ASU News - Business

Top experts to deliver 2010 economic forecasts

djfreem1 — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 17:11:17 -0700

Though the recession may officially be over, Americans are still worried about unemployment, debt and making it through continued tough times. Top economic experts will offer up their 2010 forecasts for Arizona and the nation at the Valley's largest and most trusted economic event. The 46th Annual Economic Forecast Luncheon, co-sponsored by Arizona State University's W. P. Carey School of Business Department of Economics and JPMorgan Chase, will be held Dec. 2.

More than 1,000 people are expected to attend the event, which is always popular with both the public and the media. This year, a lot of attention will focus on when the Arizona economy will start to recover from its recent freefall.

"In past downturns, we were often able to say the Arizona economy was still doing better than most states," says Professor Lee McPheters, director of the W. P. Carey School of Business' JPMorgan Chase Economic Outlook Center. "However, in this recession, Arizona has been hit harder than other states, and we are looking down a long, twisted road before we can say the economy has recovered here."

Attendees will learn more from the experts about how and when recovery is expected. Luncheon presentations will include the outlooks for:

1. The Arizona and regional economies - from W. P. Carey School of Business Professor Lee McPheters, editor of the Arizona and Western Blue Chip Economic Forecast publications
2. The United States and the financial sector - from Anthony Chan, managing director and chief economist for JPMorgan Chase Private Client Services
3. Real estate and construction - from Elliott D. Pollack, president of Elliott D. Pollack and Company

The 46th Annual Economic Forecast Luncheon will be held in the Phoenix Convention Center's South Ballroom from 11:15 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Dec. 2. Admission is $75 per person. Proceeds from the luncheon are used to support student scholarships, faculty research, and other academic and professional activities at the W. P. Carey School of Business Department of Economics. For more information, including registration details, go to http://wpcarey.asu.edu/ecn/efl.

New research lab will focus on data privacy worldwide

djfreem1 — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 16:46:33 -0700

Do you worry about the safety of the information you enter online when shopping or paying bills? Are you concerned that your employer has stored your social security number in the company's systems? A new research group at the W. P. Carey School of Business at Arizona State University is dedicated to making sure businesses know how to protect your data and implement the needed measures.

"Organizations must be committed to maintaining employee and customer privacy," says associate professor of information systems Julie Smith David from the W. P. Carey School of Business, one of the new research group's founders. "This is really becoming an issue in the board room, as well as at people's personal computers. We all want to make sure our data isn't inappropriately shared or sold."

The new Privacy by Design Research Lab (PbD RL) will establish a virtual environment to work with industry leaders to create guidelines for businesses worldwide to use to effectively protect personal data. The researchers will also encourage organizations to use the new guidelines by offering educational materials and programs to train privacy consultants. In addition, the researchers will continue to monitor and improve techniques for data protection.

"Privacy assurance must ideally become an organization's default mode of operation," says W. P. Carey School of Business associate professor Marilyn Prosch, another founder of the group. "This is the first Privacy by Design ambassador program in the United States, and we want to work with both the public and private sectors to make a difference."

The group is already demonstrating a commitment to working internationally to strengthen privacy practices. Ann Cavoukian, creator of the Privacy by Design concept and the Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario, has been fundamental in establishing the new research group.

"I applaud ASU's W. P. Carey School of Business for its leadership role in establishing the first Privacy by Design Research Lab," says Cavoukian, who wrote two groundbreaking books on data privacy. "When technology and personal information intersect, privacy issues always arise. The future of privacy cannot be assured solely by compliance with regulatory frameworks. The objectives of Privacy by Design are twofold: for individuals, gaining personal control over one's information; for businesses, gaining a sustainable competitive advantage - It's win/win."

The Privacy by Design Research Lab will publish documents to help teach the business community about data privacy practices, including a risk assessment companies can use to evaluate themselves. It will also host monthly events with industry leaders, publish world-class academic journal articles, and hold a student contest to encourage new ideas on privacy practices.

Prosch formally announced formation of the PbD Research Lab at the 31st International Conference of Data Protection and Privacy Commissioners in Madrid, Spain, earlier this month.

The initial research project will create practical guidance from the principles of Privacy by Design to aid companies and entrepreneurs seeking to create new products and services to meet the privacy expectations of their customers. This work is funded by a grant from The Privacy Projects (www.theprivacyprojects.org), a nonprofit research institute focused on supporting "evidence-based" privacy.

