Opportunity of a lifetimeCarlson School students talk business and education withIndia’s President Abdul KalamBY BRENT OPALL

GLOBALG O I N G

A NEWSLETTER PRODUCED BY INTERNATIONAL PROGRAMS AT THE CARLSON SCHOOL OF MANAGEMENT

SPRING 2007

Carlson School graduate studentsexpected to learn much fromtheir two-week study experience

in India. They didn’t expect an educa-tional and personal opportunity that fewreceive—a private conversation with thepresident of India.

Mani Subramani, associate professorof information and decision sciences,wanted students to understand thegrowing role of India in the globalmarketplace. He began leading the trip to India for students from the CarlsonFull-Time MBA, Carlson Part-Time MBA,and Human Resources and IndustrialRelations graduate programs to study off-shore practices firsthand three years ago.

While in the country, students visitwith high-ranking business leaders. Thistime, though, the group benefited fromthe opportunity of a lifetime. Organizedthrough contacts in the Indian Adminis-

Carlson studentsinteract with President

Abdul Kalam

trative Service, the visit resulted from acombination of fortuitous planning andgood timing.

The Carlson School group met withPresident Abdul Kalam at the Presiden-tial Palace for a 20-minute visit onJanuary 2, 2007. India needs to continueinvesting in educational opportunities for its young, says Kalam, and educationplays a key role in the country’s plans toincrease its status as an industrial worldleader.

Kalam knows the importance of globaltechnology and business. He gained aninternational reputation as project direc-tor for India’s first indigenous satellitelaunch vehicle, which in 1980 successfullylaunched the Rohini satellite in near earthorbit. Later in his career Kalam, thenchair of the Technology Information,Forecasting, and Assessment Council, ledthe country with the help of 500 experts

to arrive at Technology Vision 2020, aroad map for transforming India fromdeveloping to developed nation status. In2002, Kalam became the 11th president ofIndia.

In his talk to students, PresidentKalam shared his vision of inclusive andequitable economic development, whichinvolves delivering higher living standardsto rural populations and improvement insectors such as agriculture that have notyet benefited from the country’s technol-ogy-fueled growth. He also responded toquestions that were posed by CarlsonSchool students on topics such as educa-tion, agriculture, and loan programs.

Carlson student Lori Lyons-Williamswanted to know if Kalam was concernedabout the brain drain that can occur whenstudents from India who study in Europeand the United States decide not toreturn to India.

Kalam responded by sharing the exam-ples of Nalanda and Taxila, two centers ofeducation that existed in India more than2,000 years ago and brought togetherscholars from all over the world. India canuse these examples from the past, he says,and develop new centers of excellence toattract the best minds not just fromIndia, but from all over the world.

“I am not concerned with the braindrain that so many seem to see as aproblem,” says Kalam. No matter theirlocation, students from India will con-tribute. “Ultimately the problems theysolve will better the global community.Other countries have transplanted theircitizens throughout the world for manyyears.”

2 G o i n g G l o b a l

In the Carlson School’s first-ever China Seminar, studentsworked with counterparts

from the Shanghai-based CheungKong Graduate School ofBusiness to analyze the Chineseoperations of Twin Cities-basedInternational Dairy Queen (IDQ).

The project involved classsessions at home in Minneapolis,virtual collaborations withCheung Kong students, and twoweeks in Shanghai for on-the-ground market research andanalysis. It began in November2006, when Ann Stone, IDQ vicepresident of international opera-tions, presented the case to Carlsonstudents and then flew to Shanghai toshare the same material with students atCheung Kong.

“Our motivation was the tremendousgrowth we are experiencing in China,both in terms of restaurant growth andthe number of franchisees we haverelationships with,” says Stone. “Wewanted to have the best possible under-standing of our business opportunity inthe region.”

Through a competitive process, theCarlson School selected 25 graduatestudents from the Full-Time MBA,

Part-Time MBA, and Human Resourcesand Industrial Relations programs toparticipate. Students from the CarlsonSchool and Cheung Kong worked oncross-cultural teams.

In January 2007, the students traveledto Shanghai for two weeks. There theyattended daily academic sessions withfaculty leader Seth Werner, a lecturer inthe Carlson School strategic managementand organization department. They alsovisited and explored various retail formats—from the “old market” to modernsupermarkets.

