Jones Journal - Fall 2013

fall 2013

Page 14

cover story

Page 10

Annise Parker

The Scrutiny Cycle

The mayor of Houston discusses her life in public service and how the city has changed

Understanding CEO compensation, the right incentive mix, and who comes out on top

Virtual World, Real Opportunities Jan Goetgeluk ’10 Kickstarts into Virtual Reality with the Omni

r i ce u n i ver s i t y, J o n e s G r a d u a te Schoo l o f B u s i n e s s

The Starter

From the Dean Change is in the air again and although most changes are good, it has meant saying goodbye to well-loved faculty and members of our leadership team over the summer. It has also meant revisiting and revising the strategy of the school. We’re not alone. The business context, competitive landscape, and core processes of business education are shifting rapidly.

Simultaneously, our relative competitive positioning has improved dramatically as we are now delivering top 15 performance on most of the outcomes that matter (intellectual contributions, teaching quality, student quality, and value to alumni, employers and community — business.rice. edu/future). The Rice MBA full-time program ranked No. 1 domestically in percentage salary increase from program entry to three years out for alumni (Financial Times). Understanding these changes and charting a path forward is imperative and has been at the heart of our conversations on strategy.

Throughout the spring and summer, multiple discussions involving council members, faculty, staff, students, alumni and other stakeholders focused on the path for the future of the school. All of these conversations reaffirmed our longterm commitment to developing a premier business school matching the aspirations of Rice University. The strategic context for business education is changing rapidly. New business challenges include increased global competitiveness, shifting growth opportunities, anticipating and managing risk, and dealing with strategic game changers such as big data.

The vision includes our global impact that transforms business thought and actions through top talent and big ideas that create value.

The strategy discussions are already driving changes such as the reorganization of the deans’ suite captured in an infographic in the first part of this Jones Journal. The first feature in this issue examines the research of Bob Hoskisson and David De Angelis, providing two perspectives on CEO compensation. The next dives deep into student entrepreneurship at Rice and in Houston and reveals the depth and breadth of their initiatives across campus. Finally, a contribution from two of our esteemed faculty, Tony Gorry and Bob Westbrook, who wrote an article as a result of many years of co-authored research and conversations.

There are also interviews with Mayor Annise Parker; Rod Canion, the co-founder of Compaq; and Bob Harvey, the president of the Greater Houston Partnership. Intermixed with those heavy hitters are a lunch review of Triniti restaurant in Houston, another list of five things you should know about, and an interior peek at a local graphic design and printing studio.

Find out how 2010 alum Jan Goetgeluk’s Kickstarter campaign fared. Catch up with what our Veterans in Business Association students are doing in the community, and what they hope for the future of their club. Discover online resources, local events, a review of fountain pens, and many other items you may find of interest.

Hope to see you on campus this fall.

Bill Glick Dean + H. Joe Nelson III Professor of Management Jesse H. Jones Graduate School of Business Rice University I 713-348-5928 I bill.glick@rice.edu

The Starter 22

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10

In this Issue

Features

3 The Rundown

14 Corner Office

18

8 JGSB Online

15 Places of Business

The Scrutiny Cycle

9 5 Things

16 Ask the Experts

10 Entrepreneurship

34 Community

12 The Pen is Mightier Than the Sword

35 Events Calendar

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36 Ask the Alumni

Student Entrepreneurship at Rice

13 Business Lunch

Understanding CEO compensation, the right incentive mix, and who comes out on top

Success through Collaboration

28 Customers, Companies and Computers How companies are missing out on the benefits of customer storytelling and personal interaction

FALL 2013 JONES JOURNAL // 1

The Starter Dean + H. Joe Nelson III Professor of Management Bill Glick

RECONNECT REFRESH REUNION

Executive Director of Marketing Communications Mark Rudkin ’08 Editor Weezie Mackey Creative Director Kevin Palmer Production Design Artist Shatha Hussein Web Manager Jon Paul Estrada Web Content Specialist Tricia Delone Marketing Coordinator Dolores Thacker

SAVE THE DATE

Spring 2014 April 25-26

Contributing Writers Amy Burroughs Anthony G. Gorry Shatha Hussein Weezie Mackey Mark Passwaters M. Yvonne Taylor Robert A. Westbrook Contributing Photographers Troy Fields Jeff Fitlow Kevin Palmer Printing Chas. P. Young Co.

Jones Journal is published semiannually for alumni and friends by the Jesse H. Jones Graduate School of Business. Current and back issues of the magazine are available online at business.rice.edu/JJ. Change of Address? New job?

Update the online directory with your new contact information or send us your class notes at jonesalumni.com.

Comments or Questions?

We’d love to hear your thoughts about the Jones Journal. Send an e-mail to Mark Rudkin, executive director of marketing communications, rudkin@rice.edu.

CORRECTIONS: Maria Alejandra Peleaz ’12 was inadvertently left off the ALP team list of the Chloe Dao project in the spring 2013 issue. The editorial staff regrets this error.

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Advisory Board Alex Butler Josh DeMott Shea George Deanna Golden Jenn Hartley Sue Hochman Amber Ivins Michelle Kaltenbach James Lenz '07 Salomon Medina Sue Oldham Joe Soto business.rice.edu

The Rundown

A round-up of the most exciting news from the Jones School and beyond.

1

Game changers The new academic year brings new faces to the Jones School Dean's Suite.

Here's the starting line-up and a few open positions.

Bill Glick: Dean and H. Joe Nelson III Professor of Management

K. Ramesh: Deputy Dean of Academic Affairs and Herbert S. Autrey Professor of Accounting

Barbara Ostdiek: Senior Associate Dean of Degree Programs and Associate Professor of Finance

D. Brent Smith: Senior Associate Dean of Executive Education and Associate Professor of Management and Psychology

TBA: Assistant Dean of External Relations

tba: Assistant Dean of Degree Programs

FALL 2013 JONES JOURNAL // 3

The Rundown

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3 Faculty welcomes internationally renowned marketing scholar Wagner Kamakura

On July 1, Dr. Wagner Kamakura began his tenure at the Jones School as the Jesse H. Jones Professor of Marketing, a chair funded by the generous contribution of Houston Endowment. Kamakura joins the faculty from the Fuqua School of Business at Duke University, where he was the Ford Motor Company Professor of Global Marketing.

Prior faculty positions include the University of Iowa, University of Pittsburgh and Vanderbilt University.

Before entering academia, Kamakura worked in market analysis, forecasting and planning in Brazil.

“Professor Kamakura’s strength in analyzing market segmentation, customer relationship management, and quantitative models of consumer choice will bring strengths to our already robust marketing group by raising the number of winners of the prestigious O’Dell Award for research in marketing,” said Bill Glick, dean of the Jones School and H. Joe Nelson III Professor of Management.

“Recruiting a top scholar like Professor Kamakura is crucial for building a premier business school and is only possible with the support of the community, particularly the Houston Endowment which continues to support the Jones School.”

Kamakura is a co-author of "Market Segmentation: Conceptual and Methodological Foundations," as well as over one hundred articles in academic journals in marketing and 4 // JONES JOURNAL FALL 2013

other disciplines. He has served as the editor of the Journal of Marketing Research, area editor of Marketing Science and associate editor of the Journal of Consumer Research and is currently a member of the editorial boards of the International Journal of Research in Marketing, Journal of Business Research, Journal of Marketing Research, Journal of Retailing and Marketing Science.

His current research interests are in consumption and time-use analysis, efficiency analysis, choice modeling, customer relationship management, market segmentation, marketing analytics. His paper “Socioeconomic status and consumption in an emerging economy” was recently named best paper by the Marketing Science Institute in a special issue of the International Journal of Research in Marketing on Emerging Economies.

“I am delighted to be back in Texas, my point of entry to the U.S. as a graduate student,” said Kamakura. “I look forward to working as a colleague with old friends and co-authors, as well as forming new friendships and coauthorships at Rice.”

Professor Kamakura holds a Ph.D. in marketing from the University of Texas at Austin, an M.S. in industrial engineering from the University of Sao Paulo (Brazil), an MBA from the Getulio Vargas Foundation (Brazil) and a B.S. in mechanical engineering from the Institute of Technological Aeronautics (Brazil).

A life of public service and leadership The Rice Veterans Leadership Series, annual lectures by veterans who have excelled in business and public service, joins the ranks of Military Scholars Program and Veterans in Business Association (VIBA). The inaugural event in April featured Tom Ridge, the nation’s first secretary of Homeland Security, speaking about his life of public service, leadership and, in the wake of the Boston Marathon bombings, the state of national security. Hosted by VIBA, the event was free, open to the public, and drew a crowd of civilians and former and activeduty military from all branches.

Look for the inaugural Rice Veteran Experience panel of veteran authors coming up the week of Veteran’s Day, November 5 at 6 p.m.

The Rundown

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5 $2.5 million gift intended to benefit next generation of business leaders

Troy Fields

Finance professor teaches Texans money tips For the second year, Professor of Finance Alex Butler participated in the Houston Texans rookie training camp, giving guidance on responsible budget management. He is seen here with Houston Texans first round draft pick and superb wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins.

The Jones School has received a $2.5 million gift to launch the James S. Turley-Ernst & Young Leadership Development Initiative. This new initiative will help Rice to re-establish its Master of Accounting (MAcc) program — subject to the approval of the Rice Faculty Senate — and train future business leaders in the accounting profession. The initiative is named for James Turley, the retiring global chairman and chief executive officer of Ernst & Young and a 1977 graduate of Rice’s MAcc program. The $2.5 million gift that made the initiative possible includes $1 million from Turley, $500,000 from Ernst & Young and $1 million from Ernst & Young Rice alumni and various partner donations in honor of Turley.

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5,000th alum!