"The mission at ASU fits perfectly with our intention to fund and promote an effective architecture for privacy," says Richard Purcell, executive director of The Privacy Projects.

The research lab will be run out of the Center for Advancing Business through Information Technology (CABIT) at the W. P. Carey School of Business, which fosters collaboration between industry and academics. The research group's next event will be held Nov. 24 at Arizona State University's Tempe campus to announce more details. Cavoukian will be the featured speaker.

ASU report: Challenges remain for Phoenix-area housing market

djfreem1 — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 14:35:11 -0700

Though the number of home resales in the Phoenix-area housing market is actually higher than normal for this time of year, foreclosures still appear to be driving the market. The latest Realty Studies report from the W. P. Carey School of Business at Arizona State University shows two-thirds of the activity in the Valley housing market remained foreclosure-related in October, and the current recovery is full of challenges.

"Typically, a housing recovery happens in a growing economy and with declining interest rates," says associate professor of real estate Jay Butler, author of the new report. "However, the current recovery is limited with the possibility of higher rates and a continuing weak job market. Further, the housing tax credit could be dissipating the pent-up demand for new buyers to get into the market, weakening their influence in the future."

Butler adds that all of these foreclosures will eliminate some households from being able to obtain financing to buy a "move-up" home. Others may be "seriously limited by declining neighborhood values [on their current homes] and restrictive debt amounts."

The level of home resales is bucking the usual trend for this time of year. Historically, fewer people move after the summer ends. However, this October, the Valley recorded more than 6,100 home resales. That's about the same as September, but way up from about 4,500 last October. Still, a big portion of the transactions this October were sales of previously foreclosed property – a whopping 45 percent.

More than 3,800 homes were newly foreclosed on during October of this year. That's up from the September foreclosure rate of more than 2,900.

The median single-family home price in the Valley in October was $143,000, up from September's median price of $140,000, but still way below last October's median of $167,000.

"For the last year, approximately half of the home resales in the Phoenix area were foreclosed homes that were sold again with a median price markdown of 19 percent," says Butler.

Butler's full report, including statistics, charts and a breakdown by different areas of the Valley, can be viewed at http://wpcarey.asu.edu/realestate/Phoenix-Resale-Market-Reports.cfm. More analysis is also available from Knowledge@W. P. Carey, the business school's online resource and biweekly newsletter, at http://knowledge.wpcarey.asu.edu/article.cfm?articleid=1831.

H1N1 survey by ASU reveals Arizonans’ flu season plans

djfreem1 — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 07:33:57 -0700

Arizonans are gearing up for more H1N1 activity this flu season, and a new survey reveals how much they really know about the virus and how they're preparing for its spread.

The new survey of more than 700 Arizona households was designed and analyzed by faculty and students from the School of Health Management and Policy at the W. P. Carey School of Business, the Decision Theater at the Global Institute of Sustainability, and the School of Public Affairs at Arizona State University. The study was sponsored by the Arizona Department of Health Services and was conducted during the month of October. The results will be used by public information officials from various hospitals, public health agencies and related organizations to determine how to best communicate to the public about H1N1 influenza.

"The survey was designed to reach the household member primarily responsible for making health care decisions," says Megan Jehn, assistant professor of health management and policy at ASU. "We wanted to gauge people's knowledge of H1N1, where they might go for treatment and what might trigger that action. The objective is to help officials better communicate with Arizonans about the virus and, in turn, to help our hospitals best serve the community by keeping them from being overwhelmed."

Among other things, the study found:

• Many people didn't know that the swine flu being discussed in the media and H1N1 are the same virus.
• About half of those surveyed either don't want – or haven't decided whether they want – the H1N1 vaccine.
• About a fifth of those surveyed didn't know there was an H1N1 vaccine until asked.
• Many people think it's more important to see a doctor if you have H1N1 flu than if you have seasonal flu.
• Many believe it's tougher to get H1N1 than seasonal flu.
• Most of those surveyed do seem to understand how to prevent H1N1, such as by washing hands frequently or avoiding large groups when possible.
• About a third of those surveyed believe a family member will get sick with H1N1.
• Most Arizonans are following information about H1N1 somewhat or very closely.
• Their most common source of information is the local television news.

Additional survey findings will be both posted at http://wpcarey.asu.edu/shmp/risk-communication-workshop.cfm and released at a special one-day, invitation-only workshop for public information officials today. The workshop is designed to help officials develop messages about H1N1 and communicate them effectively to the public to help manage the pandemic flu response.

