Fisher Ink Fall Issue 2012

Volume VIII Issue II

Outstanding Student Achievements Fisher student Amanda Furrer2012 Olympian and senior

Learn more about outstandingFisher Students and theirachievements in the worldp. 7

Are you tech savvy? Why is 22% of Fisher International Students?

A New Taste of Ohio pg. 17

What does success mean to you?

pg. 18pg. 6 pg. 5

Fisher student Amanda Furrer poses for Team USA. Photo credit: Daniel Shirey

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Caitlin HwangPresident

Genie LeeChief Editor

Madchen PetrieContent Editor

Miriah ElliottDesign Editor

Kelly HillBusiness Operation Director

Blake Bieringer, Colleen HusterAd-Sales Managers

Brian KoestersMarketing Director

Kayla KiedrowiczAssistant Marketing Director

Adam Zimmerman, Devin Casey, Maggie WehriDesign Team

Amanda Struetzer, Crystal Squires, Andrew Zhang, Kaili Tao, Landon Chinsue, Lauren Lansman, Julia Danda , Peilun HuangMarketing Team

Andrew Zhang, Landon ChinSueAd Sales Team

Adam Zimmerman, Chloe Staargaard, David Straka, Erin Lewis, Jenna Herrmann, King Fung Chan, Lexi Lyons, Rebecca Mashni, Sydney Glassman, Tony Williams, Xu WengWriting Team Alex QuinteroFinance Director

Andrea EvansStaff Advisor

Photo Credit: Dennis Hoffman*This news magazine is a product of the Fisher Ink staff. Material does not necessarily reflect the opinions or policies of Fisher College of Business officials. All printing costs are generated from adver-tisements, fundraisers, and sponsors.

Madchen Petrie

Genie Lee

[email protected]

Dear Reader,

Thank you for reading Fisher Ink!

It is easy to be caught up in a flurry of quizzes, case studies, tests, and student organizations, but take a step back and look around you. Fisher College of Business students often play many roles in life while balancing a semester of work. Students are successful leaders, volunteers, coaches, mentors, musicians—the list is endless.

As a magazine, our belief is to provide content “For the Students, By the Students.” As such, we hope you enjoy the following issue that celebrates the achievements of students just like you who walk the halls of Fisher. Whether you are a single student running a business or a cohort of students analyzing the business potential of a food truck on campus, opportunities to shine are limitless.

In this issue, Fisher Ink talks with Fisher professors about research and entrepreneurship opportunities, and points out prospective organizations that are just waiting for a business student to make a difference. As a technology savvy generation, it is possible now for a student to start his or her own business from a computer. This issue will also explore some powerful web tools that can give you an advantage.

Enjoy this issue, have some fun, and may your peers inspire you to be the best that you can be while at the Max M. Fisher College of Business!

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International WindowLooking into the diversity at Fisher

Technology in BusinessInternet Tools for Every Step of the Business Process

Student Achievements Featuring an Inverview with 2012 Olympian, Amanda Furrer

Professor SpotlightTony Wells on social entrepreneurship

A New Taste of OhioThe Ohio Dog debuts at Ohio State

4 Fisher Ink

Delving Into Research

Itzhak Ben-David, Assistant Professor of Finance at The Ohio State University, has some advice for Fisher students

about getting into research.

His recently published study, “Beliefs Drive Investors More Than Preferences,” focuses on understanding the “disposition effect,” or the tendency of investors to hold losing stocks for longer periods than winning stocks. Contrary to popular economic theory, the disposition effect “does not seem to be related to emotional distaste of losses, but rather to investment strategies based on beliefs,” says Ben-David. Investors’ beliefs about where a stock is headed drive their decisions, causing them to hold onto losing stocks when they believe the stock is a winner in the long run.

Ben-David has seen strong growth in finance and economics research in recent years and has observed “more and more sophisticated research: e.g., textual analysis, neural analysis of decision making. I anticipate these fields to grow further.”

For students interested in gaining research experience in the business world, Ben-

David suggests three options: “go for a Finance or Economics degree and continue from there to a PhD; work as a research assistant at a think tank, like the Federal Reserve Bank, where you can acquire guided experience in academic research; or work as a researcher in a bank, like Goldman Sachs.” There are clearly many avenues for students to take in these growing fields of research, where greater understanding is needed to improve the way business is done.

