Isenberg News

Sport Management Graduate Drives Minority Mentorship Program at Isenberg

April 24, 2018

McCormack Sport Management has launched the Initiative for Underrepresented Students which pairs Sport Management graduates mentors with the department’s current McCormack students—all from minority backgrounds. Melcolm Ruffin '13 partnered with Nefertiti Walker, Sport Management Professor/ Director of Diversity & Inclusion; Nicole Melton, Sport Management professor; and Molly McGuigan, Communications, Events/Alumni Relations Coordinator in this first-step toward a longer-term initiative, which will take on recruitment, scholarships, and career development dimensions.

Three Biomedical Start-ups Take Top Prizes at Innovation Challenge

April 18, 2018

Three student-led teams won top honors at the final of the 2017-18 Innovation Challenge at the annual cross-campus entrepreneurship competition run by the Berthiaume Center for Entrepreneurship at the Isenberg School of Management. The start-ups, eBiologics, Phytos Therapeutics, and Kinase, Inc., were awarded seed money of $35,000, $20,000, and $15,000, respectively, by a seven-judge panel of area business leaders.

Political Analyst Tackles #MeToo Workplace Issues

April 11, 2018

The outpouring of female accounts of sexual misconduct in the workplace from the #MeToo movement first took hold in response to the world of Hollywood, but the problem has surfaced in almost every sphere, including the world of business. Companies that once seemed invincible have paid dearly, both in business and reputational terms—a concern for anyone with an entrepreneurial vision. Political analyst and federal anti-discrimination law expert Jennifer C. Braceras shared her knowledge on the topic in Charlie Johnson's entrepreneurship class.

Fifth Annual Women of Isenberg Conference Empowers Hundreds of Students

March 21, 2018

“It isn’t working hard that gets you recognized. It’s working smart,” emphasized Victoria Vega ’88, keynote speaker at the 5th annual Women of Isenberg Annual Conference. Vega’s remarks formed the basis of a prevailing theme throughout the day-long conference, which stressed a changing landscape for women in the workplace and the importance of finding one’s own way even in challenging circumstances.

Accounting Alumnus of the Year Exemplifies the Profession's Reach

March 16, 2018

Each year, Jeff shares career insights with scores of students in Isenberg’s introductory accounting course. “You will always be employable and not just in public accounting,” he tells them. “I wanted to be an FBI agent from the beginning. Among other things, my accounting degree was a means to an end, a differentiator."

Isenberg’s Online MBA Program Ranks First in the U.S., Third Worldwide

March 15, 2018

For the second year running, Isenberg has earned the #1 U.S. and #3 worldwide ranking in the Financial Times’ annual survey of Online MBA programs. Founded in 2001, Isenberg’s online program has 1,500 active students. It maintains the same high academic standards as the school’s 65-year-old Full-time MBA program.

Seven Finalists Selected for Innovation Challenge

March 02, 2018

Hosted by the Berthiaume Center for Entrepreneurship, the four-part Innovation Challenge continued with The Semifinal on Wednesday, February 28. In front of a panel of four judges, 12 student-led teams gave five-minute pitches describing their ventures and participated in a 10-minute Q&A session. The judges selected seven teams to advance to Innovation Challenge

UMass Video Profile: Doug Berthiaume, '71

February 26, 2018

Waters Corporation, Chairman, President & CEO, Accounting, Isenberg School of Management
Watch as Doug Berthiaume talks about his time at Isenberg and UMass and his view on business and entrepreneurship. In early 2014 the Berthiaume Center for Entrepreneurship at the Isenberg School of Management was established thanks to the generous financial support of Diana and Doug Berthiaume.

Isenberg Professor Celebrates Economic Journal’s Twentieth Anniversary

February 15, 2018

“During my twenty years with MassBenchmarks, two themes connected with the state’s economy have figured prominently in our journal,” its Executive Editor and Isenberg professor Robert Nakosteen told a gathering of fellow economists, and leaders—business and political. “The first is the state’s dynamic mix of high-technology and education-intensive industries. The second has been the uneven sharing geographically of that prosperity.”

UMass Video Profile: Isenberg's Anthony Vitale, '18

January 23, 2018

After he graduates, Anthony Vitale ’18 will be working with IBM. His time as president of UMass Student Government Association and as a student at Isenberg School of Management helped make it happen. Watch Anthony discuss his drive to get involved in this video.

Progress in an Alimentary/Business Journey

January 18, 2018

“At the end of the day, our weight loss device is life changing,” Allurion Technologies cofounder and chief scientific officer Shantanu Gaur told students in Charlie Johnson’s Isenberg course, New Ventures. Gaur was describing his company’s Elipse intragastric balloon, which he advised, “can be placed in a lunch break without anesthesia or endoscopy.” With the [essentially] procedureless Elipse, “you lose 15 to 20% of your body weight in four months,” he said. You should view the Elipse, he added, as the centerpiece in a lifestyle strategy that emphasizes more mindful eating and exercise.

