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STUDENTS PICK PROFESSORS OF THE YEAR

Each year students at the Monfort College of Business pick their favorite professors and honor them at the college’s annual student-sponsored picnic. The ceremony marks the end of the academic year and for many graduating seniors a last opportunity to thank professors who have prepared them for life in the business world.

Professors of the year are voted on by the students, covering each of the college’s program areas, as well as an overall professor of the year. This year’s professors of the year are the following:

Accounting – Lorie Milam
Computer Information Systems – Chris Vegter
Finance – Christine McClatchey
General Business – Keiko Krahnke
Management – Milan Larson
Marketing – James Reardon
Overall – Garth Allen

Professors count this as an important honor from students who consistently give the college high marks for the quality of its undergraduate business program. According to results of an annual survey administered by the college, 96 percent of student respondents said the college emphasizes high quality teaching; 96 percent said they would recommend the college to friends or family members.

ATTENTION BUSINESS OWNERS: HELP IS AVAILABLE

[From the Greeley Tribune] As a business owner and manager for more than 20 years, Dick Pickett learned some hard lessons.

"I've lost three friends because the proper documentation wasn't in place," the 61-year-old Windsor resident said. "Doing business with friends sounds good at first."

Friends who go into business together should have an operator agreement that spells out who will do what, Pickett said.

Pickett, who founded Inta Juice in Fort Collins in 1996, will pass these lessons, and others, on to Weld County entrepreneurs in his new role as director of the Greeley/Weld Small Business Development Center.

Pickett started April 1.

"What I'm seeing is people coming in with questions I didn't have the answers to when I started my business," he said.

After he sold Inta Juice in 2007, Pickett considered retirement, but he decided he had more to offer.

"This is a way to give back to the community," he said.

Pickett, who will be the center's third director in two years, said his primary goal is to make sure people know about the center. He said because of the turnover at the top, entrepreneurs in Weld aren't aware of what is available.

The Small Business Development Center offers counseling and advice for entrepreneurs, either in the start-up phase of their business or once the business is going. The services are free.

"We think we can provide a service that if people knew about it, they would be beating down the doors to get," he said.

Jesse Esparza was the center's interim director before Pickett. He said he is relieved to have Pickett on board.

He said Pickett will bring a lot of experience to a position that is important.

Esparza said the key mission of the center is to help entrepreneurs learn.

"It is all about education," he said.

David Thomas, an assistant professor of management at the University of Northern Colorado's Monfort School of Business, was the chairman of the search committee that hired Pickett. Thomas said Pickett's commitment to the community and to staying in the position long-term made him stand above other candidates.

"He is someone who wants to build a life and a career here," Thomas said.

Pickett said he looks forward to leading the center.

"I'm expecting big things here," he said.

Dick Pickett

Dick Pickett, 61, worked for Hewlett-Packard Co. for 13 years in management, sales, marketing and product development positions. He also spent more than 10 years in executive and sales positions at Scientific Calculations and Cape Systems Inc.

In 1996, he and a business partner founded Inta Juice. They built the company into a franchising business and sold it in 2007. Before founding Inta Juice, he was founder and president of Millennial Motors, an automobile brokerage company.

The Greeley/Weld Small Business Development Center

The University of Northern Colorado's Monfort College of Business is the lead sponsor of the Greeley/Weld Small Business Development Center. The center provides counsel and advice for entrepreneurs. The advice includes help with writing a business plan and doing a feasibility study. The other sponsors of the center include Aims Community College, the city of Greeley, Colorado Upstate Development, the Greeley/Weld Chamber of Commerce and the state of Colorado.

IYER HONORED BY MARKETING MANAGEMENT ASSOCIATION

Dr. Vish Iyer, professor of marketing at the Monfort College of Business, has received the 2008 Hormel Meritorious Teaching Award from the Marketing Management Association. The award is given to professors nationwide who demonstrate teaching excellence in marketing.

“The competition was intense this year as many excellent scholars were evaluated for this distinct honor. . . .On behalf of the Marketing Management Association, our sponsor, and all marketing students, we thank you for your commitment to teaching excellence and appreciate your participation in the competition,” said Timothy R. Graeff, coordinator of the teaching awards for the Marketing Management Association, in congratulatory remarks.

Iyer was selected by a Blue Ribbon Panel of judges and was recognized at the Marketing Management Awards Brunch in Chicago this month. The award is sponsored by Hormel Foods. Ten professors received the award.

COLORADO ROCKIES GENERAL MANAGER ADDRESSES STUDENTS

Colorado Rockies Executive Vice President and General Manager Dan O’Dowd encouraged students at the Monfort College of Business Academic Excellence reception to remember the constants in their lives. Among the constants he named were integrity – “doing the right thing when no one is looking,” and passion – “find out what your passion is, and then live it out.”