To be able to excel and make a difference in the field of research, as Ben-David has done, the key is “self-discipline and time management,” says Ben-David. “You need to be very aware of your resources [mainly your time] to maximize your output.” Knowing about resources available to students looking for research opportunities will help start the research process, but after that it “is an individualistic process of studying a new material,” says Ben-David, “there is no guiding authority to tell you what to do.”

The total number of publications by The Max M. Fisher College of Business Faculty in prestigious journals such as the Journal

with Professor Ben-David

Prof. Itzhak Ben-David

By Madchen Petrie

of Finance, Journal of Financial Economics, and Review of Financial Studies totals 221, and the number is rising. There are many different areas of research to get involved with at Ohio State, and seeing what professors are working on can help guide students with their own research.

For undergraduate students, research will be very important if they plan to graduate with distinction or continue on to a PhD program. Honors and non-honors students can graduate with distinction by completing a year-long research project their senior year. Students interesting in pursuing this option can find additional information at http://fisher.osu.edu/undergraduate/academics/research/opportunities/ or meet with an advisor in the Undergraduate Programs and Advising Office in Schoenbaum 120.

1998 N High St, Columbus, OH 43201


The Visitors from the Far East : Why They Chose OSU

By Xu Weng, King Fung Chen

International Window

When asked to define The Ohio State University, many would probably refer to football

or the strong business and engineering programs. While these entities tend to be on the forefront of people’s minds, the soul of the school is actually the diverse student body with its rich variety of culture, race and ideas.

OSU resembles a microcosm of different people and beliefs. Lately, students may notice an influx of international students, who account for 7.3% of freshmen. Though these international students stem from 81 countries around the world, many come from Asia and particularly China. Asians account for the third greatest ethnic population on campus, at 4.8% of the student body. With this sizable number of international students, it is interesting to note why they chose to attend OSU over other American universities.

“Ohio State’s atmosphere is very suitable for study, and it is near Lake Erie. There is a Chinese saying that ‘Chinese people must have mountain and water.’ The climate and environment here is very fresh and clean,” said international student Jiahua Pan.

International students can be found in all majors, but the Fisher College of Business has classes that can pose up to a mix of 30% international students. Overall, 24% of Fisher students are international. Due to China’s continuously expanding economy, the growth of businesses has prompted an increase in the amount of Chinese business students. Fisher’s prominence is found to be another influence in the decision, along with family.

“Fisher is very famous in America as a good business college. I believe Fisher is technologically advanced and will help me in the world today. My family also helped me choose business. There is already engineering and machinery in my family. I am interested in business anyway,” said Pan.

OSU’s education quality is undoubtedly recognized by international students. This can partly be attributed to OSU’s global gateway project, which was initiated by William Brustein, vice provost for Global Strategies and International Affairs. As globalization is steadily becoming more important in the business world, Brustein believes that adequate understanding of the international community is critical to future success.

Brustein started to propose projects to transform OSU into an education institution which can equip students with global competencies, and Global Gateway is the resulting channel between OSU and international community. After reviewing the distribution of allied institutions and alumni around the world, the first satellite office for OSU was built in Shanghai, a Chinese city with flourishing economic development.

In addition to establishing international internships and study abroad programs, Global Gateway also plays a key role in recruiting international students and scholars. The satellite enables communication between Chinese parents and OSU executives.

The remarkable progress brought by the Gateway in China furthered internationalization efforts at OSU, creating a sanguine prospect of further enhancement of cultural diversity. In the long term, this project will present all students with a greater understanding and appreciation of international issues and perspectives.

International students pose with President Gee.

6 Fisher Ink

The internet has a variety of free, easy tools for entrepreneurs, providing new ways to brainstorm,

craft, market, and manage new, million-dollar ideas.

even school groups and clubs can meet to discuss their ideas. Users can remotely draft documents together as well as talk face to face via webcam. Both can be done at the exact same time and on the same program. For the more advanced, Yammer provides a social network exclusively for business communication between members of the same company.

