Demetris Papadopoulos
MA '00
HR Director at
Thermo Fisher Scientific

Demetris Papadopoulos MA '00 Wins Human Resources Award

Brandeis International Business School graduate, Demetris Papadopoulos MA '00, recently received an award at the 2009 Human Resource Executive (HRE) magazine's fourth annual Rising Stars competition. The panel of judges, which consisted of academic and business professionals in the North American region, picked five profiles of professionals working in the U.S. and European markets. Papadopoulos shared the acclaim with four other HR professionals who were recognized for their leadership strengths and persuasion skills in dealing with daunting HR challenges, and turning them into positive bottom-line results and productivity in their companies.

Mr. Papadopoulos currently works in the United Kingdom as an HR director of European compensation and benefits at Thermo Fisher Scientific, a leading scientific and laboratory-equipment Company. His passion to work in HR developed early on in his career when he worked at Petasis Associates in Cyprus as an intern. At Petasis, he helped port workers negotiate more efficient working schedules with the Cyprus Ports Authority.

At Thermo Fisher Scientific (then Thermo Electron), Papadopoulos set up an HR infrastructure while the organization transformed from a holding company to an operating company. He also helped create and integrate the entire HR structure for compensation to incorporate salary management and a framework for rewards and recognition.

Steve Sheehan, senior vice president of human resources for Thermo Fisher Scientific, credits Papadopoulos with possessing ‘an exceptionally strong work ethic' and ‘a unique ability to take something conceptually and run with it farther and faster than most.' Papadopoulos acknowledges the importance of role models as having a positive impact in his career, "Mentorship is probably the single most important exogenous factor that can influence one's success in all aspects of life," he said.

The full article on Papadopoulos' recognition can be found online at: http://www.hreonline.com/HRE/story.jsp?storyId=227741171. 

David J. Williams
MBA '01
Senior Economist at Boeing Commercial Airplanes

Career Takes Off after IBS at United Airlines and Boeing

Beginning as an intern at United Airlines and progressing to his present role as Senior Economist at Boeing Commercial Airplanes, David Williams has leveraged his IBS education to help his career soar to high levels. Williams, a native of Canada, received his MBA in 2001 from what was then GSIEF (now IBS) after starting in the PhD program. He began his airline career in United's Financial Planning and Analysis group, then parlayed his summer work into full time positions in Financial Analysis and United Express. When he was not managing the financial relations with United's regional jet partners, Williams took full advantage of his company's travel benefit and recommends those with wanderlust to explore careers in the airline industry. "If you hunger to travel the world, it's a great place to go," he said.

Williams credits IBS with instilling in him a "genuine intellectual interest in finance" which combined with "the nuts and bolts courses-accounting, corporate finance--served me well" at United.

Feeling the tug of the west coast, after three successful years at United's headquarters in Chicago, Williams packed up his car and drove to Seattle where he eventually was offered a position as Manager, Pricing Strategy at Boeing. In that role, he addressed the question "What are the market values of Boeing's airplanes now and in the future, as well as the values of competing products?" His IBS education was an important factor in his success. "The rigor of economic modeling has stuck with me and has contributed to the quality of the work I do," he said. Recently Williams was promoted to his current role. As Senior Economist for Boeing, he takes a long term view of the global airline business, contributing macroeconomic perspectives to the company's market forecasting activities. He needs to understand not only the near term demand for aircraft, but what the market will look like twenty years out.

No doubt Williams will continue to thrive at Boeing and in the airline industry which, while a challenging environment, presents those with a curious economic mind a place to grow and, perhaps, to see the world. 

Celicia Chaung
BA/MA '04

Matias Ringel
BA/MA '92

Andrew Steinvurzel
'91(seated)
Brandeis CMA Employees

Capital Management Advisors

Brandeis graduate Sabby Mionis '92 founded Capital Management Advisors (CMA) in 1997. Little did he know that his alma mater would play such an important role in the development of this financial advisory firm. Throughout the ensuing years, Mionis built an entrepreneurial team, comprised of various Brandeis graduates, which has made CMA into a hedge fund success story now with over $2 billion in assets under management.

In addition to Mionis, CMA team members from Brandeis include Andrew Steinvurzel '90 who joined as General Counsel for U.S., Matias Ringel BA '91 MA '92 who runs the New York research office in CMA's New York office, and Celicia Chaung BA '03 MA '04 who serves as an analyst.

Ringel credits the team's common Brandeis experience as one element of CMA's achievement, particularly as it relates to the importance of teamwork. "There's no ego here" he said. His experience in Waltham "helped instill a go out there and get it spirit" which is common amongst a "true group of friends working together", he added.

CMA is now a subsidiary of EFG International, a global private banking group offering private banking and asset management services. But no doubt the entrepreneurial spirit of its Brandeis graduates will continue to fuel its growth as it expands to become a full service investment management business.