Under O’Dowd’s leadership, the Colorado Rockies Baseball Club was crowned last season’s National League Champion and reached World Series for the first time in franchise history. Colorado’s World Series roster featured 16 players who were originally drafted or signed as a non-drafted free agent by the Rockies. Of those 16 players, 12 of them were drafted or signed during O’Dowd’s tenure as general manager.

Students honored at the annual Academic Excellence reception consisted of those maintaining a cumulative grade point average of 3.5 or higher (4 point scale). Of the 202 students who received the Academic Excellence Award from the Monfort College of Business, 29 maintained a 4.0 grade point average.

O’Dowd encouraged the students to learn how to handle adversity – another one of life’s constants. “We faced a lot of adversity in getting where we were. How you handle adversity will ultimately determine where you go in your life.”

He also urged the students to become leaders. “Leaders aren’t born, they’re created,” he said. “You can lead if you have the courage to lead. You have to choose to want to lead.”

The Academic Excellence reception was held in the ballroom of the University Center on April 10.

UNIVERSITY NAMES NEW MONFORT COLLEGE DEAN

The University of Northern Colorado has named Don Gudmundson dean of the university's Kenneth W. Monfort College of Business following a national search.

Gudmundson currently oversees 2,300 students as senior associate dean of the College of Business at University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh. He has served as a faculty member there since 1991.

“Dr. Gudmundson will bring to the position years of experience in teaching, research and administration,” said UNC Provost Abe Harraf, the university's chief academic officer. “He has the background and skill set to lead the award-winning business college on the path to continued success.”

At Oshkosh, Gudmundson has chaired the Management and Human Resources Department and served as associate dean for Graduate Programs. In addition, he helped create a downtown facility in Green Bay, Wis., and established a Global MBA partnership with schools in Germany and India.

"I am honored to be selected to be the Dean of the Monfort College of Business," Gudmundson said. "The college of business has been on an exciting journey and I look forward to continuing that journey. At the University of Northern Colorado there are opportunities to develop collaborative programs within the university and the community. These are very exciting prospects for me and for the future of the Monfort College of Business."

Gudmundson has presented and written on topics related to business management, development and strategy and is the author of the book, “Research Issues for Small Businesses.” In 2004, he was named the College of Business Professor of the Year. He holds a Ph.D. in Strategic Management from the University of Kentucky, and an MBA and B.S. from the University of Wisconsin.

Performing and Visual Arts Dean Andrew Svedlow, who chaired the search committee said, "It was a great pleasure to work with the faculty and staff of the Monfort College of Business, as well as representatives from the Greeley business community, in a national search that has created a positive match between our very fine College of Business and Dr. Don Gudmundson." He noted that the new dean has a "wealth of international experiences and a perspective on business and higher education that will greatly benefit our campus and our region."

Gudmundson will start at UNC in August and replaces Joe Alexander, who last summer accepted a position at Belmont University in Nashville. Tim Jares will continue to serve as interim dean during the transition.

“The university appreciates the willingness of Dr. Jares to step into this leadership role and continue moving the college's initiatives forward,” Harraf said.

BOEING EXECUTIVE HIGHLIGHTS LEADERSHIP

Leadership attributes at every level of the company are expected at Boeing. According to Debbie Collard, director of strategy and focus integration for The Boeing Company Shared Services Group, Boeing is all about leadership. Collard spoke at the last installment of this year’s Business Plus Speaker series on April 3.

While businesses are in business to increase shareholder value, increase stakeholder value, and make money, she noted that there is much more that goes into making a company successful than just focusing on making money. “Leadership is at the beginning and the end of what we do at Boeing,” she said.

“Our compensation is based on results and on being good leaders. We are required to take leadership classes three times per year,” she said. Boeing’s CEO, W. James McNerney, Jr., expects Boeing employees to exhibit specific leadership attributes, which he has enumerated.

Boeing’s emphasis on leadership is exhibited by its receipt of the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award – which it received twice. The Aerospace Support organization received numerous state quality awards, and was a service recipient of the Malcolm Baldrige Award in 2003. It was in 1998 that the Airlift and Tanker Programs received the Baldrige Award.

In addition to leadership, Collard recounted Boeing’s Baldrige journey at both Boeing programs. Previously to her current position, she served in the role of director of program management, business excellence and administration for Integrated Defense Systems at Boeing. She was over the organization’s continuous improvement focus, including providing guidance to Boeing’s Integrated Defense Systems organizations relative to the use of the Baldrige criteria for performance excellence.

