Eccles Experience Spring 2021 by David Eccles School of Business

CONTENTS

Spring 2021

departments

@eccles

4 LETTER FROM THE DEAN 5 CONTRIBUTORS 50 ALUMNI EVENT NEWS 53 CLASS NOTES

28 30 37

business insights

EYE ON RESEARCH CAMPUS NEWS ALUMNI SPOTLIGHT

CORRECTION: In our Summer 2020 issue, we featured donor and alum Bernie Hale with the incorrect career history. He was a Senior Logistics official with Mattel Toys, Bergen Brunswig, McGaw, Inc. Ivax, Inc. and DSC Logistics as well as an instructor in various Logistics classes at Cal State University Long Beach. Eccles Experience regrets the error.

campusgrowth

pandemic

online

hybrid

success zoom education

BORROWING BRAINS

THE FUTURE OF OPTIMIZING Optimizing Learning WORK LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES Looking ahead at how

Better preparing students for the future of the high-tech industry.

students

OUTGAMING RISK

Opportunities

technology is changing our work environments.

A Q&A with Associate Dean Brad Vierig.

Preparing companies for future disasters.

If you ask Associate Dean Brad Vierig which field he is in, he may reply, “customer service.” That label applied during the many years he spent as an executive for a national retail food and drug chain, but it also applies in his role as the person who directs all David Eccles School of Business Master’s of Business Administration (MBA) programs and Executive Education, which is made up of more than 25 nondegree courses and certificate

DAVID ECCLES SCHOOL OF BUSINESS DEAN

a student in the ExecutiveEDITORS MBA (EMBA) Program and his many EDITOR IN programs. CHIEF Vierig drew from his impressions asCONTRIBUTING

DESIGN FIRM

Taylor Randall

Kris Bosmanspend learning. Here, he shares some insightsKatie Drake with writer and Eccles alum Lisa Carricaburu on both his history with Relations the Eccles School and the future of business education. Director, Alumni Megan Kawaguchi Leentje Klingensmith

Think Tank Creative

ASSISTANT DEAN OF DEVELOPMENT Katie Amundsen

years in the corporate world to help reshape MBA offerings to optimize every moment busy professionals

SR. CONTRIBUTING EDITOR Sheena McFarland

Director, Marketing & Communications

6 PERSEVERANCE: IT TAKES G.R.I.T.

22 INVESTING IN FAMILIES

66 32

INVESTING STRATEGY AT INVESTING INTERNATIONALLY

How businesses are benefiting from paid family leave.

INTERNATIONALLY

SEC Regulation Simplifies Across Borders By Katie Drake

Adjusting International Trade Policy trade regulations.

STAKE

FINAL WORD

Stockholders vs stakeholders, while maximizing company profit.

Looking to the future while reflecting on the past.

COMPELLING STORIES THAT SPEAK DIRECTLY TO U. Articles in the Eccles Experience Magazine have been spotlighted with icons representing the voice and participation of the David Eccles School of Business alumni, faculty and students.

TALK BACK! WE’RE LISTENING. Give us your thoughts, feedback, and suggestions about Eccles Experience. EMAIL: Kris.Bosman@Eccles.Utah.edu

© 2021 The David Eccles School of Business. All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or use of any information-storage or retrieval system, for any purpose without the express written permission of the David Eccles School of Business.

ECCLES EXPERIENCE

LETTER FROM THE DEAN

Spring 2021

Disruption. Agility. Pivot. These buzzwords tend to get thrown around a lot in the business world, but they certainly seem apt as we look back on this year at the David Eccles School of Business. I’d like to add one more to the list – perseverance. Our students, alumni, faculty, and staff have leaned in to all of these words this year to weather this pandemic, and I couldn’t be prouder. We’re excited to bring you their stories in this edition of Eccles Experience. In the coming pages, you’ll read about entrepreneurs who capitalized on this huge disruption to make life better and easier for consumers. You’ll hear about our faculty and students who made a major pivot to online learning, and still made the academic year a success. And you’ll see the agility with which our school responded to this crisis and pitched in to have real-world impacts on our community. I am so proud of our Eccles School family and the grit and determination they have shown throughout this pandemic. We know that the school will have a huge role in shaping the economy in Utah and beyond as we recover, more resilient and stronger than ever. I hope these stories fill you with that same spirit. Best,

Taylor Randall Dean of the David Eccles School of Business Dean@Eccles.Utah.edu

SCAN 4 EVEN MORE Listen to Dean Randall tell a personal story of perseverance!

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Spring 2021

CONTRIBUTORS

Lisa Carricaburu

Katie Drake

Stephanie Dunn

Lisa Carricaburu is managing editor of Informatics Decision Support at ARUP Laboratories. Before joining ARUP, she spent more than 25 years as a newspaper reporter and editor, most recently in the role of managing editor of The Salt Lake Tribune. Lisa earned an MBA from the David Eccles School of Business.

Katie Drake is the Communications Manager for the Eccles School Marketing + Communications team. When she’s not doing Facebook Live or arranging faculty interviews, she can be found cheering for the Utes and the Oilers, on stage at one of Salt Lake’s community theaters, or planning her next trip with her husband and two daughters.

Stephanie Dunn’s passion for photography results in a unique ability to capture spontaneous moments and natural expressions that translate a story to the viewer. She is a graduate of Iowa State University and a Freelance Photographer for BW Productions in Salt Lake City.

Derek Jensen

Thad Kelling

Leentje Klingensmith

Derek Jensen is the Director of Communications at Judge Memorial Catholic High School. He spent 20 years as an award-winning journalist covering sports, politics, urban planning and malfeasance at The Salt Lake Tribune, NPR affiliates and for Reuters. You can find him with his active family exploring Utah’s mountains, canyons and red rock as well as Salt Lake’s cultural and sports scenes.

Thad Kelling is the director of marketing and public relations at the Lassonde Entrepreneur Institute. He has a master’s degree in communication from the University of Utah and diverse experience in fields including advertising, design, journalism, digital media, and project management. Connect with him on LinkedIn or Twitter @thadkelling.

Leentje Klingensmith is an Alumni Events and Marketing Specialist at the David Eccles School of Business and host of the Eccles Business Buzz podcast. She graduated with a B.S. in Marketing from the Eccles School and enjoys the opportunity to connect with and share alumni stories around the globe through a variety of mediums. Connect with her on LinkedIn @ leentjeklingensmith.

Paige Lichtenwalter

Heather May

Sheena McFarland

Paige Lichtenwalter is a Content Marketer at 97th Floor. Previously, she spent several years in a variety of communications fields and industries including alumni relations, B2B marketing, and franchising public relations. Paige is a Summa Cum Laude graduate of Texas Tech University with a B.A. in Public Relations.

Heather May is an award-winning freelance writer based in Salt Lake City with 20 years of experience, including 15 years covering education, politics, health, and food at The Salt Lake Tribune. She is a graduate of the University of Utah in mass communication. Contact her on Linkedin @HeatherMaySLC.

Sheena McFarland is the Director of Marketing + Communications at the David Eccles School of Business. Before joining the M+C team in 2015, she was a reporter and editor at The Salt Lake Tribune for more than a decade. She is an avid traveler and a rabid Real Salt Lake fan. Connect with her on LinkedIn or on Twitter @sheena5427.

DAVID ECCLES SCHOOL OF BUSINESS

GUTS, RESILIENCE, INITIATIVE, TENACITY By Heather May

he COVID-19 pandemic has been unlike anything Nicholas and Company has faced in its 82-year history as the Intermountain West’s largest independent food distributor. It has proved worse than the downturn after the 9-11 terrorist attacks and the 2008 Great Recession. But despite initial plummeting demand from its clients when restaurants and schools closed down, leading to Nicholas’ first company-wide layoff since its 1939 founding, the Utah-based company has rebounded and is set to thrive. Co-CEO Nicole Mouskondis BS’05, a University of Utah alumna and member of the Eccles Advisory Board, credits an ethos fundamental to her company, as well as to her alma mater: perseverance. “When you think about the founding of our company, my husband’s grandfather coming to America at age 17 as an immigrant from Crete, Greece. He didn’t speak the language. He hardly had two pennies to put together,” she said. “He had to be scrappy. It’s part of our DNA: We have grit and determination and perseverance. We always have.”

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Spring 2021

Perseverance is at the heart of one of the Eccles School’s core values, Entrepreneurial Grit. They are values needed more than ever by students, faculty, and alumni to weather a once-in-a-lifetime pandemic that has upended the world’s economy and work and school cultures. But despite the disruptions, the school and its alumni have found ways to flourish in the new normal. That’s not to say it has been easy: “What we’re doing right now is going to be the basis of the business cases that we teach for the coming years,” said Teresa Pavia, faculty president and associate professor of marketing. “This is managing through a crisis. We don’t have to talk about what happened when Enron collapsed. Instead we can ask, how did companies react during the pandemic? “That’s something we need to hold onto when it feels uncertain and it feels chaotic: This is what history feels like.”

The business school itself had to manage the crisis when college courses went online in March after schools and most businesses were shut down. Classes mostly remained online over the summer and into the fall and winter. (The University recently announced that classes would return to in-person in Fall 2021.) “You can’t pause for three weeks and extend the semester,” Pavia

said. “It was a lot of learning on the fly to make sure we were ready to go the next morning. It was an extraordinary amount of work for the faculty in March when everything came to a screaming halt basically overnight to start teaching in a completely different format.” While the school has a highly ranked online MBA program, those courses are designed to be online, with lectures produced and recorded in a production studio. Other professors weren’t used to presenting their in-person work via Zoom. The turnaround was a huge technical challenge for the college’s IT staff — but one they met with aplomb. IT’s heavy lifting continued in the spring and summer once the University decided to offer a hybrid schedule in the fall. Mark Fowles, the Eccles School's technology integration engineer, researched the best way to allow professors to teach like they did pre-pandemic, but with technology to allow full integration of students logging in from home so they could hear not only the professor but also other students. He and his staff upgraded technology in 40 classrooms for $800,000. The faculty practiced dry runs, and the Eccles School took the unique step of hiring technology teaching assistants to ensure the classrooms ran smoothly.

coordination) for the spring semester to ensure students are getting the best education and to take into account the reality that hybrid school is 24/7. “You do have to keep persevering,” Pavia said. “Learning to teach while wearing a mask, that is still a work in progress for all of us. Learning to teach to students who are spaced out in an auditorium with masks — you can’t see anybody’s face. You’re not getting any feedback. “You have to keep climbing up the mountain. It’s just nothing like it used to be. We’re all trying to figure out what works best together.”

Nicole & Peter Mouskondis, Co-CEOs, Nicholas and Company

“You can imagine if you’re a professor and you’re trying to teach a class and now you’re monitoring all the content shared on Zoom and monitoring all the participants,” said Fowles. “That’s going to put a kink in your normal teaching style.” Pavia said the IT work was vital to the faculty’s success. The school didn’t lose any faculty or students due to the pandemic; in fact, enrollment went up. “It’s not the social experience it [school] used to be but the education is there,” she said. “The faculty I’ve talked to are just exhausted. They are working so hard to try to live up to their own standards of what education should be.” Faculty and students worked on a list of best practices (including being more flexible on deadlines, having more breakout sessions so students can get to know each other and keeping students in one group for projects to make it easier for remote

DAVID ECCLES SCHOOL OF BUSINESS

It would have been easy for the staff in the school’s Business Career Services & Corporate Outreach to use the pandemic as an excuse for not placing as many graduating students into jobs last spring. After all, Utah’s roaring economy sputtered to a halt, and students who had multiple offers for internships and jobs found those options rescinded in the midst of a market of massive layoffs and hiring freezes. Instead, the team worked harder than ever. Assistant Dean Katie Hoffman Abby said they called all 1,200 “portfolio” companies — those with a strong track record of hiring from the U — to determine their hiring capabilities. It also analyzed the market to determine which industries were growing and then expanded their outreach to those new markets, such as telehealth and entertainment. The attitude was, “We still have an obligation to help these students to find the best positions and the best career possible,” Abby said. “I was hoping to have similar results as [the 2018-19 year]. We ended up doing better. In fact, we had the highest salaries in the Spring Semester in the midst of COVID. The team just rolled up their sleeves and dug in and didn’t stop until the work was done.”

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Spring 2021

The Eccles Alumni Network stepped up, too, she said. Those who could hire reached out to help. “The fact the Eccles community is so strong just provided additional arms to wrap around our students to make sure they were going to be OK,” Abby said. The job placement rate was nearly the same as pre-pandemic: 93% compared to 95%. And the average undergraduate salary was higher, at $54,000, with the specialty masters salary averaging nearly $69,000. Crucially, the office worked one-on-one with graduating students to bolster their negotiation skills so they could advocate for what they are worth to the company, instead of simply being grateful for a job offer. Students with the applicable skills needed to know “they have the right to be compensated appropriately for that role,” Abby said. Those workshops on negotiations and job analysis, along with online mock interviews, paid off.

Telehealth was one industry that skyrocketed during the pandemic, and Eccles alum Brandon Welch BS’07 PhD’14 was poised to take advantage with the company he co-created while at the U in 2013: Doxy.me. The company, based in Salt Lake City and Charleston, South Carolina, says it is the top telemedicine solution that healthcare organizations are relying on through the pandemic. The platform, which offers a free and secure virtual clinic experience, grew from hosting 80,000 healthcare providers pre-pandemic to 700,000 providers, who saw 90 million patients last year. Put another way, that’s five years of growth in less than one year.

“Our mission is to break down barriers to healthcare and deliver telemedicine for all,” said Doxy.me spokeswoman and partnerships manager Maggie MacMillan.

What started as a way to help pregnant women in rural Utah avoid long trips to the doctor when in-person visits weren’t necessary became pivotal during a pandemic in which patients avoided doctor visits because of the coronavirus. The crush of interest forced the company to quickly boost its staff by a factor of 10 at the same time it was helping the hordes of healthcare providers use the platform, all while working remotely. It sought out talented employees who were laid off in foodservice and hospitality to do customer service and also individuals with backgrounds in user experience on the tech side who could manage large volumes of customers.

