Tag: CEL

Over the past year more than 30 MBA and PMBA students have held a seat on the board of directors of a United Way agency. They have had the opportunity to engage in small to large non-profit organizations within our community.

“The challenging part of being part of an organization where you are on the board of directors is that you have a lot of different people with a lot of different interests and backgrounds,” says Shaun Reed, MBA’15. Shaun was a member of the board at Lemay Child and Family Center. Working with a diverse board and learning how to communicate and collaborate together was exciting according to Shaun. But he admits, “it’s been a bit of a challenge and harder than I really expected.”

Watch the video to hear from more Board Fellows about their experience.

Olin/United Way Board Fellows make a positive impact on the St. Louis community by serving as local nonprofit board members. During the year-long board membership, students work on projects for their agencies, engage with community leaders, and develop valuable skills in board governance, interpersonal communication, and leadership.

Learn More About the CEL

The Center for Experiential Learning (CEL) is an educational center located in the Olin Business School at Washington University in St. Louis. The CEL is focused on creating innovative learning opportunities that result in meaningful impact in the business and nonprofit communities. Learn more about the CEL and its programs at olin.wustl.edu/CEL.

More than 60 guests joined the Center for Experiential Learning (CEL) in the Knight Center  Hall Courtyard on April 30, 2015 to celebrate another successful year for the five CEL programs. The event was held in honor of the incredible service the Olin CEL students and teams put forth for community partners at home and around the globe.

Students at the CELebration ceremony.

Twenty-eight outstanding students received recognition for their exceptional dedication, having participated in three+ CEL engagements during their time at Washington University.

Ten of these students were acknowledged for demonstrated leadership during the academic year and received a copy of How Will You Measure Your Life? by Clayton M. Christensen as a gift from CEL Director Ron King. Christensen’s book serves as a reminder to stay focused on what matters most in order to find personal and professional success in the next stage of your journey.

Learn More

The Center for Experiential Learning (CEL) is an educational center located in the Olin Business School at Washington University in St. Louis. The CEL is focused on creating innovative learning opportunities that result in meaningful impact in the business and nonprofit communities. Learn more about the CEL and its programs at olin.wustl.edu/CEL.

This year’s Global Management Studies cohort recently re-lived their trip to Japan while enjoying sushi and watching a spectacular video presentation by faculty advisor, Sergio Chayet. This was Chayet’s second GMS tour of Japan, “The students did a lot of work researching the companies we visited and they did all the planning and execution of the trip.” Chayet is Senior Lecturer of Operations and Manufacturing Management; Academic Director of the MS in Supply Chain Management Program; and Director of the Operations and Supply Chain Management MBA Platform.

“I took care of the academic portion by giving a few lectures and assigning/discussing case studies with them,” Chayet says.  “The student leads also gave presentations on Japan’s history, culture, business etiquette, food/drink etiquette, and background on some of the temples we visited and background on sumo.”

Below are some excerpts from assignments written by GMS Japan students.

Academic Lessons:
“Global supply chain creates new management challenges faced by many businesses worldwide. Globalization also brings new opportunities and threats to companies. Growing foreign demand generates more sales while at the same time requires more resources and labor that may need to be procured locally and adds new logistical challenges. Political stability and economic conditions also need to be taken into account when deciding to conduct business in a foreign country. The GMS course introduced us to managerial insights and touched on issues on global business management.”   Peter Tobing

“7-eleven uses the locations of its stores both to enhance its supply chain and limit the presence of its competitors. Instead of spreading stores throughout the entirety of cities, 7-eleven clusters its stores in concentrated areas. Doing this serves a dual purpose. First, it allows deliveries to be made more efficiently from distribution centers. Second, clustering stores together deters competitors from opening stores in the same areas. 7-eleven is able to dominate markets through supply chain efficiency.”  Douglas Golann

“I enjoyed learning about Rakuten and the vast array of companies and industries it is involved in. Rakuten is rapidly expanding, and since studying it, I have seen Rakuten multiple times.

My portion of our presentation was an overview of the company, so I researched all the industries Rakuten had expanded to include. It has recently acquired a few American companies, so it already has a presence in the US. It is involved with everything from retail to sports to financial services!  Rakuten has a fully integrated system, so you can bank and buy through its financial ecosystem.” Allison Campbell

Trip Lessons:
“The visit to the Toyota plant was a perfect extension of our Operations class, allowing us to see the production process we read about in real life. I was impressed by how clean and well-organized the Toyota plant was, and especially by how calm an environment it was. The lesson I took away was how valuable it is to establish a proper balance between human and technological labor – not to entirely supplant one with the other, but to determine the optimal way for them to work together. The result for Toyota seems to be a well-respected process, well-regarded cars, and happy employees.”  Maggie Hughes

