Alumni Weekend
10th Annual Alumni Weekend
Akhilesh Ravi, Anant Pradhan and Nick Bowles
Issue date: 10/13/05 Section: GSB Life
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Friday - Alumni Dinner
Rain is an element that is so powerful that it can ruin even the most perfectly planned parties. NOT THIS ONE! ! Even it had to succumb to the power that GSB and its family of alumni, faculty and students exuded on Friday in Millennium Park.
On a rainy evening on the 7th of October, close to 800 alumni, students and faculty gathered in a huge white tent in Millennium Park by Lake Michigan to kick off the Tenth Annual Alumni weekend.
The black-tie dinner event kicked off at 6:00 pm with a cocktail reception. There were eager eyes scouting for familiar faces as the alumni sipped on their drinks. Soon there was a loud buzz in the tent as many caught up on old memories while many others made new relationships. Clearly, many memories shared that night were from times before our current graduating class was born ! !
An alum, Ali Azhar, '91, said, "Refreshing and nostalgic all at the same time, my trip back to the school after 12 years makes me feel great to be back. A lot has changed. One constant, however, is the excellent quality of students then and now. "
Yet another, Nancy Taylor, '00, said, "My experience at the GSB is much a part of who I am..... And then the after-GSB came along...., and tonight we get to come back to reconnect with those that shaped my GSB experience. What fun ! !"
Around 7:00 pm, we were ushered to our tables. The first course soon came along, baby spinach salad with smoked tomatoes accompanied by a roasted tomato soup with crème fraiche. Even though the bar closed, the waiters came around serving red and white wine to enhance the flavor of the entrée, peppercorn-encrusted New York strip with lobster chive crushed potatoes and wilted garlic spinach with a wine reduction.
At around 8:30 pm, the Stitely Orchestra called our attention to Dean Snyder with some blaring music. The Dean kicked off the presentation of the Distinguished Alumni Awards by awarding the Public Service Award to Kateryna Yushchenko,'86.
The First Lady of Ukraine started off by thanking the GSB and the DAA Selection Committee. She said a few words about how the GSB is respected in the entire world for its research in various fields ranging from science, economics to business. After a brief history of her achievements since she graduated from the GSB to becoming the First Lady, she highlighted public service as an issue. "As time goes by, there is nothing more important and valued to us than contributing to society. I hope that you will consider sharing what you learnt here with the rest of the world. I also hope that you will consider moving to other needy countries and contribute there." Although she received a consistent dose of applause the whole night, the most memorable came after she said, "You did not give this award to me, you gave it to the people of Ukraine."
Jaime Chico Pardo, '74, accepted the Distinguished Corporate Alumnus Award. The Vice Chairman and CEO of TELMEX, Mexico started off by joking that he is more proud of this distinction than the one he gained by being on the Dean's list at the GSB. After giving a brief history of his accomplishments since graduating, he commented on how the GSB education gave him his initial push in his career. The competitive nature within the school helped him shape his career. He said many professors here like John Schulz, Eugene Fama among others, provided unique learning opportunities. He also commented on the endless hours he spent at the Regenstein library. He joked about how his wife and he would rush to the computer center (punching card systems 30 years ago) to finish assignments and hoped that they turned out ok. Years and millions of dollars (or pesos?) later, he is the leader of the largest private sector company in Mexico and hopes to transform TELMEX into a global high-tech multimedia company.
The Distinguished Entrepreneurial award was given to Kathryn Gould, '78. She commented on how she graduated from the GSB when there was no Entrepreneurial program. The audience applauded when she said, "But today, we have one of the best Entrepreneurial programs in the world. The likes of Steve Kaplan, James Schrager and others are responsible for this phenomenal turnaround". She opined that the least known fact about entrepreneurial skills is that they are transferable. She explained how she transferred these skills to her interest in music. She founded a group that saw huge success and is held in high esteem among the music composition circles. She also founded a music festival that she hopes will grow as big as the Aspen Music Festival. She said all these skills are Entrepreneurship 101. She challenged GSB alumni and students to start something beyond the realm of business. Her success came from believing strongly in a good cause, laying out an execution plan and recruiting spectacular people.
Thomas Ricketts '93, accepted the Distinguished Young Alumni Award. His speech was Oscar style as he delivered four thank you's to those who contributed to this award. The first was to his wife for her support through the years. The second went to his parents (who were present at the event), his dad, a successful business man, for pushing him hard and his mom for grounding him in reality and making him realize that the important things in life are down on Earth. Next, his colleagues and employees at his firm were thanked for standing by him and helping the company succeed. The final thanks was to the University of Chicago, where he "double dipped" with an undergraduate degree in '87 and GSB in '93. He also commented on how he fared through the years since GSB to developing Internotes, a corporate bond product for individual investors. His goal is to take Internotes global. (I believe he mentioned talking to Jaime Pardo about opportunities for Internotes in Mexico, THAT is the power of GSB networking ! ! !).
