The results are in for the 16th annual Queen’s Undergraduate Exit Survey and, once again, Commerce students have the highest level of satisfaction of all faculties across the University.

Overall, undergraduates University-wide continue to be very satisfied with their Queen’s experience, with 80 per cent of respondents agreeing or strongly agreeing with the anchor statement, “Overall, my learning experience at Queen’s was excellent.”

Queen’s School of Business students had the highest level of satisfaction, with 94 per cent rating their experience as excellent, up from 91 per cent in 2008.

The Exit Poll is designed to provide annual insights into the University’s overall performance at the undergraduate level, and into each faculty and school based on students’ perceptions of their education as they graduate. Questions focus on three main areas: the quality of the learning environment, the contribution of Queen’s education to learning and development in key areas and student satisfaction with services and facilities.

“The exit poll is an important metric for future decision making,” University Registrar Jo-Anne Brady told Senate. “Past results have been invaluable to the university, allowing faculties and schools to learn from students’ feedback and help with planning.”

For the full report, visit http://www.queensu.ca/registrar/aboutus/reports/exitpoll.html

QSB Commerce student Jeff Batchelor

QSB Commerce student Jeff Batchelor secured his spot on the Canadian Snowboard Olympic team with a silver medal performance at a World Cup snowboarding event in Stoneham, Quebec in January.

Jeff scored 44.3 in his final run, giving him in second place behind Finland’s Janne Korpi. It was Batchelor’s second straight podium finish at Stoneham, after winning gold there in 2009.

Batchelor has turned in two top-5 finishes in Olympic qualifiers, earning him priority selection for the Canadian Olympic Snowboard team.

Jeff’s journey on the Olympic qualifying circuit can be seen on the popular MTV/CTV reality show “Over the Bolts” where he is a featured fan favourite. This 21-year-old student athlete constantly challenges himself and is a strong contender for an Olympic medal at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics.

Cheer on our own Commerce Olympian by visiting Jeff’s Facebook page and sending him your best wishes!

Queen’s School of Business Commerce students hosted the 31^st annual Inter-Collegiate Business Competition (ICBC) to great success during the final round weekend January 8 & 9.  ICBC is the largest and longest running undergraduate business case competition and featured 150 submissions from Canadian and international universities with the final rounds represented by 18 different universities. Highlights of this year’s competition included the introduction of the Human Resources event, presented by Minerva Safety Management Education and the 10^th anniversary of the Sheldon Chumir Foundation Ethics event which has been commended for its personal interaction and presentation.

Students valued the interaction with other competitors in addition to the Queen’s Commerce student hosts.  “I chose to participate in ICBC because it gave me real exposure to one of the most prestigious schools in Canada,” said Valerie Larochella from Concordia University. “I got to add value to my diploma, and gained many new experiences.”

The Final Debate was a heated one, with the University of British Columbia and Calgary University going head-to-head debating the topic “It’s All Good” within the realms of government and education.  In the end, UBC’s strong topical points and quick responses gave their team a competitive edge and first place in the competition.

The three universities who came out on top with two first place finishes out of the eight disciplines were: University of Calgary in Accounting and Business Policy; University of British Columbia in Debating and Marketing; and McGill in Ethics & Finance. Wilfred Laurier was the winner of the first ever Human Resources event. Queen’s School of Business was tops in the category of Management Information Systems, presented by Caro Systems and came second in the Finance category, presented by BMO Capital Markets.

For competition details and photos please visit the ICBC website.

Major gift moves QSB closer to fundraising goal for expansion of Goodes Hall

Kingston, ON – Queen’s School of Business received a $2 million gift from BMO Financial Group in support of the expansion of Goodes Hall, the home of the business school.

The donation was presented today at a ceremony on campus with Eric Tripp, President of BMO Capital Markets and Queen’s BA (Hons) ’81, Queen’s University Principal Daniel Woolf and Queen’s School of Business Dean David Saunders.

“We are extremely proud of our longstanding relationship with Queen’s and also our deep commitment to education,” said Mr. Tripp. “Of the nearly $50 million in sponsorships and donations that BMO Financial Group delivers each year in Canada, close to one-third goes toward education. This includes support for highly regarded institutions like Queen’s, but also support for students in the form of scholarships.”

In recognition of BMO’s support, the Goodes Hall Atrium has been named the BMO Financial Group Atrium. A group of Commerce student leaders helped unveil the signage at today’s ceremony.

