Southern Miss Business November 2023 Newsletter

To Meet, or Not to Meet, That Is The Question.

Most meetings are major productivity killers. Although meetings can provide some benefits, such as opportunities for collaboration and face-to-face interactions, they also take a toll on job performance. Dilbert, cartoon after cartoon, made fun of the time waste most meetings represent. This sentiment is not without support. Bain & Company conducted a study on meetings and found that 15% of an organization's collective time is spent in meetings. This is important because 65% of senior managers say meetings keep them from completing their own work, 71% found them unproductive and inefficient, and 62% say meetings miss opportunities to bring teams closer together (Harvard Business Review). While this study focused on senior managers, employees at all levels complain that they are unable to get work done, which is partly due to endless meetings. In fact, employees don't need to be in almost a third of the meetings they attend. This is a huge financial drain as useless meetings cost large companies approximately $100M per year (Bloomberg).

Other studies show, fifty percent of meeting time is well spent and engaging, while the other half isn't. This is troubling considering there are 55 million meetings a day. Further, only around 20% of leaders ever receive training on how to run a meeting and that training isn't typically meaningful, so the likelihood of having effective meetings is relatively low. Also, most organizations have no assessment of meeting success or meeting feedback mechanisms (Forbes). Despite so much negativity and infectiveness related to workplace meetings, very little has been done to address it. However, there are a few examples of companies who are taking action. For example, Canadian eCommerce giant Shopify announced plans to significantly reduce the number of meetings held by the business at the beginning of 2023. What are some of the actions they took? They removed all recurring meetings with more than two people "in perpetuity," prohibited meetings held on Wednesdays, and limited meetings of 50 people or more to a six hour window on Thursdays with a limit of one per week (Business Leader). Curriculum Associates also recently made changes to address meeting problems by empowering employees to be masters of their own time and encouraging them to say "no" to meetings (Fast Company). Other companies have done things such as creating "no meeting" timeslots, having meetings only on one day per week, regularly re-evaluating meetings to re-work schedules as needed, and organizing a meeting purge where all recurring meetings are deleted and not added back unless they meet certain decision rules (The Muse).

Although most people have seen ineffective workplace meetings as a problem, academics have paid very little attention to how to address it until recently. Steven Rogelberg wrote an amazing book The Surprising Science of Meetings a few years ago and it provides a ton of helpful, research-based guidance for improving meetings. I highly recommend this book. I can't do it justice because it has so many great suggestions, but before you book that next meeting, here are a few things to consider.

1. Do we "need to meet?" We've all seen that meme "This meeting could have been an email" and it's funny because it is so true. Meetings are good for idea generation, analyzing problems, or reaching decisions. They shouldn't be used to relay basic information. So, consider whether a meeting is required or if it can be accomplished in an email or phone call. If it can, don't schedule a meeting.
2. If a meeting is necessary, who needs to be in the meeting? If a person's input is needed, invite them. If not, don't invite them. In other words, who will contribute to the successful attainment of the goals of the meeting? Only invite those people. A large room of people who are simply there because they were included wastes their time and likely detracts from the meeting.
3. Are you inviting too many people? We often invite too many people to meetings. Research shows that as group size increases, so do a lot of negative group behaviors such as social loafing and poor group decision making. Although there is no hard and fast rule, some research suggests that the best group size for decision-making is seven people and the more people in the group, the more decision-making problems you will experience.
4. How long should the meeting be? We often default to standard blocks of time for meetings. An hour seems to be one of the most common lengths of meetings, but meeting length is often chosen without consideration of the actual tasks that need to be accomplished. Allocate a certain amount of time for each topic or task and base the meeting length on the total time estimate. You can have very productive 15–20-minute meetings if they are well-planned and focused.
5. Do you use a meeting agenda and is it helping? Meetings without an agenda almost always run poorly, but simply having an agenda isn't a panacea for all meeting ills. Agenda items should be framed around problems that need to be solved or key decisions that must be made. Each agenda item should contain a detailed description of the problem, process notes, preparation required before the meeting, and the time allotted for the item. The time allotted can be somewhat flexible, but you should use it to help keep participants on track. Also, distribute the agenda a day or two before the meeting to allow participants to prepare and come to the meeting ready to contribute.
6. Are you great at leading meetings? Most of us probably aren't, based on the absence of training we've received on how to effectively manage meetings. However, we should be. While reducing the number of meetings is probably a good thing, meetings are still required, and bad meetings are as big a problem as too many meetings. Invest time and money in improving the meeting skills of your leadership team (including yourself).