Blizzards in ChinaThe China Seminar puts students to work analyzing International Dairy Queen operations BY MATTHEW GOODE AND WENDY WITHERSPOON

Internat ional Programs Staff

Michael Houston, Associate Dean 612-625-2075 mhouston@csom.umn.eduMahmood Zaidi, Founding Director 612-625-0578 mzaidi@csom.umn.eduAnne D’Angelo King, Director 612-626-8182 aking@csom.umn.eduWendy Witherspoon, Assistant Director 612-624-4334 wwitherspoon@csom.umn.eduJoe Mosher, Global Immersion Coordinator 612-625-0562 jmosher@csom.umn.eduMatthew Goode, Global Executive MBA Coordinator 612-626-8727 mgoode@csom.umn.eduDeirdre Opp, Global Enrichment Elective Coordinator 612-626-4814 dopp@csom.umn.eduAbby Pinto, Global Enrichment Elective Coordinator 612-624-4334 apinto@csom.umn.eduLibby Jensen, Program Support Specialist 612-626-4813 libbyjensen@csom.umn.eduLinda Ganyaw, Administrative Aide 612-625-9361 lganyaw@csom.umn.eduNgoc Nguyen, Project Assistant 612-626-8323 nnguyen@csom.umn.eduMegan Sherman, Project Assistant 612-626-7669 msherman@csom.umn.edu

While in Shanghai, studentteams met for the first time inperson to finalize their researchapproach, then traveled to avariety of Dairy Queen loca-tions in the city. They observedcustomer behavior, conductedsurveys of actual and potentialcustomers, posed detailedquestions to store managers andworkers, and sampled a healthydose of Dairy Queen treats.They also met with Stone andmembers of the IDQ leadershipteam in China.

At the end of the secondweek, the teams presented their

findings to a panel of IDQ leaders andChina-based franchise representatives.They immediately received positive feed-back, with franchise representatives say-ing that they were impressed with thebreadth and depth of the research. IDQleadership also took note.

“The students developed a promotionidea that has tremendous ‘legs,’ whichwe’re working on,” says Stone. “Theirinsights into our menu offerings [inChina] have spawned a complete re-look at the entire menu.”

S p r i n g 2 0 0 7 3

C ommon wisdom says that when large multinational companies open research and development labs in an overseas community, thecommunity benefits from not only new jobs but also from the knowl-

edge from the new company that spills over to other related companies.New research, though, suggests that the knowledge

spillover effects may not be as high as expected.Mazhar Islam, Carlson School doctoral student in

strategic management and organization, and MinyuanZhao, a professor at the Stephen M. Ross School ofBusiness at the University of Michigan, studied patentrecords and other details of the pharmaceuticalindustry during a 25-year period.

They discovered that the connections of largecompanies with their worldwide branches offerlimited—if any—benefits to the local internationalcommunities in which they operate. The Strategic

Management Society recently recognized the researchers’ work by awardingtheir paper with Best Paper honors at its 2006 conference.

To understand why the knowledge spillover is limited, Islam looked atZhao’s previous research, which explored why large, multinational companiesestablished research and development labs in places like India and China.“It’s a little bit paradoxical,” he says. “Those countries have weak intellectualproperty rights, so it seems strange that an American pharmaceuticalcompany would take its secrets and innovations to a place like China. AChinese scientist working for a laboratory could easily take the technologyand go to another company with it.”

However, large companies have been savvy about this challenge, and havestructured their organizations accordingly. Islam compares the structure to amultifaceted puzzle. “If you divide a puzzle into four sections, and give onepart to a Chinese engineer, one part to an Indian engineer, one part to anIsraeli engineer, and one part to an American engineer, they can each solve apart, but they can’t see the whole picture,” he explains. “If the scientists can’t decipher the entire puzzle, they may not be able to take away the mostvaluable knowledge.”

This research led to important questions about how the structure withinlarge, multinational companies might affect knowledge spillover across firmsin a single area.

Small, entrepreneurial companies are limited in their abilities to restrictknowledge in the same ways that large companies can, says Islam. Collabora-tions in such firms tend to be less structured, and researchers’ explorationsoften lead to a far more comprehensive understanding of issues by individualresearchers. So while the knowledge of small ventures may make its way tolarger companies, the reverse is less likely to occur.

“[Our findings suggest that] small firms might not want to move next door to a company like Pfizer [with the assumption] that they’ll see greatbenefits,” Islam says. “A small company might be better off in a place withmany other small firms. It’s a strategic choice.”

