UT COBI's Schmidt School of Professional Sales named a top program by Sales Education Foundation

The Edward H. Schmidt School of Professional Sales (ESSPS) in The University of Toledo College of Business and Innovation has been recognized by the Sales Education Foundation (SEF) in their "Top Universities for Professional Sales Education” program. These university programs are recognized for preparing students for careers in professional selling and helping to elevate the sales profession.

Established in 2007, the SEF works with multiple universities to provide grants, assist sales faculty, provide and/or promote educational opportunities and recognize quality research and dissemination.

ESSPS was formed in 2000 and endowed in 2002 as the first professional sales major in the country from an Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) accredited college of business administration.

"Everyone plays a critical role to ensure the sustainability and success of our top ranked program. We have accomplished a great deal to launch and propel our professional sales program," noted Deirdre Jones, Director. "We embrace our commitment to developing the world’s future sales professionals…one student at a time.  We strive to continually set the bar high in terms of learning, discovery, and outreach."

"Students with a sales education ramp up 50% faster and turnover 30% less than their non-sales educated peers," Jones added. "Furthermore, we are very proud of the fact that 100% of ESSPS students seeking employment upon graduation have jobs, and, in fact, many of our students have multiple job offers."

Sally Stevens, Executive Director of the Sales Education Foundation, noted that companies should have an increased focus on partnering with university sales programs. “Top sales organizations should consider developing partnerships with these programs who are educating the next generation of professional sales people.”

For more information about the Edward H. Schmidt School of Professional Sales, visit utoledo.edu/essps.

For more information about the Sales Education Foundation, visit salesfoundation.org.

Grandfather surprises family, finally obtains his first college degree

Amidst the hugs and happiness of hundreds of graduates from The University of Toledo College of Business and Innovation this May, there may not have been anyone happier, more emotional than Michael Mack.

That's because 59-year-old Mack, a skilled trades pipefitter/millwright at Jeep in Toledo, first started taking college classes (political science) in 1978, but he never obtained a degree until receiving his associates degree in business this May.  

And although his family knew he was taking classes at UT, they did not know he would be receiving his degree this May until about one week before graduation.

"I didn't let anybody know I was getting my degree; I wanted people to be shocked," Mack said.

"I always felt that something was not finished," he explained. "I knew it would be a relatively difficult task, but that it had to be undertaken if I wanted to succeed. I kept this to myself and did not share it with anyone in my family except my stepdaughter  - - who developed into an inspiration when it became difficult - - until just before graduation.  The difficulty of this task make’s the taste of completion even sweeter and more appreciative."

"This degree brings closure," Mack said.  "It’s like the closing of one part of my life and the opening of another. I had quite a few individuals ask me, 'Why are you going back to school now?' and expressing their apprehension towards it. The first reason is that my own father always told me an education is something to never be turned down, that once you have it no one can take it away. Secondly, I wanted to send a message to my own children and grandchildren about the importance of an education, that it is never too late to achieve it, that you never know it all."

The challenges were great. Mack often worked at Jeep seven days a week, 12 hours a day.  "I worked, ate, did the dishes and then did my homework."

He intends to continue his business college goals by obtaining his bachelor's degree, possibly majoring in management.

Mack is already putting his business acumen into action, having started a small golf repair business.

"Mack Daddy Golf is up and running, but at a regulated capacity at the moment due to my present work and school schedule," Mack said.  "I would like to start a business in South Carolina where I can show different companies how to be more efficient in their processes and daily operations. I have had a few conversations with some individuals who have expressed interest in the different ideas I shared with them. I knew to succeed I needed to know and understand how to run a business, otherwise all I had was a dream. I had to equip myself for this new venture in life. About the same time Chrysler and The University of Toledo entered into an agreement offering individuals the opportunity to get back into school and further their education."

Mack also admits that working on his degree enabled him to learn more than his course material.

"One eye opening moment was when I came to the realization through my fellow classmates,  most of whom are quite a bit younger than myself, that over the last few years I have spent my efforts talking at the younger generation and not with them. They do have some great and useful ideas if we just open up and absorb them."

