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Pillar 4

External Engagement

We are committed to expanding the reach of Rice Business by engaging and supporting faculty, staff, alumni and community stakeholders as partners and collaborators, with a shared mission to advance initiatives that advance knowledge and practice related to diversity, equity and inclusion within our school, university and surrounding communities.

Advancing Research

Accounting

K. Ramesh

(left)

Herbert S. Autrey Professor of Accounting

Karthik Balakrishnan

(right)

Professor of Accounting
Faculty Lead of Undergraduate Business Programs

Finance

Alex Butler

(left)

Jesse H. Jones Professor of Finance

James Weston

(right)

Harmon Whittington Professor of Finance

David Zhang

Assistant Professor of Finance

Marketing

Ajay Kalra

Herbert S. Autrey Professor of Marketing

Vikas Mittal

J. Hugh Liedtke Professor of Management – Marketing

Organizational Behavior

Daan van Knippenberg

Houston Endowment Professor of Management – Organizational Behavior

Jing Zhou

Mary Gibbs Jones Professor of Management and Psychology
Deputy Dean of Academic Affairs

  • Hoever, I., Betancourt, N., Chen, G., & Zhou, J. How others light the creative spark: When and why diverse environments trigger creativity through inspiration. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes. Accepted for publication.

Sora Jun

Assistant Professor of Management – Organizational Behavior

Siyu Yu

Assistant Professor of Management – Organizational Behavior

Michelle “Mikki” Hebl

Professor of Psychology and Management – Organizational Behavior

Strategy and Environment

Douglas Schuler

Professor of Business and Public Policy

Laszlo Tihanyi

William Alexander Kirkland Professor of Strategic Management

Duane Windsor

Lynette S. Autrey Professor of Management – Strategic Management
Ph.D. Area Adviser

Alessandro Piazza

Jones School Distinguished Assistant Professor of Strategic Management


*Note: Rice Business faculty are highlighted in this section, but many publications are co-authored with non-Rice Business faculty. Click the links below each listing to see a full list of authors and other publication details.

Advancing Industry Thought Leadership

Communication

Ginger Koto Vaughn

Lecturer in Communication

Marketing

Constance Elise Porter

Senior Associate Dean for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion
Associate Clinical Professor of Marketing

  • “Houston is one of most diverse cities in the U.S., says new report,” cited in Houston Chronicle, 4/24/2024 by Shakari Briggs
  • “Most Diverse Cities in the US (2024):  Ask the Experts” cited in WalletHub, 4/15/2024 by Adam McCann
  • Business School Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Collaborative Workshop
    “DEIB Best Practices That Ensure Faculty/Student/Staff Success” was a workshop delivered jointly by Dean Porter and Prof. Ann J. Tasby (director, Office of Inclusive Excellence, TCU Neeley School of Business) at the Business DEI Collaborative Conference (2024). The workshop addressed DEIB best practices for administrative leaders including topics such as mobilizing and engaging stakeholders, developing and implementing marketing strategy, partnering with HR for staffing excellence, and infusing DEI into the curriculum.

Organizational Behavior

Minjae Kim

Assistant Professor of Management – Organizational Behavior

Strategy and Environment

Yan Anthea Zhang

Fayez Sarofim Vanguard Professor of Management – Strategic Management

  • Congratulations to our 2024 AIB Fellows Electees
    Yan Anthea Zhang was recognized as one of the 2024 Academy of International Business (AIB) Fellows electees. The AIB Fellows are a select group of distinguished scholars who have been recognized for their outstanding contributions to both our association and the international business field as a whole. In addition to selecting individuals to be honored with AIB’s prestigious annual awards, these accomplished researchers are responsible for leading official task forces and developing cutting-edge content for our global conference series.

Career Development Office Staff

Jennifer Applebee

Associate Director, Recruiting and Employer Relations, Career Development Office

  • MBA Career Services & Employer Alliance conference session, Summer 2024
    “Stepping Into the Shoes of Another” – An increasingly frequent area of discussion for career professionals is focused on the experiences and obstacles international students navigate in the U.S. This session focused on DEI as it applies to international students. This session addressed topics such as contemporary DEI issues in the U.S., commonly used terminology, the Mattering framework, a toolkit of best practices/methods to present DEI training to international students and how participants can apply these tools to their schools.

Office of Academic Programs and Student Experience Staff

Mohammad Khan

Assistant Director, Global Programs and Experiential Learning

Timoteo Modrow

Assistant Director of Student Experience, Office of Academic Programs and Student Experience

  • Texas Association of Chicanos in Higher Education, Gulf Coast Region Chapter conference session, Spring 2024
    Timoteo Modrow co-presented “Guiando y Mentorando: Exploring the Testimonios of Two Latino/x Male Student Affairs Professionals in Higher Education,”  focused on identity-based mentorship.

