Category Archives: Program News

BHP Professors Use Innovative Techniques In The Classroom

Date
Posted by
Comments0
BHP Professors Use Innovative Techniques In The Classroom

We often hear from alumni and parents asking about the BHP classroom experience and what new things students are doing in the program. This semester two BHP professors tried something new with their classes. Dr. Leigh McAlister, who teaches BHP Principles of Marketing, paired BHP alumni with students in her class for a day to coach them in their area of interest. And Dr. Ethan Burris, who teaches Organizational Behavior, an upper-division management class, paired his students with MBAs in a challenge to raise money for the Make-a-Wish Foundation.

Dr. McAlister: Connecting BHP students and alumni

Vivek Shah, partner at Consortium Finance and BHP alum, speaking with students interested in investment banking

Vivek Shah, a 2003 graduate of the program and chair of the BHP Advisory Board Mentoring Committee, was happy to help when he heard Dr. McAlister was looking to bring alumni from all career paths in to talk about how marketing relates to what they do. “We on the board are looking to find ways to increase the connection between alumni and students, and to play a larger role in helping students as needed,” said Shah.

BHP alumna and CTO at Tiff’s Treats Cookie Delivery in Austin, Jocelyn Coe Seever, speaking with students interested in consulting

The class was broken down into smaller groups and matched with an alumnus who is currently working in the student’s chosen field. Each group was asked to come up with a new product idea to meet the needs of some customer segment in their business. The second task was to write a positioning statement for that new product. Groups fragmented throughout the classroom and into the Atrium. Idea generation began and students listened closely.

Shah hopes to see interactions like this continue. “As for the future, I think we could see more professors finding interest with bringing students into the classroom,” he said. “We could also have guest speaker sessions where an alum gives a relevant lecture about a topic being taught in class but bringing a real world and real time vantage point. Hopefully we have just scratched the surface here.”

Dr. Burris: Pairing BHP students with MBAs

In Dr. Burris’ management class, students competed in a Donald Trump-esque ‘Apprentice’ like challenge. Each group, consisting of BHP students and MBA students from his Power and Politics elective, was tasked with raising enough money to fund one wish for the Make-A-Wish Foundation, about $5,000, in ten days.

Dr. Burris replicated a technique used by Wharton professor, Adam Grant, author of New York Times bestseller, Give and Take. Students were able to apply influence techniques to “real-life” situations when soliciting donations for Make-A-Wish. Pairing undergraduate students with MBA students added another element to the process, “It was a two-fold debrief,” said Burris. “On the one hand influence played a part in tactics and strategies of getting donations. Secondly, group members also had to influence each other, bringing high power and low power dynamics to the surface.”

After the ten-day challenge, the final outcome of all groups combined was $136,065 in donations for Make-A-Wish Foundation. Students used various approaches ranging from low cost options such as email and Facebook to high effort options like reaching out to family and previous employers. Some groups took a “divide and conquer” approach while others worked together as a cohesive team. “The winning group had one member who interned for Google connect Make-A-Wish with Google Grants,” said Burris. “They applied and will most assuredly secure the grant, which is worth $10K per month in ad words. They prorated it for the year.”

We are always excited to see this kind of innovation happening in the classroom, and appreciate that our professors are always finding ways to challenge the students more and expose them the all of the resources available to them while they are here at McCombs. Thank you to Dr. Burris and Dr. McAlister, and to all of the alumni who gave up a full day to be with our students. Those alumni involved were Vivek Shah, Betsy Greytok, Jocelyn Coe Seever, Allison Steinberg, Craig Wielansky and Maneesh Verma.

 

BHP seniors honored by Texas Parents as 2013 Outstanding Student Finalists

Date
Posted by
Comments0

Michelle Moon (left) and Holland Finley (right)

Congratulations to BHP seniors Holland Finley and Michelle Moon for being honored by Texas Parents as two of the four Outstanding Student Finalists selected from the UT student body. Each year, since 1951, Texas Parents proudly selects two award recipients (one male, one female) and recognizes four award finalists who demonstrate exceptional leadership, scholarship, character and service. Holland and Michelle were presented at the November 1, 2013 Celebration of Leadership Dinner among family members and close friends and were recognized at a field presentation held during the November 2 home football game.

