Episode 240

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Published on:

16th Aug 2023

Leading the Walton College into the Future with Brent Williams

For his last episode as host of the podcast before transitioning the hosting duties, Matt sits down with incoming interim dean of the Sam M. Walton College of Business, Brent Williams, to discuss the future of the Walton College and Brent's experience that has prepared him for this role. They begin the episode with Brent discussing his broad range of experiences at the Walton College and Matt and Brent's relationship for 20+ years that began with Brent as a Walton College student. They then move into a discussion around the future of the Walton College and what Brent's focus will be. Brent hopes to instill in students at the College a mindset of solving business problems at the intersection of technology, data, people and processes to prepare them for the future. Brent also shares details of the Walton College's strategic plan that was recently revised with an emphasis on developing the student experience, growing graduate programs, and increasing research impact. He also discusses the College's connectivity throughout the state of Arkansas, our unique connection with industry and how the optimism in Northwest Arkansas acts as a tailwind for the College.

Transcript
Brent Williams:

When our students are solving business

Brent Williams:

problems, they're managing their leading, they're solving

Brent Williams:

business problems. They're trying to innovate within a

Brent Williams:

company. I think they've got to do that at an intersection of,

Brent Williams:

of technology, data, people and process.

Matt Waller:

Excellence, professionalism, innovation, and

Matt Waller:

collegiality. These are the values the Sam M. Walton College

Matt Waller:

of Business explores in education, business, and the

Matt Waller:

lives of people we meet every day. I'm Matt Waller, Dean of

Matt Waller:

the Walton College, and welcome to the be epic podcast. I have

Matt Waller:

with me today, Brent Williams, who is the interim dean of the

Matt Waller:

Sam M. Walton College of Business. And he has been with

Matt Waller:

the University of Arkansas for many years. He actually got his

Matt Waller:

master's degree from the University of Arkansas, in

Matt Waller:

logistics and supply chain. And then he got his PhD in 2008,

Matt Waller:

from the University of Arkansas, and then he went to TCU, Texas

Matt Waller:

Christian school, university, which is the Neeley School of

Matt Waller:

Business. And then he was at Auburn University. And then he

Matt Waller:

came here to the Walton College once again, back in 2011. He has

Matt Waller:

also served as chair of the department of supply chain

Matt Waller:

management, he served as interim Chair of the Department of

Matt Waller:

Marketing, Associate Dean, and now interim dean. So Brent from

Matt Waller:

being a master student to a PhD student to lots of different

Matt Waller:

administrative positions and faculty positions, including in

Matt Waller:

two different departments. And then associate dean, you've had

Matt Waller:

a wide range of responsibilities in your, in your career here. So

Matt Waller:

you're, you're you're very well prepared to be interim dean. But

Matt Waller:

thank you for letting me interview you.

Brent Williams:

Well, thanks for having me. And a lot of that

Brent Williams:

opportunity to get a real broad set of experiences is due to

Brent Williams:

you. You've always allowed me the ability to try new things

Brent Williams:

and and be a part of the new initiatives that we're taking on

Brent Williams:

so you deserve most of the credit for that.

Matt Waller:

Well, I have to say, I always look for people

Matt Waller:

who are high performers and have lots of ability and deliver. And

Matt Waller:

you have done that the entire time I've known you going back

Matt Waller:

20 years.

Brent Williams:

I know.

Matt Waller:

Can you believe it? No, I remember clearly still to

Matt Waller:

this day, when you and Jennifer came to my office considering

Matt Waller:

getting a master's degree.

Brent Williams:

And and and you still let me in after that after

Brent Williams:

that conversation.

Matt Waller:

That was really it was it was clear to me that you

Matt Waller:

would be a great choice. I I actually was already thinking at

Matt Waller:

that point. I think I even told Suzanne, afterwards that I

Matt Waller:

thought you would be a good professor so.

Brent Williams:

Well, you are right, that, you know, it's kind

Brent Williams:

of rare, particularly in one institution, I have, you know,

Brent Williams:

been at a couple of other institutions. But to get to be a

Brent Williams:

student, to be a faculty member, to be a department chair, to be

Brent Williams:

Associate Dean, senior associate dean and now interim dean.

