Pulse - Summer 09 - Carlson School of Management - University of ...

Pulse ­ Summer 09
Institute News
Pellere – Stephen Parente, PhD, director
Stephen Parente introduces this issue with a discussion of the prospect of national health reform.
Douglas Holtz­Eakin on Health Care Reform 2009
On May 28, Douglas Holtz‐Eakin spoke about his plan for health care reform in 2009.
8 th Annual Health Information Technology Institute held at Carlson
The 8 th Annual Health Information Technology Institute, “Stimulating Change in Healthcare IT,” was held
at the Carlson School on May 20. This year’s conference explored how the economic stimulus for
healthcare IT will influence the industry.
Research on Economic Preferences and Genetics
Learn more about economics Professor Aldo Rustichini’s research for his 2008 Institute Interdisciplinary
grant for his study, “A Twins Study of Genetic Influence on Economic Preferences.”
Students in Focus
Course spotlight: Medical Device Industry
The Medical Device Industry: Business and Public Policy course (MILI 6726) offered spring semester, is a
course with a rich history and ongoing mission of engaging industry leaders and students in key aspects
that make the medical device sector different from other sectors.
Student spotlight: Anil Asrani
Anil Asrani joined the MILI student association (MILIsa) at a time when the founders were still creating
the group. He ultimately was elected the group’s first vice president.
Medical Industry Leadership Institute Student Association (MILIsa) update by
Andrea Seven, vice president of finance, MILIsa
Learn more about the Medical Industry Leadership Institute Student Association’s (MILIsa) second
academic year.

First Medtronic Interdisciplinary Healthcare Case Competition engages
University of Minnesota students in solving healthcare problems
Student teams in the first Medtronic Interdisciplinary Healthcare Case Competition used
collaboration and classroom learning to solve a real‐life strategy problem currently faced by the
medical device industry.
Focus on Faculty
Faculty spotlight: Avner Ben­Ner
Find out about Center for Human Resources and Labor Studies Professor Avner Ben‐Ner‘s research on
for‐profit, nonprofit, or government organizations.
Faculty news and publications
Faculty news, quotes, and presentations
Alumni & Friends
Alumni spotlight: Major Matthew Tarjick
Matthew Tarjick, 2008 MBA is a major in the U.S. Army Medical Service Corps. Currently, he serves as
the chief financial officer and business division chief for the U.S. Army Medical Department Activity at
Fort Meade, Maryland. Matt served on active duty for eight years prior to entering the Carlson School of
Management’s MBA program.
Give to the Institute
Alumni and friends of the Carlson School of Management support the mission of both the school and the
Institute in many ways—by mentoring students, volunteering time with faculty and staff, and by
contributing financially.

Institute News
Pellere – Stephan Parente, PhD, director
America is once again contemplating the prospect of national health reform. This will be the seventh
attempt at national reform legislation since the Wilson Administration in 1919. Will seven be the lucky
number? In the last few months faculty, students, and industry leaders have begun to engage in a series
of discussions to inform and contribute. Ten students in the MBA Healthcare Marketplace courses
submitted health reform proposal ideas to the national Kaiser Foundation competition with one
University of Minnesota public health administration student declared the winner. Senior
undergraduate students staged a mock Senate Finance Committee debate on health reform proposals
this past winter. Former Congressional Budget Office Director Doug Holtz‐Eakin spoke before business
leaders as well as students and faculty from four colleges at the University to outline a pragmatic
bipartisan approach to health reform should tenacity and willingness to compromise become the order
of this iteration. This level of engagement by faculty and students, as well as by policy makers, betrays
an unrelenting hope and desire to improve the medical industry for the long haul. I am an honored to
work with such a community that seeks to not only study the features of reform, but lead and engage
stakeholders in order to develop economically sustainable innovation to not only advance the industry,
but to enhance and grow a healthy and prosperous society. Pellere.
