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Headlines
Ross' Zell Lurie Institute Leads the Midwest's Foremost Venture Capital Event
Annual Michigan Growth Capital Symposium slated for May 15-16. More
Ross Faculty Honored with Annual Awards
Awards showcase excellence in scholarship and teaching. More
Ross Professor Tom Kinnear Honored With U-M's Ted Doan Award
President Mary Sue Coleman recognizes professor for outstanding leadership in entrepreneurship. More
Action-Based Learning to Action-Based Living
Pundit and lawyer Michelle Bernard tells Ross graduates metrics for success in life at Spring Commencement. More
Beating the Box Office Blues
Study by Ross professor finds secondary ticket sales can boost revenue for event promoters, but suggests ticket options are the best plan. More
Tauber Institute for Global Operations First Winner of UPS George D. Smith Prize
Partnership between Ross School of Business and U-M College of Engineering lauded for effective, innovative preparation of students. More
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Events
May 15-16
Michigan Growth Capital Symposium
June 7-9
Mitsui Finance Symposium: “Financial Market Implications of the Macroeconomy”
Alumni Events
For a listing of Ross alumni club events
please visit rossclubs.org
Ross Thought in Action
Ross Thought in Action
Each issue of Ross Thought in Action (RTIA) features stories about new books, research, case studies, and other intellectual capital generated by Ross faculty. Below is a snapshot of current content featured on the RTIA web page. We invite you to visit the page itself, as we update the content frequently. We also send an email newsletter to subscribers every other month.
commentary
JPMorgan Chase's $2 Billion Blunder
MAY 15, 2012
What was supposed to be a hedging strategy went seriously awry for JPMorgan Chase, which recently revealed it lost more than $2 billion over a few weeks on derivative trades. Professor Nejat Seyhun says what happened is less important than the bank's decision to take a risk that large. He also notes that this comes at a time when the specifics of financial regulations passed by Congress still are being finalized. Since regulators were in the dark until the bank disclosed the losses itself, transparency should be the chief concern, he says. But he also hopes Congress doesn't overreact.
Read Q&A
research focus
Beating the Box Office Blues
MAY 14, 2012
Does the secondary market for event tickets, led by services like StubHub, harm event organizers? The traditional view is yes, but new research from operations and management science professor Izak Duenyas shows that's not always the case. A secondary market can boost revenue for event organizers, especially when prices are fixed. His research suggests the best choice for event organizers is to sell ticket options, a practice that's been slow to develop. Duenyas' work sheds new light on the $3 billion ticket resale market.
Read Article
analysis
A Wake-Up Call for Manufacturing
MAY 7, 2012
Optimists hope a recent uptick in U.S. manufacturing means better days are ahead for the sector. There is momentum, but it'll take the right policy decisions by elected officials and business leaders in the coming years to keep U.S. manufacturing thriving, say Michigan Ross professors Wally Hopp and Roman Kapuscinski. They're co-authors of the Booz & Co. study Manufacturing's Wake-Up Call, which estimates 40 percent of the U.S. manufacturing sector still hangs on the edge. The wrong decisions could lead to permanent manufacturing job loss, while a series of smart steps could make the country a manufacturing powerhouse again.
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case study
Cost Center to Profit Center
MAY 10, 2012
Most companies view a customer call center as a cost, something to be handled as quickly and cheaply as possible. But American Express took a different view and turned its call center into an engagement center. A case study by professor M.S. Krishnan details how the credit card company changed its hiring, training, IT systems, and employee relations to turn a cost center into a profit center. In this Q&A, Krishnan explains how Executive Vice President Jim Bush handled all the moving pieces to make it happen. As a result, customer satisfaction and card member spending went up and handling time went down.
Read Q&A // Customer Service at American Express: A Relationship, Not a Transaction (Click "Inspection Copy" for Free Case) // More Case Studies
research focus
Why we Struggle with Food Choices
APRIL 9, 2012
What should I eat and how much? Despite more nutrition information than ever, consumers still ask those questions, while rising obesity rates underscore their importance. Two Michigan Ross marketing professors are at the forefront of this rich area of research. Works from Aradhna Krishna and Brent McFerran were featured in a recent special report on food choices in the Journal of Consumer Research. Krishna's research on "guiltless gluttony" examines how misleading labels can lead to overeating. McFerran's work looks at how people select food portions based on how much the people around them select, and whether those people are heavy or thin.
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executive focus
Negotiating for Positive Results :: Video
MARCH 7, 2012
Negotiation. The word evokes images of adversaries at a table scheming to outwit one another. Delete those images, say management and organizations professors Shirli Kopelman and Jeffrey Sanchez-Burks. Their research illuminates several techniques that can lead to victory and sustainable relationships. Kopelman and Sanchez-Burks share those methods in the Michigan Ross Executive Education program Negotiating for Positive Results. In the following Q&A and video, these experts reveal an array of human biases and shatter popular myths along the way. Oh, and that negotiating table? Don't expect to find one.
Read Q&A // View Video // More Executive Education
your turn
If you have a question or topic you'd like to see addressed in the next issue of Ross Thought in Action, email us at rossthought@umich.edu.


"Auto companies are making good decisions, and they're making money and listening to their young customers."
Damian Zikakis, director of career services, on the Big Three's upsurge in Universum USA's latest ranking of favored employers.
Bloomberg Businessweek, May 11, 2012