Celebrating David Lepak’s Life

December 22, 2017

In an event brimming with emotion, friends and colleagues came together on Saturday night to celebrate the life of Isenberg’s David Lepak, who died suddenly on Thursday, December 7, at the age of 46. Lepak, the Berthiaume Endowed Chair of Business Leadership & Professor of Management, and the Management department chair, was a popular professor who had been part of the Isenberg family since 2016. Married and the father of 4 children, he was also active in the community, coaching youth soccer, and volunteering at his kids’ schools.

Panel and Networking Highlight Isenberg Women in Finance Luncheon

December 15, 2017

Road-tested advice for women contemplating financial careers and networking opportunities with their peers and Boston area employers were highlights at Isenberg’s first Women in Finance Luncheon. Presented by State Street and coordinated by Isenberg’s MBA program and the school’s (undergraduate) Women in Business student group, the event at the UMass Club in downtown Boston attracted 51 students from Isenberg and five other area universities: Boston College, Brandeis, Northeastern, Suffolk, and Worcester Polytech.

Isenberg Grad Changed the Rules in Sportswear Marketing

December 07, 2017

“My brother excelled in operations; marketing always came easily for me,” remarked Marty Jacobson ’68 in Matthew Glennon’s course, Fundamentals of Marketing. The Isenberg marketing grad’s prowess was a critical ingredient in the innovation and success of Nutmeg Industries, the brothers’ upscale sportswear company. The Tampa-based company succeeded spectacularly throughout the 1980s and into the early 1990s, when Vanity Fair Corporation bought it for $325.5M in cash.

Alumnus Offers Banker’s-Eye-View of Property Loan Assessments

December 07, 2017

“In loaning money to a prospective buyer of property, I’m not giving advice; I’m negotiating,” emphasized PeoplesBank CEO Tom Senecal ’88 in a visit to HTM professor Bob Wilson’s course, Real Estate Finance, Analysis, and Investments. “I’m not in the business of owning property; I’m in the business of loaning money,” added Senecal, whose network of community-focused banks rule as the largest mutual bank business in western Massachusetts. The Isenberg accounting graduate revealed a banker’s perspective that shed light on a case study recently tackled by the students.

How We Built the Women of Isenberg Conference

December 07, 2017

Now in it's fifth year, the Women of Isenberg Conference brings together over 300 students, faculty and alumni. The conference is organized by the Isenberg Women in Business student organization. Learn more about what it took to create this highly successful event.

Four Ventures Earn $15,000 Total at The Seed Pitch

December 04, 2017

Hosted by the Berthiaume Center for Entrepreneurship, the four-part Innovation Challenge continued with The Seed Pitch on Wednesday, November 29. In front of a panel of three judges, 13 teams gave five-minute pitches of their venture ideas and participated in Q&A with the panel. With assistance from the sponsors, EY and Bud Robertson (Isenberg ’72), $15,000 in prize money was awarded to four ventures.

Isenberg’s Gail Cruise Co-Chairs International Conference; Receives Honor

November 27, 2017

Gail Cruise, a senior lecturer in Isenberg’s Channing L. Bete Business Communications Program, recently excelled as co-chair of the Association for Business Communication’s (ABC) 82nd annual conference. On the gathering’s final night, Gail received the Association’s Spirit of ABC Award, which recognizes “members who exemplify friendliness and openness to both newcomers and current members [of the organization].”

Isenberg Hospitality Graduate Reveals a Celebrity Chef’s Savvy and Grit

November 09, 2017

“Remember, it’s all about journeys. Be patient!” HTM graduate and high-profile Manhattan-based chef Marc Forgione ’01 advised his mostly student audience in the Campus Center Auditorium in late October. Since its debut in 2008, Marc’s establishment, Restaurant Marc Forgione, has earned coveted Michelin stars and review kudos from the New York Times, Forbes magazine, and the Zagat Guide. In 2012, Marc won the Food Network’s Next Iron Chef competition, instantly gaining international “chef” celebrity status. So why did Chef Forgione regale his student audience with the good, the bad, and the...

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Driven Series Pairs Leading Building Innovators in Cutting-Edge Conversation

November 09, 2017

On November 1, Bjarke Ingels and John Fish shared insights in the third installment of Isenberg’s Boston-based Driven conversation series. In a wide-ranging, hour-long discussion at the Aloft Seaport Hotel, Fish and Ingels dissected trends in building and design technology, holistic urban design and infrastructure, transportation networks, sustainability, and other issues of the day.

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