Videos

2023 LBS Awards Show Presents the Co-opetition Award to Abigaile Reed

2023 LBS Awards Show Presents the Co-opetition Award to Sophie Davis

2023 LBS Awards Show Presents the Co-opetition Award to Quetzie Jacob

The Finale.

With five weeks left, teams parted ways with their K College analysts for the remainder of the semester. After giving AVB “both enjoyable and humbling” feedback as well as recidivist beneficial feedback themselves, teams were ready to tackle what the rest of the school-year had in store.

Both reflecting on the presentations and preparing for the next were on the agenda for the first week back as teams re-navigated.

Jumping forward to final presentations in week 12, there was no holding back. Teams put their all in, spending ample time prepping and fine tuning in order to deliver the best final recommendations possible. In addition, CTLs and analysts reflected on the entirety of Spring semester, both how they grew and how they’ll continue to grow as young professionals.

Juiced up, deep in the jungle, and getting after it, we thank you for following along on this journey and encourage you to find comfort in the uncomfortable as you wade through life.

Another look Into The Jungle, reflecting on our last week with Kalamazoo College business students and our mid-semester presentations.

“You can stay safe where you are and have an ordinary life, or you can risk crossing the jungle to have a terrific life” -Ray Dalio. A quote we consistently return to in the Leadership and Business Strategy program, as it reminds us the best way to achieve something is to work through it and allow yourself to grow.

Teams comprised of CTLs and Analysts from both Western and K College presented recommendations to AVB after months of preparation. For K College business students, this was their final hurrah before finishing the winter trimester.

Gifts, encouragement, and feedback were just some of the things given and exchanged this week—being sure to get everyone in the spirit to take on the busy week and get after it. With spirits high and drive to achieve pushing though, all six teams were able to give it their all and come out of the first half of the semester stronger than before.

Stay tuned for the final episode of the series and keep getting after it.

The woman behind Sincerely, this is US: Brianna Garrett.

The Center for Principled Leadership and Business Strategy and WMU senior Brianna Garrett have been working together to put on an exciting event to promote diversity within the program and find your most authentic self in the professional world.

This event is open to all, and we hope to see everyone there! To learn more, and for details to RSVP visit: https://experiencewmu.wmich.edu/event...

To learn more about our program visit:

Instagram: @lbswmu

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/lbs-...

Websites: LBS Center (squarespace.com)

Haworth College of Business | Western Michigan University (wmich.edu)

This Thursday, we are throwing it back to the beginning of the Leadership and Business Strategy program here at Western with “LBS Classic”.

We wanted to highlight Logan Mulholland, an LBS alum from 2021, and hear more about her time in the program and how it set her up for success.

Joining LBS when it first launched, Logan had the opportunity to not only watch the program grow but also make her mark on it and grow alongside it—professionally and beyond.

“We’re all in it together, we are all learning together. Leaning on those other CTLs—when you have problems in your team, when you’re trying to address a conflict—is crucial, it’s not just a competition. The more work that you put in, the more you’ll get out of it.” -Mulholland

Thank you to Logan for giving us some advice! We love watching you get after it!

Western Michigan University's Center for Leadership and Business Strategy and Kalamazoo College started an exciting partnership this semester that allows students to leave the classroom and collaborate on in-depth consulting projects. Students enter the experiential learning course and are paired into teams, led by students who have previously taken the course, and work with local West Michigan companies to provide business strategies and solutions.

Over the past week, both institutions held a historic event at Sleeping Giant Capital where they brought together students, CEOs in residence, program collaborators, President Montgomery of Western Michigan University, President Gonzalez of Kalamazoo College, Mayor Anderson of Kalamazoo, Provosts, Haworth furniture representatives, AVB, and other influential civic leaders. This event was led by co-directors of Western's Center for Principled Leadership and Business Strategy Drs. Doug Lepisto and Derrick McIver and Amy MacMillan, L. Lee Stryker Associate Professor of Business Management for Kalamazoo College. The event told the story of the ecosystem involved in making this a reality for students, Kalamazoo, the future of higher education, and companies within West Michigan.

The meeting displayed this ecosystem that provides opportunities for students, from the professors, the institutions, the client company, the space design, the impact on the community, and the overall benefits. From both institutions, six students were able to speak on their time in the program, its impact on their lives, and the opportunities students have been given through joining this program.

President Montgomery noted after their exchanges, "I had a feeling getting to know Doug, Derrick, and now you {Amy} that this program would be an incredibly high energy and impactful program. And then you hear these stories and that's what you hear. That its changed people's lives, changed perspectives, and it gifted them opportunities... That's a win-win. You grow as an individual and then we as an institution have an impact on what surrounds us as an ecosystem, the education systems, corporate partners, and the community. That's part of what makes Kalamazoo so special, and I would love to see this thing grow even bigger."

"As a faculty member, the easiest thing you can do is stay in your classroom where you control everything that happens," President Gonzalez said. "When you agree to do something like this, all that is out the door... But what is going on here? And my answer to that is this is the future of Kalamazoo. This is the future of this country...We have civic leaders, business leaders, we have students, and faculty getting together to make a better future. And that is why I'm so excited about this program. I really hope this program continues to grow and expand because of this opportunity that this group of students has this term, I hope that we have hundreds of students over the years that will be able to experience this."