What did Dane Roberts ’13 know, and when did he know it? For the faculty, staff, graduates, family and friends at Investiture in May, not too many were in the know as to who the 5000th student to graduate from the Jones School would be. Few knew the dean would recognize this student or ask all the MBAs to look under their seats at the end of the ceremony. Of the graduates, one student stood tall and proud, holding a banner above his head letting all in Tudor

Fieldhouse know: he was the 5000th alumnus. “I thought it was a fortunate honor to be part of this milestone for the Jones School,” said Roberts, a REEP MBA for School Leaders and grade-level chair, teacher, and teacher mentor at KIPP Sharpstown College Prep. To read about some of the adventures Dane Roberts takes on with his students, visit business.rice.edu/Alum5000. To learn more about the REEP MBA for School Leaders visit reep.rice.edu.

FALL 2013 JONES JOURNAL // 5

The Rundown

JGSB hosts National Black MBA Conference

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The Jones Graduate School of Business was lead academic sponsor for National Black MBA Association for the 35th Annual NBMBAA Conference and Exposition in Houston last month. Highly regarded as one of the nation's largest business and professional conferences and expositions, the annual event matched job seekers with opportunities for some of the country's leading talent, NBMBAA members, and Fortune 500 corporations. "Courageous Leadership: Owning Your Own Success" was the theme. As previous lead academic partner for MBA Women International (MBAWI, formerly National Association of Women MBAs or NAWMBA) and National Society of Hispanic MBAs (NSHMBA), the Jones School prides itself on its role of supporting its students and other MBA candidates who attend corporate recruitment efforts.

This is the first time the conference had an academic institution as a lead sponsor.

"After over forty years as an organization, we are still proudly celebrating breakthroughs," said Audrey Hines, board chairperson of the NBMBAA. Not only were they honored to partner with the university but Hines also added, "It's fitting that Rice University will join us as a lead academic sponsor while we commemorate 35 years of conference history in Houston."

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Return of the MAcc

Steve Zeff, Professor of Accounting, Keith Anderson Professorship in Business

8

The Jones Graduate School of Business is in the midst of its efforts to re-launch the Master of Accounting (MAcc) program in the fall of 2016. Having offered the MAcc from 1975-1997 and with alumni from that program in positions that influence the entire profession, the Jones School will once again be offering an elite, graduate level accounting degree program designed to build future leaders in the accounting profession.

9 New scholarship honors former Rice board chair In the weeks leading up to a dinner honoring former Rice University Board of Trustees Chair James Crownover ’65, the Jones School and Rice community raised over $1 million to create an endowed scholarship that recognizes his service to the board and the university. Each year, a full time MBA student will be named the Crownover Scholar and receive full tuition and a stipend for living expenses. The Crownover Scholar will have strong academic credentials that will enhance the reputation of the Jones School among top business schools.

Additionally, the Crownover Scholar will exemplify traits that Jim Crownover has demonstrated throughout his career and during his engagement with Rice University: responsibility and respect for others; honesty, integrity and humility; community and philanthropic leadership; and a standard of excellence.

The Rundown

10 Immersion features talks by well-known authors Senior lecturer and policy fellow at the Rockefeller Center at Dartmouth College and former correspondent for The Economist, Charles Wheelan is the author of books that attempt to make serious topics more accessible. He spoke to incoming students about one of his books, "Naked Economics," as part of a 'common reading' program for full-time students.

Author Steven Fenberg spoke about Jesse Jones and why it’s important to know the namesake of the school a little better.

Author of "Unprecedented Power: Jesse Jones, Capitalism and the Common Good," he was executive producer and writer of the Emmy Award-winning film "Brother, Can You Spare a Billion? The Story of Jesse H. Jones," narrated by Walter Cronkite and broadcast nationally on PBS. To see it, visit business.rice.edu/history.

Charles Wheelan speaking to students during Immersion.

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Accountable leaders create accountable schools In August, the Bush Institute’s Spotlight featured REEP graduate Geovanny Ponce ’11 (Business Fellowship for School Leaders) on the Bush Center website, Facebook page, Twitter account and newsletter. He is principal at Hartman Middle School. Ponce built “his school’s community around an implementation of rigorous and measureable systems that progressed Hartman from a subpar district rating, to being ranked one of Houston ISD’s top 10 schools, during his first year as principal. Read his inspiring story on the Bush Center's blog at bushcenter.org/blog.

FALL 2013 JONES JOURNAL // 7

Resources

JGSB Online

business.rice.edu

facebook.com/ricemba twitter.com/ricemba

Check out the detailed bios of all JGSAA 2013-14 officers and board members, including President Bo Bothe ’05 and President-Elect Jay Hawthorn ’05. business.rice.edu/jgsaa_board

Did you know: You can see every elective available, register for exec ed classes, search for alumni and check for upcoming Jones School events online. business.rice.edu

The Jones Corporate Investors provide corporations with many ways to become involved with the Jones School, tailoring each contribution to be the most productive and mutually rewarding for both the school and the investor. business.rice.edu/corporate_investors

Jones Partners open doors to partnership among Houston business leaders and Jones School communities. They also present a compelling speaker series, pairing JGSB professors with leaders, including Dr. Marc Boom, President and CEO, Houston Methodist; Garrett Boone, Cofounder and Chairman Emeritus, The Container Store, Inc.; and Ali Moshiri, President, Chevron Africa and Latin America Exploration and Production Company. business.rice.edu/jonespartners

The Rice MBA admissions blog has program information, admissions tips, Jones School news, as well as student and alumni bloggers sharing their experiences at the Jones School. riceMBAadmissions.com

From OwlSpark Pitch Day to faculty research, student and alumni stories, the homepage hosts a fresh rotation of articles each month. Click on News and Noteworthy to see what you’ve missed in the archives. business.rice.edu

Looking for Class Notes? We’ve moved them to our Facebook page! Join the alumni group, and check out the Class Notes Album to see up-to-the-minute alumni news, including all the baby photos you can handle. business.rice.edu/alumnifb 8 // JONES JOURNAL FALL 2013

Get in The Know with these 5 Things 1 Kite Patch

This tiny patch makes you practically invisible to mosquitoes for up to two days without toxic chemicals.

Although it's not available on the market yet, you can reserve your order and help send Kite Patches to Uganda to fight mosquito-born diseases like malaria. kitepatch.com

2 Rent A Goat

Yes, it's exactly what it sounds like. This service offers goats for rent as an eco-friendly way to help clear land of unwanted vegetation and keep lawns tidy. Companies like Google have even used the service to mow the grass around their corporate buildings. Cuteness and "natural fertilizer" included. rentagoat.com

5 KUBI

KUBI, a robotic desktop stand, seeks to change the video calling experience forever. The stand enables the caller to look around the room during video calls so they can follow the action and control what they see using their own mobile device or laptop.

3 Tile

Tile's technology helps keep track of your valuables. Simply attach a Tile piece to your most beloved items and the Tile mobile app will track its location and let you know when you are getting closer. thetileapp.com

revolverobotics.com

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4 Houston Food Park

In July, Houstonites got their very own food truck park in East Downtown featuring a variety of rolling restaurants. Check their facebook page for hours and daily food truck lineups. facebook.com/ houstonfoodpark FALL 2013 JONES JOURNAL // 9

Entrepreneurship

Virtual World, Real Opportunities Jan Goetgeluk ’10 Kickstarts into Virtual Reality

For Jan Goetgeluk, a normal work day begins around 8 a.m. and, with limited breaks, ends sometime between 1 a.m. and 2 a.m. the following morning. In most cases, the founder and CEO of Houston-based Virtuix keeps the same hectic routine through the weekend, a mentally and physically demanding pace that he wouldn’t change if he could. “I may be from Belgium, but this is my opportunity to live the American dream,” Goetgeluk said. With $1.1 million raised by tapping into the public’s imagination and a unique device just months away from delivery, he’s well on his way.

Goetgeluk’s pursuit of that dream began six years ago, when he was transferred to Houston to serve as a project manager for a Belgian petrochemical company. When the project was completed, he decided to stay in Houston and pursue his MBA at the Jones School. Well before he graduated in 2010, Goetgeluk knew where his career path would eventually lead.

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“I always wanted to be an entrepreneur. That’s one of the reasons I came to the states,” he explained. “At Rice, I took all the entrepreneurship classes and graduated with an entrepreneurship concentration, even though I was the president of the finance club and was going into investment banking.”

After graduation, Goetgeluk took a job with J.P. Morgan’s Oil & Gas Investment Banking Division. During breaks in his long hours of work, he would look for opportunities to strike out on his own. “I promised myself that, before four years were up, I would start a business.”

Eventually, he found an area where he believed he could make his goal a reality — the virtual world. “It started with a conversation with a classmate of mine at Rice about twoand-a-half years ago,” he said. “Microsoft had just come out with the Kinect, which is an optical camera that tracks your

whole body. I thought it was an incredible device that would make a big impact on virtual reality, and I wanted to find a way to take part in what I thought would be a virtual reality revolution.”

Goetgeluk said the combination of improved technology and the interest of people captivated by the idea helped him realize that virtual reality was no longer a niche industry, but the next big thing. With the idea of creating the ability for users to be fully immersed in a virtual reality world, Goetgeluk began work on the Omni, a platform that would allow users to stand and walk around in a virtual world.

He took the idea for the Omni to Kickstarter.com for support and donations from the public for the project, and rapidly raised more than $1.1 million from more than 3,000 donors.

Virtuix has sold nearly 3,000 Omnis before the first one goes out the door.

“The sales pitch was easy because our product speaks to the imagination of a large audience,” he said simply. With the help of seven full-time employees and a couple of part-time employees, Goetgeluk is on schedule to ship the first Omnis in early 2014. There’s already a backlog: Virtuix has sold nearly 3,000 Omnis before the first one goes out the door.

Navigating the Changing Energy Map

REFS November 7, 2013

While most of the $499 Omnis have been sold to individuals, Goetgeluk explained that he has been contacted by a wide variety of potential customers looking to use the device in ways that go well beyond gaming.

“We get calls from corporations every day who want to use the Omni for a wide variety of uses, from oil and gas simulations to military applications to the construction industry who want to use the Omni to virtually walk around a design before they build it,” he said. “We’ve had talks with large conglomerates, gaming companies, so there are a lot of opportunities. A big health care company reached out to us and they want to use the Omni for Alzheimer’s research.”