Brent Williams:

That's, that's pretty rare to get to see an organization from

Brent Williams:

that many dimensions.

Matt Waller:

Yeah. And, of course, working together over

Matt Waller:

the years. I mean, I have brought you into my most

Matt Waller:

strategic endeavors everywhere. I mean, even when you were a

Matt Waller:

student, and we worked on the big project with General Mills

Matt Waller:

and Walmart, you were the one really doing the work and from

Matt Waller:

the very beginning,

Brent Williams:

Well, I've I've loved those challenges, but it's

Brent Williams:

been particularly fun to work with you. And in some ways this

Brent Williams:

change is going to be a really big change for probably both of

Brent Williams:

us. We've worked very, very closely together for 20 years.

Matt Waller:

Absolutely. Well, and you also have helped a lot

Matt Waller:

with the accreditation of the college, the strategic planning.

Matt Waller:

You've led these things, but you've also taken leadership

Matt Waller:

roles in the founding of the McMillon Innovation Studio. And

Matt Waller:

if you're listening, you don't know what that is. You should

Matt Waller:

look it up. It's an amazing offering that we have. We also

Matt Waller:

have Walton College at 2nd and Main in downtown Little Rock

Matt Waller:

where we offer exec ed. You headed that up. And you've done

Matt Waller:

many other things but in addition to that, You've been a

Matt Waller:

great researcher, you've published in top journals like

Matt Waller:

Journal of Business Logistics, Journal of Pperations

Matt Waller:

Management, Production Operations Management, Decision

Matt Waller:

Sciences, and other top journals in our field. So again, you've

Matt Waller:

done so much to prepare you for this, that most Dean's, in my

Matt Waller:

opinion, and I'm aware of Dean's getting positions all the time,

Matt Waller:

haven't had the breadth of experiences you've had, and are

Matt Waller:

successful researchers, because you can find some that have a

Matt Waller:

lot of experience broadly. But they're not great researchers or

Matt Waller:

vice versa, you've been able to do both, and we need that in a

Brent Williams:

You know, I think that one reason, there's a

Brent Williams:

leader.

Brent Williams:

couple of reasons for that, I think one of having great co

Brent Williams:

authors and an excellent network. And, and we've got a

Brent Williams:

we've got a track record of great PhD students coming

Brent Williams:

through the department of Supply Chain Management, you know,

Brent Williams:

that, and, you know, being able to work with PhD students, even

Brent Williams:

as a department chair or an Associate Dean, or in your case,

Brent Williams:

Dean, you know, that gives you the ability to really stay

Brent Williams:

engaged. But also and you you taught me this, you it was maybe

Brent Williams:

inadvertently, but you taught it to me, you taught me that

Brent Williams:

working with industry and research could create synergies.

Brent Williams:

And sometimes that gets missed in our industry, right? We did

Brent Williams:

lots of projects, starting when I was a master student,

Brent Williams:

particularly when I was a doctoral student, and since

Brent Williams:

then, with industry partners that that I think, created

Brent Williams:

thought leadership, I think it it helped our partners improve

Brent Williams:

their businesses, and we've published them. And you know, I

Brent Williams:

don't know, I think that's been that's been probably the secret

Brent Williams:

sauce, probably for both of us as researchers.

Matt Waller:

Definitely I, you know, I always part of the

Matt Waller:

reason I've always had that orientation is that, you know,

Matt Waller:

in academics, we're supposed to be building theory, a lot of

Matt Waller:

times when people hear theory, they think that means something

Matt Waller:

that's not relevant, but it really means an ability to

Matt Waller:

explain, describe, and predict, whatever the phenomena is, could

Matt Waller:

be forecasting could be supply chain design, it could be

Matt Waller:

marketing, whatever it is, theory is actually good theory

Matt Waller:

is helpful. I think the challenge is so much theory

Matt Waller:

tends to be built in a vacuum. Whereas what we're trying to do

Matt Waller:

is to be engaged with the real world, and solve real problems

Matt Waller:

and develop theory, in areas that are where it's really

Matt Waller:

needed to solve problems.