Technology in

Check It Out: Internet Tools for Every Stepof the Business Process

By David StrakaBusiness

Brainstorm

Organize

Fund the Project

Marketing Tools

Brainstorming to find a good, original idea can be difficult but finding out how a market would react to thatidea can be even harder. A question and answer website and application called Quora may have tackled both issues on one platform. At Quora, users can post questions about almost anything. Potential entrepreneurs can ask difficult questions and get answers from people with real experience in the field. Since Quora utilizes a credit system, much of the spam and worthless answers associated with Yahoo! Answers have been eliminated.When it is time to make the business plan or create the “elevator pitch”,

BigMarker makes the process easy. BigMarker essentially pairs Google Docs and Skype to create a virtual environment where entrepreneurs and

When the Executive Summary and Business Plan are finally done, a startup needs funding. Kickstarter, goFundme.com, and EarlyShares are some of the most notable crowdfunding websites. Crowdfunding is a process by which startup business and projects can pull funds from a wide list of donors, often giving these donors product in return. As one could imagine, the lack of expertise involved in crowdfunding can make it undesirable when compared to more common routes using loans, savings, or investment from venture capital firms. Cuyler Hunter and Luke Friedman of UFunded hope to change that. UFunded is a new social crowdfunding platform that pairs college entrepreneurs with alumni. The two came up with the idea while in the Fisher College of Business MBA program. UFunded has already helped fund a handful of local projects including Pursuit, BRU of Columbus, and GameTime Salsa.

Once the business is finally started and funding is not the focus, the next step is continued brand-building and marketing. Perhaps the best tool for a small business’s marketing department is Facebook Pages. Facebook Pages allows any business to have outstanding management of its social analytics. However, Facebook analytics stop where Facebook stops. TrackingSocial is a service that can analyze impact across your company’s Twitter, Facebook, and Google+ profiles. By utilizing tools like TrackingSocial, a business can respond to customer likes and dislikes quicker than ever before. Adjustments can be made to social media campaigns and advertising on those networks instantly.

No single piece of internet technology will automatically make a new business successful. Using a variety of tools that best fit the business is always the best option. There are hundreds of other useful programs for business. Search the Internet or the App store. Go to trade shows. Success is just a short search away.

{


This issue is about the amazing

people that surround us everyday. As you walk to to

class, the girl that just passed you might be thinking about

her future startup. Or that guy at the drinking fountain might be in the middle of planning

a project for a nonprofit. Fisher students range from

entrepreneurs to Olympians. Our feature celebrates the diversity, achievements, and potential of

our student body.

. . . By the Students

For the Students . . .

{ }

8 Fisher Ink

Fisher senior Amanda Furrer balanced academics, the London 2012 Olympics and extracurricular

activities with a smile and good cheer. This past summer, she joined Team USA in London to compete in the Women’s 50 Meter 3 Position Rifle event and placed 15th in the Olympics.

According to Furrer, her best memory at the Olympics was when she finished competing. “I stood up and set my rifle down and experienced pure happiness. I finally completed something I had worked my whole life for. I couldn’t stop smiling and was searching for my parents. I saw them in the crowd behind me and said, ‘I can’t believe I just competed in the Olympics.’ My mom started crying and it was a really significant moment for me. From then until forever, I will be an Olympian.”

As Furrer returns to Fisher to complete her degree in finance, she takes pride in her Fisher and Ohio State background. “Before the Olympics, I knew that no matter what happened, if I didn’t compete well, I would still return to school and graduate with a degree from one of the

Shooting the Breeze

best schools in the world. I was proud to represent my college and university in London and received so much support. It helped me to stay positive and motivated knowing that I had the Fisher team behind me. Before, during, and after the Olympics, I was approached with different business opportunities and media obligations. But for Fisher, I wouldn’t have known exactly how to handle myself and how to make the right decisions.”

Also, the past year has been one of self-development for Furrer. “I learned a lot about myself in the last year. I always had dreams and wanted those dreams to come true immediately. What I learned through the Olympic trials and all the preparations I did to get there is that it takes a lot of time and a lot of hard work to make those dreams a reality. They don’t just come true for anybody. I learned to be satisfied in the process.”

After graduation, Furrer has many ideas for her future. She plans to train full time and hopes to try out for the Brazil 2016 Olympics. Like she does now, Furrer also plans on diversifying her future by building the beginnings of her career in the finance

Olympianwith an

or sports industries. Says Furrer, “I take advantage of opportunities as they come along, so I will continue what I am doing now, which is training and going to school, and see where life takes me next.”

