Conducted Fall 2008 Q: What keeps you up at night? A: The neighbor’s dog. Q: What’s the last book you read? A: The Great Upheaval: America and the Birth of the Modern World, 1788-1800 by Jay Winik. Q: Who is your personal hero (and why)? A: My father. He has always been caring, upbeat, supportive, hard-working, and perseverant. Q: First job? A: My first earnings were related to watching some of the neighbors’ children. Later, I worked at an art-house movie theater in the summer. Q: Best business decision? A: The personnel decisions I’ve made in developing teams. Q: What advice would you give to yourself 10 years ago? A: Be the best “you” you can be. Q: The one thing you learned in business school that you’ll never forget? A: Moving a team forward requires an array of skills. Q: What is the most important room in your home? A: The kitchen, where we gather as a family. Q: Favorite comfort food? A: Low-fat ice cream. Q: If you had a theme song, what would it be? A: “Three Little Birds” by Bob Marley. I love the chorus: “Don’t worry about a thing ’cause every little thing’s gonna be alright.” Q: Favorite line from a movie or television show? A: “Anyone can take a reservation. I can take a reservation. That’s no big deal. It’s holding the reservation that makes the difference!” --- Seinfeld Q: What’s the most thrilling/adventurous thing you’ve ever done? A: Having six hours to move all patients in the UCLA Medical Center into our new, I.M. Pei-designed facility. Q: Three people, living or dead, you’d have over to dinner? A: My grandparents and Abraham Lincoln. But I’d have Abe over on a separate night or else he wouldn’t be able to get in a word. Q: Best trophy/award you ever won? A: An award from the physicians, nurses, staff, and management of my prior health system for making significant impacts to improve the organization. Q: If you could read anyone’s mind, whose would it be? A: Is this a trick question? My wife’s! Q: Pet peeve? A: Receiving an email that just precedes a long trail of previously forwarded emails, instead of summarizing the situation. Q: Unfulfilled wish? A: To cover the uninsured and better align incentives in the U.S. healthcare system. Q: Favorite sport to watch? A: For portfolio optimization, I root for blue and maize/gold teams: Michigan (football) and UCLA (basketball). Q: What did you want to be when you were a kid? A: I wanted to be involved in managing large organizations. Before that, I imagine it was something to do with ice cream. Q: Why do you feel it’s important to give to the Ross School? A: Ross is developing leaders who are changing the world by driving positive changes in organizations and society.