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Global competition is top U.S. business issue, UPS chief says Thursday, Apr 13, 2006 By Wesley Brown Arkansas News Bureau LITTLE ROCK - The chief executive of the world's largest delivery service told an audience of business people and top college students Wednesday that global competition will be the dominate business issue for the United States over the next decade. Michael Eskew, chairman and CEO of United Parcel Service Inc., was the keynote speaker at the annual Donald W. Reynolds Governor's Cup luncheon, held here at the Statehouse Convention Center. He and Gov. Mike Huckabee were among a long list of business leaders and dignitaries that presented top college entrepreneurs with cash prizes totaling $104,000 in a statewide business skills competition. More than 1,000 people attended. Eskew said while such advances as the Internet and wireless technology have transformed the way businesses operate around the world, more significant changes are on the horizon. "As significant as those changes were, they will be pale in comparison to what we will see over the next 10 years," Eskew said, in response to such emerging issues as health care, population growth, energy demand and water shortages. "There is no more pressing educational and business issue than preparing for a world that is coming closer together because of global trade," said Eskew, adding that annual global trade will top $100 trillion by 2015. The UPS executive also said that the U.S. business community may have to repair a "tarnished image" of America that has spread across the globe. He criticized U.S. isolationists for viewing global trade as a threat to U.S. economic growth. "What we are seeing is a need to be connected to a global economy," said Eskew, whose 400,000-person workforce includes 60,000 employees overseas. "Certainly, we can't fail by keeping a global perspective on everything we do." Eskew also told the largely business crowd that homegrown values, never being satisfied and a love of learning were the keys to his personal and business success at UPS, which as annual revenues of more than $43 billion. "No matter how goods things are, you can always to better. You must have an absolute aversion of the status quo," Eskew told the crowd. Before the UPS chief's speech, Huckabee lauded the 61 collegiate teams that entered this year's business plan competition. "Each year, I am stunned by the sheer brilliance of these enterprising students and realize that when I present the awards I might just be shaking the hand of a future Sam Walton, Jack Stephens, William Dillard, Charles Murphy, or other Arkansas business pioneer," Huckabee said. Student teams that participated in the contest developed a plan for a startup or early-stage venture that laid out the business from top to bottom. Last week, judges from across the state chose 18 semifinalists during the final round of the competition. This year, four of eight finalists that won cash had agriculture-related business plans. The winning graduate and undergraduate teams each received $20,000, while the second place teams walked off with $10,000 and the third place teams went home with $5,000. A special "technology" award of $10,000 was split between one undergraduate and one graduate team that best incorporated the use of technology. Winners for this year's contest include: -Harding University, whose team won the $20,000 top prize in the undergraduate contest with a business plan for a company called Precision AGsense, an agriculture crop support service that uses technology to help farmers cut costs, conserve chemicals and treat their fields. "We got this idea just by talking to farmers ... who asked us to help them run their businesses better," said Cochran. Assistant JBU professors Allen Frazier and Michael Emerson were the team's faculty advisers. -John Brown University, which won the $10,000 second-place in the undergraduate category for a company called AgSolutions Corp. that recycled poultry litter as an alternative energy source. The team, which included Shawn Gatton, Meghan Kelly, Melody Masis, Marilyn Perez and Laura Redmond, also took the $5,000 prize for the best technology-related business plan. Delia Haak was the team's faculty adviser. -John Brown students Seth Hildbrant, Emily McGuire, Ellie Thoene, Claudia Salgado and Leidi Urbina, who won the $5,OOO third-place in the undergraduate division for a retail venture to supply Spanish movies, books and music for the state's growing Hispanic population. "We thought this would help bring the state together," Urbina said of team Sabor Latino that was also advised by Haak. - A University of Arkansas-Fayetteville team called Agrobotics that won the $20,000 first place prize in the graduate category. Team members Alin Dragos, Adi Masli and Jason McNabb developed a business plan to use robotics to increase crop yield and simplify farming. - UAF team Amiiga, which won the $10,000 second place prize and the $5,000 technology award in the graduate division for a business plan to develop a database software consulting firm. Team members included Tanya Fette, Leah Morton and Angelo Welinhinda. - UAF's Contur Company, which won the $5,000 third-place trophy in the graduate division for a new product that makes diaper changing a more pleasant experience for babies and mothers. UA professor Carol Reeves advised all three winning graduate teams. |
