Honoring Those Who Serve

In recognition of Memorial Day, we are republishing a blog about Donovan Campbell’s orientation speech at Wake Forest University from last August. Campbell, a Marine, wrote the New York Times bestseller, Joker One, based around his experiences in Iraq. To watch his entire presentation, click here.

*****

The first-day speakers at orientation for the Wake Forest Schools of Business had a potent message for the incoming classes: to find true success, future business leaders must develop an acute sense of self-awareness and purpose.

Before the first student had arrived, the event had proven groundbreaking by Wake Forest's standards, as organizers assembled 400 students from all five programs for the initial activities. Students from the full-time and evening MBA programs in Winston-Salem and Charlotte were able to mix and mingle with students entering the school’s MA and MSA program. (The gathering was so large that the university had to secure space at the Forsyth Country Club to accommodate the entire group.)

Every speaker had their own general perspective on setting goals and expectations, yet the general theme of responsibility and service permeated their individual presentations.

The most moving presentation by far came from Donovan Campbell, a Marine and graduate from Harvard Business School, who used a collection of successes and failures to demonstrate what a privilege it is to enter business school. He shared his experiences and hard lessons learned while leading a company in Iraq, which also served as the basis for Joker One, a New York Times bestseller.

“Humans are adaptable,” he noted, adding that he had even witnessed teenagers doing amazing things in combat. In comparison, that should serve as motivation for students to push themselves. “Failure is inevitable,” he added, admitting to his own shortcomings. “How you respond matters. You must default to responsibility.”

Trying hard to hold back tears, Campbell told a gripping account of rejecting an urge to seek retribution when a member of his company was killed defending school children. “We are Marines and we are better than this,” he told his men, acknowledging that only his faith and core values served as the basis for his decision.

As far as corporate scandals are concerned, Campbell charged incoming MBA candidates to turn the tide back toward responsibility. "We have a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to redeem our profession,” he said.

Dean Steve Reinemund emphasized setting goals and finding purpose and passion in his remarks, charging students to find their place in society by investing time identifying desires and charting a path to accomplishing them. “What is it that you expect to get from your investment?” he asked.

Dean Reinemund also emphasized ethics, which he hopes will permeate the curricula within the Schools of Business. He stressed the importance for future leaders to respect individuals and espouse service, warning that ignoring such deeds yields “deviant behavior and dysfunctional organizations.”

Building on that message, Dr. Nathan Hatch, Wake Forest’s president, encouraged students to explore their passions rather than fall into the rut of “jumping through hoops” in pursuit of grades or a degree. Simply going through the motions is destined to “create a manufactured self” devoid of true passion. Rather, spend time developing “deep vocational discernment,” he said.

With that in mind, today’s leaders have a unique opportunity to reestablish trust and credibility in a world where average citizens correlate business schools with Enron and Madoff, along with exotic mortgages and government bailouts.

Dr. Jim Loehr, co-founder of the Human Performance Institute, rounded out the day, presenting a case study for treasuring and conserving energy to maximize performance. He implored students to write out what they view as necessary for success, calling such a move an imperative for staking out future decisions. “Before you launch be certain of what you want,” he said.

Another key takeaway was the need for improved engagement, with Loehr noting that individuals and the organizations they run often fail to reach their full potential when the leaders lose focus. “How easy is it to get self-absorbed?” he asked.

“Performance is directly related to your level of engagement,” he added.

360 Degrees: Photos from the NC CEO Forum

Including a few shots from the NC CEO Forum:

Steve Reinemund, the dean of the Wake Forest University Schools of Business (left), moderates a panel discussion on the Triple Bottom Line, including Vern Davenport from Allscripts, Cynthia Marshall from AT&T North Carolina and Rick McNeel from LORD Corp.

"In today’s world, every employee carries the corporate checkbook everywhere they go," Davenport said during the discussion. "It only takes one person to destroy a company's image." Marshall added: “I tell our employees that we don’t just work here, we live here. People expect us to act like we live here.”

 

Ben Cohen, a co-founder of Ben & Jerry’s Homemade Inc., uses Oreo cookies to show just how much money the United States invests in military spending, compared to how much is dedicated to causes ranging from education to world hunger.

Cohen would explain that it would only take a relatively small amount of money – or just a few cookies – from the U.S. miliary budget to address many other issues plaguing the country and the world.

 

 

This is a photo of my moment in the spotlight, asking the first question after the Ben & Jerry keynote:

“The global need for triple bottom line investment is so extensive. How does a company such as Ben  & Jerry's gauge, prioritize and ultimately select where to allocate its time and financial resources? How does the company communicate the need for such allocations to employees and investors?”

 

 

Ben and Jerry on stage answering my question. They discussed how employees and investors all have a voice in the company’s selection of causes, whether that includes work on Fair Trade or support for groups such as the Children’s Defense Fund.

