UCLA Anderson School of Management Blog

CREATE Keynote Conversations Revealed Business Pitfalls and Triumphs

Greg Craig pays tribute to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in a keynote conversation with Bucs owner Edward Glazer

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By Paul Feinberg and Carolyn Gray Anderson

Both the lunchtime and afternoon keynote conversations at this year’s CREATE Conference were marked by great energy, thanks to the easy rapport between guests and their interlocutors. Edward Glazer, owner and co-chairman of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and Docstoc founder Jason Nazar both shared their stories of business struggles and successes, doling out their best suggestions for MBAs interested in advancing ideas, projects and careers.

Though separated in age by a couple of generations, both guests advised unequivocally, “Just ask.” As Glazer put it, “You’d be surprised how much you get in life if you just ask. You have nothing to lose by asking.”

Anderson Gears Up for 2015 Alumni Weekend, Conference, Reunions, Networking, Golf and More

UCLA Anderson Alumni Weekend brings back 1,000+ Anderson alumni for four days of events that include the Alumni Conference, class reunions, executive recruiter networking opportunities, and the ever-popular Alumni Golf Tournament. Events start Thursday, April 30, and continue through Monday, May 4.

New to conference is alumni access to the renovated MBA Lounge, housed in Mullin Management Commons. It’s a space for relaxation with TVs, a view of the North Lawn and ping pong tables for students’ recreation. Plug in or chill out — this lounge is at your disposal on Friday.

We are also eagerly supporting our own: For breakfast at Alumni Conference, we’re serving Stumptown coffee from Alfred's Coffee, a hip, local coffee shop chain owned by alumnus Josh Akhtarzad (’06). And class reunion attendees will enjoy the cocktail candy dessert table provided by Rosie O’Neill’s (’05) Sugarfina.

Launching this week is the first-ever Alumni Weekend app, which will help users navigate Alumni Weekend events via both Apple and Android platforms. It serves as a tool to stay connected to the Anderson community and its features include the schedule, map, class notes, reunions (including throwback photos from students’ days at UCLA Anderson), domestic and international alumni chapter resources, a social feed, videos and information on how to support UCLA Anderson. Download the UCLA Anderson Events app from the Google Play Store or iTunes.

Anderson Student Scott Sugimoto Revisits the Sport of Competitive Fencing

Photo: Hannah Ye/Daily Bruin

UCLA Anderson School of Management MBA student Scott Sugimoto (’16) was a two-time All-American fencer at Columbia University from 2004 to 2007, and was also a member of the U.S. fencing team. The former world-class fencer finished eighth in last Sunday’s Okawa Three-Weapon Open fencing tournament at UCLA.

Sugimoto is reviving his passion for fencing after spending the last few years concentrating on his career as a technology consultant. Although he says he’s not determined to dominate the sport in the midst of earning his MBA, he still approaches it with a competitive spirit.

Sugimoto told the Daily Bruin, “I like to be on the offensive. I don’t like waiting for the other person. I like to direct what is going on. Either I’m going for the attack or I’m moving forward to get them to react.”

Read the full Daily Bruin story by Taylor Hollowell.

Anderson Alumni Share Success with Creative Donations to Alumni Weekend Golf Tournament

By Carolyn Gray Anderson

One of the most popular aspects of Alumni Weekend is its culminating event, the Alumni Golf Tournament, the brainchild of Chris Benedict (’98), Curtis Colon (’98) and Jim Hannon (’98) (who have recently been joined by co-chair John Kelly ’98). The nine-year-old volunteer-run tournament puts the “fun” in fundraising, with 45 golf foursomes competing as teams for a range of prizes and recognition. In a separate putting contest, all players get a chance to win private jet travel to Las Vegas, provided by Pride Flight Associates, a local company founded by Anderson alumnus Roger Behrstock (BS ’59).

Benedict, also the CFO of the UCLA Anderson Alumni Network Board, says, “As Anderson alumni, we should all embrace the spirit of giving back to help support and grow the brand that is UCLA Anderson. What is really effective about this tournament is that it enables this while bringing the full cross-section of constituents together in a great day of camaraderie and networking.”

Energetic PULSE Conference at UCLA Anderson

Left to right: Adam Leber, Reign Deer Entertainment; Scott Manson, SB Projects; Betty Tran, Insomniac Events; D.A. Wallach, Spotify; Mike Chua, Live Nation.

Enjoy our PULSE album on Flickr

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By Cheechee Lin and Bijan White

The annual PULSE Conference hosted by UCLA Anderson’s Center for Management of Enterprise in Media, Entertainment, and Sports (MEMES) gathered together leaders in film, sports, music and media industries to discuss adapting strategies to address the challenges in ever-evolving business models.

Mike Hopkins (’01), CEO of Hulu, was the 2015 Game Changer Award recipient. During his opening keynote, Hopkins discussed Hulu’s strategy to grow subscribers and launch buzzworthy originals. Hopkins believes that the strength of Hulu, not to mention its main revenue source, lies in targeted advertising, and that people stick with Hulu because of accessibility and the variety of content available.

Andrew Goodman, AT&T’s VP of digital content, delivered the closing keynote, talking about the AT&T and DirecTV merger that transpired last year. Goodman says that DirecTV has a “clear value placed in sports and a very passionate fan base... You look for specific content to engage a passionate fan base, whether it be sports or other genres.” AT&T is also looking to invest in Mexico, as the Mexican market has favorable regulations and a growing middle class. The potential for cross-border broadband makes Mexico an attractive destination for global expansion. Goodman also believes that short videos distributed through YouTube, Facebook and Vine are becoming increasingly popular and represent a growing business opportunity.