"Effective communication on H1N1, or any public health issue, is critical to making the best decisions," says assistant research professor Timothy Lant from the Decision Theater at ASU. "We hope the results of our survey will help provide specific insights on what people now know about H1N1, what they need to know and how professionals can get the needed information to them."

Bob England, director of the Maricopa County Department of Public Health, will be among the speakers at the workshop. He will talk about the public health perspective on H1N1, including lessons learned from the outbreak so far. The Arizona Department of Health Services is sponsoring the event.

ASU software used to help allocate H1N1 vaccine

djfreem1 — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 17:47:54 -0700

H1N1 is now widespread in all but two states, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Arizona health officials are working hard to make sure those who most need the vaccine are able to get it. In the Phoenix area, Maricopa County public health officials are using an innovative new software program from the W. P. Carey School of Business at Arizona State University to help them quickly determine where to send vaccine doses as they come into the state.

The CDC sends vaccines to the state, and then they go down to the county level. Officials with the Maricopa County Department of Public Health often have to decide where to send new doses of the vaccine in less than one hour. Instead of having to use a variety of spreadsheets to track everything, the new program puts all of the information into one database so a decision can be filtered as quickly as possible.

"This decision-support system factors in the relevant information, such as vaccine doses, which doctors and hospitals can best utilize the vaccine based on the types of high- or low-risk patient populations they serve, where previous doses have been distributed and where the vaccine dissemination would be most effective. And with the touch of a few buttons, it maps out the suggested vaccine distribution to best manage the outbreak," said Ajay Vinze, professor of information systems at the W. P. Carey School of Business and a Fulbright Senior Specialist, who helped design the new software. "While the system's suggestions account for a number of issues, both strategic and tactical, the final decision and ability to make needed adjustments are still left to the public health professionals and their expertise."

There are several types of vaccine doses coming in, only some of which are appropriate for children, some for pregnant women, etc. The new software takes this into consideration as well.

"Now, public health officials can focus on the key decisions, while allowing this decision-support tool to make the needed optimizations," said W. P. Carey School of Business associate professor Raghu Santanam, another of the software's creators. "We have even included details, such as vaccine orders from different doctors across the Valley and then communications back from them about how much more vaccine they need or how much they might still have stored for others to use."

Associate professor Benjamin Shao and W. P. Carey School doctoral students Trent Spaulding and Aaron Baird also helped to design the new software. They took into account the real-time pressure of making tough decisions.

"We examined the overall objectives and created a fast-working system that would help health officials maximize the vaccine's impact on the public," said Spaulding. "This is a very complicated public health problem, so we tried to look at it from an efficient business perspective."

W. P. Carey School to dedicate new Scottsdale location

djfreem1 — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 14:39:54 -0600

The challenging job market is prompting many people to go back to school to improve their skills and invest in education. The W. P. Carey School of Business at Arizona State University is making it even easier to get a part-time MBA with the opening of a new Scottsdale location. The school already offers one of the best part-time MBA programs in the country, with an evening MBA program ranked "Top 25" in the nation by U.S. News & World Report.

"We now have evening MBA locations all across the Phoenix area because we want to make it as convenient as possible for working professionals to get a high-quality MBA with a flexible program schedule," says W. P. Carey School of Business Dean Robert Mittelstaedt. "We've had a presence in Scottsdale for several years, but we're making it permanent with our new facility."

The official grand opening of the new Scottsdale location will be held from 2 to 4 p.m., Nov. 4. Scottsdale Mayor Jim Lane and other city officials will be on hand for the open house at 8355 E. Hartford Drive, at the northeast corner of Bell Road and 82nd Street.

"Scottsdale has been one of our most popular locations, so we found a great space that will be convenient for those working and living in the East Valley," says Beth Walker, associate dean of the W. P. Carey MBA program. "This new facility offers four fully equipped team rooms, wireless network access throughout the entire suite, LCD displays, interactive monitors and easy access to the 101 freeway."

The W. P. Carey School of Business also offers its evening MBA program at ASU's downtown Phoenix and Tempe campuses, as well as at a location in the south Tempe/Chandler area. After the Scottsdale location has its grand opening, a fifth location is planned for Arizona State University's West campus.

