Tag Archives: Texas Business Honors

Student Profile: Ryan Lieberman – Co-Founder of Camp SPARK

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Student Profile: Ryan Lieberman – Co-Founder of Camp SPARK

Ryan Lieberman, a freshman in the program, started Camp SPARK, with his brother Blake, in the Summer of 2010. As a freshman in high school, Ryan knew he wanted to gain experience in operating a business. He decided to merge his passions for community service and athletics to create Camp SPARK. The camp has come a long way from the first session held in Ryan’s backyard. It is now available nationwide. Learn more about Camp SPARK and Ryan’s plans for the future as a BHP student.

What is Camp SPARK?

SPARK stands for Strong Powerful Athletic Rocking Kids. The camp is as much about sportsmanship as it is sports and it helps kids learn social skills in a way that they can easily connect with and understand, through sports and activities. At Camp SPARK, campers play games altered to the camp such as “Extreme Duck, Duck Goose.” Children ages 5–13 can participate in Camp SPARK. It’s a camp run by kids, for kids, because the set-up is unique in that it’s a business opportunity for high school students to start camps for younger kids.

How were you inspired to start the camp?

I’m very much an entrepreneurial-type of person. I love the idea of being my own boss and working for myself. So, the summer after my freshman year of high school I started thinking of ways that I could start my own business to gain experience being my own boss and familiarize myself with the processes involved in building a business.

I’ve always been passionate about community service and have been very active in Big Brothers Big Sisters. The bond I built with my “little” is a big part of what inspired me to reach out to children. I love the idea of directly influencing someone’s life and seeing change happen – knowing you were part of it. As for the idea of a camp, I went to summer camp all my life and just loved it. I knew opening a camp would be fun, something I could do well, and it would lead to a good experience.

The support of my parents was also influential. My dad is my biggest role model and he really encouraged me to do what I love and run the show.

How did you get the camp up and running?

The first summer, my parents were very supportive of what I was trying to accomplish and agreed to sponsor the start-up of Camp SPARK. The camp was run out of my backyard the first year. To get campers, my brother and I called and emailed over a hundred parents from our school directory and got 12 campers to enroll for the week. I didn’t make a lot of money the first summer, however I learned a lot of lessons.

The next summer I was a lot more organized and a much better marketer. I set up a Facebook page and sent out a video link to my email list. I also received a lot of good word of mouth promotion.  Participation almost tripled to 35 kids a day. I ran the camp twice as long and profited nearly $13,000. The next year, we created a website and increased marketing. A larger facility became a necessity. I negotiated a deal with my school and relocated the camp. It worked out really well. That’s about the time I realized that I had a reproducible business and that if I could do this, other people could too. I began looking for city partners to initiate Camp SPARK in their area. Not just in Texas, but nationwide. We opened a girls’ camp that summer and our first camp outside of Dallas with my cousin Zach in Austin and they both went really well.

The following year we put an ad on Facebook and everything really took off from there. Over the last four summers we have grown from a backyard camp into a nine-location business in five cities across the country (Dallas, Austin, San Francisco, Boston and Denver). Hundreds of kids are now Camp SPARK campers.  We have four boys’ camps, five girls’ camps, six city partners and employ over 60 people.  We have an accountant, a lawyer and an insurance agent. We have learned how to create really good systems and how to protect our business and ourselves.

Each camp is tailored to the location. For example, in San Francisco, the surrounding neighborhood has a lot of under-privileged kids, so that camp is corporate sponsored and doesn’t charge campers and places a special emphasis on reinforcing the importance of education. It’s important to know the community and the needs of that community so a difference can be made.

What does the future hold for Camp SPARK?

I hope Camp SPARK continues to be as successful as it has been. Now that I’ve started college, I still want to grow Camp SPARK and keep it as a source of income, but I’m looking for someone to take over my role of overseeing all of the operations. Starting and running the camp has been an amazing experience and now I’m ready to see what my next endeavor will be.

What does the future hold for you?

Running a sports camp has been a lot of fun and a great experience.  I plan to start more businesses and hopefully continue with sports-related work, but not necessarily in the camp setting. I know I ultimately want to be my own boss, so any experience I can continue to gain in operating businesses would definitely be of interest to me. My plan is to use what I am learning to pursue my next business ideas and also to help other kids start their own businesses.  One of the things I am excited about within the Business Honors program is the people in it.  I am going to have great classmates to learn and work with, and hopefully one day start businesses together with.

Internship Spotlight: Michael Valdez – BHP Junior

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Internship Spotlight: Michael Valdez – BHP Junior

BHP junior, Michael Valdez, knew beginning his freshman year that he wanted to do an internship with Google. Starting the search for an internship early paid off when Michael was offered an intern position at the Google headquarters in Mount View, California. Michaels tells how his initial plans were to continue on to law school, but after a summer in Silicon Valley, life as a Googler may prove more persuasive.

Location: Mt. View, CA

Title: BOLD (Building Opportunities in Leadership Development) Intern

What steps did you take to secure your internship?

