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INSIDE
100 reasons to celebrate
THE GABELLI SCHOOL CENTENNIAL 1920-2020
Summer/Fall 2020
From the office of the dean
The Value of Resilience
Donna Rapaccioli Portrait
O

ver the last decade, “resilience” became a common word in business. Consultants have evaluated the resilience of corporations. Leading business journals have published articles on what resilience is and why it matters. Here at the Gabelli School, it became a trait we sought to instill in our students. We even teach an undergraduate class with the word in its title.

The last few months have shown us the reality and the importance of resilience in a way that is far more vivid than any corporate seminar or journal article. In the face of the COVID-19 pandemic, each of us has been called upon to persevere, to adapt, and to find ways to press ahead.

That resilience is endemic to the Gabelli School. Our school was born on the heels of the 1918 influenza pandemic, when society found the strength not only to stabilize, but also to take exciting new directions. The 1920s brought both promise and progress, including the 19th amendment, which granted women the right to vote.

Contents
humans versus technology, the gig economy, COVID-19, AND WORK REDEFINED
Illustration of woman working remotely
highlights from this year at the Gabelli School and a look ahead
transparency in environmental reporting and the new age of journalists
Women in the workforce, inside the PGA Tour system, and one Professor’s journey from the Big Four to higher education
The $3 trillion fashion industry is transforming to protect people and planet
Illustration of sewing
from the early beginnings of business school education at Fordham to the Gabelli School today, one century later
Large globe sculpture
Illustration of a robot arm
“Robots are not taking your jobs. They are taking tasks.”
Haig Nalbantian, senior partner and co-founder of the Mercer Workforce Sciences Institute, on technology and the future of work
“Just encouraging women to advance their careers organically, even with the best of intentions, isn’t enough.”
Marcia Page, executive chair at Värde Partners, on mitigating unconscious bias in the workplace
Illustration of a book shaped like a flower
“Knowledge is the most important thing we have to share.”
Barbara Porco, Ph.D., accounting professor at the Gabelli School of Business
“One of the lessons we’ve all learned and what we’ve tried to do as we go into new frontiers is to start with the end in mind.”
Emanuel “Manny” Chirico, BS ’79, on greater social responsibility in business
Growing enough cotton to make one T-shirt takes
Water ripple and bubbles
713 gallons of water, the equivalent of what one person drinks over 2 1/2 years.
Fordham’s Responsible Business Coalition gathers fashion CEOs to drive positive change across the global fashion industry.
A recent Gallup study estimates that 36% of U.S. workers have a gig arrangement of some form.
For many, freelancing is a way to gain experience that could lead to full-time employment.
News
Contributing Writers/Reporters
Kelsey Butler, FCLC ’10
Jean B. Edwards
Chelsee Pengal
Patrick Verel
Learning Virtually During COVID-19
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o matter the business, agility is key to preparing for the unexpected. As Fordham’s campus life transitioned off site for the spring due to COVID-19, the Gabelli School community, like organizations worldwide, had to rapidly adapt.

The first change entailed ensuring instructors could use virtual platforms including Zoom, Adobe Collaborate, and WebEx starting March 11, when all courses moved online for the remainder of the semester.

The Fordham Foundry’s 4th Annual Pitch Challenge on zoom
The Fordham Foundry’s 4th Annual Pitch Challenge is one of several events that shifted to Zoom this spring. Above, students and alumni pitch their ideas to judges and a livestream audience.
Photo by Joe Battista
Learning Virtually During COVID-19
N

o matter the business, agility is key to preparing for the unexpected. As Fordham’s campus life transitioned off site for the spring due to COVID-19, the Gabelli School community, like organizations worldwide, had to rapidly adapt.

The first change entailed ensuring instructors could use virtual platforms including Zoom, Adobe Collaborate, and WebEx starting March 11, when all courses moved online for the remainder of the semester.

The Fordham Foundry’s 4th Annual Pitch Challenge on zoom
The Fordham Foundry’s 4th Annual Pitch Challenge is one of several events that shifted to Zoom this spring. Above, students and alumni pitch their ideas to judges and a livestream audience.
Photo by Joe Battista
male student working on a Macbook with earbuds in
Students can now earn master’s degrees in management, strategic marketing communications, and global finance through new online programs.
Photo courtesy of the Gabelli School
New Online MS Programs
S

tudents and business professionals who wish to earn a master’s degree in management, strategic marketing communications, or global finance from the Gabelli School of Business can now do so from their desktops, anywhere around the world.