“It was an incredible experience, and it was so humbling to be surrounded by extraordinary achievers and givers to this University. It was a nice reminder of how much this school has given to me, and how rewarding my experience has been because of the community I have been able to find on this campus.” – Holland Finley, nominated by Randall Ford of Rec Sports and fellow student, Taylor Pousson

“Everyone was so nice and appreciative. It wasn’t so much a congratulations as a thank you. I do this because I love it. So being thanked for something I do everyday was such a rewarding experience. Unbelievable really. The fact that it was Texas parents recognizing graduating seniors created an amazing sense of family. I’m so thankful for the opportunities I’ve had at UT. It’s given me and environment where I can thrive. I feel like I should be thanking them instead of them thanking me.” – Michelle Moon, nominated by Paul Pritchett of BHP

Michelle Moon shown on the Jumbotron at the November 2 home football game

Talented Mr. Ripley Takes on Mr. McCombs Pageant

Date
Posted by
Comments0

Written by Forrest Ripley

As President of HBA, I am used to representing our organization at various meetings and events. However, last week required using a myriad of new skills to rep my favorite organization as I was elected to represent HBA in the annual Mr. Mccombs male pageant, a night of fun to raise money for a good cause. In this friendly competition I would vie for the Mr. McCombs crown along with 8 other gentlemen from other McCombs student organizations. After spending a month practicing my dancing, figuring out what my talents were, and attempting to get my body in swimsuit season shape, the big night finally arrived. My fellow pageant members and I began the evening with an elaborate group dance choreographed to Macklemore’s finest beats. It’s hard to describe the camaraderie I built with my fellow men after jointly spending two weeks learning how to best moonwalk, flex our guns, and shake our booties.

After the dance, each contestant made three return trips to the stage to model their outfit of choice, show off their swimsuit fashion, and display their finest talents. For my outfit of choice, I donned my full-body taco costume I conveniently already owned to epitomize my lifelong love of Austin’s most famous Tex-Mex cuisine. In the highly anticipated swimsuit round, I proudly showcased my winter tan lines by wearing retro pastel swimtrucks complete with an inflatable crocodile innertube. At last came the talent portion of the evening. Because of my indecisiveness in picking a talent, I decided to try out several skills in lieu of a single talent. To begin, I played Adele’s Someone Like You on my keyboard while singing the song an octave or two lower than the song’s author. For the second half of the song, I abandoned my keyboard and relied on the actual music track while I tested the limits of my juggling abilities by tossing, catching, (and occasionally dropping) an assortment of balls and clubs.

In the end, I did not walk away with the coveted Mr. McCombs crown, but I had a blast pretending to be talented, beautiful, and graceful. The amount of support from my fellow BHPers made the experience even more fun. Even better, all of the event’s proceeds ended up raising more than 2000 cans for the Capital Area Food Bank in addition to more than $500 to the winner’s charity of choice. All in all, it was quite a successful night.

 

BHP Student, Maggie Hood, Part of Winning National Case Competition Team

Date
Posted by
Comments0

Congratulations to Maggie Hood and her team for winning the Deloitte FanTAXtic Case Competition! Read the full story below, originally published on McCombs Today.

Written by Kelly Fine

The Tower was bathed in orange light on Wednesday to celebrate a McCombs  School of Business victory in the Deloitte FanTAXtic Case Competition. McCombs’ five-person team took home a $10,000 reward for the University of Texas at Austin, $2,000 in personal scholarships for each team member, and the priceless pride that comes from defeating the defending champion, the College of William and Mary.

The national competition was held at Deloitte University in Dallas from Jan. 18-20. The team, made up of David Patterson, MPA, Scott Huff, MPA, Maggie Hood, BHP/finance, Michelle Niakan, MPA, and David O’Neill, accounting, first competed against seven regional teams in early November. The teams were given several weeks to prepare a presentation on a complex business tax case regarding partnership tax and international tax codes.

