Career Success

Father-and-son duo Ron Kurtz, BBA ’64, and Jason Kurtz, BBA ’90, share their advice in new book.

Ron Kurtz, BBA ’64, spent decades as a corporate executive in the airline,
hospitality, and cruise industries, frequently sharing hard-earned career
advice with his son, Jason Kurtz, BBA ’90, and his daughter, Carrie Turner. In 2020, Ron teamed up with his children to compile the business tips into a book aimed at recent grads, Fast Start to Career Success: Making the Most of Your First Job. Ron and Jason Kurtz recently shared some of the book’s highlights.

What inspired you to write this book together?

Ron Kurtz: I was kind of proud that both of my children had been very successful and that they attributed part of their success to the tips that I had given them. And I thought maybe it might help others as well.

Could you each share some key pieces of advice from the book?

Ron Kurtz: You don’t want to have unpleasant surprises for your boss.
You want to try to protect them from unpleasant surprises or give them
advance warning or alerts if bad news is coming down the line.

Jason Kurtz: Be nice to everyone in the office. You never know who’s
going to be giving feedback or having input or could be the next CEO.
 — Alice Popovici

This story appeared in the Fall 2023 issue of McCombs magazine.