Nicholas and Company learned from its past mistakes and moved quickly to right size the company, cut back on delivery days, add direct-to-consumer gourmet products and work with retail partners to meet the changing and increased needs of their shoppers. Half of its business comes from national accounts, largely fast-food companies whose customers have felt comfortable visiting because of drive-through windows. It added new national accounts in the Las Vegas market. Altogether, that has meant sales are down by just 15 percent.

The pandemic was a spark to reveal telemedicine’s value, she said. But the technology will remain necessary even when the pandemic ends, particularly for rural residents. “We’re saving people valuable time and resources and money,” she said. “There’s no going back.”

Attitude was as important as the hustle. Mouskondis said leaders decided they would get through the crisis and be stronger for it. They note a lot of “COVID silver linings”: using technology to forge closer connections with far-flung staff, exercising empathy as the company emphasizes mental health, and the importance of looking out for each other. She’s confident that her sector’s hardest hit businesses, local fine dining, will come roaring back when vaccines are widespread.

Dylan Turner MBC'20 and Brandon Welch BS'07 PhD'14, Co-Founders, doxy.me

“As with any crisis, the cream rises to the top. That’s what we’re feeling about ourselves,” Mouskondis said. “That grit, that determination, that perseverance is what is going to allow us to emerge stronger.”

DAVID ECCLES SCHOOL OF BUSINESS

BORROWING BRAINS FROM S BIG TECH POSITIONS U GRADS ATOP THE SILICON SLOPES

urveilling the expanse of the Silicon Slopes in Utah, Heather Kahlert and Curtis Morley diagnosed a disconnect: the speed of tech was lapping our workforce—threatening to cost University of Utah graduates a shot at cracking the world’s most innovative industry as it staked ground right in our backyard. “I saw this huge gap in terms of the talent we’re putting out and the demand of these tech jobs,” says Kahlert, whose eight-figure investment to erect Kahlert Village is designed, in part, to position U. students atop the Slopes’ cutting-edge terrain. “We’re doing a disservice to students if we’re not educating them in 21st century jobs.” In response, the Kahlert Initiative on Technology (KIT) launched just before the pandemic, offering an interdisciplinary Digital Literacy Certificate Program at the David Eccles School of Business. The mission: create the most digitally literate students on the planet, regardless of degree.

‘Like taking physics from Einstein or Impressionism from Monet’ By Derek P. Jensen

What sets KIT apart is its powerfully connected faculty. Stakeholders didn’t want university professors learning the material on the job, they needed to tap real-world experience. Perhaps the inventor of the Bitcoin exchange? Or what about the Chief Technology Officer at Ernst & Young in New York City — one of the globe’s top three companies working on blockchain technologies? Since students take the 21-credit, seven-course program online, KIT can connect them with the world’s most wired minds. “It’s not just cutting edge, it’s bleeding edge,” says Curtis Morley, an entrepreneur from the Silicon Slopes whom Kahlert recruited to run KIT. “How cool is that? It’s like taking physics from Einstein or Impressionism from Monet.” Undergrad Tyler Doman colors his time with KIT as the “differentiator” in his college experience. “We live in a digital world,” Doman says, “and weaving tech into my finance degree will set me apart in the competitive world of business.” Morley, who started five separate tech companies in Utah, says contemporaries will often complain that they can hire accomplished business students who have “no clue” about tech. New hires would bedazzle with a business plan but stare blankly or bristle when asked to create a mobile app.

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“It’s kind of like a classic Stephen Covey No. 4:

‘win-win.’”

Professor Chong Oh and KIT Director Curtis Morley

To better equip so-called “Kahlert Scholars” for the jobs of the future, KIT introduces them to web and app development, artificial intelligence, augmented reality, predictive analytics, voice tech, cryptocurrency, blockchain, big data and the internet of things. “Having that hybrid skill set opens up a lot of opportunities,” says Chong Oh, Director of Undergraduate Information Systems for the Eccles School, and a key KIT faculty member, who developed the curriculum. “You don’t have to have a computer science degree but if you can develop a website, hey, you’ve got a job.” KIT consists of seven classes but no prerequisites. And while the titles seem technical, Oh insists they remain accessible to students of all disciplines — from sociology to communications to dance. There are roughly 175 students in the certificate program, which has plenty of room to grow. And now that vaccines are plugging arms, more digital scholars will have a shot at landing big tech internships — paused throughout the pandemic — which KIT helps arrange.

Eccles student Annika Tanner

**********

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The timing couldn’t be better, as Oh points out the tech sector consistently has more available jobs than qualified candidates to fill them. “This will really help our students and our companies grow,” says Kahlert, the primary donor. “It’s kind of like a classic Stephen Covey No. 4: ‘win-win.’” But how do students in such a relatively short time acquire the competencies for real-world application — especially when many will be gunning for jobs that don’t yet exist? In a word, Hackathons. Intense contests, where students are given a technical objective, Hackathons at KIT have included the creation of a website, complete with digital marketing plans and social media, to help administer sustainable water sources to 170 million people in developing countries. The initiative, sponsored by Adobe and run in conjunction with WHOlives, created a business model to give ownership of wells to individuals, who then charge a small fee for water. All WHOlives wells are currently still operating. In another session, students may develop mobile apps so they can pull their phone out in a future job interview to show off that skill set. They also dove into the effectiveness of Super Bowl ads, using predictive analytics. And during the upcoming “Cyber Summer,” KIT scholars will notch four credits at once through an intensive program that employs coding, artificial intelligence and efficiencies in design. Morley argues that while digital literacy today is “a completely new beast,” KIT can deliver the following five C’s: curriculum, credit, certificate, competence and career. “They do need to understand digital security and how it affects the workplace,” Morley explains. “It’s not education for education’s sake, it’s education for an accelerated business experience.” KIT is one leg of an innovative and physical living-learning space — built with purpose — south of the Eccles Legacy Bridge known as Kahlert Village. The three components of the village include the Gail Miller Community Engagement Tower, the Patricia W. Child Health & Wellness Tower, and the Heather Kahlert STEM Tower. The latter can house up to 1,000 freshman and features a modern, modular main floor with high-tech learning spaces. What KIT insiders emphasize is that the certificate program is wide open to undergraduate students of all majors. Since tech is so inextricably intertwined into our lives, a certificate in digital literacy, they predict, should pay dividends, regardless of the industry. To date, private donors have funded the scholarships to pay for every student enrolled.

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Photos by Stephanie Dunn, BW Productions

Kahlert, who hails from a family of engineers, began working on the U. project in 2017. She expects KIT will continue to mushroom, building bridges at every juncture to big tech. “Especially in terms of digital literacy and this era of Covid,” she says, “it couldn’t have come at a better time.” The motivation for Kahlert, runs deeper. She sees her brainchild as a tangible tool to help solve a lifelong passion: empowering young women to success through the high-paying prism of STEM. It may already be working. Marketing major Annika Tanner was the first graduate to earn a KIT Digital Literacy Certificate. And she’s keenly aware of that paper’s value. “KIT has been the highlight of my undergraduate studies,” Tanner says. “These courses have allowed me to connect my marketing degree with technology to become a more qualified candidate in a high-tech job market.”

EXACTLY THE POINT Whispers about KIT’s potential have now extended from the Wasatch Front to California tech conferences to South Bend, Indiana, where Morley says officials have inquired about modeling a program at the University of Notre Dame. “These kids are getting the best in the world. It’s crazy.” Geography, everyone involved admits, plays an outsize role. After all, a slalom skier on a snowy I-15 probably faces higher odds of ricocheting off a tech business than glancing a gate in a race. “No question about it,” Morley smiles. “Because we have the Silicon Slopes here, we’re able to tap into this talent pool that just isn’t anywhere else. Not only is Utah truly leading the nation in new business and entrepreneurship, but there really is a goodness about the people. They really love to share. It really couldn’t happen anywhere else.”

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the

FUTURE WORK of

by Lisa Carricaburu

The COVID-19 pandemic has taught us plenty – painful, life-changing lessons drilled into us because we have had no other choice. We are agonizingly aware that business is not as usual.

s office work migrated home at the start of the global health crisis, technology companies predicted we would never work with one another in person again. “They weren’t talking about next month or next year, they meant for the rest of our lives, and I thought, ‘Oh my goodness, is that really true? Will we forever be completely isolated from one another and just go to the store when necessary and wear masks all the time as if we were going into surgery?’” asked Derek Miller, president and CEO of the Salt Lake Chamber and Downtown Alliance. “I’m so grateful this has not come to fruition.” The pandemic has accelerated trends that were already in motion, said Natalie Gochnour, associate dean of the David Eccles School of Business and director of the Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute. Technology-enabled services – online learning, e-commerce, telemedicine, telecommuting, etc. – that already were gaining acceptance became ubiquitous virtually overnight. We had no choice but to change our behaviors without a second thought. “Our new experiences opened up new ways of doing things and it’s human nature to keep doing the things that work,” Gochnour said. Of course, warp-speed change has many implications with which we must reckon. Primary among them is how dramatically our response to COVID-19 has widened the digital divide between those with access to and training in technology and those without, Gochnour said, but many other challenges also run deep. “As we come out of the pandemic, the opportunity gap between urban and rural areas, between different industries,

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betwen genders and between those of varying socioeconomic status has gotten much wider,” she said. “That’s the challenge for state and national leaders. You have to make sure there’s opportunity for all of society.”

Tech-Enabled Services’ Economic Toll All employees felt an immediate impact from COVID-19, whether they worked in health care, in a hard-hit service industry, or in an office setting where they immediately found themselves working from home. For the latter group, remote work turned out to be more feasible and productive than many had believed it could be. It also offered employees greater flexibility and other benefits, but it wasn’t long before many also realized something was missing. “The short-term solution of having everyone work remotely all the time is just that: a short-term solution,” said Chad Ariss, chief operating officer of Temkin Holdings LLC. “Face-to-face interaction is invaluable, and there will always be a need for it.” Ariss, whose company owns and manages seven office buildings on three properties in Murray and Lindon, initially feared for the worst, but he and others did what business leaders do: They adapted, and will continue to adapt and innovate.

“COVID-19 has not eliminated the need for office space, it has forced us to rethink how we use it,” Ariss said. What does this mean? Cubicle farms will give way to spaces more conducive to collaboration, with room for ample physical distance for safer interaction. Flexible scheduling will be more commonplace as employees seek to retain some of the benefits they see through at least partial remote work, resulting in more “hoteling,” or sharing of workspaces by employees on different schedules. “A lot of companies believe they may actually need more office space as they eliminate cubicles and rearrange to provide greater distances between employees,” said Mike Roderick, president and owner of Roderick Enterprises, a commercial real estate developer, brokerage, and property management company. Roderick’s real-estate holdings total 2 million square feet, about 60% of which is industrial space and the rest retail space. He believes retail will remain the hardest-hit aspect of real estate as stores right size their footprints to survive the pandemic’s blow to their business.

Where We Go from Here Looking more broadly at the post-pandemic economy, Gochnour and Miller say business and government leaders have identified a path forward as they collaborate to help Utah emerge from a public health emergency while also working to re-energize the economy. Commitment by Gov. Spencer Cox and Utah lawmakers to invest in digital equity will be key to expanding opportunity in both urban and rural areas, as will an emphasis on workforce retraining. Through initiatives such as Talent Ready Utah, Miller sees retraining resources becoming more readily available to help ensure that those seeking work have skills that match available jobs. The value of private/public partnerships in this endeavor cannot be overemphasized, he said. “Many programs already exist, through the technical colleges, Salt Lake Community College, and the David Eccles School of Business, and we want to be smart and help individuals with financial resources so they can avail themselves of great programs that we know are already working," Miller said. Leaders see promise in the pandemic’s normalization of remote work as a way to help bolster opportunity in rural Utah, where there is potential for economic expansion that can help ease some of the Wasatch Front’s growing pains. They’re also optimistic about the opportunities that accompany any economic challenge, and see the Eccles School well-poised to contribute.

“Strong, well-located Class A retail properties are going to get stronger and anything that is more marginal will go away,” he said, adding that this may create space and opportunity for badly needed residential development, particularly affordable housing, as Utah continues to grow. In contrast, industrial real estate will continue to boom as e-commerce thrives and more companies develop onshoring solutions and pursue redundant supply-chain strategies. Utah is positioned well for this growth, he said. “We’re in a good location, with strong transportation hubs and a great airport,” Roderick said. “Even though prices have gotten crazy, we’re very competitive on a national basis.”

“The complexity of the challenges and the opportunities we face will reward people who have the types of leadership, management, operations, and strategy skills we hone,” Gochnour said. “One thing we should never lose sight of is that we teach a lot of young people how to be successful entrepreneurs, and small business will have amazing opportunities moving forward.” Miller believes that may be the pandemic’s silver lining. “There will be some interesting things that come out of this in the way of innovation that we have no idea what they are,” he said. “It’s actually what excites me the most because it’s going to be a surprise to all of us.”

DAVID ECCLES SCHOOL OF BUSINESS

campusgrowth

Photos by Stephanie Dunn, BW Productions

pandemic

online

hybrid

success zoom

education

students

Optimizing Learning

Opportunities If you ask Associate Dean Brad Vierig which field he is in, he may reply, “customer service.” That label applied during the many years he spent as an executive for a national retail food and drug chain, but it also applies in his role as the person who directs all David Eccles School of Business Master’s of Business Administration (MBA) programs and Executive Education, which is made up of more than 25 nondegree courses and certificate programs. Vierig drew from his impressions as a student in the Executive MBA (EMBA) Program and his many years in the corporate world to help reshape MBA offerings to optimize every moment busy professionals spend learning. Here, he shares some insights with writer and Eccles alum Lisa Carricaburu on both his history with the Eccles School and the future of business education.

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Describe how you came to the David Eccles School of Business. You’re not a career academic, correct?

Lisa Carricaburu

Correct. I was a certified public accountant at Ernst & Young, then I went to work as a senior financial officer at American Stores Co., a retail food and drug chain with headquarters in Salt Lake City.

