News Scrapbook 1986

San Diego, CA (San Diego Co.) San Diego Union (Cir. 0 217,089) (Cir. S. 341,840) JUN 1

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San Diego, CA (San Diego Co.) Dally Transcript (Cir. D. 7,415)

JUN 2

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1IowStudents Make It,'B;eak It In Business 'Reno Games' Get Rough When The GangSwaggers In With Two Computers By ELIZABETH WITIY .':iaa Di~o Daily Tran cripl Sun Writer Five industrious -graduate stu- dents at the University of San Diego's bu mess school once form- ed a manufacturing company that earned et mcome of $1.4 million in the last quarter. Furthermo e, the stock price of the company, known as Innovision Technologies, rose from 36 cents per share to $35 a share in five years. But these aren't the only young entrepreneur~ m the city Six business adm1mstration tu dents at San Diego State Universi ty have put to ether a manufactur- ing company that grossed about $4.5 (I'ilhon in five years. And in tho 20 fi~cal quarters the price of the stock Jumped from less than $1 per share to $33 a st are. Unfortunately, both companies are only imaginary. It's all part of the annual Inter- collegiate Business Policy Games in which teams from 30 western universities including SDSU and USD - compete in the simulated manufactunng and marketing of an unspecified consumer product. If the only collegiate business compet1t10n west of the Mississippi sounds heavy, 1t is. Every yea six-member warns organize a company typical of U.S. mdustry, complete with a chief ex- ecutive officer who oversees overall integration and five vice presidents responsible for forecasting, mar- keting, production, finance and strategic intelligence. Each team also has a faculty advisor. This year's winner in the gradu- ate division was USD, which cap- tured the title four years ago. Gary Whitney, team advisor and direc- tor of graduate programs, said the team's success was due to "ex- treme, detailed long-range plann- mg. They planned all 20 quarters before they made their first deci- sion." SDSU has won six times in the undergraduate divisio including (Continued on Psgs A)

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s~~~~~m~iine,~~'~!~!~:. ,ff., the grand championshipfri'l980. "Reno team" members jobs in their "The , '!l. 1 learning objective is companies to integrate all the functional Leisz said the competition has areas of business," said faculty ad- changed a lot in the years he has visor Dr. Stephen Jenner, associate been judgmg. He can remember professor of management at SDSU. when the teams had to rely solely "The second major objective is on a hand calculator. "It is now teaching students strategic man- highly mechanized," he said. agement - formulating and im- "Each team brings its own com- plementing busmess plans." puter to the event."

The 10-week competition, which begins in February, represents a five-year start-up cycle of a manu- facturing industry. These future entrepreneurs learn early how to make major corporate decisions under pre~, ure. In the beginning, the "board" ha a v..eek to analyze and decide on various factors, including price, advertbing, sales, finance, produc- tion and distribution of their "widget." Dec1s10ns are soon accelerated to two per week and in the final phase of the competition, which is held in early Apnl at the Umversity of Nevada at Reno, the team must make one decision every half hour. Each team uses a computer to generate economic forecasts and competitor analysis reports. Teams are arranged in five groups called "worlds" and are judged by presidents amd directors of large corporations. George Leisz, president of Aerojet General in San Diego, has been a judge for the past five vears. Another San Diegan, Alan Grant, a general partner in EMC Venture Partners and an ad'. junct professor of management at SDSU, is the associate director ,in charge ofjudging. According to Jenner, who has been coaching the "Reno team" for five years, there are two kinds of evaluations. There is the quan- titative assessment in which judges look at the company's fi. nancial state, including stock price, net income, dividends, assets, sales, production cost and cash flow; and there's the qualita- tive criteria that include team work, organization and presentati on of policies, production decisions, market strategy and the members' ability to defend and communicate their plan. Consistent Growth Leisz, the president of Aerojet since 1979, ~aid the winner is not the team which makes the most money but the one which demon- strates the "most consistent growth and is in better position for long-term growth." He said that it 1s often difficult to choose a winner between the top three or four contenders. Judges must look even closer for "cash out'' and "stock out" mistakes and analyze how the team recovered. The 22-year-old event is not all fun and games. There is a tremen- dous amount of work that goes into running a company, even a fic- titious one.

Computer To Reno Whitney said that when he first began coaching the team five years ago USD was one of the few schools to bring a personal computer to Reno. Most teams now transport two computers to the event. With the advent of computers, the game has become more real- istic. And as a result, Leisz said students are better prepared and more competitive than previously. He also noted that more women are participating in the competition. Whitney selected five graduate students out of 25 applicants. He said most teams have six members but that he has found that five works better. After a 20-minute personal in- terview, applicants were asked to solve a business problem on the spot and make a financial analysis of a company. Applicants were then divided into five groups to study a financial problem, while Whitney and former members judged their performance. Whitney said he looks for stu- dents with technical competence and the ability to work with the team. He selects students for specific tasks. Members of this year's USD team ,.;ere Angela Holstein, Jeanine Grondin, Richard Harris, Arno Berg and Mary Arulappan. SDSU team memb· rs were chosen last November after a rig- orous selection process. 1 11 5,000 SDSU undergraduate business students were invited to apply. Fortunately for faculty and former ·'Reno team" members delegated to selecting the team; the li~t was , narrowed to 40 candidates. After eight to 10 hours of inter- views, technical competence tests and group discussions and exer- cises, five members were chosen (one member from the preceeding year returns as captain). Three Months To Train Members are generally seniors with a 3.5 grade point average. Most already have a working knowledge of computers but it is not a requirement. There is a three-month training period prior to the compet1t10n. "\Ve scare a lot of people off," Jenner said candidly. "But we'd rather scare off people who aren't serious." Jenner described his team as "extremely motivated, very in- telligent'' and as having "outstan- ding analytical and communica- tion skills." He stressed the importance of selecting team players over "prima donnas." This year's team included Pal Berg of Norway, who will be next year's captain; Ronda Green, Eric Lavic, Jack Lewis, Elisabeth Reisch and David Vogt. Jenner, who has just completed a six-month study for the California Department of Commerce on the maquiladora industry, said the Business Policy Games serves as a "classroom tool all over the U.S. and the worId." Jenner, along with other busi- ness professors at SDSU, uses this same simulation "game" in the other business classes he teaches.