A highlight of his speech was, "Sometimes I thought about what if I had taken it easy in life. The relationships, degree and friends are all worth the academic rigor I went through. It is definitely worth it."
As the award recipients got off-stage, the waiters served dessert: chocolate hazelnut cheesecake and a tuile cookie cup with berries and mint, they were definitely a treat. As we sipped on our coffee, Richard Thaler, Distinguished Service Professor of Behavioral Science and Economics, delivered the keynote address on "Overconfidence Vs. Market Efficiency in the NFL Draft". It was a unique touch that our professor delivered by linking behavioral theory to the NFL picks as he demonstrated using Chicago-style quantitative equations, tables and charts. There was laughter and applauses as he cracked jokes on irrational team decisions and "dumb teams".
At 10:15 pm, President Don Randall closed the formal part of the evening with a closing toast, " U of C is known to put good ideas to the industry. Let's close this evening by putting good ideas to the dance floor."
As the Stitely Orchestra churned out some danceful numbers, the dance floor was crowded with alumni, faculty, and students gyrating to the tunes. The bar opened up once more and stayed that way till late into the night. Many said farewells and exchanged contacts and business cards promising to meet before the next annual alumni dinner.
When asked for some thoughts on the event, alum Darren Cronan '00 responded, "This is a 5 year reunion for our cohort. It was great to catch up with my peers and find out about their adventures in the last half decade."
Another, Ky Phan '00 said, "The networks and camaraderie that I developed at the GSB are invaluable and will remain with me the rest of my life. I would not trade this experience for anything else."
Saturday - Alumni Brunch
The Winter Garden in the Hyde Park Center was abuzz with activity early on Saturday, October 8. Volunteers rushed about, trying to set everything up before the alumni showed up. They made it with the narrowest of margins, and by the time the first alumni trickled in, everything was ready.
Many of the alumni had never seen the Hyde Park center before, and spent some time getting to know the layout of the building better. Breakfast was served at 10:00 a.m., and most alumni stopped to grab a plate of food before sitting down at one of the tables set up in the Winter Garden. The seating arrangements were intended to group people who graduated in a particular decade (2000s, 1990s, 1980s, and so on). However, many people ended up sitting with people they knew from before or with people they had met in the morning.
The Dean's address started promptly at 10:30. Dean Snyder welcomed everyone to the Hyde Park Center and thanked them for taking the time to attend the Alumni Weekend. He highlighted some of the recent achievements of GSB alumni, outlined his vision for the school, and explained why he believes the current class is smarter and more accomplished than any before (at least, in terms of GMAT scores and GPAs). Deputy Dean Stacey Kole added a few remarks on recent changes at the GSB. In particular, she talked about how the GSB is trying to give students an opportunity to explore career options by asking recruiters to wait until mid October to hold recruiting events. In contrast, the class of 2006 had to attend recruiting events on Day One. Following these remarks, the floor was open for questions.
An alumnus asked the Dean what the core values of the school were, and if these had changed over time. Dean Snyder responded by saying that the school has always been a place where ideas compete and people collaborate. By way of example, he recalled the Q&A session with Jack Welch the previous day, when Mr. Welch had pointedly disagreed with some of the points the Dean had made, but had done so in a respectful way. Another alumnus - pointing out that most business problems touch upon multiple business disciplines such as finance, marketing, and operations - asked the Dean whether the GSB is making any efforts to inculcate cross-functional thinking in its classes. Dean Snyder pointed out that while the management labs try to address cross-functional decision making, most courses would have to be revamped significantly in order to meet this goal.
After a short break, everyone reconvened for a panel on the role of entrepreneurs and financiers in the new business development process, hosted by GSB faculty from the Polsky Center for Entrepreneurship. The panel included professors Waverly Deutsch, Scott F. Meadow, and James E. Schrager. They were joined by Michael Polsky, the founder, President and CEO of Invenergy. The discussion was highly charged, with various competing ideas on entrepreneurship, while, presumably, the originators of these ideas collaborated. Mr. Polsky stated that the single most important function of an entrepreneur is raising capital, and should occupy 95 percent of his or her time. Dr. Meadow responded by stating that someone with a proven track record will not have as hard of a time raising capital, and should instead focus on execution. Dr. Deutsch said that having a great idea is not critical to starting a new venture, and most ventures fail because of inadequate marketing and inefficient operations. Since most business schools fail to teach these disciplines adequately, she questioned the value of a business school degree for an aspiring entrepreneur. Dr. Schrager took issue with this notion, and said that the skills acquired in the course of an MBA program are invaluable to an entrepreneur.
