NEWSLETTER FALL 2015
2016 LINDNER HONORS-PLUS FRESHMAN CLASS IN THIS ISSUE: • Student & Co-op Spotlight: Ben Robinson (’16), NASA • Student Spotlight: Hadis Palic (’19) • Student & Student Organization Spotlight: Priya Mullen (’18), Lindner Women in Business • Alumni Spotlights: Nate Bennett, Peter Schmidt & Bhavik Modi (2015 graduates), Fifth Third
LINDNER WOMEN IN BUSINESS
• Items of Interest • Alumni News • Dates to remember
Many finance students seek a career in investment banking, wealth management, or corporate finance. Although I was interested in those fields, I choose to study business for other reasons. Every company or government agency requires capital to operate, and I have always had my sights set on supporting the space industry. I met the recruiter of NASA Johnson Space Center (JSC) through a great LHP networking connection and have been fortunate to spend four total semesters working with NASA in Houston, Texas. The opportunities I have working for NASA are incredible. Their co-op program allows students to rotate work divisions each semester, participate in one-of-a-kind NASA tours and lectures, and share experiences with other coops that will become lifelong friends and co-workers. I am very excited to announce that I have received a full-time offer and will be moving to Houston to start my NASA career in 2016.
BEN ROBINSON Class of 2016 Co-Op at NASA
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Work Experience I spent a total of four semesters working at Johnson Space Center in different divisions. Two rotations, however, were particularly special. In the spring of 2015, I worked in the Central Budget Office (CBO). One of the CBO’s primary roles is to congregate and analyze all budget data and guidance delivered from NASA Headquarters (HQ) to the Center (Johnson Space Center), and from the Center back up to NASA HQ. This involves constant observation of congressional budgetary actions and Center financial execution metrics.
STUDENT SPOTLIGHT During my rotation, I was responsible for providing weekly congressional operations reports and reporting relevant NASA budget impact to the CFO on a weekly basis. Additionally, I communicated current year budget execution and planning guidance to all of the Office of the CFO (approximately 180 financial analysts and managers). This allowed me to gain familiarity with the federal budgeting process and to make extremely beneficial networking connections. My most recent rotation was by far the most exciting. I spent the summer working at an airstrip about five miles north of NASA JSC main campus as a budget analyst supporting the Aircraft Operations Division. For a lifelong space and aviation fan, like myself, this was about as cool as it gets. I interacted with astronauts and pilots on a daily basis and observed some of the most incredible aircraft in the world in action. In simple terms, our business office paid for all the astronaut training jets, science mission planes, and astronaut transport to and from Russia. I learned how to manage an incredibly large budget, plan a transition plan for a changing reimbursable program, and learn what it would be like to be a full-time NASA employee. And did I mention I experienced weightlessness on the zerogravity simulation plane? Awesome!
Tours and Lectures In addition to perks like zerogravity simulation, NASA provided many other unique experiences for the co-op program. Co-op students participated in “Tours and Lectures� sessions in which we visited some of the most interesting NASA facilities and heard from many successful managers. On my first rotation, the co-ops watched the Apollo 13 Hollywood film in historic mission control (where the
events in the movie really occurred) with Gene Kranz himself (Flight Director for Apollo missions and the man in the white vest in the film). I also toured the moon rocks division, shook hands with Robonaut, a humanoid robot designed to assist in tasks aboard the International Space Station, and visited the High-fidelity Space Vehicle Mock-up Facility, among many others.
Work/Life Balance It became clear to me why NASA has been rated the number one place to work in the federal government. The caliber of fellow co-workers and the passion to push the boundaries of human exploration is displayed every day. There is a dedicated focus from the top-down to enjoy time off and take advantage of flexible work hours. In an effort to conserve energy costs, many employees work 9-hour days and enjoy every other Friday off to spend time with family or take care of other business. There were also more than 100 co-ops and interns that became some of my closest friends. We took weekend trips to the beach, went skydiving, played intramural sports, and countless other activities that made the experience feel like home (except with more palm trees and sand!). I’m not an astronaut, but being a part of the NASA mission has been surreal. Driving to work past the Saturn V rocket that took humans to the moon is a constant reminder of the importance of our space program. I am extremely grateful to the Lindner Honors-PLUS program for providing the framework for these wonderful experiences. Because of these experiences I am living my dream of working for NASA and hope to one day play a key role in landing the first humans on Mars.
