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Student

Full Circle Moment as Terp Nick Cross Takes the Field for the Washington Commanders

Washington Commanders safety Nick Cross returns home to the DMV, where the Bowie native, DeMatha graduate and former Maryland football player is continuing his NFL career while giving back to his community and planning to complete his Smith finance degree.

Alumni

Meet the Marketing Graduate Who Kept UMD’s Biggest Secret for Four Years

Luke Hanson ’26 secretly portrayed the University of Maryland mascot Testudo for four years while studying management and marketing. He applied classroom lessons to Testudo’s social media strategy and, after graduation, became Talon, Major League Soccer club D.C. United’s mascot.

Alumni

A Missed Bus Led To A Meet Cute

It was a Maryland connection meant to be. Despite Lauren Niffenegger Lumpp ‘09 and Nick Lumpp ‘09 both studying at the Robert H. Smith School of Business, Lauren in accounting and Nick in finance, it was a bus that never showed up during their first few weeks in College Park that brought them together. 

News

World Class Faculty & Research

Smith’s Amna Kirmani Featured in New Book Exploring Why ‘New’ Sells

Marketing professor Amna Kirmani’s research features in Eric Athas’ book “Saying No to New,” which examines consumers’ attraction to novelty. Kirmani explains how recognizing marketing tactics can help consumers resist persuasion and make more informed decisions about what they buy.

Warren Buffett’s Exit as Chairman Marks a Defining Market Moment, Says Smith’s David Kass

Warren Buffett’s decision to 

Entrepreneurial Spirit

Bloomberg Businessweek Ranks Smith #1 In Learning For U.S. Full-Time MBA Rankings

Bloomberg Businessweek ranked the Smith School No. 1 nationally for learning, No. 3 for entrepreneurship and No. 25 overall in its full-time MBA rankings. The results reflect Smith's faculty, experiential coursework and entrepreneurship programs connecting classroom learning with industry experience.

Smith Brain Trust

Faculty Insights On Latest News

Summer Reading List 2025

Get ready for summer with the 22nd Annual Summer Reading List for Business Leaders—featuring Smith School faculty picks on investing, neuroscience, human connection, and more, including a novel inspired by a radio show turned TV series.

Management and Organization

“The Future is Not What it Used to Be”

Ambiguity arises when choices must be made despite unclear outcomes, says Professor J. Gerald Suarez. In today’s fast-paced world, discernment, flexibility, and embracing uncertainty—not rigid control—are key to navigating change, complexity, and an unpredictable future.

Marketing

Small Businesses Take Big Hit from Apple’s Privacy Regulation

Smith marketing professor Daniel McCarthy's research found that Apple's 2021 App Tracking Transparency (ATT) significantly impacted small direct-to-consumer businesses. ATT caused a 37% drop in ad click-through rates and up to a 60% revenue decline for smaller firms reliant on Facebook ads.

Research

Accounting and Information Assurance

Smith Researchers Produce New Framework for Smarter Cybersecurity Budgeting

University of Maryland researchers apply the Gordon-Loeb Model to AI-driven cyberthreats, recommending risk-based cybersecurity budgets generally capped at 37% of expected losses. The framework lets executives update attack probabilities, potential losses and investment effectiveness as threats and conditions evolve rapidly.

Management and Organization

Why Uber’s Business Model Gives it an Edge Against Robotaxis in the Ride Hailing Race

UMD Smith researchers found ride-hailing platforms like Uber and Lyft remain more profitable and adaptable than robotaxi operators such as Waymo. The study warns autonomous vehicle expansion could increase congestion and wait times, while platform-based services retain strategic and cost advantages for now.

Marketing

From Classroom to Publication: Smith Tech Management Capstone Project Becomes Published Research

A collaboration between a unique nonprofit and a tireless group of Smith Technology Management students has resulted in the program’s first published research.

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