“Our online programs combine asynchronous and synchronous/live sessions, which allow students to engage in a virtual classroom,” said Kerri Mizrahi, Ed.D., director of online learning.

New Online MS Programs
S

tudents and business professionals who wish to earn a master’s degree in management, strategic marketing communications, or global finance from the Gabelli School of Business can now do so from their desktops, anywhere around the world.

“Our online programs combine asynchronous and synchronous/live sessions, which allow students to engage in a virtual classroom,” said Kerri Mizrahi, Ed.D., director of online learning.

male student working on a Macbook with earbuds in
Students can now earn master’s degrees in management, strategic marketing communications, and global finance through new online programs.
Photo courtesy of the Gabelli School
Investing in Entrepreneurs
T

he Gabelli School recently committed $100,000 to the Fordham Angel Fund, a new fund overseen by the Fordham Foundry that provides seed money to businesses run by current undergraduate and graduate students.

Donna Rapaccioli, Ph.D., dean of the Gabelli School, said the fund, which will commit investments of up to $25,000 in individual businesses, exemplifies application-based learning and industry connectivity, which are key elements of the college’s approach to education.
Group of people in an office
The new Fordham Angel Fund will provide $25,000 in venture funding to select entrepreneurs across the Fordham community.
Photo courtesy of the Fordham Foundry
Investing in Entrepreneurs
T

he Gabelli School recently committed $100,000 to the Fordham Angel Fund, a new fund overseen by the Fordham Foundry that provides seed money to businesses run by current undergraduate and graduate students.

Donna Rapaccioli, Ph.D., dean of the Gabelli School, said the fund, which will commit investments of up to $25,000 in individual businesses, exemplifies application-based learning and industry connectivity, which are key elements of the college’s approach to education.
Group of people in an office
The new Fordham Angel Fund will provide $25,000 in venture funding to select entrepreneurs across the Fordham community.
Photo courtesy of the Fordham Foundry
Social Innovation Research
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ive academic papers examining various dimensions of social entrepreneurship and innovation were published in the Humanistic Management Journal in December 2019. The scholarship is the culmination of research projects that began a year earlier at a thought leadership conference organized by the Gabelli School.

hands typing on laptop
Social innovation research that began at a conference sponsored by the Gabelli School in 2018 led to the recent publication of five papers in the Humanistic Management Journal.
Photo by Alex from the Rock / Shutterstock.com
Social Innovation Research
F

ive academic papers examining various dimensions of social entrepreneurship and innovation were published in the Humanistic Management Journal in December 2019. The scholarship is the culmination of research projects that began a year earlier at a thought leadership conference organized by the Gabelli School.

hands typing on laptop
Social innovation research that began at a conference sponsored by the Gabelli School in 2018 led to the recent publication of five papers in the Humanistic Management Journal.
Photo by Alex from the Rock / Shutterstock.com
A group of professional MBA students holding Fordham University banner
Professional MBA students spent a week in Ireland working at a Dublin-based small business incubator and visiting multinational companies and cultural sites.
Photo by Elizabeth Holub
Business in Ireland
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here’s no better way to learn about doing business in Ireland than to study there. The Emerald Isle is the focus of both a new graduate program beginning this fall that will offer one year of study at the University College Dublin (UCD) Michael Smurfit Graduate Business School and a new Professional MBA course that includes a weeklong immersion abroad.

Business in Ireland
T

here’s no better way to learn about doing business in Ireland than to study there. The Emerald Isle is the focus of both a new graduate program beginning this fall that will offer one year of study at the University College Dublin (UCD) Michael Smurfit Graduate Business School and a new Professional MBA course that includes a weeklong immersion abroad.

A group of professional MBA students holding Fordham University banner
Professional MBA students spent a week in Ireland working at a Dublin-based small business incubator and visiting multinational companies and cultural sites.
Photo by Elizabeth Holub
Internships Pay Off
A

fall internship at Walt Disney Television couldn’t have been a better match for Sneha Neogi, BS ’20, a self-described movie buff. Working in the station’s New York City office, she got a behind-the-scenes look at what it takes to put on two of her favorite shows: “Live with Kelly and Ryan” and “The Good Doctor.”

