Mistakes are Essential, says Alan Quasha
In an article in Frobes.com, founder, president and CEO of Quadrant Management, Alan Quasha, explains why making mistakes is a valuable part of being a leader.
Quasha begins the article by saying, “We first must acknowledge what should be obvious: Mistakes happen. And, in fact, contrary to popular perception, that’s a good thing. As the great UCLA baseball coach John Wooden once said, the team that makes the most mistakes wins.”
He continues by saying, “History consistently shows that success comes not from playing it safe, but by expecting to make mistakes, learning from them quickly and using that knowledge to devise a winning strategy.”
TBI & the Military: Brain Trauma Foundation with Alan Quasha
Many people don’t realize that one of the major injuries that our troops experience is traumatic brain injury. More than 11,800 troops have been seriously injured in an IED attack, and thousands more have been close enough that they’ve suffered from concussions. As the Brain Trauma Foundation with President Alan Quasha reports, veteran advocates today believe that between 10 and 20% of Iraq veterans have some degree of TBI. This equates to 150,000-300,000 people.
When analyzing only wounded troops, this rate rises to 33%. The Brain Trauma Foundation with Alan Quasha, supported by a grant from the Defense & Veterans Brain Injury Center, created important guidelines for the management of combat related head trauma in 2005.
Certainly, more research is needed about TBI and the military in order to keep our troops safe, to help them to survive their injuries, and to rehabilitate them back into civilian life.
Alan Quasha and Concussions
There has been new research on concussions (in medical terms known as molecular mechanism in mild TBI, mTBI), undertaken by Douglas Smith MD, Neurosurgery Professor and Center for Brain Injury and Repair Director. Such information is always helpful to any organization or individual trying to help those who have suffered a TBI, especially Alan Quasha and the team he chairs at the American Brain Trauma Foundation. This kind of trauma, seen as ‘mild’ impacts more than a million Americans annually. Somehow, despite this statistic, it is still dismissed as a major health issue. Nonetheless, a concussion can result in long-term cognitive and neurological problems.
A man like Alan Quasha, along with his team at the Brain Trauma Foundation, has to keep up-to-date with new information on TBI and indeed TBI although to date, little has been researched on TBI. This recent research was conducted on data stemming from animal and human studies, two to four days following an injury using neuroimaging techniques. It found “distinct changes throughout the white matter in the brain.” All those involved in treating TBI patients need to keep updated on research findings such as these.
Alan Quasha and Staying Fit
Almost everyone today speaks about, or at least knows how important it is to stay fit. We are bombarded through all media channels with news on how keeping in shape can improve one’s quality of life and even add to longevity. Alan Quasha is certainly someone who understands this. When he was at Harvard, he was active in both the tennis and squash teams. He pointed out in an interview about a year ago that, “squash is a game that will keep you in shape.” Quasha made this comment in response to a question on how he stays looking so young. His teams did well during his time with them which gave him and his teammates the opportunity to compete at a very high level. Alan Quasha attributes his participations in these teams as helping him maintain his fitness level today.
Squash: The Sport Quasha Loves
Indeed, typically when one plays squash they work at approximately 80% of their maximum heart rate. This is because the game demands players to run from corner to corner and then back to the T to try to get the next shot. The actual distances run are not particularly lengthy, but this is irrelevant in terms of the game being a great workout. One is on the move continuously throughout the game (amidst recovery periods) which means aerobic metabolism is in place. So in order to train for the game, running countless miles will not be beneficial. The game demands a general level of fitness, consistency and toned muscular strength. Clearly, someone as determined in life as Alan Quasha (as has been proven by his success in the business world) would be a good squash teammate to have.
Origins of the American Stock Exchange
Working out of New York, the American Stock Exchange (commonly referred to as the AMEX) was originally termed the New York Curb Exchange. Just over two years ago, it was bought out by NYSE Euronext for $260m in stock.
A stock market is basically used to trade company stock and derivatives at a set price for the public market. There are two types: securities (which can be found by everyone on a stock exchange) as well as private trades (those only to be traded in the private sphere).