Douglas Holtz­Eakin on Health Care Reform 2009
On May 28, Douglas Holtz‐Eakin spoke on the prospects for health care reform in 2009. Holtz‐Eakin is
the president of DHE Consulting, LLC and most recently served as director of domestic and economic
policy for the John McCain presidential campaign. He was also a recent senior fellow at the Peter G.
Peterson Institute for International Economics, the director of the Maurice R. Greenberg Center for
Geoeconomic Studies and the Paul A. Volcker Chair in International Economics at the Council on Foreign
Relations. Prior to that, Holtz‐Eakin served as the sixth director of the Congressional Budget office where
he was appointed for a four‐year term in 2003.
Holtz‐Eakin discussed the prospects for comprehensive, bi‐partisan health care reform. He outlined a
potential proposal, a political strategy for implementation, and the likely impact of its adoption. The
plan that Holtz‐Eakin discussed addresses dysfunctions in the existing health care delivery system;
expands access to affordable private health insurance in an incremental and fiscally responsible manner;
and improves market‐based options for consumer access to information on health care quality. He
detailed his plan with four principles and their matching reforms. The Manhattan Institute has published
his plan in a paper, “Forging a new plan for health care: principles and priorities for sustainable reform.”

8 th Annual Health Information Technology Institute held at Carlson
The 8 th Annual Health Information Technology Institute, “Stimulating Change in Healthcare IT,” was held
at the Carlson School on May 20. This year’s conference explored how the economic stimulus for
healthcare IT will impact the industry. Attendees learned about changes and innovations that are
already happening. The first keynote speaker was Brian Osberg, assistant commissioner of healthcare at
the Minnesota Department of Human Services. Osberg discussed the Minnesota’s HIT strategy, the role
of HIT in the State’s healthcare reform agenda, and the structure and process going forward to
implement HIT strategies.
The second keynote was Howard Burde, Esquire of Howard Burde Health Law, LLC. Burde spoke on
“Opportunities, Obligations, and Risks under the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act.” He gave
specifics on how the stimulus package money can be accessed, the new rules for “covered entities and
business associates,” and the risks for all health care industry participants.
Conference participants included IT professionals, hospital and health plan executives, nurses,
physicians, and members of academia. They left the program with a better understanding of the
measures used to determine incentive payments, the ability to identify possible technical solutions for
patient education using IT resources, and deeper knowledge used in determining incentives for IT.
For more information on the Minnesota Chapter of the Healthcare Information and Management
Systems Society, go to: http://www.himss‐mn.org/
Research on Economic Preferences and Genetics
Economics Professor Aldo Rustichini was awarded an Institute Interdisciplinary grant in 2008 for his
study, “A Twins Study of Genetic Influence on Economic Preferences.” Rustichini has been conducting
research for this grant over the past year with Carlson School Professor of Accounting John Dickhaut and
industry partner Merck & Co. Their project utilizes economic theory to explain economic choices with
the individual’s preferences (i.e., acquiring or not acquiring medical insurance; saving versus
consumption) and the consequences of those choices. Rustichini’s team recently completed two studies
that suggest preferences are correlated with IQ personality traits and biological features. They found
that higher IQ is associated with more prudent behavior in inter‐temporal choices (higher saving) but
also higher willingness to take risks in choices under uncertainty. These findings suggest that choice is
essentially an information process, affected in a significant way by cognitive skill. Using this theory, the
research team is studying twins, comparing the similarity between identical and non‐identical twins. If
the trait similarity is found to be significantly higher among identical twins, then the trait will be more
likely influenced by genetic factors.
Professor Rustichini received his PhD. from the University of Minnesota in 1987. He teaches and does
research in the areas of microeconomic theory, game theory, mathematics for economists, decision
theory, and political economy.