Student Spotlight

Furrer is a proud Olympian and Fisher student.Photo Credit: Dennis Hoffman

By Genie Lee

What I learned .. . is that it takes a lot of time and a lot of hard work to make those dreams reality. They don’t just

come true for anybody.

I learned to be satisfied

in the process. ”

“

Volume XIII Issue II 9

Alec JandaAn Interview With

OSU junior who created a water conservation system on campus.By Lexie Lyons

Student Spotlight

For the past two years, Alec Janda, a current Fisher Honors Contract student and entrepreneur, has worked

with Fisher and Ohio State to successfully install a water conservation system on campus.

“The system is composed of three bladders placed on the side of the greenhouse, which are filtered and recycled to water the plants,” says Janda. “I came up with the idea when I was a freshman and attended the Undergraduate Admissions’s First Year Experience Conference. They were focused on becoming fully sustainable and yet there was no water conservation system, and that is when I saw the demand for it.”

Before the system was installed, the campus pumped unfiltered water to water plants. Now, it can collect and filter 10,000 gallons from a two-inch rainfall. The project reduces expenses for the school and the water is healthier for plants. In fact, the water is filtered so much that it is drinkable.

Janda started the project his freshman year, and his ideas were manifested two years later. To get funding for the project he proposed his idea to the President of the Provost Counsel and received a $50,000 education grant from Fisher. “Fisher gave me a good basis for interacting with the small businesses I am now selling water conservation systems to,” says Janda. “The skills I have learned helped me conduct info sessions with clients that spanned from single homes to commercial businesses.”

The other start-up business he is working with is Renewable Refreshments, LLC, a Columbus-based startup that provides customers with healthy and environmentally-friendly beverage options. Founded by James DeGraw, a junior at Fisher, Renewable Refreshments’s first beverage brand is called Boomerang

Water. This new brand of premium bottled water provides an alternative to wasteful plastic bottles by using ruggedized and reusable aluminum bottles. “This offers companies a way to increase their profit margins and on-bottle marketing campaigns while making a bold statement about their venue’s environmental values,” says Janda.

Janda has been able to put his passions into practice with the education and aid he has received from Fisher. He encourages others to have the same determination with their passions. “Whatever idea you have, Ohio State can help you follow through on it.”

Whatever idea you have, Ohio State can help you follow through on it. ”

“

10 Fisher Ink

Teams of three from 15-20 of the top B-schools across the country read The Wall Street Journal for the six weeks leading up to the competition. Then, BizQuiz offers students an weekend-long opportunity to test their knowledge of current events in a competitive setting. On the final day of competition, only three teams remain to contend for first place.

All visiting teams arrive at Fisher for theweekend-long competition and stay at The Blackwell, an upscale hotel connected to the college. Student hosts greet BizQuiz contestants upon their arrival and entertain the contestants

Balancing Work & Play Student Spotlight

BizQuiz Underway in Seventh Season

Nov. 9-11 marks the seven yearanniversary of BizQuiz: an OhioState sponsored Jeopardylike

competition that was the brainchild of several formerstudents under the guidance of Fisher’s Associate Dean forUndergraduate Programs, Rao Unnava.

Biz Quiz Team from 2010 posing with Professor Minton. Photo credit: FisherOSU

When Taylor Reves graduates, she will be in charge of the business of playing. Since 2006,

Reves, a senior in marketing, has worked at The Soldiery, a small local hobby shop that specializes in fantasy, cards, and board games. Upon graduation, leadership of the gaming store will transfer to Reves as the current owner prepares for retirement.

According to Reves, the role of a small shop owner bears a lot of responsibility. “Sometimes working as a small business owner is like a retail position. I have to be responsible for maintenance, ordering, inventory, and product displays. Because we host many events, a storeowner has to coordinate food, clean bathrooms, take out trash, and other things you do not immediately think of when it comes to ‘small business owner’.”

Despite the menial tasks, Reves really values the importance of a Fisher education. “From Fisher, I learned more about the subtle strategies to running a business. For example, I use social networking differently than before after discussing it in class. Instead of frequent

for the weekend.

Student hosts are generally high achieving Fisher students, and they ensure that the weekend-long stay has a healthy balance

updates, I do two to three posts per week and put up more pictures. I also run two pages—one for frequent customers and one for those who are unfamiliar with the store.”