Brad Vierig

At one point, while I was a student in the EMBA Program, I told Dave Dungan, the program director at the time, “If you ever consider leaving your job, I'd like to have it. You work with smart people. You get to take students to learn on international experiences. It sounds like a really fun job and I enjoy teaching, so I'd be interested." Three years after I graduated, he called and said he was retiring and asked whether I would be interested in interviewing with Dean Jack Brittain for the director position. Initially, I thought I’d be here for just two or three years as I transitioned out of the corporate world, but here I am nearly 20 years later. Of course, my team grew with time and so did our responsibility. We took on the Professional MBA Program, then launched the MBA Online, and finally brought the Full-time MBA under our umbrella in 2015.

Program, we added new classes and implemented an iPad and a laptop program to make sure all the students were using the same technology. We started providing food so students could continue to collaborate and work with faculty rather than leaving for lunch. I recognized early on that if you're going to have students come to class (in-person or virtually), regardless of which program they’re in, you have to make sure there is value in every minute they’re investing. Keep them engaged. Keep them networking. I came in with my vision of how I thought students should be treated and what they needed to learn. We have students from professionals with young families to high-level executives, and they’re all very busy. We want to take all the noise away so they can focus on their learning. We have taken what we've learned and started branching it out into all of our degree programs, and our nondegree Executive Education programs as well. We were able to get our EMBA Program a top 20 ranking, our Professional MBA to top 50, our online MBA to top 10, and our full-time MBA to top 50. The top-three factors in our success are customer service, strong academics, and the culture we’ve built.

I've really enjoyed my change of career and change of industries.

Over the course of your career at the Eccles School, what factors do you think contributed to such success and growth in the programs?

My background and my history with the program helped. When I came in, I brought with me a desire for improved academics as well as what I thought was missing in education: customer service, a culture of innovation, and a willingness to try new things.

These concepts were new in education back then, and it was really something fun for me to jump into. I talked to other schools and listened to my students about what really would make a difference for them, and then we implemented changes. I had a list of about a hundred things coming in that I wanted to change, and we just started whittling away at the things that I thought were important. Some examples: In the early years of my time with the EMBA

What did you see happening in higher education that led you to believe that the Eccles School needed to be more prepared for online education?

I came from a brick-and-mortar retail chain, and we saw the Amazons of the world coming, so when I came to work here, I had come from that environment where I was always asking who the next competitor was and how they could really impact our opportunity to be successful.

Sometime around 2013, MBA programs from around the country had started putting billboards along Interstate 15. They were doing information sessions down the street from our campus. Dean Taylor Randall, Bill Hesterly (who holds the Dumke Family Presidential Chair in Strategic Management), and I talked about the need to offer online education to compete, and we decided to move really quickly. One of the things we did that led to our success is that we chose to develop our program ourselves. We hired instructional designers. We hired videographers. We hired editors. Within nine months, we had two faculty members who were behind us, and we launched our first online class. Before we knew it, within two years, we were a top 20-ranked online MBA program.

DAVID ECCLES SCHOOL OF BUSINESS

When we launched it in 2014, our very first semester, we had 17 students. This past fall, we admitted 90 online MBA students. The program has grown slowly but since the pandemic started, it's grown significantly. Enrollment across all four MBA programs is increasing with students who want to retrain and retool in response to this once-in-a-lifetime shock, but online in particular is growing. That’s because we have a highly ranked program that mirrors the quality of our on-campus programs. The same faculty members teach in all our MBA programs, and that's a very important quality indicator that not many schools can claim.

Talk about when the pandemic hit. What did your team do to prepare?

We were fairly well-prepared, thankfully. We had the new Robert H. and Katharine B. Garff Building, which was built for executive education, MBA programs, and online-education facilitation. We had the faculty that we’d trained and developed; our faculty members had started to adopt technology in almost all of their classes. When the pandemic hit, we knew on a Thursday afternoon that by Friday morning, we couldn't have class. Within less than 24 hours, we had four classes online on Zoom. We had successful classes the next day and the day after that. We were very fortunate.

We're going to keep the best parts of what we're learning and adapt and adopt.

months. It’s great for our future to really have everybody online so we can work together to figure out what works, what translates, and what doesn't. Apart from that, we hadn't really thought about having hybrid classes, with half your class in front of you and half of your class online. So over the summer, we had to make some changes to a building that was only 2 years old to accommodate a hybrid model.

We also had the resources to help the rest of the business school. We had an online development team, and we could train faculty and staff who had never been online very quickly.

Is there anything that you would have done differently when the pandemic hit?

Had we known what was coming, we also would have pushed harder to get the faculty who had not previously worked with us online. Putting a camera in front of a professor and hopping on Zoom does not guarantee a successful online class. Our MBA online courses take months of preparation and development, so that’s really tough to compress to a matter of days.

We thought we had five years to get it done in a way that met our standards, but obviously we ended up really accelerating our efforts. I’m grateful we have the resources to go online along with a very talented online development team that could train faculty and staff very quickly. What the pandemic has done for us in a positive way is that it has moved up the timeline for our five- to 10-year strategy to three or four

ECCLES EXPERIENCE

Spring 2021

Is there anything you’ve learned during the pandemic that you expect to stick?

There are a lot of things that we're doing now that we wonder why we never did them before. One is our BV online alumni events. In the past, we would have faculty members present research once a quarter and we would get 20 or 30 students coming into the classroom on a Friday morning or at lunch. Now that we’re pushing the livestream option out, we're getting more than 100 people from around the globe. Our alumni outreach has really exploded. Of course, networking and getting to meet people is important, and we will always have on-campus learning. Faculty and staff and students, we all want to have connection. That will look different depending on the format students choose, but there's going to be a nice balance that will evolve between what we do online and what we do on campus.

How are the students dealing with it now? Which problems have come up, and how have you solved them?

This has been hard on the students who weren’t used to online classes prepandemic. Many of our students never would have tried online learning, but once they did it, a lot of them really found that they could learn and liked the benefits that online brought. Obviously, many students will return to campus once they have the option, but online learning provides students with an opportunity to learn in different ways according to their style. If you’re a visual learner, watch the

lecture. If you learn best by reading, read the transcript. If you’re unclear on something, go back and rewatch a section. There are some unique benefits to online. We had a few students who elected to defer when presented with the option of online learning, but many students realize the world is changing and they need to stay in their programs. They want to be well prepared to deal with both the positive and the negative impacts of what’s going to happen in the next year or two.

What do you see as the future of online education?

We're going to always have a fully online program, and we're going to have fully on-campus programs as well. But I think that middle space, the hybrid learning, is going to grow. We're going to have to re-evaluate all of our classes and programs in the business school to really assess what percentage should be online and what percentage should be on campus. We’re going to keep the best parts of what we're learning and adapt and adopt.

Speaking of your students, which qualities are you trying to create in business leaders? How do you define success?

We’re all wondering what’s going to happen in the next few years and how it will impact us. We want students to draw from our strategic leadership, finance, accounting, and other classes to build the problem-solving and decision-making skills they need to establish their strategies and vision for the future while remaining flexible in a changing world.

I define success as seeing students accomplish what I say to all of them coming in: Learn, then go back and apply it. That's the real benefit of an MBA or executive education: applying what you learn. Don't learn and absorb it and never use it. Use it, apply it, and make a difference in this world. Go out and change things. Improve things. Take care of your people, whether those are customers, patients, employees, whomever. Do whatever that might be to affect positive change.

DAVID ECCLES SCHOOL OF BUSINESS

OUTGAMING RISK How Companies Learn To Avoid Disasters By Katie Drake

ECCLES EXPERIENCE

Spring 2021

he Titanic. Chernobyl. Hurricane Katrina. Plenty of people are obsessed with these types of disasters. But for Nitin Bakshi, Associate Professor of Operations and Information Systems, the near miss (a close call) is far more compelling.

Often we tend to think of disasters as black swan events for which there is absolutely nothing that could have been done. Yet in reality, they often leave tell-tale clues in the form of near misses in the build-up to the disaster. These near misses embed valuable lessons on how improve processes that help contain the risk of disaster. “Each disaster can be thought of as a sequence of steps,” Bakshi said. “While the culmination of such a sequence into an explosion or pandemic is extremely rare, the probability of the intermediate steps, or near misses, that lead to the larger event can be much higher.” Strong companies are alert to these precursors and near misses, and they work to gather information that allows them to mitigate those risks. But oftentimes, management is too far removed from processes, does not observe these small faults or oversights, and seemingly insignificant issues can escalate into a major disaster. An example that illustrates these challenges is the explosion at BP’s

Each disaster can be thought of as a sequence of steps. — Nitin Bakshi Texas City oil refinery in 2005, which killed 15 people, injured 180, and caused losses running into billions of dollars. Contractors had overfilled a distillation column during a startup procedure and also applied excessive heat, releasing a vapor cloud that was then ignited by a nearby idling engine. The disaster investigation determined that operators had overfilled the distillation column during startup on 18 occasions in the previous five years, but

NITIN BAKSHI

without adverse consequences (i.e., near misses); the excess crude was consumed in the production run. The contractors did not report these violations to management. Unable to investigate the incidents to determine their root cause, the firm lost the opportunity to implement safety improvement measures such as installing an automatic cutout to prevent overfilling or installing a flare to safely burn escaping hydrocarbons. In more recent events, new viruses may develop, but often they die out before spreading to the human population. In the current coronavirus pandemic, the virus managed to escalate from the intermediate steps (near misses) and become a global pandemic. So, how can companies find these issues and weed them out? Bakshi believes the solution lies with empowering employees down the line. First, companies need to foster a safe environment for employees to report issues. Employees may be concerned about repercussions for mistakes or problems, even if they were not at fault, and that can lead them to choose safeguarding themselves and their teams instead of reporting. Employees also require appropriate incentives to help improve processes. Many times, firms entirely retain any profits or gains discovered through process improvements. Bakshi suggests sharing the gains by incentivizing employees through long-term safety bonuses that encourage reporting of near misses while at the same time discouraging negligence. Even with these safeguards, disasters are bound to happen, but Bakshi believes their incidence can be reduced and their outcomes mitigated by finding those near misses. He points to the current pandemic as an example. Epidemiologists can predict that these new virus outbreaks will occur, but through diligent reporting and process improvement (e.g., in the “wet markets” that sell fresh meat and fish), most won’t make it out into the general population. We need to examine where the breakdown occurred, and find those opportunities to improve.

ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR OF OPERATIONS

Dr. Nitin Bakshi focuses his research on the management of disruption risk in operations and supply-chain management, with an emphasis on “low-probability high-consequence” events. Topics he has studied include how to design and manage resilient supply chain networks; operational and communication policies in the face of terrorism risk, and structuring incentives for after-sales service of new aircraft engines that incur rare but costly failures. He is currently investigating how to manage reporting of accident precursors to enhance safety in dangerous operations. His work has been published in top academic journals such as Management Science, Operations Research, and Production and Operations Management. He holds a B. Tech. in Electrical Engineering from IIT Bombay; an M.S. in Management Science from Stanford University; and a Ph.D. in Applied Economics from the Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania.

DAVID ECCLES SCHOOL OF BUSINESS

INVESTING IN FAMILIES How Paid Family Leave Ultimately Benefits Business By Katie Drake

ECCLES EXPERIENCE

Spring 2021

aid family leave seems like a simple solution to narrowing the gender gaps in pay and employment. In fact, many academics and policymakers have advocated for paidfamily-leave policies with just that in mind. But the real-world impacts of leave policies may be more of a mixed bag, according to research by Elena Patel, Assistant Professor in the Business Economics Group in the Department of Finance. While the policies extend leave-taking practices, they also seem to nudge some new mothers out of the labor market, Patel and her co-authors found in an extensive review of the 2004 California Paid Family Leave Act (CPFL). For example, first-time mothers taking advantage of the CPFL saw a 7% reduction in employment and an 8% reduction in annual wage earnings over 10 years. On the other hand, the policy had little impact on employment or wage earnings for mothers who have subsequent children.

Determining whether the negative impact of CPFL on women’s careers is driven by discrimination by employers or whether new mothers were simply opting out of the workforce, however, is challenging. “Given the relatively moderate increase in paid leave with the 2004 act, particularly in comparison to European policies, we were surprised to see that new mothers seem to be nudged out of the labor market,” Patel said. “It’s difficult to imagine that employers systematically discriminate against new mothers but not against mothers with young children. For this reason, we look for clues that mothers with access to paid family leave invest more in their children.” California law had previously aﬀorded mothers in the workforce six weeks of partially paid leave to bond with their newborns. The CPFL increased the available leave to 12 weeks after July 2004. In the study, researchers compared mothers who gave birth after July 2004 with full access to CPFL to mothers who gave birth just before July 2004 and were technically eligible for paid leave but constrained in their ability to use it. The research centered on a decade’s worth of IRS tax filings, wage figures, and U.S. Census

ELENA PATEL

surveys. Patel had unique access to this data from her previous position at the U.S. Department of Treasury. All in all, the team estimates “the annual wage earnings of new mothers taking up paid leave were $1,600 to $2,600 lower in the short term and $2,500 to $3,700 in the long run.” Some of this wage loss may have been oﬀ-set by self-employment income

It’s difficult to imagine that employers systematically discriminate against new mothers, but not against mothers with young children. — Elena Patel

as mothers sought more flexible work arrangements, Patel said. Mothers in California appeared to have stronger relationships with their kids following the introduction of CPFL, according to the study’s analysis of U.S. Census data. In fact, working mothers who took advantage of the act read to their kids more often, eat breakfast with them more frequently, and take them on more outings. Participating mothers also tend to have fewer children, generally fostering stronger bonds within a smaller family. Patel and her co-authors Martha Bailey of the University of Michigan, Tanya Byker of Middlebury College, and Shanthi Ramnath of the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago hope the findings will promote and inform policy discussions over paid family leave.

ASSISTANT FINANCE PROFESSOR

Elena is an Assistant Professor in the Finance Department at the University of Utah. She received her Ph.D. in Economics from the University of Michigan in 2013. She spent six years working as a Financial Economist in the Department of the Treasury’s Office of Tax Analysis, where she worked extensively on issues of optimal corporate taxation. As an applied microeconomist, her main research interests are in the fields of industrial organization, health economics, regulatory economics, and public finance. Her research agenda focuses on the behavioral responses of businesses to the U.S. tax system. In addition, she has done work developing a greater understanding of the competitive interaction between nontraditional organizational firm structures, including associated antitrust issues. Finally, she works on issues of female labor supply and responses to paid family leave policies.