Mazhar Islam

Limited benefitsCarlson research shows that knowledge spillover oflarge multinational expansion into communities isless than expectedBY ERIN PETERSON

Horsing around Cargill Animal Nutrition hiresBrand Enterprise to analyzeEuropean horse feed market BY KATY HOLMGREN

Cargill Animal Nutrition hired theCarlson Brand Enterprise, a selectgroup of MBA students who serve

as marketing and branding consultants, toanalyze the European market for brandedhorse feed.

The American market for branded horsefeed reflects horses’ status as beloved petsand sporting partners. Owners value thescience behind Cargill’s Nutrena® brand, a U.S. market leader in horse feed salesgrowth. The company’s expertise means that a Cargill product will ensure optimalnutrition for an owner’s horse, no matter itsage or occupation.

With its stateside success, Cargill AnimalNutrition wanted the Enterprise consultantsto take a closer look at market size in theEuropean Union; gain a deeper understand-ing of industry trends, market and segmentattractiveness, and consumer preferences;and identify market opportunities for newentrants.

The brand consultants talked to horseowners, breeders, associations, stableowners, and others across Europe and the United Kingdom, braving time andlanguage differences. They analyzed data onthe different ways that horses were used invarious countries—for work, sports, or recre-ational riding. In addition, they tapped theextensive resources of Cargill itself, unitingthe unparalleled expertise of a Mexico-basedexpert on equine nutrition and Minnesota-based equine nutrition scientists.

The results revealed a surprisingly largevariation in markets across the continent.Different regions view feed differently, usehorses differently, and even have differentideas about what good horse feed looks like.Hungarian horses graze in pastures, Frenchhorses dine on hand-mixed blends of wholegrains, and British horses munch on easy-to-digest pellets. While some Hungarianfarmers still rely on horses to pull carriages,horses are used primarily for leisure in theUnited Kingdom and Germany.

continued, next page

4 G o i n g G l o b a l

W hen Carlson School under-graduate student KarliPeterson set her sights on

participating in an internationalexchange, she decided to share her enthu-siasm and experiences with a group ofMinnesotan second-grade students.

In her application for a $5,000Benjamin Gilman Scholarship, Petersonoutlined her plan to involve her much-younger counterparts, students in hermother’s second-grade class.

The school awarded Peterson thescholarship, which favors students whostudy in non-traditional countries. Sheeagerly looked forward to spending asemester at the Singapore ManagementUniversity as an exchange student.

“I think that the Carlson School isgreat, and it allows for amazing experi-ences,” she says. “But without fullyremoving yourself from the world youknow, you’ll never really test yourself.”

While in Singapore during spring2006, Peterson kept in touch with thesecond-graders through e-mail. Theyquickly adapted to the technology andmade some interesting inquiries. “Theyasked normal questions like ‘Where isyour roommate from?’ but also things like‘Are there butterflies in Singapore?’ ”

Never too youngA Carlson School student shares her globalexperience with second-gradersBY JOE MOSHER

When she returned toMinnesota, she visitedthe class to show picturesand tell more stories.Through her efforts, shelikely planted the seedsfor future global citizens.

“It certainly made them more curiousabout other people and cultures,” saysPeterson. “They were very interested inthe idea of different people leading differ-ent lives. You could see how excited theywere to go out and discover new things ontheir own.”

She gained much from her relationshipwith the students. “Being able to comeback and talk to people helps deepen theexperience and keep it fresh,” she says. “Ithas been such a great experience to sharestories with them. I’m happier as a resultof it.”

Her global experience also helpedPeterson grow academically and person-ally. “I’m better able to accept the things I cannot change and instead focus on how to deal with them,” she says. Suchabilities are invaluable skills for successfulbusiness leaders. “You cannot put a priceon this experience. It is beyond anyconcept of cost and value. I could nothave learned what I learned in any other way.”

For information on the Benjamin GilmanScholarship and other study abroad scholarships,please visit Carlson School InternationalPrograms at carlsonschool.umn.edu/ internationalprograms.

Because of inconclusive available data,the Enterprise students found it challeng-ing to uncover the exact number of horsesin each country. A “large farm” in theUnited Kingdom typically supports 10-12horses, a far cry from some of Hungary’s500-head farms. Some practices did proveuniversal. For example, no buyers wouldaccept horse feed made in the samefactory as feed for cow. With three

stomachs, a cow’s digestive system cantackle feed that would sicken a horse.

Enterprise consultants also learnedthat successful horse feed companies inEurope use well-developed distributornetworks based on personal trust andmarket knowledge. A new brand may be able to enter a European market withsuccess, but a local brand for the distribu-tor networks and a legacy of trust woulddo the job as well, they concluded.