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STUDENT SPOTLIGHT My freshman year at the University of Cincinnati, as a Lindner Honors-PLUS Scholar, is one I will never forget. The opportunities I was presented with on and off campus, allowed me to gain experience and knowledge of my majors and potential career opportunities. My deep passion for sustainability, allowed me to become a coordinator of a grassroots campaign branching across the globe. In the beginning of the year, our LHP class was invited to an EY presentation, where we were able to meet employees and recruiters from the Cincinnati office. Later in the fall, I found an opportunity to apply for the EY Diversity Leadership Conference in New York City, a conference involving 150 students from around the country. Because of my status as an LHP scholar, the recruiter from Cincinnati was able to recognize me and push my application through, allowing me to attend a life changing event in one of the greatest cities in the world. The conference involved interactive team-building exercises, leadership seminars, networking opportunities and conversations with EY’s top leaders, including CEO Mark Weinberger. In the spring, I was able to apply and be accepted to the inaugural Key Bank Campus
Summit at Key Head Quarters in Cleveland. The summit introduced me to the banking industry and gave me an opportunity to meet Key executives. The 32 students selected to attend the summit met with the most powerful woman in banking, CEO Beth Mooney, and presented a case study to Key Executives. On-campus, I was able to follow my passions and become a Co-coordinator of Fossil Free UC, a grassroots campaign to have the University of Cincinnati to divest their endowment from fossil fuels. This campaign gave me the opportunity to meet and have lunch with environmentalist, author, and 350.org founder Bill McKibben Prior to his presentation at UC. To be part of a global movement and to be in constant contact with executives at UC and students from campaigns at other universities has allowed me to grow and learn as a person and leader. Overall, my first year at UC would not have occurred if it was not for Lindner HonorsPLUS. I am excited for what is to come of my next 4 years at the University of Cincinnati. I hope to gain more knowledge and learn from this program and continue to have incredible experiences on and off campus.
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HADIS PALIC
Class of 2019 Lindner Honors-PLUS Sophomore
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LINDNER WOMEN IN BUSINESS
Written by Priya Mullen, Chief Operating Officer & Julie Kenning, Director of Internal Events
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STUDENT ORGANIZATION SPOTLIGHT Inspire. Empower. Connect. Lindner Women in Business (LWiB) emphasizes these pillars and delivers results week after week. By reaching up, out, and down, this organization unites a network of students, community partners, and business professionals. Together, they support one another to be successful as each defines it. This once simple idea transformed into an empirical collaboration through the efforts of past associate Dean Marianne Lewis and undergraduates Janelle Wichmann, Alex Loewenstine, and Regan Noppenberger. As a team, they built a solid foundation for what is now one of the largest organizations within the Carl H. Lindner College of Business. With 123 active members and 13 executive members, LWiB offers a unique opportunity for leadership development and unparalleled knowledge into the professional world. Essentially, Lindner Women in Business strives to provide value to students that will be beneficial in future careers. The organization has achieved success in this area through numerous internal and external events. In the spring of 2014, a panel of men and women
discussed “Adversity for Women in the Workforce� and spoke to their personal experiences. They left a lasting impression about the challenges both men and women face when it comes to rising in the workforce and managing a healthy work-life balance. Lindner Women in Business also was fortunate to host April Kerley, a US Paralympian silver medalist. Although a disability is often viewed as a handicap, April embraced her uniqueness and saw it as an opportunity to achieve greatness. These events, along with many others, compliment our core values and inspire undergraduate women to strive for excellence. This is only the beginning for Lindner Women in Business. A few upcoming events include: a collaborative philanthropic event with Enterprise, a joint investment planning session with Key Bank, and an operational plant tour of Luxottica Headquarters. Going forward, the possibilities for this organization are endless. LWiB develops successful and driven women leaders vital to today’s workforce. It just takes some inspiration, empowerment, and connectivity to get them started.