Janice and Robert McNair Hall Jones Graduate School of Business, Rice University

who will win?

BUSINESS.RICE.EDU/REFS

While Goetgeluk closes in on his objective of becoming a major player in virtual reality, his actual reality has also become more interesting. He married Erica Cedeno, a 2012 Rice MBA, in May — just as the Omni project began to take off. “I am 100 percent immersed in my work, but Erica understands every facet of my business, so I can talk to her about anything and that helps a lot.”

— Mark Passwaters

Jan recently spoke at the 2013 TEDx Houston held on Rice University campus on October 12, 2013. To see a video from his live demonstration at the River Oaks Theater earlier this year, visit business.rice.edu/jan.

FALL 2013 JONES JOURNAL // 11

The pen is mightier than the sword Vikas Mittal, the J. Hugh Liedtke Professor of Marketing, has written with a fountain pen since high school. “If you’re a serious student, it’s an essential tool.” Today he’s a collector. “If you’re an academic, why wouldn’t you collect them?” His reasons for using a fountain pen? “It slows me down and makes me more thoughtful.

It’s simply more fun to write with a fountain pen.” Professor Mittal shares his three favorites.

1. Nakaya Hunuman “Long Cigar” This is the latest in a limited series from Nakaya paying tribute to the Hindu Gods of India. Hanuman, a monkey god, considered the most intelligent among the Gods.

Rose quartz and coral adorn the surface of the pen's barrel.

2. Pelikan Toledo M910 With a finely-engraved design of squares, circles and traditional pelican motifs, each barrel sleeve is hand engraved following the tradition of goldsmiths in Toledo, Spain.

3. Sailor Kurenai (Sunset) King of Pen Kyoto urushi artisan Kurotobisan illustrated an abstract view of the significant moment of sunset in ebonite with gold trim. Both the top of the pen cap and the bottom of the barrel are painted with crimson red, signifying nightfall.

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Business Lunch: Triniti In Houston, there is no shortage of places to gather and enjoy a well-prepared meal. However, when that meal could mean the difference between closing a business deal and selling homemade wares out of the trunk of your car, it’s best to choose wisely.

Okay, so maybe picking a less-thanstellar spot for a business lunch won’t end in your financial ruin, but there's no need to worry about that anyway. Jones Journal has it covered with suggestions for perfect business dining locations.

In this issue, we bring you Triniti, a restaurant that is equal parts luxurious and laid back. With a menu that is innovative but not unfamiliar and an interior space that’s both stylish and welcoming, Triniti sets the scene for a successful business lunch or dinner.

The restaurant is situated on the corner of Shepherd and Kipling in the heart of the vibrant Montrose area.

During lunch, served only on Fridays, the restaurant is bright and open with clean white walls and industrial metal and wood accents. Discretely placed acoustic tiles on the ceiling keep noise levels down and important conversations audible. The main dining area is adjacent to a modern outdoor space designed by the same group behind Brochstein Pavillion on the Rice University campus.

As the sun goes down, the entire place is illuminated by a warm amber glow.

A stunning group of geometric pendant lights hanging in the front corner of the restaurant give off a honey brown light making the space even more intimate and inviting.

Triniti's dining room.

Location: 2815 South Shepherd Houston, Texas 77098 Cuisine: New American Cost: $$$ WiFi: Yes Power Table: The row of booths along the back wall offer a view of the whole dining space and slightly more privacy with partitions extending above the seatbacks.

Good to Know: Complimentary valet parking at dinner.

The menu here changes seasonally to highlight local products, but what remains is the nod to Texas cooking.

Throughout the menu, you can see classic comfort dishes reimagined.

A reserved portion of flat iron steak with marble potatoes and an onion and yogurt vinaigrette has all the flavors of a classic steak and baked potato. Before dinner, we were each served a beautifully presented spoonful of chicken salad, a picnic table staple not often seen in fine dining

Breakfast-themed foie gras appetizer.

establishments. Even the cucumber panzanella, a sophisticated salad made with an assortment of cucumbers and crab meat, included the unexpected flavor of sweet cornbread.

Overall, Triniti exudes refinement and relaxation. Along with the check at the end of dinner came two tiny lemon shortbread cookies, undeniably made with lots of butter. And there is nothing more Texan than that.

— ­Shatha Hussein FALL 2013 JONES JOURNAL // 13

The Corner Office

We sat down with the mayor to talk about what it's like to run the greatest city in the country.

JJ: What was it that attracted you to public service?

AP: I was a very active community volunteer for the 20 years I worked in the private sector. I decided finally that I was going to work every day to support my volunteer habit, and I wanted to be able to do things I was passionate about full time. I wanted to make things happen.

JJ: How has Houston changed over the years since you were a student at Rice?

ANNISE PARKER Mayor of Houston As Houston’s 61st mayor, Annise Parker has spent many years in service to the people — six years as a city council member, six years as city controller and two terms as mayor so far. Her many accomplishments include job growth far exceeding the number of jobs lost during the recession, resulting in Houston being named job growth capital of the nation. A native Houstonian, Mayor Parker graduated with a B.A. from Rice University (triple major in anthropology, psychology and sociology) and spent 20 years in the private sector working in the oil and gas industry, including 18 years with Mosbacher Energy Company.

For the full interview, visit business.rice.edu/parker.

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AP: It’s bigger. It’s more international. It’s more cosmopolitan. It’s more open, more tolerant. It’s a better place overall. We still have elements of being a big small town.

What I hear over and over again both from visitors and people who live here is that it’s a very livable place, and they feel welcome. And that’s priceless.

JJ: What is the most challenging aspect of being the mayor of the fourth largest city in the U.S.?

AP: Cities are 24/7. They’re never finished. And this is a strong mayor system so I am the CEO of the city. If the wheels come off, it’s my fault.

JJ: In your years as mayor, what has been your most rewarding experience?

AP: I can’t point to just one. To be able to know that I have made decisions, initiated efforts that have changed the future of Houston, from the hike and bike trail initiatives being rolled out along all our bayous, to the work that’s going on at Buffalo Bayou, to the work we’re doing with homelessness right now, housing more than 500 chronically homeless veterans. Every day I get to do something that changes Houston. It’s that I get to make positive progress and change people’s lives for the better every day.

I also have the potential to really piss off 2 million people every day. It’s the nature of the job ­— balancing legitimate competing needs and interests. That means there are losers in the process.

I do more to try to engage with Houstonians — quarterly Teletown Halls, where we dial into a neighborhood and try to get people on the phone. It’s amazing we’ll have 300 people listening to a phone conversation. We also do quarterly Web Chats. We do what I call Merchant Walks where we pick a strip center and I go in and out of stores accosting shoppers and proprietors and talk to them about what’s going on.

Through the Merchant Walks I’ve learned that barber shops are the best places to go because the guys are always happy to see me. They always want their picture taken, and they know all the gossip about what’s going on in the neighborhood or who got robbed.

The fourth thing we do is Three Minutes with the Mayor. We do it all over the city.

There’s no substitute for being out in the neighborhood. I learn things on the drive over there. I see what’s around whatever venue we are visiting. I hear from them directly and someone can say, “Now, Mayor, when you leave here I want you to go down to the corner and turn left. You can see the weedy lot that I was talking about.” It also means that people have the opportunity to look me in the eye and raise any issue they want.

There’s just so much I don’t know. Being a type-A-super-achiever-Rice-alum, I want to master the job. I want to master the process. But you can’t ever get it all done because cities are never finished.

Places of Business

We’re dispelling the notion that business must be done from a cube farm by bringing you some of the coolest offices in the country.

Workhorse Printmakers/ Spindletop Design houston, texas This former furniture factory houses both Spindletop Design and Workhorse Printmakers, two studios pairing fresh graphic design with the lost art of letterpress printing.

The owners credit luck for finding the location after traffic forced them down a side street in the Rice Military neighborhood.

FUN FACT: Workhorse's six production presses range in manufacturing date from 1898-1956.

FALL 2013 JONES JOURNAL // 15

Ask the Experts What happens when the founding CEO of Compaq and the heads of Rice Alliance and Greater Houston Partnership get together at BioScience Research Collaborative at the corner of Main and University? A high-voltage conversation about entrepreneurship and Houston.

2. What traits help make an entrepreneur successful?

BB: Passion, perseverance, flexibility to be able to modify your plans when something’s not working. The new word in our lingo is pivot.

Entrepreneurs need to be persistent and flexible, and they have to be willing to pivot.

RC: It takes drive, desire and a certain amount of vision. I never viewed myself as an entrepreneur. I went to work for Texas Instruments right out of graduate school. A big part of my training at TI was learning the many aspects of the business. I encourage students to work for a big company that does it right, that has a culture and a reporting structure.

Then when you reach a certain point in your maturity and under the right circumstances, you may want to do your own thing.

Brad Burke, Managing Director, Rice Alliance for Technology and Entrepreneurship Bob Harvey, President and CEO, Greater Houston Partnership Rod Canion, Co-founding and first CEO, Compaq; Author, Open: How Compaq Ended IBM’s PC Domination and Helped Invent Modern Computing.

For the full interview, visit business.rice.edu/experts.

1. Why is Houston a great place to start a business?

BB: Houston was founded on a culture of collaboration that continues today. There is a lot of support through the entrepreneurial eco-system. The saying, “A rising tide lifts all boats” is true here. It’s also true that many successful entrepreneurs want to give back and get great personal reward by helping the next generation of aspiring entrepreneurs.

BH: Houston is a great place to do business. A robust economy and financing infrastructure, diverse talent pool, and low cost of living provide a favorable climate for budding entrepreneurs.

Houston has become a magnet for attracting top talent.

Left to Right: Brad Burke, Bob Harvey, and Rod Canion 16 // JONES JOURNAL FALL 2013

Troy Fields

3. Why is it important for entrepreneurs to support each other?

BH: I’d encourage all entrepreneurs to be a part of a network of their peers. Gain momentum and inspiration from like-minded entrepreneurial spirits. Additionally, seek the guidance of those who have already achieved success. And if you’re one of those successful people, make sure to take a budding entrepreneur under your wing.