For more information on Professor Rustichini: http://www.econ.umn.edu/faculty/arust/

Students in Focus
Course spotlight: Medical Device Industry
The Medical Device Industry: Business and Public Policy course (MILI 6726) offered spring semester, is a
course with a rich history and ongoing mission of engaging industry leaders and students in key aspects
that make the medical device sector different from other sectors. The course covers the unique
business, market, public policy, regulatory, and technology management issues of the medical device
industry, including:
• the historical development, importance, and future direction of the medical device industry;
• FDA issues, policies and strategies, public and private sector insurance coverage and
reimbursement;
• interaction between public policies and private sector actions; intellectual property (IP) and
liability issues concerning medical technology;
• key issues relating to the start‐up and management of new medical technology firms.
With the help of industry executives, especially Dale Olseth, Professors Robert Connor and Susan Foote
created the medical device industry course in 2000. Ten years later, it continues to actively engage
students ‐ the future generation of industry leaders, with executives ‐ the current generation of industry
leaders.
MBA student Andrea Seven said, "If you currently work in the med device industry or are interested in
transitioning to it, I would recommend this course. Professor Connor provides students with a very
unique overview of the industry, including the topics of regulatory, venture capital, reimbursement,
patents ... and all other topics that touch the life of a device. Students are given direct access to over 20
guest faculty lecturers (almost every class) including the Twin Cities' leading experts. It’s a fantastic
opportunity to learn from and ask questions of the best!"
Industry leaders from the following organizations have been engaged in the course: Acorn
Cardiovascular, Atritech, Berman Medical, Blue Cross Blue Shield, Boston Scientific, Celleration, CHF
Solutions, CVRx, Devicix, EnteroMedics, Epitek, Lifecore Biomedical, Lundberg & Woessner, Medica
Health Plans, Medtronic, UM Office of Technology Commercialization, Piper Jaffray, Princeton
Reimbursement Group, QRS Diagnostic, Robins, Kaplan, Miller & Ciresi, SightLine Partners, Silicon Valley
Bank, St. Jude Medical, SurModics, Thomas McNerney & Partners, United Health Group, Urologix,
Venturi Group, and Vital Images.
In a note to Professor Connor, a student wrote, "I just wanted you to know that I appreciate the efforts
you put into structuring this class and providing balanced insight into so many business aspects of the
medical device industry. Having worked in this industry for the past six years, I still felt that I got
tremendous knowledge out of it...[and] have recommended it to many colleagues and employees here
at Medtronic." Response from engaged industry leaders were exemplified in a comment from a recent
guest lecturer who wrote ‐‐ "I enjoyed the session very much... I appreciate the opportunity to weigh in
on future business needs for device solutions to patient problems.

Student spotlight: Anil Asrani
Anil Asrani began the Carlson Part Time MBA program in the fall of 2006 after having received his
bachelor of science in biology from the College of William and Mary in 1995. Employed for 10 years in
clinical research at the Universities of Virginia and Minnesota, Anil published on extracellular matrix
proteins and molecular virology relating to HIV, respectively. While at Carlson he successfully completed
his MBA as a Carlson Scholar (graduating in the top 10% of his class of 382 people), led two student
groups, was selected to study abroad on the 3M Vienna Seminar via a Carlson Family Foundation
scholarship, earned a Medical Industry Specialization, gained critical experience as a consultant for
Fortune 500 companies, published three journal articles in his field, and ran his own investment
property business. Upon graduation from Carlson in May of 2009, Anil’s involvement in these activities
was recognized: he was selected as the Part Time MBA Student of the Year. This honor is bestowed
upon one or two individuals from each year’s graduating class for outstanding overall achievement.
While attending Carlson, Anil’s interest in MILI’s Medical Industry Specialization grew and he became
heavily involved in its coursework as well as its student association (MILIsa). Anil’s best experiences
during the specialization were participating in the Medical Technology Evaluation course with Dr.
Stephen Parente, where he was able to work for three clients ‐ The Mayo Clinic, UnitedHealth Group,
and Medtronic ‐‐ to develop medical technologies while learning how to critically evaluate the medical
industry’s major stakeholders’ perspectives regarding innovative products and services. During the
course, six projects were selected for development, one of which was Anil’s idea. Anil also participated
in Carlson’s yearlong New Product Design and Business Development course, where he was the team
leader of a cross‐functional group that was tasked with developing a new medical device for Medtronic’s
cardiovascular division. He worked with another MBA, an MHA, two biomedical engineers, and a
mechanical engineer to develop a device that will be launched in 2010. When asked about these
courses, Anil said, “There is absolutely no substitute for this kind of hands‐on learning and real‐world
experience; more classes at Carlson could benefit greatly by being taught in this way.”