DAVID ECCLES SCHOOL OF BUSINESS

INVESTING INTERNATIONALLY SEC Regulation Simplifies Across Borders By Katie Drake

ECCLES EXPERIENCE

Spring 2021

lthough many academics point out the many benefits of diversifying portfolios globally, investors tend to overinvest at home and underinvest abroad — a phenomenon known as “home bias.” Why do investors forgo the benefits of international diversification? It turns out that investing in foreign markets is risky business — in part, because if fraudsters take advantage of foreign investors, it’s difficult for regulators to investigate and prosecute wrongdoers. For decades, these problems seemed insurmountable for securities regulators. But recently, regulators have made monumental advances in their cross-border capabilities.

The law would put a target squarely on China, which for years has been unable or unwilling to cooperate. — Roger Silvers

around the world (including the CFTC, World Bank, IOSCO, World Federation of Exchanges, and securities regulators in Israel, the Netherlands, and Singapore). Recently, geopolitical events have thrust Silvers’ expertise into the limelight. This summer, the failures of U.S.-listed Chinese companies led Congress to take action. Pending legislation threatens to delist from U.S. markets any firms that do not comply with U.S. financial regulations. “The law would put a target squarely on China, which for years has been unable or unwilling to cooperate,” Silvers wrote in an op-ed in Barron’s. “Management at the SEC changes every few years, and new blood brings renewed optimism about the prospect of negotiating with China. Previous failures get chalked up to staﬀ-level shortcomings — U.S. officials simply didn’t make the right arguments, create the right incentives, or negotiate hard enough to be successful.” But Silvers argues that the pursuit of legislative proposals suggests that it’s actually not possible for the SEC to secure China’s assistance through conventional negotiations. In fact, he submitted a comment letter to the SEC’s Roundtable on Emerging Markets Risks (July 9, 2020) that outlines a proposed path toward better cooperation with China and beyond.

Roger Silvers, Assistant Professor of Accounting, is the world’s leading expert on the topic of cooperation between securities regulators and recently won FESE’s prestigious de la Vega prize for his study of regulatory cooperation and global market integration. In the article, he shows a boost in foreign investment — to the tune of roughly $1.8 trillion — at the diﬀerent times that various pairs of securities regulators begin to cooperate. “Cross-border investment and market integration depend, in large part, on regulators from both countries working together to extend legal and institutional capacities across their borders,” Silvers says. Silvers’ insights are not purely academic … they also leverage his time as a senior economist at the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and extensive consultation and interaction with securities regulators and international bodies

ROGER SILVERS

ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR OF ACCOUNTING

Roger received an undergraduate degree in accounting from Lynchburg College in Virginia and has several years of experience working as a cost accountant in a small manufacturing company and as an analyst at DuPont. Before joining the David Eccles School of Business, Roger received a Ph.D. from the University of Massachusetts. His current research program focuses on the enforcement of securities laws and international cooperation between regulators. His work has been published in the Journal of Accounting Research.

DAVID ECCLES SCHOOL OF BUSINESS

STRATEGY AT STAKE Conflict Between People and Profits By Katie Drake

ECCLES EXPERIENCE

Spring 2021

hould firms maximize the wealth of their shareholders or address the interests of all their stakeholders? This debate has raged for some time, and has often been couched in these two extreme positions. But according to recent work by Jay Barney, Presidential Professor of Strategic Management at the David Eccles School of Business, both these extremes are difficult to defend. Barney’s work on this debate — along with his research in many other areas — has made him a world-renowned expert in strategy, with more than 170,000 citations — the most citations of any scholar at the University of Utah and among the top in the field of strategic management. According to Barney, a firm that focuses only on maximizing the wealth of its shareholders effectively makes the following offer to its non-shareholder stakeholders: “You work like crazy, demonstrate loyalty and commitment, and make the kinds of investments in us that are necessary for our firm to generate economic profits — and all the profits you help us create will go to our shareholders.” Most rational self-interested non-shareholder stakeholders will say “no deal” to this offer. There is no reason for these stakeholders to provide a firm access to profit-generating resources if they do not have the opportunity to share in some of the profits these resources may help create. Firms that strictly implement a “shareholder supremacy” policy cannot expect their non-shareholder stakeholders to provide them access to profit-generating resources. And without these resources, where do these firm profits come from? Most firms get this, and already reward stakeholders that help generate economic profits — critical employees, scientists, engineers, suppliers, and customers — in ways that enable these stakeholders to share in some of the profits they help create. But firms that reward these critical non-shareholder stakeholders need not jump to the other extreme and try to make decisions that address the interests of all of their stakeholders. Conflicts among stakeholders in how they would like to see a firm managed almost always emerge. And sometimes, these conflicts are impossible to

JAY BARNEY

resolve. Assertions that a firm will try to address the interests of all its stakeholders, without recognizing that these interests will often conflict, ring distinctly hollow.

...And all the profits you help us create will go to our shareholders. — Jay Barney

But Barney’s research has found a middle ground. It begins by recognizing that not all stakeholders have the same claim on a firm’s profits. Some stakeholders provide resources that enable a firm to continue its operations, but are not the source of economic profits. While these stakeholders must be compensated fairly, they do not have a claim on a firm’s profits because they do not provide the firm with profit-generating resources. However, stakeholders that do provide profit generating resources do have such a claim. Indeed, if this claim is not recognized, firms will not be able to attract these profit-generating resources. Ultimately, one of senior management’s most critical strategic tasks is to identify and assemble resources that have profit making potential. This will usually involve gaining access to profitgenerating resources from non-shareholder stakeholders. At the same time, stakeholders that provide resources that are not likely to generate economic profits need to be compensated fairly and treated with respect and dignity.

PROFESSOR OF STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT

Jay Barney is a Presidential Professor of Strategic Management and the Pierre Lassonde Chair of Social Entrepreneurship at the University of Utah David Eccles School of Business. He previously served as a professor of management and held the Chase Chair for Excellence in Corporate Strategy at the Ohio State University Max M. Fisher College of Business. He has served as an officer of both the Business Policy and Strategy Division of the Academy of Management and the Strategic Management Society and has served as an associate editor at the Journal of Management, senior editor for Organization Science, and co-editor at the Strategic Entrepreneurship Journal.

DAVID ECCLES SCHOOL OF BUSINESS

UTAH

HERO

eye on research

PROJECT

TRACKING COVID-19 TO

INFORM DECISION-MAKERS Summary of Key Findings, Current Trends, and Implications The Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute reviewed the research and results from the Utah Health and Economic Recovery Outreach Project (HERO Project). This summary includes eight key findings from this research and their associated implications. These implications focus on both public health and economic stability by advising COVID-19 mitigation strategies that promote personal protective measures. These measures allow businesses to remain open and people to remain employed. Protecting Utahns’ health is an integral part of ensuring long-term economic stability. Note: In developing evidence-based policy recommendations, the HERO Project’s research and results are continuously reviewed in the context of emerging state and national research. The findings outlined below are based on early results. The implications developed from these initial results may change pending updated research.

Community prevalence of COVID-19 is increasing. The HERO Project uses community-wide blood (or serology) testing to estimate the occurrence of COVID-19 infections in the community (seroprevalence). Initial phases of the HERO Project found community infection rates in Utah ranged from 0.5‒2.8%. Recent data shows these rates are closer to 10%.

Implications: Reinforce the Governor’s State of Emergency issued November 8‒23, 2020, which includes a state-wide mask requirement, limits casual social gatherings to households-only, puts all youth and high school extracurricular activities on hold, and promotes weekly testing of students enrolled at public and private colleges and universities (who either live on campus or attend at least one in-person class per week). Encourage mask use between households and in public regardless of physical distancing. Keep businesses open with necessary mitigation strategies such as allowing employees to work remotely when possible, supporting delivery and curbside pickup, requiring mask use and increasing ventilation, and engaging in strict cleaning protocols and physical distancing.

There are around 1.5 unknown cases of COVID-19 for every known case. More recent data indicate this ratio may be rising. This ratio of undetected to detected cases is lower than reported in other community studies, meaning Utah’s testing performance in the early months of the public health emergency may have been more effective compared to other states. It also shows there are more unknown cases of COVID-19 than known, meaning testing and contact tracing are not capturing all possible spread and that other means of reducing spread are needed. Implications: Expand clinical testing, frequency of testing, and reliable testing results. Reduce the time it takes to receive results from days to hours to identify positive results and asymptomatic carriers more quickly, and to help reduce possible spread. Continue to leverage the National Guard to assist with expanded testing and contact tracing (Note: the National Guard is not being used for enforcement). Reinforce messaging that anyone with symptoms should be tested to help ensure accurate community detection rates and contact tracing.

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Transmission rates among elementary- and middle-school age children are low (about 1‒2%). The HERO Project contributes to a growing body of research that shows transmission and infection rates among young children during school hours are low. Implications: Prioritize in-person learning in combination with COVID-19 mitigation strategies for elementary, junior high, and middle schools. Reassess at an individual-school level if community spread becomes extensive.

ECCLES EXPERIENCE

Spring 2021

Transmission rates among high-school age youth and young adults are higher (closer to 10%). Recent tests among some Utah high schools showed positivity rates as high as 10%, with a large portion of these students being asymptomatic. While in-school transmission is low, higher rates of transmission appear to be coming from extracurricular and social activities. Transmission is now spreading to the broader community and vulnerable populations.

Implications: Employ structural shifts to enforce behavior change and/or stronger messaging to encourage behavior change. Structural shifts may include, but are not limited to, encouraging more testing by providing appropriate incentives, or temporarily moving to remote learning and/or halting extracurricular activities to create a break in transmissions. Stronger messaging should focus on reasons why this group should support behavior change, what they can do to do to help their families, friends, and communities, and providing rewards for practicing personal protective measures.

Community prevalence varies by area and is higher among certain racial and ethnic groups and lower socioeconomic communities. For example, early findings from the HERO Project show community prevalence among Utah’s Hispanic population ranged from 2.7‒5.1%. Data on COVID-19 antibodies found among these communities can help Utah monitor equity gaps and develop more effective solutions to slow the spread for all communities in the state.

Implication: Develop community-specific interventions, including developing culturally appropriate and language-specific messaging on the importance of practicing personal protective measures, providing specific guidance on what personal protective measures are, increasing access to testing by providing testing at accessible places of care, and supporting community advocates with necessary resources to safely engage in the communities.

The secondary household infection rate is 12‒15%. Initial data showed that within Utah households where at least one person has COVID-19 antibodies, 12.2% of the remaining individuals within the household are also likely to have antibodies. Current data shows this rate is now closer to 15% and exponentially increases if more than one person in a household tests positive.

Based on initial findings, the infection fatality rate is estimated to be about 0.3%. By assessing the number of undetected cases, the HERO Project estimates that the infection fatality rate among all people infected with COVID-19 (including both detected and undetected cases) was 0.3% as of August 10, 2020. Recent data show the infection fatality rate continues to remain low.

Antibodies seem to decrease over time. A number of individuals who had positive antibody tests in initial phases of the project did not test positive is subsequent phases. While some of this may be due to testing errors, it is more likely the result that COVID-19 antibodies decrease over time.

Implications: Isolate family members who have tested positive and provide locations and social support for people to isolate when it is not possible to do so in their household. Encourage all household members to be tested for COVID-19 in order to determine the actual household positivity rate and appropriate level of quarantine.

Implication: Continue to track infection fatality rates over time, but recognize this measure does not capture the full impact of COVID-19 infections. Focusing solely on mortality ignores other critical impacts including persistent and long-lasting COVID-19 symptoms and the strain on resources needed to treat serious cases. This strain is now acutely impacting intensive care and other critical care units in health care systems throughout Utah.

Implications: Conduct more research to better understand the relationship between antibodies and immunity (the HERO Project’s tracking of COVID-19 antibodies will help assess the durability of immunity over time). Encourage people to continue to engage in personal protective measures, including mask wearing, physical distancing, and following the Governor’s State of Emergency order even if they have tested positive for COVID-19 in the past. The Utah Health and Economic Recovery Project (HERO Project) is a collaborative statewide surveillance project designed to help decision-makers understand community-based activity of the SARS-CoV-2 virus and COVID-19 infection rates. The goal of the HERO Project is to use local data to help Utah’s citizens and economy return to normal in a safe and informed way. Primary project partners include the David Eccles School of Business, University of Utah Health, ARUP Laboratories, Hope Corps, and the Utah Governor’s Office of Management and Budget.

DAVID ECCLES SCHOOL OF BUSINESS

CAMPUSNEWS LATEST NEWS AT THE ECCLES SCHOOL

Spring 2021

The University of Utah

The Center for Business, Health, and Prosperity celebrates its opening Pg. 31 Cabo Verde Secretary of State addresses University of Utah community Pg. 32 HEROic actions by student save life of Syracuse man Pg. 33 YESCO Presents historic First Security Bank sign to Lisa Eccles Pg. 34 Eccles School's Student Investment Fund hits $1 million mark Pg. 34 The Eccles School celebrates its annual Inclusion Week Pg. 36

ECCLES EXPERIENCE

Spring 2021

Campus News

The Center for Business, Health, and Prosperity celebrates its opening The Center for Business, Health, and Prosperity at the David Eccles School of Business celebrated its opening with a virtual event on Feb. 5. The center has been established to promote societal prosperity by integrating value-creating innovation and entrepreneurship with improved health. The center’s goal is to help communities “thrive by driving opportunity” and use entrepreneurship to drive social change. “This is a remarkable undertaking that is going to transform our school in so many ways,” said Dean Taylor Randall. According to Stephen Alder, executive director of the new center, “We have opportunities like never before to bring together value-creating business with enabling health practices to create opportunities for people to thrive. The Center for Business, Health, and Prosperity creates the vehicle through which we can develop constellation of fields and disciplines that can be harnessed to increase prosperity throughout the world.” Keynote Speaker Martyn Mensah, global entrepreneur and philanthropist and founding partner of StratAfrique Consulting, spoke about his decades of experience developing business in the region. “By harnessing the creative genius of the entrepreneur and applying it to health, we will see the increase of prosperity,” Mensah said. “It can transform not only Africa, but the world.”

