News

Rellie Derfler-Rozin received the University of Maryland’s 2025 Distinguished Scholar-Teacher Award and delivered a March 26 lecture on zero-sum mindsets. Her research, teaching and service focus on how workplace behaviors can shift when individuals rethink competitive assumptions and decision-making dynamics.

A University of Maryland white paper analyzing 155 million U.S. job postings finds no evidence AI reduces labor demand. Instead, AI hiring is rising and entry-level opportunities are growing, challenging claims that artificial intelligence is broadly displacing workers.

Managers receive limited feedback, leaving blind spots in leadership. Smith lecturer Roy Thomason advocates 360-degree evaluations and two-way communication to improve performance, build psychological safety and strengthen teams, emphasizing acting on feedback and leveraging strengths while addressing weaknesses through collaboration.

Promotions are slowing as employers rely on “quiet promotions,” asking workers to take on more responsibility before raises. Smith’s Nicole Coomber advises building skills, using AI to free time, and aligning strengths with roles to position for future advancement.

The inaugural IBM Day at UMD’s Smith School of Business featured class takeovers, coffee chats, and networking. Alumni shared insights on AI, consulting, and martech careers. IBM highlighted SkillsBuild and partnerships, connecting coursework with real-world business and technology applications.

Twenty-one Smith School professors were named among the top 2% most cited researchers globally, according to Elsevier’s 2025 study across 22 fields. Representing both current and emeritus faculty, their impactful research advances business knowledge and global academic excellence.

The University of Maryland’s Smith School opened the Enterprise Mobility Foundation Career Boutique and Wellness Room, a partnership with BSE Scholars—now “Business, Society and Entrepreneurship.” The boutique, born from a student capstone, exemplifies BSE’s new entrepreneurial, hands-on mission.

University of Maryland professors Dave Waguespack and Evan Starr developed “Making Better Business Decisions with Data,” a course teaching undergraduates causal inference and AI-aided data analysis for strategic decision-making, preparing them for graduate studies, internships, and data-driven careers.

Doctoral student Eunseong Jang at the Smith School developed new statistical models to expand incomplete datasets, giving law enforcement and policymakers tools to fight drug trafficking. His NSF-funded research, guided by Margret Bjarnadottir and S. Raghu Raghavan, earned a $6,000 award for its societal impact.

The Smith School hosted Nigeria’s acting ambassador, Samson Itegboje, to strengthen partnerships benefiting students. Leaders discussed collaboration in AI, healthcare, and business. Nigerian students’ contributions were celebrated, and the visit highlighted opportunities for cultural exchange, research, internships, and global cooperation between institutions.