RC: Almost by definition, most entrepreneurs aren’t experienced in starting a company. How do you learn? From other entrepreneurs, from business school and networking. Venture capital is another source, not just money, but the knowledge to increase your chances of success.

4. What does business school offer entrepreneurs?

BB: Business schools combine the educational foundation and the experiential learning to accelerate an entrepreneur’s path to success.

BH: Business schools provide an encouraging environment to bolster creativity and strategic thinking and to connect students with peers, advisors and potential investors.

RC: Rice is a great example of a business school that builds the spirit and infrastructure that amplifies the entrepreneurial culture.

FALL 2013 JONES JOURNAL // 17

The Scrutiny Cycle Understanding CEO compensation, the right incentive mix, and who comes out on top amy burroughs

18 // JONES JOURNAL FALL 2013

Increased scrutiny stems, in part, from the 2002 SarbanesOxley (SOX) Act’s call for more independent outsiders on boards of directors. Yet Hoskisson believes independence has reached an extreme, such that monitoring quality actually drops on boards that suffer from a limited window into business operations.

If there is one thing that didn’t suffer during and after the Great Recession, it is how much companies pay their CEOs. Top executives make so much that The New York Times recently pronounced there to be “An unstoppable climb in CEO pay.”

Despite the headlines, the reasons why companies pay CEOs as they do can seem inscrutable. Research by two Jones Graduate School of Business professors seeks to shed light on the process as investors, regulators and the media increasingly scrutinize compensation practices. One aspect under study is the effect of monitoring CEOs more intensely to ensure they act in shareholders’ interests. The answer, according to one study, is surprising. Robert Hoskisson, Rice’s George R. Brown Professor of Management, and coauthors Mark Castleton and Michael Withers found that heightened monitoring actually leads to higher CEO pay. And, what’s more, increased scrutiny may stifle the very innovation companies need to grow and compete.

Meanwhile, Assistant Professor of Finance David De Angelis has taken advantage of new disclosures about CEO compensation to learn what, exactly, goes into pay-forperformance rewards. His analysis reveals a sophisticated array of metrics companies use to determine CEO pay.

Their research couldn’t be more timely. The New York Times study, conducted in June, showed that in 2012, the top 200 CEOs at public companies with at least $1 billion in revenue had a median compensation of $15.1 million—up 16 percent since 2011.

The Insider-Outsider Tradeoff

Hoskisson and colleagues published “Complementarity in Monitoring and Bonding: More Intense Monitoring Leads to Higher Executive Compensation” in the Academy of Management Perspectives in 2009. They argue that as monitoring intensifies, managers face greater professional risk, which they seek to offset through higher pay. This fuels a vicious cycle: More monitoring leads to more money, which triggers more monitoring.

“If you get a bunch of insiders mixed with outsiders, you get a better balance of informed strategic decisions,” Hoskisson said. “You have people who understand what’s happening on a day-to-day basis because they’re more involved.”

The push for independent directors, of course, rests on the assumption that insiders, beholden to the CEO, will merely rubber-stamp whatever he or she wants. Hoskisson, however, suggests insiders often are motivated to monitor appropriately. First, they are legally obligated to do so. Second, insiders just might be gunning for the CEO’s job.

To understand the relationship between monitoring and CEO pay, Hoskisson and his coauthors first studied the connection between monitoring intensity and executive risk. They posited that as monitoring goes up, “managers’ job security is less certain, and they may view it as having to take on extra risk. Because of this extra risk, over time they demand and are able to receive more money.”

Corporate trends shape this dynamic. First, ownership is much more concentrated today. Institutional ownership in the U.S. stock market jumped from less than 10 percent in 1952 to more than 70 percent in 2006. Many institutional owners take an active role in board governance: If they don’t like the direction management is taking, they can use their muscle to force a leadership change.

Second, there are calls to stop concentrating power in the dual CEO-board chair role. The change has been slow to take hold, in part because concentrated authority has advantages: faster decision making and a unified command structure.

One compromise is the lead independent director, who serves as a liaison with the board while the CEO continues to wear two hats.

Finally, CEO tenures are much shorter than they used to be. According to the authors, between 1995 and 2006, CEO turnover rose 59 percent and CEOs being fired or forced out jumped 318 percent. Together, these conditions put CEOs in a more precarious position.

More Money, More Problems

Some researchers argue that terminated CEOs lose more than a job. Hoskisson cites research that outed CEOs “lose their human and social capital, become stigmatized, or suffer other reputational losses that damage their market value and make it difficult to find a new job.”

And that, Hoskisson says, is precisely why executives facing scrutiny are likely to demand more money. In this environment, even newly hired CEOs are under the gun. If the old CEO gets the boot, the incoming leader is in one of FALL 2013 JONES JOURNAL // 19

Sarbanes-Oxley Act JUST THE FACTS • Drafted in 2002.

• Designed to protect investors by improving accuracy and reliability of corporate disclosures.

• Created new standards for corporate accountability and new penalties for acts of wrongdoing so that CEOs could not claim that they were unaware of financial issues in the company.

• Specified new financial reporting responsibilities, including adherance to new internal controls and procedures designed to ensure the validity of their financial records.

two high-pressure scenarios: “either a failed situation or a situation in which the strategy needs to be revamped.”

Many companies augment salaries with signing bonuses, golden parachutes, stocks and other perks. Golden parachutes and severances, in particular, have been a flash point for criticism, especially when given to leaders of deeply troubled companies—say, $110 million to Angelo Mozilo of Countrywide Financial and $161 million to Stan O’Neal of Merrill Lynch. Both CEOs made Time magazine’s list of “25 People to Blame for the Financial Crisis.” In response to such criticism, Hoskisson argues that severance payouts are contracted when the CEO starts. These days, many executives simply won’t sign on without them. Without proper planning, boards often search for a superstar to get them out of their problems; this always elevates pay coming in but also upon exit. For example, consider Marissa Mayer’s situation at Yahoo! or Meg Whitman’s at HP. Executives’ willingness to take risks has important implications for innovation. Hoskisson cites research showing that risk taking has fallen in the post-SOX climate.

“It makes managers risk-averse,” he says. “You monitor so much that you don’t get as much fraud…but in the process, you lose the upside. You lose some on the risk-taking side.”

He explains that if you take compensation off the table, managers will find another way to limit their exposure: diversify the firm so they don’t put all the eggs in one basket or simply make less risky decisions. The solution, Hoskisson believes, is to restore balance to boards so they represent insider and outsider perspectives. By excising insiders, he says, boards have lost the ability to evaluate inputs to business strategy and, instead, are left with the lesser alternative of studying outcomes.

“We are, in fact, moving to one insider on the board, the CEO. Is it a good situation to have lone-insider boards where such 20 // JONES JOURNAL FALL 2013

boards lack peer monitoring (other insiders) and independent directors have less internal strategic information? This leaves CEOs in a powerful situation relative to other board members in regard to information and approximately 40 percent of the S&P 1500 have such boards now.

“In regard to compensation,” Hoskisson continues. “The information gap is aided by consultants who help establish the incentive mix for the board compensation committees on the firm side and lawyers acting as agents (think agents of star athletes) to negotiate the employment and compensation contract for the CEO. It is important to not underestimate the importance of these intermediaries in the compensation story.”

What Goes Into CEO Paychecks?

Remember those executives in the high turnover churn?

They don’t necessarily walk away empty-handed. Some data suggest that certain contractual provisions, such as golden parachutes, allow CEOs to prosper no matter how they perform. In August, the Washington, DC-based Institute for Policy Studies released its Executive Excess report. It says that in the last two decades, almost 40 percent of the highest-paid CEOs ended up “bailed out, booted or busted.”

The report criticizes the discrepancy between high pay, ostensibly a reward for “the superior value that elite chief executives add to their enterprises,” and actual performance.

In fact, 158 of 500 executives studied were fired, forced to pay fraud-related fines or settlements, or led firms that were failures or bailouts. Lehman Brothers CEO Richard Fuld, for example, earned $466.3 million in the eight years before the firm crashed into record-setting bankruptcy.

That brings us to De Angelis’ research, “Pay for the Right Performance,” coauthored with Yaniv Grinstein. Their research was made possible by a 2006 U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ruling that required companies to disclose how their performance measures determine CEO compensation. For the first time, De Angelis and Grinstein were able to analyze these structures in 494 S&P 500 firms.

Ninety percent granted performance-based awards, with an average value of $4.8 million.

“We were surprised to some extent by the complexity of the contracts, because they can use multiple performance measures and they will tie certain amounts to different measures,” De Angelis says. “It’s quite a sophisticated way to define performance.”

De Angelis and Grinstein found considerable variation in companies’ compensation strategies, but also identified clear trends. More than half the firms combined two to four performance measures, and almost all used at least one accounting-based measure. On average, 79 percent of awards were based on accounting measures, 13 percent on marketbased measures (measures based on stock price performance) and 8 percent on non-financial measures, such as corporate diversity or customer satisfaction.

Corporate Transparency May Curb Excess

De Angelis and Grinstein found that the nature of the firm drives the choice of performance metrics. Large, complex and high-growth companies tend to tie more of CEOs’ compensation to market-based performance. Highgrowth firms also put more emphasis on sales-based measures among accounting measures. Mature firms, by contrast, have fewer growth opportunities, so they rely on accounting returns.

That difference makes sense, the authors say: “[Growing] firms are more concerned with establishing market share than with making large profits in the short run.” If a company wants its CEO to build value through new marketing strategies, for example, it would measure success in sales growth or other related terms.

In Texas, CEOs earn an average of $5,078,531 compared to workers’ $42,039.

Many CEO contracts are less a simple one-to-one ratio of performance to compensation than a complicated set of targets, each weighted independently. Firms also vary in the time periods they evaluate: from one quarter to eight years, with an average of just under two years. It’s reassuring, De Angelis says, that companies are putting in the work to structure appropriate compensation contract: “What we observe makes sense, so it’s not coming out of the blue.”