Brent Williams:

I couldn't agree more. You know, and, Matt, I

Brent Williams:

believe, I think you believe the same. We have a lot of

Brent Williams:

advantages as the Walton College of Business, but maybe the most,

Brent Williams:

you know, our best competitive advantage is our connection to

Brent Williams:

industry. And, you know, there's some universities and business

Brent Williams:

schools in bigger markets than we're in. But the connectivity

Brent Williams:

of business in this community and the openness to collaborate,

Brent Williams:

is a real advantage.

Matt Waller:

It is. It's unusual. I had a dean at a

Matt Waller:

really high, highly ranked business school that isn't close

Matt Waller:

to a lot of business. They're close to some big cities. But

Matt Waller:

you know, he told me, If you all could just have our buildings,

Matt Waller:

and we could have your connections to industry. And I

Matt Waller:

thought, wow, I would rather have my connections to industry

Brent Williams:

That's exactly right.

Matt Waller:

It not only helps us do a better job in research,

Matt Waller:

but it also helps us do a better job of teaching. And it helps us

Matt Waller:

do a better job of placing students in great jobs.

Brent Williams:

I couldn't agree more. And again, synergies

Brent Williams:

amongst those things, but as you know, you know, critical to our

Brent Williams:

mission is, is transforming lives. You know, we say in our

Brent Williams:

vision statement, we're a catalyst for transforming lives.

Brent Williams:

We, we don't say that we do it alone, right? I mean, that

Brent Williams:

catalyst word is something I've been thinking a lot about

Brent Williams:

lately. You know, and we, we create the platform for it to

Brent Williams:

happen. But you know, faculty and industry partners are a

Brent Williams:

really, really key part of that equation.

Matt Waller:

You know, Brent, I want to shift gears here and

Matt Waller:

look ahead a little bit. And people always say, as long as

Matt Waller:

I've been around, the world is changing. Business is changing,

Matt Waller:

and it's changing faster than it used to be. And so you could

Matt Waller:

say, well, then, people always think that whatever stage

Matt Waller:

they're in. And I won't belabor the point. But there's lots of

Matt Waller:

evidence that the rate of change has been steadily increasing

Matt Waller:

since the Industrial revolution. And you know, many people think

Matt Waller:

we're entering into a another industrial revolution because of

Matt Waller:

certain technologies that are being created. These changes

Matt Waller:

create a new situation. And I think as a business school, I

Matt Waller:

know you have been giving this a lot of thought, you've been

Matt Waller:

thinking about, how should a business school change in light

Matt Waller:

of the changes that we're seeing in the economy? Would you mind

Matt Waller:

speaking to that a little bit?

Brent Williams:

Yeah, as you as you know, I agree completely

Brent Williams:

right, that we are entering into a new phase of change, even more

Brent Williams:

rapid, rapid change. And, you know, if I just stop and pause

Brent Williams:

on students, and how do we prepare them? I guess that's

Brent Williams:

really what's on my mind is not only how do we prepare them for

Brent Williams:

the first job, but how do we really prepare them to succeed

Brent Williams:

in the long run? And I believe, as we as we think about our

Brent Williams:

roles in that, I think that I think currently and particularly

Brent Williams:

in the future, when our students are solving business problems,

Brent Williams:

oh, I would say, you know, they're managing their leading,

Brent Williams:

they're solving business problems. They're trying to

Brent Williams:

innovate within a company. I think they've got to do that at

Brent Williams:

an intersection of, of technology, data, people and

Brent Williams:

process, you know, and I think maybe it hasn't been that long

Brent Williams:

ago that we our mindset. And I think it's mindset that's going

Brent Williams:

to be critical for our students. But I think, you know, you could

Brent Williams:

think about solving business problems at the intersection

Brent Williams:

often of process and people. But we know today that you have to

Brent Williams:

intersect with that technology and data. And and oh, yeah, by

Brent Williams:

the way, I don't think you can think about solving a business

Brent Williams:

problem purely with technology and data absent of people and

Brent Williams:

process. And so I think it's really teaching students to

Brent Williams:

lead, manage, and solve problems at that intersection is what's

Brent Williams:

going to be so critical. And, you know, I don't know that that

Brent Williams:

means that we can teach them every emerging technology, but

Brent Williams:

we have, they have to have a mindset, you know, to where they

Brent Williams:

get exposure with us. They understand how it's being

Brent Williams:

applied. And then they have the curiosity to go learn and apply

Brent Williams:

in new ways that either they've not seen or really haven't even

Brent Williams:

been invented yet. And then as leaders of people, and most of

Brent Williams:

our students will lead people in some way, shape or form. I think

Brent Williams:

they've then got to think about how do they bring people

Brent Williams:

alongside that change, you know, and help the people harmonize

Brent Williams:

with the technology in a way that that improves the life of

Brent Williams:

that person and improves the overall profitability of the

Brent Williams:

organization.

Matt Waller:

You know, Brent, your point is so spot on, you

Matt Waller:

know, and sometimes you see business schools saying, well,

Matt Waller:

we don't want to teach current technology, because it's going

Matt Waller:

to go away. But I've always thought, well, no, you do

Matt Waller:

because that technology might go away. But the ability to learn a

Matt Waller:

new technology and then apply it to a new problem is valuable.

Brent Williams:

Yeah. I was telling this story yesterday,

Brent Williams:

that before I started the master's program, I don't know

Brent Williams:

if you remember this. I'm sure I went through a university

Brent Williams:

orientation. I don't exactly remember that. What I do

Brent Williams:

remember, is you making sure that I went and spent time at

Brent Williams:

Walmart, learning the processes and technology. I shadowed

Brent Williams:

basically, and that technology is not used anymore. Was that

Brent Williams:

valuable for 20 years for me? Yes. Right. Because I started to

Brent Williams:

see how the technology the people and the process, were

Brent Williams:

interacting with one another. So I think I think that's a flawed

Brent Williams:

way of thinking of just because the technology, maybe it doesn't

Brent Williams:

stick or maybe it ends up getting applied in ways that we

Brent Williams:

don't think it's going to be applied today. Again, I think

Brent Williams:

it's about that mindset, you know, have at that intersection.

Matt Waller:

Well, you know, when you went and I remember

Matt Waller:

when when I asked you to go to Walmart and spend time in

Matt Waller:

replenishment. At that time, we were doing research on

Matt Waller:

replenishment, I had been doing research on it as well. And I

Matt Waller:

had the benefit of all, I had been in so many situations where

Matt Waller:

I had actually been involved with a company touching the

Matt Waller:

technology, trying to figure out how to improve what they're

Matt Waller:

doing. And so when you spent time at Walmart in

Matt Waller:

replenishment, it is true, you were exposed to a technology

Matt Waller:

that isn't being used now. I would argue it probably is one

Matt Waller:

of the best technologies still out there for for replenishment.

Matt Waller:

And, you know, one good thing about learning a new technology

Matt Waller:

like that, and seeing how people interact with it, I remember,

Matt Waller:

one of the things you learn from it again, this is over this is

Matt Waller:

20 years ago about but was that the users, this is an important

Matt Waller:

point, many of the users of that great technology for

Matt Waller:

replenishment forecasting didn't because they in some cases, they

Matt Waller:

really understood the theory of inventory management forecasts

Matt Waller:

are they could play well. But there were some people in any

Matt Waller:

organization that's using replenishment and forecasting

Matt Waller:

technology, they don't understand the theory behind it.

Matt Waller:

And as a result, they're kind of like a mindless, they'll say,

Matt Waller:

Oh, if I change this variable, maybe if I increase the time

Matt Waller:

between replenishments, we'll have fewer stockouts. And it's

Matt Waller:

true. But you don't want to increase safety stock that way,

Matt Waller:

which is essentially what it's doing, it's forcing safety

Matt Waller:

stock, but then it's throwing off all kinds of other

Matt Waller:

variables. And so if you really understand the theory, think,

Matt Waller:

okay, I could have more inventory in between

Matt Waller:

replenishments, that'll increase my fill rate through for the

Matt Waller:

year, or I can increase my safety stock where I could make

Matt Waller:

the lead times shorter, or I could in the real world, not in

Matt Waller:

a system. But I remember you really understood that after

Matt Waller:

having gone through that, that process. Whereas, you know, and

Matt Waller:

I think that then as the benefit to us as professors, is it helps

Matt Waller:

motivate us to teach this material, because we realize,

Matt Waller:

oh, they really need to understand this, because you see

Matt Waller:

people misapplying these ideas in practice so often.

