Research Recognition
Jeff Gulati, assistant professor of political science, and Christine Williams, professor of political science, received a Best Paper Award from the Journal of Information Technology & Politics (JIPT) for the project "Congressional Candidates' Use of YouTube in 2008: Its Frequency and Rationale." The award was presented at JITP's first annual conference held in Amherst, Mass., on April 16 and 17, 2009. The study investigates and analyzes how and with what frequency the 2008 Congressional candidates used the video sharing website YouTube. Findings showed that among House candidates, better-financed candidates and those running in competitive races were the most likely to open a YouTube channel, but it has not replaced traditional campaign tactics or tools.
The Massachusetts Society of Certified Public Accountants (MSCPA) named Tracy Noga, assistant professor of accountancy, Educator of the Year for 2009. The award was presented on May 13 at the MSCPA Annual Meeting and Recognition Reception at the Colonnade Hotel in Boston. It is bestowed to a full-time accounting educator at a college or university who is distinguished for excellence in classroom teaching, motivating students, and educational innovation; has served as a liaison between the classroom and the business world; and is actively involved in professional activities. Noga is committed to educating students about changing professional regulations and refinements in field work to help prepare them for the corporate world.
Iris Berdrow, associate professor of management, and Marc Stern, professor and chair of the Department of History, received fellowships from the Marion and Jasper Whiting Foundation to support their research and pedagogy. Berdrow traveled to France during the 2008-2009 academic year to explore innovative behaviors across organizational and national boundaries, particularly how innovation happens in France and between French and non-French managers. She also taught at Groupe ESC Rouen and Groupe ESC Clermont-Ferrand, both Grande Ecoles. From summer 2009 to summer 2010, Stern is traveling to various U.S. cities -- including Washington, DC; Minneapolis; Chicago; Vancouver, WA; San Francisco; Los Angles; Dallas; and Atlanta -- to research the history of the American fitness industry in the late 20th century; particularly the rise of the modern fitness culture and its relationship to the growth of the fitness center.
Assistant Professor of Marketing Dipayan (Dip) Biswas received the Best Paper Award in the Consumer Behavior Track at the American Marketing Association Winter Conference in February 2009 in Tampa, Fla. His research, which addresses consumer preferences when sampling experiential products, is also forthcoming in the Journal of Marketing Research. The results of five studies reveal that when sampling a series of experiential products such as beverages or music, consumers prefer the product sampled second in a series of two desirable products but relatively prefer the product sampled first in a series of two undesirable products. The underlying process for both outcomes is a recency effect, such that there is better recall for the most recently sampled experiential product. Biswas' research provides information that could help companies implement better and more effective experiential marketing programs.
M. Lynne Markus, the John W. Poduska, Sr. Professor of Information and Process Management at Bentley University, received the prestigious Leo Award for Lifetime Exceptional Achievement in Information Systems from the Association of Information Systems (AIS), the premier global organization for academics specializing in Information Systems, at the International Conference on Information Systems in Paris, France, in December 2008. The Leo Award recognizes truly outstanding individuals in the Information Systems community, both academics and practitioners, who have made exceptional contributions to research in and the practice of Information Systems. Markus was honored by the AIS for her seminal work sustained throughout her career as a scholar in the field. She is only the second woman to receive the LEO Award since it was established in 1999. Cammarata Professor of Management at Bentley, Sue Newell, was also honored with a Vision award for her work as VP, Communications for the AIS.
Fred Ledley, chair of the Natural and Applied Sciences Department, was named one of 20 members of the second cohort of BEN (BiosciEdNet) Scholars. Coordinated by the American Association for the Advancement of Science and funded by the National Science Foundation, the BEN Scholars Program promotes the use of digital library resources and student-centered teaching and learning methods in higher education, specifically in biological sciences lecture and laboratory courses, and in research training programs.
As a BEN Scholar, Ledley will participate in two years of professional development activities, including developing submissions for digital libraries and completing outreach activities.
Mohammad J. Abdolmohammadi, John E. Rhodes Professor of Accountancy, was inducted into the Accounting Hall of Fame on April 28, 2007, at the American Accounting Association’s annual meeting of the northeast region in Hartford, Conn. Inductees – including accountants from academe, accounting practice, government and business — are selected by an international board of electors. The Accounting Hall of Fame was established in 1950 at the Fisher College of Business at Ohio State University.
William Read, professor of accountancy, and Mohammad J. Abdolmohammadi, professor of accountancy and John E. Rhodes Professor of Accountancy, were recipients of the 2006-2007 Glen McLaughlin Prize for Research in Accounting Ethics for their paper entitled “Corporate Government Ratings and Financial Restatement.” They presented the paper at a research workshop on April 13, 2007, at the University of Oklahoma, where the award was established to recognize and encourage educational and research activities focusing on ethical issues associated with the production and dissemination of financial information.
Bentley Professor and Chair of Marketing Joby John was the recipient of the Highly Commended Paper Award for his article “Improvisation in Service Performances: Lessons from Jazz,” published in Managing Service Quality (2006). The paper establishes the validity of jazz improvisation as a useful metaphor that captures key facets of service performances. Noting jazz as a music form distinguished by its significant emphasis on flexibility and adaptability, John parallels the need for that same improvisation for successful service performance.
Three Bentley professors authored the latest IBM Center for the Business of Government report, “The E-Government Collaboration Challenge: Lessons from Five Case Studies.” Jane Fedorowicz, Rae D. Anderson professor of Accounting and Information Systems; Janis L. Gogan, associate professor of Information and Process Management; and Christine B. Williams, professor of Government, offer 10 recommendations to ease the way for future cross-organizational initiatives that require using a common information technology system as the backbone of the collaborative effort.
