College of Business Features

FSU quarterback, Christian Ponder, earned his stripes, and his B.S. in Finance in '08 and his MBA from the College of Business in '10.

Join finance guru Bill Christiansen, director of the Gene Taylor/Bank of America Center for Banking and Financial Studies, as he speaks to the hot topics of our nation's economy and learn more about what the FSU College of Business MBA program can offer you.

Lynne Lummel’s rise through the ranks of the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP), the world’s largest performing rights organization, representing hundreds of thousands of songwriters, lyricists, composers and music publishers, has been steady, deliberate – and fun.

Starting as an assistant director for human resources in 1988, she now is senior vice president of distribution and repertory, responsible for the processing of billions of musical performances which lead to a distribution of almost $850 million in domestic and foreign royalty payments to music writers and publishers annually.

The 1976 graduate of the Florida State University College of Business, who went on to earn a doctorate degree in organization development and succession planning from Columbia University, will speak at FSU on November 3 to share her experiences with students as the Charles A. Bruning Distinguished speaker.  Her topic is “Living the Dream: Managing Career Shock.” The presentation will be held at 2 p.m. in the Nancy Smith Fichter Dance Theatre in Montgomery Hall.

Andrea Laos, a master of accounting student at the Florida State University College of Business, has been selected for a position as a postgraduate technical assistant with the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) in Norwalk, Conn.  The FASB plays a crucial role in the economy by issuing financial accounting standards that govern corporate financial reporting.

"The caliber of research in the real estate program is of the highest quality," said Caryn L. Beck-Dudley, dean of the College of Business. "These rankings reflect an immense effort from the internationally acclaimed faculty and a dedication by private donors to enhance our program."

Committed to becoming the most veteran-friendly public university in the nation, Florida State University is providing support and services to military veterans and those whose future will include military service. As one way to demonstrate its high regard for these men and women, the university has begun a tradition of presenting them with a special red, white and blue Veterans Honor Cord to be worn at graduation ceremonies.

FSU's risk management and insurance (RMI) program, which recently was renamed the Dr. William T. Hold/The National Alliance Program in Risk Management and Insurance in appreciation of a $5 million gift he bestowed, is ranked sixth among public institutions and seventh overall nationally by U.S .News & World Reports. The program resides in the Department of Risk Management/Insurance, Real Estate & Legal Studies. The online master’s program in RMI, which McCullough coordinates, was the first fully online master’s program in risk management at an AACSB-accredited institution and still remains one of the nation’s largest.

College of Business students heard from one of the country’s most successful experts on wealth management Sept. 18, when alumnus John Thiel was on campus as the college’s 2012 Charles A. Bruning Distinguished Speaker.

Tallahassee, Fla. – Accelerated MBA students on Tuesday elected a new slate of MBA Association officers for the 2011-2012 school year at The Florida State University College of Business.

Meet our new professors

Francis (“Frank”) J. Nardozza has earned national and international recognition as a foremost advisor in mergers, acquisitions, financial restructurings, and investment development in the real estate and hospitality investment arenas in a career that spans more than 35 years. Now, in recognition not only for his professional accomplishments, but also for his generous contributions to his alma mater, he has been selected for induction into the Florida State University College of Business 2013 Hall of Fame.

Donna Abood, a Florida State University College of Business alumna and one of the powerhouses of Florida’s real estate industry, has one more accolade to add to a long list of professional and community honors: induction into the college’s 2013 Hall of Fame.

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — A $1 million gift to the Florida State University College of Business from Dollar Tree Inc. President and CEO Bob Sasser and his wife, Pam, will kick-start the college’s $65 million new-building campaign.

The Sassers are challenging fellow alumni to demonstrate confidence in their alma mater by supporting the college’s efforts to grow, prosper, and strengthen the educational experience for generations of Florida State business students to come. The university has committed to matching private donations raised for this new facility.

John M. Crossman, president of Crossman & Company, a much sought-after speaker and writer on national retail issues and a passionate mentor of college students, will be inducted into the Florida State University College of Business 2013 Hall of Fame.

Entrepreneurship major Luke Valentine’s vivid imagination has taken him to a place he hadn’t dreamed he would find himself: the real world of publishing. With the February 2013 release of his book “Sky Child: Piece One of Chimp’s Tale,” the 20-year-old Florida State University sophomore has embarked on an odyssey that, though not nearly as bizarre as his fantasy novel, is just as harrowing – and exciting – for the first-time author.

Faster than most mortal men, able to leap great heights in a single bound and sporting a powerful grade point average, MBA student and Olympic decathlete Gonzalo Barroilhet may seem to have superhero skills. But those who know him best say his success can be traced to this simple truth: He never gives up.

As an executive at Quaker Oats and now at Del Monte Foods,Tim Cole has a reputation as leader with a clear vision and an uncanny ability to cut through the clutter and laser focus on “needle-moving” activities. He exhibits these same leadership qualities as a member of the Florida State University College of Business Board of Governors.

Cole’s professional achievements and his efforts on behalf of the college have earned him the high regard of his peers and a position in the College of Business 2012 Hall of Fame.  He will be inducted along with two other COB alumni at the March 29 Annual Hall of Fame Dinner and Ceremony at the Florida State Turnbull Conference Center.

Since retiring from the Tallahassee Democrat,where he served as publisher and president from 1997 to 2005, J. Michael Pate has been an untiring, effective and welcome presence in Florida’s capital city and Florida State University, his alma mater.  

