… is a most Nabokovian name. But rather than coming to us from Ada, or Ardor, this name comes to us from the Yale School of Management, where it belongs to a professor of management. Vroom’s name is preceded by his title: BearingPoint Professor of Management & Professor of Psychology.
Now for a spot of awkwardness.
The court-appointed official in charge of winding down BearingPoint Inc. is suing Yale University to recover $6 million the consulting firm paid to endow a chair in management and name facilities at the university.
The donations were part of a $30 million, seven-year deal between BearingPoint and Yale’s School of Management.
The consulting firm made three payments of $2 million each to the school in the two years before the firm sought bankruptcy-court protection in February 2009.
… [The official] is also seeking the return of $2.1 million BearingPoint paid to Yale three months before its Chapter 11 filing in a deal that allowed the firm’s employees to attend leadership classes and education programs at the school.
… Mr. [Victor H.] Vroom holds a chair endowed by BearingPoint under its deal with the university, which was stuck by the firm’s then chief executive, Harry L. You, a Yale graduate…
It looks as though Vroom will have to stop holding that chair.
March 16th, 2010 at 12:01AM
Victor Vroom is well-known in the area of motivation. By all accounts, he’s a nice guy. He’s nearly 80 now I think.
The theory of motivation he worked is in direct contrast to Skinner’s reinforcement idea. Edward Deci, who has another great name, was a post-doc with Vroom. He developed the concepts of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation, and ways to measure them. Intrinsic motivation seems to be more important.
This leads, at least in my mind, to the concept of “flow” popularized by Csikszentmihalyi, yet another great name.
I am glad you brought up Vroom, who I think is underappreciated. It’s too bad about his chair.
March 16th, 2010 at 7:29AM
Most-esteemed Victor H. Vroom
Has locked himself into his room.
His well-endowed chair
Is threatened–no fair!–
Since the BearingPoint deal went kaboom.
March 16th, 2010 at 8:38AM
Kaboom is an excellent way to end any limerick, Dave. You’ve made me feel competitive. I shall try a Vroomerick of my own.
March 16th, 2010 at 8:51AM
Mr. Management, Victor H. Vroom,
Rode a big fancy chair for the boom.
Then the market went bust
And the chair turned to dust.
Now he sits on his ass in the gloom.
March 16th, 2010 at 10:42AM
Stone and Soltan, limericks for all occasions…
March 16th, 2010 at 11:14AM
In Holland and also in Rome
For the pious there’s always a dom-
icile to be found,
where the spelling is sound
and makes sense of the good Mr. Vroom.
March 16th, 2010 at 11:41AM
Hm. I see, Jeremy. Wonderful Vroomerick, plus a correction – we rhymesters aren’t pronouncing Vroom right, are we?
March 18th, 2010 at 11:24PM
BearingPoint Chair Professor Vroom
Is facing his plight with aplomb
motivation intrinsic
keeps him from feeling sick
As endowed chairs disappear like foam