The Buzz on Business

Episode 66: The VEP Effect - How Spears Business is Empowering Wounded Warriors Through Entrepreneurship

When an ad for OSU’s Veterans Entrepreneurship Program appeared on retired staff sergeant Mike Burns' Facebook feed, the wounded warrior saw it as an answered prayer. Despite his struggles stemming from battlefield injuries, including an above-the-knee amputation and a traumatic brain injury, Burns knew the VEP would give him the tools to help other veterans just like himself.   It did that and more. Burns used the skills he learned at VEP to establish a nonprofit that now helps veterans across 47 states – Operation Pay it Forward.   Dean Jim Payne and Stephen Howard from Spears Business sat down with Burns and Chad Mills, director of the Riata Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship, to explore how the Riata Center’s intensive 8-day VEP bootcamp transforms military heroes into entrepreneurs through rigorous training from expert business leaders.   * Veterans Entrepreneurship Program [http://business.okstate.edu/riata/vep.html] * Operation Pay it Forward [http://opif4ourvets.org]

Episode 65: Breaking New Ground – A Conversation with the Woman Leading the LA Clippers into a New Era, Gillian Zucker

As CEO of Halo Sports & Entertainment and the LA Clippers, Gillian Zucker continues to redefine what's possible in professional sports leadership. Her proven track record of innovation shines through in the groundbreaking Intuit Dome and her vision for reimagining how an NBA franchise connects with its community in the digital age, pushing the boundaries far beyond the basketball court.   Spears Business senior Delaney Peterson sat down with Zucker for a conversation about transformative leadership, the future of sports business and how the next generation of business leaders can chart their paths in an evolving industry. Join us for a candid discussion about innovation, perseverance and the changing face of sports business leadership.

Episode 64: Pearl of Wisdom – How one Spears Business faculty member is turning AI into an ally for higher ed

When artificial intelligence became a buzzword on campuses across the globe, many faculty members shuddered at the thought of rampant cheating and zombified students whose brains would atrophy like a muscle no longer being used. Not Dr. Pearl Sumathi. The Spears Business management professor developed a passion for demystifying AI for students and faculty alike, and she’s even dedicated her postdoc work to its implementation in higher ed.   Dean Jim Payne and Stephen Howard sat down with Pearl to find out how she’s using her 20 years of industry experience to produce groundbreaking and creative ideas for AI in the classroom and beyond.

Episode 63: The Future of Work is Now: The story of a Spears Business center focused the workplace of tomorrow

The OSU Center for the Future of Work is reshaping the workplace of tomorrow by taking the expertise of Spears Business to the workforce of Oklahoma to help our state meet the demands of a changing world. Dean Jim Payne and Stephen Howard sat down with CFW Director Amy Blackburn to see how her center empowers Oklahoma’s businesses.

Episode 62: Innovating healthcare with conversations and systems thinking – meet CHSI

The OSU Center for Health Systems Innovation strives for solutions at the intersection of business and healthcare. Our guest today, CHSI director Dr. Marjorie Erdmann, has become a national leader in health policy and system design thanks to her efforts with the Oklahoma Business Collective on Health, which is bringing C-suite business leaders to the table with other healthcare partners to actively engage in their business’ healthcare spend. The result? Better outcomes for everyday Oklahomans. Are you an Oklahoma employer who purchases healthcare for its employees? We invite you to visit drivinghealthvalue.org [http://drivinghealthvalue.org/] to learn more about the Collective and what it can do for your people.