Rain is an element that is so powerful that it can ruin even the most perfectly planned parties. NOT THIS ONE! ! Even it had to succumb to the power that GSB and its family of alumni, faculty and students exuded on Friday in Millennium Park.
On a rainy evening on the 7th of October, close to 800 alumni, students and faculty gathered in a huge white tent in Millennium Park by Lake Michigan to kick off the Tenth Annual Alumni weekend.
The black-tie dinner event kicked off at 6:00 pm with a cocktail reception. There were eager eyes scouting for familiar faces as the alumni sipped on their drinks. Soon there was a loud buzz in the tent as many caught up on old memories while many others made new relationships. Clearly, many memories shared that night were from times before our current graduating class was born ! !
 |
An alum, Ali Azhar, '91, said, "Refreshing and nostalgic all at the same time, my trip back to the school after 12 years makes me feel great to be back. A lot has changed. One constant, however, is the excellent quality of students then and now. "
Yet another, Nancy Taylor, '00, said, "My experience at the GSB is much a part of who I am..... And then the after-GSB came along...., and tonight we get to come back to reconnect with those that shaped my GSB experience. What fun ! !"
Around 7:00 pm, we were ushered to our tables. The first course soon came along, baby spinach salad with smoked tomatoes accompanied by a roasted tomato soup with crème fraiche. Even though the bar closed, the waiters came around serving red and white wine to enhance the flavor of the entrée, peppercorn-encrusted New York strip with lobster chive crushed potatoes and wilted garlic spinach with a wine reduction.
At around 8:30 pm, the Stitely Orchestra called our attention to Dean Snyder with some blaring music. The Dean kicked off the presentation of the Distinguished Alumni Awards by awarding the Public Service Award to Kateryna Yushchenko,'86.
The First Lady of Ukraine started off by thanking the GSB and the DAA Selection Committee. She said a few words about how the GSB is respected in the entire world for its research in various fields ranging from science, economics to business. After a brief history of her achievements since she graduated from the GSB to becoming the First Lady, she highlighted public service as an issue. "As time goes by, there is nothing more important and valued to us than contributing to society. I hope that you will consider sharing what you learnt here with the rest of the world. I also hope that you will consider moving to other needy countries and contribute there." Although she received a consistent dose of applause the whole night, the most memorable came after she said, "You did not give this award to me, you gave it to the people of Ukraine."
 |
Jaime Chico Pardo, '74, accepted the Distinguished Corporate Alumnus Award. The Vice Chairman and CEO of TELMEX, Mexico started off by joking that he is more proud of this distinction than the one he gained by being on the Dean's list at the GSB. After giving a brief history of his accomplishments since graduating, he commented on how the GSB education gave him his initial push in his career. The competitive nature within the school helped him shape his career. He said many professors here like John Schulz, Eugene Fama among others, provided unique learning opportunities. He also commented on the endless hours he spent at the Regenstein library. He joked about how his wife and he would rush to the computer center (punching card systems 30 years ago) to finish assignments and hoped that they turned out ok. Years and millions of dollars (or pesos?) later, he is the leader of the largest private sector company in Mexico and hopes to transform TELMEX into a global high-tech multimedia company.
The Distinguished Entrepreneurial award was given to Kathryn Gould, '78. She commented on how she graduated from the GSB when there was no Entrepreneurial program. The audience applauded when she said, "But today, we have one of the best Entrepreneurial programs in the world. The likes of Steve Kaplan, James Schrager and others are responsible for this phenomenal turnaround". She opined that the least known fact about entrepreneurial skills is that they are transferable. She explained how she transferred these skills to her interest in music. She founded a group that saw huge success and is held in high esteem among the music composition circles. She also founded a music festival that she hopes will grow as big as the Aspen Music Festival. She said all these skills are Entrepreneurship 101. She challenged GSB alumni and students to start something beyond the realm of business. Her success came from believing strongly in a good cause, laying out an execution plan and recruiting spectacular people.
Thomas Ricketts '93, accepted the Distinguished Young Alumni Award. His speech was Oscar style as he delivered four thank you's to those who contributed to this award. The first was to his wife for her support through the years. The second went to his parents (who were present at the event), his dad, a successful business man, for pushing him hard and his mom for grounding him in reality and making him realize that the important things in life are down on Earth. Next, his colleagues and employees at his firm were thanked for standing by him and helping the company succeed. The final thanks was to the University of Chicago, where he "double dipped" with an undergraduate degree in '87 and GSB in '93. He also commented on how he fared through the years since GSB to developing Internotes, a corporate bond product for individual investors. His goal is to take Internotes global. (I believe he mentioned talking to Jaime Pardo about opportunities for Internotes in Mexico, THAT is the power of GSB networking ! ! !).
 |
A highlight of his speech was, "Sometimes I thought about what if I had taken it easy in life. The relationships, degree and friends are all worth the academic rigor I went through. It is definitely worth it."
