Media, marketing, and AI–riding the wave of new technology while engaging the human spirit

The complete transformation of the fields of media and marketing has been propelled by the rise of digital platforms, a shift from generalized messaging and programming to highly personalized appeals and choices, and storytelling and data-driven content that captivates consumers and viewers across streaming and social media, and e-commerce ecosystems. Yet the need to engage the human spirit in this emerging landscape is more important than ever before.

In this issue of Fordham Business, we explore this delicate balance and the ways it is being addressed across these rapidly evolving industries and in our own classrooms. Our goal—to provide our students with the knowledge and skills to ride the wave of new technology, while remaining authentic and attuned to the core needs and values of consumers and audiences around the globe.

We are also incredibly excited to announce the launch of our NEW Master of Science in Artificial Intelligence in Business, a degree designed to prepare the next generation of business professionals in adopting, managing, and applying AI for business across the organizational functions. In addition, we have introduced a new AI Initiative that serves to support our dedication to AI literacy for all.

As you read through this issue, I hope you are inspired by the cutting-edge opportunities we are providing to our students, faculty members, and the business community at large. We are proud of our ability to prepare them for the transformational changes occurring and the endless opportunities ahead.

New Artificial Intelligence Initiative

Recently, the Gabelli School of Business launched the AI Initiative, which serves to support the School’s commitment to AI literacy. The Initiative was kicked off with immersive learning sessions for faculty AI champions (9/19 and 9/20) and administrators/staff (9/20). Led by Tal Goldhamer, former chief learning officer at EY, and Michael Housman, a renowned data scientist and AI learning consultant, these sessions provided an overview of the advances made in AI and the tools available. They also afforded a preliminary exploration of the ways in which AI can support and enhance the roles of faculty and staff members.

9/11 Memorial & Museum Visit

Dean’s Welcome Back Reception

9/11 Memorial & Museum Visit

Responsible Business Center Climate Week Initiatives

Gabelli School Net Impact Chapter Earns Gold Status

Full-time M.B.A. Cohort Travels to London as Part of Gabelli Launch

Gabelli School of Business Full-time M.B.A. students recently wrapped up a week in London, as part of Gabelli Launch, the four-week onboarding program for their cohort that began in late July. Gabelli Launch and its travel component immerses students in the Gabelli School community, challenging them intellectually, and helping them to build close bonds with their classmates.

During this trip to London led by Program Director, Prof. Alex Markle, Ph.D. and Program Manager Linda Agnew, students explored the world of sustainable business through a range of activities including site visits and exposure to high-profile speakers.

The immersion kicked off with an economic overview of the UK from Nisaa Jetta, who is the founder of Impact-for-SDGs, an organization that seeks to catalyze real change around the Sustainable Development Goals through sector-focused impact initiatives and high-level convening across government, the financial sector, family offices, and large corporations. This was followed by an in-depth exploration of sustainability reporting standards during which students visited the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) organization and heard from industry leaders, including Lee White, CEO of the International Federation of Accountants; Marco Fasan, Ph.D., professor of accounting at the Venice School of Management; and Fabian Kommu, key accounts advisor, Datamaran, an ESG reporting platform. They also were exposed to ESG-focused real estate investing through a panel discussion featuring experts from Goldman Sachs.

O’Shea Center for Credit Analysis Hosts Networking Event Featuring Anthony Scaramucci

Scaramucci shaped his discussion around the themes contained in his new book, From Wall Street to the White House and Back: The Scaramucci Guide to Unbreakable Resilience, which offers up the principles and foundations that have given his life direction as he has navigated the highs and lows of a prolific career. Through stories from his humble background growing up in an Italian family on Long Island, he demonstrated how the values he has acquired helped him to develop the work ethic and resilient mindset needed to thrive—not only during periods of career success—but also in the face of adversity amid unrelenting public and media scrutiny. In an inspirational conversation that provided insight and encouragement for those just starting out professionally, as well as those with well-established careers, he spoke candidly about the experiences that have shaped his world view and helped him to build a career spanning four decades across business, politics, and media.

The Gabelli School’s Corporate Communications High School Pipeline Program Prepares Students for College and Careers in Business

Mentored by Gabelli School students, 14 teams of high-achieving high schoolers analyzed case examples involving these companies and pitched their equity/revenue-generating solutions to a panel of judges during the CCP Final Showcase in May. This year, students from Cardinal Hayes High School, Cristo Rey New York High School, Academy of Mount St. Ursula, All Hallows High School, Mott Hall High School, and Saint Raymond High School for Boys participated. Cristo Rey came in first place ($2,500 prize) and Cardinal Hayes finished second ($2,000 prize).