When talking about the transition from academic knowledge to the real world, Reves points out the importance of understanding different industries. “For the gaming industry, professionalism is not received well; instead ingenuity and quick thinking are more valued traits. Sometimes, when you watch a deal between CEOs of gaming companies, they are dressed in ordinary clothes and look like ordinary people.”

For anyone interested in visiting The Soldiery to buy, play, or watch, Reves will likely be available in the store. “We welcome people of all levels and interests. Recently, casual games have grown in popularity because they offer hours of fun and have high replay value.”

The Soldiery is located at 4256 N. High St. Columbus, Ohio 43214.

By Genie Lee

By Chloe Staargaard

Reves unpacks the latest shipments to the store.

of fun and friendly competition. For many participants,BizQuiz is not just a great event, but also a great networking opportunity. Fisher Undergraduate Business Council President Erin Frederick says, “After being part of BizQuiz, I saw someone at acompletely unrelated conference later that year. It was great to see a familiar face.”

Ohio State has been awarded the title ofBizQuiz champion for two years running.Fisher’s BizQuiz coach, Bernadette Minton, is a professor in finance at Fisher. Minton has coached BizQuiz for four years and says that she remains involved because of the students: “It’s a great opportunity to work with a group ofstudents that are very dedicated and motivated to do well and represent Fisher outside.”


In a modern school like Ohio State, it is hard to imagine some peers as potentially farmers. Yet, the Ohio State

Student Farm, a local food farm that uses both organic and integrated crop management (ICM) methods, is run by volunteers and work study students. The main mission of the farm is to produce crops and learn about farming methods; however, the students are not just raising crops, they are also running a business. The produce grown on the farm is sold to the local community at prices set by the students. This has made the student farm into a unique business experiment that could benefit from the involvement of Fisher students.

The Student Farm was created as an agricultural research opportunity for students. They receive grant money to assist in funding their program, but like any other farm, they also sell their products in order to make it a profitable venture. In doing this, they experience a difficulty that is common for many farms. Patrick Turner, manager of the student farm explains that “the weak point of most farming resources is the business side.”

The farm sells its produce to local consumers at farmers’ markets and through the Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) model. In the CSA model, Turner explains, customers “sign a contract with a farmer and the farmer provides them with a weeks supply of produce each week for the duration of the contract.” While this model appeals to people wanting a source of fresh local food, it operates under the farmer-consumer relationship where “the consumer shares the harvest but also the risk.” In the case that the farm is not able to produce as much food as anticipated, the customer does not get refunded the cost.

This increases the difficulty in finding buyers and makes deciding on a reasonable number of shares difficult. This summer was the first time that the Student Farm used this model and it has

been very successful. Their delegated shareholders were pleased and the crops were successful. Turner explains that they probably could have committed to twice as many shares as they did. The student farm also sells its produce at the Market on 15th and High each Thursday through October, and at various other farmers markets around the Columbus area.

The Ohio State Farm: A Locally Grown Business By Rebecca Mashni

For more information on the farm, volunteer

opportunities and where you can buy their produce, check out their Facebook

page at www.facebook.com/ohiostatestudentfarm.

For regular updates on happenings at the farm, join their email [email protected].

The student farm sells its produce at the Market on

15th and High each Thursday through

October.

The students who run this farm do not have business backgrounds, and this creates difficulty in pricing and budgeting. Not only is it important to make a profit, it is also necessary that the prices are competitive and do not undercut other farmers’ and drive down prices. To better price the produce, sales need to be tracked, research needs to be done into different crops’ costs and competitive prices, and this information needs to be properly analyzed. Turner expresses the difficulty in doing this while keeping the focus on farming, “it is hard to find time for record keeping and tracking sales to evaluate which crops are worth growing.” This is an area where they could benefit from business student volunteers.

12 Fisher Ink

Rounding up the Recruits in a B1G way

http://www.facebook.com/tonicwatchOSU

http://twitter.com/tonicwatchOSU


Rounding up the Recruits in a B1G way

Recruiting in college athletics is one of the most cutthroat, competitive processes in sports. Because he

is able to excel at recruiting the best candidates, Urban Meyer is considered a successful college football coach. Following his introduction as head coach of the Ohio State Buckeyes, Meyer committed 13 of the top 250 recruits in the nation before his first season began. The fans will see the results on the field, but how exactly does Urban Meyer market himself, his football team, and the university to a wide variety of young and talented athletes?

