First Week of Fall

It is still technically summer, but the open of the fall semester has also brought some relief in terms of temperature.  We had several days in a row of triple digit heat, thank goodness a cool front came through taking temperatures down to the 80s.  This week temperatures are back up but not up to triple digits thank goodness.  Enough about the weather, so this first week...

Well the first week is pretty much like any first week.  All our professors went through their syllabuses and course matrices.  No big surprises there.  The classes seem to be fairly interesting.  I'll give a more detailed review of classes in a week or so once we get into some material.  We've also been getting into groups this first week.  This has been different from last semester.  We've gotten to pick some of our own groups, which can be good and bad.  The big news is that our entrepreneurship team has come together.  We have five members, six if you count our programmer.  It was a little last minute, but I am very happy with the outcome.  The group includes one full-time MBA student, three MMBA students, and one MAcc student.  We all have different backgrounds which adds to our diversity.  We haven't finalized what idea we will be working with yet, but there are several good ones we are looking at. 

Outside of class, I've played more golf this past week than I've played the prior 8 months.  My golf game is a little rusty, but not as bad as I thought it would be.  I'm hoping I will have more time to play this fall.  The college football season starts this coming weekend and Arkansas fans are very excited about this season.  It should be a great year for the team.  The offense will be one of the best in the country, but the defense is a bit of a question mark.  We'll see what happens.  Go Hogs!

Vacation Before Fall Semester

Last week I took a week off to take a road trip with my girlfriend, Sarah.  We drove over 2,200 miles.  It was well worth it though.  We made stops in Alabama, Georgia, and Florida.  We started the trip last Saturday by heading to Decatur, AL.  We stayed one night there and visited with an old friend of mine, EJ.  It's been a couple years since the last time I saw him and he now has 13 grand kids.  It was nice to catch up with him.  I used to work with EJ at the International Paper mill in Courtland, AL.

We had breakfast the next morning at EJ's house and then headed down to Auburn, AL.  We stopped there for lunch with another friend, Trey.  I've known Trey for about 8 years.  We used to hang out a lot when I lived in Alabama.

I had seen Trey last year so it hadn't been as long since visiting with him.  After lunch we left Auburn and headed down to Valdosta, GA.  We stayed in Valdosta a couple nights.  Its been about a year and half since the last time I was down there.  Most of the guys I worked with work a rotating shift so it's difficult to see everyone.  I did get a chance to go in the paper mill and visit with a couple different shifts. 

After Valdosta we headed down to Saint George Island, FL.  It's a very nice place with uncrowded beaches and a slow pace of life.  We got down there unpacked and relaxed.  We checked out some of the local sites and walked the beaches. 

We stayed three nights and enjoyed every minute.  And now it's time for the Fall semester to start. 

The Close of Summer

I am wrapping up internship and looking forward to the Fall.  This is my last week working full-time for Walmart.  It is bitter-sweet.  I've really enjoyed my time there and will miss seeing everyone.  However, I am also looking forward to the start of the semester and finishing up my MBA.  I will stay on at Walmart as a GA working 15 hours a week.  I looked at my schedule and looks like I will have Tuesday and Thursday afternoons free, as well as Friday.  I am also looking forward to the football season.  This may be the year for the Razorbacks to break loose and do something very special.  The state is electric with anticipation. 

The summer internship is a class and part of the class involves homework which includes the executive summary, internship evaluation, presentation, and poster.  Most of this is due tomorrow.  I'm currently wrapping all that up.  As I do that I reflect on the experience and it's been great.  If you are thinking of getting an MBA or any other education for that matter, remember that what you get out of it all depends on what you put into it.  The more you put in the more you get out.  I realize now that I could've gotten much more out of my undegraduate work, but at the time I suppose I lacked the maturity to take advantage of all the opportunities afforded to me. 

Anyhow, I will be taking a week off prior to the start of the Fall semester to relax.  I will be heading to Saint George Island, Florida.  This is beautiful and tranquil place.  The beach is clean, no oil, and it's not crowded.  The pace of life there is slow.  The sound of the crashing waves and the steady Gulf breeze create an ambiance that is indescribable.  Needless to say, I can't wait.

Career Closet Inventory

The Career Closet is getting closer to being ready for a grand opening.  With the help of a couple of the best MBA candidates in the current class, Honey Brinkley and Kevin Oden, most of the items in the Career Closet have been inventoried.  Honey and Kevin both work at SVI.  Kevin is actually no longer a part of our MBA class, he has opted to join the MMBA class.  We were able to quickly put inventory id numbers on individual items and enter them into the inventory database.

I was surprised we were able to accomplish what we did.  I thought it would take several nights to get everything in, but we worked diligently and efficiently.  We worked as a team creating a synergy that enabled us to accomplish much more together than we could have done individually.

I just wanted to recognize Kevin and Honey for volunteering their time.  I really do appreciate all the help.

Networks

One of the great advantages of the Walton MBA program is all the networking opportunities.  The presence of Walmart has brought in vendors from all over the world to Northwest Arkansas.  The connections I've made during my MBA time so far is invaluable.  Working at Walmart this summer has also provided me with some unique opportunities.