In Memory of Phil Horsley Phil Horsley passed away on October 21, 2020, from complications related to spinal surgery. Phil graduated with his degree in economics from the University of Utah in 1960 and went on to an extraordinary career in private equity and venture capital investments, ultimately establishing his own firm Horsley Keogh Associates, later renamed Horsley Bridge Partners. Born and raised in Brigham City, Utah, Phil hailed from modest beginnings and saw the University of Utah as a stepping stone to his incredibly successful career. While a student, Phil was a member of the Sigma Chi Fraternity, an association he valued throughout his lifetime. Phil, his wife Gloria, and their children, started an endowed scholarship at the David Eccles School of Business that funded Horsley Scholars within the Business Scholars cohort. The family has generously contributed to the fund, making it one of our largest scholarships to-date. The Eccles School will greatly miss Phil, his business insight and generous spirit.

DAVID ECCLES SCHOOL OF BUSINESS

Campus News

Cabo Verde Secretary of State addresses University of Utah community On Nov. 19, Eccles School students were lucky enough to hear from Pedro Lopes, the current Secretary of State for Innovation and TVET of Cabo Verde, an African island country in the Atlantic Ocean. He is known for organizing the first TEDx event in Cabo Verde, as well as being chosen by former U.S. President Barack Obama to be involved in his first leadership initiative in Africa, named Obama Leaders. Lopes delivered the keynote address for the University of Utah’s International Week and was hosted by Eccles Gobal. In this conversation, Lopes spoke about the potential of innovation in not only his home country but also the entire continent of Africa. He emphasizes the youth of Africa are really the ones who will bring this change about. In fact, every time he has the opportunity to speak with other political leaders throughout the continent, he always makes a point to ask what they are doing for their youth.

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Spring 2021

Campus News

Joel Peterson headlines 30th Annual Spencer Fox Eccles Convocation How do you go from having an idea to running a profitable and enduring business? Joel Peterson spoke about how to accomplish this using the concepts from his new book Entrepreneurial Leadership at the 30th Annual Spencer Fox Eccles Convocation last September. Peterson had the opportunity to address a select group of students in-person with members of the Eccles family, University of Utah President Ruth V. Watkins and Eccles School Dean Taylor Randall, as well as approximately 300 alumni, donors, students, staff, and faculty who tuned in virtually. A successful investor in seven unicorn companies, founding partner of Peterson Partners, and Adjunct Professor at the Stanford University Graduate School of Business, Peterson delivered a powerful message about how it takes an entrepreneurial leader with a strong foundation to create not only a profitable business but an enduring one. “When building a business, you are building on the pillars of trust, mission, team and execution,” Peterson emphasized. “You can build an umpteenth story building if you have a strong foundation.”

HEROic actions by student save life of Syracuse man It’s not called Utah HERO for nothing! While working on the Utah Health & Economic Recovery Outreach (HERO) Project on June 1, 2020 in Syracuse, Utah, University of Utah student Ethan Edwards encountered an unconscious adult male who was not breathing. Edwards sprung into action, immediately performing CPR on the man until an ambulance crew arrived at the scene. Because of Edwards' heroic actions, the patient survived and is now at home expecting to make a full recovery. Syracuse Fire Chief Aaron Byington has personally thanked Edwards and brought him to the Syracuse station to meet the ambulance crew who responded to the call. In an email, Byington wrote, “There is no doubt in my mind that Ethan’s actions this day resulted in the positive outcome for this patient … What a great individual you have working for you!” The Eccles School would like to thank Ethan for his courageous actions on June 1. We truly have a hero working in our HERO project!

DAVID ECCLES SCHOOL OF BUSINESS

Campus News

YESCO Presents historic First Security Bank sign to Lisa Eccles “If this sign could only speak, I wonder what it would say,” remarked Lisa Eccles, President and Chief Operating Officer of the George S. and Dolores Doré Eccles Foundation, as members of the Young family, representing YESCO, presented her with a historic First Security Bank sign on Tuesday, Dec. 8, 2020. In celebration of their milestone 100th anniversary, as well as the organization’s decades-long business relationship with the Eccles family, members of the Young family reflected on how intertwined the two families have been through the decades. The First Security Bank sign, created by YESCO’s founder, Thomas Young, Sr. in 1928, weighs more than 250 pounds and adorned the First Security Bank building at 79 South Main Street in Salt Lake City until the bank merged with Wells Fargo in 2000. It will be a permanent installation at the David Eccles School of Business in the seventh-floor First Security Board Room, which is filled with other historical photos and memorabilia. “We thank you from the bottom of our hearts for not only a business relationship but a friendship as well,” Lisa Eccles said, expressing her gratitude for the sign and the Eccles’ relationship with the Young family. “From the Eccles clan to the Young

Eccles School’s Student Investment Fund hits $1 million mark The Student Investment Fund at the David Eccles School of Business hit the $1 million mark on Aug. 5, 2020. “I am really excited to reach the $1 million threshold,” said Elizabeth Tashjian, a professor of Finance and faculty advisor of the Student Investment Fund. “Although it is an arbitrary number, it says to our students, our alumni, and employers that the students have serious responsibility for a meaningful portfolio.” In its more than 20 years, the fund has beaten the SPDR S&P 500 ETF (ticker SPY) for its entire run (SPY had an annual return including dividends of 6.7% while SIF had a return of 7.4%, even after taking into account all the expenses, taxes, etc.) “If you had invested $1,000 if SIF at the beginning, you would have earned almost an extra $650 relative to investing in the index,” Tashjian said. “Most active funds underperform the index after accounting for costs, so we are very proud of our performance.”

ECCLES EXPERIENCE

Spring 2021

Campus News

The Eccles School’s MBA programs continue to climb the national and international rankings The Eccles School’s Full-Time MBA advanced four spots to No. 44, improving four spots over last year. The Professional MBA program advanced to No. 28, increasing six spots over last year’s part-time MBA ranking. This 2021 part-time MBA ranking represents an astounding 80 spot increase for the Professional MBA program over the past five years. The MBA Online program has ranked No. 1 in the West, No. 6 in the United States, and No. 13 globally in the 2021 Financial Times Online MBA rankings. This marks the Eccles School’s inaugural showing in the Financial Times ranking of the world’s best online MBA programs. “It is wonderful to be recognized, and it is significant in light of all that has happened in the last year,” said Taylor Randall, dean of the David Eccles School of Business. “The resiliency and determination that our students, staff, and faculty showed in continuing to create an opportunity for world-class business education to thrive during a global pandemic are incredible.”

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DAVID ECCLES SCHOOL OF BUSINESS

Campus News

Salt Lake Chamber honors Eccles School as Community Partner of the Year The Salt Lake Chamber named the David Eccles School of Business its Community Partner of the Year for 2020. The Eccles School and the Utah Community Builders arm of the Chamber partnered as the COVID-19 pandemic hit to work together to provide students who had lost their internships with experience and provide local businesses with workers who could help them during an extreme kind of need. From that, the Hope Corps was born.

The Eccles School celebrates its annual Inclusion Week The David Eccles School of Business recently hosted our annual Eccles Inclusion Week aimed at celebrating our diverse community and strengthening the inclusive culture at the Eccles School. This year’s theme “Rise Up: Our Ongoing Commitment to Equity,” sought to demonstrate our renewed commitment to take action to fight inequity, both now and going forward. The week featured a wide variety of guest speakers who shared their perspectives on many topics, including challenges people of color face in business in Utah, how and why it’s important to be an ally, how to incorporate social justice into business, and how to combat racism in our community. Keynote speaker Kori Hale, trailblazing journalist and CEO of CultureBanx, shared her thoughts about “shaping the future of social justice in business.” She suggested that companies and employees start taking action to promote social justice and not let the burden of “being just one person” hold them back from starting to create that impact. Through education, transparency, and working together to enforce EDI initiatives as leaders and employees, she believes that, although slow, things are moving in the right direction. Hale’s ultimate advice for organizations seeking to connect to communities to enhance EDI efforts is simple: “Show up!” We want to recognize the Office for Student Inclusion, Student Engagement and Assessment, External Relations, Business Career Services, Goff Strategic Leadership Center, Marketing + Communications, student volunteers, and everyone else who helped in organizing this year’s Eccles Inclusion Week!

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Pierre By Thad Kelling

The brilliant mining entrepreneur and philanthropist looks to the next chapter

fter 35 years leading Franco-Nevada, Pierre Lassonde – the founder of the Lassonde Entrepreneur Institute at the University of Utah’s David Eccles School of Business – retired from the company when he stepped down as hairman of the board in May 2020. The milestone concluded an epic career with the company he cofounded in 1985 and grew to its current valuation of $38 billion. Franco-Nevada is a leading gold-focused royalty and streaming company. Since its initial public offering (IPO) in 2007, Franco-Nevada’s share price has outperformed both gold and other gold equities, and the company has been able to increase dividends for 12 consecutive years. Total shareholder return in the past 12.5 years has been 1,485% for a compounded return of 25.1% per year. “After 35 years with Franco-Nevada, in one incarnation or another, I would like to thank all of the analysts, brokers, portfolio managers, and shareholders who have believed in us and helped us build this great company,” said Lassonde in his last address as chairman before taking on the title of chair emeritus. “At a time when financial markets are racked by uncertainty, volatility, and violent losses in the face of COVID-19, there is nothing that gives me greater pleasure than to see our share price reach new highs and give our thousands of shareholders that extra support and comfort they deserve by having invested in Franco-Nevada,” he added. “That, more than anything else, is reward enough for me. Thank you.” Lassonde and partner Seymour Schulich founded the original Franco-Nevada, developing it in the early 1980s to an initial capitalization of $2 million. In the process, they pioneered the concept of mining royalties. The company remained the leading public mining royalty company until 2002, when Newmont

Mining acquired it for $2.5 billion. The original Franco-Nevada team continued to manage royalty assets as part of Newmont Capital. In 2007, they incorporated a new Franco-Nevada after launching an IPO and acquiring a royalty portfolio from Newmont for $1.2 billion. Franco-Nevada now trades under the symbol FNV on both the Toronto and New York stock exchanges. Lassonde founded what is now the Lassonde Entrepreneur Institute in 2001. His initial vision was to create an entrepreneur center that would provide transformative experiences by bringing students from all disciplines together to collaborate on new initiatives, technologies, and companies. That vision has grown to reach thousands of students, and Lassonde has continued his support as the institute’s lead sponsor and visionary. His generous donations support programs, scholarships, and Lassonde Studios. He was born in Quebec. After receiving a degree in electrical engineering in Montreal, he attended the University of Utah with his late wife, Claudette, and received his MBA in 1973. Since then, he has become a world-renowned mining investor and entrepreneur. Among many other accomplishments, in 1990, Lassonde authored The Gold Book: The Complete Investment Guide to Precious Metals. Beyond his many professional accomplishments, he is a leading philanthropist in areas including education and the arts, he holds seven honorary Ph.D.’s from universities including the University of Utah, and he was made a Member of the Order of Canada in 2001.

Learn more about Pierre Lassonde on Wikipedia at�en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pierre_Lassonde. Learn more about Franco-Nevada at�franco-nevada.com. DAVID ECCLES SCHOOL OF BUSINESS

BUILDING BRIDGES By Derek P. Jensen

mmersed in ventures to resuscitate an attainable housing industry on the mat, Clark Ivory is leaning on the scaffolding constructed between the David Eccles School of Business and the building community writ large. And if the depth of that foundation is any measure, his gambit seems both sturdy and sustainable. What’s more, Ivory’s financial seeds — flourishing across campus and the community like one of his suburban housing projects — has blossomed into a family affair.

Lifelong U. Love Decades before Ivory became one of the University of Utah’s most passionate benefactors, he was a student here, graduating in 1988. And despite spending a few years in Boston for grad school, he never really left. At the U., Ivory joined an undergraduate advisory group and quickly learned how effectively the U. leveraged donor support. That move, prompted by a professor, would become the catalyst for Ivory’s decades-long devotion for buoying business school programs and student prospects. Ivory’s wife Christine, herself a U. English grad with a teaching certificate, became deeply involved with the Children’s Dance Center. She praises legendary program architect Beverly Sorenson for the vision of bringing arts education and Tanner Dance into children’s lives. “It’s really amazing to see these artists sitting in these gymnasiums teaching art through math,” Christine Ivory recalls. She pushed to fund artists in residence, steered a $1 million donation to the dance center and later served as board chair. By 2000, Ivory had taken on leadership of the family business, Ivory Homes, and had also joined the University of Utah Board of Trustees as chair. Cranes seemingly outnumbered college towers during that era’s early century building boom, which prompted Ivory to hoist the number of student scholarships. Through the newly founded Clark and Christine Ivory Foundation, the couple invested heavily in scholarships, particularly for minorities, betting the U.’s economic impact on Utah via education would be immense. “It’s really the

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University of Utah,” says Ivory. “If the university gets involved, something is more likely to succeed.” Little surprise then that Ivory helped fund the Ivory-Boyer Real Estate Center within the Eccles School in 2007. Designed to place graduates into industrial, commercial, and residential real estate, Ivory explains the center also facilitates student tours across Asia and Europe to expand views of what real estate can be. Dean Taylor Randall believes it can become one of the nation’s elite real estate programs. In addition, Ivory was instrumental in the development of the Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute, now the state’s premier public policy organization, whose landmark 2018 study sounded the alarm on what mushrooming home costs meant for housing affordability across Utah.

