Leading International Executives to Guide Expanded School of Business
Business leaders and academics from a broad range of innovative corporations and institutions in Canada, the US, Mexico, and Switzerland are contributing their expertise to a new organization at the University of Prince Edward Island. As members of the recently-formed Global Associates, they are helping to guide the UPEI School of Business to the forefront of business education and research, and to strengthen its effectiveness in preparing students for success in the dynamic and demanding environment of the global economy.
"These leaders represent a diverse range of business backgrounds and industry sectors," says Dean of Business Roberta MacDonald. "Their considerable knowledge and experience will be invaluable to us in forging new links with the global community. Their insights will help us to provide our students with the education they need to succeed in the business world of the future."
Global Associates selected their first chair at a recent meeting at UPEI. He is Tim O'Neill, Founder and Principal of O'Neill Strategic Economics in Toronto and a leading economist advising the Ontario Ministry of Finance. O'Neill served as Executive Vice President and Chief Economist of the Bank of Montreal Financial Group from 1994 to 2005. He was the first Canadian economist to be elected to the board of the Washington-based National Association for Business Economics and served as its president from 2002 to 2003.
All 12 members of Global Associates come with equally impressive credentials. They are Reginald Van Lee, Senior V.P. and Managing Partner of Booz Allen Hamilton, New York; Gregory Woodson, President of Global Home Care for Colgate Palmolive, New York; Miriam Vializ-Briggs, V.P. of Marketing for IBM's Systems and Technology Group, New York; Alex MacBeath, Executive Partner and CEO of Grant Thornton LLP, Toronto; Glenn Hynes, Executive V.P. and Chief Financial Officer of Sobey's Inc., Stellarton, Nova Scotia; Peter Wells, V.P. of Global Research and Development for Novartis Animal Health, Switzerland; Kevin Farr, Chief Financial Officer for Mattel Inc., Los Angeles; Louis MacEachern, President and owner of Fortune Industries, Calgary; Michael Tasooji, Executive V.P. of Gap Inc., San Francisco; Edmundo Vallejo, President and CEO of General Electric Latin America, Mexico City; and Randolph Westerfield, Professor of Finance and Business Economics at the University of Southern California, Los Angeles.
"The arrangement that we have reached with an advisory board of such magnitude is quite rare for a university the size of UPEI," says Roberta MacDonald. "These senior executives will help to position UPEI as a serious player in the global environment."
Global Associates will play a leadership role in the development of the expanded School of Business and the new Centre for Enterprise and Entrepreneurship scheduled to begin construction on the UPEI campus this fall. They will help UPEI to develop partnerships and collaborations with the global community; provide expert advice on changing demographics, corporate needs, and social trends that affect business education and research; and share insights on ways to assist students to build productive business careers, locally, nationally, and internationally.
