Dr. Stephen Hicks, CEE’s Executive Director, talked recently with Fall 2009 guest speaker Dr. Jerry Kirkpatrick about why having a philosophical background helps businesspeople attain greater clarity and confidence in making important, ethically-charged decisions. Below are parts I and II of the interview.

Part I:

Part II:

Steve Mariotti is the founder of the Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship (NFTE). Before NFTE, Mr. Mariotti was a successful entrepreneur and a teacher in some of New York’s most challenging schools. Because of his innovative methods for teaching business concepts Mariotti was named Teacher of the Year for New York State in 1988. We met with Mr. Mariotti in New York to explore his thoughts on his passion for teaching and entrepreneurship education as an exit strategy from poverty for at-risk youth.

Kaizen: You were mugged in 1981 by three teenagers in New York’s Lower East Side, and that led you to a major career change?

Mariotti: It did. The mugging caught me emotionally off guard, and I had a lot of flashbacks afterward. It got me interested in the question of why some kids would humiliate me over a small amount of money. And I started to think: Had they been able to sell me something or ask me to invest in a business deal, they could have gotten a lot more money and it would have been a win/win situation for everyone. And that really got me interested in a new career path in education, which turned out great.
(more…)

The latest issue of Kaizen features our interview with Steve Mariotti, founder of the Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship (NFTE), an organization dedicated to providing entrepreneurship education to low-income youths.

Also featured in Kaizen are CEE guest speakers David Mayer and C. Bradley Thompson, an interview with Steve Kadamian on his entrepreneurship course, and a report on the 2009 High School Entrepreneur Day.

A PDF version of Kaizen is available here. We will soon post separately the full interview with Mr. Mariotti.

If you would like to receive a complimentary issue of the print version of Kaizen, please email your name and postal address to CEE [at] Rockford.edu.

Jerry Reinsdorf is Chairman of the Chicago Bulls and the Chicago White Sox, United Center, and U.S. Cellular Field. He is also a partner in Bojer Financial Ltd., a real estate investment company. We spoke with Mr. Reinsdorf to explore his thoughts on sports, the business of sports, and success in life.

Kaizen: You grew up in Brooklyn when the Dodgers were there. Were you a fan as a youth?

Reinsdorf: I was an avid Dodgers fan. Everybody in Brooklyn lived and died with the Brooklyn Dodgers.

Kaizen: You went to college at George Washington University in Washington, D.C., and then earned a law degree from Northwestern University in Chicago. Looking back, what was the most valuable business skill or knowledge you acquired while a student?

Reinsdorf: In college I was involved in a lot of extracurricular activities—I was the business manager of the newspaper, business manager of the yearbook, and participated in many other activities. It gave me a start in trying to think like a businessman. I don’t think I learned anything in law school about business. I did learn one incredibly valuable thing in law school—I had a professor who taught us that if somebody asks you a question, your answer should be, “Why do you want to know?” Obviously that helps you frame the answer and puts everything in context.
(more…)

The latest issue of Kaizen features our interview with Jerry Reinsdorf, owner of the Chicago Bulls, Chicago White Sox, and many real estate ventures. Also featured in this issue of Kaizen are a mini-interview with Professor Shawn Klein on his sports ethics course, as well as reports on Professor Langston, who received a course grant, and the prize-winning essays of five students in the Business and Economic Ethics course—Naomi Byars, Jennifer LaSarre, Kathreen Atkerson, Seth Kryder, and Brittney Leach.

A PDF version of Kaizen is available here. We will soon post separately the interview with Mr. Reinsdorf.

If you would like to receive a complimentary issue of the print version of Kaizen, please email your name and postal address to CEE [at] Rockford.edu.

The latest issue of Kaizen features our interview with Kevin O’Connor, co-founder and former CEO of DoubleClick. DoubleClick is the world’s largest Internet advertising technology company and was recently acquired by Google for $3.1 billion. Also featured in Kaizen are reports on a new course coming soon from Professor Asongu, our guest speakers, and projects by students Bridget Markin, Khetsiwe Dlamini, Stacy Moore, and Goran Mamic.

A PDF version of Kaizen is available here. We will soon post the full version of the interview with Mr. O’Connor.

If you would like to receive a complimentary issue of the print version of Kaizen, please email your name and postal address to CEE [at] Rockford.edu.

The first issue of our glossy newsletter, Kaizen, has been published.

It features some of the Center’s faculty, last semester’s student prize-winners in Business Ethics—and a feature interview with New York City architect John Gillis.

We hope you will enjoy it.

You can also download a PDF of this issue of Kaizen.

If you would like to receive a complimentary sample issue of Kaizen, please email your name and postal address to CEE @ Rockford.edu.