Data centers have put the business of energy front and center around the world. In this issue, our cover story audits the energy business. The global energy market is grappling with surging electricity demand due to a range of reasons from data centers and EVs, to manufacturing and even the increased usage of air conditioning. Energy decisions are no longer just environmental choices; they are the primary arena for global economic competition and fiscal resilience.
Our faculty and alumni give a little history while explaining how the energy markets currently operate and weigh in on possible energy solutions. (A sidenote: Lehigh’s 3.1-megawatt solar array, located on the Goodman Campus, generates enough clean electricity to offset 100% of Lehigh’s campus electricity consumption!)
Also in this issue, we will share news about the sports analytics minor that launches this spring, some generous gifts our alumni have given to the college and introduce you to the new associate dean of undergraduate education, Stephanie Prevost, among other news updates.
Our faculty research section includes leadership lessons from the Naval Academy; why some patent applications got harder to read, then easier; what patients like about telemedicine; and how men and women auditors are navigating tricky gender dynamics in their profession.
Get out your classic 64-count box of Crayola crayons! We have the CEO and Lehigh Business MBA alumni, Pete Ruggiero MBA’03, recounting his career path. And yes, he does have a favorite color. You will also hear from an alum who has been with American Express for 20 years, a rookie employee at Anthropic and a former CFO (she was an accounting major) at Docusign.
We highlight six business students in each issue of Lehigh Business magazine, and this year, the batch of students is also exceptional. Many had cool summer internships or were on the road helping entrepreneurs enhance their well-being. One student is figuring out how Formula 1 informs her future—yes, that’s right, Formula 1. I expect you will be exhausted just reading about these extraordinary students.
Which brings us back to energy and one last insight from our cover story. Alberto Lamadrid is a professor of economics at Lehigh Business. His work lies at the intersection of energy and electricity economics. He vocalizes the most critical piece of what we all—students, faculty and alumni—need to recognize about the business of energy.
“I think that markets have served us relatively well for the moment that they were designed for,” Lamadrid says. “They were designed for a different moment in history.
At Lehigh we are ready for this new moment in time, our moment.
Manoj K. Malhotra
Kevin L. and Lisa A. Clayton Dean of the College of Business
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