Update, Jan. 24: We’ve added the video from the event at the end of the post.
Jon DeVaan said while he was working on the initial release of Excel, the current Microsoft corporate vice president didn’t know the program would become an omnipresent part of work life.
“The focus was ‘We think this will help people a lot, and everything will flow,’” DeVaan told the audience at Wednesday’s College of Business Dean’s Distinguished Lecture at the LaSells Stewart Center.
DeVaan has been at Microsoft since graduating from OSU in 1982, starting with his work on Excel and most recently helping to design the new Windows 8 operating system. DeVaan ran his presentation from a Microsoft Surface, the company’s new tablet computer.
The theme of the talk was how individuals and organizations must focus on improving, or risk falling behind by simply continuing to do what brought them success in the past.
In his own experience, DeVaan recounted how when he started with Excel, Lotus 1-2-3 was the dominant spreadsheet program. But while Lotus saw only a professional market for its product, Microsoft wanted to make a product that could be used by anyone.
“Our motto was a computer on every desk, in every home,” DeVaan said.
A quarter century later, that initial goal has helped make computing accessible for many more people than even DeVaan imagined at the time. He remembers sitting on a plane and being grabbed by the person next to him after mentioning he worked on Excel.
“He said he hated his boss, but he didn’t need him anymore because he had a PC and could start out on his own,” DeVaan remembered.
DeVaan counseled the audience to always confront hard truths and set aside time to fix them. To work smarter, not harder, which can be difficult when that sometimes hurts efficiency in the short term.
He noted that the initial release of Word, the popular text editor, was delayed for two years and Access, a database management program, was cancelled twice.
DeVaan said at Microsoft the company has built in time for “renewal activities,” reviewing how the company is working, not just what it’s producing.
“No one ever gets credit for fixing problems that never happen,” DeVaan said, borrowing a favorite quotation.
Instead, he pointed out “everything real has problems,” and the key to good leadership is knowing which problems have to be fixed and which are OK to live with, for now.
As long as you take time to focus on improving the process, and not just trying to fix every issue as it comes up, you’ll find things get better in the long run.
“You don’t know where new ideas will come from, but renewal activities create the space where that’s possible,” DeVaan said.
Once a year the leaders of Oregon’s Most Admired Companies convene to recognize the organizations and executives that are the cornerstone of the Oregon and Southwest Washington business community. In front of a capacity crowd of 900, the 2012 honorees were presented with an award and the rare opportunity to applaud the work and impact that they and their competitors have on the economy.
Hosted by the Portland Business Journal, with a core group of sponsors including Oregon State University, the event was held at the Hilton Hotel in downtown Portland and acknowledged industries including Technology, Traditional Manufacturing, Commercial Real Estate, Health Care, Financial Services, Professional Services, Nonprofits and Agriculture and Forest Products.
For Oregon State, the sponsorship connects us not only with industry leaders but an event that honors so many of our alumni and the companies they’ve founded, work for or are invested in.
Attending the event as guests of OSU were alumni, faculty, staff and MBA students, with College of Business Dean Ilene Kleinsorge hosting the tables. As she took the stage to announce the companies leading the Health Care sector, Kleinsorge addressed the crowd and announced changes to the MBA program, including four new tracks and an online/hybrid option. New options being offered are:
In partnership with the College of Pharmacy, the College of Business is offering a Pharm.D/MBA degree with an emphasis in Executive Leadership. With the curriculum general enough to serve leaders and professionals from any industry, this Executive Leadership track will provide the business community the ability to earn an Oregon State MBA.
With the addition of these tracks and the online/hybrid delivery, Oregon State alumni and students will continue to have an impact on the economy and continue to represent and lead Oregon’s Most Admired Companies.
Leslie Burns, associate dean of the School of Design and Human Environment, was the speaker at the latest Oregon State Business Roundtable series event Wednesday at the Multnomah Athletic Club in Portland.
Burns discussed how design and business can better align, drawing on her experience not only as an educator but as a consultant to design and apparel companies.