I started the summer after my freshman year. I participated in BOLD Immersion, where Google invites college freshmen to their headquarters to meet and greets to feel you out and get to know you. I applied for the BOLD Internship that following November. This specific internship has an expedited application process; there are no essays, but a lot of interviews. I knew exactly what team I wanted to be a part of so I made sure I did a lot of research and prepared for every interview.

What were the responsibilities for this role?

I worked with the Google Grants Team, which donates AdWords to non-profit organizations. My role was to use statistics to help the team out and look at the program as a whole. I used a lot of statistics, data analysis and Excel.

Describe the culture within the organization.

Unique. The biggest part was the transparency, being open and honest with both Google users and employees. We made a dedicated effort to allow employees to be open and give feedback. There wasn’t any sort of Ivory Tower feeling. My boss worked on the ground floor. I had access to my manager and my manager’s manager. I was able to meet and have lunch with the VP and SVP of my department. There are no closed-door offices; the people were welcoming and easy to talk to.

What was most surprising or unexpected thing you experienced?

It was better than college. I honestly didn’t think any job would be better than college. Google had a college vibe with free food and transportation. Employees even call the workplace “campus.”

What advice would you offer your peers in the Honors Program about getting the most out of an internship?

It’s most important to be assertive in meeting people when you get there. I would constantly try to set up lunch and coffee appointments with people within Google. Not just recruiters, but people in other departments too. Go out and just really enjoy your experience. Don’t just get to know the people in your area and pigeon-hole yourself. Silicon Valley is especially open to that type of culture.

How did you find classes in the Business Honors Program to be applicable during your internship?

A lot of things I was doing I realized — wow, I just took a final on this six weeks ago. I used a lot of things I learned in Statistics 371H such as regression analysis, data analysis. Really just math in general was useful. Professor Kumar was awesome. He did a good job of getting that material drilled into our heads and really making sure we were ready to take on these roles.

How did this organization ensure you got the most out of your internship experience?

Google pulled out all of the stops. You’re assigned to a mentor that has nothing to do with your job, just to help integrate you into the Google community and show you around. Then you have a manager that sets your objectives and helps you with what you need to do your job. I met with my manager day-to-day and discussed my OKR objectives and key results. Interns are also grouped into a BOLD Team, which sets up classes for you to go to weekly and listen to executive speakers. There were tons of events put on for BOLD interns.

How did this internship affect or influence your future career?

Right now my major is Management Information Systems (MIS) and my original plan was to continue on to law school. However, after my experience in the tech world I now realizeI’m not going to law school. I feel really good about my tech skills, like coding. Google is really good about getting you comfortable around technology and keeping you confident in knowing what you’re doing. I really like the tech world and I really like Silicon Valley. I hope to go back next summer.

What are the most valuable lessons you gained from this internship?

Communication is probably the best means of advancing yourself in your internship no matter what you’re doing. Communicating with your team about what you’re doing and being collaborative is the key to success. Being able to create well-written emails is so important to an internship or really any job. It’s not about your area of expertise, but how well you’re able to communicate those findings.

BHP Freshmen Kick Off the School Year

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Written by Ashley Alcantara

This past weekend the Business Honors Program freshman class attended the Leadership Kickoff at the John Newcombe Ranch. During their stay, students were given everything they need to make the most of their first year in the BHP. The beginning of college, albeit cheesy, is also the beginning of the rest of your life. Every college freshman is faced with massive changes that can often be overwhelming, but at Leadership Kickoff students learned about how to approach challenges and be successful.

College is full of risk-taking and facing unfamiliar situations, which can be the most rewarding experiences if we allow ourselves to try them. A ropes course at Newcombe Ranch allowed BHP freshmen to learn how true this can be when they were given the opportunity to jump from a towering height while attached to a rope. While completely safe, “The Scream” was one of the scariest things I have ever convinced myself to do. However, the reward of flying through the air as I swung on the rope was invigorating. Leadership Kickoff demonstrated the benefits of taking a leap into the unknown, such as trying a new extracurricular activity or taking a challenging class.

BHP is most importantly about community and teamwork, as classmates can always depend on each other. Teamwork and trust were put to the ultimate test on a ropes course station where two students were elevated high off the ground with only each other as support. Complete trust was needed to walk across the rope without falling off. Likewise, action packed games and activities during the weekend required clear communication and cooperation for any team to be victorious. The freshman class learned that we can always depend on each other, whether its 50 feet in the air while balancing on a rope or within a professional setting twenty years from now.

Students were also given a chance to speak with alumni, meet PepsiCo representatives, swim in the pool, do the wobble at a dance party, eat delicious food, act out hilarious skits and attend the formal convocation ceremony for BHP. Most importantly though, during two extremely fun and unforgettable days, the class of 2017 learned that by overcoming fears and working together we will be extraordinary.

