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Finding Opportunities amid the Wreckage
At a time when many bulge bracket investment banks are drowning as a result of the financial crisis, Moelis & Co. is swimming against the tide. Founded in July 2007 by Kenneth D. Moelis, a Wall Street veteran, the Los Angeles-based firm has been busy hiring. In just about 15 months, it has recruited more than 150 people, including some 100 bankers, besides opening offices in Chicago, New York and Boston. How will the continuing financial turmoil affect the fledgling investment bank's business? What opportunities can investors find amid the wreckage? In an interview with Knowledge@Wharton, Moelis discussed these issues and more.
Digital Network Group's Innovative IT Approach to Mentoring Both Students and Non-profits
Jim Smith and Vikrant Kothari each had ambitions to start a company whose focus would be on using information technology as a way to help solve social problems. But it wasn't until they met in Wharton's MBA Program for Executives that their idea came together in the form of the Digital Network Group. Two affiliates under the Digital Network Group umbrella include one targeted to helping non-profits develop innovative and long-term IT strategies; the other is a service program that shows how IT and mentoring can help disadvantaged young people, from middle school on up, become productive members of society. Smith and Kothari spoke to Knowledge@Wharton about these initiatives.
Chertoff on the Government's Role in Managing Risk -- Both Natural and Man-made
Homeland Security secretary Michael Chertoff, in a recent Wharton Leadership Lecture, addressed areas in which regulation -- in moderation -- can reduce risk in the marketplace. Such measures, he said, can mitigate risks posed by a wide range of threats, from hurricanes to terrorism and even global financial meltdowns.
General Mills CMO Mark Addicks and His Imaginary Friends
Josh and Charlie are not real, but they help General Mills chief marketing officer Mark Addicks see his customers' wants and needs. At a recent Wharton Marketing Conference, Addicks said the imaginary kids are called "brand champions." Their job -- to help executives build a marketing campaign, but also to create an enthusiastic community and promote an entire lifestyle around a consumer product.
Sports Executive Dave Checketts on Ambition, Passion and 'Difficult People'
As Dave Checketts, chairman of New York-based sports ownership group SCP Worldwide, tells it, mastering the art of the confrontation took him years. He learned by tangling with some real intimidators, including a nose-to-nose battle of wills with former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani at Madison Square Garden in 1996. During a recent Wharton Leadership Lecture, Checketts noted the key role that passion plays in the sports business -- or any other.
'Globality': Why Companies Are Competing with Everyone from Everywhere for Everything
Tata Motors, Embraer and Good Baby make vastly different products, but they have one thing in common: They are among a new breed of emerging-market companies that are reshaping global business. In GLOBALITY: Competing with Everyone from Everywhere for Everything, authors Harold L. Sirkin, James W. Hemerling and Arindam K. Bhattacharya contend that the old model of globalization is evolving into a new phase in which "challengers" from rapidly developing economies such as Brazil, India, China and Russia are competing with incumbent Western giants and growing at a staggering 30% per year. In this video special report, Sirkin, a senior partner and managing director at The Boston Consulting Group, and Wharton faculty discuss the factors that are contributing to this shift and what it means for companies hoping to compete in the 21st century.
Checked Growth: How Burberry's Angela Ahrendts Is Steering the Company through a Volatile Economy
Since arriving at Burberry Group in January 2006, CEO Angela Ahrendts has seen the Burberry brand "purified," its luxury line diversified, its retail reach extended, and its global organization centralized and connected with a new SAP-based IT backbone. Now Ahrendts is banking on these changes to weather the global economic downturn. The company is "re-forecasting almost every week," she noted during her keynote presentation at the recent Wharton Women in Business Conference.
Dear President-elect Obama: Here's How to Get the Economy out of the Ditch
President-elect Barack Obama must lead a nation mired in a worsening recession and burdened by the costs, both financial and human, of two wars and rising debt. Wharton faculty offer some counterintuitive advice: Now may be the time for the government to spend a lot of money.
Luxury Brands: Marketing the Upscale During a Downturn
Chasing aspirational 16-year-olds and new money in emerging markets is "out," while pampering the wealthiest and most loyal customers is "in," according to luxury retailers at the recent Wharton Marketing Conference. Said one panelist: "The core for a luxury brand is a customer with very considerable wealth."
Why an Economic Crisis Could Be the Right Time for Companies to Engage in 'Disruptive Innovation'
While globalization has witnessed the decline of U.S. dominance in manufacturing, energy and even finance, one thing had long been presumed unassailable: a willingness to engage in transformative, or "disruptive," innovation. But with the economy in a tailspin, will business, government and academia shy away from the risk-taking and short-term costs that come with the territory of innovating? Wharton faculty and practitioners offer their views on why companies these days should be more interested than ever in trying out radical new ideas.
