College of Business Speakers

In this evidence-based session, students will explore the wide spanning discipline of Marketing and learn why Marketing is BOTH an art and a science. Through the use of current examples, students will gain a better understanding of what modern marketing entails, as well as what a career in Marketing may look like. Additionally, students will identify some of the latest trends in Marketing. The main goal of this session is to demonstrate how marketing creates value for consumers, companies, careers, and society at large.

At the heart of this presentation will be using data to solve problems that generate enthusiasm and a sense of empathy as we engage in work that truly matters. We might use analytics to improve algorithms for police, help cure diseases, design a way to minimize damage to local environment, make products safer and/or more cost effective. This topic will give students a view into what the analytics field will look like within the next 5-10 years, by focusing on solving real-world problems. Students will also be exposed to some of the most important topics in analytics such as augmented reality, data visualization and artificial intelligence.

In this seminar, students will learn what it means to major in Finance or Financial Management in college, including an overview of the major's curriculum and associated career paths. Dr. Newman holds an undergraduate degree in Finance and Business Economics and worked as an insurance underwriter before earning a PhD in Finance and pursuing a career in academia. She has experience in purchasing/owning/selling a business, which rounds out her discussion with practical examples.

Students will get to hear and learn a little about one of the most important and challenging aspects of the business world: how corporations buy other corporations, why they choose to doso, how they decides when to do it and how they go through with such a complex transaction. This is achieved by walking the students through the different steps of the process, startingwith the “brain storming” to the more technical side of those deals.

Students will get to hear and learn a little about one of this vague term “tax planning”, which most people know very little about, but on the same time usually have a strong negative opinion about.

This presentation will explore the major global business outcomes from COVID 19, including the reallocation of labor, shifts in consumer demand, supply chains, capital and trade flows, and, energy re-alignment. It will discuss the governmental and political roles in respect to: restructuring global trade in key industries, bailouts and rescues of particular sectors, and continued monetary and fiscal stimulus.

Using a structured learning activity, participants will be challenged to design an efficient Global Supply Chain network for a business. They will need to consider risks to their supply chain like those caused by global pandemics. At the end of the session, participants will learn elements of global supply chain and risk mitigation strategies while gaining an appreciation for the challenges and opportunities within the field of Supply Chain Management.

Despite two centuries of sustained economic growth, we are still far from reducing global poverty. Almost half the world's population live on less than $5.50 a day and 10 percent of the world lives on less than $1.90 a day. This presentation will explain economic growth and why it is essential for a country to have sustained economic growth. We will discuss the main sources of economic growth in a country and the historic connections between economic growth and income inequality. Finally, we will discuss policies that the government can undertake to speed up economic growth.

There is an abundance of information about cryptocurrencies circulating on the internet and in popular media that contributes to their hype and the fear of missing out. This presentation will provide the economist’s point of view, which is not driven by any conflicting interests, but is instead focused on objectively assessing the true value of cryptocurrencies in the economy. Through this presentation, students will not only be exposed to new ways of thinking about cryptocurrencies, but also ideas about what conditions must be met for something to be considered money.

In this hands-on presentation, students will work with data to critically think through and answer questions that any organization may face. The goal is to demonstrate how data can easily deceive a naïve user and how economic intuition would help the student participants, as future business analysts, to differentiate correlation from causation. This presentation requires a computer lab and access to MS-Excel for students to have hands-on experience with the data. The topics are simplified so that they require minimum knowledge of statistics (e.g., averages, correlation coefficient) and Excel, which the presentation will also cover.

In this activity-based session, students will apply strategic marketing principles to a relevant, real-life scenario in order to understand the importance of marketing in their daily lives. The main goal of this session is to explore aspects of Marketing, beyond just advertising, and connect the importance of Marketing to each individual, regardless of interest-level and/or career choice.

The session will provide an introduction to enhance participants' understanding of the knowledge and skills necessary for successful cultural interactions based on various cultural norms and dimensions. At the end of the session, students should be able to identify and gain awareness of underlying dimensions of culture and recognize the importance of approaching cultural interactions with an open mind.