 

 

 

 

A picture with Cree Chairman and CEO Chuck Swoboda, who was perhaps the most-energizing speaker at the event. Yes, my eyes are closed … perhaps the camera was equipped with an LED flash!

“One day you will see incandescent bulbs on a shelf in a museum,” Swoboda said during his keynote, perhaps being replaced by the more-efficient LED lighting being developed and sold by Durham-based Cree. “We listen to what our competitors say we can’t do and basically we just go do that,” he added. On corporate culture: “We look for people who are unafraid of failure but unwilling to fail.”

 

~ A big thanks to colleague Shonna Brackett for snapping shots throughout the event!

School’s Out … Bring On China

It's officially over. The first year of my MBA experience came to an end Wednesday with my last final. It's been an amazing year, filled with highs (Project Nicaragua, an amazing internship offer, etc.) and lows (social dynamics of differing personalities and overloaded schedules). I've learned a bit, grown a lot, seen some cool stuff, done some cool things, and survived the first half. Next up, China for two weeks, then back to Ohio for a few days, then off to Chicago to start my internship!

So, let's talk China. This is a school-sponsored trip, so we'll be traveling with two faculty members and will receive credit. There's a great group of first year MBAs going, but there is representation from the Charlotte and Winston-Salem Evening and Saturday programs as well. The trip will take us to Beijing, Xi'an, Shanghai, and Hong Kong (with a possible side trip to Macau).

What I'm most looking forward to is the World Expo, which is in Shanghai. Almost 200 countries will be there and it will be an amazing experience. I'm also excited for the typical touristy stuff: the Great Wall, Tiananmen Square, Forbidden Palace, etc. It will also be great to see how the Chinese work and live; we'll be visiting both foreign and local companies. We leave extremely early in the morning tomorrow, 6AM. Today is packing day, and there's a lot to bring for two weeks!

~ Justin Berthelot, Class of 2011

Why I Chose Wake: A Testimonial

Perhaps it was the breakfast fed to prospective MBA-ers at a local restaurant, Midtown Café & Dessertery, where five-flavor pound cake, blueberry pancakes, and cheesecake brownies abound. Or, perchance, it was the four Ps of passion, purpose, performance and preparation … AND a sweet Wake Forest-colored planner given to everyone who was there. Maybe it was attending Derrick Boone’s Marketing class as a prospective student, where on that particular evening they were talking about a personal favorite of mine – the evolution of the vehicle, the Ford Taurus (my family has owned and cherished several).

And being a distance runner, something about gathering on Thursday mornings for a three-mile jaunt with other MBA students, faculty, and our Dean at “Dawn with the Dean” seemed just right to me.

Half-jokingly, I mention the above. Yet in all seriousness, these are the small details that enhanced and confirmed my decision that a Wake Forest MBA was for me. Having attended WFU as an undergrad, I was certain that I would receive both a challenging and amazing education – no matter the course, no matter the professor. I knew that I would be in a place where people are passionate about what they do, who truly enjoy getting to know each unique individual, and who love learning and sharing knowledge. There was also something about going back ‘home’ to Wake and, in another sense, starting something very new.

I am not a traditional MBA student; I come from education myself, having taught middle school students with learning and attention disorders for the past four years. I have also been a track and field and cross-country coach. I majored in English and minored in Journalism. I do enjoy running very long distances. And like many, it has taken me a while to figure out the path I want to start on, to ‘grow-up’ on.

When I decided to change my career path and landed on an MBA from Wake Forest, things simply fell into place. I felt welcome in the Wake Forest University Schools of Business. Above all, I felt supported in going after my dreams, encouraged to push myself further mentally, - and all along side amazing classmates, who I have learned so very much from. Maybe it is the Twix bars, gummy worms, yogurt-covered pretzels, sodas, coffee, teas, and cheeses and crackers that mysteriously appear at break that keep us all sugared up and caffeinated each week – but with all of these things and many more reasons, a Wake Forest MBA has proven to be a very rewarding and wonderful decision.

~ Molly Nunn, Evening MBA, Class of 2011

A sampling of Dean Steve Reinemund’s 2009-2010 Thursday morning runners.

Call to Act: Responding to Changed Views of Corporate America

The last of a three-part series on the NC CEO Forum, this looks at the current pressure on Corporate America to make changes now and demonstrate how they are improving the community and the world.

*****

Speakers at this year’s NC CEO Forum not only focused on the future of sustainability, but they were equally willing to discuss current challenges to brand and reputation as customers expect more from Corporate America.

Steve Reinemund, the deal of the Wake Forest University Schools of Business, made that point clear as he moderated the event’s first panel discussion. “It is hard to imagine the rate of change in just a year,” Reinemund openly mused. He highlighted three “gold-plated companies” – BP, Goldman Sachs Group Inc., and Johnson & Johnson – that have seen their reputations significantly tarnished.

