Community Talent

One of the nice things about working in an urban university is the rich business community it lives in. And for Rockhurst, this has helped it create and nurture a number of alumni and friends that provide a rich resource of talent for our students and faculty to draw from. For instance, last week we two such people on our campus speaking to student groups.

Mary Pat McCarthy, Vice Chairman for KPMG, spoke to over 100 students and faculty on Oct. 3rd. She spoke primarily about leadership and ethics, but she also shared her stories about managing a career. In addition to being an accomplished businessperson in her field, she is author of several books (you'll find them in Amazon.com) and has a Jesuit background (she and much of her family attended Creighton University). Many of my day students attended the event and one student reflected how helpful it was to hear someone give their real life struggles with delegating work and trusting others--seems that many good students tend to like to be controlling, something good managers must give up. This event, sponsored by our Center for Ethics and Leadership, was the first in a series . . . we have another speaker coming in November as part of this series.

Also last week, a Rockhurst MBA alum, Ronald Rittenmeyer, spoke to our executive fellows class. Mr. Rittenmeyer is CEO of EDS, an international IT solutions company founded by Ross Perot. You can read Mr. Rittenmeyer's bio here. I missd his Friday morning presentation, but it is not uncommon for our students at all levels (and faculty) to have access to the alumni and community talent right here in K.C.