The Carlson Brand Enterprise is a brand andmarketing consultancy that combines MBAstudent talent with the University of Minnesota’stop marketing faculty and professionals. Itsmission is to help businesses build, measure,leverage, and deliver brands to drive growth andprofitability. For more information, please visit the Carlson Brand Enterprise website atcsom.umn.edu/brand.

Horsing Around, continued

S p r i n g 2 0 0 7 5

In his own wordsUndergraduate student travels to Tanzania to help marginalized communities

While at the Carlson

School, Eric Howard, ’07

BSB, wanted to learn

how to apply business

skills to effect change and

how to help marginal-

ized communities develop

self-sustainable entrepre-

neurship. Here, he shares

some of his experiences at

the University of Dar es

Salaam in Tanzania,

which were made possi-

ble by the International

Reciprocal Student

Exchange Program

(IRSEP), a scholarship

for study abroad that is

offered through the

University of Minnesota.

IRSEP offered me the opportunity to studypoverty and its implications on a larger scale.The main focus of my studies was entrepre-neurship as a tool for poverty alleviation. InTanzania, an internship with FINCA Interna-tional, a microfinance institution dedicated tohelping marginalized female entrepreneursaccess credit, allowed me the opportunity topursue my goals. As an interning consultant forFINCA, I researched and provided strategiesto improve efficiency, institutionalize a culture,and improve communications locally, as well aswith national headquarters.

While in Tanzania, I critically evaluated theeffectiveness of microfinance organizations andaid organizations in Africa. My belief is that amore decentralized approach centered on theclient and their ability to offer the organizationfeedback and accountability is the mostvaluable for sustainability. In addition, I havefound that quality distribution methods andsupply chain management must be imple-mented to ensure proper delivery of aid. Thiscan be achieved by employing Six Sigma and

lean manufacturing processes in relief efforts.If lean techniques solve issues of excess andinefficiency for large corporations, it is likelythat they can do the same for aid organizations.

Currently, I apply these tools at the BoeingCompany where I work with internationalsuppliers who manufacture parts for Boeing. I have gained insight into the challenges thatcompanies face in a global network, specificallyin managing a functional supply chain.

This practical experience will allow me toapply my knowledge to improve processes innon-profits, international institutions, andrefugee camps throughout Africa. My experi-ence and knowledge base can be used toimprove interactions between isolated villagesand global markets, refugee camps and relieforganizations, marginalized communities, andinternational institutions.

For more information on the International ReciprocalStudent Exchange Program (IRSEP), as well as on the programs that are offered by the University ofMinnesota’s Learning Abroad Center, please visitumabroad.umn.edu.

6 G o i n g G l o b a l

Executive MBA Abroad

Making connections: Vienna past and presentIn August 2006, Carlson alumni and students met for a special gathering

of Vienna Executive MBA students and alumni, former exchange studentsfrom Austria, Vienna Summer Program students, and program staff.

Participants connectedwith old friends and metnew ones at an outdoorrestaurant near the PalaisLiechtenstein, the loca-tion of the Vienna Execu-tive MBA program. The

Carlson Schoolorganized thereunion tohelp connectthe growingnumber of its alumni in Vienna. The reunion

allowed alumni to reinforce some already-strong tieswith each other and with the school.

“The Vienna Executive MBA alumni have an especially strong network,says Lori Kocer, ’06 MBA, a former Vienna Summer Program participant.“They have been valuable resources to one another since the first class.”

Celebrating history: Warsaw School of EconomicsIn fall 2006, the Warsaw School of Economics

(WSE), Carlson School international partner and theoldest economics university in Poland, celebrated its100th anniversary.

WSE invited Michael Houston, associate dean of International Programs, and his wife Pat to attenda series of events that focused on the prestigiousinstitution’s centennial. Rector Adam Budnikowski,WSE’s head official, hosted the Houstons at the

gala dinner, which included dignitaries from WSE and the European Union(EU), on the grounds of the Presidential Palace in Warsaw. At commence-ment exercises, José Manuel Barroso, president of the European Union, gavean address that explored Poland’s role in the EU.

Houston also represented the Carlson School at the ceremony for the10th graduating class of the Warsaw Executive MBA. In addition, he partici-pated in planning meetings with Professor Marian Geldner and DorotaSerafin, Warsaw Executive MBA director and managing director at WSE,respectively, and with Warsaw Executive MBA Council members from WSE.Carlson School Professor Steve Parente joined Houston in these meetings to discuss executive education opportunities in the health care field.