NBA/UCLA Basketball Star Baron Davis Visits UCLA Anderson, Discusses Career Crossroads

By Bijan White

On Thursday, December 4, UCLA Anderson hosted the Sports Business Radio Road Show for an exclusive interview with retired NBA player Baron Davis, who starred for UCLA during his college basketball days. The event was co-sponsored by Anderson’s Sports Business Association and the Center for Managing Enterprises in Media, Entertainment, and Sports.

Davis charmed the audience with his humor and stories, explaining how his passion for basketball began in middle school  — when he would come play at the UCLA courts on weekends — and how he eventually found himself playing on the UCLA basketball team in college.

Lessons in Leadership

A leader must convey this to those you lead: a tough fight can bring forth Competitive Greatness. The hard battle inspires and motivates a great competitor to dig deep inside. That's why I relish the challenge a worthy competitor presents. When properly prepared you will rise to your highest level and achieve Competitive Greatness.

—Coach John Wooden

By Carolyn Gray Anderson

His renowned Pyramid of Success is used in boardrooms as well as on the court. It’s cited in articles about sports, psychology, business, education and more. Parents pin it to the walls of their children’s rooms as a source of inspiration.

From 1948 to 1975, John Wooden guided the UCLA men’s basketball team to win 10 NCAA championships in his final 12 seasons, including a record seven in a row from 1967 to 1973. The Bruins won 88 consecutive games from 1971 to 1974 and 38 consecutive NCAA tournament games from 1964 to 1974, both records. Wooden said he was most proud of UCLA’s 19 conference championships. This year marks the 50th anniversary of the first of the 10 championships, a record that holds fast.

But “Coach” was a teacher first and foremost; and, from his retirement in 1975 forward, he was a prolific author and thinker. The John Wooden Global Leadership Award was established on the basis of Wooden’s achievements as a thought leader. Author of numerous books, Wooden lectured widely on leadership tenets gleaned from the simple but crucial lessons of a long and thoughtful life. In addition to unbroken records in college basketball, his legacy comprises a trove of maxims that express the humility, sagacity, respect and care with which Coach built and led teams.

Among Wooden’s many honors is the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian award. Enshrined in the Basketball Hall of Fame some 40 years ago (as a coach and, earlier, as a player), he died in 2010 at the age of 99; he would have turned 104 in October.

Tonight UCLA Anderson honors Coach Wooden on the occasion of the annual John Wooden Global Leadership Award, and bestows the 2014 award on Qualcomm Executive Chairman Dr. Paul E. Jacobs. Jacobs is the seventh recipient, joining past honorees: Howard Schultz, chairman, president and CEO of Starbucks; Kenneth Cheneault, chairman and CEO of American Express Company; Frederick Smith, president and CEO of Fedex; Peter Ueberroth, managing director at Contrarian Group; Indra Nooyi, chairman and CEO of PepsiCo; and Bob Iger, chairman and CEO of The Walt Disney Company. In addition, three UCLA Anderson students will be recognized as recipients of John Wooden Leadership Fellowships under the auspices of the John Wooden Global Leadership Award: Nicole áBeckett (FEMBA ’15), Derek Herrera (EMBA ’15) and Elizabeth Pratt (MBA/MPP ’16).

The event will be held at the Skirball Cultural Center, starting at 6:00 p.m. Business attire is required. For event and ticket information, contact [email protected]. Proceeds of the event fund fellowships for the three UCLA Anderson students, who have demonstrated exceptional leadership.

MEMES Pulse conference puts its finger on "Hunger Games," social media, South America and more

"The Hunger Games" producer Nina Jacobson and UCLA Anderson professor Sanjay Sood

The annual Pulse Conference held by UCLA Anderson's Center for Management of Enterprise in Media, Entertainment, and Sports (MEMES) on April 12 brought industry leaders to Korn Hall to review the ever-changing landscape of entertainment and sports business.

Fittingly, the event was covered by runaway media success story BuzzFeed.

The opening keynote conversation was between Professor Sanjay Sood and Nina Jacobson, producer of "The Hunger Games" Trilogy. . . . "The first premise in a movie is to get people to care about the story and the characters" Nina said. She had wise recommendations for those who are starting in entertainment: "Both have an opinion and be receptive to the ideas of others."

In addition to keynotes from Jacobson and David Rone, president of Sports, News & Local Programming at Time Warner Cable, the Pulse conference tackled topics as varied as the difficulties of monetizing audiences and the uses of Big Data in live entertainment. Other topics included social media and South America:

As Paul Santello, EVP of Horizon Media, puts it "There are so many new technologies that sometimes we feel compelled to use them. But just because it is a new technology, it doesn't mean it is good for the client or the consumer. They all promise greater engagement, but research shows that people seating watching TV with their mobile devise, are doing something else, unrelated to what they're watching".

The panel on South America made clear the importance of this constantly growing market and the clear cultural differences. 20th Century Fox Adriana Trautman said "They want local movies well done, and because it's local, if it doesn't work, you cannot make it up in another market. Also you have to work with local regulations… the key is understanding that every country is totally different - we have offices in every country to build relations with media partners and every success builds upon the previous one.

Read the entire article.