Mays Impacts

Some of the world’s greatest advancements have come from strong women. Amelia Earhart, Madam Curie, Rosa Parks, and countless others have left lasting impressions in history. While the world has exponentially changed, the potential for women to enact change has not. At the 2019 Women’s Leadership Initiative Conference women gathered from across the local community, state, and country, with great excitement for another year of encouragement, equipping, and edification.

The conference opened with a welcome from Eli Jones ’82, Mays Business School Dean and Professor of Marketing, and a champion of the Women’s Leadership Initiative in Mays. “The Women’s Leadership Initiative is directly in step with Mays vision to advance the world’s prosperity. In all of our endeavors we aim to embrace change, paint vision, and move our organization towards it,” Jones said. “This conference is a part of the vision painted to include women in the advancing of the world’s prosperity.”

A common thread

This year’s speakers all spoke to that common theme – Advancing the World’s Prosperity.

Laura Arnold, Co-founder of Arnold Ventures, proposed the idea that maybe advancing the world’s prosperity had more to do with improving people’s lives, not just their situation. That to truly advance the world’s prosperity we, as a society, need to leave people better than we find them. And in order to do so, we need to maximize opportunity and minimize injustice. That sentiment is not without challenge though. Arnold was quick to acknowledge, “It’s not like smart people haven’t thought about improving people’s lives and just didn’t feel like doing it. It’s a slow process because it’s hard.” Arnold also mentioned that “there is nothing abstract about the American Dream” as she advocated for better access to education for all people. She shared her own story of success after moving to America from Puerto Rico and working hard to earn the opportunity to study at Harvard. “We can continue to write checks, but the real power is to set the system right by law and public policy. To create a chance for prosperity for all, not just a few. We don’t need to just lift people over barriers but remove barriers entirely.”

Jacquie Baly, President of BalyProjects, gave the conference her rules to advance prosperity, achieve dreams, and defy odds. Baly walked us through her life, in which adversity is a reoccurring cast member. She moved to Florida from the U.S. Virgin Islands when she was seven and was subsequently bullied for her accent. She was the first female department head in the city of Sugarland. Baly was a single mother to two boys while juggling a full-time, very public career as a tv show host. Through all of these stages, she learned to believe in herself, to prioritize her time and commitments, and to be flexible. All of these lessons, she imparted upon the WLIC audience saying, “Maybe you’re not where you thought you’d be. Or maybe you don’t know where you’re heading… Those are just speed bumps. Adjust. Adapt. Keep moving forward.”

Dr. Patricia Sulak took the stage after lunch. At a time of day where it is easy to lose focus, Sulak had the crowd sitting on the edge of their seat. With a heavy focus on advancing your wellness as a piece of advancing prosperity, Sulak really dug into defining wellness. Wellness has five categories: physical, social, psychological, financial, and spiritual. To achieve true wellness, Sulak posited that we must fulfill each role’s expectations, but we tend to self-limit ourselves. She asked, “If we have self-limiting thoughts, how will we fulfill the expectations of our roles?” and then followed it with, “Inside all of us is the ability to have a great life, but you have to get the imposters out of the way. Things happen that cause us to be someplace we don’t want to be – while it’s not your fault, it is your problem. How will you solve it?” Sulak gave us her 12 essentials to wellness and gifted a copy of her book to conference attendees.

Mays Talks live

The conference wrapped up with Mays Talks – a live podcast taping of Mays MasterCast. Host Ben Wiggins facilitated a conversation with Bridgette Chambers, Shannon Deer, and Janet Turner Parish. The hour-long conversation covered topics like the balance of work and life, the impact our words have, and the power that the millennial generation holds.

Next year’s Women’s Leadership Initiative Conference, on October 16, 2020, is already generating excitement. With a rapidly growing attendance rate, the conference is sure to remain an impactful and important space for cultivating women in leadership and generating connections that will advance the world’s prosperity for years to come.

Whether you missed this year’s conference or had the opportunity to experience the power, share your story with #MaysWLI and @MaysBusiness

COLLEGE STATION, OCTOBER 28, 2019 – Mays Business School’s McFerrin Center for Entrepreneurship is proud to reveal the businesses from across Texas and around the world who are part of the 15^th Annual Aggie 100. The ceremony, held Friday (10/25), honored the fastest-growing Aggie-owned or Aggie-led businesses. Members of the exclusive club were honored by hundreds of attendees at a private event held at the Hall of Champions at Texas A&M University’s Kyle Field.

The top 10 ranking companies were:

10. 91.38% Growth Rate- LASAL, LLC of Water Valley, Texas

9. 96.32%Growth Rate- Steel Frame Solutions & Drywall, LLC of Kerrville, Texas

8. 103.19% Growth Rate- Diamondback Energy, Inc. of Midland, Texas

7. 104.90% Growth Rate- Escondido Resources of Katy, Texas

6. 109.59% Growth Rate- Premier Coil Solutions, Inc of Waller, Texas

5. 115.19% Growth Rate- Ark Financial of Austin, Texas

4. 117.46% Growth Rate- Odin Heavy Industries, LLC of Bryan, Texas

3. 143.56% Growth Rate- LJA Infrastructure of Houston, Texas

2. 190.07% Growth Rate- Raider Pumping Services, LP of College Station, Texas

1. 284.88% Growth Rate- SIA Solutions, LLC of Houston, Texas

Summit Award Winner: Walker Engineering of Irving Texas with an average revenue of $342,698,749.

A full listing of the 2019 Aggie 100 honorees with detailed ranking information was publicly released Friday night and can be found at Aggie100.com.