There are quite a few Walton MBA and MMBA graduates that work for Walmart.  I've had to the opportunity to meet with some of them to see how their education has helped their careers.  Aside from the insight, these connections could open doors to future opportunities.  I've also been fortunate enough to meet regularly with senior management folks to take part in one-on-one mentoring sessions.  These personal coachings provide direction in personal development.

Besides networking I've been developing a short course in project management and leadership for my department, the Analytical Research Center.  Today was the first session and it turned out pretty good.  There were a few rough spots but all-in-all not too bad.  This is a very short course but provides a good overview of project management.  The goal is to lead into more specialized areas.  A couple of the participants from today's class showed interest in learning more about the use of software applications in project management.  This leads to a natural progression of learning.  People retain more information when there is an affinity for that information.  I will be putting together some more short courses in the future.  I really enjoy putting these little courses together.  The current course consists of three modules: project management, communication and time management, and leadership.  The best part of each session is the activity at the end.  The activity ties everything together and provides application of the information.

This week I'm also implementing the Career Closet Inventory System (C2IS).  Hopefully I will get some help from my fellow MBA candidates.  I've already have one on board.  The community has shown its support for the Career Closet by donating items to the point of overflowing.  The undergraduates have shown their support by volunteering their time to run the Career Closet.  This is a great program that provides professional clothing for those who may not have the clothes they need for an interview or career fair.  It's also a great cause that anyone can support.

Fall Semester is Just Around the Corner

The Fall semester will be here before long.  We only have about a month left til classes officially start.  Unofficially they have already started for those of us in the entrepreneurship program.  Dr. Carol Reeves is whippin us into competition shape this summer.  After the performance from last year's teams, we have quite a reputation to live up to.  Last year's teams beat up on the likes of Harvard, Yale, and MIT just to mention a few.  We are in the early stages of the class and the teams are just starting to form.  Last Saturday we were presented with ideas from the University that we could use to build a business plan around.  Being a research University offers some unique opportunities.  You have to be on a team by August 23rd or you will not be allowed into the course.  While it seems we have plenty of time to form teams, perhaps we shouldn't wait til the last minute.

Aside from that I am also finishing up my summer internship.  I'm currently working on a customized short course for the Walmart Analytical Research Center geared towards project management and leadership.  I will put the finishing touches on the course this week and next week.  I've really enjoyed my time in ARC this summer.  The projects have been meaningful and fun.  I've been able to use some creativity and develop some out-of-the-box solutions.  The main thing I've gained from the summer internship at Walmart has been all the people I've met.  There are some really great people working there doing great things.  As big as Walmart is there are times when I feel like it has the community atmosphere of a smaller company.  Don't get me wrong, it's still a huge corporation, but the culture instilled by Sam Walton has endured through the exponential growth of the last several decades.

I'm also working on a project for the Walton College Career Career.  I'm currently building an inventory system for the Career Closet.  It is set to open with the Fall semester.  The Closet is already overflowing with clothes.  People have been very receptive to supporting this very worthy cause.  The data entry portion of the system is complete.  The rest of the system will be completed before the official opening of the Career Closet.

The semester is fast approaching and there's plenty to do.  I'm looking forward to the fall and seeing everyone.

Holiday Weekend

The Fourth of July weekend was a nice break in the middle of summer.  It was nice to get away for a few days.  The original plan was to head to the beaches of Florida's Emerald Coast, but BP changed those plans.  So instead we ended up going to Branson, MO.  Branson is only a couple hours from Fayetteville so it's a nice destination for a weekend getaway.  There are plenty of shows and shopping to enjoy if you're into that kind of stuff.

We decided to take in a couple of shows, the Dixie Stampede and the Chinese Acrobats.  Both were good and entertaining.  The Dixie Stampede includes a nice dinner in which no silverware is provided.  Everything must be eaten with just your hands including the soup.  The show is based off a competition between the north and the south.  Your seat decided which team you were on.  We were on the north team.  There are various competitions throughout the show like pig racing, barrel racing, chicken chasing, and so on.  There is a pre-show included with the Dixie Stampede.  The pre-show had an entertainer who could juggle all sorts of stuff.  During his finale he balanced an iron on top of a golf ball on top of another iron on top of another golf ball on top of a three wood on his chin.  It was pretty impressive.

The Chinese Acrobats show is a variety show of acrobatic skills.  The entertainers displayed skills like jumping through hoops, contortion, and high flying rope acts.  The crowd was very lively.  The show was very entertaining and we enjoyed it thoroughly.

With it being the Fourth of July there were plenty of sales going on at all the stores.  So I did a bit of shopping.  I think I've pretty well spent my shopping budget for the next couple of months.  I was able to pick up a few things I've been looking for and some deals I just couldn't pass up.

For the actual Fourth of July we came back down to Fort Smith to watch the fireworks display, however the annual display had been put on the night before.  So we scrambled to find another show.  Sifting through the internet we found a couple of fireworks shows in Northwest Arkansas, one in Rogers and the other in Bentonville.  We decided on the Bentonville show at Orchards Park.  We were not disappointed.  It was one of the best shows I've ever seen. 

So that was my Fourth of July weekend.  I had a blast.