A leading teacher and researcher in the field of apparel design, Burns has been a cornerstone of SDHE’s growth and was essential to it becoming the School of Design and Human Environment and its integration into the College of Business.
In addition to her academic work, she’s worked as a consultant in the apparel industry and is also working with scholars from Korea and Taiwan, exploring cross-national consumer behavior.
The Business Roundtable Series is part of a collaboration between the College of Business and OSU Alumni Association, with the goal of providing networking and service opportunities for alumni within the Portland-area business community.
The next Roundtable event is OSU President Ed Ray’s update on the university Jan. 31 at The Hilton Portland & Executive Tower.
In his opening remarks at the Austin Family Business Program Excellence in Family Business Awards, Oregon State University President Ed Ray noted how the family enterprises being honored all made a point to maintain strong traditions.
“Tonight’s horonorees reflect a vibrant sense of the importance of strong family roots,” Ray said.
From Atiyeh Oriental Rugs, which started in 1900 and only five years later advertised itself as “Portland’s Permanent Rug Store,” to the Anderson Family Farm of Ellensburg, Wash., which started in 2011, each family found success in applying a set a values which reflects the spirit of each family.
The ceremony, held Thursday Nov. 15 at the Governor Hotel in Portland, coincided with Governor John Kitzhaber’s proclamation of Nov. 15 as Family Business Day in the state of Oregon.
Honorees came from a variety of backgrounds and industries, including real estate, agriculture, waste disposal, wineries and even kite manufacturing.
The video from the night is now available (split into the lecture and Q&A session following), so if you missed the event or just want another look you have another chance to learn how Cherng helped create the Panda culture.
Leaving with not only a degree but also a solid understanding of the professional world is a key to a successful college experience, something the College of Business Career Success Center understands.
The first workshops explored resume and personal brand development, with sessions on social media in the job search, professional dress and leadership development still to come.
The most recent session on Oct. 17 featured Kathrine Giacchino and Pinky Gonzales discussing how students could work to build their own brand before even venturing out into the job market.
Giacchino works with Rubicon International, a boutique technology consulting firm headquartered in Portland, while Gonzales is the Founder and Chief Strategist of Portland-based Upriver Solutions.
The next workshop takes place Oct. 31 at 3 p.m. in Bexell 415, with talent development professional Lea McLeod discussing how social media can be used to help secure a job.
Peggy Cherng speaking at the Dean’s Distinguished Lecture Series
Panda Express co-CEO and Oregon State alumna Peggy Cherng let the crowd at the Oregon State College of Business Dean’s Distinguished Lecture in on a little secret Wednesday.
“I happen to be good in math, good in engineering, but I don’t really know how to cook,” Cherng said.
Cherng discussed how the Panda Restaurant group, which operates the popular Panda Express chain, focuses on creating an atmosphere where associates can grow and better serve guests.
“We don’t call them employees but associates, because they’re our partners,” Cherng explained. “We want to build an organization where people are inspired to better their lives.”
Panda focuses on fostering a culture that creates happy associates, which becomes happy guests.
“The judges out there are you, and we will work very hard to be loved by you,” Cherng said. “But first we have to work on ourselves and love ourselves.”
The chain has more than 1,500 locations, opening 100 new stores this past year. With such a wide network, the company encourages decentralized learning, where associates take initiative to learn on their own with resources from Panda.
Peggy Cherng speaking at the Dean’s Distinguished Lecture Series
After her talk, Cherng sat down for a question and answer session with OSU associate professor of management Pauline Schilpzand and then took questions from the audience.
Schilpzand asked why those of us in Oregon haven’t seen many Panda Express television commercials.
Cherng explained Oregon is still an emerging market for Panda, and the company focuses larger ad buys in their core markets, such as California.
“We do do advertising in the core market because we can leverage the cost more effectively,” she said. “But in the emerging market the cost prohibits TV.”
Schilpzand also asked Cherng about what she’s used from her academic background in her career.Cherng earned a B.S. in applied mathematics from OSU and an M.S. in Computer Science and doctoral degree in electrical engineering from the University of Missouri.
