Information Systems News 

TechRepublic, a leading technology news organization owned by CBS Interactive, ranked Brigham Young University's undergraduate information systems program among the top ten in the nation.

A group of Marriott School students took top marks during a national information systems competition held by the Association of Information Technology Professionals in Memphis, Tenn. “This competition allows students to measure themselves against some of the best in the nation,” says Rayman Meservy, associate professor of information systems and one of the team’s advisers.

Brigham Young University Information systems assistant professor Paul Lowry and three of his former Ph.D. Prep students won the 2008 Rudolph J. Joenk, Jr. Award for best paper in IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication, a scholarly journal published by the Professional Communication Society of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers.

Brigham Young University Academic Vice President John Tanner announced the appointment of Gary C. Cornia as the new dean of the Marriott School of Management. Cornia, the Stewart Grow Professor of Public Management, has been serving as director of the school’s George Romney Institute of Public Management since 2004.

This summer eight undergraduate Marriott School students will intern with key industry companies after winning the school’s second annual Intern Competition — an event sponsored by the Marriott Undergraduate Student Association. “An internship is a great opportunity to learn the lingo of business and figure out if that is really what you like,” says Andy Emory, one of last year’s winners who interned with Sperry Van Ness Equities.

Brigham Young University’s undergraduate business programs rank seventh overall and first among recruiters according to BusinessWeek magazine’s comprehensive ranking of U.S. undergraduate business programs. The school was also ranked first in ethics and in return on tuition for private colleges. The magazine’s survey says students hail the Marriott School’s emphasis on producing successful and ethical business leaders.

The Wall Street Journal ranked Brigham Young University’s Master of Business Administration Program first in the nation among regional schools in the paper’s 2007 report of top business programs, up from third in 2006 and sixth in 2005. The Marriott School was also ranked No. 2 among the best schools for hiring graduates with strong ethical standards behind Dartmouth College.

The Marriott School of Management’s accounting program ranked 3rd and its international business program ranked 19th in specialty categories in U.S.News & World Report’s “America’s Best Colleges” survey, up from 5th and 21st respectively in 2006. “We are extremely pleased by the recognition our program receives in U.S.News & World Report,” says Kevin Stocks, director of the School of Accountancy.

A Marriott School of Management alumnus and three faculty members will be presented with the prestigious John B. Thurston Award at the Institute of Internal Auditors International Conference July 8-11 in Amsterdam, Netherlands, for their article about how to protect wireless networks from hackers. The award is given annually for the best article appearing in Internal Auditor, published by the Institute of Internal Auditors, a leading authority on international auditing.

BYU information systems students stole the show with their technology and problem-solving abilities during competition at the Association of Information Technology Professionals National Collegiate Conference, held this spring in Detroit. Faced with competition from more than sixty other schools, some with twenty or more entrants, the six BYU students left with eight competition awards—more than any other school.

The planned addition to the N. Eldon Tanner Building is officially underway after ground was broken on the campus of Brigham Young University April 25. The groundbreaking ceremony was conducted by President Cecil O. Samuelson, with Elder W. Rolfe Kerr of the Seventy and Commissioner of Church Education, presiding over activities.

When BYU junior J.T. Davis was fourteen years old and first read a book about Warren Buffett, he never imagined that one day he’d be riding in the front seat of Buffett’s Cadillac DTS. But on March 30 Davis had just that opportunity. As one of 70 BYU participants, Davis, an investment student from Plano, Texas, attended a Q&A session and lunched with the famed “Oracle of Omaha,” an opportunity Buffett has extended to 35 universities during the 2006-2007 school year.

Rock, paper, scissors, GO! April 6 marks the day of what a group of Brigham Young University students hope will be the largest rock, paper, scissors competition on record. The event will take place from 4 to 7 p.m. on the Deseret Towers field. Hosted by BYU’s Collegiate Entrepreneur’s Organization, the competition is open to the general public and intended to make it into the Guinness World Records.

Calle, a company that wants to be a premier brand for street soccer players, was named winner of the 2007 Business Plan Competition and accepted a $52,500 award of cash and in-kind services. Since the competition’s submission process began in November, Calle worked to stand out from almost 140 idea pitches, 43 original business plans, eight semi-finalists and finally three final teams that presented their business plans March 30.

Six BYU undergraduates will shortly begin new internships thanks to an unconventional internship competition sponsored last month by the Marriott School Undergraduate Management office. The competition, loosely based on the popular TV show “The Apprentice,” showcased participants’ interviewing and presenting in front of an audience.

BusinessWeek magazine ranked Brigham Young University’s undergraduate management program eighth overall and second among recruiters in the most comprehensive ranking of U.S. undergraduate business programs to date. The school was also ranked first in return on tuition for private colleges. The magazine cited the program’s ethics-based education and high-caliber recruiters as strengths.

An increase in the stock market's overall performance, like the one that took place in October, can turn inexperienced investors into trade-happy amateurs, according to Brigham Young University business professors in a study published in The Review of Financial Studies. "When investors start off in the market, they tend to trade pretty conservatively," said Steven Thorley, the H. Taylor Peery professor of finance at BYU's Marriott School of Management. "In periods where the overall stock market performs well, they see a good return on their portfolio and figure they are good at picking stocks, so they start to trade more frequently."

Brigham Young University is ranked 70th in U.S.News & World Report's annual survey, "America's Best Colleges," with the Marriott School of Management's undergraduate program ranked among the top 50 in "Best Business Programs," coming in at 37th. The Aug. 28 issue of U.S.News & World Report, which hits newsstands Monday, ranks about 1,400 four-year accredited colleges and universities by mission and region.

Brigham Young University doesn’t offer a PhD in accounting or information systems, but not because professors are afraid their students will replace them at the front of the class — in fact, they’re hoping some may do just that. Marriott School of Management accounting and information systems professors developed a unique, hands-on doctoral preparation program to coach select students on what to expect from rigorous PhD schools.

The Marriott School of Management will host its 11th Annual BYU Management Conference June 29 – July 1, 2006. This traditional event will feature internationally and nationally renowned speakers such as Jon M. Huntsman, Sr., Chairman, Huntsman Corporation; Kim Smith, Vice President, Goldman Sachs & Co.; Bruce Reece, President and CEO, Bonneville International Corporation; and Elder Ben B. Banks, Emeritus General Authority and Director of Hosting, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.