UT College of Business and Innovation presents HR Management Excellence Awards to four Northwest Ohio companies

The University of Toledo College of Business and Innovation presented their 18th annual Human Resource (HR) Management Awards for Excellence on May 21, recognizing four Northwest Ohio companies for their outstanding human resource practices.

Each of the four finalists was named a recipient of the Human Resource Management Award for Excellence: Health Care REIT, Hospice of Northwest Ohio, Matrix Technologies and Worthington Industries.

Health Care REIT is a world leader investor in health care real estate. Their strong human capital culture and HR processes are viewed as the keys to their growth and success. They have built a culture of excellence by recruiting talent through improved information flow, candidate management and implementation of a hire on-boarding process. Health Care REIT demonstrates their commitment to employee support and outreach through their implementation of impactful wellness, women and community outreach initiatives.  Their leadership and management development initiatives are geared towards fostering employee development and engagement, and they have a long term approach to talent management to grow their business today and in the future.

Hospice of Northwest Ohio, established in 1980 and now having more than 400 employees, is a non-profit organization providing care and education to positively transform the way people view and experience serious illness and the end of life. Their HR department has established itself as a critical member of the senior management and strategy team, and they have a proactive approach to employee wellness programming and an effective management of health insurance costs. Hospice of Northwest Ohio has extensive employee engagement practices to build, enhance and improve employee performance and commitment, and their culture of appreciation and gratitude for every employee displays their effort to treat all employees with respect, care and concern.

Matrix Technologies, established in 1980, is headquartered in Maumee, has five other locations in the US with nearly 300 employees. It is a single-source provider all types of process, facility and automation engineering. HR leadership is provided at the strategy table, with its input perceived as critical for organizational success. Over three years they have revamped every HR functional process, including recruitment, compensation, performance appraisal and leadership development. They leverage both internal talent and external experts to ensure quality, individualized service training and development for all employees. Evaluating their initiatives has resulted in job growth and decreases in turnover.

Worthington Industries is a global, diversified metals manufacturing company in Delta, Ohio, which opened in 1997 and employs nearly 200 people. Utilizing the Golden Rule philosophy, they believe people are their most important asset impacting everything they do. They have a high performance operating culture driven by employee engagement and empowerment, safety, quality and productivity. Their recruiting program for developing manufacturing talents includes partnerships with high schools and community colleges, and they are investing heavily and systematically in employee development and team building training to improve workplace performance.

"This is the first time we have presented awards to all four finalists,” noted Dr. Clinton Longenecker, COBI Professor of Management and chair of the Awards Selection Committee.  “Each organization was so distinctive, each doing remarkable and innovative things in utilizing their human capital to compete at the very highest levels.”

“The Human Resources Management Excellence Awards are given annually by the college since 1998 to celebrate the success of local organizations and leaders for creating great places to work. Their efforts make a real difference in our economy while they also inspire others to advance their organizations, demonstrating to the region that area employers can compete in a world marketplace,” said Longenecker.

COBI's outstanding faculty recognized via various University, College awards

The talent and dedication of College of Business and Innovation's faculty, both as educators and as researchers, were readily apparent and recognized through a number of recent awards presented to several faculty members.

Dean Gary Insch said, "COBI faculty continue to be recognized for their teaching, research and service excellence. I am truly impressed by all the efforts of our faculty to maintain the extremely high quality of our students' COBI experience."

Recent recognitions include:

University of Toledo awards

UT's Outstanding Teachers are selected by a committee of UT instructors and a student representative, who review nominations.  2015 winners include:

Dr. Doina Chichernea, Outstanding Teacher Award

Dr. Doina Chichernea, assistant professor in the Department of Finance in the College of Business and Innovation. She has been teaching at the University since 2009.

