Author: Ken Duenke

Robert J. Dole will be the kenote speaker at the Founders Day Dinner Sept. 20.

ParedesWith the final provision of Sarbanes-Oxley now in effect, lawyers are required to report corporate wrongdoing. Although many lawyers are concerned that this may breach attorney/client privilege, Troy Paredes, associate professor of law at the Washington University School of Law, says, “The requirement that lawyers report ‘up the ladder’ if they are aware of a material violation is an important part of the Sarbanes-Oxley reforms.” Paredes notes that lawyers are an important gatekeeper that the market depends on to help oversee management.

GuptaLessons learned by startups during the dot-com hiring frenzy may have lasting benefits, according to a study conducted by Washington University Olin School of Business professor Mahendra Gupta. His paper, “Venture Capital Financing and the Growth of Startup Firms,” which focuses on the role human capital plays in starting a company, has been accepted for publication in the Journal of Business Venturing. Journal editor Sankaran Venkataraman called the paper noteworthy in its comprehensive examination of how human capital relates to success, the internal processes of a firm, and team characteristics. Companies able to get venture capital funding had an advantage over those who were able to find funding resources but not thru v.c. funding.

Panchapagesan”Decimalization” – the pricing of stocks in dollars and cents instead of fractions – lauded by proponents to be a good thing for investors when it was adopted by the U.S. stock markets in early 2001, is under fire. Critics say it costs institutional investors big. But in a study co-authored by Venkatesh Panchapagesan at Washington University’s Olin School of Business, direct institutional trading costs appear to have declined by about 23 basis points (roughly 5 cents a share) after decimalization. In economic terms, this decrease translates to an average monthly savings of about $133 million in institutional trading costs, the study finds.

The United States Department of Health and Human Services announced today that Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis will anchor a multi-institutional Midwest Regional Center for Excellence in Biodefense and Emerging Infectious Diseases Research (MRCE). The center will be funded by a five-year, $35 million grant from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID).

FriedmanThomas Friedman, three-time Pulitzer Prize winner, best-selling author and foreign affairs columnist for The New York Times, will present his talk, “What Kind of International Borders Will Exist in the 21st Century?” on September 17, 2003, at 11 a.m. in the Athletic Complex Field House, located north of Francis Field on the Washington University campus. Friedman’s lecture is also the Arts & Sciences Sesquicentennial lecture. Assembly Series lectures are free and open to the public. Parking will be limited; check the Assembly Series website for overflow parking information.

Photo by Mary Butkus / WUSTL PhotoFor some people, exercise can turn into an addiction.Since the 1980s, Americans have recognized the importance of exercise as part of a healthy lifestyle. But for some people, exercise can turn into an addiction. According to a recent study at the George Warren Brown (GWB) School of Social Work at Washington University in St. Louis, symptoms of exercise dependence are common among college-age adults, and significantly higher in college-age women. “Exercise dependence in individuals with eating disorders can pose serious health risks, but perhaps just as important are those individuals with primary exercise dependence,” says Matthew O. Howard, Ph.D., associate professor at GWB and co-author of the study. “These people include those who work out in the gym for hours at a time, those who always seem to be at the gym, and those who routinely cancel events with family, friends and co-workers so that they can complete their strenuous workout routines.”

Business, Law & Economics Tip Sheet

With five of six starters back from a team that is the reigning national runner-up, the University’s volleyball team was voted No. 1 in the 2003 American Volleyball Coaches Association Top 25 preseason poll. The Bears tallied 388 points in the poll, including eight first-place votes, putting them 19 points ahead of second-ranked Juniata College. […]

HilgertRaymond L. Hilgert, D.B.A., Emeritus Professor of Management and Industrial Relations at Washington University’s John M. Olin School of Business, died Saturday, August 23, 2003 at St. Luke’s Hospital after a three-year battle with cancer. He was 73 and lived in Kirkwood. Hilgert, an award-winning teacher, author, labor arbitrator, nationally-recognized media commentator, and business ethicist, taught at the University from 1961 to 2001. In an article published in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch upon Professor Hilgert’s retirement from the business school, former students explained the impact he had on their lives and careers. It is reprinted here by permission: “Ray Hilgert Leaves Legacy of Learning at Washington U” (July 22, 2001).