Anil also joined MILIsa at a time when the founders were still creating the group. He ultimately was
elected the group’s first vice president. Together the leaders were able to grow membership from five
officers to 220+ members and growing. They also set up a website that offered online chatting
capabilities and podcasts of their programming. The programming this year included a town hall‐style
meeting with medical device entrepreneur Michael Berman, a bi‐weekly lunch series featuring a variety
of entrepreneurs/leaders in the medical industry, and an open‐to‐the‐public, non‐partisan, pre‐election
Healthcare Policy Panel to inform voters of the candidates’ positions and their effects on key
stakeholders in the medical industry. MILIsa currently reaches out to students within and beyond
Carlson’s walls for their membership, i.e. students of the Academic Health Center and engineering
schools. MILIsa’s mission is best exemplified by the Medtronic Interdisciplinary Healthcare Case
Competition that debuted on April 16, 2009 at Carlson, which Anil personally pitched to a senior
executive at Medtronic. MILIsa envisions that this competition will not only unite students from
disparate programs at the University of Minnesota to learn together, as it did this year, but will quickly
grow to include students from other U.S. schools as early as next year. The competition will allow the

nation to witness what MILI participants already know: that Carlson is the premier place to get an MBA
with a Medical Industry Specialization.
In addition to his professional accomplishments, Anil was married in December of 2007 to his best
friend, Laura, and is now the proud father of Arabella Grace Asrani, who was born on May 27, 2009. This
summer, Anil will also begin his career at Devicix, a medical device design firm located in Eden Prairie,
MN, as the Director of Strategic Marketing. Regarding his new career, Anil said, “I just wouldn’t feel
confident entering an entirely new field, like the medical device industry, without the comprehensive
training and analysis that I was exposed to during my Medical Industry Specialization.”
Medical Industry Leadership Institute Student Association (MILIsa) update by
Andrea Seven, vice president of finance, MILIsa
The Medical Industry Leadership Institute Student Association (MILISA) recently completed its second
academic year and continues to pursue its mission of fostering a strong interdisciplinary network of
students, faculty, alumni, and industry representatives who share a common passion for the healthcare
industry.
Throughout the 2008‐09 academic year, MILISA provided a robust array of programming for students
interested in the industry. Programming included a variety of executive speaking engagements, the
Healthcare Policy Discussion Panel preceding the presidential election, networking events and the
extremely successful, first annual Medtronic Interdisciplinary Healthcare Case Competition (MEDIHCC).
In addition, the organization provides programming for students by collaborating with other
organizations including Life Science Alley, Carlson’s’ Ventures Plus, SPH – Division of Health Policy and
Management, the University of St. Thomas, and the Design of Medical Devices Conference.
MILISA recently held its second officer election during which five new officers were elected for the 2009‐
10 academic year.
• President: Nathan Rajalingam. Nathan is a 2010 MBA candidate currently spending his summer
internship at the Target Corporation.
• Vice President of External Relations: Robert John Ed. Robert is a 2010 MBA candidate and is
currently employed as an intern in marketing with Boston Scientific.
• Vice President of Internal Relations: Juli Tidwell. Juli is a 2009 MBA candidate and works for the
University of Minnesota’s Division of Pediatric Oncology as a regulatory specialist.
• Vice President of Programming: Jason Rusinak. Jason is a 2010 MBA candidate and is working
on a project with the Minnesota Nurses Association this summer.
• Vice President of Finance: Andrea Seven. Andrea is a 2010 MBA candidate currently serving as
an Education Pioneers Fellow with Chicago Public Schools’ Office of School Turnaround.
