Moody Business News: April 2021

Each month, we will share news and accomplishments of Moody College of Business faculty, staff, and students.

April 2021

Programs and Events

• The LEED Center Accelerate Northside project held its inaugural completion ceremony for 35 participants on Saturday, March 27. The program is led by Geoff Stewart, Johnathan Shirley, and Kevin Guillory.
• Praveen Das and the UL Lafayette Foundation hosted the Student Managed Investment Portfolio Presentations event. Twelve FNAN 485 students each analyzed two stocks for the portfolio.
• David Reid had guest speakers Sergeant First Class Williams, Sergeant First Class Simmons, and Staff Sergeant Lyons of the US Army share their leadership and managerial experiences. They also discussed Army and Army Reserve opportunities and how they can be used to pay for college and student loans.
• Fred Davis hosted Nathan Carmichael, owner of Carmichael's Honey and other businesses as guest speakers in his BLAW 424 class via Zoom. Nathan’s talk inspired the students to pursue their dreams and persevere, and informed them of the practical aspects of running a successful business and staying competitive.
• Patricia Lanier and Buster LeBlanc presented at the EAC / Faculty Idea XChange.
• Lisa Bowles took HMGT 408 students visited Maison Mouton (338 N. Sterling Street). Owner Ravi Daggula explained the history and preservation of the historical bed and breakfast as well as the business operation of staffing and customer service. He also showcased The Nickerson House, which will open this summer for private events. The class also met with Joey Pons, UL Lafayette Director of Risk Management, at the Girard Park Circle Parking Garage to review elevator systems, contracting, and life safety systems.
• David Reid hosted guest speakers Abbey Dixon, Recruiting Manager and Andrew Tregre from Northwestern Mutual regarding income protection for young professionals after college and internship and full-time opportunities. Nathan Lee, a former MGMT 320 student who started working as a Northwestern Mutual intern, also shared his experiences.
• Valerie McGehee took the advanced sales class for golf lessons at Oakbourne Country Club. Coach Sliman helped to set it up and Coach Mason and the UL Lafayette Golf team gave the class lessons. The students practiced hitting golf balls and learned about business etiquette on the golf course. She also hosted guest speaker Seth Greene, a medical device sales rep from Stryker, for the Student Sales Association.
• Buster LeBlanc hosted multiple guest speakers throughout the Spring 2021 semester via Zoom, Go To Meeting, and Teams to better prepare Professional Land and Resource Management majors with the knowledge necessary to be successful in the land industry including:
  • Melissa Jackson - Project Manager for TotaLand (a land software program)
  • Tracey Mizell - Project Manager for iLandman (a land software program co-founded by Moody Business PLRM graduate Richard Hines)
  • Patrick Cassidy - Joint Operating Agreement Specialist for Tribune Resources (Moody Business PLRM graduate)
  • Jimmy Dupuis - Louisiana and Texas State Lands and Leasing Specialist and Partner with the Kean Miller Law Firm (Moody Business graduate)
  • Jeremy Shealy - Unitization Specialist and Partner with the Onebane Law Firm
  • Connie Conques - Lease Administration Manager for Sable Resources (Moody Business PLRM graduate)
  • Lee Sonnier - Senior Land Manager for Denbury (Moody Business PLRM graduate)
• Lisa Bowles and Becky Dubois hosted Waffle House representatives Scott Dore, Recruiting Director, and Hannah Garritt (2017 Marketing graduate), Recruiting Coordinator for Hourly Positions, to speak to HMGT students on Wednesday, April 21 in the classroom and virtually. They discussed the company overall, management trainee program, benefits, customer profile and service approach, and future expansion plans.

