual Orange pig, “lechon asa-
around and very friendly.” County Golf Tour- do”—and a bar
The Thunderbirds who gathered for the ride set a goal of nament, to be held loaded with drinks
$25,000 toward college expenses for both children. May 6 at the Tustin from sponsor Bacar-
Donations to the Bob Miller Memorial Bike Ride can be sent Ranch Golf Club in di. The lively event
to Nat Yang ’82, c/o Bob Miller Memorial Bike Ride Fundraiser, Tustin, Calif. The was hosted by Dan
Apt. 4A, 5 Peter Cooper Road, New York, NY 10010. goal of the event is Partel ’67.

52 spring 2005
 chapter news

Azerbaijan Ryan ’95, Catherine Sweden Donya and Henrik evening, I believe
Once a major stop- Trebes ’94, and T-birds donned Ekstrand ’85. there will be sub-
over on the Great chapter leaders Julie tuxedos and formal In all, 70 MBAs stantial reasons to
Silk Route, Azerbai- Hamlin ’93 and Paul gowns for the first from eight different plan another event
jan now has become Hamlin ’92, who has annual Swedish programs gathered for next year,” says
a meeting place for offered up an induce- MBA Alumni for the event. The Patrik Salen ’00,
Thunderbirds. In ment to get other Network Black Tie evening included a who was one of
March, in one of the alumni to visit Azer- Dinner, held Feb. 18 piano inspiration, three co-hosts for
first events of its baijan. “Be the first at the Cavalry of a magician, a three- the evening.
kind in this country, T-bird to show up Stockholm. Seven course dinner, an The black-tie
five alumni came to- with a six pack of T-birds attended opera performance affair was the first
gether for a First beer and win a the event: Katja and and dancing. purely social event
Tuesday to share sto- fabulous prize,” says Patrik Salen ’00, “The idea is to the MBA graduate
ries old and new. The Hamlin, who can be Rolf Alexander ’99, make this an annual network has orches-
group was made up reached at Lermon- George and Liliana event and, consider- trated since the
of Mark Pom- tov 3, Apt. 26, Baku (Galvis-Pineda) ing the high spirits group was formed
merville ’89, Ben 3700, Azerbaijan. Rizpulos ’99, and throughout the in 2002.

Pole position
Detroit sets scorching
pace for fundraising
OTOR CITY MAY BE Detroit’s

M official nickname, but for

Thunderbird it’s rapidly
gaining a new moniker:
fundraising city. The local
alumni chapter surpassed all other
chapters in finding ways to connect and
engage with alumni and encourage
philanthropic support.
During its 2003-04 fundraising campaign, the Detroit chapter increased the More than two dozen
T-birds, including (from
number of alumni donors by 39 percent over the prior year. The chapter also got the
left) Carol Mayer ’98,
alumni to give more, up from $7,000 in 2003 to $35,000 last year. Ramelle Gilliland ’98 and
“None of us gave $60 million but we gave what we could, and we proved that we Adiel Avelar ’04, came
can have an impact,” says Gail Kozeliski ’93, who spearheaded the campaign along together in January for
with Detroit chapter co-leader Heath Norton ’03. “Alumni want to feel that Thunderbird the 2005 North America
International Auto Show.
is a good investment, and that’s not a hard case to make. Undesignated donations,
The reception, held at
like the one Detroit made to the School, mean more student scholarships, resulting in the Detroit Racquet
better graduates and greater prestige for the Thunderbird brand, she says. Club, was a fund-raising
“A lot of people graduate from Thunderbird, but not all give back,” says Russ Pha- event for the Francis
neuf, director of Annual Giving and Advancement Communications. “If all our 35,000 and Louise Gifford
Scholarship Fund.
alumni would realize that if they all gave just a little, it would really add up and make
a difference. That critical mass of giving is something we’ve missed for a long time.”
The chapter has set a new fundraising goal for 2005: to fully endow the Francis
and Louise Gifford Scholarship Fund, which would require another $35,000 to reach
permanency. The Giffords spent 30 years working for the School. Louise began her
Thunderbird career as a secretary and worked her way up to director of Financial Aid.
Francis worked in Housekeeping and Central Supply.
“If they continue their current momentum, they’ll do it easily,” Phaneuf says.

thunderbird magazine 53
classComings & goings
All your personal news that’s fit to print...

HERE IS MORE to life than just what happens

T between the office walls, and Class Notes reflects that

in its pages. Tell us if you get married, have kids, run the
Boston Marathon, scale a peak in the Himalayas or plan
a flight around the world. Have you been selected for the
school board, Bush’s cabinet or People’s Sexiest People edition? Or
are you volunteering your time to make the world a better place?
Tell us all about it, please. And, of course, we want to hear about
those T-birds who have passed on so we can honor their memories.
Send your information to alumni@thunderbird.edu

1945-1955
Alfred Jankus ’47 stopped counting at 68 the
number of countries he had visited as an interna-
tional management and marketing consultant.
He is now retired in the United States at 81...
Donald G. Groves ’49 of Sun City West AZ
passed away January 5, 2004. Groves served in
the U.S. Navy in WWII and the Korean War…
James A. Bridgeman ’52, a longtime St. Thomas
resident and businessman, died December 25,
2004, at his home on Hypoluxo Island in Lantana
FL… Boye Lafayette De Mente ’53 has created
memoireditions.com, which records life events
to be shared with a memoir writer’s family. De
Mente has written more than 50 books and lives
in Phoenix … Ed Campeau ’53 lives in Granville,
Ohio. His email address is ecampeau@aol.com...
Sam Neblett ’53 lives at Epworth Village, Apt.
529, 3500 W. 16th Ave., Hialeah FL 33012. He would
love to hear from classmates and friends…
Paul F. Anderson ’55 passed away on July 18,
2004… Carroll “Rick” Rickard ’56 was featured
in the November issue of 101 North, the magazine
of North Scottsdale. Retired from Citicorp and
Continental Bank, Richard maintains the Mayo
Clinic nature trail on a volunteer basis…
1960-1969
Juan Santos ’62 has been named secretary
of the Department of Trade and Industry for the
Philippines. He was the former president of
Nestlé Philippines Inc… Clarence (Chuck) Yahn
’62 has formed Strategic Options Inc., a corpora-
tion that helps Japanese, European and American
companies establish manufacturing operations in
Mexico… Alan Tiffany Murray ’62 passed away
April 5, 2004, in Tucson AZ… Allen J. “Duke”
Libby ’63 recently wrote “Uniform Romeo,” a
fictional account of a goofball U.S. Navy ship’s
1959 mission to the Caribbean and Brazil. The
book can be found on authorhouse.com… Charlie
Lagergren ’64, who retired from Federal Mogul
after living in every Latin American country but
three, writes: “Who would have known when I
arrived at Thunderbird speaking a few words of
Spanish that I would spend weeks communicating
without speaking English. Thunderbird provided
me with great jobs, wonderful friends and incredi-
ble experiences…” Horst Busse ’67 president of
Martin Windsor & Associates Inc., a business-to-
business communications firm, has been elected
president of the Michigan Chapter of the German
American Chamber of Commerce of the Mid-