The MILISA officers look forward to further engagement with the University and the business
community through a variety of medical industry related events that will help to prepare its members
for leadership roles in the medical industry.

Through these events and activities, MILISA is committed to establishing its student membership as
among the most prepared to enter into new leadership roles in the medical industry. For more
information about the group, email milisa@umn.edu.
First Medtronic Interdisciplinary Healthcare Case Competition engages
University of Minnesota students in solving healthcare problems
Student teams in the first Medtronic Interdisciplinary Healthcare Case Competition used
collaboration and classroom learning to solve a real‐life strategy problem currently faced by the
medical device industry. The competition, sponsored by Medtronic, Inc. (NYSE: MDT), was held
April 17‐23 and hosted by the Medical Industry Leadership Institute's student association
(www.milisa.org) at the University of Minnesota’s Carlson School of Management.
Designed to support innovation and leadership in the healthcare and medical device industries,
the competition involved graduate students from the University’s Master of Business
Administration (MBA), Master of Public Health (MPH), Master of Healthcare Administration
(MHA), Master of Science in Management of Technology (MOT), and Master of Public Policy
(MPP) programs as well as the Law School, Institute of Technology, and Medical School.
“The competition provided student participants with a rare opportunity to network and learn
together, while producing innovative solutions that draw on their respective fields of expertise
and study,” says Steve Parente, associate professor of finance and director of the Medical
Industry Leadership Institute at the Carlson School. “We expect the event to grow to include
graduate students in other academic areas as well as students from outside the University.”
The Medical Industry Leadership Institute puts executives, physicians, students, and academic
leaders in touch with the latest trends in the medical industry through MBA education,
executive education, research, and market development. The Institute’s student association
developed the idea of an interdisciplinary healthcare case competition and gained the financial
support of Medtronic as a corporate sponsor of the event.
During this debut competition, eight graduate student teams competed. Composed of three to
six members, each team was required to have at least one MBA, one MHA and one MPH
student on its roster. Every team had 36 hours to analyze a current business case provided by
Medtronic and prepare a presentation. During the first round of presentations, student teams
presented their findings to faculty judges from the University of Minnesota. Next, the three top
teams moved on to the final round of competition and presented to a panel of Medtronic
executives at Medtronic World Headquarters. This year’s winners and their graduate degree
programs were:

• First‐place team: Eric Henningsen, MBA; Sarah Klawitter, MPH; Kaustubh Patil, MS; Scott
Tran, MHA/MBA; Ylan Kazi, MHA; and Niketa Walawalkar, MPH.
• Second‐place team: Ryan Chaquette, MHA/MBA; Joseph Pham, MPH; Michelle Sotak, MBA;
John Reed, MBA; and Christina Small, MBA.
• Third‐place team: Eric Barrette, PhD Health Services Research, Policy & Admin; Kate Bautch,
MBA; Katie Tastad, MPH; Varun Garg, MHA; Peter Graven, PhD HPM; and German Mendivil,
MBA.
Focus on Faculty
Faculty spotlight: Avner Ben­Ner
Center for Human Resources and Labor Studies Professor Avner Ben‐Ner wonders – would it make a
difference whether children go to a for‐profit, nonprofit, or government childcare center,
elementary school, or college? Would you prefer to place an elderly relative – or end up yourself –
in a for‐profit, nonprofit, or local government nursing home? Are there significant differences
among for‐profit, nonprofit, and government organizations in the way in which they are structured,
what they produce, and how they produce it? Does organization ownership matter? Ben‐Ner has
researched this field specifically comparing organizational performance in nonprofit, for‐profit, and
local government nursing homes in Minnesota. In 2008, Ben‐Ner, along with co‐principal investigator
Pinar Karaca‐Mandic from the School of Public Health, was awarded an Institute interdisciplinary grant
to study, “Does Ownership Matter in the Selection of Nursing homes? Evidence from Consumer
Surveys.”
