UCLA Anderson School of Management Blog

UCLA Anderson’s Magali Delmas Sheds Light on the New Climate for Corporate Environmental Responsibility

By Carolyn Gray Anderson

UCLA Anderson Professor Magali Delmas asserts the most important component to slowing climate change is information. “In 20 years we will all have a lot of information about everything we consume,” she says. “We’ll know the impact of the meat we eat … we’ll know the impact of our electricity usage in real time. Once we have this information, what will we do with it? We can’t change our behavior if we don’t know our impact.”

Delmas, who holds a joint appointment at the UCLA Institute of the Environment and Sustainability and is also director of the UCLA Center for Corporate Environmental Performance and president of the Alliance for Research in Corporate Sustainability, has studied — and encouraged — conservationist consumer behavior for the last 20 years. She recently spoke to a public audience about her research trajectory and her new book The Green Bundle: Pairing the Market with the Planet (co-authored with David Colgan). Host Zocalo Public Square framed the question as “Does environmentalism need to make peace with capitalism?” and put veteran broadcast journalist Warren Olney in the moderator’s seat to hear Delmas’ answer. But the more-to-the-point question the book poses is whether capitalism can, for its own good, make peace with environmentalism.

UCLA Anderson Launches New Online Journal Spotlighting Current Research

Across disciplines, UCLA Anderson’s faculty enhance the school’s relevance through cutting-edge research that is highly applicable to the economy, business and the wider world. The weekly UCLA Anderson Review chronicles for a broader audience the research our faculty publish in leading academic journals.

UCLA Anderson Review launched with articles examining retirement savings, including Americans’ aversion to annuities and the hot topic of decumulation — illustrating how, under a single roof at Anderson, faculty members are individually and collectively expanding understanding of how to solve one of the country’s biggest financial and societal problems.

The Review joins other leading graduate business school publications in making available to a global audience of business leaders, fellow academic researchers, policymakers and others the substantial intellectual capital UCLA Anderson possesses and adds to each day.

2017: The Year in Review at UCLA Anderson

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Peter Guber Writes a New Chapter: UCLA Medal Recipient

Peter Guber, UCLA Anderson Dean Judy Olian, UCLA Chancellor Gene Block, UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television Dean Teri Schwartz

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By Paul Feinberg

Peter Guber’s story details an eclectic and extraordinarily successful and impactful life. He is a renowned award-winning entertainment industry executive who currently serves as chairman and CEO of Mandalay Entertainment Group, as an owner of traditional sports teams like the Los Angeles Dodgers and the world champion Golden State Warriors, not to mention Team Liquid, a franchise in the emerging world of e-sports. He has taught generations of UCLA students at UCLA Anderson School of Management and at UCLA’s School of Theater, Film and Television, and he was recently named a regent of the University of California.

But above all, Guber is a storyteller.

He believes deeply that powerful narrative is the driving force of success, whether that success manifests as a great film, a championship season or fulfilling career. Now, Guber’s personal narrative features a new chapter as he becomes a recipient of the UCLA Medal.

The UCLA Medal, established in 1979, is the highest honor for extraordinary accomplishment that may be bestowed upon an individual by the university. Previous recipients include national and international leaders in government, education, science, industry and the arts, as well as men and women who have helped UCLA become one of the world’s preeminent universities. Earlier honorees include Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (B.A. ’69), Supreme Court Justice Harry Blackmun, Blackrock Founder and CEO Larry Fink (B.A., ’74, ’76), civil rights icon and U.S. Rep. John Lewis, former Czech President Vaclav Havel and many others.

The ceremony held in Guber’s honor took place at the on-campus home of UCLA Chancellor Gene Block, who hosted a gathering of Guber’s friends and family, along with university guests that included three UC Regents and members of the UCLA Anderson and TFT communities. Guber maintains a close relationship with both schools, and is a board member of Anderson’s Center for Management of Enterprise in Media, Entertainment & Sports. He also co-teaches a popular annual leadership course with UCLA Anderson Dean Judy Olian.

“Peter is as passionate about his teaching as he is every other aspect of his career,” Block said in presenting Guber with the medal. “It’s clear that he values the opportunity to contribute and prepare the next generation for success, whether it’s in entertainment, sports or any number of other industries. His commitment is evident in the fact that, despite all he’s worked on throughout his career, Peter has never — to anyone’s knowledge — missed a year of teaching.”