Demonstrating a connection between performance and compensation may enable companies to rationalize high payouts. But De Angelis emphasizes that the study does not comment on how much CEOs should make: “It’s very difficult to say whether they earn too much or not.”

More disclosure may be on the horizon if the SEC approves a new rule this year requiring companies to report pay gaps between CEOs and workers. In 2012, according to the AFL-CIO, CEO pay at S&P 500 companies was on average 354 times higher than worker pay. In Texas, CEOs earn an average of $5,078,531 compared to workers’ $42,039.

De Angelis suspects that, in general, increased transparency may rein in egregious compensation as firms seek to avoid reputational risk: “It’s likely that we might see less outrageous compensation packages because of this higher disclosure.”

About the Contributors David De Angelis is an assistant professor of finance at the Jones School. He joined the faculty in 2012 after completing his doctoral studies at the Johnson School at Cornell University and is currently teaching the managerial economics course in the MBA full-time program and in the MBA for Professionals (Evening) program.

His research interests are in corporate finance and corporate governance. He has examined issues related to firm’s internal capital allocation decisions, the design of executive compensation contracts, and corporate risk management.

Robert E. Hoskisson is the George R. Brown Professor of Management at the Jones School. He joined the faculty in 2009. Professor Hoskisson is the president of the Strategic Management Society. In 2010 he was recognized by The Times Higher Education as one of the top 25 scholars in the world in business and economics based on the number of articles with more than 50 citations. His research is focused on corporate strategy and its outcomes in regard to performance and managerial commitment to innovation. In particular, he has examined what creates improved corporate performance and entrepreneurship in the multidivisional firm. As such, he has studied how corporate governance (ownership, board involvement and executive compensation) has influenced corporate strategy and innovation, the relationship between corporate diversification (both product and international) strategy and performance and innovation, and how such diversification is facilitated through acquisitions and divestitures as well as cooperative strategies (alliances and joint ventures). He also studied how these relationships might be different in different institutional contexts such as in emerging economies or newly created firms (e.g. IPO).

Research Cited Hoskisson, R. E., Castleton, M. W. & Withers, M. C. 2009. Complementarity in monitoring and bonding: More intense monitoring leads to higher executive compensation. Academy of Management Perspectives, 23(2): 57-74.

If that proves to be the case, perhaps something good for shareholders may come out of the recession, after all.

FALL 2013 JONES JOURNAL // 21

st u dent E nt repr e neurs h i p

at

Rice

success through collaboration

M. Y von n e Taylor

22 // JONES JOURNAL FALL 2013

A

A

ptly held in the visually dramatic Duncan Hall, which features an elaborate, intricate, even mystical ceiling mural, “Birth of Consciousness,”

by John Outram, the first OwlSpark Pitch Day last August proved to be a dynamic culmination and further instigation of creative entrepreneurial energy — both student and alumni — at Rice. Leaders from nine companies helmed their respective booths in the stunning foyer. They greeted and chatted with more than 300 people before moving on to McMurtry Auditorium and making their pitches to the array of potential investors, business leaders and interested members of the Houston community.

Much like the representation of the “Birth of Consciousness” illuminates a larger idea — itself dependent on the structure of the engineering building — the recent increase of student clubs, events and opportunities all rest on a foundation of faculty mentorship and research. While entrepreneurship has been part of the curriculum at the Jones School since the appointment of Professor Ed Williams in 1978 and subsequently Professor Al Napier in 1984, research in the field continues.

“Threads of entrepreneurism are found throughout faculty research at the Jones School,” said Bill Glick, dean and H. Joe Nelson III Professor of Management. “At its core, we are seeing an entrepreneurial cycle — students benefit from learning from thought leaders, who are themselves innovating through research on topics related to entrepreneurship, such

as the work on under-pricing of IPO’s by Bob Hoskisson, new venture strategies in transitional economies by Haiyang Li, creativity and innovation by Jing Zhou, and new product development by Utpal Dholakia. Add to that the experience of practitioners such as Dennis Murphree, Blair Garrou, Al Danto, Cliff Atherton and, of course Al and Ed, and you have a recipe for growth in new businesses.”

The transfer from theory to practice enlightens students new to that promise of potential. The underlying mentorship, from faculty and even between students, generates innovation, creates jobs and harnesses a thriving local economy.

Back in Duncan Hall, beneath the colorful mural, yet another initiative fueled by opportunity at Rice emerges. And though OwlSpark, the new startup accelerator program founded by Rice undergraduates and Rice MBA Darren Clifford ’13, is the latest manifestation of the entrepreneurial excitement and effort that the campus generates, other student initiatives abound.

Most include several of the varied elements that make Rice stand out in this growing business arena.

It Starts from the Ground Up

One of the characteristics of entrepreneurial energy at Rice is that it often stems from grassroots efforts, directly from student desire and inquiry. Rice attracts entrepreneurial students and faculty — the proverbial “out-of-the-box” thinkers — and fosters that spirit once those thinkers arrive.

Take Emma Fauss, MBA ’13, Ph.D., and co-founder of Medical Informatics, for example. One of the participants of this year’s OwlSpark. Fauss, who earned a B.S. in chemical engineering from The Cooper Union and a Ph.D. in electrical engineering from the University of Virginia, says, “I came to Rice because FALL 2013 JONES JOURNAL // 23

Jeff Fitlow

“There’s an almost doubled interest in entrepreneurship from every school,” explains Tom Kraft, Ph.D., who directs the Technology Venture Development Program in the Rice Alliance. Now in its 13th year, the Rice Alliance mission is to foster collaborative efforts, particularly between the engineering, natural science and business schools at Rice, to create ventures that can result in the creation of jobs and revenue.

Kraft’s program screens technologies developed at Rice then establishes and mentors teams of students to create a business plan around the technologies.

These teams are encouraged to take the technology to market. A first step in this process is to apply to the Rice Business Plan Competition. The competition, the richest and largest intercollegiate student startup competition in the

FROM TOP: Two members of Team ClimaTears, winners of the 2010 Rice Undergraduate Elevator Pitch Competition, work on a pair of climatecontrolled goggles used to diagnose dry eye disease in the Oshman Engineering Design Kitchen.

Rice University 2013 RBPC team, Medical Informatics, takes the $25,000 nCourage prize awarded to courageous women entrepreneurs.

Member of 2013 RBPC winning team, SiNode Systems, ring the closing NASDAQ OMX bell surrounded by friends and supporters.

of its amazing entrepreneurial and engineering brand, which is respected internationally. Rice attracts raw talent globally to programs all over campus, visionary students who can be transformed into leaders. It’s a core strength of this university.”

Fauss, who also worked as an intern with the Rice Alliance for Technology and Entrepreneurship, came to the university with a business idea already in hand. Rice gave her connections with business leaders who could further that idea. “I had access to so many people,” she explains, “I could meet with a CEO of a hospital one day and the head of Houston Community College the next.”

The student-led entrepreneurial energy has grown substantially in recent years.

24 // JONES JOURNAL FALL 2013

world, receives 600+ entries from across the globe and awards $1.5 million in prizes and tremendous global exposure. The competition has always attracted global talent, recently providing spots to winners of The Indus Entrepreneurs (TiE) International Business Plan Competition — itself attracting hundreds of participants from Asia and Europe.

In addition, the Rice Alliance works with several organizations across campus to host other entrepreneurship events, business plan competitions and elevator pitch competitions.

Rice Alliance encourages student initiatives as well as startups from the wider entrepreneurial community, conducting venture capital forums in energy, clean tech, information

technology and software, life sciences and biotechnology. These forums bring venture capitalists and promising startups from around the United States to Rice, and students have the opportunity to learn about entrepreneurship first-hand.

Brad Burke, managing director of the Rice Alliance, believes that students’ growing interest in entrepreneurship has been sparked in part because of a changing economic and career landscape: “I think students today no longer expect to spend their entire career in one corporation. They are more willing to take risks and more interested in pursuing opportunities where they feel they can make a real difference immediately. Moreover, even those students who initially accept a position in a large company know they eventually are likely to change jobs and recognize the value of acquiring entrepreneurial skills while at Rice.”

Critical Mass Combined with Technological Innovation Have Fueled Entrepreneurial Zeal

Al Danto ’00 remembers when the Rice Alliance began, in formation with the first Business Plan Competition.

Danto says, “I came through in the late ’90s and graduated in 2000. The alumni base was small at that time, and we hadn’t yet hit a critical mass.

Entrepreneurship at Rice began to develop in different directions. There were a variety of entrepreneurial ventures, from one-person startups, consulting firms, acquiring franchises, succession planning in family enterprises, or other business. The pathways began to merge, and along with that, support and networking among alumni and, more formally and academically, support for entrepreneurship through the school.”

That increased groundswell of interest in entrepreneurship, growth in numbers of students and alumni and support from the school dovetailed precisely alongside the introduction of the Internet and the advent of social media, which have greatly increased the interest in and impetus for entrepreneurial activity across the globe. The ability to acquire

A Glossary of Entrepreneurship Organizations Entrepreneurship Club is an organization dedicated to fostering the innovative entrepreneurial spirit and vision in the Jones School community.

Members have interests in many different areas of new venture creation, from founding or managing a startup to investing, advising, or serving as a corporate partner.

Houston Area Translational Research Consortium is a unique amalgam of scientific, health care, entrepreneurial, educational, regulatory and commercialization expertise and resources that speed the delivery of research generated by the 54 members of the Texas Medical Center from the laboratory into businesses that bring life-saving products and technologies to the fight against human disease.

JGSEO (Jones Graduate School Entrepreneurs Organization) provides the systems, processes and social networks to bring together alumni with real-world entrepreneurial experiences for the benefit of everyone involved.

OEDK (Oshman Engineering Design Kitchen) provides a 12,000-squarefoot space for undergraduate students to design, prototype and deploy solutions to real-world engineering challenges.

Office of Technology Transfer assists the faculty, staff, and students in commercializing technology created and developed at Rice.

