How to tell if a company has a high IQ
Joe Angeles/WUSTL PhotoThere are companies that, like people, are smarter than others. Literally. A business professor at Washington University in St. Louis has developed a way to measure a company’s IQ based on how effective it is at innovating. Using data from SEC filings, a professor at the Olin School of Business, computed the IQs of all the publicly traded US firms that engaged in R&D. More…
Timing interest rates helps some firms meet analysts’ forecasts
Is it all about long-term growth or short-term gains? That’s the question some finance professors at Washington University in St. Louis set out to answer when they investigated why non-financial firms are timing the interest rate market. The answer: by swapping short term, flexible interest rates for long term, fixed contracts, or vice-versa, managers may be more likely to meet analysts’ forecasts. More…
Murray Weidenbaum receives coveted Search Award at 39th annual Eliot Society celebration
WeidenbaumMurray L. Weidenbaum, one of the country’s most acclaimed economists and a distinguished Washington University professor for more than 40 years, received the Eliot Society’s highest honor at the 39th annual William Greenleaf Eliot Society dinner on April 26. The event was held at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel in Clayton and included a keynote address by the celebrated Irish singing sensation Ronan Tynan.
Olin School of Business celebrates distinguished alumni
The Olin School of Business will honor the achievements of four alumni May 3 at the school’s annual dinner at the Ritz-Carlton St. Louis in Clayton. Business school Dean Mahendra Gupta also will present the Dean’s Medal to Stuart Greenbaum and his wife, Elaine, A.B. ’60. This year’s recipients of the Distinguished Alumni Awards are E. William Gillula, M.B.A. ’73, Lynn E. Gorguze, M.B.A. ’86, Lewis A. Levey, M.B.A. ’67 and Lin-Kuei Jackson Ling, M.B.A. ’04.
International Business Outlook Conference at Washington University
WHAT: International Business Outlook Conference An annual conference organized by Washington University Olin School of Business MBA students. Event includes breakout sessions and keynote speakers from experts in doing business globally.
WHEN: Friday, April 7, 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.
WHERE: The Charles F. Knight Center, Washington University Hilltop Campus
WHO: Keynote speakers include David N. Farr, Chairman, CEO & President of Emerson, Sir Tom McKillop, Former CEO of AstraZeneca and current Chairman (Designate) of The Royal Bank of Scotland, Jai Nagarkatti, President & CEO of Sigma-Aldrich Corporation.
For a rundown fo the day’s events go to: http://www.olin.wustl.edu/IBOC/events.cfm
Employees are most likely to cut corners when they lack clear goals and feel overworked
The television show “The Office” portrays more truth than fiction. But the consequences of bad management can be more serious than the awkward moments portrayed on the program. Employees get cynical when they endure multiple changes in company strategy and when they are overworked, according to experts at Washington University’s Olin School of Business. As a result, people produce work, but they don’t care how they produce it. The drive to get things done in today’s business environment is so strong that workers start thinking only of short-term gains and ignoring long-term consequences. More…
How complex, unique business strategies are undervalued
Successful strategies are innovative. They combine resources or businesses in unique or complex ways that other firms may fail to recognize. Yet research from the Olin School of Business at Washington University finds that the market tends to undervalue companies with complex or unique strategies. The reason: they receive less analyst coverage. More…
High profile patent cases like those against eBay and Blackberry important for encouraging innovation
David Kilper / WUSTL PhotoThreat of injunctions can be beneficial in cases like eBay and BlackBerry, says WUSTL expert F. Scott Kieff.The threat of an injunction to protect patented technology, as seen in eBay v. MercExchange, is what drives infringers and patentees to strike deals — sometimes on the steps of the courthouse — because shutting down the business would lose money for both sides, says F. Scott Kieff, J.D., an associate professor of law at Washington University in St. Louis. These deals, he points out, are what drive innovation. More…
Social Entrepreneurship competition finalists selected
Finalists for the inaugural Social Entrepreneurship & Innovation Competition have been selected after a half-year of preparation. The eight finalists include entirely new business proposals and existing non-profit organizations. The winners will be announced at a special presentation May 11.
Olin School of Business involves the region’s community in discussions on the global business climate
In its fourth annual International Business Outlook Conference (IBOC), the Olin School of Business will once again provide the St. Louis business community with a chance to explore the most pressing challenges to conducting international business. The MBA student-organizers chose to highlight intellectual property rights and international finance for this year’s conference. IBOC takes place Friday, April 7, from 7:30 a.m. until 4 p.m. in the Knight Center on Washington University’s Hilltop Campus
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