Eye on the Aﬀordability Prize To solve the housing crisis, Ivory is banking on naivete. Specifically, he’s hoping college kids untethered to corporate boards, public policy, or financial lenders can find ways to fix affordable home building with new thinking. That spawned Ivory Innovations, an applied academic program at the Eccles School that features a course with world-class instructors, Hack-A-House contests, and even monetary awards for compelling ideas. “You bring all these students together and you get all this energy,” says Ivory. “It’s just spawned incredible creativity.” The board includes top minds from Harvard, Cal-Berkeley and Washington State University, as well as the foremost modular home expert in the country. Students end up pitching members on concepts ranging from construction to finance to

HOW A COMMUNITY BRIDGE TO AND FROM THE U. BECAME CLARK IVORYʼS BIGGEST BUILD regulatory reform. The beauty, says Abby Ivory, a daughter nicknamed the “connector,” who helps run Innovations, is mixing approaches to solve a common goal. “To be able to just talk it out is so important,” says Abby Ivory. “People start to learn other people’s perspectives. It’s so humanizing.” The program is meant to be interdisciplinary, meaning a student studying city planning can work with another in finance to tackle the affordability question. Because the students get to know the housing industry’s companies so well, many secure internships with them. “We’re trying to shine a light with people on great ideas,” Ivory says. Christine Ivory argues the model of education is ripe for disruption. “The energy … youth, brilliance,” she says. “You can just see it from these students who are thinking outside the box. That’s what Hack-A-House was: taking students from every discipline; get them together for 24 hours and asking them to solve specific policy, finance, and building and design questions for housing … the future looks bright.”

Going Global

Building an Army of Hope to Conquer COVID In the spring of 2020, when most of us were still learning the term “social distancing,” Clark Ivory already had decided to bankroll an army of COVID-sidelined interns, who could fan across Utah to help nonprofits, restaurants and retailers ravaged by COVID-19. By locking arms with other donors from the David Eccles School of Business to launch the Hope Corps program, Ivory was making a consistent bet on young people as our economic vanguard. Suddenly students from the U. and elsewhere were building mobile apps to help people with food delivery and pounding the pavement to administer COVID tests. “Clark has been ever-ready to share his time, talents, and resources to improve conditions for people to thrive,” says Steve Alder, Executive Director of the Center for Business, Health, and Prosperity at the U. “His role in supporting the creation of the Hope Corps, which has taken young, talented members of our community and employed them to work on the front lines of the pandemic, is just one of the many profound ways he has personally contributed to the prosperity of Utah. Clark exemplifies the core values of the David Eccles School of Business.”

During an LDS mission with their youngest son in Romania and Moldova from 2014-2017, Clark and Christine Ivory were struck by the lack of economic opportunity, exasperated by a heavy-handed oligarch. “Those people have no way up and no way out,” Christine Ivory laments. “As we watched all of that, it was clear that something needed to happen.”

For years, Ivory has also delivered $10,000 cash gifts — an “Ivory Prize” — to selfless students helping the homeless or autistic, for instance, or so-called non-completers, who drop out of college unable to pay. “We wanted to find students who were being left out,” Ivory says.

Thus, the “Utah-Moldova Business Partnership” was born. A new building was leased to house business and technology courses, which drew Russians from small villages to take the classes online. Ivory continues to offer free consulting services to help Moldovan businesses become sustainable, scalable, and impactful.

Given the home builder’s generosity and heart — which bleeds U. red — very few are.

“It’s given them a way to progress,” Christine Ivory says. Ivory executive Michael Parker sees it through a wider lens. “He’s globalized the business school’s impact.”

Photos by Stephanie Dunn, BW Productions

DAVID ECCLES SCHOOL OF BUSINESS

SMART PACKAGING FOR A HEALTHY

PLANET

Alumni Hanko Kiessner and his son, Hansi, are empowering businesses to use less and protect more with right-sized packaging. By Paige Lichtenwalter

or Packsize, it all points back to the why. When it comes to starting a successful business, most people think of an idea, a strong brand presence, sales, and ultimately, turning a profit. But knowing the “why” behind the business keeps a strong commitment to the vision and helps others get on board, too. Packsize’s “why” has been at the forefront of their business from the start. Founded in 2002 by Hanko Kiessner BA’91 MBA’92, Packsize is saving the planet one box at a time. Each year, 5.8 billion tons of paper from 98 million trees are used to make oversized shipping boxes. Kiessner set out to change this shipping industry narrative with Packsize. “To give you an example, to ship all of the oversized boxes in the U.S. alone, because they are too large, you need 24 million truckloads more than you normally would if the boxes fit. This is burning 1.7 billion gallons of diesel and leaving 16 or 17 billion kilograms of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere,” Kiessner explained. With this new idea of packaging as a service, and a passion to create smart packaging for a healthy planet, Kiessner immigrated to the United States from Germany 10 years after graduating from the David Eccles School of Business with his

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bachelor’s and master’s degrees. Kiessner, his wife Laura, and his three young children traveled by boat to Manhattan, New York, where they took a train to Salt Lake City. One week later, in a small bedroom in his wife’s parents’ house, Packsize was born. Their first customer at six months in, Emerson Electric, quickly turned into two customers, then three, five, and 12. Now 19 years into this Salt Lake City-based company, Packsize is thriving in more than 26 countries with a machine factory in Sweden and employees and leadership teams around the world. Packsize is also recognized by Inc. 5000, ranked by Deloitte’s Technology Fast 500, and listed as One of America’s Most Promising Companies by Forbes. With its revolutionary right-sized packaging machine technology, this sustainable, on-demand packaging company saves 98 million trees and 17 billion kilograms of pollution from shipping each year. Packsize is solving packaging problems for businesses and consumers while also helping to save the earth. “Our goal is that every person in the world receives their goods in the most sustainable way with the best experience, whether it’s an envelope or a box, so that we can all feel good about receiving items and products delivered to our homes,” Kiessner explained.

Photos by Stephanie Dunn, BW Productions

Packsize empowers businesses to identify the right-sized packaging for their products, leading to lower carbon emissions and material needs and providing a better experience for customers receiving their goods. Businesses address their number one packaging problem, excessive packaging, by eliminating the need to buy and store pre-made boxes. Instead, with Packsize, its fully automated machines can create 1,200 perfectly packaged boxes per hour without any plastic or excess space. This efficient and costeﬀective, just-in-time packaging machine system increases total savings by an average of 35%. These On Demand Packaging® solutions, which include a mix of hardware, software, consumables, and services, accomplish all this while delivering several distinct benefits for businesses, including lower OUR GOAL IS THAT costs & improved financial and labor EVERY PERSON IN performance of packaging operations. THE WORLD RECEIVES It also provides a better experience for THEIR GOODS IN THE customers. Customers can feel good about receiving items that fit perfectly MOST SUSTAINABLE into their packages with no plastic or WAY WITH THE BEST other extra filling inside.

go to the Packsize Now website and place an order for any quantity and size of boxes at any time, usually delivered within 1 to 2 days.

This year with the coronavirus pandemic, Packsize Now saw record EXPERIENCE. growth due to a strategic sales Hanko Kiessner structure that Hansi Kiessner came up This revolutionary packaging company with. In February 2020, the company also turned into a family business began to see drops in revenue because of the China trade war because of the passion for the mission. Hansi Kiessner, Hanko’s and then the coronavirus. Hansi Kiessner and his sales team son and alumnus of the David Eccles School of Business turned their focus to businesses that they thought would do entrepreneurship program, was able to watch Packsize grow as well in a pandemic environment. They acquired customers he grew up, too. At just age 16, he started his first internship that sold sporting goods, emergency food kits, and more in the with Packsize. “My parents always told me to see Packsize as an eCommerce space. In March and April, they already began to opportunity for me to learn throughout my schooling, so I did my see increases and now they are seeing record months. best to take advantage of that,” Hansi Kiessner said. He learned many diﬀerent aspects of the company throughout his teens and into college with internships in accounting, marketing, and data The production floor saw changes as well. They had to adjust analysis as well as spending a summer in Sweden working at the to working safely six feet apart with masks. “COVID-19 at machine factory. least for us has collapsed two years of transformation from retail into online retail in six months, and from that, we are In his final semester at the David Eccles School of Business now benefiting,” Hanko Kiessner noted. in 2017, he helped start a new branch of the business called Packsize Now. “Being in an environment surrounded by so While Hanko and Hansi Kiessner are incredibly proud of many like-minded people in terms of passion and drive for what they accomplished so far with Packsize and Packsize starting something new in the entrepreneurship program Now, there’s still plenty more to come with their business ... helped me be able to run a business successfully,” and mission for smart packaging for a healthy planet. Hanko Hansi Kiessner explained. explained the powerful company mission as “smart” meaning the technology, solutions, and processes, and “healthy” meaning Packsize Now makes on-demand packaging accessible for local sustainable and for the well-being of everyone on Earth. small- to medium-sized businesses. It services more than 100 companies along the Wasatch Front. Packsize’s business model “It’s a journey for us and our customers as we take them usually requires a business to have a certain amount of volume through becoming more sustainable,” Hansi Kiessner added. to justify the costs of the machinery that Packsize provides. “The journey is the goal in many ways.” With small-to-medium-sized businesses, Packsize Now allows them to take advantage of right-sized packaging without the added upfront costs. Instead, Wasatch Front businesses can

DAVID ECCLES SCHOOL OF BUSINESS

DEAN’S LIST Alumni Making Their Mark

Karey Barker BS'89, Finance Founder and Managing Director Cross Creek Advisors Salt Lake City, Utah

Favorite class at the Eccles School: Sam Stewart's Investment class

If you could go back and give your student self one piece of advice, what would it be?

One piece of advice I would give my student self would be to learn how to network and create long-term business relationships. While at the U, I focused on gaining analytical skills, not getting to know my fellow students. Not only did many of them go on to do incredibly interesting things, but also after graduation, I found myself attending business conferences uncomfortable and unskilled as a networker.

How has perseverance helped you in your career?

Investing requires perseverance to be successful. All investors make mistakes, and I have made some terrible investments and been demoralized at times. The key is not just to admit your mistakes but deeply analyze your diligence process to identify avoidable errors in the future. I try not to beat myself up too much and instead stay focused on learning and improving when I get it wrong.

What has been the biggest change in business needs in your industry because of the COVID-19 pandemic? One big challenge during COVID-19 is while travel has been curtailed, there are still many new compelling companies needing capital. At Cross Creek, we have had to adapt our diligence process and learn to get comfortable investing in companies where we have not physically met the management team or visited the company. In private equity, you usually cannot easily sell positions quickly (like the stock market) so a video call alone often feels inadequate, when getting to know the management team.

What is your favorite part about your current role?

My favorite part about venture investing is meeting passionate, hardworking, and creative entrepreneurs in different industries. As a generalist, I look at companies innovating in industries across healthcare, software, finance, and consumer. Over the years, I have seen many niche technologies and trends grow to be widely adopted. It is exciting to get an early look at the future and determine which companies are best positioned to thrive.

Who or what has been the most motivational to you in your life?

The most motivational person in my life has been Sam Stewart, Ph.D, who founded Wasatch Global Investors as a University of Utah professor. Sam gave me the opportunity to be an investor at Wasatch right out of school. I was able to watch Sam not only develop successful public equity investment strategies, but also build a well-regarded and established firm. Following his lead, I was able to incubate Cross Creek within Wasatch and develop a new strategy in late-stage private equity investing.

ECCLES EXPERIENCE

Spring 2021

DEAN’S LIST Alumni Making Their Mark

Yongmei Mou MBA'02 Head of Sales Compensation Zoom Video Communications San Jose, California

Favorite class at the Eccles School: Accounting

If you could go back and give your student self one piece of advice, what would it be?

Explore the topics and subjects that interest you and don’t be afraid to delve in. You will find out you generally do better in the subjects which you are more interested in. Specialist knowledge will give you the edge over general knowledge, and it will lead you to the next career opportunities.

How has perseverance helped you in your career?

Perseverance has helped me work through the obstacles, small or big. I have been working hard and learned to be patient to develop my career. I have been pushing myself to be 1% better every day. It helps me achieve my short-term and long-term goals.

What has been the biggest change in business needs in your industry because of the COVID-19 pandemic?

I am fortunate to work for Zoom Video Communications during the pandemic, where we help the world stay connected. COVID-19 has reshaped the way how people work and live. Working from home is required for a lot of jobs during this time and may still be the trend after COVID. Zoom’s video conferencing solutions have been in high demand for business and personal lives. Our biggest challenge is how to keep up with the growth.

What is your favorite part about your current role?

In my current role, I apply the data analysis to the customer needs immediately. As the business keeps changing, my favorite part of the job is the fact I keep learning while I am growing.

Who or what has been the most motivational to you in your life?

Tony Robbins has been very motivational to me up to this stage of my life. His books and speeches supported me to go through the ups and downs in my life. I learned from him that we have to work hard and be very patient to achieve our life goals.

DAVID ECCLES SCHOOL OF BUSINESS

DEAN’S LIST Alumni Making Their Mark

McKay Prestwich BS'18, Finance Consultant Prestwich Consulting Salt Lake City, Utah

Favorite class at the Eccles School: Honors Valuation

If you could go back and give your student self one piece of advice, what would it be?

Make time to learn about the things that interest you the most. Find ways to relate these topics to what you are studying in your classes and see how all of this translates to the real world. Additionally, do not take your teacher’s knowledge and expertise for granted. Learn all you can because these lessons will be invaluable after graduation.

How has perseverance helped you in your career?

Very few things work out on your first try. Many times you will get what you want just by being the one who shows up over and over. Any positive thing that has happened in my career can be attributed to some form of persistence. I have noticed that any problem worth solving has taken persistence because the good answers are rarely the ones that come to mind first. An obsession with an unanswered question will bring about the best answers.

What has been the biggest change in business needs in your industry because of the COVID-19 pandemic? Before the pandemic, my clients were coming to me with problems to solve. Since the pandemic has started, I have taken a more proactive approach of thinking about what troubles they may have and starting conversations with answers. Part of this is out of a sincere desire to help struggling small businesses. The other part of this is these customers don’t have the same ability to pay a consultant so an increase in my value proposition was necessary.

What is your favorite part about your current role?

I love hearing about all of my clients’ pain points. It’s fun to be able to work through these problems with them and find lasting solutions for them. I originally started my own little consulting business because I wanted to hear from business owners what problems they were having. My goal is that one day I will stumble across a problem that needs a business solution, that isn’t currently available, and I will be able to build a business that will solve that problem.

Who or what has been the most motivational to you in your life?

One of my motivations is making my family proud of all they have taught me and how they have raised me. I also want to be able to provide my future family with a life similar to one I had growing up. My parents worked very hard to give my siblings and me so much and I hope to be able to do the same for my kids and my wife.