Cherng mentioned that while she never learned much about food herself — husband Andrew Cherng started the original Panda Inn with his father and now serves as co-CEO with his wife — she has a passion for systems, honed by her training as an engineer.
“You first have to find out your passion,” she said. “If you have passion you’re really able to make a difference.”
She stressed that passion is a key for all entrepreneurs, no matter what industry one may be entering.
“If you just want to make money, if a hard time comes you’re not able to pull yourself up,” Cherng said. “But if you have passion you can overcome.”
Michelle Obama’s Commencement address this past Sunday was one of the biggest events in recent memory at Oregon State University.
While many were able to watch in person, if you happened to have missed her speech you can now see the address in its entirety on YouTube.
And by the way, congratulations again to all our graduates (also a major part of commencement, in case anyone forgot). We have a photo album up on Facebook from the event. Please tag yourself if you see any photos of yourself or friends.
As Oregon State College of Business Dean Ilene Kleinsorge addressed the school’s 2012 MBA class for the final time at Thursday’s graduation celebration at the La Sells Stewart Center on campus, she reminded the new graduates they’d earned much more than a degree.
“Some of you will venture far beyond OSU after today,” Kleinsorge said. “Some of you will start new businesses, some of you will seek higher level positions with your current employer and all of you will always be Oregon State University and College of Business alumni.”
Overall OSU saw 51 students graduate, with 11 teams completing an Integrated Business Project, developing business plans for companies such as Intel, Hewlett Packard and for the OSU Office for Commercialization and Corporate Development.
The new Beaver MBAs will be taking many different paths with different goals — documentaries in Central America, restaurants in Thailand and many advancing with employers in Oregon — but each is connected to a network of past and future Oregon State grads, Kleinsorge said.
Bob Mayes, an OSU alumnus and CEO of companies such as DMB realty and the Madison Companies, gave the celebration address Thursday. He stressed that grads need to pay attention to more than just career milestones as they continue on in the business world.
The former Oregon State football player showed the grads a wheel made up of slices not only for job and salary, but family, personal growth and passion.
“If any part of your wheel is too big it won’t roll,” Mayes said.
Jay Killen was presented the Target Leadership Award, recognizing a student who demonstrated outstanding leadership and scholarship during their time at the College of Business and Oregon State University.
MBA Association President Holli Ogle and Vice President Alexander Ritzman gave the evening a little levity, recounting the past year from the prospective of an MBA Integrated Business Plan team member (Hint: Including Photoshops of MBA IBP Director and Thesis Advisor Tom Dowling as Gandalf will get laughs at your next College of Business function).
Congratulations to all the graduates and the family and friends who came out to celebrate Thursday.
The 2012 MBA Graduation Celebration stage.
Bob Mayes speaks at the 2012 MBA Graduation Celebration.
The 2012 MBA class photo on the stage following the MBA Graduation Celebration.
The 2012 MBA class photo on the stage following the MBA Graduation Celebration.
Nancy King (left) talks to MBA Graduation Celebration speaker Bob Mayes (center) following the ceremony.
Reception following the MBA Graduation Celebration.
Grads get photos at the reception following the MBA Graduation Celebration.
Brittney Yeskie (eated, right) sits with her family at the reception following the MBA Graduation Celebration
MBA graduate Corey Bramlet (left) at the reception following the MBA Graduation Celebration
Members of the Oregon State SIFE team mob MBA graduate Jennifer Villalobos at the MBA Graduation Celebration.
Members of the Oregon State SIFE team mob MBA graduate Jennifer Villalobos at the MBA Graduation Celebration.
The College of Business hosted its annual Celebration of Achievement Friday, recognizing a number of faculty and staff members who contributed to the success of the college over the past year.
Before the first awards were handed out, Dean Ilene Kleinsorge took a moment to honor Jack Drexler and Carol Brown, who are retiring at the end of the year. The pair take nearly 60 years of experience at OSU with them.