Martha Tolpin, associate professor of history, and Ruth Nemzoff, adjunct assistant professor of International Studies, were included in the book, Feminists Who Changed America 1963-1975 (October 2006). The book includes more than 2,000 biographies of feminists selected for their significant contributions during this period.
Professor of English Edward Zlotkowski is the recipient of a 2006-2007 U.S. Fulbright Scholar grant, awarded yearly to U.S. citizens to lecture and conduct research abroad, and to foreign scholars to come to the United States primarily as researchers. He will travel to Ireland to the Dublin Institute of Technology where he will support the new Community Learning Programme through June 2007.
Jane Fedorowicz, Rae D. Anderson professor of accountancy and information systems, was honored as a prestigious Fellow of the Association for Information Systems (AIS) (2006). Fedorowicz joins two other Bentley faculty members who have been named AIS Fellows; M. Lynne Markus (2004), Poduska professor of information management; and Robert Galliers (2003), provost and vice president for academic affairs. Bentley is one of two schools in the world to have three faculty members named AIS Fellows.
Bentley College Assistant Professor of Finance Mengxin Zhao is the recipient of the 2006 Best Paper Award from the Chinese Finance Association for the paper, “Rent Seeking and Corporate Finance: Evidence from Corruption.” The paper investigates firms with political connections and examines how those connections can lead to extraordinary profit opportunities compared to firms without government affiliations.
Heikki Topi, associate professor of computer information systems, contributed to Computing Curricula 2005, a report that provides perspective on major computing disciplines and ways that respective undergraduate degree programs compare and complement each other. Geared toward those in academia, the report covers undergraduate degree programs in computer engineering, computer science, information systems, information technology and software engineering.
Recognizing scholarly excellence and accomplishments by its faculty, Bentley College granted the 2006 Outstanding Scholarly Contribution Award to three of its professors: Jane Tchaicha, associate professor of modern languages, for her research on women's rights in the Maghrib region in Africa (particularly Tunisia and Morocco) reported in "Technology in the Service of Maghribi Women" (The Journal of North African Studies, 10, 2, 155-171, 2005), "Empowering Technologies, Empowering Women" (The International Journal of Technology, Knowledge, and Society, 1, 2005), and a photographic documentary “Behind the Wall;” Husayn Shahrur, assistant professor of finance, for his study “Industry Structure and Horizontal Takeovers: Analysis of Wealth Effects on Rivals, Suppliers, and Corporate Customers,” Journal of Financial Economics, Vol 76, pp. 61-98, 2005; and Monica Garfield, assistant professor of computer information systems, for her study “The Adoption and Use of Group Support Systems in Project Teams: Towards More Participative Processes and Outcomes,” MIS Quarterly, 27 (2), pp. 289-323, 2003 (with Alan Dennis).
Senior Lecturer in Computer Information Systems Mark Frydenberg’s use of podcasting in the classroom was featured in the November 4, 2006, episode of “Teaching for the Future,” a leading podcast on the use of new media for teaching today’s students. Check out show notes at http://www.teachingforthefuture.com/2006/11/episode-40-librarians-in-future.html
The Project Management Institute awarded Management Professor Hans Thamhain the 2006 PMI Research Achievement Award, noting his research in the areas of conflict management and power bases in project management; team leadership in high-technology project environments; organizational processes and project management support systems; and multinational and global project management.
Susan Adams, associate professor of management, and Patricia Flynn, trustee professor of economics and management, are recipients of an Outstanding Paper Award from the Emerald Literati Club for their article, "Actionable Knowledge: Consulting to Promote Women on Boards," published in the Journal of Organizational Change Management (2005).
Professor Emeritus Evelyn Shakir and M. Lynne Markus, John W. Poduska professor of information management, are recipients of 2005-2006 U.S. Fulbright Scholar grants, awarded yearly to U.S. citizens and nationals of other countries for a variety of educational activities. Fulbright Scholars are selected on the basis of academic or professional achievement and for having demonstrated extraordinary leadership potential in their fields.
Arnold Kamis, assistant professor of computer information systems, and his co-writers at Baruch College, won the Best Paper Award in the Process Automation and Management track at the Americas Conference on Information Systems (AMCIS) 2004. The paper was titled: "Online Mass Customization and the Customer Experience." (August 2004)
Trustee Professor of Accountancy James Hunton was named a Fulbright Senior Specialist in Business Administration at the Alexandria University, Egypt. During his stay Dr. Hunton will help the College of Business develop a strategy for integrating information technology throughout the business curriculum.
The Scholar of the Year Award was given to Professor of Economics John D. Leeth at Bentley’s 85th Commencement for his research on four important areas of study in the field of economics: the economics of workplace safety, public policy, finance, and accounting labor markets.
Ruth Spack, associate professor of English and director of Bentley’s English to Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) program, won the Modern Language Association’s Mina P. Shaughnessy Prize.
Rajendra Sisodia, professor of Marketing, was named one of the “50 Leading Marketing Thinkers” by the Chartered Institute of Marketing (CIM), a U.K.-based organization with 60,000 members. Sisodia becomes part of the CIM's “Guru Gallery” of leading marketing thinkers alive today “who have shaped modern thinking.”
Ruth Spack, associate professor of English and director of Bentley’s ESOL program, was honored by the Massachusetts Association of Teachers of Speakers of Other Languages (MATSOL) for her contribution to research and scholarship in the field.
