Illinois MBA teams up with the Eastern Illinois Foodbank

The Illinois MBA is teaming up with the Eastern Illinois Foodbank to help alleviate hunter. This month-long service project is part of an initiative sponsored by The Graduate Management Admissions Council (GMAC) called TeamMBA which was created to celebrate, promote, and publicize the outstanding community and volunteer work that is performed by graduate management programs.

Here's some thoughts from first-year MBA, Kyle Harshbarger, about one of the activities during the month coordinated by the MBA Service Association.

The Illlinois MBA Service Association teamed up with the Eastern Illinois Foodbank this past Saturday to help hungry people in and around Champaign County. After a tour of the facilities, a dozen Illinois MBAs bagged, boxed and stacked six pallets of dry beans which will be shipped to food pantries and soup kitchens. After taking care of one ton of beans, they tackled mixed green can labeling and boxing. Two and three-quarter pallets later, the mixed vegetables were ready for distribution.

Students learned how the foodbank is essentially a not-for-profit distribution center for foods, but also learned about it's financial structure. The bagging and packaging processes gave thema first-hand experience in manufacturing processing, bottlenecks and experience curves. Thanks to the MBA students efforts, Comcast will be donated an estimated $2,500 to the foodbank. Because of their ability to purchase bulk food at discounts, this is equivalent to $25,000 in retail food.

MBAA Spring Picnic

This past weekend the MBA Association hosted a spring picnic at Hessel Park in Champaign. It was an opportunity for everyone to gather and socialize. Not only were the students present at this event, professors also came with their families. Our Associate Dean, Stig Lanesskog, also join in on the festivities helping us barbecue the meats.

People also brought their families and friends and join in on some friendly touch football games. We also took this opportunity to talk about community involvement as the MBA program is currently working to raise money for the Eastern Illinois Foodbank.

Events like this gives us the opportunity to see classmates we don't meet very often. This is especially true for the MBA2s because by the time we are in the second year of the program, we often only see the classmates who have the same degree concentration. It was really great to catch up with some old friends!

Illinois MBA in India

During the winter break seven members from the second year MBA class, including myself, were in India to conduct field research for projects from the course Sustainable Product and Market Development for Subsistence Marketplaces. We visited Chennai, New Delhi, Agra, and Hyderabad. There are four different projects from the class and they focus on sanitation, vision, health, and education. Each team conducted interviews with members from the urban areas and villages in Chennai, New Delhi, and Hyderabad to gather information vital to developing products and business plans. Everyone also had the chance to visit local organizations including the Sulabh International Social Service Organization in New Delhi, Tata Consulting, and Infosys.

It wasn't all work as we got to sample the Indian cuisine and culture. We visited several amazing sites, including the Shore Temple in Chennai, the Red Fort, and the Taj Mahal. We also got to taste the various types of curries from the cities. I really enjoyed the spicy curries from Hyderabad! All of us also went shopping in bazzars and some of us were really amazed by the Bangle Street in Hyderabad.

The trip was short but very rewarding. We were able to gather the information we needed for our projects while sampling India's lively culture. I am certainly looking forward to my next trip!

Net Impact Annual Conference

Net Impact is an international non-profit organization that links corporations from all over the world together to create positive impact on our environment through business. The Illinois MBA has a chapter of Net Impact on campus and strive to implement Net Impact's goals by working with local non-profit and businesses. We provide these businesses the expertise we learn from the MBA program and help them make the positive impact they seek for our community.

Companies that are closely linked with Net Impact includes Intel, Honest Tea, Starbucks, Sodexo, GE, Dell, and many others. Each year, Net Impact hosts an annual conference that brings all of these companies together along with members of both student and professional chapters of Net Impact. This year's conference was held at The Johnson School of Business at Cornell University. The Illinois MBA Net Impact chapter had seven representatives attended the event this year.

The conference ran for two days. It included panels and workshops along with a career expo. One of the panels I attended discussed how Fortune 500 corporations address corporate social responsibility (CSR). The panels were Senior VPs from Intel, Sodexo, and BT America. Each of them spoke about their responsibilities and challenges along with the importance of CSR in day-to-day operations.