Surprisingly enough, there are some similarities between finding a job and finding a recruit. Just as a student in the job market wants to find a profession that fits his or her talents and preferences, a coach in the recruiting market desires players who fit their vision for the team, along with certain tangibles and intangibles on and off the field. To get those top jobs or recruits, the student and coach both have to sell themselves.

For a coach, a body of work is similar to a college resume. Like a prospective job candidate, if the coaching history of a coach candidate is not up to the expectations of a recruit, the coach might as well start looking elsewhere. Meyer’s football IQ and reputation within the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is outstanding. He has led two Bowl Championship Series (BCS) National Championship Game victories with the University of Florida, and never had a losing season as the head coach of Bowling Green, Utah, and Florida. This

Pictured are Ohio State’s recent game against UAB (top) and Fisher Student/ Ohio StateTrack and Cross Country runner Michael Brajdic (left).

Sports & Business

Inside the Head of a Recruit

reputation has been pivotal in helping Meyer secure commitments from some of the best recruits, but it isn’t the only factor at play.

Another crucial element to recruiting is the pitch. Like a job interview, the coach has to be prepared when meeting with the high school athlete. Research must be done in order to know everything about the athlete so that the coach will appear genuine. Also, like in an interview, a coach must be personable and enthusiastic. Meyer has a sterling personality that can attract athletes. His ability to form concrete relationships with recruits is what makes him an elite coach. Many current NFL players, such as Tim Tebow, Percy Harvin, and Aaron Hernandez, have all succeeded through the tutelage of Meyer.

The Fisher student must also juggle many things when pursuing and researching potential jobs. Like in college athletics, a business student needs to become outstanding in order to be recruited by a company. However, the student also needs to understand whether the company is a good corporate fit. Like the skills needed to get on a football team, the skills

needed to be recruited by a company are the same for a business student become successful.

Each recruit is different, and coaches must gauge their pitch to correspond to that student-athlete’s liking.

To get a look into what goes on inside a recruit’s head, we interviewed Fisher student Michael Brajdic, a runner for both Ohio State’s cross country and track teams. Brajdic, in regards to his decision process, said, “I was really looking for a mixture of athletic and academic excellence. Obviously, I was looking for a great athletic career at Ohio State, but I also believed the university could set me up well post-collegiately when I’d eventually have to focus on getting a job.”

Brajdic told us that his decision came down to the schools that talked to him early on. This demonstrates the pressure that a university may have in getting ahead of the competition. Coaches have to manage their scholarships and weigh the risk of committing early or not.

Brajdic discussed an important quality he found at Ohio State, mentioning, “One of the biggest reasons I chose OSU athletically is because to go along with team success, there were more opportunities to flourish as an individual than at other schools. There is also a culture here that no other school could offer.”

By Adam Zimmerman

By Adam Zimmerman

14 Fisher Ink

Tony Wells is a social entrepreneur who began his career in IT consulting and then started his

own company, Knowledge Development Centers, which began in Columbus, Ohio which has since expanded to 18 cities across the US and Canada. As a result of his success, Wells has been able to retire early and has devoted much of his time and resources to Ohio State, where he is currently a guest lecturer speaking about Social Entrepreneurship to students across campus, including at the Max M. Fisher College of Business, College of Engineering and John Glenn School of Public Affairs.

“I developed my management in the Information Technology industry and then applied them to starting my own businesses and eventually our family foundation” says Wells. “I discovered how important the role of entrepreneurship, innovation, and commitment to community is when growing a company, and want to share the skills and resources I have developed to mentor the next generation.”

One of his most recent projects is the Social Innovation Initiative, which began three years ago and pairs multidisciplinary student teams with a nonprofit organization in the community.

Each teams’ goal is to find ways for the nonprofits to generate revenue outside of donations. “The university has so many resources for research and development to solve these real problems for nonprofits in the community,” says Wells. “This project allows students from different disciplines to collectively work together to develop a product that solves a real social need for society but also can be a sustainable business.”

The program has received several awards, including the “Dean’s Meritorious Service Award.” “In the past three years we have created a time management device for children with Down syndrome, a therapeutic vest for children with Autism, exercise equipment for adults with disabilities, a communication device for children who cannot speak and a tablet based application for musicians who have developed sight impairments,” says Wells.