The annual Final Showcase is the culmination of a yearlong program that gives talented high school students from underrepresented communities the opportunity to prepare for college and the business world. They learn about business strategy and career options; develop public speaking and presentation skills; and gain perspectives through field trips organized by companies like PwC, Morgan Stanley, and PIMCO.

Four Gabelli School Undergraduate Finance Scholars Launch Promising Careers at Top Financial Institutions

Through the Gabelli School’s Undergraduate Personal and Professional Development Center (PPD), led by Cynthia Bush, scholars have access to resources such as résumé reviews and mock interviews, while gaining the industry insights that will provide the competitive edge. In addition, they network on and off campus with successful Gabelli School alumni and other industry leaders who provide internships and job opportunities.

The scholars become part of a community of peers that support, inform, and encourage each other through shared study and interests. These bonds remain long after graduation and serve the scholars throughout their careers at major financial institutions such as Bank of America, Merrill Lynch, Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, Barclays, and UBS among so many others.

Gabelli School Launches NEW Master of Science in Artificial Intelligence in Business

The program emphasizes the integration of real-world applications, leveraging the transformative capacity of AI in augmenting the speed and effectiveness of business roles and functions. Its innovative curriculum has been developed to provide the utmost flexibility. Foundational courses include: Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning for Business, Quantitative Foundations of AI, and Law and Ethics of AI. Electives span a range of topics, allowing those who enroll to tailor their course of study to their interests and professional needs—from Machine Learning for Finance and Artificial Intelligence in Asset Management to Generative AI for Managers and AI Implementation Strategies. Two optional tracks—the Finance Industry Track and the Technical Track—provide a framework for students who are considering focusing specifically in these areas.

“It was not a moment anyone was going to get a job in the financial services field,” said Sommese, who was interning at Merrill Lynch at the time. “It forced me to take a step back, research different career paths, and figure out what I wanted to do.” That was when she discovered the M.S. in Media Management program at the Gabelli School.

“Most schools at that time offered marketing programs, but very few focused on media, which is highly specialized,” she noted. In addition, Sommese was drawn to Fordham because of its “great reputation, location in the heart of the media industry, strong alumni network, and industry connections.”

The program offered a variety of specializations as well, including entertainment, the field in which she envisioned herself pursuing a career.

Not only did Sommese gain a sound knowledge base and skill set learning from professionals in the field, she also had opportunities to put what she learned into practice. She held internships in the consumer marketing department at Comedy Central and in product marketing at MLB Advanced Media. “Those experiences immersed me in the digital space,” she said. “They helped me get those credentials on my résumé while I was still in grad school.”

“Prudential’s ‘Now what?’ campaign stood out for its innovative spin meant to reframe how people think about personal finance,” Wang said. While financial planning ads typically focus on “stress-inducing” scenarios, such as an unexpected healthcare emergency or sudden loss of income, Wang’s team tapped into the idea that people “shouldn’t just look at their finances when bad things happen,” but in good times as well. The ads in the “Now what?” campaign are hopeful and optimistic, depicting positive life milestones, such as a young tennis athlete winning his first professional game and a couple looking forward to retirement.

In May 2024, Wang was promoted to global strategist at McCann Worldgroup. As a member of its global intelligence unit, he collaborates with other strategists in such cities as Paris, Madrid, Shanghai, Thailand, and Singapore. He and his colleagues run culturally driven data analyses, surveys, and focus groups, producing studies that inform creative concepts and business pitches.

The Metropolitan Museum of Art (The Met) opened its 81st Street Studio in September 2023, with Yamaha playing a major role. The art and science discovery and play space was designed for kids ages 3–11 and their families, and the “Yamaha at The Met” musical station, which was the result of the collaboration between Yamaha and KOKO Architecture + Design, added a whole new dimension to the learning experience. It uses a variety of materials to introduce children to unique sounds and demonstrates how different materials influence those sounds.

Kids love the exhibit and its larger-than-life instruments, which include standing guitars, a bird chime, a castanet wall, a marimba window, sound surfboards, and an 11-note bellows pipe organ—all playable and all designed to inspire creativity and spark the imagination.

An Yan, Ph.D.

“Based on my latest research, it looks like firms are starting to do the right thing when it comes to ESG, so we need to avoid overreacting to all the recent pushback and recognize there have been some positive developments in ESG practices,” explained Yan, who’s studied how companies manage ESG for more than two decades.