Both President’s noted how thankful they were for the opposite institution for working together to make this experiential learning opportunity for students possible. They also appreciated the faculty involved in making this a reality. Greg Dobson, Chief Operating Officer of this semester’s client AVB, also thanked the institutions for coming together and offering these experiences to shape students’ futures.

Dobson and AVB, a construction and development firm, challenged students this semester by looking into future growth strategies. Throughout the semester student teams will compete to come up with the best recommendations and are guided by faculty members on how to solve these issues. Colleague Andrew Schipper, President of Commercial Construction at AVB, also announced that AVB will also be awarding a $5,000 cash prize to the students of the top team.

Haworth furniture representatives, also spoke on the importance of an ecosystem as it pertains to space in higher education. The Haworth team partnered with The Center for Principled Leadership and Business Strategy back in November, to follow alongside their customers and to study how and why students utilize space the way they do. This provides students with the ability to learn and grow in state-of-the-art environments and offers Haworth the opportunity to understand its audiences better.

This semester, the Center for Principled Leadership and Business Strategy at WMU Haworth collaborated with Kalamazoo College's Department of Economics & Business to offer students a never-before-seen experiential learning program.

Kicking off week five, Western Michigan University student Nick Scherer walks us through his morning and takes us into The Jungle to see what 3010/4010 is working on.

Teams continue to grow and build real-world ideas. With the managing partners roleplaying as 'analysts', CTLs from each team worked through difficult scenarios and discussions, providing feedback to the 'analysts'. Students were able to learn valuable lessons in real time, identifying what worked and what didn’t, and how to best meet clients’ needs through team performance and communication. Creating this positive & fun environment, allowed students to feel confident in their choices and decisions they will make in future conversations.

Constantly learning, growing, evolving, and persevering, teams continue to make their way through The Jungle. We hope you continue to follow us along on our journey this semester as we get after it!

This semester the Center for Principled Leadership and Business Strategy at WMU Haworth collaborated with Kalamazoo College's Department of Economics & Business to offer students a never-before-seen experiential learning program.

The pace quickens as teams iterate ideas and create deliverables. CTLs and Analysts are tasked with creating issue trees to break down the client's business model and figure out the potential growth opportunities.

Kalamazoo College students, Camille Misra, Allison Schmidt, Lucas McGraw, and Gabriel Vidinas, explain why they wanted to take this unique experiential learning opportunity and what it is like to get outside the classroom. Kalamazoo College Professor Amy MacMillan's commitment to experiential learning and innovation has helped students push outside their comfort zones.

Teams learned this week that not all ideas, only the best, will make it onto the deliverable. Having multiple revamp and reiteration sessions, teams learned that simple sometimes means better.

Looking ahead: The sun finally comes out in Michigan and students realize the effects of leaving the classroom. We hope you continue to follow us along on our journey this semester.

This semester the Center for Principled Leadership and Business Strategy at WMU Haworth collaborated with Kalamazoo College's Department of Economics & Business to offer students a never-before-seen experiential learning program. This week students stepped outside their comfort zones, getting to know each other, through interactive ice-breakers and 1-on-1s.

WMU Alumni, Kevin Carmody, dropped into class and offered his support and words of encouragement on the unique project ahead. Carmody, an Executive Mentor in the LBS program, noted the real-life applications this course offers and how this program differentiates students from other top universities within the professional world.

Team Leads, Fynn Lohse, Mitchell Bates, and Sophie Davis reflected on their time as analysts throughout the LBS Program. Lohse, last semester's Emergent Leader Award Recipient, touched on the impact LBS has had on his life and hopes that he can empower his analysts to become the best versions of themselves. Bates recognizes the difficulty of the course and welcomes this push outside of his comfort zone, for himself and his team. Davis grew significantly since her time as an analyst and hopes that each of her analysts grows throughout this complex course.

Craig Hopkins, LBS Leadership Fellow, posed questions and offered words of wisdom to teams before they started working on their deliverable. Hopkins noted that some of the most important factors in learning and team collaboration are the diversity of thoughts and contradicting beliefs. This allows students to foster new ideas and come to various solutions throughout the deliverable and course.

We hope you continue to follow us along on our journey this semester.

Here is a snippet of what students have been up to during the Spring 2023 semester:

This semester the Center for Principled Leadership and Business Strategy at WMU Haworth collaborated with Kalamazoo College's Department of Economics & Business to offer students a never-before-seen experiential learning program.

Students are developing into young professionals by changing how they dress, where they collaborate, and their increased performance in new, modern workspaces.  Leaders are starting to step outside their comfort zones, taking risks, and being candid with one another.

Data collection sessions are the biggest task for the week. Students are to utilize past deliverables to answer what they do not know and generate questions for primary data collection. Coordination is the name of the game this week.

We hope you continue to follow us along on our journey this semester.

Here's a recap of a very successful fall semester. This semester was full of personal growth and development of the LBS culture at the Haworth College of Business. Looking forward to an even better spring course with Kalamazoo College! Big things are ahead. Stay dialed and get after it!

This semester the Center for Principled Leadership & Business Strategy at WMU Haworth collaborated with Kalamazoo College's Department of Economics and Business to offer students a never-before-seen experiential learning practicum. Hosted by Sleeping Giant Capital and lead by Amy MacMillian, Doug Lepisto, Derrick McIver, & Craig Hopkins, the students work in downtown Kalamazoo, leaving the typical classroom setting and entering a professional environment. The course structures students into teams of analysts and team leads tasked with completing a consulting project with a company based in West Michigan. We hope you follow us along on our journey this semester.