54 spring 2005
notes
west… George Grimmett ’68 currently lives in
Lake Placid FL… William C. Demmin ’68 has
been named senior bank strategist for BancIntelli-
gence.com. In his new position, Demmin will
open the company’s first office on the west coast…
Richard A. Koehler ’69 is program director/
lecturer for the Baltic Sea Management Academy
in International Business Relations at Gotland
University in Visby, Sweden. He continues to
maintain a consulting company, IKR Corporation,
for international business development projects…
William Dodge ’69 recently completed the 2004
NYC Marathon in a pledge run to support his
daughter, who suffers from schizophrenia. He
is the editor of his daughter’s book (www.sugar-
story.com) about her battle with mental illness…
William Anderson ’69 retired from Hallmark in
2000 after 32 years of service. He worked in the
Philippines, Hong Kong, China, Taiwan, Japan,
Korea, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia,
India, Laos, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Brunei
building Hallmark’s businesses. In 2001, he started
Anderson International LLC, which operates out
of Honolulu HI and services such clients as
Crayola and Hallmark.
1970-1974
David Kaveny ’70 became a father for the third
time in September 2004 when daughter Corinne
was born in Singapore, where the family resides...
Larry McCarver ’70 has returned to Taco Inc. as
director of International Business Development.
Based in Cranston RI, Taco is one of the largest
producers of pumps and other hydronic equipment
for heating and cooling… George Hiller ’72 is
working on a new international trade program in
Southwest Virginia via a grant from the U.S. Dept.
of Education. He is a member of the Thunderbird
Global Council and resides in Richmond VA…
Don Carson ’72, a board member and former CFO
of the Atlanta Symphony Choris, has helped raise
funding for a state-of-the-art symphony center,
which is now being built... Alberto Almirall ’72 has
been appointed marketing and commercial director
for the South American Football Confederation,
the governing body of soccer in South America.
He lives in Asuncion, Paraguay, with his wife
thunderbird magazine
Betty… Ed Auble ’72 was the recipient of the 2004 Talk to us
Lafayette College Alumni Association Service You can let us
Award for long-term volunteerism and leadership.
know about
The college is located in Easton PA… Bryan P. Fay
’74 has joined First Tennessee Bank in Nashville changes in your life
TN as senior vice president and manager of the by e-mailing us at
Personal Trust Division… Norman Huddle ’74 alumni@t-bird.edu.
passed away in August 2004 in Mt. Vernon IL… Don’t forget to
Maribeth Rahe ’74 is president and CEO of Fort
update your
Washington Investment Advisors. She lives in
Cincinnati. personal profile on
My Thunderbird
1975-1979 (MTB). Log on at
Roger Hunt ’75 ran for the Nampa ID school my.t-bird.edu, click
board. He is a salesman for Graybar Electric in
on the personalize
Boise ID… J. Jorge Verduzco ’75 has been nomi-
nated by Junior Achievement for the 2004 Laredo button, then click
Business Hall of Fame in Texas. He is executive on the edit buttons
vice president, director of sales and marketing for for each category
International Bank of Commerce-Laredo… Dennis you want to change.
M. Farren ’75 passed away of kidney cancer in Janu-
We’ll publish your
ary 2004 in Santa Cruz CA… Philippe J. Deymes
’75 has relocated to Le Mans, France, and has been news in the next
promoted to director of new projects for the issue of the
Schweitzer-Mauduit International group, a special- magazine.
ty paper company spun off from Kimberly-Clark.
He welcomes all T-bird motor racing fans to the
annual 24-hour endurance race… Andres Voto-
Bernales ’75 passed away from a brain edema in
July 2004. He was a distinguished marketing
consultant for several well-known international
companies and one of the pioneering marketers to
introduce marketing philosophy in Peru… David
Barrett ’76 owns and operates Audio Acrobat, an
audio streaming application used by authors,
musicians, educators, media specialists, speakers
and trainers… W. Britt Cobb ’76, commissioner of
agriculture for North Carolina, was grand marshal
of the state’s Watermelon Festival Parade. Cobb
serves on the executive committee of the Southern
United States Trade Commission… Charles
Johnpeter is North Central Region director for
Mitsubishi Motors North America… Siegfried
Mike Kiegerl ’77 won the Republican primary
for District 43 in the Kansas House of Representa-
tives. A resident of Olathe KS, he is a retired
businessman and an adjunct college instructor…
55
class notes
Peter Smith ’77 passed away September 2004 in
Phoenix after a long battle with multiple sclero-
sis. Services were held in Morris Plains NJ,
where he grew up. He spent his entire career at
Allied Signal Corp. in the Specialty Chemicals
Division until his illness caused him to go on
disability in 1995… Gary L. Towell ’77 died in
February 2004 in Medford NJ. He worked in the
railroad industry for the past 25 years… Mary
Kolehmainen Lambert ’77 passed away peacefully
in February 2005 at her home in Glendale AZ.
Services were held in Park City Utah, where
many family and friends attended. The family
has established the Mary Kolehmainen Lambert
Scholarship at Thunderbird. Donations can be
given through the Thunderbird Annual Fund,
specifying the Mary Kolehmainen Lambert
Scholarship. Information can be retrieved at
www.thunderbird.edu/annualfund and questions
can be directed to mygift@t-bird.edu... Patricia
K. Savage ’78 passed away in April 2004…
Frances A. Sevilla-Sacasa ’78 was featured in the
April issue of Hispanic Business magazine as one
of its “Top 5 Elite Women” of 2004. She is the
president, Latin America and Europe, of Citigroup
Private Bank. She lives in Miami FL with her
husband and three children… Jeb S. Syler ’78
has been promoted and transferred to run the
Costa Rica operation for Stark Truss, one of
the largest wood building component manufac-
turers in the world… Lloyd Reeder ’78 has been
promoted to senior vice president of marketing for