For his professional accomplishments and his successful efforts to enhance his community and the university, Pate, who earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration in 1968, has been selected as a 2012 College of Business Hall of Fame inductee.  He will join a prestigious group of business leader on March 29 at the Annual Hall of Fame Dinner and Ceremony at the Florida State Turnbull Conference Center.

With a passion for education and commitment to excellence, Dr. William T. Hold built one of the largest, most recognized insurance education organizations in the world. In recognition of his four-decade crusade to raise professional standards across the insurance industry, as well as his quiet, generous and unwavering support of his alma mater, Dr. William T. Hold has been selected for induction into the Florida State University College of Business 2012 Hall of Fame.

Dr. Hold will join a prestigious group of business leaders on March 29 at the Annual Hall of Fame Dinner and Ceremony at the Florida State Turnbull Conference Center. Since 2003, the college has honored alumni who embody the qualities that make the College of Business an extraordinary place to learn and grow. Like Dr. Hold, other Hall of Fame inductees have excelled in their careers and made significant contributions to the college.

In 2006, at age 46, with 25 years in the military behind him and two master’s degrees and a doctorate in business administration in hand, Fred “Randy” Blass was set to transition into retirement and civilian life. He had pretty much mapped out the next stage of his life: Teach management and entrepreneurship classes two days a week at the Florida State University College of Business and spend the rest of his time boating, fishing and golfing.

“That was the plan,” he says.

But in less than a year, the retired Air Force lieutenant colonel was bored and looking for something service-oriented and meaningful to engage him. He was tinkering with an idea for a nonprofit organization when he received a phone call from a friend and former colleague who had taught with him at the U.S. Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colo. The call would mark the end of his brief retirement and the beginning of a venture that has changed the course of his life and the lives of veterans from across the nation.

Last summer’s Global Business Seminar in Seoul, Korea, for graduate business students was such a hit that it took just two days to fill the allotted 20 slots for the 2013 seminar in Strasbourg, France, and Stuttgart, Germany. The success of the program also was the impetus for offering the business seminar this spring to undergraduates for the first time.

Internships provide a great opportunity for students to gain on-the-job training and to network with professionals in their fields before joining the workforce.  They help bridge the gap between college and the work world and allow students to experience life in the job arena. Students learn about their strengths, interests, problem-solving skills, and their ability to deal with clients and work under pressure.  Visit the College of Business Internship Office to find out about great opportunities available to you!

Larry Giunipero’s zeal for purchasing and supply chain management has a way of infusing students with a new purpose in life.

“He made me fall in love with the concepts,” said Patrick Kimbrough (MBA ’08), a buyer for Lockheed Martin in Orlando. “As a student, you love to see your professor have passion regarding the subject matter, and Dr. Giunipero personifies love for your job.”

Florida State University’s College of Business is among a growing number of schools placing renewed emphasis on building an ethical foundation that allows students to integrate information and lessons from practical courses with a societal perspective.

Senior Kaitlin Wallace has been selected as the College of Business Humanitarian of the Year, and is in the running for the Florida State University President's Undergraduate Humanitarian of the Year Award.

As a point guard on Florida State University’s basketball team, Peterson is expected to run the team’s offense by controlling the ball and making sure it gets to the right player at the right time. Above all, he must totally understand where each player is and what each player is doing at all times. In fact, Peterson’s position on the basketball team can be compared to his Master of Science in Marketing (MSM) studies. As a student pursuing this new, innovative graduate program Peterson must take on a 360-degree perspective of the firm to learn how today’s organizations develop, manage and protect their most valuable asset – their reputation.

Jill Bisco, a Ph.D. candidate in risk management and insurance (RMI), has been able to focus more time on dissertation research this school year, thanks to a $10,000 scholarship from the Spencer Educational Foundation, Inc.

Moolaguides.com, an online platform that facilitates the buying and selling of student-generated study guides, emerged as the first-place winner of the Shark Tank round of Florida State University’s InNOLEvation Challenge.  FSU College of Business senior and company CEO Tom Brady, an entrepreneurship major, walked away with a check for $15,000 to help grow his business.

If you think the practice of auditing is a concrete discipline, a mere matter of checking a company’s books against its bank statement, its assets against its stated inventory, Assistant Professor Allen Blay says think again. Auditing hard numbers is easy, he said. The real skill comes in learning how to evaluate a firm’s estimated values.

The Sales Education Foundation (SEF) released its annual list of Top University Sales Programs in May, highlighting the Florida State University College of Business professional sales program as one of the best for hiring graduates as sales professionals.

A substantial gift from the Florida Retail Foundation (FRF) presented today to the Florida State University College of Business is enabling the college to move forward with plans to launch a retail management major that will bolster the credentials of students graduating from the college and be a boon for Florida’s retail industry.

Starting this fall, the Florida State University College of Business will begin accepting state employee tuition waivers for several of its graduate programs, giving state workers the opportunity to pursue coursework without emptying their pockets.

This fall, when students and visitors walk through the main entrance of the College of Business, they will be met with a dazzling new sight: a state-of-the art trading room.

Tallahassee, Fla. – Alumnus Ken Willis, B.S. ’76, has been selected as a 2011 Florida State University College of Business Hall of Fame recipient. Willis is one of three individuals to be officially inducted into this prestigious group of 23 business leaders on Thursday, Mar. 31 at the 9th Annual Hall of Fame Dinner & Ceremony.