Job Survival Advice: Don't Fear the Whitewater
Change is the new status-quo, and success at work will require agility, talent and the ability to learn from -- rather than fear -- failure, according to Gregory Shea, adjunct professor of management at Wharton, and business writer Robert Gunther. The two recently co-authored a book titled, Your Job Survival Guide, a Manual for Thriving in Change.
Women Executives on Work/Life Balance: Flexibility, Networks, Outside Interests
A panel of successful women acknowledged that striking a perfect balance between work and personal life is rarely possible for a first-year associate on Wall Street, but they also agreed that balance is achievable over time if the right priorities are established. Executives from Wachovia Securities, JP Morgan, Goldenridge Capital, Morgan Stanley and UBS offered anecdotes and advice at a recent Wharton Women in Business Conference.
The G-20 Economic Summit: More Symbolic than Substantive?
It seems sensible: Bring leaders of the 20 largest economies together to discuss a coordinated plan for dealing with the world financial crisis. But the upcoming G-20 Economic Summit in Washington, D.C., has some commentators wondering what can be accomplished with so little preparation time, while others express concern about the formation of any new regulations when the causes of the crisis are still not thoroughly understood. Wharton faculty and other experts discuss some potential outcomes of the November 15 gathering.
Hedging Their Bets: How Hedge Funds Can Curb Critics and Avoid Regulation
Hedge fund managers oversee $1.9 trillion in assets, but no one knows what they invest in or even what those assets are actually worth. That's because hedge funds are not regulated and consequently aren't required to make the same detailed financial disclosures that are required of publicly traded companies. The combination of potentially huge financial rewards and lack of transparency may foster ethical lapses, Wharton professor Thomas Donaldson noted during a recent talk on hedge fund ethics. His solution? An approach he calls a "microsocial contract."
For Airlines and Others, Even the Best Fuel-price Bets Can Lead to Turbulence
No one can accurately forecast what the price of oil will be in three days, much less three months, a fact that has played havoc this year with the finances of airlines and other industries that need a steady supply of fuel. For such firms, locking in prices when they seem to be at their lowest represents a high-stakes gamble.
On the Skids: Are U.S. Automakers Running Out of Time -- and Options?
The global financial crisis is hurting sales for automakers worldwide, but the U.S. Big Three are falling into a deeper hole than most. With sales down as much as 25% this year, GM and Chrysler are discussing a merger even as they are reported to be running out of cash and in line for early access to a $25 billion low-interest government loan. Kirk Kerkorian, meanwhile, is selling his $1 billion stake in Ford. Wharton professors John Paul MacDuffie and Larry Hrebiniak talked with Knowledge@Wharton about the industry's challenges.
On Energy Issues, Candidates' Funding Priorities Are Fueling the Debate
U.S. presidential candidates John McCain and Barak Obama offer only subtle differences in their approaches to the nation's energy challenges. Obama emphasizes renewable energy to reduce dependence on foreign oil, while McCain puts more faith in drilling. Obama is less enamored of nuclear power than McCain. Obama supports subsidies for ethanol production while McCain would cancel them and open the market to foreign competitors. But no matter who wins, energy prices are likely to climb.
Pajamas and Popcorn: Retailers Face a Less-than-Festive Holiday Shopping Season
As Wall Street unravels and the economy confronts its crucial holiday spending season, consumers cannot be expected to prop up retailers as they have in past downturns. Even luxury stores, whose customers have been immune in recent years to retail price sticker shock, are expected to take a hit this time, according to Wharton faculty and consumer analysts. As one commentator notes: "It will be a lean Christmas."
Opportunities -- and Obstacles -- for the B2B Market in Tough Economic Times
While discussion at the recent Erin Anderson B2B Research Conference at Wharton focused on cutting-edge research in the field of business-to-business relationships, participants also acknowledged the impact on marketers of the ongoing financial meltdown. Along those lines, three university professors and a moderator took part in a panel that analyzed the effect of the economic downturn on the B2B global marketplace. The Conference, sponsored by the Wharton INSEAD Alliance, was held in honor of Erin Anderson, a marketing professor at Wharton from 1981 to 1994, and at INSEAD from 1994 until her death in 2007.
Show Me the Money: Aura of Top M&A Banks Often Obscures Low Returns for Clients
In merger-and-acquisition advice, an investment bank's market share does not seem to equate with value delivered to clients, two scholars from Wharton and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology conclude in a research paper. Indeed, the opposite may be true: The more market share an investment bank has, the less value it will deliver to clients.
