NFL Players Tackle 4-Day Biz Boot Camp At Michigan Ross

BanQu CEO Illuminates Blockchain Path To Social Justice

News from Cornell University Johnson Graduate School of Management

“At the early morning Cornell Business Impact Symposium on March 9, keynote speaker Ashish Gadnis, CEO of BanQu, woke everyone up: He explained blockchain.

“Gadnis described a business pathway to positive social impact that could help 100 million people around the world rise from poverty, reduce gender inequality, vanquish black markets and bring light to shadow economies.

“’Blockchain,’ he said, ‘is a pathway to social justice and to make the world a better place.’”

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Four Ways To Influence Your Bosses Without Alienating Them

News from Northwestern University Kellogg School of Management 

“We are all accountable to someone, whether we are a middle manager supervised by a member of the c-suite or a CEO accountable to the company’s board. But under the right circumstances, this reporting relationship can be a two-way street: in addition to taking orders, savvy subordinates can find ways to influence those above them.

“This idea, sometimes called ‘leading up,’ has the potential to improve the organization’s overall effectiveness—and in the process, make everyone look good. But execution is key. According to Colonel William ‘Chip’ Horn, the current U.S. Army Chief of Staff Senior Fellow at the Kellogg School, leaders should not even realize that they are being influenced by members of their team. This subtlety is especially important in traditionally hierarchical organizations such as the military.”

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IU Mourns Passing Of Former Senator Birch Bayh

News from Indiana University Kelley School of Business

“The Indiana University community mourns the passing of former U.S. senator and IU alumnus Birch Bayh, who died this morning at the age of 91.

“Bayh, who represented Indiana for 18 years in the U.S. Senate, from 1963 to 1980, was the author of two constitutional amendments — the only lawmaker since the Founding Fathers to do so. He also sponsored and co-authored the landmark 1972 Title IX legislation that gave women equal opportunities in both sports and academics at public institutions, and he was a candidate for the Democratic nomination for president in 1976.”

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No Quick Shortcut To Success: Zorpads Takes Off

News from Harvard Business School

“It all started with a smell. Taylor Wiegele and Sierra Smith (both MBA 2017) met with a group of classmates for their FIELD III course, trying to come up with a problem to fix. The course, now an elective, tasks first-year students with creating a product to start their own venture. When a group member – don’t worry, they won’t reveal who – took off her shoes, they knew they had found their problem to solve.

“‘She knew [the smell] was bad, but then she started listing out all the reasons current products on the market don’t work. They either A) don’t eliminate the odor, B) bunch up in her shoes, or C) make her shoes tighter due to the inserts,’ Smith explains. ‘She came up with the problem for us.'”

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Yo-Yo Ma Pairs Music And Social Justice In Harvard Business School Panel

News from HBS

“World-famous cellist Yo-Yo Ma ’76 and President of the New York Philharmonic Deborah Borda discussed strategies for broadening public access to classical music in order to enact social change at Harvard Business School Wednesday.

“The panel, entitled ‘Art, Music, and Social Justice,’ featured a surprise cello performance by Ma and explored music’s ability to give people a sense of ‘pride and dignity.’ Harvard Business School professors Rohit Deshpandé and Henry W. McGee ’74 moderated the discussion.

“Ma argued music can help humanity.”

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