Sneha Neogi at a business event
Sneha Neogi, BS ’20, accepted a job offer at AT&T, an opportunity that came about from building a resume of several internships and networking at a Forbes Under 30 conference last year.
Photo by Lucia Zapata
Internships Pay Off
A

fall internship at Walt Disney Television couldn’t have been a better match for Sneha Neogi, BS ’20, a self-described movie buff. Working in the station’s New York City office, she got a behind-the-scenes look at what it takes to put on two of her favorite shows: “Live with Kelly and Ryan” and “The Good Doctor.”

Sneha Neogi at a business event
Sneha Neogi, BS ’20, accepted a job offer at AT&T, an opportunity that came about from building a resume of several internships and networking at a Forbes Under 30 conference last year.
Photo by Lucia Zapata
Men illustration
Illustration of Woman
Illustration of Guy
Illustration of Girl working
Title of the article
By Stevenson Swanson
A sleek, new website describes itself as a talent marketplace that matches contract workers with short-term assignments around the world, noting that it posts more than 400 positions daily. If that sounds like yet another example of the growth of the freelance gig economy, it is. But this is no seat-of-the-pants, start-up operation. It is a platform operated by EY, the global accounting and professional services giant.

Called GigNow, it was launched in late 2017 and has already built a network of some 30,000 professionals, thousands of whom have worked on assignments at EY that last for an average of six months. For a company that traces its roots back to 1903, has a global workforce of more than 270,000 people, and operates in a business typically seen as bound in tradition, GigNow testifies to the changing nature of work in the 21st century—an evolution that has rapidly accelerated as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Fashion Faces Forward - Thread spindle with leaf illustration
FASHION FACES FORWARD
By Claire Curry

Imagine your wardrobe featuring the latest designer styles, crafted from organic cotton and colored with natural, chemical-free dyes. Accessorize with Reishi mushroom leather handbags and shoes stitched together in factories that honor fair and equitable labor practices, with companies behind them that help to raise communities out of poverty around the globe.

For a growing number of consumers, this is the perfect picture. It’s also a snapshot of the vision business leaders are aspiring to achieve as they work to transform an industry notorious for its negative impact on the environment.

“Fashion is responsible for 20 percent of the industrial wastewater on the planet and about 10 percent of all carbon emissions,” said Cara Smyth, leader of Accenture’s Responsible Retail Sustainability practice, a Gabelli Fellow, and founder of the new Responsible Business Coalition at Fordham.

100
Reasons to Celebrate
One hundred years ago, Fordham University followed the call to change the way the world does business. Since then, we’ve proven that global vision, compassionate leaders, and purpose–not just profit–will enable business to change the world.
Edited by Jenna Gambino, BS ’14

So much has changed since 1920, but there’s one thing that hasn’t changed at all: our intention to better both ourselves and the global business landscape.

Along with the Gabelli School’s growth from the five boroughs to six continents, we celebrate 100 years of dedication from our faculty, administrators, donors, and alumni. They were, are, and will continue to be change-makers and innovative leaders with the vision to redefine the way we do business. We’re standing taller than ever at 100 years, thanks to their contributions—and the core foundation we’ve upheld since the beginning.

In our first century, we realized the impact we have when we live up to our true potential—to out-inspire, out-network, out-innovate, and outlast…upending the status quo.

Join us for our next 100.

Fordham Business: 100 Reasons to Celebrate
100
Reasons to Celebrate
One hundred years ago, Fordham University followed the call to change the way the world does business. Since then, we’ve proven that global vision, compassionate leaders, and purpose–not just profit–will enable business to change the world.

So much has changed since 1920, but there’s one thing that hasn’t changed at all: our intention to better both ourselves and the global business landscape.

Along with the Gabelli School’s growth from the five boroughs to six continents, we celebrate 100 years of dedication from our faculty, administrators, donors, and alumni. They were, are, and will continue to be change-makers and innovative leaders with the vision to redefine the way we do business. We’re standing taller than ever at 100 years, thanks to their contributions—and the core foundation we’ve upheld since the beginning.

In our first century, we realized the impact we have when we live up to our true potential—to out-inspire, out-network, out-innovate, and outlast…upending the status quo.

