December 2011

New York Times Magazine Honors Professor Anna Barbara

Each December The New York Times Magazine puts a spotlight on the lives of special people we've lost during the past year. At the Walker School of Business we believe there is no one more worthy of this tribute than our own Anna Barbara Sakurai, retired professor, who died last June. The editors at the Times agreed and are featuring her in this year's The Lives They Lived. Take a minute to see Anna Barbara's picture and read her tribute online right now. Her tribute is also one of only a handful which will appear in print in The New York Times Magazine published December 25th. Anna B lived an extraordinary life. See for yourself.

Walker Speakers: Top of Their Game

IBM's Same Palmisano steps down at this month's end after nearly a decade at Big Blue's helm. He leaves IBM at the top of his game. And when he spoke at our Walker Speaker Series this year he left us with invaluable insight into his company and his leadership. Every year we welcome the best in business, like Sam, to our campus to share their stories with the world's future business leaders, our students and alumni. We invite you to learn again from Sam and our other Speakers of 2011 then join us next year where everything from running the world's largest convenience store to keeping track of the world's most famous mouse are discussed as part of the 2012 Walker Speaker Series.

We'll welcome Jay Rasulo, CFO for Walt Disney World; Joe DePinto, President/CEO of 7-Eleven; David Farr, Chairman/CEO of Emerson Electric; Reginald Brack, former Chairman/CEO of Time Inc. and John Graham, Chairman of Fleishman Hillard, just to name a few. RSVP now RSVP now for all of these free addresses and networking receptions.

Going To The Source

The Walker School's faculty not only master their fields with real-world knowledge, their teachings are recognized around the world and throughout our campuses across the U.S., Europe and Asia. That makes them a perfect source for reporters, researchers and other academics who need their expertise to explain the news behind today's headlines. Recently you would have seen Dean Akande on FoxNews discussing the failure of the support committee , sports economist Pat Rishe's report on msn regarding Albert Pujols' historic contract in the MLB or the review of Dr. Jim Brasfield's new book on Reuters Our faculty and news about WSBT programs have appeared in media from CBS, NBC, NPR Bloomberg to countless academic publications. Expertise at the click of a mouse.

Remember Great Reads

It's time to dispel the myth that trust is only a nicety in business and that it doesn't have an economic impact. In The Speed of Trust by author and former CEO Harlan Steinbaum.

author Stephen M.R. Covey, shows how trust is not only a learnable but also measurable skill, and how business can harness its power. It's the latest in a year full of reading and reviews done by Walker School of Business faculty. (Our professors have also authored quite a few of their own books this year!)

Several books made our list of those which offer leadership insight we can all use in 2012. Relive the best.

The Last Word: Being The Best

It is with great pride that the Walker School of Business announces the promotion of alumna Kathleen Mazzarella to Chief Executive and President of Graybar Electric Co. Kathy's appointment makes her one of only 16 female CEOs of Fortune 500 companies nationwide and the only one in our St. Louis area. She takes over the top spot June 1st.

Kathy's accomplishment is just one example of the great things we know Walker School graduates are doing each day everywhere around the world. In 2012, let us hear from you. Make a resolution to share your story

Happy New Year!