Then, the winning teams from each of the nine regions across the United States met to compete for the national title. For the national event, however, the teams were given only general areas to research prior to the competition. Once they arrived in Dallas, they were given the new case and two hours to prepare a client memo, which they then presented to the “client” judges. The following morning, they were given new facts, more questions, and three hours to create a presentation.

Patterson said the hardest part of the competition was working so quickly with so much new information.

“The national competition was really high pressure because we had never seen any of the facts,” Patterson said. “We had a general idea of what they would ask, but we didn’t have any of the numbers or questions.”

O’Neill said he is thankful for the experience because it gave him a better understanding of what to expect in the future.

“This is a beneficial experience because I get to see what tax professionals do on a day to day basis,” O’Neill said. “It is good to apply what you learn in class to what you do in the job.”

Patterson and O’Neill agreed that one of the most rewarding aspects of the competition was the friendships formed.

“I definitely think that it was a valuable experience, and I would recommend it for anyone. There is a lot of pressure, but there is a pressure in the real world with deadlines, also,” Patterson said. “You’re also working with a team that’s very smart, and that’s a lot of fun. It’s nice to have that experience and build camaraderie amongst the team.”

BHP Year In Review

Date
Posted by
Comments0

BHP staff and peer advisors

As we near the end of 2012, we wanted to take the time to give you an update on all of the great things that happened over the last 12 months. It has been an exciting year for us. In August we announced a $1 million challenge grant from BHP alumnus and El Paso native Woody Hunt. We have five years to raise $2 million in order to receive the full $1 million from Woody, and we are ready to rise to the challenge! These funds, which will be used for scholarships as well as faculty, student, and programmatic support, will no doubt make a truly lasting impact on the BHP.

This kind of support is needed, as the quality of the BHP students continues to increase. In 2012 we enrolled 116 very bright freshmen, who in addition to earning numerous academic accolades, were also top leaders at their schools. The average SAT of these students was a 1453 and the average class rank was in the top 2%. However, as some come in, some also go out, and in 2012 we graduated around 100 students who are now making a name for themselves in the workplace.

The 2012 senior class swept campus awards, receiving both of the campus-wide Outstanding Student Awards given by the Texas Parents’ Association, as well as three of the President’s Leadership Awards given by the Texas Exes. A BHP senior also received the McCombs Rising Star Leadership Award. These awards were further recognition of the fact that BHP students excel both in and out of the classroom, and truly make an impact on campus.

Our award streak continued beyond our students though, as BHP Advisory Board Chair Dominic Sung (’03) received the McCombs Rising Star Award during the McCombs Hall of Fame ceremony. This award is presented to alumni no more than 10 years out from graduation who have been successful professionally and helped strengthen the McCombs Alumni Network. Dominic is a Director of Structured Products in the Integrated Supply and Trading Group at BP.

Dominic and a team of alumni, along with BHP staff, have also been busy revamping the BHP Advisory Board. The Board has added new members and is focusing its attention around the areas of admissions and recruitment, fundraising, student mentoring, and alumni communication. We are already seeing the benefits of this increased focus and look forward to making more progress in the coming year.

Speaking of alumni communication, you may have noticed an increase in the information you are receiving from us. Over the last year, we developed an alumni e-newsletter, created an alumni Facebook group, enhanced our blog content, and grew our LinkedIn alumni group to nearly 900 members. All of this is part of a greater effort on our part to keep you abreast of what is going on with the program. We hope you find it beneficial, and as always, feel free to let us know if you have suggestions.

Finally, we want to let you know that we continue to do all we can to improve the program and make it the best it can be for current students. This year we added a new mentoring program, created student study circles, planned a new boot camp to help prepare students for one of their more difficult courses, and revamped curriculum – all of this in addition to providing them with opportunities to connect with employers, alumni, and C-level executives. In the same week, our students had a visit from the COO of SW Airlines one day and the CFO of Walmart the next!

As you can see, this year has been a great one. We are thankful for our wonderful students, alumni, and supporters. We will keep doing our part to protect the value of your degree and ensure that future generations of BHP students have the same opportunities you did. Happy holidays and onwards to 2013!