Lisa Kidd Hunt didn’t exactly leave Smith after graduating with her bachelor’s degree in finance. Not in a Matthew Mcconaughey à la “Dazed & Confused” kind of way, but she’s the kind of person who sticks around, cultivating the relationships and roots she’s planted. She’s a football season ticket holder, she’s served as a commencement speaker and as a board member, and she continues to stay involved, partly because, as she puts it, she’s “jealous” of how much Smith students get out of their education these days.

Want to know how to climb the corporate ladder? Bet on yourself and take risks early in your career, says Neal Shear ’76.

As an African American woman CEO and working mother – in information technology, an area heavily dominated by men - Holbrook understands the weight of her words. One thing she’s learned is that “companies and clients are really all about people.”

After 30 years in the accounting field, Anoop Mehta ’84 is stepping up to lead the profession into the future. Mehta, a Maryland CPA and former chair of the Maryland Association of CPAs’ Board of Directors, was named chair of the American Institute of CPAs, the world’s largest member organization in the field, during its May 17, 2022 meeting in Austin, Texas. 

Margo Thomas M.S. ’90 is creating economic opportunities for women and underrepresented groups as founder and president of the Women’s Economic Imperative.

He has invested almost 45 years teaching, earning eight academic degrees, including three doctorates, and publishing 35 books and more than 300 academic and practitioner-oriented articles. Yet, H. Kent Baker, MBA ’69, DBA ’72, MEd ’74, says it isn’t yet time for retirement – not, he says, until he can no longer take the stairs to his office at American University.

Navigating the higher echelons of the business world isn’t easy. Three Maryland Smith alumni stopped by Van Munching Hall on Monday to share what they’ve learned along their professional journey.

Seven University of Maryland graduates – including three who graduated from Maryland Smith – have been named to the 2022 Forbes 30 Under 30 lists, a compilation of what the magazine calls 600 of the brightest young entrepreneurs, leaders and stars.

There are secrets to baking that also apply to being an entrepreneur. And five Maryland siblings are putting those secrets to work in their latest venture. The Dubbaneh brothers and sisters – Ronnie, Danny, Ronia, Johnny and Deanna – know that to be successful in baking, you have to take care in every step of the process, be patient, give it your time and attention, and love what you’re doing. It’s the same for starting a business.

Jennifer Felix ’92 has one goal in mind when it comes to leadership – helping everyone maximize their potential. As president and CEO of ASRC Federal – a Maryland-based government services subsidiary of Arctic Slope Regional Corporation, an Alaska Native Corporation owned by 13,000 Iñupiat shareholders – Felix has learned firsthand what it means to lead. It starts with empowering others and finding inspiration in every journey, she says.