Mays Impacts

Due to recent corporate events, the accounting profession has come under the scrutinizing eye of the public and the government. In response, the Center for Continuous Auditing (CCA) has teamed up with the Department of Accounting and the Professional Program to host a lecture series addressing the current issues facing the corporate world.

Accounting Professor Marty Loudder believes this series is the school’s chance to address today’s tough issues. “Business schools have been strangely quiet about what’s going on, and it’s our chance to speak out about it,” she says.

The lecture series is bringing in high-caliber executives from across the country, such as Jim Hooton, retired partner from Andersen and Steve Ledbetter, chairman, president and CEO of Reliant Energy.

CCA Director Don Warren says he believes the lecture series will shed light on the challenges and opportunities in the accounting industry. “The time is right. People in the marketplace are driving this program,” he says. “They want to have these issues addressed.”

While this is the inaugural series, Warren hopes the CCA can work with the Professional Program and its director, Dr. Austin Daily, to sponsor a similar series each year — helping industry execs, faculty and students stay abreast of such a rapidly changing marketplace. “Next year, the lectures might be dealing with the different changes the profession has undergone,” he says.

The lectures take place every Thursday at 5:30 p.m. in the Wehner Building’s Ray Auditorium through Nov. 21.

Two of the nation’s top executives will be honored this month at two of the college’s most notable spring events.

Colleen Barrett, president and chief operating officer of Southwest Airlines, has been named this year’s Kupfer Distinguished Executive. The cornerstone of Southwest’s fun-loving culture, Barrett will receive the award and speak to Mays students on Wednesday, April 10.

Retailing guru Marvin Girouard ’61, chairman and chief executive officer of Pier 1 Imports, will also be honored, as he will present the fifth annual M.B. Zale Visionary Merchant Lecture. Sponsored by the college’s Center for Retailing Studies, Girouard will speak Monday, April 15.

Sy Sternberg, chairman, president and CEO of New York Life Insurance Company spoke to Mays MBAs about the (some times) counterintuitive philosophy of the 156-year-old, Fortune 100 company he leads. He also discussed the events of September 11 and how New York Life responded that day. Sterberg shared his strategies in opening New York Life in international markets, as well as the importance of adhering to company values in every decision.

What started as a routine chore of washing dishes has become a successful 29-year endeavor for Crate and Barrel founders Gordon and Carol Segal. The couple wanted to offer well-designed products at affordable prices and when they secured a storefront in Chicago’s Old Town in 1962, Crate and Barrel was born. Now, almost three decades later, Crate and Barrel offers an array of affordable, usable gourmet cookware and housewares in 96 stores in 21 U.S. markets. It also provides gift registry and catalog and Web shopping.

In recognition of Crate and Barrel’s success, Gordon Segal, who also serves as the company’s CEO, presented the fourth annual M.B. Zale Visionary Merchant Lecture. The lecture, which honors the late jewelry retailer and founder MB Zale, was sponsored by the college’s Center for Retailing Studies (CRS) and is made possible by an endowment established by the M.B. & Edna Zale Foundation.

“Mr. Segal is an innovative merchant and visionary leader,” said Dr. David Szymanski, director of the CRS. “He and his company are ideal examples of creativity and leadership the lecture series honors.”

Segal’s vision as an entrepreneur and merchant have not gone unnoticed, as he’s received numerous honors and awards, including the National Retail Federation’s 2000 Gold Medal Award Winner and the Gourmet Products Show/Home-World Business Industry Lifetime Achievement Award.

While the California energy crisis has sparked a great deal of discussion regarding deregulation, Texans can rest assured they will have energy for years to come. Thanks to visionaries like TXU Chairman and CEO Erle Nye ’59, a level playing field now exists in the energy industry, stimulating competition and growth.

Because of his key role in the deregulation of Texas public utilities and his ability to reposition TXU during a critical time, Nye was named the 2001 Conn Distinguished New Venture Leader by the college’s Center for New Ventures and Entrepreneurship. Funded by a gift from Carroll (C.W.) and Dorothy Conn, the award recognizes an outstanding business leader who has achieved extraordinary success through a business start up or in the transformation of an existing company. The first recipient was college namesake Lowry Mays, chairman and CEO of Clear Channel Communications, who received the award last year.

“Deregulation was not easy and competition is challenging as well,” Nye said during his recent lecture at the college. “During the transition from deregulation to competition, everything that was nailed down came loose — the change impacted every aspect of TXU. But we came through it well, because of the ability of our workforce to adapt to the new set of circumstances and because of our strong corporate culture.”

Nye has worked for TXU and its predecessor companies for his entire adult life. As chief financial officer, he presided over the mergers that formed TXU, including joining three Texas power companies with Enserch/Lone Star Gas in 1997. This merger expanded the company beyond electricity generation, transmission and distribution and into the natural gas business, making it one of the largest corporations in the industry. Today, TXU serves 11 million customers worldwide, with over $22 billion in yearly revenues.

“The Conn New Venture Leader Award recognizes recognizes people in large corporate settings who demonstrate the creativity and innovation needed to change the very face of business in this country,” explained Dean Benton Cocanougher. “The contributions of our first two recipients, Lowry Mays and Erle Nye, have made definite, lasting impressions both on their own companies and on their industries.”

Nye also plays a variety of roles in Texas higher education, including a current six-year appointment to the Texas A&M University System Board of Regents. He also serves on the Texas A&M Foundation Advisory Committee and is a member of the Chancellor’s Century Council of Advisors.