Strickland Awarded the Sullivan Faculty Award Update

• April 12th, 2016
• in Behind the Scenes: Meet our Staff & Faculty, EMBA Elite Spotlight Series

Dr. Lonnie Strickland, John R. Miller Professor of Strategic Management, is the 2016 Algernon Sydney Sullivan Faculty Award honoree. Considered the highest honor The University of Alabama offers. Recipients of the award have demonstrated the highest standards of scholarship, leadership, and service. The Sullivan Faculty Award recognizes the practical application of noble ideals and is based on excellence of character and service to humanity.

Strickland currently teaches Strategy Formulation and Implementation in the Tuscaloosa and Huntsville EMBA Programs. He began teaching at Alabama in 1969 and is one of the founders of and has taught in every EMBA class at Alabama since its inception 31 years ago. He has won every major teaching award the University has to offer. He is also ranked first, second, or third when graduating Culverhouse students are asked a version of the following question, “Name one person who has had a significant influence on your life at Alabama.”

A rigorous, demanding and passionate professor as well as a skillful raconteur who is held in high esteem by his students.  According to Jimmy Mauldin (EMBA 2002), Economic Counselor, U.S. Embassy-Accra Ghana, “Lonnie Strickland’s classes on strategic management always come to mind … even 13 years later.”
The impact of Strickland’s teaching is evident in the stories our alumni continue to tell. “We grew market share of a key product in a growing segment from 15% to ultimately 100% ($200M annual run rate) over a seven-year period using principles of Michael Porter’s 5-forces model taught in Lonnie Strickland’s Strategy class,” according to Kevin Morgan (EMBA 1998), Director of Cloud and Services Marketing, ADTRAN, “and along the way we put competitors out of business.” Strong testament to the power of a course and a professor who strives to make a difference in a student’s life.

“To Lonnie, teaching is a vocation, not a job,” said long time peer and friend, Dr. Ron Dulek, John R. Miller Professor of Management, and EMBA Professor of Business Communications. “I can assure you, as one who sees him daily either before he goes or after he returns from class, he is as excited about and dedicated to teaching well today as he was in 1969 when he started teaching at Alabama.”

Strickland is co-author of the best-selling strategic management textbook, Crafting and Executing Strategy, which is currently used at 900 universities worldwide. Along the way he has served as National President of Phi Kappa Phi; served on various local, regional and national Boards of Directors, including two Fortune 1000 size companies: the Statesman Group and American Equity; co-founded a number of smaller companies and has been an advisor to countless students in their efforts to start small businesses or advance their corporate careers.

Dr. Strickland has been a tremendous supporter of the EMBA Program and continues to be an inspirational source for our students and alumni.  Congratulations Lonnie.

Donna Blackburn, Director, EMBA Program
For more information on The University of Alabama Executive MBA Program contact Cheryl Altemara at 205.348.4501, or caltemara@cba.ua.edu.

EMBA Elite Spotlight Series: Nancy Acquavella

• August 22nd, 2014
• in EMBA Elite Spotlight Series

Nancy Acquavella is a business owner, an avid traveller, a wife, and the mother of three pups. With the flexibility of the Culverhouse College of Commerce Executive MBA Program, Nancy is able to fill her various roles as well as one more:  University of Alabama student. To Nancy, success is more than winning; it is about putting forth effort and taking a risk. “(Success is) going after your dreams with everything you have – if it doesn’t work out it isn’t failure, it is success because you tried,” Nancy said. From opening a company with her husband to earning her MBA while working full time, Nancy is definitely succeeding.

After graduating with a Bachelor of Science in International Business from Old Dominion University, Nancy joined the entry-level workforce of a small New Jersey company. Dedication and guidance from her mentors drove her up the corporate ladder and into the executive position of Senior Vice President. Today, Nancy is Chief Administrative Officer and co-owner of Yorktown Systems Group, Inc., which she opened with her husband in 2008.

Yorktown Systems Group is a small business that is making an impact providing training, education, and management services to the government. After five years in operation, the company landed on the 2013 Inc. 500 Ι 5000 list with a ranking of 432 – fourth of all ranked Alabama companies and 35^th in the government services industry. Nancy and her team conduct the company’s administrative procedures including customer service, human resources, contract management, and more.

Since Nancy’s position requires her to be involved in multiple areas of her company, she knows the value of her free time and chose to invest it into our Executive MBA program because of our convenient schedule and the well-known merit of  The University of Alabama. Nancy’s role as a small business owner gives her a unique opportunity to apply the expertise she gains in class as the program progresses. “I’ve been able to tailor the projects to specific issues we have at our business – so I’m not only learning the skills, but also utilizing them in real work issues to get answers and insight,” Nancy said.

