Lee and his associate, Homer Dunn, have cofounded a startup company, Nonstop Solutions, that, according to the San Francisco Chronicle, is marketing Lee's software to pharmacies throughout the Bay Area.

Using Nonstop's software to track products on their shelves, pharmacies can order small amounts of an expensive drug several times a week, since the cost of delivery is relatively small. Less pricey medicine is kept in stock at retail outlets.

"The objective is to hit a home run in the pharmaceutical industry to prove what Hau Lee's science can do," Dunn told the newspaper.

Ad-Venturer Shakes Up the Industry
ACCORDING TO a full-page profile in the Economist, Peter Georgescu, MBA '63, is turning his back on some time-honored traditions in the advertising industry. As CEO of Young & Rubicam, he raised eyebrows in the industry by naming Tom Bell--head of the public relations firm Burston-Marsteller, a Y&R subsidiary--to lead Y&R's operations. Although major ad agencies often have public relations firms as part of their organization, the ad agency has traditionally run the show. Georgescu also has openly encouraged Y&R clients not to pay commissions based on how much they spend on media advertising but rather to pay flat fees based on results.

"Ultimately, Mr. Georgescu is gambling on the changing nature of advertising," said the Economist. He's betting that advertisers will use a variety of new ways to reach buyers, so he's building a more nimble organization that is able to meet shifting customer demands.

Search Executive Advocates Cover Up
MOST OF THE WOMEN on the TV show Ally McBeal probably wouldn't get a job through Linda Bialecki, MBA '79. As part of a Self magazine panel on workplace fashion, Bialecki noted, "The biggest problem I see is appropriateness. I am shocked by the number of women who wear low-cut dresses. Or they have on a short skirt and pull at it every five minutes."

Bialecki places six to eight candidates each year through a very focused corporate recruiting practice that specializes in the investment banking industry. Her success depends on consultation and assessment, she told Working Woman magazine, not a Rolodex and a good phone manner.

Surfing for Bargains
SOME FOLKS JUST LOVE a bargain. When he bought his house, John Wilen, MBA '84, used information from online mortgage broker E-Loan to bargain for a lower realtor's commission. He also used the Web to shave his expenses when he decided to lease a new BMW. In the past 12 months, Wilen told Smart Money magazine, the Web has saved him over $5,000. "With the Internet," he said, "power is clearly shifting to the consumer."

Dumb VC Decisions
IT'S ALL WELL AND GOOD TO come up with a Great Idea, but if no one else sees it for what it is--well, how good can it be? A handful of Stanford venture capitalists, the folks who can turn a Great Idea into a Real Company, confessed to columnist Dan Gillmor, who covers Silicon Valley for the San Jose Mercury News, that even they don't recognize every big one that comes along. Starbucks? "Unlikely concept," thought John Mumford, MBA '69. Cisco Systems? John Hummer, MBA '80, passed on that one. MBA '80 Bob Kagle's firm turned down eToys, but it did pick up eBay. So long, Yahoo, said Mike Orsak, MBA '90, who couldn't fathom how a company that gives its product away could make money. And see you later, Netscape, was exactly what Peter Morris, MBA '84, did--again and again --after turning down the World Wide Web browser.

There are several lessons to draw from this story. One is that a Great Idea will eventually be seen for what it is. Another is that if you get things right most of the time, it's not all that hard to admit your mistakes.

Picking Winners at Warp Speed
BEFORE THE BIRTH of the World Wide Web, venture capitalist Jeff Brody, MBA '86, told the Wall Street Journal, he could spend a year looking for two or three good investments. Now he works in Web time, deluged by 40 or 50 proposals per week and pushed by the knowledge that his competitors are also looking for good ideas.

For example, a recent profile in the Journal describes how Brody and John Walecka, MBA '88, of Brentwood Venture Capital wrestled with a startup idea to sell furniture online. In the end, Brody made a proposal to the virtual sofa company but was outbid by another VC firm.

Brody confessed the idea would have been a big gamble for Brentwood. "I wasn't sleeping well for a while," he told the Journal. In spite of losing out, "I'm sleeping better now."

Banking on Women
IN 1993 BANKER Linda Pei, MBA '75, pooled $50,000 with money manager Leslie Christian to found the Women's Equity Mutual Fund. Today they have $8.7 million in assets, and the fund holds stock in 50 firms with policies that benefit women. "When we started, we were told the social criteria for our investments would limit us," Pei told the San Francisco Examiner. The paper quotes Morningstar Inc. as reporting that socially responsible stock funds in the United States today outpace the average domestic stock fund. "If you can make money while following your heart, why not?" asks Pei.

The New HP Way
HEWLETT-PACKARD'S decision to split itself into two organizations found many reporters trying to explain the firm and its decision. "In many ways, HP is the mother of Silicon Valley," Professor Haim Mendelson told the Christian Science Monitor. "It was really the first company that defined the technology culture." Professor Jerry Porras, who cited HP as an enduring company in his book Built to Last, told the Monitor he thought HP would be able to retain its values, but expressed some concern about new technology firms. "We look back and see that great companies had a sense of going beyond themselves and leaving a legacy. I don't see that mentality in the Valley right now," said Porras.

Giving Wisdom
BECAUSE MANY AMERICANS listen to standard advice from financial advisors, they aren't giving enough to churches and charities, argues Claude Rosenberg, MBA '52. Financial advisors counsel people how much to give to worthy causes based on income, not on total wealth, he told the New York Times.

Rosenberg urges people, regardless of tax bracket, to decide how much they need to maintain their lifestyles and provide for emergencies, then see what they have left over. The author of the book Wealthy and Wise, Rosenberg also maintains a Web site at http://www.newtithing.org.

Always Leave 'Em Laughing
AT SPARK CREATIVE COMEDY Services, a Chicago company that teaches corporate clients business and personal skills, Al Samuels, MBA '95, advises his clients it's OK to surrender to simply having fun.

"Companies want to make their employees better team players, creative thinkers, and dynamic presenters," he told the Chicago Tribune. Samuels uses humor, improvisation, and drama techniques to reach these goals.

Samuels' firm doesn't improvise its sessions, however. Before doing a workshop, Spark Creative digs into the client's corporate culture and issues, then uses humor to help build a corporate team. "Humor is a great leveler," said Samuels. "It works at problems in a new way."

No Place to Hide
AS THE INTERNET mushrooms around us, casual users and confirmed hackers alike are trying to decide how much personal privacy they want and need from this new medium, says Business Week. "You already have zero privacy. Get over it," Scott McNealy, MBA '80, told computer users at a meeting in San Francisco. For people who can't get over it, the future will be anxiety-ridden. "The ability to establish a digital trail is unlike anything we've had so far in history," Constance Bagley, GSB senior lecturer, told the magazine.

Tough But Worth It
COMPLETING THE GSB'S Sloan Program was a career turning point, Sea Houston told the San Francisco Business Times. Before enrolling in 1975, Houston had been a branch manager for Wells Fargo Bank, wondering whether to continue in the banking industry. Today, Houston is an executive vice president with the bank.

The Sloan Program was tough. "There were new tests and new projects constantly," Houston recalled. But he credits the program with increasing his decision-making, finance, statistical, and teamwork skills, and helping him develop valuable friendships.