Boeing, like other companies, is facing challenges – especially in attracting and retaining talent. “Aerospace used to be a sexy place to work. We’re not getting that so much anymore,” said Collard.
While Boeing is having more success at attracting talent, keeping talent is still an issue. “Over 50 percent of our workforce could be walking out the door in the next five years due to retirement,” she said. This presents a challenge for Boeing.

The Business Plus Speaker series is sponsored by the UNC Foundation, the Monfort College of Business, the Monfort Institute, and the Northern Colorado Business Report. The series just completed its 19th year of bringing highly regarded business leaders to campus. The series will resume in the fall of 2008.

SENIORS RANK AMONG TOP 5 PERCENT ON NATIONAL EXAM

Graduating seniors at the University of Northern Colorado’s Monfort College of Business have again scored in the top 5 percent collectively on a nationally-administered exit exam. Spring 2008 scores, combined with Fall and Summer 2007, put Monfort seniors in the highest scoring band possible for the year on the Major Field Test in Business, a standardized test produced by the Educational Testing Service of Princeton, NJ.

This marks the fifth consecutive year that Monfort seniors have scored at or above the 90th percentile on the exam (see the chart below)

“Collective scores in the top 5 percent in the nation is a great accomplishment and speaks very highly of our students and program,” said Interim Dean Tim Jares. “Of equal or more importance is the fact that 89 percent of our fall and spring students scored at or above the national average. You could call this our own version of ‘no child [or business student] left behind.’”

The test is the most widely used instrument at business schools to assess core business knowledge. At last report 477 schools administered the exam nationwide. All Monfort students must complete the online exam in their final year of study.

Areas covered on the exam include accounting, finance, quantitative business analysis, management, marketing, legal/social environment, international business, and economics. The results are used as a driver for curricular improvement.

Among the highly respected business schools nationwide which have administered the exam are the U.S. Air Force Academy, University of Denver, Brigham Young University, Belmont University, Georgia State University, University of Missouri, Radford University, Rutgers Business School, University of Nebraska, and Xavier University.

ETS Exam Performance – Major Field Test in Business*

Monfort College of Business Seniors

2003-04           90th percentile
2004-05           90th percentile
2005-06           95th percentile
2006-07           90th percentile
2007-08           95th percentile

*National average is 50th percentile

GOVERNOR VISITS THE COLLEGE

Governor Bill Ritter visited the Monfort College of Business on Friday, March 21, receiving a briefing on the College from Interim Dean Tim Jares. Included in the briefing were details on the College's journey to receipt of the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award, top 5 percent performance by graduating seniors on the nationally benchmarked ETS Major Field Test in Business, and accountability/partnership issues in higher education.

Ritter engaged in a dialog with faculty and students regarding the College's success in undergraduate business education, the College's performance excellence journey and plans for the future, and higher education funding issues in Colorado.

The visit was capped with a tour Kepner Hall (home of the College).

Other stops for the governor in Northern Colorado included a visit to the corporate headquarters of JBS Swift & Co., a luncheon speech by the governor at the Greeley Chamber of Commerce CEO Forum, and a visit to the Greeley Tribune.

SOME ENTREPRENEURS ARE GETTING AN EARLY START

[From the Greeley Tribune] After more than 10 years in the food-service industry, Brian Rudy and a couple of friends pooled their savings and bought a franchise in a national chain of restaurants.

"I'm tired of making someone else all this money," the 33-year-old Greeley entrepreneur said. "I should try and go out and do this for myself."

Rudy bought Jimmy John's, 2644 11th Ave. in Greeley, in December.

"I've got a lot on the line," he said. "I don't plan to fail. I won't let myself fail."

Rudy isn't alone. David Thomas, a professor at the University of Northern Colorado's Monfort School of Business, said he thinks more young people than ever want to run their own business.

"There is a growing interest in college students wanting to start their own small business or work in a small business," he said.

Thomas, who is also the director of the Colorado Business Resource Center, said in many ways, young people make great entrepreneurs. He said they are willing to take risks and generally haven't been jaded by some of life's worst experiences.

On the downside, however, he said while all entrepreneurs face surprises, young people in particular can find unpleasant shocks when they open their own business.

"One thing they come back saying is, 'Oh my gosh, I had no idea,' " he said. "There's not anybody out there to help them."

Thomas said classes can prepare them to a point, but many young entrepreneurs aren't always ready to face the tough realities of the business world.

THE POSITIVES

Ryan Gentry graduated from UNC in December. He has owned and run the Penalty Box bar, 822 9th St. in Greeley since October. He said his youth is an advantage.

"I have no fear to do anything," he said. "I just find the reason why I should do things, why I can do things," he said.

