News Release
November 2002
(Bethlehem,
Pennsylvania)- Marking the fifteenth anniversary of the first graduates
of The Moravian MBA program, Best Practices: The Applied Business Journal
of The Moravian MBA, contains insights from Lehigh Valley businessmen
and women on the keys to their success. The Moravian MBA, founded in
1985 by Moravian College, was designed for working adults from the greater
Lehigh Valley region. It is a business program built upon the ideals
of a liberal arts education.
Santo D. Marabella, director of The Moravian MBA and associate
professor of management, who served as the journal's editor, believes
this publication is something alumni, faculty and students will be proud
of. "There are many ways to demonstrate excellence in academic
programs, " Marabella says, "but none are more valuable than
ones which bridge the gap between theory and practice, particularly
at the MBA-level, as can be found in Best Practices.." Marabella
praises the commitment of the authors and business partners who worked
so ardently and diligently over the past eighteen months to produce
this publication. "Their support is another example of their investment
in the continuous appreciation of our program's value, and our students
benefit as a result."
The journal begins with an overview by Marabella and a
welcome from Mrs. Frances Hesselbein, chairman of the Board of Governors
and Founding President of the Peter F. Drucker Foundation for Nonprofit
Management. The Moravian MBA considers Mrs. Hesselbein, a native of
Easton, PA, the Lehigh Valley's "first lady" of leadership
because of her extensive work and well-regarded global reputation in
speaking and writing about leadership. Following this greeting are a
series of articles on "mastering business" by various business
and academic partners of the MBA program.
The first article, "Customer Service Expectations
Pervade Healthcare Environment," is written by Vincent D. Joseph,
FACHE. Joseph is the Executive Vice President of the St. Luke's Hospital
and Health Network. Having worked in healthcare management for twenty-six
years, Joseph has held positions with major teaching hospitals such
as Community Kimball Healthcare System (a three facility system) and
Saint Barnabas Healthcare System (a ten hospital system). According
to Joseph, customer service is not just for businesses any longer. In
the 21st century, every successful organization - profit or not - will
place their customers at the center of their focus. This article describes
how one healthcare provider makes their patients' stay memorable.
A love affair with your employees may not seem politically
correct these days, but that's just how Kathleen G. Zingaro, PHR, Vice
President of Human Resources for Just Born, Inc., in Bethlehem, PA sees
the relationship some employers have with the people who work for them.
In her article, "The Perpetual Courtship - One Successful Company
and Its Employees" she describes how a back-to-basics, humanistic
approach yield mutual benefits for both employer and employees. Just
Born, Inc.which manufactures such products as Peeps, Hot Tamales, Mike
& Ike's, and Zours recently received the Governor's 3rd Best Place
to Work Award. Just Born, Inc.. Zingaro's twenty-five year career has
focused on "start-up and innovative change initiatives for employers
and professional organizations."
Francesco Bof and Alessandro Tonti co-authored the next
article entitled "Adapting Business Process Reengineering for Public
Organizations: The Case of an Italian Province." Bof is a professor
in the Public Administration Division of the School of Management of
Bocconi University, an educational partner of The Moravian MBA. He organizes
Public Organization Reengineering for government managers' courses as
well as leading and managing projects in government reorganization initiatives
in Italy. Tonti is also a professor in the Public Administration Division
and has been a senior teacher at the school since 1985. Tonti's specialization
is in company organization. This article looks at how viewing an organization's
operations as a system of connected and interdependent activities has
been applied to public organizations in Italy's government, and what
American business might learn from their example.Identifying and recruiting
the best leaders is vitally important for organizations, whether they
are not-for-profit or for-profit.
The next article explores how understanding organizational
life-cycles can help identify the best leader for the organization at
the current stage of its development. The article, titled "KidsPeace
- The Right Leader at the Right Time," is by.Santo D. Marabella,
MBA, DSW, along with Jillian Acconzo and Justin Serpone. In addition
to his work at Moravian, Marabella has worked closely with regional
and national not-for-profit organizations and businesses in board development
and planning. Acconzo and Serpone, undergraduate and MBA students, assist
the MBA program with research and administrative duties. The final article
in this journal, "Lehigh Valley Business: On the Threshold of...?"
which suggests that what's in store for the Lehigh Valley is probably
less a composite of its past, and more an orchestration of its potential.
This article poses some intriguing possibilities and the challenges
that may be debated but shouldn't be ignored.and is written by Mark
S. Lang, PhD. Dr. Lang helped create Pennsylvania's Ben Franklin Partnership,
and served as its Executive Director for fourteen years. Currently,
Dr. Lang is pursuing next generation developments oriented around innovation,
collaboration, and leveraging e-business in the new economy.
The next section of the journal, Recommended Reading,
features a publication by MBA professor, Peter von Allmen, the Economics
and Business Department Chair at Moravian College, and his colleague,
Michael Leeds of Temple University, team-taught a course in the relationship
of sports to economics, but could not find an appropriate text book
from which to teach, so they wrote their own, The Economics of Sports.
Published in 2001, the book is currently being used as a textbook for
intermediate economics course in the United States and
The final section of the journal, Practically Speaking,
showcases the work of students of the 2002 graduating class of The Moravian
MBA. Students in the capstone class participate in a Strategic Challenge
Project with a Lehigh Valley business or not-for-profit organization.
The projects vary in scope and topic, with some addressing issues as
broad as articulating the organization's vision to the more narrow task
of assessing customer awareness. Regardless of the project, students
have the opportunity to apply in the "boardroom" what they
learn in the classroom.
A "Meet the Authors" reception, celebrating
the completion of this publication and the support of its authors and
the program's business partners, will be held Thursday, November 21,
2002 from 5:30 to 8:00 pm in the Payne Art Gallery, Moravian College,
Priscilla Payne Hurd Campus. This reception is by invitation only, but
the press is welcome to attend. More information can be obtained by
phone (610-807-4444), fax (610-861-1466), or e-mail: bestpractices.mba@moravian.edu.
