globalEDGE Business Beat - June 2015

Speaker: Dina Howell, Saatchi & Saatchi X

Air Date: June 11, 2015

Tomas Hult speaks with Dina Howell, CEO of Saatchi & Saatchi X, about her accolade of being recognized as the Marketer of the Year 2015, by the Academy of Marketing Science as well as her experiences as the recently appointed CEO of Saatchi & Saatchi X. Dina draws on her background as a top executive at Proctor & Gamble, her expertise in shopper marketing, and buying habits by females and males.

Speaker: Frederic Lund, International Business Development

Air Date: June 11, 2015

Tomas Hult speaks with Frederic Lund, Vice President, International Business Development, Domino’s, about Domino’s new branding, international ventures, and product assortment. Domino’s global businesses make up more than 50 percent of the company’s sales and operations.

Speaker: John Sztykiel, Created to C

Air Date: June 11, 2015

Tomas Hult speaks with John Sztykiel, CEO and President of Created to C, and Member of the Board of Directors, Spartan Motors (and former CEO of Spartan Motors). John has a fascinating background as a company leader in Michigan.

He and his wife Joni recently started Created to C, a venture that will help companies and perhaps also start companies in a variety of areas. John talks about “getting back to reality” and getting into the trenches of running a business, using the passion, skills and knowledge John has acquired over many years of top-level leadership at Spartan Motors. They also discuss the value of competitiveness derived from John’s high-performance athletic days as a hockey player.

Speaker: Doug Barry, International Trade Administration's Global Knowledge Center of the U.S. Department of Commerce

Air Date: June 10, 2015

Tomas Hult speaks with Doug Barry, Deputy Director of theGlobal Knowledge Center, in the U.S. Department of Commerce, Washington, DC. Democratization and technology around the world are core areas of global reach of companies today.

E-commerce, NEI NEXT, and other government programs are discussed as vehicles that can help the United States be competitive in the global marketplace. They also discuss the stability of the U.S. international trade efforts, regardless of political party and president in power. The core theme is around the U.S. Department, their 100 local offices around the country, and what we can do to continue to be successful globally.

Speaker: Dr. O.C. Ferrell, Business Ethics Resources

Air Date: June 10, 2015

Tomas Hult speaks with Dr. O.C. Ferrell, one of the foremost global authorities on business ethics and the founder of Business Ethics Resources. The interview focuses on frameworks, resources, and approaches to developing business ethics programs in companies, and the teaching of business ethics to both business executives and university students.

Comparisons are made of global ethics issues, what these ethics issues mean for companies, and the effect of ethics on the bottom-line performance of companies. An overview of Ethics in the Global Marketplace is also provided.

Speaker: Forrest Morgeson, American Customer Satisfaction Index

Air Date: June 10, 2015

Tomas Hult speaks with Forrest Morgeson, Research Director of the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI). ACSI data has been used extensively for more than two decades by researchers and companies interested in studying the dynamics of customer satisfaction.

Tomas Hult and Forrest Morgeson discuss a recent international study on customer satisfaction. As businesses move into international markets, they often do so with a "one size fits all" customer satisfaction strategy. But factors as basic as how consumers prioritize pricing and quality can differ sharply across cultures and economic systems, according to their research in the Journal of International Marketing. Success will depend in part on understanding these perceptions across cultures regarding customer satisfaction and which is more essential, quality or cost.

Speaker: Sanjay Gupta, Eli Broad College of Business at Michigan State University

Air Date: June 25, 2015

Tomas Hult speaks with Sanjay Gupta, appointed on June 17, 2015, as the 11th Dean of MSU's Eli Broad College of Business. The interview focused on Sanjay’s interest in seeking out the deanship position and the Broad College of Business’ goals.

These goals are put in context of the capital campaign that Michigan State University is in the midst of, titled “Empower Extraordinary.” The focus of the capital campaign for the University is on (1) “An Engine of Opportunity”; (2) “A Vibrant Community”; (3) “A Force for Creativity, Discovery, and Learning”; and (4) “A Global Problem Solver." Sanjay Gupta also talks about his goals as Dean of the Eli Broad College of Business, dubbed Broad 2020 as a working framework.