The new focus on social innovation comes largely from Wells’ past work with nonprofits. He began his involvement with nonprofits by volunteering at Goodwill and has since served on the Board of Directors for many nonprofits, co-founded GroundWork group with the United Way of Central Ohio, and established his own family foundation that helps fund social entrepreneurship projects. “The best way for students to get involved with nonprofits is to get to know them through volunteering,” says Wells. “The important thing is to decide what you’re passionate about, whether it is education, helping those with disabilities, anything, and then finding a corresponding nonprofit where you can use your time, talent and resources.”It is important for nonprofits to exhibit that they are able to be sustainable and generate their own revenues outside of

donations if they want to get funding. “They need to have a business proposition with both a social and financial return on investment, grants are the seed capital just to get them going,” says Wells. There are now many foundations, like Wells’ family foundation, that function as social investment funds and provide patient capital. In this relationship, there is an obligation that the nonprofit pays the fund back, but often the funds charge a very low interest rate or simply require principal repayment.

Wells is developing a focus on social value instead of just monetary value all over the university. He is very involved in the Business Builders Club, sponsors a Business Plan Competition for new social innovations, and even works toward Faculty Curriculum Development by funding faculty members to attend national Social Entrepreneurship academic conferences to learn how other colleges are developing formalized curriculum for students. “Working with students today is inspirational, thinking about how the world will be different in 20 years,” says Wells. “Ohio State is still behind the top business schools in the country when it comes to the shift toward a social entrepreneurship and shared value, but we’re taking steps to get there.”

This social value focus goes beyond nonprofits; social entrepreneurship is for for-profit companies as well. “A student in a traditional business school today can find opportunities that didn’t exist before,” says Wells. “You can make a career working for a traditional nonprofit or find a for-profit company that matches your social values. You can have a big career while still having a big heart.”

Tony WellsBy Madchen Petrie

Professor Spotlight


Tony Wells

With the fierce competition in the business environment, individuals must discover effective strategies to be outstanding. Reading books, such as Jim Collins’ nonfiction piece Good to Great, will enhance students’ perspectives and provide a starting point to build a foundation of successful business tactics.

“Textbooks often address a silo or one area of business,” Fisher College of Business Professor Jeff Rodek said. “Good business texts give you a broad look over all the departmental silos.” Good to Great enhances the correlation between the diverse areas of a company. Through this broad overview, students have a more realistic understanding of their future in a business career.

According to Amazon.com, “Five years ago, Jim Collins asked the question, ‘Can a good company become a great company and if so, how?’ In Good to Great, Collins concludes that it is possible, but finds there are no silver bullets. Collins and his team of researchers began their quest

Food Truck Earns Funds for Student Organizations

Students eat outside of Mason Hall.Photo credit: FisherOSU

Fisher has invited a food truck on campus as part of a pilot program to provide additional meal options and raise funds for its student organizations.

Every Wednesday starting at 11 a.m., a food truck sets up shop on the Fisher campus. For five or six dollars, students can buy a vegetarian or meat Indian entrée with a couple of sides that can energize them for the day.

For every five dollars spent, the food truck donates one dollar to the Undergraduate Business Council (UBC) Fisher Program Funds. The UBC serves as an umbrella organization for all Fisher undergraduate student organizations, and often provides funding for major events around campus. In a few weeks, the food truck has already earned the UBC $700 additional dollars for undergraduate program funding.

In the future, Fisher hopes to expand the menu selections and rotate the type of cuisine. Currently, Honors Cohort, a class of high-achieving Fisher students, is working on a project to access additional choices.

GOOD TO GREAT

Outside the Classroom

by sorting through a list of 1,435 companies, looking for those that made substantial improvements in their performance over time. They finally settled on eleven--including Fannie Mae, Gillette, Walgreens, and Wells Fargo--and discovered common traits that challenged many of the conventional notions of corporate success.”

Good to Great, unlike textbooks, has a high readability factor. The author includes stories and anecdotes from companies as a way for readers to grasp concepts. For students unfamiliar to studying companies, Good to Great exposes students to the best of the best businesses in a compact book. Collins includes numerous real world examples and case studies in the book, which, along with exposing students to unconventional ideas, also encourages students to contextualize their textbook lessons while preparing themselves for a future business career.

