Sigma Spring 2006
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
Spring 2006 MMR Newsletter SigmaCOCA-COLA CENTER FOR MARKETING STUDIES TERRY COLLEGE OF BUSINESS UNIVERSITY OF GEORGIA Fred Reynolds: In this issue A Pioneer in Beyond the Books 2 Business Education MMR Alumni Website 2 Lisa Allgaier (MMR ’06) & Mary Lefebvre (MMR ’06) Alumni Corner 3 Under the guidance of Professor George Zinkhan, MMR students Lisa Allgaier and Mary MMR Global Outreach 4 Lefebvre have embarked on a project to rediscover details associated with the founding of the MMR program. The two students are writing an article, which they will soon submit for publication in a special issue of the European Business Review (focused on pioneers in education). The paper introduces Fred Reynolds, a professor at the Terry College of Business, as a pioneer in education and discusses highlights from his career. Fred Reynolds was instrumental in founding the MMR program in 1980 with the help of Roy Stout, an executive at Coca-Cola at the time, and Bud Phillips, the founder of M/A/R/C research. Reynolds also contributed to the academic com- munity by publishing papers in the area of cohort analysis and lifestyle research. He enriched the academic literature by applying social science concepts to the field of marketing research. Fred Reynolds was also a leader in terms of bridging the gap between the academic and business worlds. According to Professor Mel Crask, “Fred was one of a kind. He lived life to the fullest … The little things he did had big meanings.” Fred Reynolds had a vision for the MMR program that included substantial industry involvement. Of course, his vision is apparent today in the Center for Marketing Studies. The program he established still includes an elaborate seminar series with industry speakers, small class sizes, industry input on curriculum content, and other features. Since December, Lisa and Mary have interviewed approximately 20 professors, alumni and board members. They have also conducted online research to find out more about Fred Reynolds’ career. They are reading and analyzing the impact of Fred Reynolds’ published work. The students are trying to get a sense of Fred Reynolds’ accomplishments and leadership style, his work with the Society for Marketing Advances, and the details associated with the founding of the MMR program. Conversations with alumni have sparked many stories, which are representative of the program’s colorful history. Lisa and Mary would like to thank the individuals who agreed to give their time to participate in these interviews. To date, key informants include Mel Crask, Rich Fox, Warren French, Tom Leigh, Mal McNiven, Srinivas Reddy, Joseph Rentz, William Wells, Rob Arnett, Bill Denk, Charles Eden, Bruce Hoffman, Mark Jones, Charlotte McNally, Bud Phillips, Reece Ritter, and Mark www.terry.uga.edu/mmr/ Rose. I SIGMA • MMR NEWSLETTER SPRING 2006 Life in Athens: Beyond The Books When we reflect upon our time in Athens 20 We will always remember Average Joe’s Gym, potlucks, shopping at Ann Taylor on a whim, or 30 years from now, wherever we may be, we the MMR intramural volleyball and soccer shopping in Atlanta and Commerce, the won’t just remember the things associated teams. We had losing records both seasons, but cheese plates at Aroma’s, wandering around with school work – regressions, corporate we did win one volleyball game and, in our final the State Botanical Garden, the music con- projects, seminars, exams, SAS programs, and regular season soccer game, we finally scored a certs, AthFest, the awesome ethnic cuisines, case analyses. Besides an exceptional marketing goal and did not lose by the mercy rule!! beloved socials at DePalma’s, quick grabs research education, the MMR class of 2006 Some other fun things we will also always between classes at gyro wraps, the “Total will also graduate with special memories of the remember are the downtown night life (espe- Romance” party, Secret Santa at Jenny’s, cially the downstairs of Walkers, the punkness going to the dollar movie, the Beechwood of Lunch Paper, the free popcorn at Flicker, Chinese restaurant, cooking lessons, and din- and everything about All Good’s), going to ner at Dr. Reddy’s. and tailgating before the UGA football games, As our time in Athens comes to an end, we UGA gymnastics, UGA basketball, the park off want to thank everyone who has made our of Gran Ellen, trips to Atlanta, the beauty of experience both possible and memorable. I the UGA campus, the ropes course, the — Jing Yeh (MMR ’06) MMR Alumni Association Launches New Website The MMR Alumni Association has recently launched a new-and-improved website (www.mmralumni.com) with improved functionality and an updated interface. On the new site, alumni can now join the alumni association directly from the site in a seamless process including