OwlSpark an accelerator that provides entrepreneurs with funding and structured mentorship for three months over the summer to improve the successful commercialization of businesses coming out of the Rice community. A full year of co-located office space is provided.

RCEL (Rice Center for Engineering Leadership) provides Rice engineers with opportunities to develop as leaders, by studying models of leadership, actively experiencing leadership, and reflecting on those leadership experiences. RCEL fosters opportunities for collaboration among all students at Rice.

REEP (Rice Education Entrepreneurship Program) is the nation’s foremost leadership development program for highly motivated educators committed to leading public schools. Students earn either an MBA or a graduate certificate for one-year business training.

Rice Alliance for Technology and Entrepreneurship is Rice University’s nationally-recognized initiative devoted to the support of technology commercialization, entrepreneurship education, and the launch of technology companies. It was formed as a strategic alliance of three schools: the George R. Brown School of Engineering, the Wiess School of Natural Sciences and the Jesse H. Jones Graduate School of Business in collaboration with the Vice Provost and the Office of Research. The Rice Alliance is a catalyst for building successful ventures through education, guidance and connections.

Rice Launch, a student-run organization that hosts innovative events and programs oriented around practical education and hands-on application of knowledge, to help empower undergraduate, graduate, and MBA students at Rice. Programs include two year-round projects: a mentorship program and Houston entrepreneurship liaison program.

Technology Venture Development Program screens technologies developed at Rice then establishes and mentors teams of students to create a business plan around the technologies.

These teams are encouraged to take the technology to market.

FALL 2013 JONES JOURNAL // 25

LEFT: Dr. Jack Gill of the GOOSE Society of Texas updates the grand prize total award at the 2013 RBPC Awards Banquet.

OPPOSITE: A member of Team ClimaTears, winners of the 2010 Rice Undergraduate Elevator Pitch Competition, wears a pair of goggles the team developed to diagnose dry eye disease more effectively.

"Rice has launched more startups per dollar of research than MIT, Stanford, or Harvard." information rapidly and communicate with others quickly transformed a process that took much more effort just a short time before.

“When I was in school, email was a big deal,” laughs Danto.

“Now, you can connect with alumni and other business leaders easily and stay connected with them through social media networks like LinkedIn.” In 2010, Danto worked with Professor Al Napier to launch the Jones Graduate School Entrepreneurs Organization (JGSEO), which helps Jones School students and alumni achieve their entrepreneurial goals through education, advice, encouragement and networking support.

Blair Garrou of the Mercury Fund, one of the most active venture groups on campus, also mentions technology as a large component in the growth of entrepreneurism. Garrou, whose partner Dan Watkins (Rice B.S. ’85) is one of the cofounders of the Rice Alliance, has taught the venture capital course for Jones School students, and is a frequent guest 26 // JONES JOURNAL FALL 2013

lecturer of the undergraduate entrepreneurship course. “The increase in entrepreneurship activity across the U.S.,” says Garrou, “has been driven through programs like Startup America [a national network of startup communities that links entrepreneurs, leaders, mentors and executives], and new seed accelerators have occurred with this enormous growth of software that is part of everything we do. And that’s really taken hold at Rice.”

Garrou ties the proliferation of software to the decreasing age of first-time entrepreneurs as well. “Entrepreneurs as a whole are starting younger and younger, and you can see that happening at Rice too when you look at programs like Rice Launch, a new student organization. These are programs that students created and that’s really exciting.”

It Takes a Village

Rice’s small size can aid with efforts to reach across campus and among various departments, disciplines and schools. And according to Garrou, it’s that type of cross-pollination of ideas and innovation that feeds new business development. “When you look at universities that tend to have the highest levels of commercialization,” he explains, “it stems from the fact that all the schools talk to one another and they can then combine their resources. I see a lot more of that going on now with Rice Launch, OwlSpark and Dr. Kraft’s Technology Venture Development Program.”

And the university’s location in Houston — the fourthlargest city in the United States, energy capital of the world, home to the world’s largest medical center and the nation’s busiest seaport — helps too. Putting all of that together helps to create, as University Provost George McClendon deems

Jeff Fitlow

it, “a deeply unusual environment” that fosters and supports entrepreneurism.

“Rice has a multipoint ecosystem that has grown pretty organically and has been reinforced,” he says. “The Rice Alliance is one piece of that ecosystem as is the Rice Center for Engineering Leadership, which has entrepreneurship as a core component. Those two organizations melded together to lead OwlSpark.

“The existence of the Rice Alliance and Rice Center for Engineering Leadership; the close collaboration with the Texas Medical Center; the existence of the Houston Area Translational Research Consortium at the BRC; the role the Gulf Coast Consortium has played; as well as the involvement of the GOOSE Society of Texas (Grand Order of Successful Entrepreneurs), are examples of components of this ecosystem,” McClendon explains. The GOOSE Society, founded

by Dr. Jack Gill and Rod Canion, both successful entrepreneurs and investors, has helped to make the Rice Business Plan Competition the preeminent university startup competition in the world, bringing investors and competitors from around the globe to Rice each spring. This group provides funding for new ventures, as well as mentoring and education through several courses and programs led by Dr. Gill.

reputation for entrepreneurial excellence is stellar — in fact this past September, the Jones School was ranked the fourth best graduate entrepreneurship program for the second year in a row, and one of only three universities in the top 10 for five consecutive years. But in order to remain on top, it must continue to innovate, collaborate, produce research, and lead.

Already, the school is investing in that next generation of research — this year hiring a finance professor focused on venture capital.

One of those signature programs is the Ignite Conference — Gill’s clone of a successful program he launched at Indiana University.

Each spring 30-40 graduate students travel to the West Coast where they can learn from entrepreneurs in the heart of Silicon Valley. A distinguishing feature is that the program includes both Ph.D. and MBA candidates from Rice, as well as M.D. and Ph.D. candidates from the Texas Medical Center.

Rice’s biggest challenge, according to Fauss, is to “continue to take it to the next level.” She’d like to see more pathways for students across campus to develop skills in entrepreneurship as well as a centralized “entrepreneurship lab,” which would serve as a hub and co-working space for faculty, students and researchers to pursue their entrepreneurial ideas and receive mentoring.

“All of these are positive features,” McClendon continues. “No single one is unique, but the combination of all simultaneously is most unusual.”

Meanwhile, Garrou agrees that though several new startups affiliated with Rice are housed at the BRC, the building was designed more for research than for the type of co-working and community building that entrepreneurs need. “Rice has density,” he explains, “and it’s in the perfect location to provide the type of co-working space needed for entrepreneurs.”

“Every city or community for one reason or another creates a culture or paradigm for how they think about things,” says Kraft, when considering how Rice’s home in Houston has influenced new development and commercialization of ideas.

“Houston picked up a couple of exciting things from the Space Center, which breathed fresh air and fresh thinking — going to the moon, drilling offshore, building a 20-lane road and calling it I-10? No problem. And the community is forgiving if you fail at your first shot. There’s not a judgmental negative attitude about startups. The attitude here is: If you want to try it, go for it, and we’ll support you in any way we can.”

The Future of Entrepreneurship at Rice

Looking ahead at the next decade, Rice University President David Leebron cited a number of strategic academic priorities, including making it a more entrepreneurial university. Rice’s

With regard to the infrastructure that’s already been built to support the entrepreneurial groundswell at Rice, Burke says, “We’ve created a terrific platform for entrepreneurship at Rice. Over the ten years, Rice has launched more startups per dollar of research than MIT, Stanford, or Harvard. We’ve shown what is possible and interest in entrepreneurship has exploded. Now, starting at the student level, we need to nurture that energy to create great entrepreneurial leaders and great entrepreneurial companies.”

To read more on the history of entrepreneurship, the faculty and the inception of the Rice Alliance, visit business.rice.edu/ entr_history.

FALL 2013 JONES JOURNAL // 27

"i'm sorry, i didn't quite

catch that."

Customers,

computers and companies

How companies are missing out on the benefits of customer storytelling and personal interaction.

Tony Gorry & Bob Westbrook

In our title, computers stand between customers and companies as they so commonly do in today’s world of commerce. In digital technology, businesses have found new ways to relate to their customers and to gain more knowledge about them. And even beyond the rush of holiday shopping, the Internet offers customers quick and easy access to a greater array of goods and services than can be found in local venues, at lower prices as well. Despite the convenience of point and click shopping, however, many of us find pleasure in patronizing small shops, which recall the general store of an earlier time. There the proprietor knew his customers well. He wisely attended closely to their opinions, suggestions, and complaints, and developed his business in light of what he learned. In today’s small stores, the possibility of such interchanges remains, interactions that benefit customer and owner alike. Less happily, the technology that increasingly mediates relations between large companies and their customers prevents such conversations, to the detriment of both.

A story comes to us as a new sense So says the poet W. S. Merwin. At the counter, conversation with a customer may bring the owner a new perspective on the business. The interplay of empathy and imagination makes storytelling so potent. Emotional centers deep in our brains engender empathy, which two hundred years ago, Adam Smith characterized as “pity for the sorrowful, anguish for the miserable, joy for the successful.” Our highly developed imagination, as J. K. Rowling recently said, “is not only the uniquely human capacity to envision that which is not, and therefore the fount of all invention and innovation.

In its arguably most transformative and revelatory capacity, it is the power that enables us to empathise with humans whose experiences we have never shared.” Storytelling entwines empathy and imagination to put the shop owner into the customer’s shoes, giving her a vantage point on her business not to be found in the pale abstractions of market research reports and sales analyses so favored by large companies today.

FALL 2013 JONES JOURNAL // 29

Who's getting it right?

Five companies using customer stories to their advantage

Ritz-Carlton At Ritz-Carlton, senior management promotes the sharing of customer stories at regular employee gatherings in 21 countries around the world. So-called ‘Wow’ stories foster emotional connections between staff and customers.

IBM In his heralded transformation of IBM, CEO Lou Gerstner charged his management team with meeting customers not to sell, but rather to gain feedback by listening to their stories. At staff meetings, he asked: “What are you learning about customers? What are they saying out there?” Reflection on the stories gathered by his management team helped Gerstner galvanize new thinking about the relationship of IBM to its customers.

