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Rajeev Reports
10 Years at the Helm
Ten years ago Rajeev Dhawan came to
Georgia State’s Robinson College Economic
Forecasting Center (EFC). Since then, with
a small team of talented researchers, he
has revolutionized the center, making it
into one of the nation’s foremost resources
for information on the local and national
economies. But, says Rajeev, “We’ve only
just begun.” Below, instead of his regular
column, we conduct a brief Q&A with the
center director on what lies ahead.
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Talk about the role the EFC plays at
Georgia State and in the local community.
The center has become the source
for credible and impartial analysis of the
national and regional economic trends.
The center really became that go-to point
after 9/11. In the three months after that
event, I was asked to give 26 presentations
throughout the Southeast. Suddenly we
were on the map with media, executives
and government officials. Since then,
when any major event happens (stock market
corrections, debt limit debate, natural
disasters, etc.), we are called upon for
information and commentary. For our work
we’ve received recognition from, among
others, Bloomberg and the Economic
Outlook Center at Arizona State University.
Your conference draws 250-300
business people to downtown Atlanta each
quarter. What other services does the
center provide?
Attendees come away with
booklets providing details on the local and
national forecasts. Center sponsors are
entitled to bring team members to conferences,
thereby leveraging the impact of
the information received. Often I meet
one-on-one with our sponsor representatives
on specific issues. We also hold a
biannual economic briefing specifically for
the sponsors.
What do you try to achieve with the
conference and your forecast?
I try to produce the best possible
forecast given the limitations of data in a
very rapidly changing global environment.
The aim is that the logic of my conclusions
is clear to the audience. So, even if the
forecast turns out to be wrong, I feel that
if the audience understands why I was
wrong, and if they forgive me, then I have
done my job. Further, we try to bring in
guest speakers that have included CEOs,
industry experts, and our own talented
Robinson College faculty.
You have increased the number
of sponsors who support the Economic
Forecasting Center. What attracts these
sponsors?
Sponsors help subsidize our
research, booklets, etc. Sponsorship
entitles an organization to access the center’s
economic database and have greater
use of the center’s products. Sponsors also
receive publicity in the center’s publications,
website, e-mail invitations and more.
Running the center is a big job. Who
helps you keep things going?
We have a small, very dedicated
staff including Emin Hajiyev, assistant
director, and Courtney Raines, in charge of
the front office. I wear multiple hats. I speak
at the quarterly conferences (one time I
even emceed the event), plan, manage the
staff, serve as the chief economist, handle
media queries and sponsor deliverables,
and represent the university and the college
at events in the city and around the world.
Recently, I spoke to the Swiss Finance
Institute, the Stuttgart Airport Authority and
the Chilean Central Bank.
Where do see the center headed in
the next 10 years?
Our main objective will be to
maintain the excellence we have achieved,
while adapting to the many changes that will
take place, particularly the way technology
is changing communication of economic
news. We also will continue to do more
with less.
For Rajeev’s current economic forecast, please visit robinson.gsu.edu/efc »
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Copyright © 2011 J. Mack Robinson College of Business/Georgia State University
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