Is it just my imagination, or have there been a lot of recent changes in the way McCombs is talking about itself? What we’re experiencing right now is the confluence of several initiatives begun several years back. One of the major projects began in 2005, when the school brought in GSD&M, a major national advertising firm, to study the school’s brand perception among various audiences—including prospective and current students, faculty, and alumni—laying the groundwork for a sharper focus on how we talk about the school in terms of our institution, our academic programs, our students, our culture and our network of over 81,000 alumni. Read more.

Emphasis on Data Security Continues
In April of 2006, an online theft of data from McCombs resulted in the loss of personal information related to some students, alumni, faculty, staff and others. Since that time, the data sources that were compromised in the breach have been removed from service and no longer hold sensitive information. The University has also completed a multi-year remediation program to remove sensitive data, especially SSN’s, from records where they are not required. Where sensitive information is still required, such as online payment and registration systems, McCombs has contracted with commercial firms who are certified by the Payment Card Industry to collect and process that data, which means the school never stores or sees it.

The investigation into the crime remains active, but law enforcement agencies have made no announcements regarding developments in the case. Since the early weeks after the theft, the McCombs support line has not seen reports of identity theft resulting from the security breach. However, the school continues to recommend normal precautions, including looking closely at bank and credit card statements each month, and pulling a credit report every six months. Individuals who wish to file a fraud alert with the credit bureaus may continue to do so (alerts must be renewed every 90 days). For further information on identity theft protection, and the steps the school has taken to secure private data, visit our Web site.

Texas Executive Education offers Energy Finance Certificate
The new Energy Finance Certificate Program offers an in-depth look at the economics, strategy, business valuation and finance that is specific to the energy industry. The program offers industry managers and executives a unique opportunity to improve their business acumen in an environment focused specifically on the complexities of their field. This certificate program is presented by Texas Executive Education, and features faculty from the McCombs School of Business, the College of Engineering, and the Center for Energy Economics. The Energy Finance Certificate series consists of two core programs and three electives. Each program may be taken as an individual session without signing up for the entire series.  Please visit us online for more information.

ALUMNI NEWS
New Board Position Announcements
The McCombs MBA Alumni Network is pleased to announce the following board position changes. We would like to thank our outgoing leaders for all of their hard work and dedication and welcome the incoming leaders. We are sure they will be great additions and increase the energy and momentum of our organization.

Chapter Presidents Committee
New Chair, Marissa Henderson Jarratt ’04
Outgoing Chair, Glenn Sprenger ’97

New MBA Alumni Chapters/Presidents:
Miami Chapter, Milagros "Milly" Silva, MBA ’07 
Michigan Chapter, Umberto Torresan, MBA ’04
Singapore Chapter, George T.K Quek, MBA ’88
New Chapter Presidents:
Chicago Chapter, Ellen Bradford, MBA '05
Los Angeles Chapter, Constans Salcedo, MBA ’03
New York Chapter, Current President: Holly Goodrich, MBA ’04; New Co-President: Jenn McClain, MBA ’05
San Diego Chapter, Liz Gorski Fratus, MBA ’03
San Francisco Chapter, Pam Flank, MBA ’04
India Chapter, Darpan Sanghvi, MBA ’04

Outgoing Chapter Presidents:
Chicago Chapter, Rene Louis, MBA ‘01
Los Angeles Chapter, Kristen Resor, MBA ’03 and Hyder Raheem, MBA ‘03
San Diego Chapter, Keith McAfee, MBA ‘96
San Francisco Chapter, Alex Fox, MBA ’03 and Joe Lazarus, MBA ’03
India Chapter, Namrata Nayyar, MBA ’02

Alumna Publishes Lessons from a Recovering Worker Bee
Are you seeking advice on work-life balance and professional advancement? Turn to a fellow McCombs alumna. Dustin Dumas Weeks, MBA ’96 and principal of ForeSight Consulting, recently published “Lessons from a Recovering Worker Bee,” which includes 26 lessons from her experiences as a trader, investment banker and IRO. Read recent press coverage.

McCOMBS IN THE NEWS
Entrepreneur Discusses Lessons Learned While Building a New Business
Every new business is different. Each has its own unique product, competitors and customers, which require various growth strategies. But when starting a company, there are also a few universal lessons to be learned. David Altounian, the founder of Motion Computing and CEO of iTaggit Inc., recently spoke about these key learnings at the McCombs MBA Alumni Network’s Austin Chapter breakfast May 31.
Get the full story.

Lifting the Veil on Tax Risk
The Wall Street Journal, May 25, 2007
Hundreds of companies could be on the hook to the Internal Revenue Service for tens of billions of dollars in back taxes due to transactions companies believe could be challenged, newly required regulatory disclosures show. Investors are getting a first peek into one aspect of the world of corporate taxes, thanks to a new accounting rule that took effect in January. Jennifer Blouin of the University of Pennsylvania, Cristi Gleason of the University of Iowa, and The University of Texas at Austin’s Accounting Professor Lillian Mills (photo) and Ph.D. candidate Stephanie Sikes, examined the newly disclosed tax liabilities at 100 large companies and compared those with their book assets. Merck’s total unrecognized tax benefit topped the list under that analysis, with an amount equal to 16.6 percent of its assets. By contrast, GE’s total unrecognized tax benefit was a similar size, but it represented about 1 percent of its total assets. GE’s reported $6.8 billion liability doesn't include $1.4 billion in accrued interest and penalties. An ExxonMobil spokesman said its unrecognized tax benefit of $3.7 billion represented a fraction of last year’s tax bill of about $30 billion. Get the full story.

The Wealth of African Nations
Harvard Business Review, June 2007
Marketing Professor Vijay Mahajan contributed an article to the June edition of Harvard Business Review about his ongoing research on business and entrepreneurship across Africa. Mahajan, who is working on a book about Africa, writes, “Africa has some of the poorest nations in the world, but it is wealthier across the continent than India. That concentration of wealth represents a huge potential market for companies worldwide. Of course, serving this market means overcoming the myriad economic, political, legal, medical and social challenges. But businesses across Africa have already proved that this is possible, feeding a fast-growing demand for every conceivable type of consumer good and service.”

Retailers Like Wal-Mart and Home Depot are Turning Green
MarketWatch, May 17, 2007
The environment is a growing concern for retailers across the country as they feel pressure to cut energy use, curb carbon emissions and slash waste. In the process they encourage suppliers to develop eco-friendly products and practices, helping—or in some cases persuading—consumers to shop and live green. “Because of the nature of their size, and the challenges we have facing us, not just presented by global climate change but in terms of sustainability in general, Wal-Mart has a responsibility to make a difference and start taking steps in terms of the way they do business,” said Paula Ivey, McCombs marketing lecturer. Get the full story.