Michael Dingman Bio and Center History

Michael Dingman (right) with Rudy Lamone, former dean of the Smith School and founder of the Dingman Center for Entrepreneurship.

As he flew into Maryland over the Chesapeake Bay on the morning of Sept. 21 for a visit to the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business, Michael Dingman recalled special memories of growing up in the state. A Maryland native, his father was born in Baltimore and was himself a University of Maryland graduate, setting an example his son soon followed. Dingman studied arts and sciences, and left the university to pursue a Wall Street job.

He went on to become a wildly successful businessman and investor. Dingman spent 21 years at the Ford Motor Company as former director, and 24 years at Time Inc., and then Time Warner Inc. He has served as a director of Mellon Bank Corp., Temple Industries Inc., Temple-Inland Inc., Continental Telephone Co. and Teekay Shipping Corp.

Dingman previously was chairman and chief executive officer or president of several major U.S.-based industrial corporations, including Wheelabrator-Frye Inc., Signal Companies Inc., AlliedSignal Inc. and its Henley Group Inc. spinoff. The $1.2 billion Henley public offering in 1986 was the largest in history at the time.

It was during this time that Dingman again became involved with his alma mater. Rudolph Lamone, then dean of the business school, had a vision to create on of the first entrepreneurship centers in the country to give students and regional entrepreneurs hands-on support to start and grow ventures. He convinced Dingman to support the effort and in 1989, the fledgling effort became the Dingman Center for Entrepreneurship, thanks to a generous endowment. The center soon emerged as a top-ranked entrepreneurship center, thanks to Dingman’s support, Lamone’s vision and the leadership of directors Charles Heller (1990-1999), Don Spero (2000-2004) current Managing Director Asher Epstein.

Mr. Dingman is now president of Shipston Group Ltd., a diversified international holding company based in Nassau, Bahamas. Dingman first set his sights to offshore opportunities in the 1990s, first in Russia and other countries in the former Soviet Union. Shipston joined a consortium investing in OAO Sidanco, one of the country’s largest oil companies.  Parlaying the experience that had earned him a reputation as a company turnaround expert in America, Dingman invested his own funds, skills and energy to renovate noncompetitive, outdated companies in the Czech Republic.

Spurred by his son, Jamie, Dingman shifted Shipston’s focus to China. The company is now heavily invested in mainland China, focusing on its internal growth and consumption. Drawing on local partnerships formed in recent years, Shipston continues to invest in a range of industries. With offices in Nanjing and Beijing, the company has acquired a portfolio of businesses in education, medical technologies and heavy industry.

All three of Dingman’s sons, Jamie, David and Patrick are involved in the company. Jamie heads up Shipston operations on the ground in China.  

The Dingman Center’s History of 'Firsts'

• The Center's Capital Access Program was the first to bring real investors together with real student and non-student companies.
• The Dingman Center was among the first to create and teach undergraduate and graduate courses in the field of entrepreneurship.
• The Dingman Center developed some of the first courses in business biotechnology and technology entrepreneurship.
• The Dingman Center was the first to organize a national meeting of leading entrepreneurship centers in the U.S., thus creating the National Consortium of Entrepreneurship Centers, a 180 member organization.
• The Dingman Center was the first to provide workshops, seminars, and training programs for the regional entrepreneurial community.
• The Dingman Center was among the first recipients of Kaufman and Coleman Foundation grants to support the Center's programs.
• The Dingman Center was the first center on campus to establish faculty summer research awards.
• It is the only Center where two of its leaders have received the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award.
• The Dingman Center was the first of five enters chosen to receive the NASDAQ award for Center of Excellence in Entrepreneurship.