The Aggie 100 program identifies, recognizes, and celebrates the 100 fastest growing Aggie owned or operated businesses throughout the world. To be considered for the Aggie 100, companies (corporations, partnerships, sole proprietorships) must operate in a manner consistent with the Aggie Code of Honor and in keeping with the values and image of Texas A&M University and must meet specific criteria.

“As we mark the 15th Crystal Anniversary of the Aggie 100 program, we celebrate our success by raising up the newest class of Aggie 100 honorees. Knowing how each member company of the Class of 2019 has overcome their own adversities to reach astounding levels of growth and prosperity, we dedicate this significant milestone to the excellence exhibited by our newest additions to the Aggie 100 family.”

About The McFerrin Center for Entrepreneurship

The Texas A&M McFerrin Center for Entrepreneurship provides encouragement, education, networking and assistance to entrepreneurially-minded students, faculty and Texas businesses. Founded in 1999, The McFerrin Center is part of Mays Business School’s Department of Management. The McFerrin Center enhances student education through campus speakers, competitions, work experiences and financial support. Texas A&M faculty and students benefit from the center’s educational programs, extensive business community network and entrepreneurial support services.

The McFerrin Center also reaches out to the state’s business community offering educational programs, business assistance and access to University resources. The McFerrin Center is supported by corporate and individual members and sponsors who believe in the value of entrepreneurial education and the value of Texas businesses working with Texas A&M University.

###

Media contact: Kiri Isaac, Communications Specialist, Mays Business School, (979) 845-3167, kiri@mays.tamu.edu.

Houston Companies: SIA Solutions LLC (1), LJA Infrastructure (3), Slate Construction, LLC (14), AmTex Machine Products, Inc (16), Eventellect, LLC (21), Able Industrial (22), 3-C Valve & Equipment, LP (23), CIMA Energy (33), JP Services (36), Method Architecture (47), SagisDx (57), Satori Marketing (69), Sallyport Holdings, LLC (78), Big Data Energy Services (83)

On October 4, 2019, Texas A&M University’s Mays Business School students and faculty learned about non-clinical career opportunities in healthcare from industry leaders during the 2019 Healthcare Forum.

The day-long event featured presentations by top executives from different healthcare enterprises, including a hospital system, an insurance company, a health information technology company, and an occupational health company.

The forum underscored the business school’s commitment to preparing students to work on the business side of healthcare. “Mays realizes how important healthcare is to our nation’s and the world’s future prosperity,” said Dean Eli Jones ’82. “To that point, we have designated healthcare as one of three Grand Challenges in our Strategic Plan. This challenge was selected because of our faculty’s expertise, our focus on developing transformational leaders in this area, and the significant support provided by Mays partners.”

The Healthcare Forum gives students a chance to interact with and learn from top industry executives. “This annual event exposes business school students to the many non-clinical career paths available in healthcare and offers career advice as well,” said Dr. Leonard L. Berry, who is a University Distinguished Professor of Marketing at Mays and a senior fellow of the Institute for Healthcare Improvement. “Most students don’t come to business school thinking about a healthcare career even though healthcare organizations have personnel needs in all of the functional areas studied in business school such as finance, marketing, human resources, and, of course, general management.”

The forum helped to expose Mays students to the possibilities of working in the healthcare industry. “Healthcare is such a broad field in general, and there’s so much you can do with it,” said Christopher Jabbour, ’21, a public health major. Jabbour attended the forum as part of a Mays course focused on healthcare.

A major industry

The forum’s speakers stressed that healthcare is an integral part of the U.S. landscape, both in terms of personal well-being and economic viability. “Healthcare is a crucial service that every person needs at various times in life,” Berry said. “It represents nearly one-fifth of the U.S. economy and is our fastest-growing labor market. Business school students can play a much bigger role in helping improve the quality and lower the cost of healthcare.”

The healthcare sector is a larger part of the nation’s economy than the oil and gas, banking and finance, and real estate industries. In her presentation, Shara McClure ’90, the divisional senior vice president of Texas Healthcare Delivery at Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Texas, noted that in 2018, the healthcare sector was a $3.65 trillion industry; by 2025, this sector is projected to break $5 trillion.

Healthcare’s cost to society and to many households is unsustainably high with five percent of insured individuals driving 50 percent of the costs. The average cost of health insurance for a family of four is $22,000 annually.

The speakers stressed that they see tremendous opportunities for innovation ahead. “I don’t know where the future of healthcare leads, but I think there’s going to be tremendous opportunities,” said Heath Rushing ‘99, senior vice president and CEO of Memorial Hermann hospitals in Katy and Cypress. “The opportunities will just look different tomorrow than they do today as health systems work to deliver value to the consumer. I feel fortunate to work for a system that’s willing to challenge the status quo and create a structure that drives value to our patients. Having that consumer focus will help improve the health of the communities we serve.”

The healthcare executives who participated in the Mays forum were pleased with participants’ interest in this growing industry. “The students’ enthusiasm around opportunities in healthcare was incredible,” said Ben Melson ’82, senior vice president and chief financial officer at The University of Texas MD Anderson Center. “When I was attending Texas A&M in the 70s and 80s, there was no healthcare discussion. In today’s healthcare, we need young talent in all business fields – accounting, finance, marketing, industrial distribution, supply chain. Healthcare is ripe for this young talent, so it’s great to be here to show students what is available out there.”

The Mays students also expressed their interest in applying their knowledge of innovation and transformational leadership to help the healthcare sector evolve. “I think that the healthcare industry is currently faced with some major challenges that affect the overall success of this country. Our generation has the opportunity to do something about it,” said Eva Paalma ’18, who is earning a master’s degree in marketing and will graduate in December. “The vision of Mays has always been about building a better future, and it just seems like a very logical step for our business school to be part of the transformation in healthcare.”