“As a Queen’s alumnus, I know the new BMO Financial Group Atrium will serve as a leading centre for dialogue and interaction amongst students, academics and business leaders, reinforcing this university’s outstanding reputation for excellence in business education,” added Mr. Tripp.

The 75,000 square-foot expansion will feature three new high-tech classrooms, breakout rooms, a student common area and multi-purpose room for conferences, guest speakers and recruiting events, as well as a support centre and office space for students.

“With more great teaching, research and learning opportunities, we can expand QSB’s global footprint and alumni network, and advance our goal to be one of the most innovative and influential business schools in Canada and the world,” said Dean Saunders. “We are very thankful for BMO’s continued support of QSB and our mission to develop outstanding leaders.”

Queen’s University and BMO Financial Group have been working together since 1867, one of the longest running business relationships in Canada. In addition to BMO’s support of the new wing at QSB, the bank has also established a professorship recognizing teaching excellence in Finance, as well as the Bank of Montreal National Award, a student award recognizing academic excellence, leadership and community involvement.

Since 1817, BMO Financial Group, Canada’s first bank, has supported the principles of community reinvestment and corporate and social responsibility in the communities it serves. BMO is one of Canada’s largest corporate benefactors. In 2009, BMO contributed nearly $50 million in Canada, supporting charitable donations, sponsorships and other events.

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To request a photo or arrange an interview, please contact:
Amber Wallace, Queen’s School of Business
613.533.3151 / awallace@business.queensu.ca

Kim Hanson, BMO Financial Group
416.867.3996 / kim.hanson@bmo.com

QFAC Stock Trading Simulation winners open the market at the Toronto Stock Exchange.

Queen’s School of Business Finance Association Conference (QFAC) Stock Trading Simulation winners joined Robert Fotheringham, Senior Vice President, Trading, TMX Group to open the market for the first day of trading of the new year in Toronto on Tuesday. QFAC is a student run conference focusing on finance and capital markets. Student delegates network with professionals and explore a variety of finance-related careers. The stock trading simulation, one of the most memorable events of the conference, takes place on the trading floor of the original Toronto Stock Exchange building on Bay Street. Delegates, assisted by an investment professional, compete by trading stocks and options in a real-time stock market challenge.

Matei Olaru, student conference coordinator, and Misha Plotkine, one of the trading simulation winners, were featured on Business News Network. Check out their interview.

Commerce students Spenser Heard (far left) and Adam Mitchell (far right) with representatives from the Children’s Aid Society of Kingston

The Holiday Hope campaign came to an end this weekend, with a farewell from the Children’s Aid Society as they drove away with gifts for 52 families to be distributed this holiday season. The campaign enticed countless Queen’s School of Business Commerce students to give something back to the Kingston community, and in a way that was both meaningful and heart-warming. The campaign successfully raised over $10,000 in the form of holiday gifts, that will be received by over 150 underprivileged children across Kingston.

The campaign was the brain child of Adam Mitchell (Comm’11) and Spenser Heard (Comm’10, Comsoc President). Groups of students signed up to sponsor a family of children, and through a partnership with the Children’s Aid Society, were provided with a holiday wish list. The groups were given a $100 starting fund covered by the generous donations from the Queen’s Commerce Society, the Queen’s School of Business, the NetImpact Support Centre, and Oil Thigh Designs. The expectation was for student groups to match this offering, but many well exceeded it.

Dean David Saunders addressed those gathered for the event, drawing to light the many things that Commerce students do to give back to the community. At the finale in the Goodes Hall Atrium, a holiday tree was almost completely masked by the hundreds of wrapped gifts that surrounded it. A representative from the Children’s Aid Society gave a heart-warming thank you to everyone, and made it clear just how important these gifts would be this holiday season, leaving a long-lasting impression on the students who worked so hard to make the idea a reality.

(l to r): Professor Laurence Ashworth, Dean David Saunders and Professor Pamela Murphy at the QSB 2009 Research Excellence Awards Ceremony

For one Queen’s School of Business (QSB) scholar, consumers’ reaction to perceived mistreatment is a source of great fascination. For another, it is the psychological aspect of fraud that keeps the research fires burning.

The questions they ask may differ but what Professors Laurence Ashworth and Pamela Murphy do share is a passion for business research and a special honour from their Queen’s peers. At a ceremony held December 2, Professor Ashworth received QSB’s 2009 Award for Research Achievement, while Professor Murphy took home the School’s 2009 New Researcher Achievement Award.