I truly enjoyed the two day conference and believe that these type of events and topics are vital as we become leaders. The Illinois MBA program recognizes the importance of addressing CSR and sustainability. The program has a CSR, sustainability, and/or public affairs concentration in place for students who wish to explore and become experts in this area. I feel fortunate to be at a program that acknowledge the importance of these issues, especially in our current economic environment.

GMA/NET Impact Marketing Case Competion

The Graduate Marketing Association (GMA) and the Illinois MBA Net Impact hosted the first annual Marketing Case Competition last month. The goal of this year's competition was for current MBA students to provide expertise to a local non-profit organization. This year, GMA and Net Impact worked closely with the Illinois Green Business Association (IGBA), a local organization started by U of I alumni. The organization seek to help businesses in the Champaign-Urbana area green their organization through areas such as operations.

This year's winners were Jennifer Schmidt (MBA '11) and Nick Timpone (MBA '11).

The MBA program was happy to provide our personal and prior knowledge about small businesses and environmental practices to assist the local Illinois Green Business Association. Though it was a competition, we recognize that the combined contributions of all the teams will greatly assist this valuable student lead organization in fulfilling its mission. Fortunately for us, Jennifer’s expertise in environmental consulting and Nick’s knowledge within the local small business community combined to provide several “valuable ideas and concepts.” Anthony Santarelli – Director of Program Development for IGBA – said that he greatly appreciated all the teams hard work and creative ideas. He particularly liked Jennifer’s idea of “using recycled materials to construct the IGBA certificates.”

This was a great opportunity for us to represent the IMBA and apply academic concepts learned in the classroom into real-world solutions for an organization doing such important work. Best of luck Illinois Green Business Association in “greening the community one business at a time” and thanks again to all those who participated!

Study Abroad Opportunities

Here at the Illinois MBA we have a lot of different learning opportunities. Not only do students have access to a variety of courses, students are also offered the opportunity to study abroad. This includes taking week long seminars in Europe and Mexico City, Mexico. Each winter break, students take a week to interact with other MBA students in other countries. This year, students will be doing the same, spending a week in Mexico City at IPADE Business School. The week long seminar will focus on the economic, social, and cultural aspects of Mexico along with the tourism industry of the country. Illinois MBA students will work with IPADE student on team projects. Just like the Illinois MBA program, IPADE uses the case method in its business courses which provides a very hands on experience on business topics.

Students will also have the opportunity to explore the various social and cultural activities in Mexico City. This includes wine tasting, attending bull fighting events, tasting great food, and visiting museums. Students will also be able to experience the rich culture history of Mexico through its pre-Hispanic, colonial, and modern architecture.

The study abroad program is very unique. We currently have two exchange students from IPADE studying in our MBA program. We are all looking forward to them hosting us in Mexico City. It will certainly add to the Illinois MBA experience.

My First Year at the Illinois MBA

When I first started at the Illinois MBA program I was very eager to involve myself in everything that the program offered. Everyone met during the week prior to starting classes where we all participated in team building activities. As we entered into the semester, I find myself quite busy with team meetings, classes, weekly social events, and MBAA club activities. I remember feeling overwhelmed with assignments and classes. We often did our assignments in teams which can be challenging as there were many different personalities, working styles, and schedules within the team.

As I looked back to my first year, the one item that I wished I had mastered prior to entering the program was time management skills. With the amount of activities the MBA program offered along with the many assignments and classes, I did find myself over stretched at times. However, my classmates and the professors were extremely supportive. You can always expect them to help and go to them for various advice.

Now that I am in my second year I am able to form my own schedule. In the first year, the MBAs are required to take core classes. These classes give you a perspective on a wide range of subjects and provide an opportunity for students to explore new topics. These classes range from marketing, finance, organizational theory to strategy.

The best way to start the MBA program is to keep an open mind. Don't narrow your choices and be open to all the opportunities presented to you. I can't even begin to explain the amount of new skills I have acquired in the past year. I just know that I wouldn't trade my experiences and new knowledge for anything else in the world.