EMBA Open House

Please join us at the upcoming Villanova Executive MBA Open House on Thursday, March 15th.

The evening will feature a sample class, A Strategy Primer, taught by Al Chiaradonna, Senior Vice President of SEI’s Global Private Banks unit. Immediately following the session, attendees will have the opportunity to meet and network with faculty, alumni and current students.

Attend an EMBA Class Session

VSB Executive MBA Program Ranked #16 Among US-based Executive MBA Programs by Financial Times

The Villanova School of Business (VSB) Executive MBA Program has been ranked #16 among US-based programs and #3 in "Aims Acheived" by Financial Times. This ranking is driven by the success and satisfaction of EMBA alumni internationally, and the survey focuses on performance categories of particular importance within the EMBA marketplace.

 Click here to learn more about this impressive ranking.

Jose Palomino EMBA '08 Receives Critical Acclaim for Value Prop Book

Marketing and sales strategist, Jose Palomino EMBA '08, has written Value Prop to help business leaders develop sharply differentiated strategy and razor-sharp messaging to showcase the truly new, useful, and exciting qualities of their products or services. Value Prop offers new ways to create, diagnose, and improve a company’s value propositions to ensure the delivery of their most effective message to their best audience. Palomino addresses business-to-business marketing challenges and shows how to discover and create differentiation that matters—and win in crowded and competitive markets. Visit www.valueprop.com to learn more.

EMBA Alumnus Named to Diversity MBA Magazine's Top 50 Under 50 List

Congratulations to EMBA Alumnus Charles D. Wallace for being named as one of the Top 50 Under 50 African-American MBA corporate executives by Diversity MBA Magazine. Wallace currently serves as Chief Technology Architect and IT Director for Rohm and Haas. In its third consecutive year, the Top 50 Under 50 Executives were selected based on their position within a publicly or privately traded company, the size of budget they manage, their community service work, and the MBA degree they hold.

Comcast Executives Address VSB Executive MBA Students, Class of 2008

Brian L. Roberts, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, and Stephen B. Burke, Chief Operating Officer, of Comcast Corporation addressed students from the VSB Executive MBA Class of 2008. Brian L. Roberts is Chairman and CEO of Comcast Corporation, the nation's leading provider of cable, entertainment and communications products and services. Under his leadership, Comcast has grown into a Fortune 100 company with $22.3 billion in revenues, 24.2 million customers and 87,000 employees. Comcast's content networks and investments include E! Entertainment Television, Style Network, The Golf Channel, VERSUS, G4, AZN Television, PBS KIDS Sprout, TV One and four regional Comcast SportsNets. The company also has a majority ownership in Comcast-Spectator, whose major holdings include the Philadelphia Flyers NHL hockey team, the Philadelphia 76ers NBA basketball team, and two large multipurpose arenas in Philadelphia.

Mr. Roberts has won numerous business and industry honors for his leadership. In January of 2007, Institutional Investor magazine named him as one of America's top CEOs for the fourth year in a row. In October of 2006 he was inducted into the Cable Television Hall of Fame. In 2005, he was honored by the National Association for Multi-Ethnicity in Communications (NAMIC) for his commitment to diversity in the cable industry, and by the Partnership for a Drug-Free America for Comcast's unprecedented commitment of resources to champion the PDFA's drug-free message. He also was the recipient of the 2004 Humanitarian Award from the Simon Wiesenthal Center. In 2003 Mr. Roberts was awarded the Steven J. Ross Humanitarian Award by the UJA Federation of New York. In 2002, he was honored by The Police Athletic League of Philadelphia for his commitment to youth programs and community partnerships.

Since joining Comcast Cable in 1998, Steve Burke has been a driving force in the company’s growth from a cable industry leader to a world-class communications company. He has been praised for leading the highly successful and unprecedented integration of AT&T Broadband with Comcast. His work at Comcast has earned numerous industry awards, including the 2006 and 2003 Multichannel News Cable Operator of the Year Award and the National Cable & Telecommunications Association 2001 Vanguard Award for Cable Operations Management. Mr. Burke serves on the Board of Directors for JP Morgan and The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. He also dedicates his time and expertise to numerous cable industry initiatives, serving as Chairman of the Executive Committee for C-SPAN, a public service created by the cable television industry.