Bill Boothby is chapter chairman of SCORE Denver, a national nonprofit organization that counsels people who are thinking about starting a business or who have started one. He said young entrepreneurs often find the most success in businesses where they break new ground, such as technology. But even young people who don't start businesses in emerging sectors have other strengths, he said.

"They bring in an awareness of what's going on in their peer groups," Boothby said.

Gentry's youth helps him attract his primary clientele -- college students. He said the network of friends he made at UNC as a fraternity member and as part of student government pay dividends now in his bar.

"When I first started, in the first month of business, everybody everywhere told me there was no way I'd be able to get college students downtown," he said.

The bar has thrived on the business of college students in the slightly more than four months it has been open.

"On a Friday night after a UNC hockey game, it's shoulder to shoulder -- you can't move," he said.

Rudy, who graduated from UNC with a degree in criminal justice, said he also relies on students and young people for much of his business. After taking over the sub shop, he added employees, many of them college students, to shorten the response time between order and delivery. He said adding students to his work force also has helped spread the word about the restaurant on campus.

THE CHALLENGES

There are plenty of challenges associated with running the restaurant, Rudy said.

"I started to make money in the first month but as soon as I did, something would come up," he said.

Rudy said he was surprised about how few people knew Greeley had a Jimmy John's.

While challenges are the name of the game for all entrepreneurs -- 70 percent of all small businesses close within the first seven years -- young entrepreneurs face their own special set of difficulties.

"It's the level of experience that's important when it comes to starting a small business," said Boothby, who counsels business owners and started his first business in the 1960s. He said young entrepreneurs who need outside financing may struggle to find it because of the lack of experience.

Boothby also said some young entrepreneurs struggle just knowing the basic ins and outs of how a business works.

Gentry, the downtown Greeley small businessman, said he isn't worried about a lack of experience.

"I feel like I've really prepared myself well through college," he said.

Boothby said a good way for young entrepreneurs to counter their lack of experience is to bring in someone with lots of experience in the field. He said it is important for young entrepreneurs to listen to experience without becoming discouraged.

"You've got to be able to talk to people," he said. "You've got to be able to throw your ideas at people and not get discouraged when people say you're all wet."

Gentry said doubt is a common experience for him.

"You've got to believe in what you're doing because most people coming at you won't believe," he said.

WHY THEY DO IT

Gentry said he has always known he wanted to run his own business since he was in high school. Running a bar, however, is in his genes.

"Running a bar, I definitely got from my dad," the 24-year old said. "My dad owned a couple bars."

Thomas, who teaches management at UNC, said many young entrepreneurs start their own businesses because of their family experience. He said some people have a close relative who owned a business while others have seen friends or family members face layoffs after working all their lives for a big company.

Boothby, with SCORE, said interest in opening a business is on the rise among people of all ages.

"The business of starting a business runs counter to the economy," he said. "When the economy is poor, like it is now, everybody is looking at it."

Gentry said in his experience, a young entrepreneur needs one thing more than anything else.

"I'd say just that vision to be able to see it before it happens, and then the follow-through," he said. "You've got to take action."

Rudy, who has worked 70-hour weeks since taking over Jimmy Johns, said the long hours he puts in don't bother him because he is guided by his vision.

"I don't mind the hand work because I know it will pay off," he said.

Resources

The Colorado Business Resource center provides information for owners of small and medium size business owners in Colorado about issues like federal, state and local liscesing requirements and other issues. To contact the Colorado Business Resource Center at the University of Northern Colorado's Monfort College of Business, call (970) 351-1054.

SCORE is a national nonprofit organization that provides conseling from business people to those who are starting or running a business. Go to www.scoredenver.org for more information about the chapter in Colorado.

STUDENTS COMPETE IN HUMAN RESOURCE GAMES

Six students from the Monfort College of Business Management Club recently competed in the Colorado Human Resource Games. This knowledge bowl tests understanding of a wide range of human resource issues such as employment law, EEOC guidelines, international human resource management, recruiting practices, performance management practices, and leadership development theories.

The Monfort team including Erin Christensen, Jessica Blatter, and Nick Degnan made it to the semi-final round. Natalie Dinan, Justin Bernhardt, Ellen Stewart, made up the other Monfort team which received the sportsmanship award for the competition. This marks the first time teams from the College have competed in this annual event. Other competitors included teams from host MESA State College, and the University of Colorado at Boulder.

Monfort’s Management Club has been working closely with the Northern Colorado Human Resource Association (www.nchra.com) to form a closer partnership between students and local human resource professionals. The NCHRA funded the two teams that competed in the HR Games. In addition, the Management Club has been invited to the NCHRA monthly meeting on March 4 to present “How to Recruit Top Talent from the Graduating Class.” Click on this link for more details on time and location: http://www.nchra.com/Event_Details.asp?fair=10007208.