Peter Parks

Peter Parks All About Pricing

Recently, in a final exam, Prof. Peter Parks gave the EMBA students an article from the New York Times announcing the introduction of a new brand of bottled water.  The students had to read the article and analyze the pricing strategy adopted by the company launching this new product, based on the information in the article and on the theory taught in Prof. Parks’  Managerial Economics (Microeconomics) course.

This approach is typical of many courses in the Rutgers EMBA Program —there is a constant and unrelenting emphasis on applied, current, real-world aspects of business policy.  Every semester, for example, Prof. Parks’ students get a binder of recent articles from major business publications (WSJ, NYT, The Economist) and the EMBAs are constantly made to relate the classroom theory to the articles.

Prof. Parks leverages his impressive experience to deliver an exceptionally high-level course.  He is the recipient of three Excellence in Teaching Awards.

His amazing ability to integrate theory with actual business issues has earned him a well-deserved global reputation of an economist who can 'speak the language of real business'.  Prof. Parks has served in committees, panels, and conferences for the White House, National Research Council, U.S. Department of Agriculture, U.S. Department of Energy, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Social Science Research Council, the Netherlands Environmental Ministry, the National Institute for Environmental Sciences (Japan), and the Beijer Institute for Ecological Economics (Sweden).

In addition to his teaching and service, his cutting-edge research continues unabated.  Since 1997 Prof. Parks has brought in $1.1 million in external grants to fund economic research at Rutgers University.

A student view of Prof. Parks:

“I got promoted to a very senior position thanks to my Rutgers EMBA.  At this Senior VP level, I make strategic decisions, many of which involve new lines of products and their pricing structures.  I can tell you that Prof. Parks’ course, in which we analyzed pricing in great detail in different market systems, has been indispensable.  I have his notes with me at work and I refer to them very frequently.  In fact, I often find myself making small Parks-inspired presentations at senior board meetings.  He is one of the most knowledgeable and organized professors I have experienced.”