“I preferrred to geously was deeply

She left spend my life doing moving,” Golden
the life something more says. “I remember
meaningful, to me he lay on the floor
she had anyway, than play- as there were no
wanted to ing the corporate beds in the hospital
game,” she says. and quietly turned
find the “How many luxury his head, curled his
life she hotels, new dishes toes and took the
and bottles of cham- ‘poison.’ If you
needed pagne can one girl compare such stark
have? I wanted to be realities to an
IVE YEARS closer to those American grocery

F after graduat-
ing from Thun-
derbird, Rebecca
suffering, to assist in
some small way. I
did not want to look
store or Toys-R-Us,
you think you must
continue your work,
Golden ’89 had back on my life at no matter how it
everything she ever 80 and think, ‘Wow, changes or affects
wanted. She had I made a lot of you.”
advanced quickly at money for myself.’” REBECCA GOLDEN ’89 has been working as an In spite of the
Houston-based By the end of that administrator for Doctors Without Borders since 1995. dangers inherent in
Schlumberger Ltd., year, Golden was her work in danger-
an oil services working as a finan- “It was one of the most often the only ous places, Golden
company, to be- cial and administra- most liberating “treatment” was has continually
come at 30 the tive coordinator for things I have ever amputation. She asked to be posted
company’s first Doctors Without done in my life,” helped with a to field positions.
female controller. Borders/Medecins she says. “I worked program to fight Last summer, she
She had travelled Sans Frontiéres and for a year to pay off sleeping sickness, departed for yet
the world and was living in a remote all my bills and pare a tropical disease another mission,
responsible for part of Angola in a my possessions. that still claims this time in north-
more than $50 house without After that, they no more than 40,000 ern Nigeria.
million in revenue. running water or longer owned me, Africans a year. The “Life is too short
She had a beautiful airconditioning. and I was as free as treatment is a form to be spent wishing
house, a six-figure The electricity and a bird.” of arsenic, and is or, worse, finding
salary and a telephones worked In Angola, Golden extremely painful. excuses,” she says.
comfortable life. only from time to saw landmine “To see a boy of “I believe that if you
But in 1995, she time. Her pay was victims carried for 8 or 10 taking his really want some-
walked away from it less than a tenth of days to reach a injections of thing, you can make
all. what it had been. hospital, where ‘poison’ so coura- it happen.”