“Dr. Chichernea is helpful and positive in class, and makes sure we understand the subject she is teaching before moving on to a new subject,” one nominator wrote. “She records her lectures and makes them available to all of her students, which is helpful to a distance-learning student such as myself. In addition, she has invited distance-learning students to attend class when possible, and I have found this to be most helpful.” Another wrote, “I was dreading taking Corporate Finance. It is not an easy subject. But Dr. Chichernea has made the subject genuinely interesting and almost fun. I am learning the subject and can begin to apply it in my real-world endeavors.”

Diane Marker, Outstanding Teacher Award

Diana Marker, professor in the Department of Applied Organizational Technology in the College of Business and Innovation. She joined the faculty in 1980.

“Her passion for the success of students overflows into her teaching style and causes great motivation in the classroom,” one nominator wrote. “She is a phenomenal teacher that uses real-world examples in teaching, genuinely cares about her students, is approachable, and teaches real-world lessons that I’ll remember forever.” Another noted, “She makes us think far further than what is on the surface of all aspects of life. She shares her wisdom with all of us in hopes of us doing well. She encourages us to do our best, and she ensures us that we are capable of much more than we ever thought we could be. She is by far one of the best teachers I’ve had in my entire life.”

Dr. Paul Hong, Outstanding Researcher Award

Dr. Paul Hong, professor in the Department of Information Operations and Technology Management in the College of Business and Innovation. He joined the faculty in 1987 and received his PhD from the University in 2000.

His research interests focus on global supply chain management, including new product development and innovation; supplier relationships; operational transformation; and strategic integration of front-end and back-end business processes.

“Dr. Hong has published more than 200 journal and conference papers, numerous research awards and three books, including Building Network Capabilities in Turbulent Competitive Environments: Practices of Global Firms From Korea and Japan (2012) and Business Success Stories in the BRICs (2014, and in the area of global supply chain management that have achieved international recognition for providing real-world examples evaluating the impact of supply chain networks in global markets,” one nominator wrote. “He is noted for the impact on the international business community. His excellent research is but a part of a well-balanced approach to his work as a faculty member. He also has an outstanding record of service and mentorship for students and other faculty.”

College of Business and Innovation awards

Dr. Yue Zhang, Information Operations and Technology Management Department -  Simonetti Graduate Teaching Award

Dr. Mark Gleim, Marketing and International Business Department - DeJute Undergraduate Teaching Award

Teresa Keefe, Information Operations and Technology Management Department -  Outstanding Adjunct/Lecturer Award

Dr. Sachin Modi, Information Operations and Technology Management Department - Vonderembse Research Award

Dr. Mai Dao, Accounting Department - Junior Researcher Award. Dr. Dao also received the award for the Best Gender Issues and Work Life Balance research paper at the 2015 Ohio Regional meeting of the American Accounting Association.

Dr. Doina Chichernea, Finance Department; Dr. Anthony Holder, Accounting Department; and Dr. Alex Petkevich, Finance Department - Outstanding Research Paper Award

Dr. Hassan HassabElnaby, Chair, Accounting Department - Brunner Service Award

Dr. Amal Said, Accounting Department - Diversity Award

Jennifer McDowell Tharpe, advisor in the COBI Student Retention and Academic Success office, received the COBI Outstanding Staff Award

UT Shining Star awards presented to COBI faculty and staff members

University of Toledo Interim Provost John A. Barrett presented UT's Shining Star award to two College of Business and Innovation personnel this year: Amy O'Donnell, lecturer in department of management, business career sequence, career exploration and career preparation, in February; and Barb Robertson, director, Office of Student Retention and Academic Success, in March.

The Shining Star Award was created to recognize and honor those who continuously demonstrate their commitment to excellence in teaching, challenging and inspiring our students.

In announcing the award to O'Donnell, Barrett said, "Amy goes far beyond just assisting our students in the classroom, helping the students to conduct their searches and to find an internship or a job after graduation, despite the fact that she teaches over 300 students a year."

