Course Sampler
With the start of a new year, Executive Education at the Robins School of Business announced 14 new workshops ranging from decision-making and communication to human resources skills and account management. To showcase some of the 14 in 2014 workshops taught by Robins School faculty, Executive Education organized a course sampler event for the Richmond business community.
Last month 25 attendees sampled the following three courses: Communicating with Impact, Executive Presence and Decision-Making. “The course sampler event brought both old and new leaders from the business community to the Robins School. Not only were they able to sample a few of the new courses, but also I hope we made them more aware of the resources available on the University of Richmond campus,” shared Kaye Vaughan, director of Executive Education.
The three samples were presented by their corresponding course instructors Bob Piazza, adjunct instructor and Executive in Residence at the Robins School, Karin Zezza, adjunct instructor and managing partner at a local management consulting firm, and Dr. Richard Coughlan, senior associate dean of the Robins School and executive director of Executive Education.
Piazza added, “Our goal with the event was to give a taste of the 14 new courses, and I believe the attendees were really able to get a sense of the latest course offerings. We had a great turnout.”
Kathy Weber, vice president of development and talent management at Argo Group US Inc., attended the event to determine what courses would be valuable for her team. “I had high expectations that the courses would be top-notch. I was surprised by how much they were able to share with us in just 20 minutes,” Weber described. “Karin Zezza’s presentation on Executive Presence was phenomenal. She is an engaging, enthusiastic facilitator, and I’ve enrolled for her full course in May.”
Montie Harper, general manager at Richmond Commercial Services, recalled Piazza’s and Coughlan’s presentations, “The ability to communicate in an impactful manner and make sound business decisions are important managerial skills. What separates the Robins School is the caliber of the instructors here. They have that rare combination of practical experience in the business world and extensive experience in academia that allows them to effectively educate individuals with a wide variety of backgrounds.”
Valerie Agnew, sales logistics analyst at a Richmond-based Fortune 200 company attended the course sampler in order to extend the outline of potential courses to offer her team. “We recently took a course on innovation with Dr. Doug Bosse, and it was excellent. Dr. Bosse helped us understand what it really means to be innovative, and that is crucial in today’s marketplace. Executive Education and the faculty did a great job summarizing what they’re offering, and I’m excited for the new courses.”
Agnew revealed why she returns to the Robins School. “I like to work with Executive Education because they really listen to us and have talented faculty that work with us in customizing programs to our needs. The Robins School helps us keep our group skilled and progressive.”
Vaughan concluded, “This is an important year for Executive Education. We celebrated our 50th anniversary in last year, so we look forward to 2014 as the start of our next 50 years.”