56 spring 2005

LSI Lighting Solutions Plus. Lloyd and his family
live in Plano TX… Larry Wolfe ’78 is Hanoi project
director for Health Volunteers Overseas. The proj-
ect promotes the interests of people with disabilities
in Vietnam, especially in health, education, em-
ployment and barrier-free access to public places…
Ken Jacuzzi ’79, a member of the family that start-
ed Jacuzzi spas, was featured in September’s Phoenix
Magazine. Formerly CEO of Jacuzzi Europe, Jacuzzi
has created five companies in the Phoenix area and
is an advocate for people with disabilities.
1980-1984
C. Ross Croulet ’80 is the coordinator and head
of the Microfinance Division, African Develop-
ment Bank, Tunis, Tunisia. He has been with the
bank since March 2001… Nelli Long Calame ’80 cel-
ebrated her 24th anniversary with Intel in October.
She recently completed a year-long assignment as
Intel’s India HR director, based in Bangalore. Nelli
is starting a similar assignment for Intel in Russia
and will be based in Moscow… Dan Hammang ’80
was named chief financial officer for DriveCam
Video Systems, a leading company in knowledge-
based systems that improve driving behavior, in
January 2005. He had formerly served as vice
president for Sony Electronics Inc., and worked at
Apple Inc., the Singer Company and Arthur An-
dersen & Co… Paul Ryan ’80 was married to
Monique Muther in July 2004. He and his wife re-
side in Coronado CA… Christophe Bellinger ’80
recently left the Multilateral Investment Guarantee
Agency World Bank in October 2004 to move to
Manila and work with the Asia Development
Bank… Joaquin Pericas ’80 is director of Food
service/Retail Research at Coca-Cola in Atlanta
GA. He has worked for the company for 10 years in
Houston, Milan, Vienna and Atlanta. Married for
24 years, he has three children… Alain Labat ’80
was named president and CEO of VaST Systems
Technology Corporation, a division of
TMCmet.com. Formerly CEO of TeraSystems, he
brings 20 years of industry experience to his new
position… Jeremy Nash ’80 recently contributed a
chapter on the vital link between engagement and
high performance in “Workplace Community:
Motivation.” Nash is an executive coach and
speaker with the firm, Communication at Work, in
White Plains NY…
John Gould ’81 has been named financial advisor
at McDonald Financial Group in Indiana… Ruud
Steenhuisen ’81 has been promoted to CEO of
Holiday on Ice Productions, a touring ice show…
Cliff Samuelsen ’81 recently married Ellen Louise
Carney. He is the Global Manager for ARI, an in-
ternational automotive fleet leasing company that
provides cars and trucks for corporations in 87
countries… Paul Banas ’82 and his wife, Jasmine
Kim, had a second child. Banas is currently taking
off from internet marketing management to spend
time with his family… Robert Shatz ’82 formed
and is the CFO of the International Trade
Development Center in Tucson AZ, which
aims to teach locals about global business…
Andrew Karigan ’83 was profiled in the Daily
Pilot section of the Los Angeles Times in January.
Andrew, a coastal estate specialist with Prudential
thunderbird magazine
class notes
California Realty, was praised for a successful year
in real estate as well as a long sales career… Ketan
Navnitrai Parekh ’83 co-founded Love Humanity,
a charitable organization for orphaned or displaced
children in India…
Trevor Shine ’84 is managing director of Virtual
Health Network Ltd., a company specializing
in medicine information and pharmaceutical
marketing within Britain’s national health service.
He resides in Brookwood, England, with his wife
Melanie and two children… Joseph Brown ’84 died
in Cayce SC in July 2004… Peter Higuchi ’84 was
hired at airPharma, a pharmaceutical company that
focuses on commercializing products for respirato-
ry disease, as vice president of corporate develop-
ment in December 2004… Rob Lewis ’84 was pro-
moted to sales manager, Asia-Pacific and Latin
America by PDQ Manufacturing Inc., a division of
Dover Corporation in Green Bay WI, which pro- Class of 1979
duces automatic vehicle wash equipment. A generation has
passed since the
1985-1989 class of 1979 was
Tom Knowlton ’85 is managing partner at together in one
Phoenix-based Firebird Foods, which merged with
Progressive Sales & Marketing in August 2004… place, but now
Mark Webster ’85 has been living since 1999, in there’s a chance
Jakarta, Indonesia, where he works for Interna- they will be again.
tional Flavors & Fragrances Inc. He and his wife The class is
had a third daughter in June 2004… Merrie Martin- celebrating its
son ’85 joined Scudder/Deutschebank as senior
regional vice president in 2002, marketing invest- 25th reunion at the
ment strategies. She was the keynote speaker last 2005 Thunderbird
year for the CIMA organization in New York Homecoming,
City, where she resides… Sandy Sandler ’85 which will be held
was recently featured in both the Las Vegas Sun on the Glendale
and Las Vegas Business Press as the inventor of the
Bowdabra, a device that helps in the making and campus Nov. 4-6.
tying of decorative bows… Michael Zak ’85 spoke Organizers ask that
at the annual Reagan dinner in September 2004 those from the 1978
in Virginia. He is the author of “Back to Basics and 1979 classes
for the Republican Party” and is a policy analyst update their MTB
for the House Republican Party Committee.
He resides in Washington D.C. profiles so they can
Arnaldo Mendez ’86 had his home featured be notified. Contact
in the May issue of Tucson Lifestyle magazine. Scott Myers ’79 for
He helped create the Sonoran Revival space, influ- more information:
enced by architect Josias Joesler… Ed Verbeeck ’86 scottmyers@sbcglo
lost his wife Kristen, 38, after a five-year battle
against breast cancer… Ken Cheuvront ’86 was in bal.net, or at
the January/February edition of bizAZ magazine 210-240-0747.
regarding his service in the state senate, his con-
struction company, Cheuvront Construction, and
his wine bar in downtown Phoenix, named
Cheuvront Wine & Cheese… Bill Magers ’86 will
run for mayor of Sherman TX in the May 2005
election. Magers had previously served as Dish
Network’s director of operations for the west coast
of the U.S., and launched Quest Home Entertain-
ment… Ed Verona ’87 and wife Patricia have
returned to Moscow, where he represents the
Canadian mining company, Barrick Gold
Corporation. They would welcome hearing from
friends who might be passing through town.
Chuck Bullard ’88 passed away September 16,
2004, in Grand Junction CO… Carol Webster ’87
just celebrated the one year anniversary of her in-
ternational consulting firm… Gigi (Gano) Ekstrom
57
class notes
’88 is an independent educational consultant. She
has recently written a fashion marketing textbook,
published by McGraw-Hill in January 2004. She
lives in Dallas TX with her husband, Johan, and
son… Laura Kozloski Hart ’88 was married in 2004
and lives in Wellington FL with her husband, Jay.
An associate professor in the College of Business
at Lynn University in Boca Raton, she manages a
consulting business that provides strategic planning
and mergers and acquisition support to area busi-
nesses… Barbara Mason ’88 and Jamie Douglas
had a son, Alexander Mason Douglas, born in June
2004… Leslie Kiel Brown ’88 has been appointed
business development manager, Nevada Region,
for North American Exchange Company, a divi-
sion of Lennar Homes. She lives in Las Vegas NV
What ever with her husband and five formerly stray animals.
happened to… Jeffrey Ovian ’89 has been appointed managing
…that girl from director of Trans Hex Angola, which has mined
Taiwan who got you diamonds in Africa for nearly 40 years... Robert
through Data Dennis ’89 is the senior manager-audit with
Deloitte in Moscow. He, his wife and two children
Analysis or that relocated in June after spending nine years with
guy from Brazil PricewaterhouseCoopers in Paris and other coun-
who sounded just tries in the Commonwealth of Independent States.
like Frank Sinatra
when he sang 1990-1994
Christopher Barreto ’90 joined V2 GfK, a
“My Way” on pharmaceutical marketing research firm, as a senior
Karaoke Night in consultant. He previously held an executive direc-
the Thunderbird tor position with TVG… Bowen Banbury ’90 was
Pub? profiled in his undergraduate alumni magazine,
Track down those Occidental. Bowen is the founder, president and
CEO of DocuVault, an information management
long-lost friends service that ranked 36th among America’s fastest-
from your bygone growing urban businesses on Inc.’s Inner City 100
Thunderbird days list… Marco Ziegler ’90 spoke at a Chicago City-
with help from wide Pride event during a forum, titled “Being Out
Alumni Central, a at the Top.” He is partner at Accenture, a global
management consulting, technology services and
one-stop shop for outsourcing company… Mike Rogers ’90
help with anything has been appointed vice president of Corporate
alumni related. Development for Cyberguard Corp., a public
Reach them at: company based in Ft. Lauderdale FL that provides
alumni@t-bird.edu network security software for global merger and
acquisition activity… Todd Baker ’90 recently
phone 1-800-457- joined iAssessment, a technology company provid-
6957 (US only) ing solutions in K-12 education, as executive vice
or 602-978-7358. president of client solutions… J. Arthur Wicker ’90
and his wife Christine Caillaud had a son, David
Henry Francis, born November 2004 in Turin,
Italy… Thomas Quinn ’90 recently joined RSM
McGladrey Inc., an accounting and management
consulting firm, as director of Risk Management
Services. He lives in Lake Oswego OR with his
wife, Heidi, and two children… Marysue K. Shore
’90 has been working in the Bush administration
for the past four years as senior advisor to the
President and director of African Affairs at the
Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC).
Elizabeth (Beth) Duncan ’91 recently joined
Illinois Institute of Technology, a four-year Ph.D.
granting institution, as assistant director of
Marketing and Communications. Prior to this,
she traveled the world working on a cross-cultural
children’s book that is currently under review for
publication… James R. Love ’91 was appointed
58
director of admissions at Mercyhurst College,
North East Campus in Erie PA. He resides in
Mill Creek PA… Susan J. Hughes ’91 received the
“Someone Special” award from United Way Dane
County and Domestic Abuse Intervention Services
in Wisconsin… Ellen Quiros ’91 has been named
international marketing manager for Brinker
International. She and her husband, Jorge, live in
the Dallas-Fort Worth area with their three chil-
dren… Kyle Volluz ’91, who married Dr. Chithra
Arumughan in November 2004, is employed as as-
sistant general counsel to Goldman Sachs Specialty
Lending Group. The couple resides in Dallas TX…
Eileen Walker ’92 has been hired by Tucson
Realty and Trust Co. Walker is a specialist in the
marketing of office, medical, biotech and research
facilities… Cathy Balach ’92 is one of the founders
of Goldleaf Chocolatier and acting Chief Choco-
holic of the San Francisco-based startup. Her new
venture involves creating a retail, wholesale and
online presence for selling the product to con-
sumers and corporate accounts… Pamela Unhoch
’92 married Edward Michael Tomer in Greenwich
CT. The couple spent their honeymoon in Bermu-
da and will return to their home in Cos Cob CT…
Jennifer Stanton ’92 is engaged to Christopher
Pignataro. She’s employed by Colgate-Palmolive in
New York City… Renee Lavecchia ’92 and Sven
Thorslund ’92 have lived in Washington D.C. since
May 2003. Renee is vice president, account director
at RTC, a Y&R Brands company. Sven is the sales
and business development director for Worldwide
Assistance, the U.S. office of the Paris-based
Europe Assistance Group… Julie Norquist ’92 is
currently vice president of marketing for a cus-
tomer service software company. She is getting
married in April 2005 in France…
Anwar El Ghonemy ’93 is vice president of Jones
Lang LaSalle, a commercial real estate investment
banking firm in San Francisco. He lives with his
wife, Gigi, and twin daughters in Benicia CA…
Vicki Austin ’93 started her own career-coaching
business, Choices Worldwide, in 1997, after leaving
her job in marketing and communication in the
healthcare field. She and her husband live in Illi-
nois, where she also teaches at Lewis University…
Peter Grant Hodes ’93 started Bold Planning
Solutions, a company that focuses on the homeland
security emergency management industry, in
Nashville TN… Jeff Whitney ’93 married Roma-
nia-born Virginia Tone in Bucharest in August
2003. Whitney is a representative for five software
firms in the United States and Europe and is
involved in the transportation and financial
services sectors… Maureen Lyon Flynn ’93 and
Dirck Lyon ’96 had a second child, a daughter. They
currently reside in Shanghai, where he is the direc-
tor of electronics for Johnson Controls Automotive
Group, and she is the director of order fulfillment
for American Power Conversion… Robert C. Strain
Jr. ’93 and MiJung Lee Strain had a daughter,
Kathryn. The family lives in Seoul, South Korea,
where Robert works as Asia Pacific Regional logis-
tics manager for General Motors… Umesh Kulkarni
’93 is vice president of a transaction testing soft-
ware company in Scottsdale AZ. He and his wife
recently had a baby boy… Christian Krugman ’93
spring 2005
 class notes
married Krystie Korn in Phoenix AZ Thanksgiv-
ing weekend. He’s with Chubb Insurance in
Phoenix…
William F. Humphrey Jr. ’94 was named “Em-
ployee of the Year” by ICE Inc. and OurVacation
“It’s a great
Store.com in Phoenix AZ, beating out more than
700 employees in five countries… Michele Lanning
life and it’s a
Brenner ’94 is the director of marketing at the lot of fun. I’ve
Scotts Company. She is married to Steve Brenner.
They have one child and another due in June… found a way
Amy Koster De Macena ’94 and husband, Nilson
De Macena, had a son in September 2004. They to make a
live in Los Angeles… Kristina Wagner (Durkin) ’94,
who was married in November 2004, is the associ-
living in an
ate director of admissions for the Eller MBA pro-
gram at the University of Arizona. She is currently
industry I
pursuing her Ph.D.… Patrick Galvin ’94 and his love.”
wife, Ellen, have moved to Portland OR. They
are co-owners of Galvin Communications, a public
relations firm. Patrick is giving seminars through-
out the country this year on how to create buzz
about companies… Fernando Sandoval ’94 passed
the October 2004 U.S. Licensed Customs Broker
Exam. He is applying for a license and plans to start
operations early 2005 at the Nogales AZ Port of MATTHEW HILGER ’96 now makes his living as a
Entry… Deborah Murray ’94 has become deputy professional poker player, author and poker expert.
director, Asia/Pacific Region for Family Health
International. She lives in Thailand with husband,
Rod Livingston ’94, and two sons.
It’s all in “It’s a great life,
and it’s a lot of
was one of the top
players in the