The 21-month W. P. Carey evening MBA program offers a high-caliber core business curriculum, with the ability to specialize in several areas of emphasis, including finance, health care management, international business, marketing and supply chain management. A popular 18-month evening accelerated version is also offered at the Tempe campus, with the next class starting in February. In both cases, students meet just two nights per week, allowing them to fit their MBA programs into their busy work and home lives. Both platforms feature world-class faculty and seek high-quality applicants with an average of six years of work experience.

For more information, visit wpcarey.asu.edu/mba.

ASU study: Phoenix-area home prices up in all regions

djfreem1 — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 17:14:26 -0600

For the first time since 2007, average home prices went up in all regions of the Phoenix area from one month to the next. A new report from the W. P. Carey School of Business shows a slight increase of 2 percent Valley-wide from June to July. It also shows improvement in most Valley cities, including Glendale, which has been among the hardest-hit areas since house prices began to fall.

"The worst appears to be past, but the large number of foreclosures likely to hit the market through 2010 makes it difficult to predict the direction of house prices with any certainty," said professor Karl Guntermann, the Fred E. Taylor Professor of Real Estate at the W. P. Carey School of Business, who authored the report. "The increased prices primarily reflect foreclosed houses that have been purchased by investors and first-time buyers taking advantage of the tax credit."

The Arizona State University-Repeat Sales Index measures changes in average Phoenix-area home prices from year to year. The new July 2009 report shows home prices declined Valley-wide by 28 percent since last year. That's slightly less than the 31-percent drop from June 2008 to June 2009, and the 33-percent fall from May 2008 to May 2009. Preliminary estimates for August and September also show lesser declines of 25 and 23 percent, respectively.

Guntermann noted the index has now shown declines for 29 straight months. The total drop from the peak in mid-2006 is 48 percent. Lower-priced houses have been hit harder, falling 60 percent, while higher-priced homes fell an average of 37 percent.

The median price for Valley home sales in July was $125,000. That's up from $122,000 in June. Preliminary estimates for August and September are $126,500 and $130,000, respectively.

Also this month, Guntermann introduced a new element into the ASU-RSI. He is now tracking townhouse and condominium sales, which are not recovering quickly.

"Unlike in the single-family market, prices in the townhouse/condo market have continued to decline at an increasing rate, reaching a 36-percent annual drop by July of this year," said Guntermann. "There is considerably more volatility in the townhouse/condo RSI, where the index dropped 4 percent between June and July."

The ASU-RSI is based on repeat sales, the most reliable way to estimate price changes in the housing market. Repeat sales compare the prices of a single house against itself at different points in time, instead of comparing different homes with different quality factors.

The ASU-RSI is produced through the Center for Real Estate Theory and Practice at the W. P. Carey School of Business. The current report and archived reports are available at the Division of Real Estate - Repeat Sales Reports. Further ASU-RSI analysis is available at http://knowledge.wpcarey.asu.edu.

MBA program ranked among world's best

djfreem1 — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 15:06:14 -0600

The Financial Times, one of the world's leading business publications, ranks the W. P. Carey School of Business at Arizona State University high on its new list of the world's best executive MBA programs. The school's program in China comes in at No. 41 on this year's list, ahead of all other executive MBA offerings from Arizona universities.

"The Financial Times is Britain's equivalent of The Wall Street Journal, with 1.3 million readers, so this is a list that the business community highly regards," Robert Mittelstaedt, the dean of the W. P. Carey School of Business. "To be among the top 50 programs worldwide says a lot about the strength of our program and our ability to change lives through education."

The W. P. Carey School program in Shanghai teaches executives at the highest levels of Chinese businesses about strategy, finance and management, while also explaining how to apply those subjects in the context of the country's changing economy. This includes sessions related to services marketing, sustainability and working with businesses in other countries. Faculty members come from both Arizona State University and other top universities, including Yale University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Columbia University. Students have included three vice governors of China's major provinces and four vice mayors of Shanghai – a city with the population of a whole country at 14 million. Other high-profile students include the CEO of the Shanghai Stock Exchange, several bank chairmen, the chairman of Shanghai Airlines, the CEO of Baosteel and the deputy commissioner of the China Securities Regulatory Commission.

"We probably have the most exciting faculty lineup and the most prestigious executive MBA program overall in China because we have students who are senior-level executives and government officials in charge of policymaking that can influence millions of people," says professor Buck K. W. Pei, associate dean of Asia Programs at the W. P. Carey School of Business.

