USC Marshall School of Business

Dear Friends of Marshall:

I've been involved with building communities throughout my life. I can see this clearly looking backwards. Some of these communities were small, like the coffeehouse I started in college or the rock band I created that endured after college. These communities were places of goodwill, were filled with a sense of belonging, and yielded very good times and memories. Later on, as the Internet took over, I helped build other, larger online communities. So, it isn't too surprising, at least in retrospect, that I became so interested in using the Internet to further the Marshall School of Business as a community.

Whether online or off, one thing I've learned is to view communities like a large family. Like a family, communities have a variety of distinct voices. It's for this reason you are now reading something called MarshallVOICES. The purpose of MarshallVOICES is to raise the volume on the sometimes-hushed unique voices of students, faculty, alumni, administrators and other members of our Marshall community.

Families also have gatherings, and soon we will be launching a new newsletter - aptly titled MarshallEVENTS - to keep you aware of what community happenings are going on near and around you. There are other ways to use the Internet to bring out the best in the Marshall community, and this is what constitutes the vision I've been lucky enough to put in motion over the last few months.

As a marketing professor in the Marshall School, I teach my students that it's important to listen to customers.  Likewise, I know it's critical to listen to what the community members have to say. And this is why I'm now asking for your voice. As we move into 2010, who would you like to hear more about? What family stories are the most interesting or helpful to you?

Please help us by taking this short survey. It will take a scant 3 minutes or so, but in no small way you'll be helping us move forward to enhance the community that we all cherish.

Best wishes,
Allen Weiss