Lego When Lego’s new robotic toy known as Mindstorms was unsuccessful and the company faced liquidation, management turned to its loyal customers, who worked with the company for 14 months as unpaid volunteers in the redesign and, after the re-launch, took the lead in informing other Lego fans through the Internet. Mindstorms went on to become a major market success. Deep customer involvement has since become integral to Lego’s way of doing business.

Harley Davidson CEO Vaughn Beals helped establish the Harley Owners Group (HOG), which brings together Harley owners for social events, bike rides, and community service projects. Executives participate in HOG rallies during which they hear stories and develop better ideas for building better motorcycles.

Starbucks My Starbucks Idea website allows users to post suggestions for the company in various categories and to rate other users’ posts. Employees acting as Starbucks Idea Partners respond to the posts, notify the appropriate internal Starbucks departments, answer user questions, and keep posters updated as to the status of the company's response to the idea.

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Not only can we imagine the circumstances of others, we have as well an insatiable desire to do so. Millions of years of natural selection forged our remarkable human sociability, our deep and nuanced involvement with one another. Shared narratives preserved vital practical knowledge, guided behavior and by their recounting, bound groups together. When one hundred years ago Joseph Conrad claimed “the artist appeals to that part of our being which is not dependent on wisdom: to that in us which is a gift and not an acquisition—and, therefore, more permanently enduring,” he might have been speaking as an evolutionary psychologist.

We have inherited from our ancient ancestors a hunger for stories and an irresistible urge to tell them. Our devotion to novels, movies, television shows, and now the Internet proves how eager we are to join the lives of others real and imagined. We even tell stories to ourselves.

Gossip still serves its ancient ends of monitoring group activity, maintaining hierarchy and promoting bonding, but we so enjoy imagining the lives of others, we gossip about people we don’t know, inventing their stories for our own pleasure.

The ubiquity of storytelling So naturally, we want to tell stories to businesses.

We want to relate our experiences with their products or services and our interactions with their employees. We want to recount how their offerings entered into our lives, how well they served their intended purposes, or how they fell short of our expectations.

In a small store, our stories generally receive empathetic hearing. The proprietor who would prosper listens. But a century ago, small establishments, which today might seem quaint and endearing, proved less than charming to their owners, particularly to entrepreneurs who chafed under the constraints of locality. When advances in technology loosened constraints on expansion, businesses eagerly reached for more customers than could be found nearby.

While this expansion brought many benefits to customers and companies alike, it exacted a price by undermining storytelling and beginning an estrangement between customers and businesses that is worsening today.

The evolution of the Sears catalog is an apt metaphor for this disconnection. The catalog had a modest beginning as a printed mailer to advertise watches and jewelry to homesteaders who, following the westward expansion of the railroad, were settling on the American

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Great Plains. The catalog could travel the rails for a penny a pound to link the warehouse in Chicago to distant prairie towns. Innovations in printing technology soon enriched the depiction of products. A color section was added in 1898 to dramatize certain presentations, and in time photographs replaced drawings. For the many customers on the prairie, the burgeoning catalog served as a surrogate for a trip to Mr. Sears’ store.

Today’s electronic catalogs, grandly embellished by technology, stand in sharp contrast to those mailers of a century ago, but the purposes they serve remain the same: to garner customers and increase sales. A devotion to growth, however, has greatly lessened corporate interest in people themselves, because attending to the concerns of so many seems cumbersome and expensive, and with the development of analytical tools, unnecessary. In their quest for efficiency, businesses are using technology to shift customer support jobs to less skilled and lower-cost workers or to eliminate people altogether from those processes.

Falling on deaf ears When customers wish to talk about their experiences with goods and services, when they want to tell their stories, they find themselves very far away from anyone willing to listen.

Few of us have escaped plodding interactions with robots or humans acting under robotic control, all unmoved by our worries or needs. Websites and voice response systems promise support and encourage reports of difficulties or requests for information, then swallow submissions and return only empty promises of action. Interactions with customers are reduced to the capabilities of the technology; concerns and calls for help must be squeezed into simple menu options.

There is no way for a customer to tell her story, to say anything that falls outside the highly constrained vocabulary of today’s

automated customer service. Complaints falling on robotic ears stir neither imagination nor empathy. All that remains is a tedious exchange of some information that denies the possibility of true conversation. This devotion to efficiency has in a sense moved customers back to the prairie. Then, too, keeping with our analogy, business leaders seldom visit the prairie; they know very little of life there and so know little of the people their companies purport to serve.

Since its debut in the 1990s, the quarterly American Customer Satisfaction Index has declined for reasons that are debated, but we believe the technologic facades erected by big companies make them seem indifferent to product or service failure, ineffectual sales or service, poor warranty coverage, inadequate product information, and weak technical support.

Behind these walls, the company suffers from its inattention to customer storytelling. At its “counter,” front line personnel hear many stories that speak to the ways in which the business works. And on the tumultuous Internet, conversations are ongoing about its products, services, and prospects. Some stories should carry ideas to those conceiving new products, envisioning new markets or designing organizational processes. Occasionally, one might sound a warning. A few should even reach the executive suite. But an intense desire for profit has made the company deaf to what customers have to say.

Open for business Why should so many companies be estranged from their customers? Distance prevented those living on the prairie from accepting Mr. Sears’ long-standing invitation to visit his company. But digital technology has remade the topography of commerce. Many of the same tools that have proved a boon to businesses have drawn millions to social networking, which is supplanting the traditional face-to-face community with fluid electronic arenas for gossip, preening and posturing and importantly for our concerns, storytelling. Now customers have the wherewithal to step through an electronic door to talk to the proprietor or employees of a company, to have a conversation much like those held in the general store of long ago.

Why not invite them in? Some companies do, but many proffer no such invitation. Instead technology deployed in the interests of efficiency bars customers from the door that is open to suppliers and distributors. Why don’t companies step out through the same door not only to trumpet their wares, but to also meet customers in the new electronic communities?

We believe managers of large companies should follow the lead of the owner of that modest general store by listening to what people would tell them and what they would say about their companies. But many executives feel such attention is unnecessary. Stories, after all, constitute anecdotal evidence about which they have been cautioned to be suspicious.

Emboldened by digital tracking, which swells the grist for data-grinding mills, many business leaders are confident that they can understand life on the prairie without ever going there or meeting someone who lives there.

FALL 2013 JONES JOURNAL // 31

Further, the prospect of hordes of stories breaching company walls may be alarming. Even if most are dispatched at the front line, too many might find their way to the executive offices, filling an enormous “In Box” with querulous demands for action. Fearing this, companies treat customers like lab animals who Merwin says are “caged in numbers / hidden in plain sight.” Yet customers are more than patterns of purchases. When executives and managers lose them in a welter of abstraction, when they don’t hear their stories of pleasure, satisfaction or frustration with products and services, businesses suffer along with their customers.

The front line A number of companies have fostered innovation and enhanced their reputations for service through careful listening to what their customers have to say. Ritz Carlton seeks stories that recount exemplarily service; Starbucks, ones that suggest new products and services; Harley Davidson, those that express the meaning of the bike to the rider. Stories from the front line are valuable complements to quantitative assessments of customer behavior.

At the front line, it is hoped that most customers will receive suitable attention. Some of their stories, however, will merit retelling and amalgamation with other narratives to set managers on the path to new thinking about the company’s offerings or its ways of working. Of course, it is a rare customer who is a good storyteller, who can frame an experience like 32 // JONES JOURNAL FALL 2013

a fable focused on essential points and stripped of distracting peripheral information. All of us, however, know how to engage a storyteller with questions, observations, and even challenges to call forth segments of story line and set its meaning in the current context.

The robotic systems that front so many companies neither share experiences with customers nor care in the least for the success of the company. Humans, however, do both. At Levi Strauss more than 8,000 employees have been trained as amateur ethnographers to help customers tell their stories and to learn from what they say. Retellings of selected stories in reports to management have been important in reinventing market research.

Even an old company can follow this path. Fiskars Corporation, a 360-year-old Finnish firm, produces ergonomic scissors widely used by ‘crafters’ passionately involved with scrapbooking. To solidify its relationship with crafters, the company created the ‘Fiskateers’ Internet community in which customers join with product engineers and developers to share stories, answer questions, find solutions to problems, and critique designs.

Better for customers, better for companies In contrast to businesses that want technology to simplify and streamline transactions, customers want it to enrich interactions. Imagination and empathy have driven the

"The robotic systems that front so many companies neither share experiences with customers nor care in the least for the success of the company. Humans, however, do both."

explosive growth of social networking. Having so eagerly adopted its tools, customers would find it easy to interact with congenial companies. Chatting or writing about products and services is easy for Internet users accustomed to posting to blogs, Facebook or Twitter. And the digital accounts left by these technologies would give businesses a valuable record of customer perspectives, attitudes and concerns.

Social networks, then, offer appealing alternative communications channels with broad acceptance among customers. But companies need to open more ears to hear what customers have to say. This means adopting a new view of social networking. Instead of a venue for intensified advertising, the Internet should be understood as a setting for conversation and collaboration. The same social networking that gives voice to countless Internet users can enable employees and even executives to listen and respond to them.

With these tools, those who build a company’s products, provide its services, set its directions, and govern its practices can meet customers in electronic analogs of face-to-face conversations.

An active, empathetic involvement in conversations outside narrow "official" company communication channels can promote new understanding of customers within the business and better prepare employees to act on their behalf.

Dr. G. Anthony Gorry is the Friedkin Professor of Management and Professor of Computer Science at Rice University where he is also the Director of the Center for Technology in Teaching and Learning. He is an Adjunct Professor of Neuroscience at Baylor College of Medicine and a director of the W. M. Keck Center for Interdisciplinary Bioscience Training, a collaborative program of six institutions in the Greater Houston area. Dr. Robert A. Westbrook is the William Alexander Kirkland Professor of Business. He has been a full-time member of the marketing faculty group in the Jones School since 1989.