Brent Williams:

Yes. And I think that when you think about our

Brent Williams:

student experience, this why I think, you know, I think our

Brent Williams:

College of Business, at least I'm going to speak for, I think

Brent Williams:

creates tremendous value. Now, I think that students can some get

Brent Williams:

more value out of that opportunity in the other. But

Brent Williams:

when I think about the real sweet spot, you know, I think

Brent Williams:

about a student who is getting the most out of the classroom,

Brent Williams:

you know and hey, some of those concepts may have held true for

Brent Williams:

decades.

Matt Waller:

Yeah,

Brent Williams:

You know, and then take that into a work

Brent Williams:

environment. And more and more we find our students are working

Brent Williams:

while they're in school, which I encourage and I know you do,

Brent Williams:

too. We want them in internships, we want them in co

Brent Williams:

ops. But really what we want is the ability to take what's being

Brent Williams:

learned and apply it and understand it in application,

Brent Williams:

whether that application succeeds or fails, and then

Brent Williams:

bring that back into the classroom in a way that informs

Brent Williams:

the learning. And now you have a loop that is really, really

Brent Williams:

meaningful. And so I think I learned that not only in that

Brent Williams:

experience, but I learned it doing internships, and I've

Brent Williams:

learned it throughout my life in terms of learn, apply, learn,

Brent Williams:

apply. And I think it's just a really important part of the

Brent Williams:

experience that our students have the ability to access.

Matt Waller:

Well, you know, the other thing that's interesting

Matt Waller:

that I think sometimes people don't think about, but when

Matt Waller:

you've got a Dean, who not only has been involved in the school,

Matt Waller:

but he's been involved in industry. I mean, you know,

Matt Waller:

executives, all these companies around here are the suppliers,

Matt Waller:

the big three, Big Four, counting them ArcBest and

Matt Waller:

others. I mean, that helps glue, bring the glue to the school if

Matt Waller:

you were if you didn't have that experience, you wouldn't even

Matt Waller:

know necessarily what the size of the opportunity was in terms

Matt Waller:

of internships. I know internships are really important

Matt Waller:

to you.

Brent Williams:

They are they are and that's something that

Brent Williams:

has grown and developed for me over time. And I think I think

Brent Williams:

it's, I think it's the experience of teaching, engaging

Brent Williams:

with students, mentoring them. But then being out in industry,

Brent Williams:

you know, every single week in some way, shape or form, both of

Brent Williams:

us have been, you know, you get to see, you get to see those in

Brent Williams:

industry talking about, you know, the contribution that

Brent Williams:

those students can make. You know, and I'll say, my, my time

Brent Williams:

at the Walton College, it has allowed me to work with all the

Brent Williams:

companies here in Northwest Arkansas, the large companies,

Brent Williams:

and you're right, we've got relationships with all of them.

Brent Williams:

When I think back to our decision to found Walton College

Brent Williams:

at 2nd and main, in Little Rock. This was a great experience for

Brent Williams:

me, I'm from Arkansas, I grew up in Arkansas. And you know, so

Brent Williams:

it's probably something I wanted to do intrinsically, I think I

Brent Williams:

was intrinsically motivated by it. I think the benefit that I

Brent Williams:

don't know, that I anticipated, was the ability to now have

Brent Williams:

those relationships in Central Arkansas and throughout the

Brent Williams:

state. So, you know, you think about the Stephens organization

Brent Williams:

in Little Rock that has been so meaningful to this state,

Brent Williams:

Arkansas Blue Cross Blue Shield, the hospital systems, you know,

Brent Williams:

I could keep going on and on. But that's really important. And

Brent Williams:

then, you know, what, there's some great businesses

Brent Williams:

particularly agriculturally focused in the Delta of

Brent Williams:

Arkansas, and, you know, I want our students connected to all of

Brent Williams:

that in some way, shape, or form. And I think work

Brent Williams:

experiences and internships is if, if, if an executive asked

Brent Williams:

me, how can I help the Walton College, there's lots of ways,

Brent Williams:

but probably my first ask is going to be hire an intern.