Awards and Accolades

• Congratulations to the Moody Business 2020-2021 faculty and staff award recipients. Thank you for your dedication to teaching, research, and service.
  • The John T. & Sandra B. Landry Endowed Award for Teaching Excellence: Tammy Hall and Laura Latiolais
  • The Colonels Philip & Jean Piccione Endowed Award for Research Excellence: Josh Bendickson
  • The Robert “Bob” Merrick Endowed Advising Award: Javier Portillo-Elias
  • Outstanding Staff Award: Shirlane Sam
  • Faculty Service Award: Valerie McGehee
  • Dean’s Achievement Award: Lisa K. Bowles, Heather DeValcourt, Jeremiah Fisher, Nicole Jones, Pam Meyer, Ram Thakur, Bob Viguerie, and Jena’ Victor
• The 2nd Annual Moody Business Pitch Competition was held. Congratulations to the top 5 student finalists:
  • 1st Place: Kurstin Lackey (Finance) / Waterhem's: An all-in-one portable urban chicken feeder system
  • 2nd Place: Shelby Stewart (MBA) / Tots & Tailgates, LLC: A portable, in truck bed play area for small children
  • 3rd Place: Darcy Fabre (MBA) / Precious Human: A recyclable, DIY textile production company using local Acadian Brown Cotton
  • Finalist: Cameron LeBeau (MBA) / unBReakable: A local "rage room" to release stress by breaking glass products
  • Finalist: Tamia Myers (Political Science) / Talomy Processing: A casino betting payment protection plan and warranty
• The inaugural class of Moody Movers are Praveen Das, Valerie McGehee, David Reid, Deergha Adhikari, Huong Nguyen, Guolin Lai, Brian Bolton, Jeremiah Fisher, Kevin Guillory, Pamela Meyer, Maria Slater, and Tammy Hall. These faculty and staff will participate in a leadership and professional development series.
• The Moody Business Sales Program was listed in the Sales Education Foundation 2021 list of top universities for professional sales education.
• Valerie McGehee and the Sales Program hosted the 2nd Annual Speed Selling Challenge. Thirty UL Lafayette students enrolled in professional selling courses competed. Students had between 60 and 90 seconds to pitch themselves for an internship position for event sponsor, SchoolMint. The winner was Skylar Landry. Morgan Boggs was second place, London Ortega was third place, and additional finalists were Brittany Johnston and Kobe Joiner.

Research and Innovation

• Stephen Barnes and the Blanco Center have released their first policy briefs on child care and infrastructure in Louisiana at blancocenter.louisiana.edu/research.
• Ignatius Cahyanto had his manuscript "Coping as a community: Recovery experiences of a tourism reliant area following a tsunami in Indonesia" accepted for publication in International Journal of Tourism Research (an A journal in the ABDC journal list).
• David Baker had his paper "Chartering the Course in Team-Based Projects: Do Team Charters Affect Performance in GVTs?", accepted for presentation at the virtual 81st Annual Meeting of the Academy of Management taking place July 29 - August 4, 2021.
• David Baker (lead author) had his article "The Effects of Cultural Intelligence, Psychological Safety, and Teamwork Climate on Conflict Frequency in Global Virtual Teams" accepted for publication in European Journal of International Management.

News Mentions

• The LEED Center Accelerate Northside project  was featured in several news stories including:
  • The Advocate "Accelerate Northside program helping to 'bridge the gap' for small business owners"
  • KATC TV3 "Accelerate Northside makes an impact on a new business owner"
• Gary A. Wagner was cited in several media articles including:
  • The Advocate "Stimulus checks and tax refunds are hitting bank accounts. Will spending surge in Acadiana?"
  • The Advocate "Here's how Louisiana's new broadband official plans to take on state connectivity issues"
  • Houma Courier "Here's how Louisiana's new broadband official plans to take on state connectivity issues"
  • KPVI TV6 "Louisiana's oil, gas industry continues to take a hit"
  • Baton Rouge Proud "Coronavirus pandemic intensifies downward employment trends in Louisiana’s oil and gas industry"
  • Greater Baton Rouge Business Report "Louisiana loses 7,500 oil and gas jobs during pandemic"
  • Bossier Now "LOUISIANA’S OIL & GAS INDUSTRY STRUGGLES: AN ENERGY TRANSITION COULD COST MORE JOBS"
• Mary Luquette had several articles published by The Daily Advertiser:
  • "Bargain hunting? Try the dollar store"
  • "Why knowing your risk tolerance is important for wise investing"
• Lisa Bowles was featured in the Distance Learning blog article "Beyond Zoom: Tools to Foster Student Engagement"
• The Moody Business Pitch Competition was featured by The Advocate in the article "Urban chicken feeder system concept winner of pitch UL business pitch competition"
• Stephen Barnes was cited by:
  • KATC TV3 “Blanco Public Policy Center at UL Lafayette launches policy briefs series"
  • KATC TV 3 "Blanco Public Policy Center at UL Lafayette examines economics of child care"