1995-1999
the cards, fun,” the 37-year- world, and I was
Heather Witt ’95 is a developer for The Little
Gym International for British Columbia and
or maybe old says. “I’ve
found a way to
playing with some
of the most
Alberta, Canada. She has two children, and lives it’s not make a living in an respected Texas
in Scottsdale AZ and Vancouver BC… Lori Ann industry I love.” Hold’em players.”
Priday ’95 is engaged to Matthew Lyons. She’s a IGURING THE Hilger has been When he trans-
senior manager of Advanced Planning and Strategy
at Nissan North American in Los Angeles… Travis
Christ ’95 was promoted to vice president of
Marketing for America West Airlines in Phoenix.
F odds, knowing
when to take
calculated risks and
playing poker most
of his life, but it was
during his year at
ferred to Argentina,
Hilger had success
with Internet gam-
He was formerly president of America West Vaca- understanding your Thunderbird that bling. He took a
tions … Lisa Von Bargen ’95 has relocated back to competition’s he began visiting two-year sabbatical
Phoenix and launched Beyond Implementation, motivations are nearby casinos. from Chiquita and
Inc., a technology consulting firm… Tim Hunt ’95
and wife, Stephanie, had their fourth child in No- essential skills for “I was on a col- moved to New
vember in London. He works for Goldman Sachs every MBA gradu- lege budget, so I Zealand, where he
and is head of European leveraged finance sales… ate. But unlike had no money to made his livelihood
Mike Brady ’95 recently joined Time Warner Cable most T-bird alumni, lose,” Hilger says. playing internet
in Herndon VA as director of business affairs… Matthew Hilger ’96 “But I was able to poker and wrote his
Andre Doumitt ’95 is with BAE Systems, an aero-
space company formerly known as British Aero- applies those skills hold my own every bestselling book,
space. In November 2004, he took responsibility for across a poker time I went.” “Internet Texas
business development for fixed and rotary wing table, not the one in After graduation, Hold’em: Winning
systems for 15 business units across California, the boardroom. Hilger worked with Strategies from an
Ohio, Indiana and New York, as well as for Hilger makes his Chiquita Brands in Internet Pro.”
Rochester and Plymouth in the UK and Edinburgh,
Scotland… Connie Fu ’95 worked in corporate living as a profes- Costa Rica, where In 2003, Hilger
finance for General Electric in the United States sional poker player. he honed his started up a Texas
and Hong Kong after graduation. She is now In 2002, he won the gambling talents. Hold’em Web site.
working as finance manager for Espirit, a clothing New Zealand Poker “At the time, I It receives more
company in New York. She lives in Great Neck Championships and played in tourna- than 100,000 visi-
NY with her husband and newborn son… Alfred
Guerrero ’95 and his wife, Polly, had twin girls
last year took home ments every Sun- tors a month. “I am
in December, joining a 2-year-old sister. The family $80,000 by placing day at the Texas definitely using my
lives in Miami FL… 33rd, out of 2,500, Hold’em clubs,” he international skills
Lysa Nicklas Kristensen ’96 has been promoted in the World Series says. “The person in this business,”
to vice president and portfolio manager at First of Poker. who ran the club Hilger says.