Professor Ashworth discovered different routes by which unfair treatment can have a strong impact on a consumer’s self esteem. “I found fairness intrinsically interesting, partly because most people have the experience of being treated unfairly by stores. What always got me was the strength of those reactions, the feelings of injustice inspired even in trivial cases. I wanted to figure out what was going on.”

Professor Ashworth was appointed Assistant Professor of Queen’s School of Business in 2003. He has published in a variety of publications, including the Journal of Consumer Research, the Journal of Marketing, the Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, the Journal of Consumer Psychology, and the Journal of Business Ethics, and has presented his findings at more than 20 refereed conferences.

Professor Murphy is a fitting recipient of the QSB’s New Researcher Achievement Award, which recognizes a pre-tenured faculty member’s research contribution. Her research, which grew from her involvement in the business world, as an auditor, controller, marketing manager, and management consultant is focused on identifying how people rationalize unethical behaviour.

Professor Murphy runs experiments with students in networked computer labs to show the role rationalization plays in committing fraud. “I love getting people into experiments and looking at what they do,” she says. “Humans truly fascinate me and they rarely do everything I think they will. That’s what keeps us going as researchers.”

Professor Murphy came to QSB in 2007, following the completion of her PhD at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Her work has been published in Contemporary Accounting Research and Journal of Business Ethics, top journals in their fields.

The award program is administered by an ad hoc committee of QSB professors who consider the research achievements of their peers. In addition to the recognition, recipients receive grants to support their research and facilitate its dissemination into journals and other quality publications.

A team of MBA 2010 students at the Emerging Markets Competition (l to r): Chris Doucet, Hein Le, Roger D’Sa, Anna Noir, Rahul Hari

A full day student competition at Queen’s School of Business lead by Dr. David Detomasi involved students from three International QSB Business courses looking at Canada and emerging markets. This event offered the 190 students involved the opportunity to network with alumni, faculty and members of both the local and national business communities while the esteemed judges including locals such as Robert Lee, Managing Director, RBC Capital Markets, David Yake, Sr. Executive, DuPont and Jack Julian, Advisor, Queen’s School of Business were witness to program innovations in QSB’s Bachelor of Commerce, Master of Business Administration and Master of Global Management programs. Students were broken out into 30 teams where four finalist judges awarded the winning team of Commerce students including: Rachel Zimmer, Chris Henry, Bernardo Ferreira, Matt Sinclair and Patricia Brecha a $300.00 travel gift certificate from P&G Travel for each student.

Dean David Saunders addresses the audience as 2010 Business Forecast Luncheon professors (l to r) Lew Johnson, Sean Cleary, Douglas Reid and Ken Wong look on

KINGSTON, ON – Queen’s School of Business professors made their economic predictions for 2010 at the 28th annual Business Forecast Lunch today in Kingston, Ontario. An expert panel of faculty presented the economy’s prospects with a focus on their own particular expertise, including a review of the 2009 forecast.

Overall, the Canadian economy appears to be on the mend. But while the financial markets are rising, consumer confidence is declining. In 2010, the business world will need strong management to convert our uncertainty for risk. 2009 was a hard year for Kingston, and the next three to five years will prove to be a critical juncture for the city. A summary of each panellist’s forecast is included below.

Macroeconomic outlook

“The economy has climbed out of an almost year-long recession and we expect modest growth for next year,” said Finance professor and Business Forecast Lunch moderator, Dr. Lew Johnson in his macroeconomic forecast.

To continue stimulating economic activity, the Bank of Canada will leave interest rates largely unchanged. While the unemployment rate is currently high, Professor Johnson said we can expect it to stabilize next year before declining. We can also expect the dollar to continue to oscillate around its current level of just below par with the U.S. dollar.

But the picture is not all rosy: Consumer confidence is declining and although inflation has been close to zero it will rise gradually in 2010. Professor Johnson predicts that the recovery will continue to be led by government spending with exports starting to rebound during the first half of 2010.

Financial markets

“It has been a good year so far,” said Dr. Sean Cleary, CFA and BMO Professor of Finance, who presented on the financial markets perspective.

Dr. Cleary reported that the TSX is up 27%. These returns have been led by our core industries: Financials, Mining and Energy. Global markets saw similar growth and are up 25%, with the U.S. market only up 20%.

He notes, however, that while Canadian markets are up 50% since their lows in March 2009, we are still down 24% from the highs of June 2008.

Price-Earnings ratios are now in line with long term averages, but Professor Cleary does not believe we are in an “average” market because there are too many risks out there – from unemployment to the U.S. economy and its host of problems such as bank issues, delinquent borrowers, the auto industry and debt level to global financial risk like Dubai’s debt crisis.