Finance Boot Camp: A Day of Finance with Friends

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Written by Rachel Solomon

Full disclosure: as I was completing the reading for the Finance 357 Boot Camp on Sunday night, I was slightly less than thrilled that I would be spending five hours learning about the time value of money and other essential accounting concepts the following day. However, the day arrived and I was greeted with a free t-shirt and notebook, lunch, prizes, and best of all, the opportunity to see so many of my BHP classmates that I hadn’t seen all summer. Classmates that had interned for Coca-Cola, PwC, Northern Trust. Classmates that had studied abroad in Hong Kong, Argentina, France. Classmates that were willing to give up one of their last days of summer to get a head start on the semester. And let’s not forget Professor Hadaway and the Finance Boot Camp TA’s who devoted their days to our understanding of the material.

Thanks, BHP, for forcing me out of bed at 8:30am and proving yet again why this program is truly unparalleled in its devotion to the success of its students.

Student Spotlight: Jeff Stevens – Senior BHP and Finance Major

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Student Spotlight: Jeff Stevens – Senior BHP and Finance Major

Senior Jeff Stevens was recently honored with the Barbara Jordan Business Leadership Award, the BBA/MPA Alumni Advisory Board’s Rising Star Award, and the BHP’s top honor, the Doenges Award. What has set Jeff apart this year is not only his stellar leadership, service and academic accomplishments, but also the fact that he stepped up and took on several additional service and leadership positions in his senior year. During a time when most seniors take a step back, Jeff kept pushing himself to give more and have more of an impact before graduating. This year he lead the BBA Legacy campaign, headed marketing for the BHP Make-a-Mark campaign, served as a BHP recruiter, joined the Financial Analyst Program Advisory Board, and coordinated the BHP senior newsletter. We visited with Jeff to get some final thoughts on his time here before he leaves.

You have said that being a recruiter for the BHP was your favorite thing you did. Why?

Yes, there are two things that stick out to me about the experience. Being a recruiter has really made me feel like I am giving back to a program that gave me so much. I like to recruit the type of students who are going to make this program and the value of my degree even better. I also like interacting with the students. It gets me excited about school and has helped me push through all I do for my classes and extracurricular activities. In order to recruit the best students, I have to be on top of my game too. In order to sell BHP to them, I have to be able to tell them what I love about the program and all of the things I am doing.

How did you find your path of which organizations to be involved in?

I was drawn towards the people in the Undergraduate Business Council from the start. That was the vehicle through which I got involved in a lot more at McCombs. I had to pick and choose what was most meaningful and which I could give back to the most. I got involved in things my mentors were involved in. Michael Daehne and Bhargav Srinivasan were probably my greatest mentors in terms of how to be a leader and connect with people and how to choose which organizations to get involved in. My work this year on the Legacy campaign was motivating and I felt I could really make an impact on that campaign and improve it. I had a wide range of experiences at UT, which helped me explain to people why giving back to McCombs is important. A lot of the success of this year’s campaign was due to the strength of the committee and their network. We hit 28% participation, which was more than double the rate of any past campaign.

What lessons have you learned from all of the leadership positions you held? Were there any common themes?

I have always been good at managing tasks and getting things done, but I learned how to better manage people. Leading by example is very important, especially when interacting with underclassmen. I never approached them with the idea of me mentoring them, but I found that if I was open to learning from them and was open to answering any questions they had, that sort of mentorship relationship naturally progressed. I think it is important to always been kind to people and take time out of your day to develop relationships, and not just constantly ask people to do things.

What will you remember most when you look back on your time at UT?

Being a part of the VIP Distinguished Speaker series was amazing. I got to hear from C-level executives, including Indra Nooyi, CEO of PepsiCo. I learned so much from them. I have also really enjoyed being involved in Make a Mark and reconnecting with all of my classmates who I haven’t had classes with in a while. Going to the football games is great and I have also enjoyed checking out the Austin food scene.

What are you most proud of and why?

I am most proud of the relationships I have built with not only those in my class, but also underclassmen. I have really enjoyed the mutual opportunities for learning from these relationships. Being a cheerleader for other’s success is so much more rewarding than just being successful yourself. I really enjoy helping people succeed and again, I think that is part of why I enjoyed being a BHP recruiter and helping students see how BHP can help them accomplish their goals.

If you could go back and give advice to yourself as a freshman, what would you say?

I would say not to give up anything that you are passionate about.  I was really passionate about band and music in high school and that is my greatest college regret that I didn’t pursue it further once I got here. I probably would have joined Longhorn Band if I had it to do over again.

What are you going to be doing after graduation?

I will be working for Exxon Mobil in Houston. My role is yet to be determined there, but I did my internship there last summer in their Internal Audit Division and really liked it. I feel confident in saying that I will stay with the company for many years. I hope that will afford me the opportunity to live and work in other countries. The travelling and study abroad experiences I did in college really opened my eyes and I would like to continue to broaden my world view and experience how business is conducted in other countries. I am actually going to be travelling this summer before I start my job and will be doing an internship in Shanghai, China. I found a program through the UT International Office and decided it would be a great opportunity. I will be working for an energy think tank, the China Energy Fund, doing research about the energy needs of China. That research will then be passed on to oil and gas companies operating in China. I am excited to start a new phase in my professional and personal life, but am also looking forward to staying connected to UT through my involvement with the BBA/MPA Alumni Advisory Board.