Join us for our next 100.

origins & milestones
NEW YORK HUSTLE, GLOBAL MUSCLE
WOMEN OF THE GABELLI SCHOOL
BUSINESS WITH PURPOSE
unlocking change: People to watch
origins & milestones
NEW YORK HUSTLE, GLOBAL MUSCLE
WOMEN OF THE GABELLI SCHOOL
BUSINESS WITH PURPOSE
unlocking change: People to watch
Ideas
Faculty Research
Research graphic with a globe, telescope, tablet, and measuring tools
Eun-Hee Kim, Ph.D. headshot
Photo by Chris Taggart
Eun-Hee Kim, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Strategy and Statistics

Think about the last time you had to share bad news with a friend or family member. Did you come right out and say it or did you dance around the issue?

It’s human nature to want to decrease negativity in a conversation, but Eun-Hee Kim, Ph.D., assistant professor of strategy and statistics at the Gabelli School, says something similar happens when it comes to businesses reporting bad environmental news.

Allie Kosterich, Ph.D. headshot
Photo by Nat Clymer
Allie Kosterich, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Communications and Media Management

With the rise of digital journalism, news organizations have undergone a dramatic shift in how they develop content and distribute it. Technological advances combined with the rapid growth of data generation mean news is no longer only printed in newspapers and delivered to your doorstep. As digital technology has developed, newspaper circulation has decreased and the traditional newsroom has evolved.

How are media companies adapting to such immense institutional change? What does the transformation in the industry mean for its workers? Allie Kosterich, Ph.D., assistant professor of communications and media management at the Gabelli School, explored these questions in a 2019 paper published in the Journal of Media Business Studies. She conducted semi-structured interviews with 20 news editors and managers across 17 global news firms to learn about strategies companies are using to manage the digital world of journalism and its evolving workforce.

People
Dean Rapaccioli and Marcia Page during a live chat
Photo by Michael Benigno
On Campus:
Marcia Page
Questions
Marcia Page, executive chair at Värde Partners, describes her career as one shaped by her education, valued mentors, common sense, and intuition. Page joined Dean Donna Rapaccioli, Ph.D., to discuss her journey from analyst to co-founder, co-CEO, and co-CIO of the global alternative investment firm that now manages $14 billion in assets.

The following excerpt was adapted from their October 11, 2019 discussion held at the Gabelli School.

Dean Rapaccioli: Can you tell us a little about your career path? What was the journey like, in terms of the paths you chose to take, and those you chose not to take?
Marcia Page: I kind of fell into investing. I grew up in a small town in Minnesota, and growing up in the 1970s, there was a deep recession and there were no jobs. After college, I went straight to the University of Minnesota for my MBA. My first job was as a financial analyst for Cargill, a huge private agricultural firm. Little did I know that I had a sponsor in the firm. He was layers ahead of me, but always made sure I got interesting projects and had visibility with senior leadership.

Books
Making the Cut:
Life Inside the PGA Tour System
John A. Fortunato, Ph.D.
Professor, Communications and Media Management

The success of the PGA Tour lies in the compelling storylines of the golfers’ individual quests for achievement—making the tournament cut, winning a tournament, qualifying for the FedEx Cup Playoffs, and the ultimate challenge of making it onto the Tour, where victory is often determined by a single stroke.

Making the Cut book

While some golfers make the cut, others miss it. Making the Cut: Life Inside the PGA Tour System, written by John A. Fortunato, Ph.D., documents the stories of golfers on both sides of the dividing line. It explains the complex qualification system of the PGA Tour and depicts a series of compelling stories about professional golfers and their personal experiences and challenges.

Based on interviews with more than 20 professional golfers—including multiple-tournament winners Xander Schauffele, Kevin Kisner, and Jim Herman—Making the Cut: Life Inside the PGA Tour System provides new insight into the PGA Tour system, the events affecting tournament outcomes, and the career-changing opportunities that result.

John A. Fortunato, Ph.D., is the author of five books and has published more than 50 journal articles and book chapters.

People
Barbara Porco Portrait
Photo by Tom Stoelker
The Art of Accounting

In the Uffizi Gallery in Florence hangs one of the most famous Renaissance works of art, Botticelli’s Primavera. It depicts nine mythological figures, including the Three Graces, goddesses representing feminine virtues, shown dancing.

“It is the most magnificent portrayal of women,” said Barbara Porco, Ph.D., who doesn’t miss a chance to view the painting whenever she visits Italy.

An accounting professor at the Gabelli School of Business, Porco had originally planned to be an art major. “My great-grandfather came to this country in 1895,” she said, “and he was commissioned to do the chiseling in some of the landmark buildings in New York City,” including the New York Public Library. Her mother is also an artist who paints with watercolors.

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