By Genie Lee

By Tony Williams

16 Fisher Ink


CHOW DOWNA NEW WAY TO . . .

By Maggie Wehri

DISSECTING THE DOG

MASHED POTATOES

CORN

SCALLIONS

BACON

CHEDDAR

BBQ SAUCE

As opposed to regular hot dogs, the Ohio Dog is comprised of several of Ohio’s favorite, home-grown foods.

WRITER’S TASTESo how good is this so-called “Ohio Dog”? Although the meat is not exactly from the best part of the animal, the toppings are truly excellent. It is the per-fect combination of side-dishes from a home-cooked meal that give the Ohio Dog its unbelievable taste. “I thought the Ohio Dog was really great”, says Fisher student Alexis Yontz, “I love mashed potatoes so that made it ten times better for me!”

«««««

Over the last few years, Columbus, Ohio has taken several steps to ensure the growth and production of Ohio food products. One tasty example is the “Ohio

Dog”, a signature food created by The Ohio State University in collaboration with chefs in the Office of Student Life’s Dining Services department.

“Chicago has its Chicago dog, and we thought Ohio should have its own signature food,” said Zia Ahmed, Senior Director of Dining Services in the Office of Student Life. “And what better place to create something uniquely Ohio than at The Ohio State University.”

The dog’s big debut was at the Buckeye Kick-Off on Sat., Aug. 25, 2012 where over 4,500 Ohio State students were able to sample this intriguing concoction. The Ohio Dog is an all-beef hotdog smothered in mashed potatoes, topped with corn and scallions, sprinkled with bacon bits, and glazed with a sweet barbecue sauce. Although some may have been a tad skeptical to the specific contents of the Ohio Dog, this signature food item has a surprising set of healthy nutritional facts. It is all-natural, gluten free and contains 50% lower sodium than a regular hot dog. Also, the beef is entirely raised and processed locally by Ohio State.

What has brought about the recent influx of local, natural food options on campus? In 2007, former governor Ted Strickland enacted the Ohio Food Policy, which established the Ohio Farmers’ Market Managers. This organization was created to provide a connection between local producers and consumers. Not only has the council connected fresh and nutritious foods with local consumers but it has also effectively assisted farmers and businesses in marketing their products. As Ohioans, it is important to support the local agriculture producers that make up such an important part of our local economy, and Ohio State is now picking up the trend.

Because this dog was such a success, it is now being offered at campus dining facilities including the RPAC on Fridays and Saturdays for $3.50. However, the Ohio Dog is only available for a limited time. So if you haven’t had the chance to try it yet, go out and sample one today and support our local foods movement.

AT OSU

18 Fisher Ink

What does success

mean to you?

“Success, for me, means becoming more mature in my acadmic, professional, and personal life.”

“Success= accomplishing something that makes you happy! It should be something that makes you proud.”

“Never give up upon the pursuit of perfection. Be the best you can be.“

“Success means to pursue my dreams and fulfill it.”

“Success means improve-ment.” “Success is

PRIDE in your accomplishments.”

“Being true to myself and others.”

“Maximizing personal benefits given personal costs.”

“Success: a state of mind where nothing is impssible and regrets are few.”

“Success means gaining a network of friends that can further your career.”

“Success means

to have a

healthy mix-

ture of work

and play.”

We asked fellow Fisher Students to contribute their answers to our question.

Fisherman’s Poll


mean to you?

“Success means gaining a network of friends that can further your career.”

Cartoon CornerCartoon Corner

Like, Literally.“The Like of a Fisherman”

“Farewell”

By Sydney Glassman

By Sydney Glassman

Can you guess which idiom this image is referencing? Answer at bottom.

Answer: To “wear the pants.”Cartoon Corner

20 Fisher Ink

Fisher Ink.

For the Students, b

y the Students

Fisher College of Business

Student Run Magazine

Teams:

Marketing, Writin

g, Ad Sales, Design

Also Opportunities in:

Finance, Logistics, P

hotography, W

eb Design, and more

All Majors W

elcome

Meetings:

Thursdays, 7:30 p.m.

Schoenbaum Hall Room 300

210 W. Woodruff Ave

Columbus, OH 43210

Free Pizza Joint provided

Come Join Us!

Questions?

Contact Caitlin

Hwang

hwang. [email protected]

Documents

Fisher Ink Fall Issue 2012