Questrom School of Business: Graduate Student Blog

New Social Media Marketing Course Goes Viral

February 9th, 2013

Post by:
Sara Hines
MS-MBA 2013

When I started my MBA, I definitely did not expect that video production skills would be a key asset. But I recently completed what is the third video project in my MBA career. The assignment this time around was for the inaugural offering of a new marketing elective, MK845: Social Media Marketing and Social Influence. The course was offered as a January intensive in two sections (due do overwhelming demand) and taught by Professors Barbara Bickart (@BABickart) and Nicole Ames (@TwistIMC).

Professor Bickart explained that the course was designed as a marketing elective that aligns well with the new sector focus of SMG (digital technology in this case). She says, “I was actually surprised by the high demand for the course! I knew that there was interest in Social Media Marketing, but never expected that we would fill two sections. Part of the demand was driven by the topic and a feeling that an understanding of social media marketing would benefit students in their marketing career. In addition, students like the intensive format and MS students were allowed to use this as an elective in their program.”

During the week-long intensive we did live cases for area businesses seeking advice and inspiration for social media strategies, in addition to reading cases and a number of papers on topics like virality, user-generated content, and storytelling. But the big project was partnering with the Alumni Relations office to develop a video campaign for one of two initiatives aimed at re-engaging alumni. Teams chose to work on a) a memory-gathering project in celebration of SMG’s upcoming Centennial or b) volunteer opportunities for alumni. We had to make a video and develop a distribution strategy in hopes of making it go “viral”. In addition, each team provided larger strategy recommendations to the Alumni office for thinking about social media engagement going forward.

The YouTube views continued to climb over the ten-day testing period, and one team’s opus even got picked up by a local media outlet!

As content marketing continues to be a big buzzword in management circles, you may want to try your hand at some iMovie editing, or (legally) download Adobe Premier and cut a few short vids. Get comfortable in front of and behind your iPhone camera, because you’re likely to come across some need for video production-be it for a case competition application, marketing program prototype, or even a viral video assignment.

And keep an eye out for the next offering of MK845.

You're sure to

it.

Sara Hines is President of the MBA Marketing Club.

Engineering & Management Commercialization Collaboration

January 30th, 2013

Post by:
Catherine Shih
MBA/MPH in Global Health Management, 2013

Last year a group of students from the School of Management and the School of Biomedical Engineering came together to form the Engineering & Management Commercialization Collaboration (EMCC). The EMCC offered students the opportunity to work collaboratively on a commercialization strategy for a medical device aimed for use in resource-limited settings. The medical device that the team is currently working on is Pharmacheck – a substandard drug detector that tests both the concentration of active pharmaceutical ingredient in a drug along with its dissolution.

EMCC Team: Andrea Fernandes (PEMBA), Cristina Crespo Roman (MBA), Amy Studenic (MPH), Darash Desai (PhD ENG), Alice Yang (PEMBA), Catherine Shih (MBA), Stalyn Almanzar (MBA), David Danese (MBA), Ravi Kirtane (MBA), Brian Hannah (MBA)

With counterfeit medicines occupying 10-30% of the market in resource-limited areas, millions of people receive inadequate treatment for illnesses. Pharmacheck offers an inexpensive, reliable and robust drug screening technology and has the potential to have a substantial impact on global health.

In Fall 2012, Pharmacheck and the EMCC team was awarded an NCIIA e-team grant and the opportunity to participate in VentureLab. The team spent three days in Hadley, MA, improving their strategic plan for Pharmacheck and gaining insight from NCIIA experts regarding value proposition development, strategic mapping and revenue models.

This semester the team will be carrying out market research and networking with stakeholders in global health. Recently four new members were brought onto the team from the Schools of Management and Public Health. This project demonstrates the potential for inter-school collaboration in the BU community.

Students interested in joining our team can contact us at emcc.bu@gmail.com for more information.

Catherine Shih is a 2nd year MPH-MBA with experience in tax policy, international trade, and organizational development. She spent the summer in Geneva working for the World Health Organization and eating chocolate.

Bending the Cost Curve

January 23rd, 2013

Post by:
Simon Cook
Health Sector MBA 2013

One of the things I’ve most enjoyed about being an MBA student at BU is the access to interesting business leaders and experts. One such example was the recent ‘Bending the Cost Curve’ event, part of the Health Sector Management Speaker Series. It was a panel discussion between Dr. Andrew Sussman, President of CVS Minute Clinic (and BU SMG alumni) and Dr. Ralph De La Torre, President and CEO of Steward Health Care, moderated by our own Dean of the School of Management, Ken Freeman.