ECCLES EXPERIENCE

Spring 2021

DEAN’S LIST Alumni Making Their Mark

Meghan Oliver BS'07, Marketing and Management Senior Vice President Bright Health Denver, CO

Favorite class at the Eccles School: Dr. Abe Bakhsheshy’s course on business ethics

If you could go back and give your student self one piece of advice, what would it be?

To take more risks and to get outside my comfort zone. I would recommend getting more involved in extracurricular activities as part of the business school and suggest taking an engineering course or two or an advanced art class. That would have made me uncomfortable.

How has perseverance helped you in your career?

From years of competitive swimming and having the pleasure of swimming at the U, I have always had a natural competitive edge and drive. This mentality has served me well over my career as I would always raise my hand for projects that I was not qualified for and that others steered clear of. I saw these as challenges and opportunities to gain experience. I’d always ask myself “what’s the worst thing that can happen?” 99.9% of the time, the answer is really not that bad.

What has been the biggest change in business needs in your industry because of the COVID-19 pandemic?

Working in healthcare administration, it was very dynamic and fast-moving. I believe the greatest change we have seen and will continue to see is around access to care. Overnight, people were forced to become comfortable with telemedicine and virtual care. While telemedicine has been around for years, COVID-19 has accelerated adoption of telemedicine (for both providers and consumers) that I foresee will sustain in a post-COVID environment, due to convenience and cost savings.

What is your favorite part about your current role?

I appreciate the challenge and variability in my role. I am fortunate to spend most of my time working on new development areas for the business. Whether its new products or new business ventures, I like pulling together teams of experts to solve problems and execute on opportunities to grow the business. In healthcare, there is always so much to learn, and I am lucky to get to work with smart people every day striving to make the healthcare experience better for everyone.

Who or what has been the most motivational to you in your life?

After I graduated from the U., I joined Leucadia National as an administrative assistant for the Chairman, Ian Cumming. Reflecting back 10 years later, Ian taught me the most valuable lessons not only in business, but in life. I was motivated by his work ethic and brilliance, but mostly how he worked with people. I am forever grateful for the time I worked for him. He has been a motivating force for everything I have done in my career and working with people.

DAVID ECCLES SCHOOL OF BUSINESS

DEAN’S LIST Alumni Making Their Mark

Eduardo Diez de Medina BS'16, Economics Financial Services Professional Empower Retirement Greenwood Village, Colorado

Favorite class at the Eccles School: Corporate Finance

If you could go back and give your student self one piece of advice, what would it be?

If I could go back and give myself one piece of advice, it would be to enjoy your college years more. I focused a lot on my education, which I do not regret, but looking back, I wish I would have been more involved in student organizations and met more students.

How has perseverance helped you in your career?

Perseverance has helped me in my career by keeping my eye on the goal and sticking to it. I am committed to my career and I am achieving my true potential. You have to keep your head in the game, have a true vision, and, most importantly stick to it.

What has been the biggest change in business needs in your industry because of the COVID-19 pandemic? The biggest change in business needs in the financial services industry has been the need for employees to work from home. The industry as a whole is quite conservative, so moving in that direction was a big step. I think company leaders are realizing that although it was a tough shift, both employees and employers are embracing the change with open arms. Very glad that it happened and I myself can see how much more productive I am working from home than from an office environment.

What is your favorite part about your current role?

The favorite part of my new role will be to help customers achieve their financial goals for retirement. It will be rewarding to be part of that process by educating customers in the process. I think education is the key and the focus of my new employer is all about education. Mix that in with financial services and it’s a great combination which I will highly enjoy.

Who or what has been the most motivational to you in your life?

The most motivational people in my life have been my family. They have been with me during my ups and downs and without their unwavering support, it would have been much harder to get to where I am at today. Even though at that time it felt like the challenge was an uphill battle and I wasn’t sure if it was the correct path, my family kept cheering me on and things worked out. I am a true believer that if you are not out of your comfort zone you are not learning and challenging yourself to grow.

ECCLES EXPERIENCE

Spring 2021

DEAN’S LIST Alumni Making Their Mark

Kristin Dittmer BS’00 MBA’02 Executive Vice President & Chief Financial Officer EnerBank, USA Salt Lake City

Favorite class at the Eccles School: Reading and Interpreting Financial Statements

If you could go back and give your student self one piece of advice, what would it be?

I was the epitome of a commuter student. I rode the bus to campus where I took a stacked course schedule and left for work immediately after classes ended. If I could go back, I would encourage my student self to get involved on campus by joining a club, helping with a service project, tutoring someone or finding some other way to develop stronger on-campus friendships and give back.

How has perseverance helped you in your career?

Early in my career, a mentor shared the mantra of “beaten down but not defeated,” and I have taken that to heart. Sometimes work (and life) doesn’t go the way I’d like, but it is important to learn from the difficult times and keep pressing forward.

What has been the biggest change in business needs in your industry because of the COVID-19 pandemic? Banking is about relationships … especially the in-person kind. With branches closed, business travel restricted, and many clients also working remotely, the banking industry adapted and found other ways to attract and connect with customers while simultaneously providing an exceptional level of care and service throughout this pandemic.

What is your favorite part about your current role?

The people I have the opportunity to work closely with as CFO at EnerBank, as Chair of the Utah Bankers Association, and as a member of the Eccles Opportunity Scholars Advisory Board. Everyone is highly engaged and committed to supporting employees and customers, Utah banks, and first-generation college students, respectively, not just to survive to not just survive the pandemic but to find ways to thrive.

Who or what has been the most motivational to you in your life?

Family. As a shy child, my parents taught me to reach high and to always do my best. Because of their encouragement, I learned that I could do hard things and achieve my goals. I lived with my grandparents during college and they were so proud of me and what I was accomplishing. My husband has been a wonderful support as I have progressed in my career. At this stage, I want to be a good example to my nieces and nephews of what’s possible when you dream big, work hard, give back, and take advantage of right place, right time opportunities that come your way.

DAVID ECCLES SCHOOL OF BUSINESS

2o2o

David Eccles School of Business Alumni and Donor Survey

who took the survey?

852

784

Alumni with an undergraduate degree from the Eccles School

Alumni with an graduate degree from the Eccles School

Non-alumni donors

Alumni with a PhD from the Eccles School

Alumni with an “unknown” degree from the Eccles School

Survey takers responded from 42 different states and 12 different countries.

1530 Total Responses

what did you tell us? Alumni and donors give to the Eccles School because: They have a desire to help the next generation of students.

They are proud of their alma mater.

Alumni and donors want to hear from the Eccles School about: Professional and career development information.

ECCLES EXPERIENCE

Spring 2021

Volunteering and mentoring opportunities at the school.

how

would you like to engage with us?

Mentoring and Volunteer Opportunities

22%

Career and Professional Development

19%

Professional Networking Events

13%

Utah Athletics / Football Tailgates

12%

Social Activities / Happy Hours

10%

Virtual / Online Webinars

Family Friendly Activities

Not Interested in any

7% 0.5%

Other

70% of alumni would like to join an alumni affinity group. Top choices include:

20% why

Industry Specific Groups

17%

Local alumni groups based on geographic location

we needed your feedback...

Expand mentoring and volunteer opportunities

13%

Women in Business

Improve alumni and donor communications

Develop more engaging and age specific alumni event programming

Learn more about the results of our survey at: Eccles.Link/Survey

DAVID ECCLES SCHOOL OF BUSINESS

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ECCLES EXPERIENCE

Spring 2021

PR ES EN TE D

BY:

Eccles Alum ni

Forums

One of the core values of the Eccle continuous s commun curiosity, a ity is nd with top Time of CO ics such as VID” and “T “HR in the he Business surprise th of Sports” it at o ’s n from expert ver 300 of our alumn i tuned in liv o s in the field e to learn to continue throughou t 2020. We these conve can’t wait rsations in leaders aro 2021 with b und the glo usiness be content on the topics o - tune in live for more f influence exclusive estate com r marketin ing to you g and real from the co mfort of yo ur screen!

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k th , we too with stops In 2020 d a ro e th d show on ast to coast an o g c in s s u f rom c els dis n a of p i re n tu alum e Fu h as “Th d “Real c u s s ic an top inment” ach week, Enterta E .” s k o o d utl m aroun Estate O ro f i to alumn e d v a li h e in w e s ntry tun the cou nelists question a p If ! r u rs o e k w s as some an join, you and get to le b a ’t n e you were h up on all of th s can catc nt on our Eccle te l. n e o n c n new e cha YouTub Alumni

We’d like to thank our Eccles Alumni Network for tuning in live, participating in virtual discussions, and continuing to strengthen our community throughout 2020. In a typical year, we travel to 20+ cities around the globe to see you face-to-face, share meals, and build connections. As we patiently wait for the days where it is safe to gather once again, please continue to join us in these virtual settings!

SCAN 4 EVEN MORE All the latest news on Alumni Events for 2021!

DAVID ECCLES SCHOOL OF BUSINESS

LE ARN FRO M

R E H

online

Master of Healthcare Administration Online Program The MHA Online program prepares mid-careerists for administrative positions in both the public and private sectors of the healthcare industry. Students enter the program with prior healthcare and management experience and can keep their full-time jobs while attending school. MHAO graduates will have the academic credentials to move into leadership positions in a variety of settings, including healthcare delivery, public health, healthcare policy, and health services research.

learn more at:

Eccles.link/mha-online

Pre-MAcc Online Track Go from no experience to earning your Master’s degree in accounting. The Pre-MAcc program is designed for students with degrees in areas other than accounting who want to take the MAcc pre-requisites. Maintain a healthy work/life balance while progressing through your education as you take two classes at a time for two semesters, starting in August and ending in May.

learn more at:

Eccles.link/pre-macc-online

Master of Science in Finance + Accounting Online Track Accounting and finance are two of the most complementary fields in business. Understanding an organization’s past financial performance is critical in positioning that organization for future financial success. This is why we created the Master of Science in Finance + Accounting (MSF+A) track where our exclusive online curriculum prepares tomorrow’s financial professionals to act in an ever-changing industry and redefine their own institutions.

learn more at:

ECCLES EXPERIENCE

Spring 2021

Eccles.link/msf-online

catching up with classmates

Gary Bowen

(BS 1962, MBA 1966) Is a Council Member at Emigration Canyon Metro Township Published "Christianity in The Americas Before Columbus, Unfamiliar Origins and Insights" in 2019

Gary McMurrin

(MBA 1971) Is enjoying retirement

Steven Campbell

(BA 1971) Is a Real Estate Broker at Pacific Sotheby's International Realty

Frank Shipper

(MBA 1973, Ph.D. 1978) After 41 years as a professor, he retired in 2018.

Chesley Erickson (BS 1974)

received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the UACPA (Utah Association of Certified Public Accountants) Join us in congratulating Chesley Erickson on receiving the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Utah Association of Certified Public Accountants! Chesley graduated in 1974 with his Bachelor's degree from the David Eccles School of Business and has since become a generous donor to student scholarships. You can learn more about Chesley and this incredible honor by scanning the code to the right to watch a short video.

Mark Hanson (MBA 1974)

Retired in 2010. Was recruited out of MBA program by Watkins-Johnson Company, a high-tech microwave electronics firm in Silicon Valley specializing in recon and surveillance equipment. He spent most of his time in a variety of mangement positions. For example, he managed the development and manufacturing of the Space Shuttle antennas. After 19 1/2 years, he returned to Utah and went to work for a small software development company. During his time there he managed product development as well as serving as the company's operations manager. Together with a few others, he saved the company from bankruptcy and eventually sold it to a national firm. He retired in 2010 and has been enjoying retirement ever since. He is the author of a novel dealing with electronic equipment espionage activities during the Cold War, entitled "The Silicon War” available on Amazon.

DAVID ECCLES SCHOOL OF BUSINESS

Joseph Pereles

Pedro Chavez-Garcia

(BS 1974)

Is enjoying retirement Retired as Senior Vice President of Drury Hotels Company on December 31, 2019 after 29 years of employment. Member of the Compliance and Mediation Committee of the International Red Cross and Chair Elect of the American Red Cross National Philanthropic Board.

(MBA 1977) Is in Sales at Classic Buick GMC Author, Guarding The Haven, a novel and currently working on growing his blog throughout Latin America, https://www.facebook.com/thevirtualcolumnist/

Lloyd Sadler (MBA 1989)

Is a Principal Attorney & Assistant General Counsel at HPS

Jamison Yardley

(BA 1994, MBA 1995) Is the Senior Vice President at Goldman Sachs Jamison just celebrated his 26th wedding anniversary and is currently training for the St. George Ironman

(MBA 1997) Is the Senior Vice President of Commercial Banking at United Community Bank

William Hardman

Carrie Berens

Is the Owner of Racer LLC

Is the Owner of Visitor InSites

(MBA 2000)

Graduated from MIT in 2004: Naval Engineer (Marine Engineering and Naval Architecture) and S.M. Nuclear Engineer

(BA 2002, MBA 2004) Is the COO at Prime Group Holdings

ECCLES EXPERIENCE

(MBA 2001)

Leah Brodie (BS 2006)

David Decker

Jack Morris

Spring 2021

Is the Director of Development for the College of Arts and Science at the University of Saskatchewan

Joseph Hulse

(BS 2006, MBA 2008) Is the Manager of Marketing & Business Development at Dominion Energy

Dr. Jill Jim

(MHA 2008) Was named to President Biden’s COVID-19 Advisory Board You can read more about her exciting appointment by scanning the QR code here. Congratulations Dr. Jim!

Garry Hrechkosy

Wesley Matern

Is a Corporate Controller and Director of Accounting at MX Technologies, Inc.

