Richard Lui, MBA '01
From Crunching Numbers to Breaking News

Ask cable news anchor Richard Lui, MBA '01, what he brings from his Ross experience to his journalism career, and he'll provide a most succinct answer: "Everything."

Lui works for HLN (formerly CNN Headline News), where he anchors Morning Express with Robin Meade. He took his chair at the network's desk in 2005 and has anchored live coverage ranging from the Virginia Tech shootings to the Mumbai train terrorist bombings. Reporting and anchoring such intense stories requires Lui to synthesize and contextualize multiple perspectives into one cohesive package. He daily falls back on the analytical training he picked up in business school, all while under the strict pressure of a deadline and the harsh glare of the studio lights.

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Rob Pelinka, BBA '93/JD '96
New Game Theory

The year was 1993, and BBA senior Rob Pelinka was on the road to his third NCAA Tournament as a member of the Michigan Wolverines men's basketball team. With college coming to a close, the conversation turned to careers. One of Pelinka's teammates asked him what he planned to do after graduation. The former athlete says he looked out the window and saw a line of sports agents trailing the team bus. Pointing to the string of headlights, he said, "Definitely not what those guys do."

Fast forward to 2009, and Rob Pelinka is on the road again. This time he's returning from the NBA Championship series where the Los Angeles Lakers took their 15th title. And this time he's actually doing "what those guys do," but on a much bigger scale. As founder of The Landmark Sports Agency in Los Angeles, Pelinka counts NBA superstar Kobe Bryant, the leader of the Lakers, as his top client.

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Mitchell Robins, BBA '77
On the Record with Mitchell Robins

Accountant Mitchell Robins, BBA '77, never intended to pursue a career in the music business. That was his son's goal. But when Sean Robins was diagnosed with Ewing's sarcoma, a rare pediatric bone cancer, his music career was put on hold. His father's, however, was just beginning.

By the time Sean fell ill, Mitchell Robins already had established the successful CPA firm Robins & Associates in La Jolla, Calif. But as his son's health declined, Robins shifted gears. In 2006, Sean lost his seven-year battle with cancer, and Robins set off on a new course. He established the nonprofit Seany Foundation in 2007. The charity is dedicated to improving the lives of children with Ewing's sarcoma and other childhood cancers. But Robins also is keeping Sean's memory alive in another way. In 2008, he launched Seany Records, a Los-Angeles based record label that donates 50 percent of its profits to the Seany Foundation.

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