Rice Business Annual DEI Conference

Sparking Success, our diversity, equity and inclusion conference, is designed to provide a forum for awareness, dialogue and skill-building around issues of diversity and inclusion as it relates to the business world. At Rice Business, we endeavor to create a rich learning environment that considers and appreciates a multitude of perspectives that lead to enhanced decision-making. We consider this mindset a critical leadership skill in today’s increasingly global and inclusive workplace.

The keynote presentation, fireside chat style, featured Antonio Neri, president and CEO of Hewlett Packard Enterprise, and Dean Peter Rodriguez. Breakout session topics included corporate insider perspectives, A-1 inherent biases and ethical implications, disability as a diversity issue, imposter anxiety, intergenerational workplace dynamics, inclusion acumen and diversity advocacy.

The conference sponsors included NRG, Phillips 66, Accenture Strategy and Cheniere Energy.

External Relations

Mark Putnam, assistant dean for external relations, discusses our commitment to inclusive philanthropic efforts and engaging alumni in authentic ways.

Rice Business Partners

Rice Business Partners (RBP) is a committed partnership-based group of business professionals working to open doors, increase collaboration and build ties between Rice Business and the Houston business community.

Roundtable Series — Constructive Conflict Is an Urban Legend, Fall 2023
RBP hosted their first Faculty Roundtable event of the 2023–24 season in a conversation with Professor of Management Daan van Knippenberg. There is a longstanding belief in science and practice alike that conflict is, or at least can be, productive. The idea is that conflict can force teams to look more critically at issues, dig deeper, share more information, and be more creative in finding solutions to problems and making decisions. In sharp contrast, the actual evidence from 30 years of research suggests that this is not true. While science and practice keep claiming that there is such a thing as constructive conflict, the actual evidence shows that conflict is bad for team performance. Teams should instead desire a diversity of perspectives. Diversity of perspectives can have all the benefits that conflict is supposed to have — as long as conflict does not get in the way of the knowledge integration process that is required to realize the benefits of diversity of perspectives.

RBP hosted three Thought Leadership Series events for the 2023-24 academic year that highlighted our diverse Rice Business community.

  • Thought Leadership Series — Breaking Boundaries: The Art of Guerilla Marketing in Investment Banking and Asset Management, Fall 2023
    The first Thought Leadership Series event spotlighted Donna Sims Wilson, chief operating officer at Kah Capital Management. From unconventional networking techniques to out-of-the-box problem-solving, this presentation spotlighted the unique journey Ms. Wilson has undertaken to achieve success and lasting impact in the competitive realms of investment banking and asset management business development. With a wealth of experience and a proven track record, she shared insights on navigating the intricacies of the financial world.
  • Thought Leadership Series — The New Space Exploration Ecosystem: The Race is ON! Spring 2024
    The second Thought Leadership Series speaker spotlighted Space Center Houston’s president and CEO, William T. Harris, along with his colleague, Douglas Terrier, as they discussed the current status and future trends of the most rapidly growing sector of the world economy, NASA’s evolving role, threats and opportunities.
  • Thought Leadership Series — Global Growth Formula for Emerging Markets: Localize, Adapt, Thrive, Spring 2024
    The third Thought Leadership Series event was a discussion with Sri Srinivasan, president of measurement and control business at Honeywell Inc., USA, moderated by Professor Haiyang Li. Srinivasan shared several examples of how understanding local systems and market dynamics leads to sustained profitability in emerging regions and facilitated expansion into mature regions.

Alumni Engagement

  • Alumni relations hosted an event in Chicago coinciding with Reaching Out MBA, for LGBTQ+ identified students.
  • Invited alumni to Drag Queen Story Time, Women’s History Month partio and BBSA fall mixer.
    Women’s History Month partio
  • Provided $1,700 in event sponsorship dollars for events run by DEI-focused student clubs: Latinx in Consulting, BBSA Fall Mixer, Women’s History Month partio and Drag Queen Story Time.
  • Provided thank you gifts for panelists for DEI-focused events: Blacks in Consulting, Latinxs in Consulting and Asians in Consulting.

Black Alumni Gateway

The Rice Business Black alumni network abounds with talented and accomplished professionals across industries and sectors. As the network grows each year, there is an increased desire to intentionally connect students with the Black alumni network. To address this need, Black Business Student Association (BBSA) and Black alumni leadership worked together to launch the Rice Business Black Alumni Gateway, a website featuring an easy-to-search directory of Black alumni profiles by industry and career, along with highlights of Black excellence, leadership and accomplishment.