These are just a few considerations and I hope no one mistakes this column as expert advice because I certainly struggle with effectively managing meetings as well. However, I think the more we study meetings and apply the results to the workplace, the more common effective meetings will become. I'd love to hear your thoughts and insights concerning workplace meetings!

Business Career And Internship Expo

The Fall 2023 Business Career & Internship Expo was hosted in Scianna Hall this month, welcoming more than 150 students to interact with organizations recruiting for internships, training programs, part-time positions, and full-time career opportunities. 44 companies from a large variety of industries set up on both the first and second floor of the business building to network with students of all business majors and classifications.

2023 Entrepreneurs of the Year

Congratulations to Doug and Susan Fasano Williams on being named the Southern Miss Business 2023 Entrepreneurs of the Year! They are the owners of Kalalou, Inc., a home furnishings and décor wholesale company that serves more than 10,000 retailers across the globe. Their organization has been featured in Inc. Magazine’s "500 Fastest Growing Privately Held Companies in America" and Entrepreneur Magazine’s "51 American Success Stories." The couple credits their success and entrepreneurial spirit to their time and education at Southern Miss.

Inaugural Hatchathon

The Hatchery's inaugural hackathon, "Hatchathon," brought a whirlwind of innovation and collaboration! Over 50 university and high school students participated, pitching ideas and diving into a week-long journey focused on "Tech for Social Impact." Teams harnessed their creativity, prototyping tech solutions that leverage AI to tackle real-world challenges. The Friday finale showcased 3-minute demos of the mobile and web apps developed during the week. A big thanks to the event partners VOXO, Inc. and the School of Computing Sciences and Computer Engineering for making this experiential journey possible!

Meet the brilliant minds behind the winning tech solutions from Hatchathon!

• First Place: Clean Label, an innovative food insights app by Abel Gurung, Rupak Raut, and Bipul Adhikari
• Second Place: Memoir, an interactive memories app by Aayush Gautam
• Third Place: Pheme, a personalized news podcast app by Yaju Shrestha

Special shoutout to Memoir for "Best Usage of AI" and to Gig Finder by Ashim Dahal, Bimarsh Bhusal, Kiran Silwal, and Prabin Bajgai, for being selected as "People's Choice" by the audience. A round of applause to all teams for their incredible efforts in driving social impact through technology!

Etiquette Dinner

This semester's Etiquette Dinner, sponsored by Cintas, gave students the opportunity to learn and practice etiquette in numerous dining and social situations. Those in attendance were taught the fundamentals of introductions, place settings, utensil usage, and more.

Local Impact Analytics: How Two Business Alumni are Enhancing Communities, One Grant at a Time

Amidst the challenges of funding vital community enhancement projects, Local Impact Analytics has emerged to aid in solving infrastructure problems, turning the ambitions of small cities into tangible solutions. This Hattiesburg-based consulting firm has mastered the art of securing grants, with more than $160 million in total grant wins for cities across the southeast, including Hattiesburg, Mississippi. Co-founded by Southern Miss Business alumni, Josh Sullivan and Alex Pickle, the organization has pioneered a path in the competitive world of grant work.

Just acquaintances when they began at Southern Miss in 2009, neither Alex nor Josh saw themselves pursuing careers in economic development. Josh earned his undergraduate degree in audio engineering, driven by his love for music. His college years were marked by playing in punk rock and hardcore bands with the thrills of touring during summer breaks. Meanwhile, Alex embarked on a journey of exploration, dabbling in various majors before settling on interdisciplinary studies with a concentration in economics and sociology.

Alex’s diverse interests led him to pursue a master's in economic development at Southern Miss right after earning his bachelor’s degree. It was here that his passion for community development and economic analysis began to form. As a graduate assistant, Alex immersed himself in benefit cost analysis (BCA). His research not only expanded his understanding of economic evaluation but also laid the foundation for the future of their company, as this unique combination of skills set the stage for the birth of Local Impact Analytics. “Without the MSED program, our company would not exist,” said Alex.

Meanwhile, the uncertainty of a career in the music industry led Josh to seek opportunities elsewhere. While attending a community event in Hattiesburg, the two reconnected and Alex introduced Josh to the MSED program. Josh decided to enroll in the program, and his tenure as a graduate assistant proved transformative. His research focused on analyzing the defense industry in Mississippi, which honed his skills and prepared him for the intensity and challenges of economic research and analysis. "I still use these skills every day as we're working on projects," said Josh.

Alex and Josh continued to stay in contact, and they discovered that their shared passion for economic development could impact not only their community, but many small towns and cities around the country in need of the same type of assistance. This is when the idea of pursuing a shared dream took root. Local Impact Analytics was created in February 2016 while they continued working their full-time jobs. They juggled responsibilities in their professional roles and the launch of their new company for over a year before the growing demand for their expertise prompted Alex and Josh to commit fully to their venture.