“I don’t see much upside in equities over the next year,” said Dr. Cleary, “but over the next 5 to 10 years I expect good returns.”

Strategic outlook: Managing for the economic recovery

2010 will be another year of hard money reported Dr. Douglas Reid, Associate Professor, International Business, and Distinguished Faculty Fellow in Strategy. “People want to believe that we are headed for economic recovery, but reality, such as the debt load in Dubai and the poor TSX performance, indicates otherwise.”

Converting the business world’s uncertainty for risk and giving them the confidence to act is the prime managerial job for 2010.

“It is less important to end the recession than it is to understand what will start the recovery – two very different ideas,” said Dr. Reid.

Professor Reid recommended that companies look to management techniques such as scenario planning and open innovation to move themselves out of the recession.

“In 2010 it’s not about leadership, it’s about management,” said Dr. Reid.

Management teams need to define and implement measures beyond top line growth. “What if there isn’t any top line growth? How will a company know it is performing well?”

The biggest issues in 2010, Professor Reid predicts, go beyond the bottom line and reflect more how the cost of recovery will be financed – through tax increases, service cuts or, worryingly, deliberately induced inflation.”

Local outlook

“2009 was not kind to Kingston,” said Professor Kenneth Wong, Commerce ’77 Fellow in Marketing and a veteran BFL panelist. “But it was far less harsh than it was for most other CMAs.”

On a comparative scale, Kingston was ahead of other municipalities in areas like income growth, employment and retail sales. “What remains to be seen,” said Professor Wong, “is whether these gains came because Kingston leapfrogged over others or because the city is treading water while others were drowning. One thing is clear: The results would have been much different were it not for the capital projects started under the last council.”

Clearly, the government sector – specifically municipal capital projects such as those at Queen’s University and Kingston General Hospital – shielded Kingston from the manufacturing sector woes felt by other communities. There were, however, also some high points tied to manufacturing and services in the environmental sector, namely with an increase in windmills and solar panels locally.

Professor Wong noted that two big questions still loom: “Can we continue to cultivate further gains before the capital plans, which have already been announced, run their course?” And “What is the impact on the local government-dependent economy when the federal and provincial governments reduce spending or raise taxes in order to reduce the massive deficits tied to bail outs and shovel-ready stimulus programs?”

He does believe firmly that continued prosperity will not happen on its own and that with the negative impact of low population growth, high rates of business and corporate bankruptcies, and the troubled state of the U.S. economy, government spending cannot make up the difference indefinitely.

“The next three to five years will be a critical juncture for the city of Kingston,” said Professor Wong.

The Business Forecast Lunch was founded 28 years ago by Queen’s School of Business professor emeritus Merv Daub to establish an important link between the School and the Kingston business community.

About Queen’s School of Business

Queen’s School of Business is one of the world’s premier business schools – renowned for exceptional programs, outstanding faculty and research, and the quality of its graduates. Canadian executives regard Queen’s as Canada’s most innovative business school, offering students academic excellence and a superior overall experience. Queen’s School of Business – where Canada’s first Commerce program was launched in 1919 – is located at Queen’s University in Kingston, Ontario. The School also delivers programs at locations across Canada, as well in the U.S. and the United Arab Emirates.

Visit http://business.queensu.ca/news/docs/BFL2010.pdf to view the Business Forecast Lunch presentation.

For more information, please contact:
Amber Wallace or Lisa Brophy-Gervais
Queen’s School of Business
613.533.3151 / 613.533.2269
awallace@business.queensu.ca / lbg@business.queensu.ca

QSB Professor Louis Gagnon

Join QSB Finance professor Louis Gagnon and a panel of experts for a live chat on risk management on Wednesday, December 2 from 12 noon to 1 p.m ET.

Part of the Financial Post’s Smart Shift “Conversations for Change” series, the live panel will also focus on how to prevent future financial crises.

Professor Gagnon is an expert on capital markets and risk management who oversaw the global interest rate derivatives exposures and developed risk management methodologies and policies during his time in senior management at the Royal Bank of Canada.

Joining him is Robert Adamson, executive director of the CIBC Centre for Corporate Governance and Risk Management at the Segal Graduate School of Business and Head of Global Risk Advisory.

To join the live chat or read the transcript after the event visit: http://network.nationalpost.com/np/blogs/executive/archive/2009/11/25/chat-live-about-risk-management-wednesday-dec-2.aspx#ixzz0YS3wnWHn