McCombs Magazine

Big Dreams and Red-Hot Connections
How 25 years of entrepreneurial energy changed the trajectory and brand of business at McCombs Fireworks light the sky over…

The Family Business
From Siete Family Foods to 7-Eleven, McCombs entrepreneurs create family legacies in the business world. Story by Sharon Jayson | Illustrations…

Game Changer
McCombs launches Business of Sports minor to prepare new industry leaders By Alberta Phillips | Illustrations by The Sporting Press…

Recycling for Change
Haley Lowry, MBA ’13, directs global sustainability at Dow Haley Lowry’s focus at Dow is to help create a more…

Refining the Perfect Pitch
Rebecca Otis Leder, BBA ’07, wrote Knock and created The Knock Method Rebecca Otis Leder wrote a book on the…

Scouting Europe’s Scene for Startups
Alex von Frankenburg, MBA ’92 , directs High-Tech Gründerfonds Alex von Frankenberg funds innovative startups at a German venture capital…

Alumni Boom
New and revived alumni chapters ignited during pandemic By Gretchen M. Sanders McCombs’ Philadelphia alumni chapter met in September. Those…

Global Marketer
Stephen Anderson’s winning look at supporting entrepreneurship Photo credit: Lauren Gerson Marketing Assistant Professor Stephen Anderson is helping entrepreneurs worldwide. Anderson…

Designing for Joy and Confidence
Saba Kamaras, MBA ’18, co-founded Spoonie Threads Saba Kamaras combined her business acumen and love of fashion to co-found an…

Investing in Students
UT System Regent and McCombs Hall of Famer Steve Hicks sees radio’s future—and social work’s power Steve Hicks, executive chairman,…

Disrupted New World
How the pandemic is altering the way we do business, the office culture, and our work lives. By Sharon Jayson |…

Creating the Workplace of Tomorrow
Serial entrepreneur Brett Hurt, BBA ’94, sees flexible work environments and inclusivity as keys to success. A conversation with the…

Making Better Decisions
A new course explores bias and stereotyping in marketing Trenzio Turner created Bias and Stereotyping in Marketing, a one-credit-hour elective…

Alumni Profile: Life-Saving Messages
Terry Pence, BBA ’77, directed the Texas Department of Transportation’s Behavioral Traffic Safety Section By Sharon Jayson After nearly 40…

Alumni Profile: Helping Women Ascend
Melba Tellez, M.S. ’18, founded Mujeres on the Rise By Gretchen Sanders Melba Tellez, M.S. ’18, started Mujeres on the…

Alumni Profile: Heeding a Call for Libations
Quentin Cantu and Brian Murphy, both MBA ’18, founded Ranch Riders Spirits By Gretchen Sanders Brian Murphy and Quentin Cantu,…

Masters of Adaptability
Students in McCombs’ four Master of Science programs make the most of difficult times in a year like no other…

Pandemic Pivots
How McCombs students, faculty, and alumni changed during uncertain times By Sharon Jayson and Matt W. Turner | Illustrations by…

World Traveler
Kelly Steckelberg, MPA ’91, has always looked for opportunities to learn something new. Here’s how the CFO managed Zoom’s whirlwind…

Poised Pioneer
First African-American BBA graduate recalls tougher times By Selah Maya Zighelboim Peggy Drake Holland, BBA ’63, says she stepped onto the…

Paying It Forward
McCombs alumni establish endowments for the school John C. Goff, BBA ’77, shared with Mark Roberts, the new executive director of…

A Season of Transformation
Letter from the dean of the McCombs School of Business In a year as unprecedented as this one, we at the…

Rising to the Challenge
The former dean and McCombs alum is UT Austin’s new president UT Austin president Jay Hartzell Jay Hartzell, who spent nearly…

Student Startups
Enterprising undergraduates solve problems across campus and around the globe Students at the McCombs School of Business aren’t waiting to…

The McCombs Legacy
This year marks the 20th anniversary of the transformational gift that inspired generations of Longhorns With their $50 million donation…

A Sense of Belonging
To meet the demands of corporate hiring — and to meet the current moment — McCombs works to cultivate a more representative student body…

Entrepreneurial Thinking
K.K. Salem, lead donor of a newly named center, on the free market and making the world better By Mary Ann…

Weighing in, in Heavy Times
How McCombs faculty members have advanced and elevated the national conversation around COVID-19 By Judie Kinonen and Mary Ann Roser With…

A Learning Revolution
The McCombs response: Necessity closes school’s classrooms and gives birth to innovations By Matt W. Turner Illustration by Michael Driver When…

Trailblazers
Insights, challenges, and encouragement from Black entrepreneurs who charted their own paths after their time at McCombs By Alberta Phillips…

Passion and Purpose
Kevin Curry, BBA ’04, found his direction and destiny with his health and nutrition brand, FitMenCook By Alberta Phillips Photographs…

Leadership Lessons
McCombs alumni share insights about how participation in athletics helped prepare them for successful business careers Whitney Allison, BBA ’10 Cycling,…

The Accountant of the Future
Data analytics and artificial intelligence are redefining the profession and McCombs is keeping pace. By Judie Kinonen Nichole Jordan, BBA ’95,…

Working Professionals
McCombs’ flexible MBA options draw job enhancers, switchers, and explorers By Mary Ann Roser Opposite right, clockwise from upper left:…

Talent Pipeline
College path cleared for students in a partnership between Ernst & Young and the McCombs Department of Accounting By Judie…

Generation Gap
Speaker and researcher Jason Dorsey evangelizes to companies about the importance of understanding millennials and Gen Z By Megan Menchaca…

Brand Ambassador
Emily Reagan, MBA ’99, takes the helm of the school’s marketing efforts as first chief marketing officer A former chair…

Serious Business
Sam Ehlinger, BBA ’21, UT’s star quarterback, balances the demands of football with the rigors of McCombs. By Todd Savage Making…

Investing in Philanthropy
New MBA course teaches students to evaluate nonprofit success By Jeremy M. Simon UT doctoral student Durrell Jamerson-Barnes (upper left),…

Business Honors Background
The recently re-christened Canfield Business Honors Program took decades of development to reach where it is today By London Gibson…

Path to Philanthropy
Phil Canfield, BBA ’89, and his wife, Mary Beth, invest in the future of Business Honors with a $20 million…

Charting a Course on the Courts
Kirk Goldsberry, NBA analyst and San Antonio Spurs researcher, joins McCombs to show students how analytics is changing the game…

Wild Journey
Sixth-generation Texan Jay Kleberg, MBA ’13, son of a storied Texas ranch family, turns his love of the land into…

Head in the Cloud
Emil Sayegh, MSTC ’96, discusses the past, present, and future of cloud computing By London Gibson Emil Sayegh got into…

Seat at the Table
MBA students spearhead workplace diversity conference Ashley Fox (left) and DeAndrea Staes (right), both MBA ’19, organized McCombs’ first diversity…

Investing in Private Equity Education
How the Hicks, Muse, Tate, and Furst Center for Private Equity Finance ushered in a new era at McCombs. By Judie…

McCombs Alum Leads UT System Shake-Up
New University of Texas System Board of Regents chair, Kevin Eltife, BBA ’81, prioritizes working with the Legislature. by London…

Alumni Profile: Repurposing Coworking
Siri Chakka, MBA ’17, and Silva Gentchev, MBA ’17, founded a company that helps travelers and freelancers work away from…