Aqua America Promotes Two Villanova School of Business Executive MBA Graduates to Senior Officers

Christopher Franklin, who has been with Aqua America since December 1992, has been promoted to regional president, Aqua America southern operations and senior vice president, public affairs and customer operations. In December 2002, he was promoted to vice president, public affairs and customer operations. “Chris has headed several successful projects including leading the company’s lobbying efforts to effect favorable utility legislation in several states, increasing the company’s visibility in the media and on Wall Street, changing the name of the company and its subsidiaries and most recently, the consolidation of the company’s call centers, which is scheduled for completion this spring,” said Aqua America Chairman and CEO Nicholas DeBenedictis. In his new role as regional president of the company’s southern operations, Franklin will have overall operations responsibility for the companies’ subsidiaries in Texas, Florida, Virginia, North Carolina and South Carolina, which collectively serve approximately 600,000 residents. Franklin will retain his public affairs and customer operations responsibilities as well. Franklin earned his BS from West Chester University and his Executive MBA from Villanova University.

Mark Kropilak has been promoted to senior vice president, corporate development and corporate counsel from the position of vice president, corporate development, the position he’s held since October 2002. “Since Mark has headed the company’s corporate development effort, Aqua America has completed more than 100 acquisitions and growth ventures, expanding the service territory into seven additional states and increasing the customer base by nearly 50 percent,” said DeBenedictis. Kropilak joined Aqua America in 1985 and has served as corporate counsel, and vice president and general counsel before heading the company’s corporate development group. Prior to joining the company, Kropilak was employed by the law firm of Morgan Lewis in Philadelphia where he practiced in the areas of public utility law, administrative law and environmental law. Kropilak graduated from St. Vincent College with highest honors, receiving a degree in Economics and a minor in Accounting. He earned his JD degree from Columbia University School of Law. In April 2002, Kropilak completed the Executive MBA program at Villanova University and was selected for membership in the business honor society Beta Gamma Sigma.

Howard Ross, Partner, LLR Partners, Addresses the Villanova School of Business Executive MBA Program

Howard Ross, one of four partners at LLR Partners, addressed the Villanova School of Business Executive MBA Program. LLR Partners is a leading Philadelphia based private equity firm managing over $600 million. The firm provides capital to middle market growth companies in a broad range of industries including Business Services, Information Technology, Healthcare Services, Financial Services, and Consumer and Retail. LLR creates value beyond its capital contribution by partnering with existing management and providing strategic counsel and access to its extensive business network.

Joel Naroff, President, Naroff Economic Advisors, Speaks to Executive MBA Students

Joel L. Naroff, President and founder of Naroff Economic Advisors, recent spoke to Villanova School of Business Executive MBA students. Naroff Economic Advisors is a strategic economic consulting firm, and Mr. Naroff advises companies across the country on the risks and opportunities that economic developments may have on the organization’s operating environment.

On a consulting basis, Joel serves as Chief Economist for Commerce Bank in Cherry Hill, New Jersey. He is the economic consultant for Cumberland Advisors, a personal service, money management firm headquartered in New Jersey and an economic advisor to Brandywine Realty Trust and Spectrum Alliance. He consults with banks on asset/liability and economic development issues and is an economic and financial advisor to state and local governments.

An accomplished public speaker, Joel’s humor and unique ability to make economics understandable have brought him a wide following. He gives talks on national, international, regional and industry specific topics. He often plays the role of futurist and has discussed the potential impact of evolving economic trends on a variety of industries.

Family Nights

The VSB Executive MBA Program hosts family events for the students and their families. The events typically take place at the Montrose Mansion at The Villanova Conference Center in Radnor, PA, just outside of Philadelphia. The children enjoy games, arts and crafts, and special activities such as an appearance by the Villanova Wildcat!