Two of a Kind

With so much media attention focused on Apple and its ability to deliver content, News Corporation, represented by a team from MIT Sloan, surprised both judges and onlookers by taking home the top prize of $5,000 for its ability to leverage its content production and distribution. "Content, even if it doesn't remain king, will at least remain a pivot point," says Leonard Fuld, president of Fuld & Co., a Cambridge (Mass.)-based international consultancy specializing in competitive intelligence, which sponsored and ran the game. Fuld says that by acting out such unexpected scenarios, war games are a powerful tool in predicting real-world industry trends.

The "Strategy War Game" event for B-school students is in its second year, and teams from MIT have won both contests so far. Though played as a game, the event is fast gaining interest from the actual company executives, and representatives from Microsoft and Verizon were present. Maybe this game was a learning experience for more than just the students.

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Duke Dean Steps Down

Douglas Breeden, the dean of Duke University Fuqua School of Businesss recently announced that he will cut short his second five-year term as dean of the school. He will officially step down as dean on June 30, 2007 but will remain at the school as the William W. Priest Professor of Finance.

Breeden, who has been teaching at Fuqua on and off for 21 years, says he hopes to go back to a more classic research and teaching role. "The life of a dean is going in all directions. I would like to slow it down a little bit," he says. "In terms of my life goals, I've exceeded everything I thought I'd do."

Christine Moorman, the T. Austin Finch Sr. Professor of Marketing at Fuqua, has agreed to chair the search advisory committee for Breeden's successor. But with 15 months' notice, the team hasn't officially started the search.

Current administrators say the school is in a great position for the future. "Because of Doug's investment in faculty, we're really seeing a payoff in terms of teaching quality," says Bill Boulding, associate dean for Fuqua's daytime MBA program. In the five years Breeden has been at the school, he increased the number of full-time faculty from 70 to 95, and expanded the PhD program at a school that is well-known for its executive education.

Breeden headed efforts to construct a new building for the school and officials expect to break ground by the time he steps down. But Breeden says his legacy is the groundwork he laid for Fuqua to remain an internationally recognized business school for years to come.

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