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ALUMNI SPOTLIGHT Recent LHP alumni Nate Bennett, Peter Schmidt, and Bhavik Modi recently began their professional careers at Fifth Third Bank. They are members of the Commercial Associate Program, which is Fifth Third’s largest leadership program. During the first two months of the program, all 19 new hires went through training in Cincinnati. Our graduates’ proudest accomplishment during those two months was the conversion of nonCincinnatians to Skyline fanatics. Following closely behind that feat was the educational experience provided in those first two months. Nate, Peter, and Bhavik were able to meet with dozens of leaders of the bank, and enhance their knowledge of credit. They are now in their respective hubs (Nate is located in Cincinnati; Peter is located in Charlotte; Bhavik is in Chicago), completing their first credit rotation. The trio will subsequently rotate through one more credit rotation, before shifting their focus to the wholesale side of the business. From there, they will perform three client-facing rotations. Opportunities span the country, and include concentrations in: Energy, Healthcare, Middle Market, Mid-Corporate, Large Corporate, Technology Media & Telecom, Investment Banking,
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Debt Capital Markets, Leveraged Finance, and many more. While these three graduates are in different states now, you can be sure to find them at a few Cats’ games this season. Please continue reading below to hear a little bit more from Nate, Peter, and Bhavik.
am looking forward to my continued experiences in the Commercial Associate Program at Fifth Third Bank. I am proud of the company that I work for, and I am proud to represent UC as a professional!
NATE BENNETT
My experience at Fifth Third has been an exceptionally positive one. I recently moved down to Charlotte, North Carolina to work in the middle market credit group and I have learned a tremendous amount, not just about finance, but about life in general. The North Carolina region is one of the fast growing parts of the Bank and one of the strongest drivers of revenue for our shareholders. It has been exciting being a part of such a successful and motivated team that is so dedicated to furthering the mission of a Cincinnati company. It has also been nice working with so many fellow Bearcats. Even in the middle of ACC and SEC country, there are plenty of fellow UC Alumni who I have been able to lean on and learn from during this transformational time in my life. Although I am fully immersing myself in Charlotte culture, I will make sure that I always remember where the real “Queen City” is.
I have stayed busy since graduating from the Lindner Honors-PLUS Program in May. I passed Level I of the CFA examination in June, and began working for Fifth Third Bank soon thereafter. I am located on Fountain Square, in the heart of downtown Cincinnati. Fifth Third has provided me with phenomenal educational and growth opportunities. In my first few months of working, I attended a Fifth Third day of service at Matthew 25 Ministries, enjoyed meeting fellow Leadership Participants at a Camp Joy retreat, and got involved in meaningful projects. I am working in the Capital Markets Credit group for the bank. I am creating investment outlooks on Corporate Bonds, underwriting syndicated and securitized deals, and sitting in on a variety of meetings. Working for the company that hired the most students from the Lindner College of Business in 2014-15 has another perk. I work with a lot of Bearcats! I
PETER SCHMIDT
BHAVIK MODI Since leaving Cincinnati in August for Chicago, I’ve had the pleasure of enjoying the tail end of “Summertime Chi” – as Kanye calls it. Although the thought of moving to a new city where you don’t know many people can be intimidating – I’ve found it to be a tremendous growing experience and an opportunity to meet many new friends & reconnect with people I haven’t seen for some time – including recently catching up with my former co-op manager at Alpine Investors & fellow LHP alum Dan Cremons, who not long ago moved into town from San Francisco. In 4 short weeks, my time in Chicago has led to tremendous learning experiences at work & enduring memories through exploring the city on nights/weekends. From fireworks every Wednesday night on Navy Pier, sailing on Lake Michigan, being one of the few fans cheering on the Reds at Wrigley Field to indulging on some deep dish at Giordano’s – it just gets better every week…now when winter comes around that might be a different story.
