Donya Rouzbehi
Sports Editor
The La Verne Academy lecture series on Tuesday featured a panel of faculty from different disciplines, who shared their research approaches and for an audience of 15 in the Quay Davis Executive Board Room.
Participants included Si Hyun Kim, professor of management and leadership; Giacomo Laffranchini, professor of management; Issam Ghazzawi, professor of management; and Jerome Garcia, professor of biology. Louise Kelly, professor of management, moderated the panel.
Ghazzawi, who has worked in business for various-sized companies in the U.S. and Canada, said he witnessed the challenges and complications when it comes to an organization’s development, success and growth. His research has focused mainly on organizational life cycles, when an organization fails and how it can be rejuvenated.
“You don’t have to be good to start,” Ghazzawi said. “But you do need to start to be good.”
Ghazzawi’s research focuses on organizational development and strategic leadership that could make or break an organization.
Laffranchini discussed how his research was fueled by his intellectual curiosity. He grew up in an entrepreneurial environment in Italy, where he was exposed to many family businesses and local companies.
A main question that Laffranchini answered in his research was how family firms behave during turnaround times and organizational decline.
“Most family businesses may appear to defy economic rationality, but that is because they go by a different rationality that is not purely economical in nature,” Laffranchini said.
Kim’s research centers on human resources management. She has focused on talking points such as why people work, their motivations, satisfaction and financial incentives.
“My big question is why do people work?” Kim said.
Garcia was trained as a physiologist and biochemist. He looks at how chemical properties affect the human body.
His research centers on mechanisms that allow biologists to develop new therapies to fight different diseases.
“I’ve been very fortunate in that my particular expertise has allowed me to delve into cancer, obesity and aging,” Garcia said. “And so trying to minimize or cure those particular areas has really been my driving force.”
“I never wanted my entire career to be about research,” Garcia added. “I want it to be about mentorship and helping the next generation,” Garcia said. “I love our first-generation students, they’re hungry and willing to put in the work. That’s a part of the thrill in the research.”
Donya Rouzbehi can be reached at donya.rouzbehi@laverne.edu.
Donya Rouzbehi is a senior journalism major with a concentration in print/online journalism, and staff photographer for the Campus Times and La Verne Magazine. She has previously served as sports editor and a staff writer for the Campus Times, and is co-editor-in-chief of La Verne Magazine. Her other writing can be found at trillmag.com/author/donya-rouzbehi
Antonio Ceniceros is a senior photography major and a staff photographer for the Campus Times and La Verne Magazine. He is also the lead photographer and social media manager for the University of La Verne’s football team, and currently specializes in sports, concert, and fashion photography. You can find his work on Instagram at @flicksbycinco..
