The Johnson School Annual Report 2007–2008 - Johnson Graduate ...

Corporate Donors
Fidelity Forms Close Ties Through
Stock Pitch Competition
Johnson & Johnson Supports
Brand Immersion Learning
THE JOHNSON SCHOOL ANNUAL REPORT 2007–08
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Initiated by the Parker Center
for Investment Research at the
Johnson School, the annual Stock
Pitch Competition pits teams
of MBA students from ten elite
business schools against each
other in a contest to prepare,
present, and defend buy, hold,
and sell recommendations before
a panel of investment industry
experts. Contestants get a chance
to shine before prospective
employers, since participating
firms usually send their recruiters along to shop for top
talent.
The lead sponsor in 2007 and again in 2008 is Fidelity
Investments. The company also sends Vice President
and Portfolio Manager Larry Rakers, who has judged the
competition for four years and considers it an excellent fit for
Fidelity.
“The Stock Pitch Competition and the core of the Fidelity
research process are very similar,” says Rakers. In addition,
“lots of times I hear about stocks and stories I didn’t know
about, so I learn something.”
Sponsoring the contest also gives Fidelity access to the kind
of students it is interested in. “To enter the competition,
to travel to Cornell to participate, you have already selected
yourself as someone who wants to get into the business and
really likes stock,” Rakers says.
It also helps Fidelity form a closer relationship with the
Johnson School, something Rakers says the company is
eager to do. “The quality of students that attend Cornell; the
Parker Center, a unique asset that a lot of schools don’t have;
the portfolio class; the quality of the education you get at
Cornell; all those things attract us to the Johnson School. I’ve
been going there for four years, and it seems like the school
is getting better and better.”
Johnson & Johnson, the pharmaceutical, medical devices,
and consumer packaged-goods manufacturer, is an avid
recruiter of Johnson School graduates. It is also one of the
school’s valued corporate partners, offering students “dayin-the-life”
experiential learning opportunities. Through
its consumer products division, it also provides a perfect
laboratory for those in the brand management immersion
program.
Charles Colagiuri ’92, MBA ’02, has been working at
Johnson & Johnson since graduation
and is currently director of global
processes. “Johnson & Johnson has
been a strong supporter of the Johnson
School for quite some time,” he says,
and attributes this to the “tremendous
cultural fit” between the school and the
corporation.
“The Johnson & Johnson credo—
putting customers and patients first,
shareholders last—and our tagline,
‘small-company environment, bigcompany
impact,’ very much mirrors
the Johnson School,” says Colagiuri.
The corporation uses an entrepreneurial model, in which
each of the more than 200 subsidiary companies is run as a
separate business. “It is not a top-down organization. You’re
held accountable for your local business,” he explains. “I
think that’s what Johnson School students find appealing
about it—they get to create something and be recognized for
it.”
Johnson & Johnson is partial to Cornell MBAs because
“we’re interested in people who are going to drive their own
careers, build their own business, and demonstrate strong
leadership skills,” says Colagiuri. “Technical skills are easier
to find. It’s the intangible skills that we are really looking for.”