There is no wondering where Nancy acquired her taste for travel – born on Christmas Day to Mary (Ann) and Joseph in Beijing, China, Nancy grew up between Bonn, Germany and Arlington, Virginia. Although she has visited at least 35 states as well as various locations in the Caribbean, Australia, and Europe, Nancy finds it difficult to single out the best destination. When asked to choose, Nancy responded, “My favorite destination in the US or abroad is the same – somewhere I’ve never been before. Any day in a new place is a fantastic adventure to me.” Nancy is in for a treat in the spring when she embarks on the annual International Trip with her classmates and the EMBA staff and faculty to The Republic of Panama and Colombia.

For more information about the Culverhouse College of Commerce Executive MBA Program, contact Cheryl Altemara at 205.348.4501 or fill out an interest form here.

Congratulations, Class of 2014!

• May 7th, 2014
• in UA EMBA Latest News/Events

Thirty-eight graduates from the Culverhouse College of Commerce Tuscaloosa and Huntsville EMBA programs at The University of Alabama walked the stage on the morning of Saturday, May 3^rd. Surrounded by stunning views of the Walk of Champions and the field,

EMBA staff and faculty joined the graduates and two hundred and sixty-five of their closest friends and family for a banquet in the North Zone of Bryant-Denny Stadium directly after commencement. The event was filled with pride and fond memories as families reconnected over the success of their graduates. After the luncheon and award ceremony, the graduates and their families were given a tour of the stadium including the home team’s locker room, tunnel, and skyboxes.
One of our graduates, Nag Padur, was noticeably absent. His wife was giving birth to their daughter, Eaksha.  Born on her father’s graduation day, Eaksha’s name means “sight,” and can be loosely translated as “knowledge of soul.” Congratulations to the Padur family.

Awards were given to recognize each class’s President, Vice President, and MVP, as well as each student that completed the program with a 4.0 GPA. Recongnized were HEMBA’s President Staci Woods, Vice President Dana Runager, and MVP Matthew Brent Gardner and TEMBA’s President Christopher Jones, Vice President Sonya Ogletree, and MVP Paul Mongeon. Graduates that earned a 4.0 GPA include Huntsville’s Patrick Ellinger, Matt Gardner, and Nag Padur and Tuscaloosa’s Matt Bogue, Mrinal Dhar, Jeff Leroy, and Paul Mongeon. We are extremely proud of our graduates for these outstanding achievements.

Both the Tuscaloosa and Huntsville classes delivered a Dr. James F. Cashman Faculty Award as well as an EMBA Faculty Excellence Award. The Dr. James F. Cashman Faculty Award honors the memory of the late EMBA Strategy Implementation professor who lived by high standards of integrity and served as a pristine example for his students. The award, given to a faculty member that reflects Dr. Cashman’s positive influence, was presented to Dr. David Mothersbaugh (HEMBA) and Dr. Ronald Dulek (TEMBA). The EMBA Faculty Excellence Award was presented to Dr. Ronald Dulek (HEMBA) and Dr. Brian Gray (TEMBA).

Once again, congratulations to the Executive MBA Class of 2014:

Sam Barall, Havis, Inc.
Matt Bogue, The Dutch Group
Karen Braxton, Clear Channel Media
Tim Brown, Flexco
Myers Bruso, Farmco Builders Inc.
Ray Chowdhury, Missile Defense Agency
Jason Cochran, League of Southeastern Credit Unions
Brandon Cole, Sanmina – SCI, Technology
Will Coulter, High Rock Group International
Kathi Dawn, Genesis Healthcare LLC
Mrinal Dhar, DCH Regional Medical Center
Patrick Ellinger, Emerson Network Power
Edward Eskridge, Honda of America Manufacturing, Inc.
Corey Farris, Walter Energy
Ed Galvin, Sandvik Mining & Construction LLC
Matt Gardner, International Fire Protection
Emmett Garrett, USA Aviation Flight Test Directorate
Ted Gryska, Two Men and a Truck
Daayge Harvil, Wee Care Academy
Ashley Jackson, UAB Medicine
Christopher Jones, Southern Light
Robert Justice, Scientific Research Corporation
Scott Knighton, Blastcrete Equipment Company
Jeff Leroy, Central Garden and Pet
Marshall Liles, Nissan North America
Josh McGill, Applied Chemical Technology Inc.
Paul Mongeon, North America Coal – Red Hills Mine
Gary Morrison, Regions Financial Corporation
Janet North, Nucor Steel
Sonya Ogletree, Tempest Global Consulting, Inc.
Nag Padur, ADTRAN, Inc.
Dana Runager, River City Center
Sunil Singh, IBM
Krystal Swann, Raycom Media
Jennifer Thomas, Alabama Power
Brad Wood, US Air Force
Staci Woods, Oracle
Tamaria Yarbrough,  Alacare Home Health and Hospice