registration, pay- ment, and creation of a profile to share with other alumni and potential employers. Downtown Athens, a wealth of restaurants, Alumni will be able to pay their $50 dues nightclubs, shops, concerts and sports & and using a credit card with Paypal. cultural events. Another important change is the way the fun things we did while in the little town of job postings will work. From the alumni per- Athens. spective, you will now be able to post a pro- We will always remember the places we liked file that can include your resume (or infor- to eat. Our favorite places to grab lunch mation about your company). If you see an between classes were Five Star, Cookie’s Café, attractive job posting, you will be able to Achim’s, and the Gyro Wrap. A year of fre- respond to the posting and send your quenting sushi restaurants showed us that resume directly from the site. www.mmralumni.com, the new MMR Alumni there are five locations to get sushi in Athens, Potential employers will now be able to website, features links to join the assocation, not including the grocery store, the best of post their own job descriptions directly on and post & search for jobs. which is Utage (aka Athens Sushi Bar). In the the site. Based on strong and consistent feedback from the Advisory Board, the Alumni Association spring semester, we started “Fancy Dinner will charge potential employers and recruiters a $500 fee for each listing, which will also be payable Days” in an effort to try out more of Athens’ by credit card via Paypal. This fee will enable potential employers and recruiters to reach a highly unique restaurants like The Last Resort Grill qualified audience of 400+ MMR alumni from the Class of 1981 to the present. and Harry Bissett’s. Other popular features of the old site have been retained, such as the bulletin board and the We will always remember being with our alumni directory. The quality and recency of the information in the directory will continue to classmates as they progressed through major improve as more and more alumni register and create profiles. life stages. Jagruti became a wife, Jenny con- MMR alumni and current students can preview the site for a short time using “MMRGuest” as tinued planning her wedding, and Graeme and the username and “georgia5” as the password. The site will be restricted to paid alumni associa- Mary became fiancé(e)s (note: not each tion members as of June 1. other’s). And, after a chocolate-filled pregnan- So go get online and check out the new site, and better yet register and set up a profile so all cy, Mama Priti and her husband Navendu gave your old friends can find you. I birth to the MMR baby, Avi, in March! — Rob Arnett PAGE 2 SPRING 2006 SIGMA • MMR NEWSLETTER MMR Class of 2006: Alumni Corner Coke Project 1995 Firms are faced with the constant challenge to develop new products. Jan Hood Marketing research plays a major role in the new product development Jan does not work in the research field but works in education. She process. While marketers may be able to generate a vast number of ideas is the registrar for Blue Mountain Community College in eastern that might become potential new products, at various stages, they have Oregon. to make decisions as to which ideas to move forward with and which ideas are likely to be failures. This process of narrowing down ideas 1995 makes the concept screening stage of the new product development Stacey (Steinglass) Kaye extremely crucial. Stacey is married, with two girls, Audrey (5) and Margo (2). She The Coca-Cola Company, represented by Senior Research Manager lives outside of Philadelphia and works in a new and hot industry— Clark Jones has asked the MMR Class of 2006 to help optimize Coke’s retail meal assembly. Super Suppers (www.supersuppers.com) is the current concept screening process with the objective of developing leading franchise in the meal assembly industry. Stacey is forming processes to ensure that potentially “big” ideas do not get screened out at the concept testing stage. This year’s Coke project group is composed strategic alliances between Super Suppers and consumer packaged of Jennifer Alley, Sarah Cohn, Sandra Kanzler and Mary Lefebvre, under goods companies. The Super Suppers experience offers product the supervision of Vanessa Patrick. manufacturers integrated promotional opportunities allowing con- The group approached this task by conducting a comprehensive review sumers to get up-close-and-personal with branded products. First deal took place in March 2006 with Reynolds. Stacey is also pub- lishing children’s book series. 1996 Kristi Rees Kristi recently started a new job as a market research manager for GE Security in Bradenton, Fla. GE Security manufactures security and life safety products (fire alarms, video, access control, etc.) and is a division of General Electric.