The W. P. Carey School of Business has received many other recent high rankings. This includes U.S. News & World Report's ranking as the No. 29 "Best Business School" in the nation for its full-time MBA program. The evening MBA program is No. 24 in the country, and the graduate supply chain management program is ranked No. 5 by U.S. News & World Report. The school was also named No. 25 in the world for business school research productivity in a report from the University of Texas at Dallas.

The W. P. Carey School of Business also offers a similar, top-quality executive MBA program in the Phoenix area, but because the Financial Times limits schools to one entry per year, it was not able to be submitted for consideration on this list. For more information about the W. P. Carey School of Business, visit wpcarey.asu.edu.

Report: Foreclosures equal two-thirds of Phoenix-area housing market activity

djfreem1 — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 19:34:44 -0600

Two-thirds of the Phoenix-area homes that changed owners last month were either new foreclosures or resales of properties that had recently been foreclosures. The latest Realty Studies report from the W. P. Carey School of Business at Arizona State University explains a recovery can't really be established until foreclosure-related activity is not the dominant force in the Valley housing market.

"Although the level of activity appears strong, the market is being driven by either homes being foreclosed or being sold back into the market by the lender," says Associate Professor of Real Estate Jay Butler, author of the new report.

Butler says the current market is similar to the mindset that created a "hyper-market" from 2003 to 2006, when investors were buying up properties, looking for a great deal followed by a big appreciation in values. He maintains a real recovery can't happen until owner-occupants take control again.

Butler says, "The impact of foreclosures on the market has been the primary concern of the last year and will continue to be in the coming months, especially with the end of many hiatus (loan modification) programs and the weak job market."

In September, more than 6,100 Valley home resales were recorded, along with more than 2,900 foreclosures. That's similar to August's numbers of about 6,000 resales and about 3,100 foreclosures. Activity is significantly up from September of last year, when the market recorded only about 4,600 home resales. Though still a problem, the number of foreclosures has gone down somewhat from last September's rate of just over 3,650.

Butler says declining prices, especially in the lower end of the market, have piqued investor and homeowner interest. The median single-family home price in September 2009 was $140,000. That's up from $138,000 in August, but still way below the median price of $180,000 in September of last year.

Butler's full report, including statistics, charts and a breakdown by different areas of the Valley, can be viewed at http://wpcarey.asu.edu/realestate/Phoenix-Resale-Market-Reports.cfm.

Top business leaders named members of W. P. Carey School Homecoming Hall of Fame

djfreem1 — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 18:59:09 -0600

For their significant contributions to our economy and community, two top business executives will be honored as new members of the W. P. Carey School of Business Homecoming Hall of Fame this month. They will join an elite group of previous inductees, including leaders from the American Red Cross, Honeywell, Motorola, PayPal, Wells Fargo Bank and the Arizona Diamondbacks.

Rick Kuhle, president of Vestar Development Company, and Robert Zollars, chairman and CEO of Vocera Communications, Inc., will be inducted at the annual Homecoming Hall of Fame ceremony on Oct. 30 at The Phoenician resort in Scottsdale, Ariz.

"Both of these W. P. Carey School of Business graduates have demonstrated superior leadership and determination in driving their businesses to great success," says W. P. Carey School of Business Dean Robert Mittelstaedt. "We are proud to honor their accomplishments."

• Rick Kuhle is a founding principal of Vestar Development Company, one of the leading privately held real-estate companies in the Western United States. The company develops and manages retail and entertainment destinations. Through his work, Kuhle has helped Vestar to become a nationally recognized shopping center developer, responsible for such projects as the Desert Ridge Marketplace in north Phoenix. Kuhle graduated from the W. P. Carey School of Business with an MBA in 1982.

• Robert Zollars has 30 years of health care and technology experience, including 20 years at Baxter International, where he ran five different divisions. He was then executive vice president of Cardinal Health, Inc., where he led five subsidiary companies. He joined Vocera Communications as chairman and CEO in June 2007. The company provides instant wireless voice communication solutions in health care, hospitality and other industries where mobile workers need to communicate mission-critical information. Zollars received a bachelor's degree in marketing from the W. P. Carey School of Business in 1979.

About 300 alumni, business leaders and faculty members are expected to attend the Homecoming Hall of Fame celebration this year. The event will run from 6 to 9 p.m., featuring a cocktail reception, a dinner and a student showcase. For more details, including ticket and sponsorship information, contact Erin Varga at (480) 965-8846 or Erin.Varga@asu.edu.