IN THIS ISSUE
McCombs Hall of Fame Welcomes New Members
Public Accounting Report Ranks McCombs No. 1
 Texas MPA Named to All-Academic Team

McCombs Hall of Fame Welcomes Four New Members
The McCombs School of Business Hall of Fame inducted four prominent leaders Oct. 26 at a ceremony at the Driskill Hotel. The 2007 honorees are: Frederick B. Hegi Jr., founding partner of Wingate Partners, a Dallas-based private equity investment firm; William R. Johnson, chairman, president and CEO of H. J. Heinz Company; Red McCombs, chairman and founder of Red McCombs Automotive Group and co-founder of Clear Channel Communications; and W.A. “Tex” Moncrief Jr., an independent oil and gas producer involved in exploration, development and production. Pictured from left to right: Dean Gau, Frederick B. Hegi, W.A. “Tex” Moncrief Jr., Red McCombs and William R. Johnson. Get the full story.

McCombs Earns Clean Sweep in Rankings by Public Accounting Report
McCombs made it a clean sweep again this year in the rankings from the Public Accounting Report, taking the No. 1 spot on the lists of the most admired undergraduate, graduate and doctoral programs in the United States, according to the publication’s 26th annual survey of accounting professors. The survey asks accounting professors, department heads and department chairs to name the undergraduate and graduate programs they feel most consistently turn out students capable of someday attaining partner status.

Deloitte's Salzberg Takes MPA Students Down the Yellow Brick Road to Success
“The Wizard of Oz” helped Barry Salzberg, CEO of Deloitte & Touche USA, define the characteristics of great leadership when he spoke at the Lyceum Speaker Series Nov. 7. While in Austin, Salzberg also took the opportunity to give the final payment for the Deloitte & Touche Chair in Accounting, which was established in 2002 in recognition of the superior achievement in accounting education and research at The University of Texas at Austin. Get the full story.

BBA Alumnus and Current MBA Wins “Academic Heisman”
Dallas Griffin, McCombs MBA student and Longhorn center, was presented the 2007 Draddy Trophy at the annual National Football Foundation and College Hall of Fame banquet on Dec. 4 in New York City. Griffin (pictured with Longhorn coach Mack Brown) is the first Longhorn to win the award, which recognizes an individual as the best in the country for combined academic success, football performance and exemplary community leadership. “I’ve studied up on some of the past winners and not only did they excel in the classroom, but they were amazing players. It is just a great combination of on-field and off-field success and community service. To be recognized as this year’s Draddy Trophy winner is a great honor, and I’m so happy to be representing Texas when it comes to such a prestigious award.” Griffin graduated with a 3.88 GPA in business honors and finance in 2007. He has been a four-time first-team Academic All-Big 12 selection, and while at Texas has posted a perfect 4.0 six times. Get the full story. Read the Austin American-Statesman story.

DeJoria Promotes Philanthropy, Employee Satisfaction in Business
Hair product magnate John Paul DeJoria examined the importance of practicing good business ethics, maintaining client and employee satisfaction and giving back to the community during a VIP Distinguished Speaker Series talk Oct. 15. DeJoria, co-founder and CEO of John Paul Mitchell Systems and co-founder of Patron Tequila, said he learned the value of hard work and good ethics from a young age. During high school, he worked at a dry cleaning business and still remembers when his frugal boss gave him a 25-cent raise because he had cleaned upstairs without being asked. “It’s not what you do, but what you do when nobody else is watching,” DeJoria said. “That’s character.” Get the full story.

Ambassador Extends Diplomacy to MPA Students at Lyceum
Ambassador Gregory Engle strengthened diplomatic ties with the McCombs School when he spoke to accounting students as part of the Fall 2007 Lyceum Speakers Series. After a long career in the State Department and attaining the title of ambassador, Engle was posted in Iraq where his standing gave him some of the privileges a general would have, such as helicopter flights into the fortified Green Zone. “You throw the word ‘ambassador’ in there and you will see soldiers stand up fast,” said Engle. “Nobody really knows what it means, but it sounds sexy as hell.” Get the full story.

Cross Country Star Named to All-Academic Team
Ryan Wilson, a fifth-year Texas MPA student was named to the 2007 Academic All-Big 12 Men’s Cross Country First Team. Wilson is a repeat selection after being named to the 2006 academic squad. Get the full story.

Women in Business Leadership Conference: Unlock Your Opportunity
February 8, 2008, Hyatt Regency Austin
Each year, businesswomen from around the nation convene in Austin for the Women in Business Leadership Conference. This engaging leadership conference allows women to network with other business professionals in their fields and provides them opportunities to enhance their personal skill sets. The speaker panels this year will feature successful women who have volunteered to help others unlock their opportunities by discussing their experiences topics on a variety of topics such as entrepreneurship, giving back to the community and advocacy within an organization. For more information, visit our Web site.

Texas Executive Education Offers Strategic Decision Making Program
In the Strategic Decision Making program, offered January 24-25, participants will gain a better understanding of decision and risk analysis—the systematic evaluation of decision problems involving uncertainty. Decision and risk analysis provide a framework for analyzing decision problems by breaking them down into more manageable parts and considering the possible alternatives, the available information, and the relevant preferences of the decision makers. Participants will understand the basic tools available for structuring problems involving risk and uncertainty, and develop abilities to analyze problems related to the commercialization of new technologies. To find out about upcoming programs, visit the 2007-2008 program calendar.

McCOMBS IN THE NEWS
Accounting Grads Greeted Warmly
Dallas Morning News, Oct. 22, 2007
After a wave of accounting scandals and subsequent laws intended to clean up reporting by public companies, as a career, accounting turned red hot, and the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 was responsible. Each year, the McCombs School graduates about 300 people in accounting fields, said Rachel Brown, associate director of the school’s Master’s in Professional Accounting program. But the school does not emphasize Sarbanes-Oxley training above other areas of the profession. “We really want to educate students about all of their career options,” she said. Sarbanes-Oxley is directly responsible for many of the jobs capturing new graduates, although some jobs were created indirectly. As companies spun off consulting services or created other specialty services, they needed staff to fill new jobs, Brown said. Now, graduates in public accounting, all can find work quickly after graduation, she said. Get the full story.

How to Tell When Yes Really Means No When Doing Business in India
The Wall Street Journal, Oct. 31, 2007
“No” may mean no, but Americans doing business in some countries find that “yes” can also mean no. Saying “no” is a nonstarter in lots of cultures. In parts of the Mideast it is considered inhospitable to refuse someone outright. The sensitivity stretches eastward, even to China. It’s a sharp contrast to blunt-spoken American business culture. Vijay Mahajan, McCombs marketing professor, thinks the phenomenon in India may have more to do with the job market than with the country. Mahajan sees India as a place where opportunities to succeed are more limited—and where saying “no” can be viewed as a deal-breaker. Get the full story.
Related story: Plus Program Provides Tips for Success in India

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