Through this seminar, students will learn what a career in accounting is (i.e. type of work/type of employer) and what a CPA license is and how it can be useful for various career paths. Students will engage in an activity where each student receive a (real or virtual) notecard with a statement on it then will decide if that is “income”, a “deduction” or has no impact on the tax return. The level of detail will adapt to the age range requested.

This presentation will provide students with the opportunity to consider their career path by reflecting on their own strengths, their personal network, and the opportunities available to them. Using self-reflection exercises, students will assess their strengths and passions related to career development. Then students will be challenged to consider how to leverage their network to identify connections to help them achieve their goals. The goal of this presentation is to help students to more clearly identify careers that match their skillset and to find ways to connect with individuals who can help them to achieve their goals.

Students are very familiar with using search engines like Google, but how often do they get to take an inside look at how Google creates the search engine experience to benefit businesses in their marketing endeavors? In this 40-minute activity-based presentation led by digital marketing expert Dr. Alexa Fox of The University of Akron College of Business, students will learn how businesses can use Google to reach potential customers through paid and organic search results (as well as what those terms mean and the difference between them!). Students will also get the chance to apply the subject matter through a guided activity resulting in the students creating their very first pay-per-click ad.

Since the beginning of business, “sales” is the piston that runs the motor for any company. If a company is not growing, they are slowly dying. The great secret career that many don't think about is the amazing opportunity to learn sales, help your clients/customers and make a great living. In this seminar, students will learn about the dilemma college graduates face today, what a sales career is…and what it is NOT, the many opportunities that college graduates with sales expertise can capture upon graduation, how to create the best “Plan B” you never thought of, and ultimately set yourself up for success!

Through this activity-based presentation, students will learn how to accurately measure a product's cost which will then help them determine the selling price. Students will use a traditional costing method and then an activity-based costing method and compare the results. Students will learn how additional information about the process of manufacturing a product can improve pricing decisions and overall profitability.

In a traditional setting, educational outcomes tend to be focused on how many answers a student may know. We want students to learn how to develop a critical stance with their work, and data visualizations helps us develop and support that critical stance. Through this activity-based presentation, students will use a sample dataset to apply data visualization best practices, including choosing the right chart type and providing proper insights. The goal is to get students comfortable with using data to make business decisions.

The goal of this presentation is to introduce students to reliable economic data that they could utilize when they think about their college path. The data discussed in this presentation include the expected income of each college major, the average income of workers with a specific job-title in a given geographic region, and the total number of those workers. While students are usually encouraged to pursue what they are passionate about, this presentation will help them conduct a cost-benefit analysis so that they can make a more informed decision.

This interactive discussion on entrepreneurship and innovation highlights the benefits of deploying an entrepreneurial mindset to build new ventures, solve big problems, and operate in an uncertain and complex world. This talk also covers misconceptions about entrepreneurship and highlights how building entrepreneurial ventures helps build the future.

As someone who lived until I was 28 in a different country with a completely different mentality and culture, I believe I bring a different level of appreciation to what the United States has to offer to its people. I grew up in a farm in Israel, and I ended up as a tax lawyer in the best firm in New York City. That's something that even in my wildest dreams I never thought will happen to me in my life. However, I proved to myself and everyone around me that it is possible. And I want my students to know that as well. I want them to dream and dare to try and make those dreams a reality.

In this interactive presentation, students will learn about learning and identify ways to learn material in any subject. Students will learn about Bloom's taxonomy and determine where they are performing in high school, where they think they should be in college, and where they think they should be as a working professional. If allowed by the school, students will be able to use free polling software to answer different questions posed by the instructor, so they can experience one method of a class engagement activity used in college. Finally, students will be provided with take-away information to assess what type of learner they are.

In this session, students will gain perspective on how it is possible (perhaps even advisable) to be open to unexpected opportunities as they pursue further education and career paths beyond high school. By scripting every move, students may limit their possibilities and never allow themselves to discover their true calling. The speaker will also share from her personal experience perspective on making choices related to balancing career and family.