This Month from Knowledge@Wharton

Business Wire, Sept 28, 2006

Stories this month include the India based "HCL's Shiv Nadar: 'When Someone Brings China and India Together, It Will Be a Big Story'" and "Star Blight: The Perils of Celebrity Endorsements"

Plus: Knowledge@Wharton podcastsCoProf. Jeremy Siegel on "Interest Rates, the Amaranth Implosion and the Thai Baht"

PHILADELPHIA -- This past month some of the timely stories from Knowledge@Wharton <http://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu>, the Wharton School's online research and business analysis journal, which will soon launch a new India Knowledge@Wharton edition, include:

HCL's Shiv Nadar: 'When Someone Brings China and India Together, It Will Be a Big Story'

Shiv Nadar was 22 when he saw his first city. Now, as chairman and CEO of HCL Technologies, he is worth some $3 billion, according to a Forbes magazine estimate last year. In the second of a two-part interview with Knowledge@Wharton and Ravi Aron, a senior fellow at Wharton's Mack Center for Technological Innovation, Nadar discusses the challenges confronting Indian manufacturing and potential synergies between Indian and Chinese business.

http://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/article/1563.cfm

Michael Dell: Still Betting on the Future of Online Commerce and Supply Chain Efficiencies

The day after Michael Dell's visit to Wharton on August 29, 2006, the Wall Street Journal published a front-page article entitled, "Consumer Demand and Growth in Laptops Leave Dell Behind." The article replayed the drumbeat of bad news that has recently hit the $56 billion PC maker -- a 51% decline in second quarter earnings from the same period a year ago, a stock price that is down 60% from its high in 2000, the exodus of key executives to rival manufacturers -- and suggested that the company's strategy of ignoring the consumer market plus its failure to maintain an efficient customer service operation have hurt its competitive position, especially with respect to rival Hewlett Packard. But Dell himself, in an interview with Knowledge@Wharton, brushed aside the numbers and focused on the upside. He highlighted the company's success in emerging markets, its record market share, new tools and training to beef up customer service, and his confidence that the preference of consumers to buy online will continue to grow.

http://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/article/1543.cfm

Star Blight: The Perils of Celebrity Endorsements

Floyd Landis's potential as a product endorser dropped faster than a cyclist speeding down a mountain road when he tested positive for synthetic testosterone after winning this summer's Tour de France. Sports columnists denounced him even as the companies that had invested tens of millions in him and his team dropped their sponsorships. Landis, of course, isn't the only celebrity or athlete who managed to misbehave this summer. Consider sprinters Marion Jones and Justin Gatlin, French soccer player Zinedine Zidane, actor Mel Gibson and Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Brett Myers. Yet as marketing experts and others note, celebrity wrongdoing is more than just fuel for gossip columns. Athletes and celebrities push all manner of products and services, and their downfalls can tarnish the brands and companies they endorse. "The perils of these endorsements are consistently underestimated," says one expert.

http://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/article/1552.cfm

In Brazil, Roberto Civita Applauds New and Old Media, a Free Press and the Coming Tide of Investors

Roberto Civita is chairman and CEO of The Abril Group, one of Latin America's largest and most influential communications companies. Based in Sao Paulo, Abril publishes nearly 100 magazines, including its flagship Veja, launched by Civita in 1968 and now the world's fourth largest news weekly. The publication, well-known for exposing political corruption in Brazil, has been instrumental during the past year in bringing about the resignation of President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva's inner circle. At the recent Wharton Global Alumni Forum in Rio, Civita spoke on "The Role of the Press in an Emerging Economy." In an interview last week with Knowledge@Wharton, he talked about corruption in Brazil, old media vs. new media, the U.S.'s obsession with quarterly earnings, the importance of education, and the coming tide of investors, among other topics.

http://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/article/1544.cfm

Latest Podcasts

Strategies for Dealing with the Risks of 9/11, Katrina and Other Disasters: A Conversation with Wharton Experts

http://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/article.cfm?articleid=1562&CFID =8797943&CFTOKEN=10955198

Novartis's Alex Gorsky: Ensuring that Patients Get Access to the Medicines They Need

http://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/article.cfm?articleid=1561&CFID =8797943&CFTOKEN=10955198

Jeremy Siegel on Interest Rates, the Amaranth Implosion and the Thai Baht

http://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/article.cfm?articleid=1560&CFID =8797943&CFTOKEN=10955198

Online Music and Movies: Which of the New Digital Entertainment Models Offers the Best Value?

http://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/article.cfm?articleid=1559&CFID =8797943&CFTOKEN=10955198