Business Insight Zone

Kent Hemingson of UT’s McCombs School of Business flattered me with an invitation to speak to the undergraduates in the “Brass Ring” program, and last night I got to take him up on his offer. The program makes me proud of my alma mater, because it sends small teams of go-getting undergrads into companies like Dell and Austin’s Capital Metro transit company to deal with real problems of business. While I’m a huge fan of classroom teaching (and wouldn’t be working on a Ph.D. otherwise), my business experience tells me that there’s no other way to really learn business than to get down into the thick of it.

Hemingson’s the perfect person to lead the program, by the way: he impresses you immediately with his high energy and good humor, and it became clear to me from watching him work that he has a level of organizational discipline that I can only envy. (It makes sense, though, given his previous careers in operations with the U.S. Army and IBM.)

Anyway, I shared my thoughts on business information and business research, and the students treated me to a funny and stimulating discussion of the concrete challenges they face in their work for outside organizations. With any luck, I’ll be able to return in the spring to address the next crop of Brass Ringers. If that group is anything like the one last night, I can hardly wait.