thunderbird magazine 59
class notes
American Trust. She lives in Corona Del Mar CA
with her husband Mike Kristensen… Frederick
(Rick) Rasmussen ’96 authored an article titled
“The DNA of Loyalty” for Colloquy magazine, the
industry publication for loyalty marketing. He is
general manager of international partnerships for
Delta Air Lines, and recently spoke at the annual
Loyalty Marketing Industry Summit… Annique
Gilbert London ’96 and Dane London had a
daughter in June 2004. Annique is the assistant
vice president of Marketing Services at Wells
Fargo Home Mortgage in Minneapolis MN… Alan
Chelko ’96 and Sharon Machuga Chelko ’96 had a
son, Maksym Luka (Max), in June 2004… Kevin M.
Peck ’96 was promoted to principal of Marketing
Corporation of America’s (MCofA) Technology
Practice… Anders A. Suarez ’96 was appointed to
the board of directors with Amerityre Corporation,
and will serve as the company’s CFO… Tim Sultan
’96 ran for Congress in District 8 of Arizona, but
lost to incumbent Jim Kolbe… Michael Pascoe ’95
of San Francisco helped with Sultan’s campaign…
Brian Bergholm ’96 recently celebrated his one-
year anniversary with GE Insurance Solutions.
He manages fulfillment of the company’s market
research requirements via a staff of nine market
researchers based in India. He and his family relo-
cated to Kansas City KS to join the Global Market-
ing group at the company… Meredith Peabody ’96
was pictured in the January issue of Arizona Month-
ly. Peabody is one of 15 Arizona businesswomen
who are sharing their expertise with 15 Afghan
women as part of Thunderbird’s Project Artemis.
Nancy Cailleteau ’97 delivered the key address
in November 2004 in Chennai, India, for the Jaya
School of Business. The occasion was the install-
ment of the first international chapter of Sigma
Iota Epsilon, the American honor society for
management studies and professionals… Erum
Amin ’97 and Australian Wolfgang Stefan have
married. The couple met while working at Dresd-
ner Bank in London… Dr. Chien Hung (Charlie)
Chen ’97, assistant professor at Appalachian State
University, has co-written a study on e-learning

something bigger when the X PRIZE

than the next CUP will be held in
marketing plan.” New Mexico. The
Building on the five-day event —
success of the X “NASCAR on
PRIZE, the Founda- steroids,” Power
tion kicked off a says—is expected
$25 million fund- to attract hundreds
raising campaign in of innovators to
April. The new build spacecraft
funding will be used that can go higher
to award prizes for and faster, pushing
a host of other the envelope of air
JIM CAMPBELL

significant hurdles, travel. Based on the

some related to interest shown in
space and others to the X PRIZE flight,
KEITH POWERS ’99 played a crucial role in getting SpaceShipOne into orbit, and earth-bound issues, Powers expects
is now floating in air with the joy of doing something he loves. like clean energy or hundreds of thou-
water purification. sands to attend.
X PRIZE Founda- Spurning other Powers was impor- “Right now, only
The sky tion, Powers award- offers, Powers tant in attracting 530 people have
isn’t the ed $10 million to joined the Founda- Google founder gone to space, and
airplane designer tion on a pro-bono Larry Page onto the that’s not enough,”
limit for Burt Rutan and Mi- basis just two board. Powers says.
high-fly- crosoft co-founder months before the “The idea is to “We’ve only begun
Paul Allen, of Moja- historic flight and apply the same to scratch the sur-
ing alumni ve Aerospace, for then raised nearly methodology to face of possibilities.
putting SpaceShip- $4 million in leverage a compe- There’s no reason
OR KEITH One into orbit after sponsorships. tition that challen- why we shouldn’t

F Powers ’99,
it’s all about
gravity. In October,
it beat out 27 other
teams vying to be
the first privately
“I wanted to be
involved with
something that has
ges people to come
up with solutions,”
Powers says.
be in space. We
need to push our
limitations beyond
as chief develop- funded spacecraft purpose,” he says. The next will be in what we know. The
ment officer for the in orbit. “I wanted to do the fall of 2006, technology is here.”

