To create an environment in which talented faculty are able to extend their efforts into complex, resource-intensive research and reach broader audiences with their insights, Tuck created five research centers between 1997 and 2000. Each center broadens Tuck's brand by establishing a specific area in which Tuck's expertise is world class.

The William F. Achtmeyer Center for Global Leadership was created in 2000 to promote research and debate highly relevant to senior executives in global corporations with Professor Vijay Govindarajan as its director. The center was founded by Tuck alumnus and overseer, William F. Achtmeyer, who is president and CEO of The Parthenon Group, a strategic business advisory firm for CEOs and business leaders. Mr. Achtmeyer is also the chairman of the board of overseers of the Tuck School.

The highlight of the center's launch on October 4, 2000, was a visit from Meg Whitman, CEO of eBay, who talked with the Tuck community about her experiences in overseeing eBay's new business model for online community commerce—from its origin as an online trading site for collectors of Pez dispensers to the cultural phenomenon that it is today with billions of dollars in gross merchandise sales.

"eBay created an entirely new business: online community commerce," Whitman said at the launch. "It's an efficient marketplace with no inventory, no sales force, and user-generated content. It's a perfect application for the web: there is no traditional analogue."

Learn more about Meg Whitman's visit »