While assisting the City of Hattiesburg with a BCA to secure an infrastructure grant through the Department of Transportation, they were contacted by an engineering firm in Birmingham, Alabama, for help. They were awarded their first infrastructure grant later that year with the Alabama Department of Transportation for more than $10 million. In 2019, they won their first grant for the City of Hattiesburg for a railroad overpass and another shortly thereafter for a second overpass.

As of today, they have been involved in securing countless grants for cities across the southeast and into the Midwest. Some of their most notable achievements to date have been due to their involvement in securing sought after grants from the Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity (RAISE) program. With only 10% of submitted projects receiving funding, this initiative is highly competitive. Over the last four years, Local Impact Analytics has secured five grants from the RAISE program, a testament to their expertise and dedication. This grant funding success impacted cities in Mississippi like Hattiesburg, Jackson, and Ripley.

Although most of their clients have been in Mississippi, Alabama, and Louisiana, they accept projects nationwide and have worked on proposals for locations like Indiana, Missouri, and even Puerto Rico. They shared that they would even be interested in taking on international clients as an added challenge.

Their company’s strategic focus on benefit cost analysis (BCA), a niche market often overlooked, has become the cornerstone of their success. This comprehensive evaluation considers much more than the monetary gain, but extends to factors such as travel time savings, emissions reduction, and safety benefits. With few experts in the industry, their knowledge on the topic has proven to be invaluable.

Their commitment to helping local governments bridge the gap between their needs and federal funding agencies has become part of their mission. They have become an integral resource for those city officials struggling to know where to start. Josh shared that they are not only helping cities determine how to fund certain solutions, but also determining what those solutions look like. “For example, they may come to us and say—we don’t have enough pedestrian infrastructure, what can we do about this—and we will help them figure it out,” said Josh.

In 2022, they decided to explore the idea of having an intern join their small team of two. A’Miracle Fagan, who had just completed her finance degree at USM, joined their team and worked with them for a year before they convinced her to go back to school for her master’s in economic development. They were delighted to give back to the University and support A’Miracle by sponsoring her assistantship. After completing her master’s degree, she rejoined the team full-time. Now, they are a team of five, all of which are proud Southern Miss alumni. The collaborative spirit that defines their company culture also transcended geographical boundaries, with the team working 100% remotely from Hattiesburg, New Orleans, and Atlanta.

When reflecting on the difference they are making right here in Hattiesburg, Josh and Alex marveled at the tangible impact of their work. Their projects, once mere concepts on paper, are now vibrant realities, transforming the landscapes of the city they call home. "We get to say that there is something in the city of Hattiesburg that now exists, and we had a significant hand in supporting that and making that happen," said Josh.

Alex echoed Josh’s sentiment, emphasizing the personal connection he felt with their projects, especially the bridge overpasses in Hattiesburg. "It isn't the first project we have won funding for that is under construction, but it is the one that I get to drive by," Alex shared, his voice reflecting pride and excitement. "We will be driving over that bridge pretty soon, and it will be a fun little thing to be able to tell my daughter as we go over it."

As they look toward the future, Josh and Alex are enthusiastic about the opportunities presented by the bipartisan infrastructure law passed in 2021. The addition of 15 new programs broadened their scope, opening doors to diverse projects. They will continue to leverage these opportunities and secure funding for initiatives that ranged from on-demand transit services to electric ferry programs. "There are a lot of places around the U.S. with really cool, nice transportation assets that really improve the quality of life for the people that live there,” said Josh when discussing the eligible project activities offered. “I am really looking forward to making a difference like that."

With their eyes set on the horizon, Josh and Alex continue their quest, knowing that each project they take on is a step toward a brighter, more prosperous future for the current and future communities they serve.

To find out more about Local Impact Analytics, visit their website at www.localimpactanalytics.com.

USM Students Watch Entrepreneurial Ideas Develop Through ‘Hatchery’

The following is an excerpt from an article recently published in the Mississippi Business Journal featuring The Hatchery:

Innovative entrepreneurial ideas are being “hatched” on a daily basis at a unique Inspiration Lab within the College of Business and Economic Development at the University of Southern Mississippi.

Dubbed “The Hatchery,” this extraordinary space serves as a hub to help align and connect the wealth of entrepreneurship-related resources, knowledge and vision at the university. By facilitating entrepreneurial experiences, The Hatchery helps increase student opportunities to make their skill sets more relevant, dynamic, adaptable, marketable and consequentially more valuable in today’s rapidly changing labor market.