Concerning the award, O'Donnell said, "I'm flattered, I'm honored, I'm humbled by it because it's really cool to be recognized for something that you're passionate about. Being a faculty member is like the best job ever because of the flexibility that you have in order to have a work/life balance because I can be Amy/mom at home, then when I'm here, I'm here. I'm able to go to a soccer game, even if that means I have to get up at three in the morning to grade papers. It took me a while to figure out what I wanted to do, once I figured out that I can help others do that,  that was really exciting to me. Doing it here in the College of Business and Innovation, I never had so much support and so many resources. I really believe the College of Business and Innovation goes the extra mile for all of its students and for the employers who recruit our students. Knowing that I have that kind of support makes me want to continue to give my best to the students, to identify the resources that they need to stay current in my field so that they can take advantage of all of those resources and be the most marketable candidates for the employers who are out there who need our students."

In announcing the award to Robertson, Barrett said:  "Robertson's central focus can be summarized in two words: student centeredness. She's passionate about meeting with students, always willing to meet with them, she makes sure they have academic plans of study, she provides emotional support where appropriate, academic support, advice…she's just there for the students in whatever sense they need. It doesn't matter if it's in her job description or not, deep down she's just committed to provide the best experience possible for the students, and that's why I selected her. Thank you for all you're doing. You're making a huge difference in our students' lives and success, and are a credit to the College of Business and innovation."

Concerning the award, Robertson said, "The absolutely only thing you can say is, 'Wow, this is so cool.'  No matter how many years you're here, no matter how long you do this, to know someone absolutely appreciates what you do is why we do what we do.  In the College of Business, I think our entire college goes the extra mile.  I came here feeling that way, but it's all around us.  I think everyone truly cares, and it makes a difference. You have to take the time, because none of us would be here if it weren't for students."

Regional accounting professionals celebrate UT's accounting department's distinctive accreditation

Accounting professionals from throughout Northwest Ohio and Southeast Michigan attended a celebratory dinner recognizing the recent departmental accreditation from the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) of the accounting department in The University of Toledo College of Business and Innovation (COBI). The event was held on May 19 at The Inverness Club in Toledo.

The accounting department received notification of the accreditation in March, following an onsite review of the program by the AACSB accreditation team earlier this year.  It was the first attempt by the COBI accounting department to obtain the distinctive accreditation.

"This is a voluntary accreditation obtained by only 1.3% (183 institutions) of accounting programs in business schools around the world," noted Dr. Hassan HassabElnaby, Department Chair, "and it would not have happened without the extensive and generous support the accounting department has received from accounting professionals in the regional business community.  Their continuing involvement with our students and graduates through mentoring, internships, jobs and financial support significantly contributes to our program's success, so we wanted to thank the individuals and companies in the accounting profession for their mutually beneficial relationships with the college"

"The expertise of these accounting professionals creates a high standard of performance that both informs and inspires our students," Dr. HassabElnaby added, "which further ensures employers in this region and across the country that our accounting department graduates are ready to perform on day one of their jobs."

The AASCB is an association of educational institutions, businesses and other organizations devoted to the advancement of higher education, and is the premier accrediting agency of collegiate business schools and accounting programs worldwide.

Annual Business vs. Engineering Golf Outing set for August 22

The 16th Annual University of Toledo Business vs. Engineering Scholarship Golf Outing, presented by Hylant, will take place on Saturday August 22, 2015 at the Stone Oak Country Club. All proceeds from this fun, philanthropic event go toward student scholarships.

There is room for only 120 golfers, so register now at toledoalumni.org  or call the Office of Alumni Relations at 419.530.2586

As in past years, community to support for this outing through sponsorships and participation is critical to the event's continued success, and this event is important to future University of Toledo students who will benefit from your contribution.

Highlights for this year’s event include:
- 18-Hole Shotgun Start
- Silent Auction, 50/50 Raffle
- Meals provided before and after the outing, with complimentary refreshments on the course
- Swag bag of gifts for each attendee, as well as door and raffle prizes after the outing
- Team prizes

Please visit toledoalumni.org or call the Office of Alumni Relations at 419.530.2586 to register for the outing.