60 spring 2005

environments in the assimilation of information
technology skills. It was published in the Journal of
Information Systems Education... Robb McGregor
’97 has returned to New York from London,
where he lived for more than three years while
working for Bank of America Securities… Lisa
Totino ’97 has been promoted to director for New
Business Development at Custom Plastics Inc.
She leads all business development and marketing
efforts for its new product division, Handi Solu-
tions Inc., which focuses on garage organization
and storage products… Brad Smith ’97 joined S3
Investment Company as executive vice president
after the acquisition of TSPartner. Previously, he
was co-founder and chief operating officer of IP
Intelligence, a consulting firm providing intellec-
tual property services… Annabelle Abba Brownell
’97 and Peter Brownell ’97 have two children.
She is a marketing communications professional
in the Silicon Valley, and he is working on his own
business… Anna Maria Moore ’97 has been living
in Washington D.C. since January 1999 and work-
ing for Equant as an IT training manager in
Northern Virginia. She enjoys meeting up with
T-birds and staying in touch… Jerry Hanley ’97
lives in San Diego and sells mobile video solutions
for Qualcomm Inc. to Latin American and South-
east Asian customers… Michele Manzek (Thomas)
’97 married Cameron Thomas in San Juan Capis-
trano. The couple lives in Scottsdale AZ.
Katherine Johnson ’98 was appointed foreign
policy advisor and director of the U.S. Coast
Guard’s international affairs staff. Johnson coordi-
nates international policy, participation, and opera-
tions within the Coast Guard and with other U.S.
government agencies, foreign governments, and
international organizations… James McGraw ’98
was named director of the Axapta ERP practice for
SCS Inc… Adriana Mikulla (Tschinkel) ’98 passed
away in August 2004. She had been living in
Guadalajara, but died in San Francisco after a
brief illness… Gabe Castaneda ’98 co-founded
Castaneda Williams Ltd., a marketing communica-
tions firm. The business was highlighted in the
June 18 issue of the Twin Cities’ Business Journal.
George Bradbury ’99 ran for District 4 Supervi-
sor in Arizona, but lost to the incumbent. He
resides in Surprise AZ… Jarad Carleton ’99 was
promoted to consulting analyst at Frost & Sullivan
in Palo Alto CA… Joseph Urso ’99 has been ap-
pointed lead planning manager for General Motors,
Thailand… Erica Savka ’99 recently began work-
ing as an international solutions marketing manag-
er for VeriFone Inc., responsible for launching ver-
tical market strategies for all non-financial applica-
tions that can run on VeriFone’s point of sale termi-
nals. She is based in Miami FL… Michael Wissot
’99 has been named vice president of Luntz
Research, a public affairs and corporate communi-
cations firm. He also serves as an adjunct professor
at Pepperdine University, teaching public speaking
and rhetorical analysis. He lives in Pacific Palisades
CA with his wife, Alison… Garth Knudson ’99 is
senior solutions marketing manager at Software
AG. He and his wife, Rachel, had their fifth child,
a daughter… Daniel Gies ’99 was featured in the
Chicago Sun-Times in an article about his work
thunderbird magazine
class notes
financing local agricultural businesses in Afghani-
stan on behalf of Chicago’s ShoreBank in coopera-
tion with USAID… Christina Halbert ’99 married
Ariel Gamino in September 2004 in Michigan.
They are planning another, bigger wedding this
year in Mexico. The couple resides in Miami FL…
Sangeeta Bajaj ’99 married Joseph LaForges in
April 2004. Fifteen T-bird alumni attended the
event… Mark Merifield ’99 and Carolina Montero
’99 relocated from Miami FL to Nice, France,
where he is manager of Global Service Design &
Management at Amadeus. She is an account man-
ager for the internet marketing firm, Latin3. They
had a daughter in August 2003… Lisa Shackelford
’99 married Eduardo Larenas in June 2004 in Mia-
mi FL. She has been working for Caterpillar’s Latin
American division in Miami for five years… Tami
Peter ’99 married Gregory Heintz in Roseland NJ
in July 2004. The couple resides in West New York
NJ. She is the vice president of Structured Credit
Sales for SG Americas, the investment banking
arm of Societe Generale in New York.
2000-2005
Chris Donaldson ’00 is managing Motorola
handset launches to T-Mobile. He married Sarah
(Lamoree) Donaldson in August 2003. The couple
lives in Chicago IL… Brian Kenny ’00 will com-
plete this year his executive doctorate of manage-
ment degree at Case Western Reserve University
Weatherhead School of Management… Julie
Jensen ’00 was appointed as the new marketing
and advertising sales director for National
Geographic Channel and Adventure One (A1) in
Australia and New Zealand… Krista Peterson ’00
has been assistant director of Global Business Cen-
ter, University of Washington Business School,
since April 2002. She is internationalizing the
school’s curriculum. Krista was married in October
2003 to Brian Woodward… Brian Mefford ’00 was
named president and CEO of the Center for Infor-
mation Technology Enterprise (CITE) in Bowling
Green KY. CITE is a research and consulting
organization that provides information technology
strategy and policy planning to institutions around
the world… Terry Wick ’00 passed away February
11, 2004, in Canton OH… Jami Fry ’00 and Jeremy
Wong ’96 have two boys and live in San Diego CA,
where she is a strategic marketing manager for
Syntricity Inc., and he is a senior systems analyst
for Qualcomm. He is also founder and chief
monkee of Speedmonkee Performance LLC.
Muyi Louisa Li ’01 and husband, Long Yang,
had a daughter, Emma, born in November 2004…
Nishant Taneja ’01 is global marketing operations
manager at McAfee, a leading security software
company based in Silicon Valley CA… David
Adams ’01 and his wife, Elizabeth, had a girl, Julia
Vargas, in January 2005. The family lives in Chan-
hassen MN. He works in strategy and business
development in the entertainment group at Best
Buy… Alison Leo Rana ’01 is still working for
ExxonMobil in Washington D.C. in international
government relations. She had lunch with Alice Su
Kidwell ’01 and Miki Sazon ’01 over Thanksgiving
and had a great time catching up. Sazon lives in
Singapore and is traveling the world, particularly
61
class notes
around Asia. Kidwell works at the American Red
Cross in D.C…. Juan Garcia ’01 ran the New York
City marathon and finished in a time of 4:44…
Deborah Shapos ’01 and Steve Andaloro ’01, along
“The NFL with one other partner, opened Aspire Markets in
represents fall 2004, the first gourmet grocery store for people
on special diets in Scottsdale.
the heart Jason DeLecour ’02 died February 26, 2004 in a
and soul of snow slide on a Utah mountainside… Ryan Bartell
’02 is engaged to Jamie Hope Katz of Solon OH.
this country. He is a consulting evaluation analyst for HVS
International in Miami FL. The couple plans a
Being one May 2005 wedding… Cliff Fossum ’02 passed away
of very few in April 2004. A memorial fund supporting the
Dolores Library District has been established
females with the First National Bank of Cortez, Drawer A,
doesn’t Cortez CO 81321… Allison Kaiser ’02 is marketing
manager for ViroLogic, a biotech company based in
matter. San Francisco… Mark Abromovitz ’02 was featured
in the February edition of the Phoenix Business
Results Journal for a real estate project his company is
matter.” developing in downtown Phoenix. Abromovitz
Investment Properties develops, manages, and
invests in industrial, commercial, medical and
historic properties in Phoenix, with an emphasis on
redevelopment in the downtown corridor.
Francisco Rivera Haro ’03 was named COO
KIMBERLY WILLIAMS ’92 is senior vice president of in one of the top home construction companies in
finance at the National Football League. Mexico, which is building 5,000 houses per year
and has a two-digit growth rate… Carole Low ’03
as serpentine as a view. But she was is senior account manager at Digital Impact, an
Alumna Barry Sanders run. hooked the minute
online direct marketing solutions company in San
Mateo CA… Gene Shi ’03 was promoted to Asian
scores Following her Thun-
derbird graduation,
the interviewers
told her that the
marketing manager for the Bay Area Region of
First American Title Company in October 2004…
points for a job in London with NFL’s financial Bernardo Grossi Lobo Martins ’03 and Nicole Re-
nee Annarino ’03 will be married in Belo Horizonte,
league’s General Electric
gave Williams the
department needed
to play a more
Brazil in the fall of 2005. The two began dating
finances opportunity to deal prominent role in
three years ago while working on a marketing
project at Thunderbird. The couple lives in Boston,
with complexities. the organization. where he works for Tyco International, and she
HEN you The job involved not “I have strong works for TJX… Balaji Viswanath ’03 was inter-