Ben‐Ner’s research interests focus on:
• structure and performance in for‐profit, nonprofit, and government organizations,
• human resource management and firm performance,
• the role of identity, personality, cognitive ability, ethics and values, and of social, religious, and
cultural influences on trust and cooperation, behavior and organizational design,
• the place of for‐profit, nonprofit, and government sectors in the new economy.
Ben‐Ner is also currently working with Darla Flint on a project evaluating the effects of working on a
treadmill while working on job performance. This is a project initiated by James Levine, professor and
doctor at the Mayo Clinic. Levine is a leading researcher of NEAT (non‐exercise activity thermogenesis)
the calories people burn doing everyday activities such as standing, walking, or even fidgeting. Levine
and his team developed an alternative to the traditional cubicle – workstations that combine computer,
desk, and treadmill into one unit. They have also implemented other ways to keep people moving while
at work.

Professor Avner Ben‐Ner has been a professor in the Carlson School’s department of human resources
and industrial relations since 1988. He received his PhD and MA in economics from the State University
of New York at Stony Brook.
Faculty news and publications
• Stephen Parente testified before the Congressional Subcommittee on Health's hearing on
comprehensive health reform, Tuesday, June 23, 2009. He was a member of the panel on health
reform coalition views.
• On April 10, 2009, Murray Frank was interviewed for the Minnesota Public Radio Story, "Some
stimulus funds might land in unexpected places."
• Stephen Parente was quoted in the June 19, 2009 Milwaukee‐Wisconsin Journal Sentinel article,
"President pressing health care overhaul."
• Dahl D, Sengupta J, and Vohs KD. 2009. “Sex in Advertising: Gender Differences and the Role of
Relationship Commitment.” Journal of Consumer Research 36: electronically published January
9, 2009.
• Stephen Parente's research was mentioned in the April 23rd Business Week article, "The
Dubious Promise of Digital Medicine: GE, Google, and others, in a stimulus‐fueled frenzy, are
piling into the business. But electronic health records have a dubious history."
• O'Connor PJ, Sperl‐Hillen JM, Johnson P, Rush WA, Asche S, Dutta P, and Blitz G. 2009.
“Simulated physician learning intervention to improve safety and quality of diabetes care: a
randomized trial.” Diabetes Care 32 (4): 585‐590.
• Stephen Parente's interstate health insurance market research was mentioned in the April 9,
2009 New York Times article, "Op‐Ed Contributor: The Misguided Quest for Universal Coverage."
• Stephen Parente was quoted in the Minneapolis Star Tribune article, "Hospitals forced to
become bill collectors" on April 1, 2009.
• The March 11, 2009, Science Centric article, "U of Minnesota Researchers Examine the Value of
Health Information Technology" quoted research done by Stephen Parente.
• Zhang Y, Sweet RM, Metzger GJ, Burke D, Erdman AG, and Timm GW. 2009. “Advanced finite
element mesh model of female SUI research during physical and daily activities.” Stud. Health
Technol. Inform. 142: 447‐452.
• Stephen Parente was quoted on March 10, 2009 on the FOX‐TV story, "Study: Health IT Doesn't
Help Patient Safety"
• Stephen Parente was part of a national panel of experts debating the creation of a Federal
Health Board to improve the country’s healthcare system. The panel, which was organized by
the Medical Banking Project and the Mayo Clinic Health Policy Center, met at the Seventh
National Medical Banking Institute March 12 in Nashville, Tenn. The debate can be viewed at

• O'Connor PJ, Sperl‐Hillen JM, Johnson P, Rush WA, and Crain A. 2009. “Customized feedback to
patients and providers failed to improve safety or quality of diabetes care: A randomized trial.”
Diabetes Care ahead of print online publishing date 4/14/09.
• Parente ST, and McCullough JS. 2009. “Health information technology and patient safety:
evidence from panel data.” Health Aff. (Millwood.) 28 (2): 357‐360.
• Parente ST. 2009. “Health Information Technology and Financing's Next Frontier: The Potential
of Medical Banking.” Business Economics 44 (1): 41‐50.