Block also noted that Guber has served as a member of the UCLA Foundation Board of Trustees. “We all thank you tonight, Peter, for playing such a vital role here at UCLA and with the UC; we are deeply grateful for all you have done for UCLA, UC and beyond,” the chancellor said.

During his remarks, Guber said he was honored to teach and mentor UCLA students. “To be able to help students is a gift. The way they learn, the way they ask questions. When you see how you can touch people, it can change your life, he said.

“I dedicate myself to the years ahead to do even better.”

“Peter Guber is extraordinarily deserving of the UCLA Medal, the most prestigious honor our university bestows,” Olian said. “Peter has been a trailblazer in entertainment, sports and business, with a string of successes that few achieve in one, let alone multiple fields. Remarkably, throughout his very hectic professional career, he has always taught at UCLA. With his hunger for lifelong  learning, his intellectual curiosity, broad knowledge of business and entertainment, and infectious enthusiasm, he has impacted generations of young people. We are so lucky that Peter's passion for education has been directed toward UCLA, and I am thrilled that he is being recognized with this special honor."

UCLA Anderson Faculty Recognized for Excellence in Research and Teaching

The UCLA Anderson community warmly congratulates our 2017 faculty award winners:

Hal Hershfield – Dean George W. Robbins Assistant Professor Teaching Award
This award recognizes teaching excellence within the ranks of the school’s assistant professors.

Lori Santikian – Citibank Teaching Award
This annual award is given to the school’s most outstanding MBA teacher, based on criteria outlined by Citibank.

Guillaume Roels and Margaret Shih – Neidorf “Decade” Teaching Award
This award recognizes faculty members’ exemplary teaching contributions, as demonstrated over a period of seven to 10 years.

Hal Hershfield – Eric and “E” Juline Faculty Excellence in Research Award
This award is given annually to recognize excellence in research among the school’s assistant professors.

Margaret Shih – La Force Award
The La Force Award for Leadership is intended to recognize and honor an individual Anderson faculty member who has demonstrated his or her leadership in making UCLA Anderson a better place.

Miguel Unzueta – Faculty Community Engagement Award
This award is intended to honor a UCLA Anderson faculty member who exemplifies service to the school through his or her engagement and support of students, alumni and/or prospective students outside of the classroom.

Suzanne Shu – Dean’s Prize
The Dean’s Prize is given for outstanding faculty mentorship of Ph.D. students.

Marissa Sharif – Xavier Drèze Prize
The Xavier Drèze Prize is given for the best Ph.D. student research paper.

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CES at Anderson, Where Technology Shakes Hands with Science

Enjoy the complete album of photos from CES at Anderson

UCLA Anderson’s annual CES^® event, held in partnership with the Consumer Technology Association (CTA)^TM following the world-renowned CES conference in Las Vegas, attracted audiences among the wider community of UCLA students, faculty and staff, as well as industry professionals and business leaders.

The CES at Anderson differentiator is the university context, where rigorous scientific research meets entrepreneurship across disciplines. Professor Mayank Mehta, who teaches in UCLA’s departments of physics and astronomy and neurobiology, and Dr. Ramin Ramezani, assistant adjunct professor of computer science, both lent expertise to panels that explored machine learning, artificial intelligence and virtual reality. Several Anderson alumni chimed in with insights from their positions at companies that include Epson, Sengled and Deepgram. Dyan Decker (’02), PwC’s U.S. forensic technology leader, sat down with Easton Technology Management Center faculty director John Blevins for a conversation about CES in Las Vegas, where the emphasis was on rapidly developing smart home technology and the race to refine virtual assistants.

Can Uber Create “Order Out of Chaos” When It Comes to Driverless Cars?

By Paul Feinberg

Professor Keith Chen is a behavioral economist whose research blurs the traditional disciplinary boundaries in both subject and methodology, bringing unorthodox tools to bear on problems at the intersection of economics, psychology and biology. He recently returned to UCLA Anderson after a stint as head of economic research at Uber, the near-ubiquitous ride sharing platform.

Chen spoke last month at Anderson’s second annual Big Data Conference. His talk focused on Uber’s current challenge, what the professor called “running a ‘gig’ platform.” Much of Chen’s talk looked at Uber’s experimentation with the disruptive impact of driverless cars. He said that Uber was looking to “create order out of chaos.”

