Vitor Corado Simoes
Secretary/Treasurer EIBA Fellows

During 2007 the EIBA Fellows have pursued their activity with a view to encourage the development of international business research, especially in the context of EIBA. In Catania, the EIBA Fellows Plenary Session was convened and chaired by the EIBA Fellows Dean, Professor Klaus Macharzina, and focussed on ‘International Corporate Governance’. The panelists were Shirley Daniel (University of Hawaii), Lars Oxelheim (Lund University), and Marjan Svetliciæ (University of Ljubljana). The diversity of perspectives and the quality of the speakers contributed to provide a very accurate picture about the key corporate governance issues, from an international perspective.

The EIBA Fellows at the 33rd EIBA Conference

At the Conference Gala Dinner, Klaus Macharzina, on behalf of the EIBA Fellows, presented a plaque to Dr. DeAnne Julius in acknowledgement of the award as Distinguished Honorary EIBA Fellow of 2007, and another plaque to John Dunning in recognition of his outstanding service as the first Dean of the EIBA Fellows.

In 2007, two new EIBA Fellows were elected: Jean-François Hennart and Marjan Svetlicic. They attended the EIBA Fellows Board Meeting for the first time, and were welcomed by the other Fellows. The Board Meeting held in Catania gathered 13 out of the then 16 EIBA Fellows. Klaus Macharzina thanked John Cantwell for his contribution and “enthusiastic professionalism” during his service as Secretary/Treasurer to the Fellows. He warmly acknowledged the efficiency and effectiveness of John Cantwell. On behalf of the Fellows, Klaus Macharzina handed a gift to John in recognition of his outstanding contribution to the EIBA Fellows.

Other issues addressed in the Catania Board Meeting included the possibility of convening a doctoral tutorial for beginners, the profile of nominees for Honorary EIBA Fellows, the election of new Fellows, and the EIBA Fellows Session in Tallinn.

This will be organised by Seev Hirsch, and will address the topic of ‘Nation States and Global Corporations’. The changing interaction patterns between MNEs and Nation States, particularly those of smaller size, as well as corporate social responsibility and environmental protection issues will be on the agenda of this panel. The EIBA Fellows Plenary Session in the EIBA 2008 is expected to be an excellent opportunity for the EIBA community to exchange views on the recent developments and future issues of the complex relationships between corporations and states in a global world.

An important feature of EIBA Fellows activities is the granting of the Award to a Promising Young Researcher, sponsored by the Wandel & Goltermann Foundation (WGF). The purpose of this Award is to help to broaden the research programme of promising young scholars, to widen their network of research contacts and open opportunities to engage in research collaboration at an early stage of their academic careers. For 2008 there were five applications. The second EIBA Fellows-WGF Award was granted to Jonas Puck, who holds a PhD in International Management from the Friedrich-Alexander-University Erlangen-Nuremberg. It is hoped that the EIBA Fellows Award will become firmly established as a key tool to promote the career of excellent young researchers in international business, and that the Wandel &Golterman Foundation will continue to sponsor this Fellowship in the coming years.

The Catania Board meeting took also the decision to start the election process for two new EIBA Fellows. In accordance with the rules defined, a ballot process was launched. As a result of this process, two new Fellows were elected: Örjan Solvell and Pervez Ghauri. Both have been with EIBA for a long time, and have significantly contributed to the success of the Academy.

Örjan Sölvell, who is professor of International Business and Director of the Center for Strategy and Competitiveness at the Stockholm School of Economics, was actively involved in the organisation of the 22nd EIBA Conference held in 1996 in Stockholm. He is also behind one of the main initiatives of EIBA: the Gunnar Hedlund Award, organized by the Institute of International Business (IIB) in collaboration with EIBA.

Pervez Ghauri, who has recently moved to the King’s College London, is the editor of IBR, the International Business Review, the official journal of EIBA. On behalf of the EIBA Fellows and the EIBA community I am glad to be able to congratulate them with their election as EIBA Fellows.

The EIBA Fellows are active and engaged in fostering the development of international business research, and in contributing towards the strengthening of EIBA. In order to forge the links between EIBA and AIB, it was also decided that the EIBA Fellows would hold a panel at the AIB Annual Conference at Bocconio University in Milan on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the Treaty of Rome (March, 25, 1957), which allowed the European Union to get started on January 1, 1958. Danny Van Den Bulcke was asked to organize this panel session (see further in this Newsletter).

I am confident that the upcoming Conference in Tallinn will become a landmark in the consolidation of EIBA as a key organization for encouraging the gathering, the exchange of views and the quality of research of international business scholars from both European and non European countries and will enlarge the EIBA community with scholars from the Baltic and from East Europe.

Klaus Macharzina
Dean EIBA Fellows

In 2007 the EIBA Fellows awarded the Distinguished Honorary Fellow to Dr DeAnne Julius by unanimous vote. She was inducted by Klaus Macharzina at the Gala Dinner of the Catania Annual Conference where she also participated in a Special Panel.

On behalf of the Fellows Klaus Macharzina presented her with a plaque in acknowledgment of the award. He stressed that since Dr Julius has written extensively on IB issues she is by no means a stranger to our field. Hence he welcomed her as "one of ours" and expressed the hope that she would be proud of the plaque that was presented to her. In her charming words of thanks DeAnne assured us that this was indeed the case. She intended to place it in the bay window of her countryside mansion outside London which allows for a nice view of the beautiful landscape, and on the inside of all the other trophies and signs of the many credentials of her impressive career.

Until recently Dr DeAnne Julius served as Chairman of Chatham House and a non-executive director of four major companies (British Petrol, Roche, Lloyds TSB and Serco). She also has served on the advisory boards of UK and US hedge funds and as Vice President of the Society of Business Economists in the UK.

From 1997-2001 Dr Julius was a founding member of the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of the Bank of England. From 2001-2004 she served on the Court of the Bank. Prior to joining MPC, she held a number of positions in the private sector including Chief Economist at British Airways and Shell. She has been senior economic advisor at the World Bank and a consultant to the IMF and UNCTAD. For the British government she chaired the Banking Services Consumer Codes Review Group and served on the Policy Commission for the Future of Farming and Food and the National Learning & Skills Council.

A dual US/UK citizen she holds a BSc from Iowa State University and a PhD in Economics from the University of California. She has written five books and numerous papers on subjects ranging from foreign direct investment to strategic planning and corporate governance. She holds four honorary doctorates and was awarded the "Commander of the British Empire" in 2002.

In Catania I had the privilege of talking to her at length during the Fellows Wine, Dine and Chat and the Gala Dinner getting to know an extremely bright, candid and enjoyable woman. She recalled that in a ‘New Statesman’ article, published during her time with the Bank of England she was once called the "odd one out" at the MPC because she was not shy of voting against the majority in the monthly interest decisions. When asking her about the courage of withstanding the pressure one faces in such a prominent committee to get in line with the other members, she explained that even in a group of respected economists she would form her own judgement "through the eyes of how it´s likely to affect businesses".

The EIBA Fellows proudly welcome Dr DeAnne Julius as their 2007 Distinguished Honorary Fellow.