Matt Waller:

I agree with you. And, you know, if you have kids

Matt Waller:

that are in college, or going to be in college soon, you have

Matt Waller:

this feeling, I mean, what parent doesn't want their kid in

Matt Waller:

great internships. Right? And I, I was just, I was just talking

Matt Waller:

to a parent who has a kid at not not in the Walton College, but

Matt Waller:

at a another SEC business school. And she was relating to

Matt Waller:

me, because they also have a kid here, the difference in terms of

Matt Waller:

the ability to get great internships with unbelievable

Matt Waller:

companies, or even an internship with a early stage company,

Matt Waller:

because we have the venture intern program, if you're

Matt Waller:

listening to this, and you know, someone that might be

Matt Waller:

interested, you can look that up the venture intern program,

Matt Waller:

which I love, because, I mean, it's wonderful. If you can get

Matt Waller:

an experience with an early stage company and a big company.

Brent Williams:

Absolutely.

Matt Waller:

And I remember back to the Little Rock thing,

Matt Waller:

something that needs to be said is I was trying to figure out

Matt Waller:

where to put my effort geographically because I can't

Matt Waller:

remember how this happened. But somehow I realized, the Walton

Matt Waller:

College is doing great in Northwest Arkansas, but we need

Matt Waller:

to venture outside of Arkansas. And you actually were the one

Matt Waller:

that said I would really focus on Central Arkansas to start

Matt Waller:

with and I thought, well, that would be great. But how? And

Matt Waller:

then of course, I had that meeting with Warren Stephens.

Matt Waller:

And he really opened the opportunity for us to do that.

Brent Williams:

He did. He truly did. I think he saw an

Brent Williams:

opportunity for us, you were willing to take the risk and say

Brent Williams:

yes, and and then I was in a position to be able to help make

Brent Williams:

it happen.

Matt Waller:

Yeah.

Brent Williams:

And, and that, if you recall, it started with

Brent Williams:

building relationships. And, you know, in doing that, you know, I

Brent Williams:

think we've gotten more of our students hired.

Matt Waller:

Yes.

Brent Williams:

I know, we've succeeded in executive

Brent Williams:

education, which which is our main focus there. We are

Brent Williams:

providing noncredit education and working directly customizing

Brent Williams:

programs with companies using the expertise in the Walton

Brent Williams:

College. And and I know it's worked, because we increasingly

Brent Williams:

engage with organizations that I actually probably never would

Brent Williams:

have thought possible. Many of them are our state, governmental

Brent Williams:

organizations that we've had a chance to assist, which makes

Brent Williams:

our state better off but also, you know, many, many companies

Brent Williams:

there but it does all come back to building those relationships

Brent Williams:

and and Mr. Stephens was was truly the one that made that

Brent Williams:

happen.

Matt Waller:

You know, and I remember early on, we got a new

Matt Waller:

client in Little Rock a big one and I was talking, I can't

Matt Waller:

remember who I was talking to. But one of the executives,

Matt Waller:

you'll know this story, maybe you were there. And I said, how

Matt Waller:

did you find out about us? And they said that they were just

Matt Waller:

walking down the street and saw Walton College, the 2nd and main

Matt Waller:

and thought, what is this? I don't remember if they went in,

Matt Waller:

or they Googled it, but somehow they found out about it, that

Matt Waller:

led to one of our biggest clients.

Brent Williams:

That's exactly right. You know, so I think

Brent Williams:

it's, I think, you know, and for us, it's probably a lesson for

Brent Williams:

us as administrators and leaders of colleges. I mean, it is very,

Brent Williams:

very important to be present, you know, throughout our state

Brent Williams:

and engaged with business. Because you just never know what

Brent Williams:

opportunity that that's going to lead to.

Matt Waller:

You really don't. And that gets to another point.