No one need sell USM senior Tori Faith Jones on The Hatchery’s benefits. A marketing major from Meridian, Jones has utilized the lab to develop her own business, “Tori Faith Creations,” while continuing to strategize about other entrepreneurial pursuits.

“I could not be more grateful for The Hatchery and how much they have done for me and other fellow entrepreneurs and dream builders,” said Jones. “I would say I am there almost once a day Monday through Friday. It is my favorite spot on campus. The wall of colorful sticky notes and the inspiring, passionate staff ready to help us is a constant reminder that my dreams are attainable.”

Located in Scianna Hall on USM’s Hattiesburg campus, The Hatchery opened its doors within the physical confines of the Inspiration Lab in 2022. Although The Hatchery and Inspiration Lab are resources created by faculty in the College of Business and Economic Development, business students are not the only ones taking advantage of the think-tank atmosphere.

“Our mission is to foster a culture of innovation for all,” said James Wilcox, professor of practice and Hatchery director. “And we’re seeing this become a reality as more and more students discover the value of The Hatchery’s resources, mentorship, and experiential learning opportunities.”

Added Wilcox: “Most people, when they think of The Hatchery, they think of the physical space that we have created in Scianna Hall. But really, The Hatchery is a lot bigger than that. The Hatchery is a belief — a belief that every student on campus has what it takes to create economic value, to create social value. The Hatchery is a support system that we’ve created, an ecosystem that supports students as they learn how to create value.”

Read the full article by clicking the button below.

Beta Alpha Psi Recognized as Superior Chapter

Congratulations to Southern Miss’s Zeta Mu chapter of Beta Alpha Psi for being recognized as a Superior Chapter for the 2022-2023 academic year! This achievement would not be possible without the guidance of the dedicated faculty advisors and continued participation of the members, candidates, and associates. To reach Superior status, the Zeta Mu chapter has far exceeded the baseline requirements of Beta Alpha Psi and shown increased dedication to developing well-rounded professionals!

Beta Gamma Sigma's Induction and Canned Food Drive

Every year our chapter of Beta Gamma Sigma leads a community service initiative to assist not only Southern Miss, but the greater Hattiesburg community. This year, the honor society collected over 1,000 canned food items that will be donated to Christian Services of Hattiesburg and the Eagles Nest Food Pantry at USM. The organization celebrated this incredible accomplishment with their newest members during the Fall Induction Ceremony! Shoutout to everyone who donated, as well as the organization's advisors and members who facilitated this impactful project.

Southern Miss Business Faculty and Student Research Presentations

Taylornomics Presentation

Southern Miss Swifties gathered to learn all about the impact of Taylor Swift's The Eras Tour! Dr. Joanne Tran, Dr. Courtney Robinson, and Amanda Abulawi presented their research proposal, which was recently submitted to the 2024 Swiftposium academic conference. From dressing up in Taylor Swift attire, listening to her countless hits, and trading friendship bracelets, the attendees enjoyed the presentation just like they would at one of her concerts!

Society for Marketing Advances Conference

Dr. Wei Wang led two senior honors students on a conference trip to present their thesis projects at the Society for Marketing Advances Conference in Fort Worth, TX. Patrick Tyson presented his thesis research, which examines the mediation effects of place attachment and the moderation effects of film and cultural factors within a destination image-place attachment-intentions model.

Haeden Overby also presented his thesis project, which explores the expectations customers have regarding technology in perceived high-technology hotels and how customers’ attitudes are affected by brand equity and brand image based on those expectations. These two thesis students not only presented their thesis projects. but also networked with top marketing scholars, learned from faculty research, and explored future master's and doctoral program opportunities.

Decision Science Institute's 2023 Annual Meeting

Dr. Abu Haddud, Dr. Fujun Lai, and Dr. Yuan Zhang recently attended the Decision Science Institute (DSI) 54th Annual Meeting: Responsive, Relevant, Responsible: Decision Making in the Age of Transformation. Dr. Haddud chaired a research session entitled "Logistics and Transportation Management - Exploring the Frontiers: Unveiling Novel Technologies and Strategies for Tackling Logistics Challenges" and presented "Digital Transformation in Supply Chains: Impacts on Organizations, People, and Societies.” Dr. Haddud and Dr. Zhang co-presented "Exploring Aspects Related to the Potential Use of Autonomous Trucks in Logistics."

Conference on Women in Hybrid and Remote Work

Dr. Bhagyashree Barhate was a speaker for the session “Are We Caring Enough about the Impact on Caregivers?” at the Conference on Women in Hybrid and Remote Work presented by the Rutgers Center for Women in Business. This session focused on the latest research on how companies and organizations can retain caregivers and simultaneously reduce the stigma.