Peter Schmidt
At work I’ve had the privilege of working in the Structured Finance Group at 5/3, which structures leveraged loans for Private Equity Groups looking to purchase businesses – it has been a tremendous hands-on experience and the co-ops offered through Honors-PLUS have positioned me to be a few steps ahead of the curve.
Bhavik Modi
NATE BENNETT, PETER SCHMIDT & BHAVIK MODI LHP Alumni - Class of 2015
Nate Bennett
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INTERNATIONAL TRIPS “Certainly, travel is more than the seeing of sights; it is a change that goes on, deep and permanent, in the ideas of living.” Mary Ritter Beard puts into words the lasting influence travel has had on me throughout the years. Since a young age, my parents have inspired a passion for travel. It has proved a time for personal reflection, self-growth, and exploration of what I have only read about and studied in school. I have visited destinations such as India and the British Virgin Islands with my family, and soon-to-be South America with the LHP Class of 2018. However, I yearned to also explore unchartered territories with students across colleges at the University of Cincinnati. The opportunity presented itself to travel to Italy and Spain this past May of 2015, and I knew this was my chance. Through 12 days of company visits, cultural immersion, and navigating the transportation system, I learned a great deal about newfound interests and essentially, myself. In my eyes, a picture is worth a thousand words and can tell the story better than I can relay myself. I’d love to walk you through my European Study Abroad journey, which you can find at http:// priyamulleneurope.weebly.com.
Priya Mullen LHP Class of 2018
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UPCOMING EVENTS DECEMBER 1 Deadline for the Common Application for UC to be considered for scholarship opportunities, including Lindner Honors-PLUS. DECEMBER 24 THROUGH THE NEW YEAR! UC campus closed JANUARY & FEBRUARY We will be holding interviews for the LHP Class of 2021. FEBRUARY 13 LHP Night with the Cats in the UCATS Club UC Men’s Basketball Event
Jennifer Kidd, Class of 2003 Jennifer Kidd, class of 2003, was awarded the 2015 Imaginative Luxottica Characteristic award. Jen was challenged to create a seamless customer experience on LensCrafters.com. She led improvements and identified ways to simplify the process. The result - an increase in online exams that delivered an incremental $1.5MM retail sales in the 2nd half of the year and improved the site ranking from low average in 2013 to above average rankings in 2014-2015.
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LHP Students LHP has formed “LHP Families”, which are mixed groups of students ranging from 1st through 5th years that will remain together throughout their collegiate career with the incoming freshmen being added to each family upon acceptance into the program. Aside from the social aspect, each family will be required to organize / attend a lunch and learn event. We are looking forward to seeing how strong these families can become and will keep you updated with new events taking place between families.
LHP Recruiting Breakfast The Lindner Honors-PLUS program hosted three recruiting breakfasts this fall at the Metropolitan Club in Covington, Kentucky. We had over 250 people across three days hearing all about the benefits of the Lindner College of Business & all three of our honors programs.
ALUMNI CORNER
Molly Inderhees Class of 2012 Molly Inderhees (’12) has moved to Portland, Oregon and will be working as a Project Manager with a company called Thread Creative. She will be managing the Global eCommerce Copy Creation projects for Adidas, going to their HQ in Germany twice a year to be briefed on their new product introductions and then will manage the projects back in Portland with the Thread team. She is very excited to join their team. They are a small agency and seem to have a great culture!
LHP Students in NYC With the recent domestic trip to New York City the class was able to stop in and see LHP alumni Adam Hildebrand (’06) and have a fantastic visit with CBX.
Taylor Morgan Class of 2008 Taylor Morgan (’08) married Lindsay Loar June 20th at 20th Century Theatre in Oakley. They are both teachers at Taylor Middle School.
2016 Senior Class Picnic 2016 Senior Class Picnic
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NEWSLETTER FALL 2015