• Zhang Y, Kim S, Erdman AG, Roberts KP, and Timm GW. 2009. “Feasibility of Using a Computer
Modeling Approach to Study SUI Induced by Landing a Jump” Ann. Biomed. Eng.
Alumni & Friends
Alumni spotlight: Major Matthew Tarjick
Matthew Tarjick, 2008 MBA is a major in the U.S. Army Medical Service Corps. Currently, he serves as
the chief financial officer and business division chief for the U.S. Army Medical Department Activity at
Fort Meade, Maryland. Kimbrough Ambulatory Care Clinic is the parent medical facility to three
subordinate Army clinics and over 10 outlying support clinics, providing primary care to over 40,000
active duty service members and their families, military retirees, and 200 Warriors in Transition. In this
role, Matt oversees all resourcing decisions, including budget and accounting responsibilities, pursuing
venture capital funding, conducting business case analysis to determine the feasibility of new initiatives,
third party collections, and supporting the strategic direction of the medical activity.
Matt served on active duty for eight years prior to entering the Carlson School of Management’s MBA
program. Prior to Carlson, Matt was a company commander on two separate occasions, a platoon leader
in the 82 nd Airborne Division to include a combat tour in Afghanistan, and Assistant Chief of Operations
on the 82 nd Airborne Division G‐3 staff. While at the Carlson School, Matt pursued a broad spectrum of
courses in entrepreneurship, medical industry leadership, finance, and marketing. “My aim was to take
the courses that I was most interested in, rather than the courses that fulfilled a specific area of
concentration. The Army values well‐rounded leaders.”
Following graduation from the full time program in May 2008, Matt began a one‐year Health Services
Comptroller Internship program at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C. At the
conclusion of the internship program, Matt successfully passed his oral boards to become a board
certified Health Services Comptroller.
Ultimately, Matt intends to serve on active duty for at least 20 years, progressing to CFO of an inpatient
facility, followed by an Army Medical Center, and then as a Deputy Commander for Administration
(Chief of Staff) and, ultimately, as Hospital Commander (CEO).
Beyond his Army career, Matt and his wife, Dr. Angela Tarjick, DC also opened a chiropractic and natural
care center in Edgewater, Maryland. There, he serves as the director of business operations. “My
Carlson education prepared me well to function as a leader in both organizations. On the one hand, I am
the CFO of a $100M+ organization and on the other hand, I handle the finance, accounting, marketing,
external relationships, HR functions, and anywhere else I am needed for a start‐up business. It’s been
challenging, yet extremely rewarding. It’s amazing to see our vision and elements of our business plan
become a reality.”
In addition to being a MILI affiliate, Matt is a member of the American College of Healthcare Executives
and the American Society of Military Comptrollers. Because Matt lives in Maryland, it is difficult to

emain active in MILI. However, whenever possible, Matt continues to work with students by discussing
career options and professional development opportunities. If you would like to contact Matt, feel free
to email him at mtarjick@gmail.com.
Give to the Institute
Alumni and friends of the Carlson School of Management support the mission of both the school and the
Institute in many ways—by mentoring students, volunteering time with faculty and staff, and by
contributing financially. The Carlson School relies on more than 3,000 benefactors annually.
You can also support the mission of the Institute by assisting financially with your contribution. There
are three main areas of need and your financial support would make a positive impact in the success
and growth of the Institute. Below are areas where gifts are needed most:
• Program Support Fund (# 5295): General operating costs: contributions provide the necessary
flexible funds to support daily operations needed to maintain key initiatives.
• Research Support Fund (#3609): General research expenses: contributions provide funds for the
Institute’s interdisciplinary grant awards program as well as further its research portfolio.
• MILI Discovery Fund (#6087): Experiential learning support of the course ‐ Medical Industry
Valuation Laboratory: contributions provide funds for initiatives and educational experiences
that facilitate market valuations of new innovations for the medical industry, and enhance the
potential to bring new technologies to market.
There are many areas of need and many ways for friends and alumni to make a positive impact on
the school today and into the future.