“The Rice Business Black alumni network’s achievements are extraordinary, and our expanding network is a powerful asset to alumni, as well as current and prospective students. The Black Alumni Gateway, launched in 2021, is a great way to make our network more visible for ongoing inspiration, collaboration and engagement. Working on this project was a labor of love. I remember how important it was for me to see others who looked like me during the MBA application process. I appreciate Dean Peter Rodriguez, Senior Associate Dean Constance Porter and the Rice Business staff for their support in bringing this vision to fruition, and I look forward to seeing its utility grow.”
Patra Brannon-Isaac ’11

Student External Engagement

John R. Lewis Racial Justice Case Competition

Rice Business MBA students won first place and $20,000 in the John R. Lewis Racial Justice Case Competition (JLCC). The first-place team Prosperity Without Prejudice was charged with solving a problem related to racial justice and equality for a large corporation.

Prosperity Without Prejudice (in order of appearance, left to right, in the photo): Dominique Wilson, Dzidefo Ababio, Damieanus Ochola, Talor Thompson

Ladies Who Negotiate

After taking the Negotiations course, MBA students explored the topic deeper from the perspective of a woman in negotiations. Jing Zhou, deputy dean of academic affairs and the Mary Gibbs Jones Professor of Management and Psychology – Organizational Behavior, acknowledged the unique challenges women face and shared effective strategies for negotiation. MBA student Nikki Suarez ’24 organized Ladies Who Negotiate. In Professor Zhou’s honor, the group raised $200 and gathered gently used business attire for Dress for Success Houston, a vital organization committed to assisting women in achieving financial independence.

Reaching Out MBA Club Leadership Summit Pitch Competition

Rice Business MBA students and members of Reaching Out MBA (ROMBA) attended ROMBA’s 2024 Club Leadership Summit in Atlanta, Georgia. The summit brings together leaders of LGBTQ+ clubs at business schools from around the world to learn best practices, connect with peers and find out how ROMBA can support their club and business careers. Out and Allied club members (in order of appearance, left to right, in the left photo) Husein Lokhandwala, Himanshu More and Alphy Thomas won first place and $5,000 at ROMBA’s Leadership Summit Pitch Competition.

Marketing and Communications

The marketing and communication team partners with students, staff, faculty and alumni to reflect and highlight the diversity of our community. Through digital advertising, videos, podcasts, blog posts and articles in Rice Business magazine and other print pieces, we share the story of Rice Business: that you belong here and that diverse groups make the best decisions. We also know that representation matters. We are intentional in featuring our diverse population within all our communications.  

Social Media 

In FY24, 70% of our top-performing social posts across all platforms — determined by highest engagement — featured at least one member from underrepresented minority groups, and 72% featured a woman. Additionally, 22% of our top-performing social posts touched on topics of diversity. These included celebrating cultural heritage months, highlighting the achievements of women and minority groups, discussing the impact of diversity in leadership and business, and promoting events that support equity and inclusion. Below is a sampling of these posts:

“Owl Have You Know” podcast

Our award-winning podcast, “Owl Have You Know,” shares the diverse experiences and perspectives of our alumni, faculty and other members of our community. 

In FY24, 62% of our podcast episodes featured women and 42% featured people from minority communities. 

We produced 17 episodes (65% of total episodes) that touched on topics of diversity. These include: White House correspondent Kalyn Norwood’s ’22 advice for women of color in white-male-dominated industries, how the Rice Business Diversity Preview Weekend changed Daniel Gutierrez’s ’14 life, and how Brian Jackson ’21 found a job that fits his values after leaving one where he experienced discrimination for his sexual orientation.

Two episodes featured experts in DEI: 

Admissions Blog

The Marketing and Communications team also produced 11 admissions blog posts touching on diversity in programs, careers and ethnicity. Here are a few: 

Rice Business Magazine

Rice Business magazine is published twice a year, and the editorial team is committed to representing the diverse audience we serve. During the 2023–24 academic year, 52% of magazine articles featured individuals or groups from underrepresented backgrounds and 47% of articles featured women. Such articles include:

  • Failing Forward: Wendy Fong EMBA ’13 looks back on the biggest mistake of her career — and the clarity it gave her to discover the work she loves.
  • A Simmering Crisis: More than one-third of the world’s population is cooking meals over open fires, without access to modern cooking technology. The result: health risks associated with indoor air pollution. It’s a topic not often discussed, but Dymphna van der Lans ’02 is speaking up.
  • Office Space: Inside the office of Janet Moore: communicator, educator and world traveler. 

Rice Business Wisdom

Articles in Rice Business Wisdom, our online ideas magazine focused on faculty research, are published twice per month (23 total since July 2023). Over the last year, 65% of articles featured faculty from underrepresented backgrounds, 34% featured female faculty members and 13% of the articles focused specifically on DEI research topics. These include:  

We are committed to highlighting the diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives of the Rice Business community and living our motto — You Belong Here. 

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