The event was well attended by many alumni of the program, and our entire class from HM710: Health Services Delivery. The talk was so relevant to class that Professor Restuccia amended our syllabus so that we could take in the event.

Both guests started the talk by giving us a brief introduction to the companies they run. It was clear that although retail clinics and hospital systems are very different, the innovative ways these two are tackling the business of health care have a lot in common. We aren’t going to ‘bend the cost curve’ with a magic bullet, but ideas like these might help.

The subsequent discussion was interesting because it not only reinforced what we were learning in class, but also gave us some insight into what it’s like to be at the top of a rapidly growing organization. Dr. De La Torre in particular gave me the impression that it was like trying to steer a runaway train – making quick but vital decisions at every moment!

On a personal note, I was particularly interested in listening to Dr. Sussman. During the fall semester I was part of a team working on a consulting project for CVS Minute Clinic. This project was for the highly recommended HM840: Health Sector Consulting elective. Only two and half weeks after this talk, we were sitting in Minute Clinic’s meeting room in Rhode Island presenting our final report to Dr. Sussman and his colleagues. Thankfully they seemed impressed with our work!

Simon is a 2nd year full-time Health Sector MBA student and the VP of Marketing for the Health Services Management Association student club. He has experience working as a Project Manager at a large hospital in London, England and is looking to expand his career in Healthcare Administration.

A Quick Look Back on First Semester

December 20th, 2012

Post by:

Rob Gordon

MBA 2013

As the first semester comes to a close, I thought it would be nice to look back on a handful of events, conferences, social activities, case competitions, and outings that took place at the School of Management over the past few months.

International MBA students overlooking China's Forbidden City

Boston University MBAs mingling and networking with Boston College MBAs at a November mixer

The School of Management's soccer squad at the MBA Cup soccer tournament at Yale University in the fall. The team put forth a valiant effort-- looking forward to seeing what they can do when they reunite for Dartmouth's MBA World Cup in April!

Happy Halloween! If you look closely, you can find Waldo...

Current students and alumni at Goldman Sachs in New York City during the MBA Finance Club's NYC Trek

Students pose for a picture at the annual Winter Party

Cohort B's representatives at the 'Best of the Best' competition

Cohort C at the Best of the Best

Cohort D at the Best of the Best

The winners pose with Dean Freeman. Congratulations Cohort D!

I want to congratulate everyone on finishing up the semester—winter break is well-deserved. Best wishes for the holidays and a Happy New Year!

Rob Gordon is a 2nd year MBA with concentrations in Finance and Entrepreneurship

Boston University Mentor Program

December 6th, 2012

Post by:
Simon Yang
MBA 2013

We’ve all heard how important networking is to having a successful business career, and having a mentor relationship plays a key role in this. BU’s mentor program is a great way for first year students to connect with second years and get advice about anything-- whether it’s getting acclimated to Boston, how to manage the workload, networking events, and social events in the first semester, or getting advice on what it takes to land that critical summer internship. Having a resource that’s been in your shoes in the recent past is invaluable. For second years, it’s a great way to connect and give back to the BU MBA community and build relationships that can last a lifetime.

The mentor program committee has worked hard to ensure that everybody knows what to expect and how each person can get the most out of his or her relationship. At the beginning of the year, students sign up if they’re interested in getting matched with a mentor. This way there is buy-in on both sides and we know which students are willing to take time out of their busy schedules to meet and help each other. This year, there are over 60 second year students mentoring over 90 first years. There is no deadline to sign up for the program, so if you decide to join later, the committee will gladly match you with a mentor.

My own interest in running the program stemmed from realizing the value of a mentor from a program my previous employer had, as well as having a professional mentor of my own (a BU MBA grad, class of 2000). Speaking of which, BU also has an alumni mentor program through the School of Management's Alumni Relations office, which connects club members with alumni in industry who are interested in providing feedback and supporting current students. Recently I helped match MBA Finance Club members interested in having a mentor with alumni who have years experience working in financial services, corporate finance, investment banking, and private equity.

I enjoy meeting my first year mentees regularly and helping them through their first semester. I still keep in touch with my second year mentors from last year and often seek feedback from my professional mentor. I believe a key part of any business school experience is connecting students with one another as well as with alumni, and these programs are part of the foundation on which successful networking is built.

Simon is a second year full-time MBA student and the co-president of the mentor program. Previously he worked in manufacturing and operations support in medical devices on the west coast and is currently concentrating in finance.