The four papers on which this article is based emerged from conversations Tony Gorry and Bob Westbrook had, comparing their consulting experiences in different organizations at different times. The papers extended their conversation to a broad audience, making frequent use of expressions such as "we believe" or "in our view." Tony said, “We were speaking from experience, not data and surveys.”

For more complete discussion of the issues raised here, see their publications: • G. Anthony Gorry and Robert A. Westbrook. 2012. “Customers, Knowledge Management, and Intellectual Capital.”

Knowledge Management Research and Practice, 11, 92–97.

• G. Anthony Gorry and Robert A. Westbrook. 2011. “Can You Hear Me Now? Learning from Customer Stories.” Business Horizons, 54: 575–584.

• G. Anthony Gorry and Robert A. Westbrook. 2010. “Once More with Feeling: Empathy, Technology and Customer Care.”

Business Horizons, 54: 125–134.

• G. Anthony Gorry and Robert A. Westbrook. 2009. "Winning the Internet Confidence Game." Corporate Reputation Review, 12 (3; Fall), 195–203.

FALL 2013 JONES JOURNAL // 33

Community

A Home Away from Home Members of VIBA help Fisher House make life a little easier for wounded vets’ families During each of the four years Mike Tatz ’14 attended the United States Military Academy, he was on the executive board of Special Olympics. By his senior year he was president of the games at West Point. Tatz is no stranger to service—to the military or those in need. From the moment he joined VIBA (the Veterans in Business Association) at the Jones School, Tatz recognized the same commitment to service from his classmates. “What’s so unique about this organization is that we don’t even vote on our positions. No one runs against anyone. It’s not about the title.

It’s only about what can we do to help veterans around Houston.”

A former air defense officer, he worked for three years with the Patriot Missile and three years at USNORTHCOM, responsible for protecting the U.S. from nuclear missiles. He left the Army as a captain and came to Houston with his wife Shannon to attend the MBA program at Rice. While going for treatment at the VA hospital in Houston, due to past neck surgery at Walter Reed in Washington, DC, he kept passing a place called Fisher House, a facility that accommodates families of severely wounded veterans.

“I’ve always supported the Wounded Warriors Foundation, and they work closely with Fisher House, so I knew about them.” He presented the idea of supporting the Houston Fisher House to VIBA members. It was unanimous.

“Fisher House stands for something that we believe in—helping vets and their families.”

After supporting Suits for Soldiers (founded by alumnus Tyson Voelkel ’11) in 2012, VIBA decided to direct their 34 // JONES JOURNAL FALL 2013

fundraising efforts to Fisher House in 2013. Their spring fundraiser, an NCAA basketball pool, secured over $1000 from students and faculty members.

With the delivery of the check to Fisher House in September, Tatz looks forward to expanding VIBA’s reach. “We talk about our goals: getting a wounded warrior into the Jones School, building a relationship with the VA, getting our name out as a reliable resource of support for veterans.”

“It’s not about the title. It’s only about what can we do to help veterans around Houston.”

This semester, VIBA headed up the annual effort to get students to join the 9/11 Hero’s Run for the Travis Manion Foundation, that supports the families of fallen soldiers, and have planned an event with veterans from other Houston MBA programs to strengthen their network.

Save the date: November 5, The Veteran Experience at McNair Hall. See details on the events calendar at right. To find out more about VIBA and the Military Scholars Program, visit business.rice.edu/VIBA.

About Fisher House Fisher House Foundation is best known for the network of comfort homes built on the grounds of major military and VA medical centers nationwide and in Europe.

Fisher Houses are beautiful homes, donated to the military and Department of Veterans Affairs. The homes enable families to be close to a loved one at the most stressful time — during the hospitalization for a combat injury, illness or disease. Located in close proximity to the medical center or hospital it serves, each Fisher House consists of between 8 and 21 suites, with private bedrooms and baths. Families share a common kitchen, laundry facilities, dining and living rooms with a library and toys for children.

Fisher House Foundation ensures there is no fee to stay in a Fisher House. Since 1990, the foundation has saved military vets and their families an estimated $200 million in out of pocket costs for lodging and transportation.

When a member of the U.S. military dies while serving, the Department of Defense typically provides the family with $100,000. During the government shut down, those payments weren't made. Fisher House Foundation announced they would pay military death benefits to the families, and after the shutdown, the Department of Defense reimbursed the organization.

Learn more at fisherhouse.org.

Events Calendar november 5

The Veteran Experience Speaker Series

McNair Hall, Rice University 6100 Main St., Houston, Texas 6:00 pm – 8:00 pm Six famous literary authors will use their own writing and war literature as a lens to explain the “veteran experience,” while also discussing their own military experience. business.rice.edu/viba november 6-10

Houston Cinema Arts Festival

Multiple Venues Festival goers will enjoy film screenings and presentations from filmmakers and cultural experts at various walkable venues including Sundance Cinemas Houston and the Museum of Fine Arts Houston. cinemartsociety.org november 7

Rice Energy Finance Summit

McNair Hall, Rice University 6100 Main St., Houston, Texas 7:30 am – 6:30 pm REFS is an annual conference that brings together corporations and industry leaders to promote forwardlooking discussions on the most pertinent energy issues. business.rice.edu/refs NOVEMBER 12

Jones Partners Thought Leadership Series

6:00 pm – 8:30 pm McNair Hall, Rice University 6100 Main St., Houston, Texas Dr. Marc Boom, CEO of Houston Methodist , and Dr. Randy Batsell will present. business.rice.edu/jonespartners NOVEMBER 14

The Good the Bad and the Ugly

6:00 pm McNair Hall, Rice University 6100 Main St., Houston, Texas The JGSEO will hold their 3rd annual alumni panel discussion focusing on

Fans cheer on the Rice Owls football team during the 2012 Centennial Homecoming game.

the journeys of Rice MBAs who have been down the entrepreneurial path.

An informal networking reception will kick off the event. business.rice.edu/jgseo NOVEMBER 14-17

Rice Homecoming & Reunion 2013

Rice University 6100 Main St., Houston, Texas Rice University continues the journey into its second century with a slew of events. The Rice Owls will play Lousiana Tech in this year's homecoming football game. events.rice.edu NOVEMBER 18

Inprint Houston Margaret Root Brown Reading Series 7:30 pm Hubbard Stage, Alley Theatre 615 Texas Ave., Houston, Texas Award winning authors Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie & Colum Mccann will read from their latest novels as part of an ongoing series. inprinthouston.org december 5

11th Annual IT and Web Venture Forum

8:00 am - 6:00 pm McNair Hall, Rice University 6100 Main St., Houston, Texas The most promising information technology, web, and software start-up companies will pitch their companies to over 400 venture capitalists, investors, mentors,

business & corporate leaders, and industry experts. alliance.rice.edu december 12

Holly Jolly Symphony Spectacular

7:30 pm Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion 2005 Lake Robbins Dr. The Woodlands, Texas Ring in the holiday season with a performance but the Houston Symphony, a visit with Santa Claus and co., and a ride on the Candy Cane Express. woodlandscenter.org january 22

Jones Partners Thought Leadership Series

6:00 pm – 8:30 pm McNair Hall, Rice University 6100 Main St., Houston, Texas Garrett Boone, Co-founder and Chairman Emeritus of The Container Store, Inc. will present. business.rice.edu/jonespartners february 18

Jones Partners Thought Leadership Series

6:00 pm – 8:30 pm McNair Hall, Rice University 6100 Main St., Houston, Texas Ali Moshiri, president of Chevron Africa and Latin America Exploration and Production Company will present. business.rice.edu/jonespartners

FALL 2013 JONES JOURNAL // 35

Resources

The official Jesse H. Jones Graduate School of Business page (Rice MBA) September 25

"What was the best mistake you have made in your career?"

Brad Prescott ’15 Like . Comment . Follow Post

Robert Lawton ’94 In 2001 I became a college professor. It was a big mistake money-wise, but my home life and job satisfaction improved tremendously.

September 25 at 2:11pm . Like Michael Murphy ’13 Assuming that a high level of technical expertise in my field would be sufficient to run a successful family business expecting that I would learn how to manage the business "on the job."

After closing the business, I later decided I would not explore similar options until I had the qualifications that I would require of candidates to run it. My Rice MBA is among such qualifications.

September 25 at 5:46pm via mobile . Like Wendy Fong ’13 My biggest mistake was becoming too comfortable at my last job. I worked there for 9 years and was not challenged for the last 3-4 years. It took getting my MBA to realize that there is much more intellectual stimulation out there than what my job offered. I am now at a very happy but challenging place.

September 25 at 10:07pm . Like Craig Ceccanti ’08 My biggest mistake was not taking more of an active role in my own career development. I spent countless hours reading books and papers, writing essays, group meetings, lectures, etc...

But never made it a priority to take control of my career path. While I was very fortunate to have the CMC push me to pick a route and even more fortunate to fall into a great career and future, I was just floating. Take full advantage of the resources at Rice and the alumni. I strongly recommend interviewing 3 alumni in each career path you are considering 5 to 10 years down the road. You will be doing us a favor to reach out. We like helping you more than you like receiving the help.

September 25 at 11:12pm . Like .

1 Rauli Garcia ’07 Best mistake was taking an opportunistic risk without being fully educated about it. It led to growth and opportunities in places I wasn't expecting, and a new career. Mistakes can be very painful and, like everything else, should be used for progress.

September 26 at 5:40am via mobile . Like

36 // JONES JOURNAL FALL 2013

Ask the Alumni The Jones School is a place where students from all backgrounds can gain knowledge from a stellar faculty, but they aren’t the only people students look to for answers. Alumni have a vast array of knowledge when it comes to navigating the path through business school, so before each issue we will pose a question from a current student on our alumni group facebook page.

Join the group and share your thoughts at facebook.com/groups/ ricembaalumni.

Last Look

Soo Sunny Park, Unwoven Light, 2013. Commission, Rice University Art Gallery, Houston, Texas. Photo: Nash Baker © nashbaker.com

“The world is all gates, all opportunities, strings of tensions waiting to be struck.”

– ralph waldo emerson

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