For anyone in the business and investment world, becoming familiar with flux in the stock exchange provides an important tool of what is going on in the financial world. Stock markets hit huge figures; for example, in 2008, the estimate for the world stock market’s value was around $36.3 trillion.
For three years, from 1994 to 1997, Mr. Alan Quasha, President of Quadrant Management, served as a governor of the American Stock Exchange.
Video Games Continue to Gain Popularity
Alan Quasha has significant experience in the worlds of business and law, providing him with the know-how and expertise to chair many investment companies. Genco Media LLC (backed by Quadrant Management, of which Alan Quasha is the President), is one of these. The company “provide[s] content that creates the means to fund the development of a range of entertainment related products, including video games.”
Since their inception, video games have been on an upward spiral of increasing popularity with young and old alike. There are constantly new systems and updates and for those who enjoy playing them, they are almost incapable of staying one step behind all these developments. So the video game business continues to thrive, despite perhaps competing against other technical developments. That is why Genco Media is in the right market at the right time and currently seeks to invest in the creation of more entertainment related products. Since the popularity of home entertainment is clearly on the rise, the future could potentially be very bright for such companies. For geeks who love gadgets, home entertainment in general and video games in particular will always remain valued assets.
Skiing with a Helmet Saves Lives
The Brain Trauma Foundation, with Chair Alan Quasha, works tirelessly to educate health personnel and the general public about brain injuries. One recent article on their website points to the important of helmets for skiers.
Canadian researchers analyzed the use of helmets for skiers and found that helmets reduced skiers’ and snowboarders’ risk of head injury by 35%. They also found that the helmets don’t increase the chance of neck injuries. Their study was published February 1 in the Canadian Medical Association Journal.
This study could help to change the face of skiing, as traumatic brain injury is the leading cause of death and serious injury for skiers and snowboarders.
Zero-Waste Advertising with I-Behavior
Zero-Waste Advertising is a concept created by I-Behavior. They provide companies with decision intelligence that is based on the purchasing data of individual consumers. This allows you to directly target those consumers that you want to reach, and to deliver the right marketing message to that target audience. The idea, of course, is that there should be zero-waste with the advertising, as it is all targeted appropriately.
I-Behavior understands that the absolute best way to predict a person’s future purchase decisions is to look at their past purchases. They have proven this model for over a decade, with over 1700 multi-channel and retail clients. With CEO Chris Dice, and Board members including Alan Quasha, Wilma H. Jordan and others, they help you to achieve the marketing results you seek.
Building the Future with Richemont
Certainly, the long term success of Richemont, as for any company, depends on finding and training new talent. They take this task very seriously, and have a number of programs in place to identify and work with new talent.
One example is Piaget’s sponsorship of “Les Ecoles de la rue du Louvre” in Paris which is managed by the French Jewelery Association. Their policy is to develop new talent in the jewelry industry by supporting the school and offering training opportunities to students who stand out.
A.Lange & Söhne is another excellent example. The German watchmaking industry has a hard time finding well-trained specialists. Lange trains watchmakers, each year taking in about 13 young men and women for a three-year apprenticeship as watchmakers and toolmakers at the A. Lange & Söhne’s watchmaking school.
These are a few of the actions that Richemont takes to continue their excellence, assisted by their esteemed board including Non-Executive Director Alan Quasha and many others.
Vanterra Capital & Its Partners
Vanterra Capital was founded by Mr. Shad Azimi. His Partners include Alan Quasha, President of Quadrant Management, Inc. and Jason Young, Managing Director at Quadrant Management, Inc.
Mr. Azimi has over 12 years of experience with global private equity investments. Before starting Vanterra, he was a principal at NYL Capital, which is a $7 billion private equity program that is sponsored by New York Life Investment Management and 26 third-party institutional investors. Mr. Azimi has created a strong network of private equity relationships internationally. Before this, he was an Associate at Lighyear Capital.
Mr. Azimi received his B.A. with dual concentrations in Finance and International Business from the McIntire School of Commerce at the University of Virginia. He earned his MBA as a Beta Gamma Sigma graduate from Columbia Business School.