Such pressure always looms for other big companies, panelists said.

"In today’s world, every employee carries the corporate checkbook everywhere they go," said Vern Davenport, the president of public sector at Allscripts, a Chicago-based medical software company. "It only takes one person to destroy a company's image."

All constituents are “more demanding,” Davenport added, forcing companies to broaden their priorities to areas such as people and planet.

Cynthia Marshall, the president of AT&T North Carolina, agreed, noting that  customers “expect us to do things right and do the right thing.” She paused. “They are different.” That means that everyone who works at the company must be mindful of their actions. “I tell our employees that we don’t just work here, we live here,” Marshall added. “People expect us to act like we live here.”

AT&T is taking action to address a growing need for community and environmental activism, Marshall said. The company is looking to replace its fleet with compressed natural gas vehicles, which should lead to more than 80,000 efficient automobiles by 2013. AT&T also named its first chief sustainability officer a year ago, naming Charlene Lake to the post.

Rick McNeel, the president and CEO of LORD Corp., also used the forum to outline steps the chemical company has taken, including the creation of a sustainability program last year. “Wall Street must not drive your company," he said, adding that strategy should instead direct decision-making.

During a separate panel, David Miller, the president of DuPont Electronics and Communications, warned that government must be careful about encouraging consumers to seek more efficient products and resources before U.S. companies are prepared to provide them. The risk, he said, is that U.S. consumers end up buying foreign-made products.

Family Businesses Honored at Charlotte Event

Reposted from Business Leader Triad; originally posted on Thursday, May 20

Family businesses, John Allison said, make up the backbone that supports our nation’s economy and its communities. “Every business in America, to some degree, is a small business.”
Sustaining a family business hinges not only on financial success but also on the personal relationships built along the way. “I think successful family businesses have something that’s very important. You have character,” Allison told the group of about 150 that gathered for the 2010 N.C. Family Business of the Year Awards.
Allison, a retired chairman and CEO at BB&T Corp. and a distinguished professor of practice at the Wake Forest University Schools of Business, was the keynote speaker for the second annual event, held at Discovery Place in Charlotte.
The Family Business Center at the Wake Forest University Schools of Business honored four North Carolina companies that have successfully combined the best of family and business while making positive contributions in their respective communities.
Kathy Baker, director of the Family Business Center, congratulated the winners and thanked all FBC members and  the corporate sponsors who helped to make the second annual NC Family Business of the Year Awards such a success. She encouraged all family businesses in the state to take part in the FBC and to share their stories.
“While the awards program provides an opportunity to recognize our winning companies for their achievements, it also offers the opportunity to share a bigger story,” she said.
“The applications we read, the family business histories and the stories, were just wonderful. It’s nice to win, but even if you don’t win you have a beautiful collection of history to pass on to your family.”
More than 100 companies were nominated for the awards.
“The event was a great success, and it built on the momentum gained from our first inaugural ceremony last year. I expect interest in the awards and Family Business Center to grow throughout the year, culminating in the third annual NC Family Business of the Year Awards in 2011.”
The 2010 winners are: small category, Griffith Real Estate Services of Charlotte; medium category, Partners In Care of Charlotte; large category, Pate Dawson of Goldsboro. Birch Brothers Southern of Waxhaw is the winner of the Century Award, which honors companies that have been in business for 100 years or more.
In commending the family businesses, Allison talked about his company and its 10 core values, which are non-contradictory and integrated. Found within those core values are three great virtues – purpose, reason and self-esteem. Referring to the first virtue, he said most people want to make the world a better place in which to live, and businesses represented at the May 6 awards ceremony share that common goal.
“People should pursue things that give them energy and make them feel better about themselves,” referring to the second virtue, reason. “Family businesses can make the world a better place to live and at the same time self-energize.”
Allison also talked about the necessary commitment to life-long learning and the importance of gaining knowledge from experience.
“I suspect that in this room we have a lot of very successful experiential learners. I find that small business owners are primarily experiential learners,” which enables people to better learn from their mistakes, to evade less and to focus more. “That is a giant competitive advantage in life.
“To be happy you have to have high self-esteem,” which, he said, is earned through how you live your life.
“Self -esteem is the foundation of happiness, and happiness is the end of the game.”
Ron Norelli, president of the Family Firm Institute, cited case studies that indicate just 60% of family businesses survive from the first to the second generation, and fewer than 10 percent survive into the third generation.
But in regard to the businesses honored May 6, Norelli said, those statistics ring false. A common theme among the family businesses that received the awards, he said, was a system of values.
“I want to congratulate the winners tonight, who clearly have known how to change, known to change their business models and change their strategies. But they haven’t compromised the value system.”
The E.C. Griffith Company, which began in 1912, is one of Charlotte’s oldest family-owned real estate firms, and the company has developed some of Charlotte’s leading institutions for the past 98 years. The E.C. Griffith Company, Griffith Real Estate Services, and the members of the Griffith Family are concerned environmentalists, constantly working toward a balance between development and conservation.
In 2003, Don and Sally Olin founded Partners In Care, an in-home care-giving service for seniors and adults, but it’s also much more. The company helps seniors retain their dignity and remain independent in their homes while providing peace of mind for their families. The company’s tagline, “Families Helping Families,” is truth in advertising, proving a for-profit service can flourish if its foundation and operational structure is built with strong morals and ethics. The company’s five family members and 160 extended family members work by the same philosophy -- treat each client as though they would treat their own parents.
In the past 125 years, the Pate Dawson Company Inc. -- founded in 1885 as by J.H. Pate as J.H. Pate Grocery -- has grown from a small independent grocery store to the 27th-largest food-service distribution company in the United States. With a family history that has focused on a willingness to change and always putting family first, the company has not only survived but has thrived through bad and good economic times. During the past five years, the Pate Dawson Company Inc. has grown sales to more than $25 million, yet the values -- hard work, honesty and integrity -- remain firmly rooted.
The Century Award winner, Birch Brothers Southern, was founded 127 years ago in Massachusetts by Albert Birch, though the business actually began in England 38 years before. The company has transitioned from a manufacturer of textile machinery to the maker of custom machinery for a variety of industries, including aerospace, automotive, nonwovens, technical textile, medical, paper, home fashions and others. The company, which has 25 employees, has purposely managed sales and company size to remain flat for the past five years, thus avoiding debt accumulation and overextension as new markets were explored.
Awards Patron level sponsors BB&T, Fennebresque & Co., GenSpring Family Offices, PricewaterhouseCoopers, ReGeneration Partners and Southern Community Bank & Trust provided generous financial support for the event. Business North Carolina was the media sponsor, and GenSpring Family Offices sponsored the special section on the Family Business of the Year Awards to run in the May issue of Business North Carolina.
Several Family Business Center members have contributed to the success of the awards program. Wildfire provided design of all the marketing materials, and Sun Printing printed the programs. Biltmore Wines provided wine and beer for the event.

