School of Management: The blog of Dean Jerry Zappia

Dan Strong - A Remembrance

I had the distinct priviledge and pleasure to know Dan Strong for 26 years.  Dan came to us from KeukaCollege in 1981.  He brought his knowledge and senior rank to the department and he also brought a very different look.

Many of us have a mental picture of an accounting professor.  It is a good bet that Dan did not match your perception.  Instead of a blue suit, white shirt and black wingtips, Dan wore western shirts, string ties, boots and jeans.  I often teased Dan and told him that Nazareth was the first college in the greater Rochester area to hire a “county/western CPA”.

However, that was too simplistic.  Several words were used to describe Dan.  Words such as: unique, irreverent, earthy, spontaneous, loud, fun, opinionated, passionate, relaxed, uninhibited, conservative, liberal, late, eccentric, self-effacing, smart, loyal and kind

However, two words that were never used were pretentious and fake.   Anyone who met Dan knew that “what you saw was what you got”.  And it was his honest and open demeanor that allowed him to be so successful in the classroom for the last twenty eight years.

He never tried to impress people with his expertise in accounting and finance.  In fact, he spent a career trying to simplify and bring clarity to these complicated subjects.

Again, Dan was an accounting professor.  If you were to take a poll among business students, you would quickly discover that accounting is not one of their favorite subjects.  Many students are afraid of the course and they are even more afraid of accounting professors.

Dan quickly broke down their fear by creating a relaxed and informal environment where students felt secure.  When students finished with his course, accounting was still not their favorite subject but they were no longer afraid of accounting or the professor.

I often speak meet with business alumni and the first person they ask about is “Professor Strong”.  If we have a business alumni event they always ask “Will Dan Strong be there?”.  That type of affection and respect is reserved only for those who have done something right.

It is not hard to figure out why students cared so much for Dan.  Dan loved his students and he loved conversation.  Before and after class, you often found Dan speaking with students about a variety of topics like the economy, politics, cars, computers, business and many other topics.

In the day of instant messages and immediate gratification, Dan was willing to talk with anyone, about anything, for as long as they wanted.

Sometimes what makes a professor so interesting is their interest outside of the classroom.  Accounting was only a small portion of Dan’s life.  He was also a lover of art, music, history, film, politics, technology and many other things. 

He firmly believed that the liberal arts should be the foundation of a professional education and he did not hesitate to share this view with colleagues and students.

Dan was asked to do many different things.  He taught twenty-four different courses during his career at Nazareth.  He also spent five years as department chair from 1985 to 1990. 

Dan’s crazy, wild and compassionate spirit will never be replaced.  He will be greatly missed.

 

Time to Bailout the Automakers

It is time for a bailout.  It is one thing to let an auto company fail.  But as the CEO of Chrysler, Robert Nardelli, says it is quite another matter to let the U.S. auto industry collapse. 

I am not a big fan of Nardelli or Chrysler.  However, millions of people will be hurt (suppliers, dealers, investors, employees, retirees, vehicle owners) and create a dependence on foreign auto companies (think national security).  If you do not like dependence on foreign oil you may not like dependence on foreign automakers either.

My view, and the view of many others, is that the economic and social impact will be so harmful and pervasive that it will take many years to recover.  Not acceptable!

Any bailout should have plenty of conditions. I partially agree with New York Times Columnist, Tom Friedman, a severe critic of the bailout, that the "Big Three" need to present a plan.  All stakeholders will need to sacrifice something.  The unions must take a lower wage and benefit package, top management should be purged, suppliers must negotiate and the shift to more energy efficient autos should be accelerated.

There will still be a lot of pain but the bailout could be a blessing in disguise.  It could hasten our progress toward energy independence and start us on the path to a more nimble and competitive auto industry.

 

Business Schools and the Financial Crisis

Welcome to the blog of Jerry Zappia, Dean of the School of Management at Nazareth College. In my first post, I'd like to discuss the recent financial crisis and what it means for management education.

The recent financial crisis is appalling. I wish we could fix the blame to one particular person, or group but a lot of people are guilty of making short-sighted decisions. The housing industry, banks, Wall Street, consumers and the government can all share some portion of the blame.

I shudder to think about the large number of “crisis” participants that were graduates of business schools. A degree from a business school, or any school for that matter, does not always come with a great set of values and a desire to serve the greater good.

I would argue that the thoughtless pursuit of profit and short-term gain is not what is taught in business schools. Now is the time for academics to identify the many socially responsible heroes and participants of American and global business. Some prime examples are James Sinegal of Costco and Warren Buffet of Berkshire Hathaway.

Take the time to study their careers, values and decision-making. They are not perfect and have not always been on top. But their value systems and concern for others have motivated them to buck the popular wisdom of those whose primary goal was to create quick profits instead of long-term value.