Carol Brown is recognized at the Celebration of AchievementRetiring professor Jack Drexler MCs the Celebration of Achievement
The dean also recognized Leslie Burns, chair of the Department of Human Environment, which will become part of the College of Business next school year. A number of DHE faculty and staff attended the celebration this year to start off the process.
Of course, the purpose of the night was a chance for everyone in the college to get together, celebrate another great year and especially the award recipients. Here are the honorees for 2011-12
Celebration of Achievement
Betty and Forrest Simmons Excellence in Graduate Teaching Award: Nancy King.
This award was established two years ago by a generous gift from Betty and Forrest Simmons who wanted to ensure a strong MBA program in the college
Graduate students called Nancy King “an outstanding professor of business law.” King teaches Law and Ethics for New Ventures and Emerging Technologies and understands how the industry and technologies change to create relevant class projects and prepare students for their Integrated Business Project within their MBA program.
Byron L. Newton Award – Excellence in Teaching: René Reitsma
Established by the faculty in 1976, the award honors excellence in classroom teaching. The award is named in honor of a professor who was a member of the faculty from 1947 to 1975.
Rene Reitsma provides experiential learning opportunities to students through the system analysis and design courses. He’s worked with Byron Marshall to secure a COE and COB grant to design an IT bootcamp, which will launch in fall 2013.
Excellence in Scholarship Award: Michelle Barnhart
Since joining the faculty in 2009, Michelle has garnered three publications including two in the Journal of Consumer Research and one in the Journal of Business Research.
Outstanding Professional Faculty & Staff Service Award: Alan Sprague
In addition to being an invaluable technical resource to the College of Business, Alan Sprague implemented the Virtual Desktop Infrastructure technology in the computer lab, classroom and among office users.
Experiential Learning Award – Carrie Kolstad- Hertel
As the manager for the Business Solutions Group testing group, Carrie Kolstad-Hertel represents the best of the experiential learning opportunities available through BSG. She has worked through the full-cycle of the BSG experiential learning process from student worker to professional faculty to manager with responsibility of hiring and training student workers and other professional faculty.
College Service Award Recipient: Byron Marshall
As the faculty advisor for the BIS student organization, SIM Club, Byron Marshall has spent countless hours assisting students with IT skills and projects. More than that, Byron organized field trips, meetings with IT professionals, BIS events and even identified student volunteers for BIS presentations in Corvallis high schools.
Byron took the lead in having the Accounting Information System program endorsed by leading organizations and recertified. It’s now one of only 18 such programs world wide to have this recognition.
College Service Outreach Award: Mark Van Patten
As the founder and chair of the Willamette Innovators Network, Mark Van Patten has helped foster leadership and cooperation within an expanding network of entrepreneurs, business leaders and government organizations.
Mark also serves on the Advisor Council for the Portland Chapter of the Society of Information Managers and is part of National Engineering and IT month and a Board Member for the BIS Advisory Council.
Newcomb Faculty Endowment Awards:Newcomb Fellows
The Newcomb Fellowships were established by Bernie Newcomb, Class of ’65, and co-founder of E*Trade. His generous endowment makes it possible for us to recognize outstanding contributions to the mission, vision, and strategic development of the College of Business.
John Becker-Blease
In the fall John Becker-Blease received the Aspen Institute’s Rising Star Award. John’s curriculum development has made a significant impact in the way that students are taught how finance impacts business and the integration of social, environmental and economic issues.
Kim Calder
Kim Calder, the college’s faculty services coordinator, is the person who keeps Bexell Hall standing every day. From ordering text books, to copying exams to assisting with research projects and from data collection processing for accreditation to having students move offices, put together furniture and paint our dear Bexell Hall, Kim makes sure that tasks are completed and the environment we work is as accommodating and functioning as it can be.
Jared Moore
Jared Moore was instrumental in mentoring accounting teams to top-two finishes at the Berntson Porter/University of Washington Tax Competition and this year leading a team of accounting students to a first place finish in the 2012 Foster School of Business Master of Professional Accounting Tax Case Competition.