Emerson Electric CEO Touts Integrity at Wake Forest Commencement

The Wake Forest University Schools of Business honored 404 master’s students at a hooding ceremony Sunday, May 16 in Wait Chapel, followed by the University’s commencement exercises a day later at the Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum.

Holders of master’s degrees wear a symbolic hood draped around the neck and over the shoulders, displayed down the back with the lining exposed. The hood identifies the level of the degree, the field of learning, and the institution that awards it.

This year’s graduate business students who received hoods included: 76 in the Full-Time MBA Program; 30 in the Executive MBA Program; 37 in the Winston-Salem Evening MBA Program; 47 in the Charlotte Evening MBA program; 42 in the Charlotte Saturday MBA program; 74 in the Master of Science in Accountancy Program; and 91 in the Master of Arts in Management Program. Seven graduates received joint degrees as part of programs offered with other Wake Forest schools: five with the School of Law and two with the School of Medicine.

The hooding address was delivered by David Farr, chairman, CEO and president of Emerson Electric Co. In his speech, Farr provided words of wisdom to the students to use in advancing their careers and achieving their future goals. One piece of advice that was met with a round of applause: “Be honest and act with integrity. There is no room in business or in life for deception or fraud,” he explained. “You must be uncompromising in your personal ethics and your level of expectations from others. Remember, when integrity and trust are lost, they are gone forever."

In his speech, Farr stressed the importance of the graduates developing new leaders as they grow in their own leadership roles. “The process of developing leaders is full of unknowns, uncertainties and failures,” Farr said.

“It is also very hard work. Just as you look for quality leaders to help your career, be the kind of boss you would like to have. Look as those growing behind you and help them develop.”

Farr asked the students to remember that, “Nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm and intense personal commitment. There are many smart people in this world who do a great job at work, but there are relatively few who have enormous commitment, energy, intensity, passion, vision and drive to lead winning global organizations. Those who do make a difference every day are the people others want to and will follow.”

Wake Forest University Dean of Business, Steve Reinemund, closed the evening by extending his hearty  congratulations to the Class of 2010. “You have worked hard and are well-prepared to chase your dreams. I trust that you have developed a life plan and that your vocation - your place in society - is becoming clear to you. Most of all, I trust that you are leaving here with a clear sense of your true north - with your moral compass well-tuned and calibrated - so that your success will come with integrity.”

The entire faculty and staff of the Wake Forest University Schools of Business would like to congratulate the Class of 2010!