“The cultural experience is something that could not have been learned in a traditional course. Japanese business culture is very formal and polite. The extent to which respect and formality are important in the culture could not be experienced in a course. This may help me in my business career because I plan on working in M&A consulting. Many acquisitions are international, and understanding other cultures will help me interact with international professionals when I am working on these deals.”         Louis Milone

“Interacting with Japanese people provided insight not only into the importance of creativity, but also into how customs and social norms form the foundation of trust between people. As I work with several companies in St. Louis with Japanese parents, these insights taught me what is important and why it is important. The culture is somewhat insular but very advanced and filled with creativity (i.e.Toyota plant; new ideas around energy at Rakuten). “ — Julie Evans

“Attention to detail is a trademark of Japanese companies and their employees in everything they do. This transcends relationships between companies and their customers as well as business to business relations. It applies to manufacturing processes where every detail is attended to and perfected; products are thought out carefully and done in best way and quality possible including the packaging and final presentation to the customers; when dealing with partners such things as little gifts for visitors always take place; attention to details and dedication also take place in everyone’s daily life.” Alexandra (Sasha) Sukhareva

About the CEL & GMS
Global Management Studies (GMS) provide international perspective and exposure to global businesses and emerging markets. Student-led teams conduct field research in a chosen geographic region and business sector, engaging with business leaders and building a network through social and inter-cultural engagements.

The Center for Experiential Learning (CEL) is an educational center located in the Olin Business School at Washington University in St. Louis. The CEL is focused on creating innovative learning opportunities that result in meaningful impact in the business and nonprofit communities. Learn more about the CEL and its programs at olin.wustl.edu/CEL.

On the windiest day in memory in Florence, we survived blown over trees, vespas, and errant cups of coffee to make our way to the heart of the Florentine handicraft industry. As part of the CEL Artex Practicum project, we traveled to three manufacturers, IVV, Chiarugi, and Capecchi Home Linens today, and were given the opportunity to tour their facilities and speak with their management.

The first company, IVV, is the largest glass manufacturer in Europe. They make the majority of their products completely by hand, and the results were quite impressive. The company makes large vases, colorful flowers, and nearly any tabletop object imaginable. The factory itself was also a sight to be seen; Professor Sergio Chayet would have refused to leave if he had been here.

We were also able to obtain insights into the glass making process, as well as the challenges facing the glass industry in Italy. IVV had once supplied well known chains such as Crate & Barrel, but its customers have yet to fully return following the 2007 financial crisis. Following conversations with the company’s representatives, it seems that the company plans to target smaller boutiques abroad while it slowly regains its business partnerships with larger entities.

Following our trip to IVV, we made our way to Chiarugi, a maker of intricate, high-end salt and pepper mills. (see photo above) Chiarugi makes many different styles and guarantees its internal components for life. The factory was small but the workers were lively and very helpful.

Currently, the vast majority of the company’s customers are luxury hotels and restaurants. As it products are made at a very high quality, once it makes a sale follow-up orders are usually updates or replacements and are thus hard to predict. The company, therefore, wants to get more involved in selling to consumers via retail stores, specifically targeting the United States. We had the chance to brainstorm some strategies with one of the company’s owners, and we hope that the successful completion of our project with Artex will transform their plans into reality.

Our final visit was to Capecchi Home Linens, located in Pistoia. The company has been in the same family for three generations and we had the opportunity to tour the facility with its current owner. The company imports high quality cotton from Egypt and the Middle East, and then dyes, embroiders, and finishes the sheets, pillow cases, and other linen goods in house.

The company produces only when orders come in, and they offer their customers the ability to customize the products to a large degree. Speaking with the owner after the tour, he indicated that he does not want to become a high volume producer like some manufacturers in China. In fact, his goal was simply to add one new customer per year, so long as this customer builds a relationship with him.

The overall goal of our project is essentially to introduce small, high end retailers directly to manufactures in Italy, allowing the former to obtain wholesale prices and the latter to create business relationships in the United States.

Overall, the day was a success. Through adverse conditions, we were able to round out our understanding of the handicrafts industry in Tuscany. We have no doubt that our Center for Experiential Learning (CEL) project will be put into much sharper focus when we return to the United States so that we can deliver results to Artex by the end of the semester.

On Sunday, the team met Daniel Bentle, CEL associate director, at the Florence train station after two train rides from Verona. That afternoon, we took a stroll through the city where we were privileged to witness a historic flag throwing presentation outside of the Palazzo Vecchio.

Later that afternoon, we were to meet with Sauro, our Artex connection. Little did we know— the man is a legend. Some say that he once asked for his wife to be completely covered in the best (and incredibly expensive) leather in Florence. Some say he frequents the discoteque at least four times a week. Still others claim he has a gold leaf tattoo in the shape of the local Duomo on his arm. All we really know is that, Sauro Servadei, his wife Maria, and their daughter Chiara are some of the most welcoming and happy people you could ever meet. (Their dog, Titta, is also a cutie.)