The San Diego l mon Bill Romero

The Hughes family, from left• Kelly, Tim, Susan, Greg, Author, Marge.

M de El 1c W ston and J an Hahn both outfitted in en p combmatton of black and white were tandouts ID the fa htonablc crowd, and Dt'hb1 D ley v. or a black t John u1t collared nd ruffeJ ID o tri ·h f ath rs Dor n Whitney and Phylli r I nd ally Thornton wore a bl blou n d ign d by Michael ovares The Curt Stan band plaJcd for dancing m the Pr 1d10 Hoom at the Tov. n & ountr) Conventior. Center, and Orange Count) 's All-American Boy Chorus captivated partygoers with th 1r songs. Three of Marge und Art Hughes' off pnng Susan, Tim, and Greg (with ht v.1fe, Kelly) Y.ere there to applaud their d, tmgui hed paren In a tall family Greg Hughes • tands tall t· 6 f et 8 inches • • rt

McCarty and Wilham Jones, and County Supervisors Susan Golding and Brian Bilbray. Others among the 400 were Linda and Ballard Smith, Rita and Dick Atkinson, Patsy and Forrest Shumway, the Clarence Pendletons Sue and Dr. Charles Edwards, Joan' and Irwin Jacobs. Richard Cramer (Alice was in Paris), Audrey Geisel, the Linc Wards, Faiya and Mickey Fredman, Susan and Dr. Robert Rosen. and Drs. Ruth and Clifford Grobstein (Ruth m flowering black silk by Geoffrey Beene), Jane and Frank Rice and Ed Self. Dancing to Manny Harmon's orchestra were the likes of Lynn Schenk and Hugh Friedman, the Stan Fosters, Jane and John l\1urphy, Joyce and Stan Heyman, Mary Ellen and Capt. Theodore Gross, Cathie Hornsby and David Copley, Nikki and Ben Clay, the Cushman Dows, Jodyne and Sar,dy Roseman, the Joe Hibbens. Martha and George Gafford, Doreen and Moms Casuto and the Jack Mondays. /

they were applauding another award-wmner publisher Helen Copley, v. ho received the 'ational Di tingm bed Community Service Av. ard from the Anti-Defamation League of B'nai B'nth. Seated with the guest of honor Tuesday night in the ballroom at the Hotel de! Coronado were Lois and Bill Kolender and Jeanne and Larry Lawrence, co-chairmen of the dmner-dance. Mayor-elect Maureen O"Connor Joined the head table, too, along with Joseph Fisch (he's San Diego regional board chairman of the Anti- Defamation League), Joyce Axelrod, and Amta and Rabbi Martm Lawson. Larry Lawrence had the first dance with the mayor-to-be. (Maureen wore an Yves Saint Laurent tuxedo with a gold lame blouse.) Deputy Mayor Ed Strmk. ma was there, and so were Cit v Council members Gloria McColl. Judy

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La Jolla, CA (San Diego Co.) La Jolla Light (Cir W. 9,040) J

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McEwen received h is bachelo r's and MBA from the University of Arizona. He receiv- ed his law degree from the Uni versity of San Diego School of Law. 11e 1s a past chairman of the Estate P lanning, Trust and Probate Section of the San Diego County Bar Association and is a member of the Estate Planning Counci l of San Diego County. He is a member of the American Bar Associa tion, the State !1ar of Cahforma and the San Diego County Bar Association . McEwen is also a financial partner of Tennis ,La Jolla and is t he owner of McEwen Realty. Amar Janice Amar has been named coordinator of the Comprehen- sive Geriatric Program at UCSD Medical Center. She is a licensed nursing home administrator. Prior to coming to UCSD, Amar worked for UCLA where she served with the multi-campus division of geriatric medicine,

Jenner said his team spent an average of 20 to 30 hours a week this spring working on the com- pany. "They sacrificed a tremen- dous amount," he said. Whitney said his team only spent about 15 hours a week on the project, which seems amazing for a team that placed the highest. There 1s no pnze money for the winner - the experience gained, however, in participating m such an event makes the long, hard hours worthwhile for students, said Jenner. "They have a huge advantage when they interview (for jobs)," he said, because they have been in- troduced to executives from maJor

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McEwen Paul McEwen, Jr. a founding member of Rowe , Konold and Rowe, has returned to the firm, which will now be known as Rowe, McEwen, Konoltl and Rowe.