Happiness Studies by Cassie Mogilner Holmes Recognized by Association of Consumer Research

The Association of Consumer Research has recognized UCLA Anderson Associate Professor of Marketing Cassie Mogilner Holmes with its 2016 Early Career Award. ACR is the preeminent society within the field of behavioral marketing. Holmes, who studies how focusing on time rather than money increases happiness, said, “I feel happy and grateful for this recognition.”

Established in 2010, the ACR Early Career Award recognizes contributions to consumer research by someone who received his or her Ph.D. within the last 10 years.

Having examined how the meaning of happiness changes over the course of one’s lifetime, how giving time to others can alleviate the stress of being time-constrained, and how ordinary and extraordinary experiences contribute to happiness, Holmes will continue her research on the relationship between time and happiness by asking, “How can we most optimally spend our time in order to increase our happiness and overall satisfaction in life?”

Each year, a panel of three ACR members is appointed by the ACR president to serve as a selection committee. The panel solicits nominations from the ACR membership and selects one or more recipients of the award for their scholarly contributions to the field of consumer research. Criteria used to determine contribution include innovation, methodological rigor and the potential to substantially advance our understanding of consumer behavior.

Dr. Chris Janiszewski, chair of the award committee, said, “Dr. Mogilner Holmes has written a number of insightful papers on how consumers initiate and manage happiness. She is the world’s leading [authority] on this topic. The award reflects the tremendous influence Dr. Mogilner Holmes has had on academic and industry audiences.”

Holmes said that when she was informed by ACR of the honor, she told them she “was truly happy and glad that reading the papers was worth the committee’s time!”

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Big Names at Big Data Conference Confront Analytics Challenges, Unlock Opportunities

By Cheechee Lin

The Big Data Conference returns to UCLA Anderson for the second time on Friday, November 18.

Who should attend? This conference is for technologists, managers, directors, executives and entrepreneurs who are either providing technology solutions for their organization or using data analytics to make business decisions across all functional areas. Executives and director-level representatives from IBM, Google, Netflix, Uber, Microsoft and many other companies will participate as panelists or keynote speakers.

With the immense growth of the volumes of data collected, and the decrease in costs of acquiring and storing data, corporations and startups of every scale are equipped with a huge competitive advantage to extract valuable insights when they extract data to answer key business questions.

This one-day interactive conference, organized by the Easton Technology Management Center and the Center for MEMES at the UCLA Anderson School of Management, aims to explore big data challenges and opportunities by bringing together a cross section of industry experts and academic thought leaders who are shaping and defining the conversation around the business aspects of big data.

“Big data has been, and continues to be, an important area for UCLA Anderson,” says Dr. Vandana Mangal, Easton’s executive director. “Big data and analytics have been taught in our classes at Anderson since as early as 2012.”

FEMBAs Driving Change: Podcasts for Your Commute

 

The entire FEMBA family, along with the rest of the UCLA Anderson community, are encouraged to get acquainted with their current FEMBA classmates and FEMBA alumni through Drive Time, UCLA Anderson’s FEMBA podcast.

From TEDxUCLA speaker Isadora Dantas (FEMBA ’16) to Olympic Gold and Silver medalist Ed Moses (FEMBA ’16) to Peace Corps volunteer Victor Gebhardt (FEMBA ’18), who is in transit on the 10,000-mile Mongol Rally for charity, you’ll feel entertained by the journeys that led them to Anderson and edified by the lessons informing their direction now.

In recent episodes, FEMBA Class of 2016 commencement speaker Cara Bibbiani talked about the international experiences with Anderson’s Global Access Program that made her want to return as a GAP Fellow. PetSnap founder Matt Rose (FEMBA ’16) shared how he launched his pet health records platform with classmates and FEMBA Council President Katie Kroeger-Davis (FEMBA ’16) described her career transition. FEMBA Associate Dean Gonzalo Freixas chimed in with an account of his family’s arrival in the U.S. as political refugees.

Most recently, Professor Jeff Scheinrock shared three tips all new students can use and talked about The Agile Startup, the book he wrote with FEMBA alumnus Matt Richter-Sand (FEMBA ’10). And Senior Associate Dean Margaret Shih discussed how her international upbringing shaped her education and, ultimately, her passion for research in the areas of diversity, culture, stereotypes and decision-making.

Visit Assistant Dean Dylan Stafford’s UCLA FEMBA Works blog to hear these and many other podcasts to help you match the stories to the faces of FEMBA.

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