W constantly
take your-
self outside your
only multiple cur-
rencies, cultures
and languages, but
opinions about the
role of finance, and
I thought it might
viewed on Manhattan News Network in January
2004 about the tsunami relief and rehabilitation
operations in India. Balaji is the director of
marketing and public relations for Vibha, a non-
comfort zone,” says also differing prac- be fun to turn that profit organization that supports child development
Kimberly Williams tices in business function around,” activities in India and the United States.
’92, “there’s no and law. she says. “The best Ismene Papayianis ’04 and Benjamin Wolf ’04
challenge that’s have announced their engagement… Andrew
Later, Williams part is being an Dicello ’04 and Marcie Butty were married in
insurmountable.” was hired as CFO of operational partner April 2005 in Phoenix AZ… Jeff Ostaszewski ’04
That attitude has NBC West Coast, and contributing to is working at iRobot Corporation in Burlington
carried Williams, at where she evaluat- decisions.” MA. The company markets unmanned ground
age 35, to senior ed the viability of She now has a vehicles… Danilo Pelho ’04 died December 8, 2004,
vice president of in a car accident near his hometown, Aracatuba, in
new television passion for the NFL, Sao Paulo state, Brazil. While a student, Pelho was
finance at the launches and which “represents president of the Brazil Club and helped organize
National Football weighed in on the the heart and soul Regional Nights and Brazilian barbecues. In his
League, making her deal that led to the of this country,” she memory, his classmates and friends have estab-
the highest-ranking hit show “Friends.” says. “Being one of lished a scholarship and tree memorial. Donations
woman in the heav- can be given, through the Thunderbird Annual
When she was very few females fund, to the Danilo Pelho Memorial Scholarship
ily male industry. first approached doesn’t matter. Re- and Danilo Pelho Tree Memorial. Information:
The route she about the NFL job, sults matter. That’s www.thunderbird. edu/annualfund; questions:
took to managing Williams hesitantly the reason I love mygift@t-bird. edu... Jennifer Slack ’04 is
the NFL budget was agreed to an inter- this organization.” manager for the Vanguard Group in Malvern PA.

62 spring 2005
 Share your experiences
with future T-birds

Thunderbird Alumni Class of 2005, Sara Swain, US; George Alambo, Kenya; Supang Srichaovarat, Thailand.

You’ve been there. You’ve done that.

Share your T-bird experience. Get involved!

If you know someone with a global curiosity – Thunderbird is looking for Alumni Ambassadors.
someone who is ready to take the next step toward Work hand-in-hand with Thunderbird’s recruitment
a global business career – refer him or her to team to help spread the word to prospective students.
Thunderbird. Our varied program options are
designed to meet a wide range of needs. Serve as a representative at local events.
Inform Thunderbird’s recruitment team
Help expand Thunderbird’s ranks by becoming an about local alumni events open to
honorary member of our worldwide recruiting team. prospective students.
Visit www.my.t-bird.edu and click “Refer a Coordinate conversations between prospective
Future T-bird.” A Thunderbird recruiter will students and alumni in the same global
contact you soon. region or career.

For more information contact: ambassadors@thunderbird.edu

 forum
Let’s put Russia
back on the map
BY DENNIS HOPPLE
President, Thunderbird CBSD Russia
UST A FEW WEEKS AGO, I inter-
J viewed a Thunderbird alumna
for a management job in Russia.
Her first question: “Do people have
individual freedom in Russia?”
For me, it served as yet another reminder
of the kind of press this country gets in the
West. Although the cold war has been over
for more than two decades, there still seems
to be frosty feelings between the former
Soviet Union and much of the Western
world. Every time I return to the United
States, I still have people who ask about the
mafia and the availability of basic goods.
Russia seems to be getting the same cold
shoulder from Thunderbird and many
students. Not long ago, Thunderbird had a
thriving Russian language department and
strong student interest in Eastern Europe.
But after Russia’s financial crisis of 1998,
interest in Russian studies evaporated, as did
students’ interest in seeking a job in Russia.
It’s time for a revival.
While much of the press about Russia’s
loss of media freedom and backsliding to-
ward dictatorship has some basis in fact,
what unfortunately has been overshadowed
is how business is booming.
A Russian middle class has emerged,
young professionals are buying cars and
apartments at an amazing pace, businesses
are growing at double- and triple-digit rates
and salaries are increasing nearly as quickly.
Best of all, the expectation that the state can
or will provide support is disappearing.
Moscow has become a true world capital, as
64
every bit as vibrant as New York City or
Paris, with a plethora of quality shops,
restaurants and hotels.
It truly is an exciting time to be in this
rapidly changing market.
However, this environment isn’t for every-
one. Much is still being defined and devel-
oped, and President Vladimir Putin and
the government do not think through every
decision for the unintended consequences.
Russians don’t want an America-style
democracy, for it places too much responsi-
bility on the individual. Preferring a strong Dennis Hopple
central leadership, they eventually will find
their own hybrid form of democracy. Until
then, the country will lurch forward. Editor’s Note
Working and thriving in any emerging Thunderbird Forum is
market requires some acceptance of ambigu- open to members of the
ity and the understanding that significant Thunderbird community
change takes generations, not a few years. who have a vision or an
This is where T-birds can have a true com- idea to share. Write to
petitive advantage, but only if the School the editor with your
addresses the language need and students ideas, and we will
put Russia on their job consideration lists. explore with you its
A Thunderbird graduate with a spirit of potential as a column.
adventure, Russian language skills and a
desire to play a part in the transformation of
a country would be much in demand as the
country embraces capitalism and the inde-
pendence that comes with business success.
Russia certainly is not the only “land of
opportunity,” but Thunderbird and its stu-
dent should look past the one-sided report-
ing and see that this emerging market offers
excitement, an accelerated career path and
the rare chance to ride a wave of change.
spring 2005
 Stay ahead of the
issues and ideas
impacting global
business today.

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 R E L A X . R E F L E C T . R E C O N N E C T .

Thunderbird European Alumni Reunion

June 2–5, 2005 Geneva, Switzerland
Thursday, June 2 Contacts
Kick-off evening cocktail party Antoine van Caloen ’87 (avc@global.t-bird.edu)
Shelley Collum ’03 (smcollum@global.t-bird.edu)
Friday, June 3
Your choice of daily activities including guided tours and hiking trips. Web site
http://www.thunderbird.edu/alumni/prog_serv/events/reunion.htm
Dinner and dancing at the Domaine de Penthes

Saturday, June 4
More daily activities in the fantastic Geneva region
Exceptional dinner and dance aboard a cruise boat on Lake Geneva

Sunday, June 5
Au revoir brunch

NONPROFIT ORG.
US POSTAGE
P A I D
MENDOTA, IL
Thunderbird Campus
Alumni Relations PERMIT #135
15249 North 59th Avenue
Glendale, Arizona USA 85306-6000 USA

ADDRESS SERVICE REQUESTED

57 . 2 . 2005