Is the General Manager of Investor Relations at Delta Air Lines

(HBS 2009, MAcc 2010)

(BS 2010, MBA 2016)

Jacquie Bernard

Geoffrey McCombs

Was named as Senior Associate Dean of Administration and Finance for the University of Nevada, Reno School of Medicine

Is the Managing Director at Altius Equity Partners and Altius Consulting

James Russell-Field

Stuart Doane

Is the Director of Administrative Services at Fairfield-Suisun Sewer District

Is a Venture Investor at Allegis Capital

Nina Tekwani

Nicole Anthony

Is the Senior Director of Global CXM and Marketing Strategy at Isagenix She had a baby boy named Nolan in April 2020

Is a Marketing Project Manager at Jane.com

(EMBA 2010)

(BS 2013, MAcc 2015)

(MBA 2014)

(MBA 2010)

(HBS 2013)

(BS 2015)

DAVID ECCLES SCHOOL OF BUSINESS

Brett Boot (MBA 2015)

Is the Director of CX & Product Success at Extra Space Storage

Derek Deitsch (BA 2015)

Is a Downtown Development Manager at The Downtown Alliance and was named to Utah Business magazine's list of 20 in their 20's You can read more about 2020 20 in their 20’s by scanning the QR code here:

Maegan Revak

Matthew DeCarlo

(BS 2015)

Is a Customer Success Manager at Alyce

(BS 2016, MSIS 2020) Is a Software Programmer at ARUP Laboratories

Christopher Dabel

Received the MSIS Outstanding Business Graduate Award

(MSIS 2017)

Is a Senior Data Engineer at Jane.com

Dylan Conklin

(BS 2018) Is the Owner/Creative Director at TEA Creative Co.

Emily Fry (BS 2017)

Is a Workday Consultant at Intecrowd

Eric Sevy

(MBA 2018)

Brett Brailsford

Is a Division Manager at Sugarhouse industries

(MBA 2019) Is a Clinical Project Manager at IQVIA

Kenzie Curtis

(BS 2019) Is a Senior Financial Analyst at Goldman Sachs

Eric Kenney (MSIS 2019)

Is an Implementation Consultant at Enrollment Rx

Jacob Jeppson

(BS 2019) Is the Director of Market Analysis at KLAS Research

ECCLES EXPERIENCE

Spring 2021

Nam Luu

(BS 2019, MACC 2020) Is an Audit Associate at KPMG

Mikaela Schmiett

Elizabeth Veals

Is a Market Manager at Stanley Black & Decker, Inc.

Is a Growth Data Analyst at thredUP

(BS 2019)

Chris Aguilar (MSBA 2020)

Is a Risk Analyst at Zions Bancorporation

Kyle Anderson (BS 2020)

Is a Junior Buyer at Maverik

Erik Asplund

(MSIS 2019)

Travis Allumbaugh (BS 2020)

Is an Implementation Consultant at Fast Enterprises

Josh Aram (BS 2020)

Is a Campaign Manager at Randall Reilly

(BS 2020)

Jeff Barton

Is an Investment Banking Analyst at Moelis & Company

Is a Leasing Consultant at Keyrenter

(BS 2020)

Ashton Bigelow

Olivia Bithell

Is an Analyst at Goldman, Sachs & Co

Is a Customer Experience Specialist at Byte

Tyson Bliss

Prince Boateng

Is a Cyber Security Analyst at Intermountain Power Service Corporation

Is a Risk Officer at Morgan Stanley

Jacob Bopko

Brandon Boren

Is a Sales Development Manager at Kenect

Is a Credit Analyst at GPS Capital Markets

Vince Buongiovanni

Laura Burke

Is a Consultant Data Scientist at Eide Bailly

Is a Fund Accountant at Cornerstone Fund Services

Michael Bussiere

Belu Chik

Is a Tax Associate at PwC

Is a Forecasting Analyst at Canyonwall

Kevin Clarke

Dan Court

Is a Compliance Testing Manager at Progressive Leasing

Is a Loss Mitigation Underwriting Manager at Thrive Mortgage

(BS 2020)

(MSIS 2020)

(BS 2020)

(MSBA 2020)

(MAcc 2020)

(BS 2020)

(MSF 2020)

(BS 2020)

(MAcc 2020)

(MSF 2020)

(MSBA 2020)

DAVID ECCLES SCHOOL OF BUSINESS

Ryan Dixon

Tommy Drain

Is a Product Expert at Swell CX

Is an Audit Associate at Deloitte

Parker Edman

Rashe Elliott

Is a Junior Associate at Leavitt Partners

Is a Financial Analyst at Northrop Grumman

(BS 2020)

(MAcc 2020)

(MSF 2020)

(BS 2020)

Aryah Fard

Rachel Faeth

(MSIS 2020) Is a Senior Application Security Engineer at Divvy

(BS 2020)

Is an Event Marketing Specialist LDP at TTI

Aaron Fawson (MSIS 2020)

Is a Data Warehouse Analyst at University of Utah Health

Ashlyn Fox

Maya Frost

Is a Social Media & Marketing Specialist at Western Metals Recycling

Is a Senior Accountant at Sallie Mae Bank

(MSIS 2020)

(BS 2020)

Devon Gathers (BS 2020)

Is an Investor at Mercato Partners and was named to Utah Business magazine's list of 20 in their 20's You can read more about 2020 20 in their 20’s by scanning the QR code here:

Chris Gill

(BS 2020) Is a Software Sales Specialist - Mid Markets at Weave HQ

Matt Grant (MSF 2020)

Is a Senior Accountant at Sallie Mae Bank

Clare Greenlow (BS 2020)

Connor Haller

ECCLES EXPERIENCE

Is a Product Specialist at Qualtrics

(BS 2020)

Jesse Hawkley

Is an Acquisitions & Development Analyst at Bridge Investment Group

Is a Financial Analyst at Utah Department of Technology Services

Spring 2021

(MSBA 2020)

Colton Hurley

Austin Ingersoll

Is an Analyst at Simpson Door Company

Is a Branch Manager at SecurityNational Mortgage

(MSF 2020)

(MRED 2020)

We are so proud to say that not one, but two women within the Eccles community have been featured by Utah Business Magazine as the 2020 Women of the Year. Scan the code here to learn more about Lianna Kinard and Alison Flynn Gaffney!

Matt Jacobs

Megan Johnson

(BS 2020)

Is a Sales Development & Channel Analyst at Salomon

Is an Office Manager at Salt Lake Board of Realtors

Tanner Jones

Michael Kerr

(MRED 2020)

(BS 2020)

Is the Owner of TRJ Development

Is a Production Supervisor at Lumea Inc

Tara Kershaw

Megan Kleinman

(MSF 2020)

(BS 2020)

Is a Compliance Analyst at America First Credit Union

Is a FP&A Analyst at Podium

Ryan Lambson (BS 2020)

Is a Staff Accountant at Spot

Xumeng Li (MSF 2020)

Is an Analyst at Ideanomics

Joshua Lawrence (BS 2020)

Is a Software Engineer at the LDS Church

Chrystal Little

(MAcc 2020) Is the Director of Processing & Fulfillment at Nexant, Inc

DAVID ECCLES SCHOOL OF BUSINESS

Brett Lovell

Riley Mackay

Is the Owner of Lovell Development Group

Is a Strategic Sourcing Manager at Vivint Smarthome

Aloha Mahe

Austin Matsuura

Is an Audit Associate at Tanner

Is a Product Manager at Vivint Smarthome

Nick Matthews

Nicole Mattinson

Is a Budget Analyst at ICBM Systems Directorate

Is an Esthetics Manager at Elase Med Spa

(MSF 2020)

(MRED 2020)

(BS 2020)

(MAcc 2020)

(BS 2020)

(MAcc 2020)

Spencer Maybee (BS 2020)

Is the VP of Business Development at Western Pipe Fabrication Inc.

Aaron Mead

Skye Mcpherson (BS 2020)

Is a Workforce Optimization Analyst at Discover Financial Services

Valeria Menendez (MSF 2020)

(MAcc 2020)

Is a Senior Pipeline Accountant at Sinclair Oil Corporation

Kev Miller

Is an AML Team Lead Specialist at Strata Fund Solutions

Katherine Mitchell (MAcc 2020)

(BS 2020)

Is a Recruiter at Medix

Is a Senior Accountant at Mitchell & Associates

Jordan Montano

Deb Morreall

Is a SEO Specialist at 97th Floor

Is a Data Manager at University of Utah

(BS 2020)

Jackson Olsen

(BS 2020) Is an Analyst at Cicero

Rick Pack

(MSIS 2020)

Sergio Ordenes (BS 2020)

Is a Finance Manager at National Auto Plaza

(EMBA 2021) Is a Cross-Functional Staff Leader at Utah National Guard - Counter-Drug Program

ECCLES EXPERIENCE

Spring 2021

Dallen Peterson

Gonzalo Pastorini

Is an Investment Banking Analyst at JMP Securities

Is an Accounting Department Manager at SameDay Heating & Air

(BS 2020)

(MAcc 2020)

Zach Peterson (BS 2020)

Is a Processor at ARUP

Colton Gardner, Eccles Alumni Class of 2016, co-founded Neighbor.com in 2016 to address the need of finding practical and affordable local storage. With the help of the Lassonde Entrepreneur Institute, Neighbor.com has grown into a successful company with a $53 million Series B IPO in March, and was recently recognized as part of the Forbes 30 under 30 list. Check out their feature below! You can read more about Colton Gardner and the Forbes 30 under 30 by scanning the QR code here:

Guy Petrie

Brandon Petterson

Is an Investments Analyst at Greystar

Is a Fixed Income Analyst at TownSquare Capital

Andrea Pia

Danny Popowski

Is a Business Intelligence Analyst at Walker Edison

Is a Researcher at Western States Multifamily

(BS 2020)

Jacob Quigley (MSF 2020)

Is an Active Trader Services at Fidelity Investments

Jordan Reninger (BS 2020)

Is an Expense Analyst at Workday

(MSF 2017)

(MRED 2020)

Taylor Reber (MAcc 2020)

Is an Audit Associate at Jones Simkins

Brayden Robb (BS 2020)

Is a Technical Support Administrator at Chartway Federal Credit Union

DAVID ECCLES SCHOOL OF BUSINESS

Jordan Sackley (BS 2020)

Is a Solutions Consultant at Verint Systems

Dylan Sawyer A suite of employee experience apps and solutions that connect people to purpose, accomplishment and one another.

(MSF 2020)

Is a Financial Analyst III at USAA

Morgan Searle (BS 2020)

Is a Lean Solutions Specialist at Fastenal

Kyle Simms (MSF 2020)

Is a Financial Analyst at Intermountain Healthcare

Nik Sassen (BS 2020)

Is a Project Coordinator at BioFire Diagnostics

Taylor Schaefermeyer (BS 2020)

Is an IT Support Engineer II at Amazon

Nidhi Sharma (MSIS 2020)

Is a Test Automation Engineer at Galileo Financial Technologies

Skyler Sinks (MSF 2020)

Is an Analyst at Woodbury Corporation

ECCLES EXPERIENCE

Spring 2021

We are grateful to those working in the healthcare industry. You have each gone above and beyond around the globe to keep your communities healthy. Richard Ferguson, EMBA Class of 2020, and Gordon Crabtree, EMBA Class of 2002, were recognized by Utah Business Magazine for their work to make Utah healthier. Thank you both for your continued dedication to keeping us all safe in the fight against COVID-19. You can read more about their features by scanning the QR code here:

Jaiden Stevenson

Teddy Sivalon

(BS 2020) Is an Account Manager at Drive Marketing

(BS 2020)

Is a Web Developer at Aspire Home Health & Hospice

Anna Sunh (MBA 2020)

Is a Web Developer at Zions Bank Corporation and was named to Utah Business magazine's list of 20 in their 20's You can read more about 2020 20 in their 20’s by scanning the QR code here:

Spencer Thurgood

Martin Townsend

Is an Accountant at Thorne & Associates

Is a Supervisor Internal Revenue Agent at Internal Revenue Service

(MAcc 2020)

ECCLES EXPERIENCE

(MAcc 2020)

Spring 2021

DAVID ECCLES SCHOOL OF BUSINESS

Andrew Tuitele

Cody Ulland

Is an Investment Banking Analyst at Bank of America

Is a Financial Planning Manager at Bestgate Wealth Advisors

Tanner Wagaman

Mik Walburge

Is a Tax Advisor at DBN Tax

Is an Inventory Analyst at Clearwater Paper

Summer Walker

Tanner Walker

Is a Marketing Consultant at Wild Mann Consulting

Is a Corporate Account Manager at Utah Grizzlies

Brad West

Alex Williams

Is a Contract Negotiator at Lockheed Martin

Is a Digital Marketing Data Analyst at Clearlink

Meagan Wilson

Mathew Winterholler

Is a Business Manager at Michelin

Is an Investment Banking Analyst at Mizuho America

(BS 2020)

(MSF 2020)

(Marketing 2020)

(BS 2020)

ECCLES EXPERIENCE

(MSF 2020)

(MBS 2020)

(MSBA 2020)

(BS 2020)

(MSF 2020)

Spring 2021

(BS 2020)

University of Utah Executive Education

LEAN SIX SIGMA GREEN BELT ONLINE Executive Education at the David Eccles School of Business is proud to present its brand new online program: Lean Six Sigma Green Belt. Access this 10-week certification program from anywhere with an internet connection and learn through interactive videos, simulations, case studies, webinars, and personal mentorship. It’s time - Get Lean Six Sigma Green Belt certified this year.

Learn more and download the class guide at

UtahSixSigma.com

AS THE SUN SETS...

on the school year, we’re taking the time to reflect on the challenges and growth afforded by the pandemic. Did we learn a little more about ourselves? Learn a new skill or take on a new hobby? Finally realize when we were muted on Zoom? We look forward to a time when we can have a bustling Eccles School campus full of classes, student travel, study groups, and alumni gatherings … but with a renewed sense of connection and what’s most important. Here’s to a safe and healthy summer, and new beginnings.

ECCLES EXPERIENCE

Spring 2021

The Eccles School is currently offering a fifty percent match for all named scholarship donations over $1,000. Support Eccles students by creating your own scholarship, and the Eccles school will add 50 percent on to your award.

Interested in establishing a named annual scholarship? Contact Shyanne Kaing at shyanne.kaing@eccles.utah.edu, or (801) 581-6515.

Even a gift in your will of 1% of your estate can make a huge difference for the Eccles School! We’re happy to talk with you about how you can designate your gift to create an endowed scholarship that lasts in perpetuity, or supports the program of your choice. Considering leaving a gift to the Eccles School? Let us know! Contact Lindsay Nelson at Katie.Pearce@Eccles.Utah.Edu, or (801) 913-5563. Find more information on leaving the U in your estate at https://giving.utah.edu/planned-giving

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Eccles Experience Spring 2021

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