International Education

Supporting thecornerstone of globalworkforce development

International Education andExchange: The Centerpiece forGlobal Workforce Development, aforum of business and educationleaders, took place at the CarlsonSchool in February. Sponsored by theMinnesota International Center andNAFSA: Association of InternationalEducators, the forum featured apanel of business and educationleaders, who reinforced the need tooffer students more study abroadexperiences and to internationalizethe curriculum in schools anduniversities.

Speakers included UniversityPresident Robert Bruininks andCarlson School Dean Alison Davis-Blake, with a panel discussion byMarilyn Carlson Nelson, CEO ofCarlson Companies; Eugene Sit, CIOof SIT Investment Associates; andJeanine Thompson, vice president ofHuman Resources International forBest Buy Co., Inc.

International experiences play acrucial role in strengthening globalworkforce development, say panelmembers. They discussed how uni-versities and businesses are encourag-ing students in the United States togain global experience and positionthemselves for future success.

The Carlson School continues itslong-standing commitment to inter-national education, with a healthypercentage of students who studyabroad and gain international insightsto many courses. The need extendsbeyond students in the classroom tofamilies at home and children at play,said Carlson Nelson. “American kidsgo to hockey and tennis camps,” shesaid. “European kids spend theirsummers in other countries, learningnew languages and cultures.”

S p r i n g 2 0 0 7 7

Global EnrichmentElectives participantsCologne Summer Program

Adam CornellColbert FongMelissa JordanLeonid KotlyarAnders SandGreg Zeldin

Ethics Seminar Faculty: Steve Spruth

Mauricio BascunanKristine BoedigheimerMatthew BransonKathryn DieffenbachAngela FenskeWilliam FenwickJustin FletcherJeffrey FryeCharissa GilesPaul HagensonAdam HankinsHilary HuttTimothy JacksonJeremy JenkinsSara MancellJennifer MelinNancy RobinsonJohn ScharrettNick SchultzChristine SolbergJennifer StybaAndre ViktoraJeremy VoigtsDavid WaddellLisa Wangchuk

Marketing 3001Faculty: Kevin Upton

Heidi AllenLindsay BerghAmy BrinkmanStacie GoebelMatthew HartAshley HawkinsShawna KaupBrandi LawlerMaxwel LembergerJason LewisMichael LundeLaura NelsonKirsten OlsonAshley PetersonJohn “Jack” SallstromNicholas SalmanowiczAnn SeemannAlyssa SivanichAdrian SuncarKarmela Sunell

Taeko McFaddenPetra NobleTroy PeltolaAmanda SchneiderRipunjay SinghRina UgrinDan Zeien

Copenhagen Summer ProgramMelanie ClarkeRebecca EasterwoodErin HuntNicolas KumbalekPeter LittlewoodShanda Kai MagsamGreg MayTodd SliningerMichael WeisbeckCaitlin WeixelMichael Yard

Spring 2007 studentsat partner universitiesabroadMBA candidatesFrance – HEC, outside Paris

Virginia LandauerJapan – Keio Graduate School ofBusiness Administration, Yokohama

Yi-Sheng (Tom) ChungCasey Langworthy

Spain – ESADE, BarcelonaBrent CarlsonGreg Grothe

MA-HRIR candidatesCosta Rica – INCAE, Alajuela

Alex PullenFrance – HEC, outside Paris

Jessica WrobelSweden – Stockholm School ofEconomics, Stockholm

Abbey Peterson

UndergraduatesAustria – Vienna University ofEconomics & Business, Vienna

Katie BieseWays HassasMark McCullough

China – Hong Kong University ofScience & Technology, Hong Kong

Erik KroneMehdi MeraliKyle RiesAndrea Zhuang

Denmark – Copenhagen BusinessSchool, Copenhagen

Brandon Biermaier

Joseph SwartzMegan TuckerKate WeberKelsey WebsterBrandon WienJeremy Wingler

Vienna Seminar Faculty: Sid Benraouane

Barrie BerquistSteven BlankJason DalebrouxMatthew DickinsonJeffrey DreherRyan FrenchJulie GiffordKristin HandErin HermanBlaine Kriesel, Jr.Angela LeitzRichard Trent LewisJon MammenAlissa MontbriandSiddharth PrasharLyndsey PrimusLisa SchroetkeLindsay SchultzScott TollefsonAndrew Yue