As the award recipients got off-stage, the waiters served dessert: chocolate hazelnut cheesecake and a tuile cookie cup with berries and mint, they were definitely a treat. As we sipped on our coffee, Richard Thaler, Distinguished Service Professor of Behavioral Science and Economics, delivered the keynote address on "Overconfidence Vs. Market Efficiency in the NFL Draft". It was a unique touch that our professor delivered by linking behavioral theory to the NFL picks as he demonstrated using Chicago-style quantitative equations, tables and charts. There was laughter and applauses as he cracked jokes on irrational team decisions and "dumb teams".
At 10:15 pm, President Don Randall closed the formal part of the evening with a closing toast, " U of C is known to put good ideas to the industry. Let's close this evening by putting good ideas to the dance floor."
As the Stitely Orchestra churned out some danceful numbers, the dance floor was crowded with alumni, faculty, and students gyrating to the tunes. The bar opened up once more and stayed that way till late into the night. Many said farewells and exchanged contacts and business cards promising to meet before the next annual alumni dinner.
When asked for some thoughts on the event, alum Darren Cronan '00 responded, "This is a 5 year reunion for our cohort. It was great to catch up with my peers and find out about their adventures in the last half decade."
Another, Ky Phan '00 said, "The networks and camaraderie that I developed at the GSB are invaluable and will remain with me the rest of my life. I would not trade this experience for anything else."
Saturday - Alumni Brunch
The Winter Garden in the Hyde Park Center was abuzz with activity early on Saturday, October 8. Volunteers rushed about, trying to set everything up before the alumni showed up. They made it with the narrowest of margins, and by the time the first alumni trickled in, everything was ready.
Many of the alumni had never seen the Hyde Park center before, and spent some time getting to know the layout of the building better. Breakfast was served at 10:00 a.m., and most alumni stopped to grab a plate of food before sitting down at one of the tables set up in the Winter Garden. The seating arrangements were intended to group people who graduated in a particular decade (2000s, 1990s, 1980s, and so on). However, many people ended up sitting with people they knew from before or with people they had met in the morning.
The Dean's address started promptly at 10:30. Dean Snyder welcomed everyone to the Hyde Park Center and thanked them for taking the time to attend the Alumni Weekend. He highlighted some of the recent achievements of GSB alumni, outlined his vision for the school, and explained why he believes the current class is smarter and more accomplished than any before (at least, in terms of GMAT scores and GPAs). Deputy Dean Stacey Kole added a few remarks on recent changes at the GSB. In particular, she talked about how the GSB is trying to give students an opportunity to explore career options by asking recruiters to wait until mid October to hold recruiting events. In contrast, the class of 2006 had to attend recruiting events on Day One. Following these remarks, the floor was open for questions.
An alumnus asked the Dean what the core values of the school were, and if these had changed over time. Dean Snyder responded by saying that the school has always been a place where ideas compete and people collaborate. By way of example, he recalled the Q&A session with Jack Welch the previous day, when Mr. Welch had pointedly disagreed with some of the points the Dean had made, but had done so in a respectful way. Another alumnus - pointing out that most business problems touch upon multiple business disciplines such as finance, marketing, and operations - asked the Dean whether the GSB is making any efforts to inculcate cross-functional thinking in its classes. Dean Snyder pointed out that while the management labs try to address cross-functional decision making, most courses would have to be revamped significantly in order to meet this goal.
After a short break, everyone reconvened for a panel on the role of entrepreneurs and financiers in the new business development process, hosted by GSB faculty from the Polsky Center for Entrepreneurship. The panel included professors Waverly Deutsch, Scott F. Meadow, and James E. Schrager. They were joined by Michael Polsky, the founder, President and CEO of Invenergy. The discussion was highly charged, with various competing ideas on entrepreneurship, while, presumably, the originators of these ideas collaborated. Mr. Polsky stated that the single most important function of an entrepreneur is raising capital, and should occupy 95 percent of his or her time. Dr. Meadow responded by stating that someone with a proven track record will not have as hard of a time raising capital, and should instead focus on execution. Dr. Deutsch said that having a great idea is not critical to starting a new venture, and most ventures fail because of inadequate marketing and inefficient operations. Since most business schools fail to teach these disciplines adequately, she questioned the value of a business school degree for an aspiring entrepreneur. Dr. Schrager took issue with this notion, and said that the skills acquired in the course of an MBA program are invaluable to an entrepreneur.