Pausing by the Arno with our host Sauro.

That evening, Sauro and Maria provided us with a wonderful, and extensive, home-cooked meal. There was an antipasto platter of meats, liver, and cheeses, along with Prosecco, followed by what we thought were the main courses of pasta and a potato dish with red wine. In actuality, it was the primi piatti (literally translating to first plate).

It was soon followed by the secondi piatti (second plate) of a dish reminiscent of meatloaf and rosemary potatoes. Just when we thought we couldn’t have another bite, out came Maria with il dolce, a bread dessert called Colomba and chocolate covered nuts. The evening was full of good laughs and tips from Sauro on the best places to eat in Florence; after all, that is usually the most important thing to learn when visiting a new city!

Mr. P.E. Peroni

The next morning (Monday), the team headed to Artex bright and early to meet with Sauro and our other Artex connection, Maria Elena Angeli. The morning was spent much as the evening was, with the team listening to Sauro talk about the city, the artisans, and the beauty of Italy. After a morning filled with lively discussions, we headed to Peroni, a local leather workshop known throughout Florence for its high-quality leather goods.

P.E. Peroni (yes, his initials and last name spell peperoni) founded the workshop with his brother, Roberto in 1956. Peroni spent the afternoon showing us around his workshop and sharing with us the history of the company and demonstrating his handicraft still performed in the traditional way. Although he is retired, several team members were able to get the once-in-a-lifetime experience of Peroni personally embossing their initials onto his coin purses.

On Tuesday, we met with the president of Artex and a representative from the innovation and development division. Following that, we listened to interesting presentations from two Italian trading commissions, CNA and Confartigianato.

In the evening, we had dinner at an excellent trattoria. The amount of food consumed was similar to Sunday night. Thankfully, we were able to walk off the food during a personalized guided tour by the legendary Sauro himself. In the late hours of the night, we retired to our accommodations, heavy with excellent Italian food, wine, and history.

Josie Gutierrez,MBA’15 contributed this post on behalf of her CEL team.

For more information on Artex or Peroni, please click on the links below.

Artex: http://www.artex.firenze.it/en

Peroni: http://www.peronifirenze.it/

While pursuing careers as professional musicians, Tom and Rick Pernikoff experienced the difficulties bands have trying to reach their most ardent fans in the different cities scheduled on a tour. In response, they founded Tunespeak and resettled in their hometown of St. Louis, Missouri to build a business that has the potential to fundamentally alter how bands and their respective fans interact.

Tunespeak leverages the Pernikoff brothers’ experience in the music industry and software technology to create a social media platform that directly engages fans with numerous artists reflecting a diverse range of American music genres. The members of the Tunespeak team each have different talents that contribute to the growth and success of the company. Most notably, they’re all musicians–thus, it is common to find the Tunespeak office not only bustling with the tempo of a tech startup but filled with the eclectic mix of music enjoyed by individuals that are truly passionate about music and expanding the ways in which musicians can share their art with their fans.

Our team, comprised of Alaina Flowers (MBA 2015), Delisle Warden (MBA 2016), Morgan Banti (BSBA 2015), and Todd Wells (JD 2016), is consulting for Tunespeak this semester to help the company take another step toward cementing their position as the industry leader.

Fans are currently actively engaging with their favorite artists in a myriad of ways, including internet streaming, concerts, social media and merchandise sales. For our project, we are working to collect this data and segment the market for music in the United States. Our research and recommendations will directly impact future strategic and product development decisions Tunespeak will make.

We initially faced difficulty in defining the scope of the project. We wanted to present research about which fans drove revenue, how to reach those fans, differences in fans from genre to genre, and the various ways that they consume music, along with a whole slew of other questions.

Mountains of music industry data exist, but what information will be meaningful to Tunespeak? We’ve ultimately narrowed our focus a great deal in order to answer this critical question.

After realizing that Tunespeak, by its very nature, is pursuing fans that will be most profitable to artists, we have begun segmenting the market with this in mind by focusing on which fans are driving revenue and how.

Ideally, we want to present information regarding the effect of various traits like location, age, and genre preferences on consumption and spending habits. For example, does a fan of hip-hop in New York consume music in a different way than a fan of country in Nebraska?

The answers to these questions will ultimately help Tunespeak evaluate its approach in attempting to reach the music industry’s most profitable fans. We are currently focused on continuing to define the categories for segmentation and how to ultimately present the data we find in an easy to digest format. We are looking forward to the opportunity to create a set of information that could revolutionize the way that the music industry understands and interacts with the market.