Matt Waller:

You know, we've talked about technology and the future, but

Matt Waller:

you, you've been leading our strategic planning, development

Matt Waller:

and would you mind speaking to that a little bit, just in terms

Matt Waller:

of how you went about it? And then what we're going to be

Matt Waller:

doing in the future?

Brent Williams:

Yeah, absolutely. We did revise our

Brent Williams:

strategic plan, about a little over a year ago. And, you know,

Brent Williams:

we decided too that we thought the best thing to do to move

Brent Williams:

forward was to develop a stakeholder focused plan, that

Brent Williams:

was really relatively short term in nature. And so, you know, in

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doing that, we really looked at key stakeholders, our students,

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our faculty, our business and alumni partners, and then

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society at large, and, and, and identified with, with a fairly

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extensive group of faculty and staff that were served as

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conduits to all the departments and units of like, what were

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really some important things that we could accomplish, that

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would, that would make the Walton College even more

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valuable to our stakeholders. And those, as you will know,

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right, those stakeholders abroad, you know, it's our

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faculty and staff, it's our students, it's our parents, it's

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our alumni. And it's the businesses throughout the state.

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And, you know, it's the state of Arkansas. So there's a broad set

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of stakeholders that we serve. And, you know, I think, Matt, as

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we go into, as we go into next year, there's really a few

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things that were from that strategic plan that we're really

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going to focus on, over the next year. And we've already talked

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about one of those. And it's, it's, it's that student

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experience in making sure that, that internships and work

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opportunities and experiential learning opportunities are there

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for our students that complement what's happening in the

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classroom, you know, it, those things complement each other. So

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when you got a wonderful faculty, like we have, and then

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and then you have these experiences, I really think you

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truly create value for students and families. And then, you

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know, I really want us to be able to build on the platform

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that I feel like you've established and that's our

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graduate programs, as you know, well, know, you you made this

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happen. We've been able to stand up many masters programs that

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are specialized, and that provide working professionals

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with skills they need, whether that be in analytics, supply

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chain marketing, coming up soon product innovation, and that

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goes alongside an amazing Executive MBA program that is

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remarkably healthy, that serves professionals, not only in

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Northwest Arkansas, our state and actually beyond that, and

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our full time MBA program. I just, I think in our graduate

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programs, we have the opportunity now to take that

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platform and grow it and share it with more people. And I

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think, particularly, you know, you go back to the rate of

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change in business. I think these master's programs offer a

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wonderful opportunity for professional that it may have

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been a while, you know, so since they've been in college, they're

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probably learning all on their own along the way. A graduate

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program can accelerate that learning. And so that's really

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important. I think a third thing that's really important for us

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is to grow our research impact um and I didn't necessarily say

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grow you know, our research, I really think that research is

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the core of who we are as, as faculty members. And you know,

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there's ways we can share that. And you mentioned theory

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building. And that is remarkably important. And that's why we

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publish in academic journals. It's why we want that work to be

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cited and be built upon. And we are knowledge builders, as

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faculty. But there's other ways to let that research have an

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impact. And I'm thinking about this, now, you've done all of

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these. And so have I, you know, our faculty are a tremendous

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resource to businesses in our area for consulting when needed

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if they need specific expertise. We've talked about executive

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education, you know, executive education really can't happen

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without the deep expertise in the college. So you're actually

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utilizing the research as the base that creates expertise that

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now gets shared through consulting, executive education,

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through our publishing, through funded research projects with

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companies. So I think just continuing to broaden the

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research impact, those are the three things that I think are

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really important for us right now.

Matt Waller:

Well, you know, Brent, you're taking over

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leadership of college at a time when Northwest Arkansas is

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booming. Business here is succeeding in many, many

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different ways, many, many different ways. And a time when

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the population is growing. It's hard to buy house here, it's

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hard to build a house here. But people are optimistic here. You

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know, you compare it to so many places, I go in the United

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States, you know, and a lot of places you go, people don't feel

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an identity with the place they live. Here they do. And, but the

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level of optimism out there, shocks me. And that's something

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you can't conjure up. What do you think about that, and how

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that affects the college?