Lyon SeminarFaculty: John Mauriel

Nicholas BlissenbachScott BradleyCassandra EricksonKristin GeislerMindy GudmundsonPradeep GundavarapuMichael HillmanChella HjelmKaren KensokHeather KielpinskiJohn KleskWilliam Joel Mujica

RodriguezMegan O’HaraKathryn Marie OlsonAugusto PerezCatalin PetrescuPaul RauenAnthony SelingerTroy SmithTamara UrmanCourtney Zinter

Vienna Summer ProgramFaculty: Charlie Caliendo

Demian ArenasJuan Carlos FigueroaValeriya GerberEd KashmarekNeil Koepcke

GLOBALC A R L S O N S C H O O L O F M A N A G E M E N T

G O I N G

Abbey HallbergJim Johnson

England – Manchester BusinessSchool, Manchester

Bryan DallmanMargaret MarshallMichael MatherWilliam Roller

France – Bordeaux Business School,Bordeaux

Rachel NearhoodFrance – L’Universite Jean Moulin,Lyon

Irina VishnevskayaBenjamin Gaustad-Randolph

Italy – L’Università CommercialeLuigi Bocconi, Milan

Bethel DeresuErica Sivertson

Netherlands – UniversiteitMaastricht, Maastricht

Katherine EricksonNorway – Norwegian School ofManagement, Oslo

Lauren JomePatrick Williams

Singapore – Singapore Manage-ment University, Singapore

Kendal BeerLauren Klun

Spring 2007 exchangestudents at theCarlson SchoolAustralia

Nicole Botsman

AustriaStefanie GrabnerMaxmilian JovenRichard Ploberger

ChinaHo Shun CheungLei Wei FengMeng LianWenjun PengWeiyuan ShaMan Wai WongWuchen Zhang

SingaporeYork Lin ChuaMeibin HoJialing LiuTse Jin Gina Tjeng

SwitzerlandThomas Schrepfer

International ProgramsCarlson School of ManagementUniversity of Minnesota

321 Nineteenth Avenue South, Suite 4-104Minneapolis, MN 55455612-625-9361carlsonschool.umn.edu/internationalprograms

The University of Minnesota is an equal opportunity educator and employer.

© 2007 by the Regents of the University of Minnesota. All r ights reserved.

G L O B E

BY ION SKILLRUD

The student associa-tion for internationalbusiness at the CarlsonSchool of Manage-ment, GLOBE leadsstudent efforts tosupport the globalstudent experience.GLOBE membersrepresent all CarlsonSchool programs andinclude internationalexchange students. Inaddition to hosting anumber of speakerevents throughout theyear, GLOBE membersalso build a valuablenetwork for all whoare interested ininternational business.

Mentor program

Exchange student Johan Ekestrom enjoyedexperiencing life firsthand at an American home,thanks to his GLOBE mentor.

The GLOBE mentorship program pairs inter-national exchange students with Carlson Schoolstudents. Mentors help students in a number ofways—from finding their way around town torecommending study strategies. The mentorshipprogram aims to be a point of differentiationbetween the Carlson School and other universitiesby assimilating exchange students into the localstudent culture.

“One of the reasons I chose to spend a semesterat the Carlson School was the opportunity to getto know the American culture, and, of course, get to know some Americans,” says Ekestrom, agraduate student from the Stockholm School ofEconomics in Stockholm, Sweden, who spent fallsemester 2007 at the Carlson School. “The men-torship program was a great help for doing that. Asan exchange student, it is easy to explore the cityand find exciting activities, but harder to find anddo the genuine and typical activities that are a partof your regular [American] life.”

His mentor invited Ekestrom to spendThanksgiving with his family in Wisconsin, a truehighlight for Ekestrom.

“As a Scandinavian, celebrating Thanksgivingwas something I only had seen on TV before,” hesays. “Participating in a tradition like that andspending some time with his family gave me moreinsights on American culture.”

The mentor program also can help CarlsonSchool students prepare for a possible study-abroad experience. Many students who plan tostudy abroad serve as mentors and are able todevelop friendships with international studentsmonths before they set foot overseas.

Welcome 2007-08 officers

PresidentIon Skillrud, MBA

Vice President, Graduate MentorshipThomas Sit, MBA

Vice President, Undergraduate Mentorship Feifei Zheng, Undergraduate

Vice President, Corporate AffairsNa Sun, MA-HRIR

Vice President, Communications and MarketingWilliam Schumacher, Undergraduate

Interested in serving as a mentor? Want more informationabout GLOBE and its activities? Please contactglobe@csom.umn.edu

Encouraging the international experience

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