Jim Doti put his mind to work writing the 2025 book, “Using Data Analytics to Drive Transformational Change.”
The president emeritus of Chapman University and noted economic scholar used the book to detail how analytic tools were used to transform and improve the Orange-based university during his 25-year presidency, touching on everything from student selectivity to establishing new school programs to real estate investments to faculty salaries.
Doti put his body to work researching his latest book, “An Adventure Log: A Chronicle of Climbing, Running, and Biking,” which came out in April.
The book features over two dozen entries from Doti and other authors about their experiences climbing the world’s tallest mountains, competing in marathons and other endurance races, and other sporting endeavors.
“The authors of these articles all have day jobs,” said Doti –who has completed 60 marathons and climbed five of the world’s Seven Summits–in the book’s preface.
“Somehow, some way, they carved out enough time to experience and then record their adventures, pushing against the boundaries that often constrain the range of life’s offerings.”
Among the contributors are Doti family members and fellow academics, including Doti’s successor at Chapman, Daniele Struppa, another mountain climbing enthusiast.
Doti put on his economist hat for one story in the book, which “delves into the physiology of running by using statistical analysis to measure the impact of age on running times.”
“Instead of training harder to fight the relentless effects of aging, I’ve learned to not only accept the slower paces but be grateful that I’m still in the game,” Doti said.
Read his Leader Board on the decline of taxable income in California on page 45.
With over $51 million in sales at its eight West Coast locations last year, Newport Beach-based Bluewater Grill last month made its first appearance on our list of OC’s largest restaurant chains, placing No. 26.
Another first for the chain: a cookbook.
“Flavors from the Shore: Nostalgic Seafood Recipes Celebrating Our Coasts & Waterways” includes 100 recipes, organized geographically. It was written by Bluewater’s co-founders Jimmy Ulcickas and Richard Staunton, and the recipes were adapted for home cooks by the chain’s executive chef, Albert Serrano.
The book’s April release coincides with Bluewater’s 30th anniversary. Its original location in Cannery Village, the chain’s only OC spot, was recently updated.
Business Journal Editor-in-Chief Peter J. Brennan has excerpted plenty of books from OC execs over the years in our back-page Leader Board section. But he’s yet to excerpt himself.
Maybe that will change. Brennan recently released a book recounting his early years as a reporter, in a decidedly non-business setting. “Looking for El Dorado: A Decade of War, Love and Garcia Márquez in Latin America” is “for anyone who wants to understand the Latin American people and their history,” he says, adding that a Leader Board excerpt may appear later this summer.