Brent Williams:

I think it's a tailwind for us. I really do. I

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agree with you. I couldn't agree more, that there is an optimism

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here. You know, and, and there's a pride here. And, and I think

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that's true about Northwest Arkansas and our state, you

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know, and we benefit, there's absolutely no doubt that, you

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know, we've talked about all the things we try to do. But the

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community and the state around us is a tailwind. And this place

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is growing. And it's increasingly a wonderful place,

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not only to work, but to live, you know, the amount of outdoor

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recreation opportunities that exist. My, you know, a few miles

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from in where any of us where we live, and actually right outside

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this building, there's a mountain biking trail, right?

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And that, that we can hop on and ride the Greenway is literally

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steps from here that we could ride 40 miles, if we want to,

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and there's opportunities to climb and paddle, and all of

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those things. And, you know, I believe that people want to be a

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part of this place. And I think that that's part of success in

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attracting great faculty and staff. People increasingly,

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know, this is a wonderful place to live and be and then, you

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know, young people and their families realize this is a great

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place to spend your college career. So it you know, we,

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Matt, I feel like the Walton College is tremendously

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fortunate to be a part of this region and state.

Matt Waller:

Well, you know, and you, I've talked about all the

Matt Waller:

things you've done in Northwest Arkansas, in college and Little

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Rock, but you grew up in Newport. And you went to Lyon

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College, in Arkansas. So really your experience and preparation

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for leading the college in the state. You know, there could be

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other people prepared, but you're prepared in this state,

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you know, this state. And I know that I mean, I'm not from here.

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I grew up in Kansas City, Missouri, moved here from

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Michigan and lived in Pennsylvania before that. And

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you still know more about the state of Arkansas than I do. And

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I've lived here for 30 years. And I love it. I mean, it's

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wonderful. But I know you've got ideas about how to even reach

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out to the rest of the state, not just and you've already been

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doing. You've already been engaged in it. Would you mind

Matt Waller:

speaking to that a bit?

Brent Williams:

Yeah, I think I think you're right. You know,

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I'm fortunate to be from here. I love it. You know, I grew up in

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a small town in East Arkansas in an area that, you know,

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Northwest Arkansas is beautiful. In my opinion, you know, that

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area of Arkansas has its own has its own unique beauties. And,

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you know, the economy there is quite different, you know, and

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the areas like, like agriculture and the steel industry that's

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emerging in Northeast Arkansas, you know, are vibrant, and you

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have the forestry industry in, in South Arkansas. So, you know,

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I think there's ways for us to increasingly connect to those

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industries. And, you know, the fortunate thing for us, you

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know, we talked about the tailwinds of Northwest Arkansas

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and our state, our alumni are truly a tailwind as well.

Matt Waller:

Yes.

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They care.

Matt Waller:

They do

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They care about the success of this institution.

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They care about the success University of Arkansas, and I

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think ultimately, they care about our students success. And

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I think the connectivity of this state is pretty rare. You know,

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the ability for you, Matt, as having been the dean of the

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Walton College for eight years, to probably reach any person in

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this state so easily is is a really rare thing. And so I hope

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to be able to capitalize on those relationships as well.

Matt Waller:

Absolutely. Well, Brent, thank you for all your

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service to the college over the past, I was gonna say years, but

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it's been longer than that, because you've really been here

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for 20 years. It's things you did, even as a student,

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contributed to where we are today and the successes we've

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had. But thank you for all you've done, and I look forward

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to serving as a professor under your leadership.

Brent Williams:

You've been a huge reason for any success I've

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had. So thank you, Matt.

Matt Waller:

On behalf of the Sam M Walton College of

Matt Waller:

Business, I want to thank everyone for spending time with

Matt Waller:

us for another engaging conversation. You can subscribe

Matt Waller:

by going to your favorite podcast service and searching be

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About the Podcast

Be EPIC Podcast
Welcome to the Be Epic Podcast featuring Brent Williams, interim dean of the Sam M. Walton College of Business at the University of Arkansas. In each episode, you will hear from guests that will inspire you to be epic. As experts in their field, they will emphasize strategy, leadership, and entrepreneurship. This programming will highlight innovation and cutting-edge information that will leave you wanting more. Be sure to connect with Brent Williams on LinkedIn to join the conversation, access show notes and discover fantastic bonus content.