One organization feeds millions of people in the throes of hurricanes, fires, and wars. Another helps local bakeries build businesses online. Others create pathways to employment for thousands of neurodivergent individuals and employ people in recovery to design campaigns to promote healthy behaviors among young people.

These are examples, based on 62 executive interviews across 21 global organizations, the Gabelli School Dean and George N. Jean Ph.D. Chair Lerzan Aksoy, Ph.D., and her colleagues from educational institutions across the country, and around the world, uncovered through their research on social profit orientation. It culminated in the paper, “Social Profit Orientation: Lessons from Organizations Committed to Building a Better World,” which was published in the Journal of Marketing in July 2024. The paper defines social profit orientation through the business models these companies have embraced and offers a framework for other entities to embed and champion a similarly socially conscious approach in their missions and day-to-day operations.

“Companies with a social profit orientation make sustainable, social, and environmental impact core to their missions and value their ability to benefit the common good as much as financial success,” Aksoy explained.

FACULTY HIGHLIGHTS

Eun-Hee Kim, Ph.D.,

associate professor of strategy and area chair of Strategy & Statistics, will have two papers published in the Journal of Management Studies—“Green Screening: Firm Environmental Strategy Amidst Policy Implementation Uncertainty in the European Union,” https://bit.ly/3zWNZ9M; and “Set & Done? Tradeoffs between Stakeholder Expectation and Attainment Pressures in Corporate Carbon Target Management.” https://bit.ly/48cypmQ

Iftekhar Hasan, Ph.D.,

University professor and the E. Gerald Corrigan chair in finance, was recently awarded an honorary doctorate in economics and business administration by the University of Vaasa, Finland, in recognition of his outstanding contributions to the field of finance. Professor Hasan also serves as the academic director of the Ph.D. program, and co-director of the Center for Research in Contemporary Finance at the Gabelli School.

HOW TO BE THE BEST (IN BUSINESS)

“It’s a bit of my life story mixed with some straight-up advice on how to make it in the business world,” Almeida states in the book’s introduction. “It began with me jotting down some notes about my life, thinking it was just for my own reflection to look back on the good and the bad. But then it hit me—some of the stuff I’ve learned the hard way might just help someone else skip a few bumps in the road.”

Raised in Yonkers, Almeida attended Cardinal Hayes High School and Fordham University’s Gabelli School of Business where he earned a bachelor’s degree in accounting. He credits the basic values he learned in school and at home for setting the foundations for his life and career.

Throughout the book, personal values like honesty and integrity are among the topics Almeida emphasizes as key attributes for success in business. “Dealing honestly with people 100% of the time is critical to success,” he said. “Your word must be your bond. To gain trust is difficult; to lose it takes a nanosecond and once lost, it can never truly be regained. Honesty and integrity are the foundations of business.”

He also underscores the power of having an opinion as well as the ability to make decisions. “In business, you are very often paid to make decisions,” Almeida said. “If you are in certain professions—surgeons, air traffic controllers, pilots, battlefield commanders, to name a few—you make decisions minute-by-minute or even second-by-second.”

On September 26, under the leadership of Falguni Sen, Ph.D., professor of strategy and statistics and director of the Gabelli School of Business, Global Healthcare Innovation Management Center, the School, in collaboration with Maynooth University (Ireland), held a full-day, multi-session workshop titled “AI for Good Health: Transforming Data Into Decisions and Outcomes.” Sessions covered topics from hospital efficiency to patient care, diagnostics, drug discovery, and entrepreneurship. It convened the top thought leaders across industry to provide a comprehensive view of the AI-driven developments that are revolutionizing healthcare.

Speakers included Navid Asgari, Ph.D., associate director, Global Healthcare Innovation Management Center, associate professor, Grose Family endowed chair in business, Gabelli School of Business; Jan Beger, head of AI Advocacy, GE Healthcare; Doni Bloomfield, J.D., associate professor of Law, Fordham University, School of Law; Martin Curley, Ph.D., professor of innovation, Maynooth University; Sanjay Doddamani, M.D., founder and CEO, Guidehealth; Anand Iyer, Ph.D., chief AI officer, WellDoc; Ryl Jensen, CEO, Digital Health Association (DHA); Richard A.D. Jones, president, C2-Ai; Sean Khozin, M.D., CEO, CEO Roundtable on Cancer, founder of Phyusion; Suyash Khubchandani, MBBS, clinical solutions architect, CARP.ai; Richard Mulry, president and CEO Northwell Holdings & Ventures; John Sheehan, M.D., clinical director of Radiology, Blackrock Health; and Stanley Shaw, M.D, Ph.D., associate vice president, Digital Medicine Amgen.

Masthead

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