• • Focus on Manufacturing in the Lowcountry
  • Student Update: Heather Crouch
  • Dinner with the Donor
  • Your Manners Matter!
  • Tour of Organizations
  • Fall Kick-Off
  • Tentative Schedule for the 2009-2010 Academic Year
  • Participants Selected
  • Schottland Donation

• • Schottland Scholar News

• • November 2009
  • October 2009
  • September 2009
  • May 2009
  • April 2009
  • March 2009

• • Carrie A. Blair, PhD - Program Director
  • College of Charleston Homepage
  • School of Business and Economics Homepage

• • Log in
  • XHTML

On November 2nd, the students met with two major players in manufacturing in the lowcountry. The group gathered at Mercato for two roundtable discussions.

One discussion was with Andreas Maas, from Daimler Vans Manufacturing in Ladson, SC met with the students (http://www.daimler.com/dccom/0-5-8807-1-1044572-1-0-0-0-0-0-92-7145-0-0-0-0-0-0-0.html). Mr. Maas not only discussed his personal career path, his cross-cultural experiences, and his management decisionshis personal career path, his cross-cultural experiences, and his management decisions, but he also spoke about his location’s recent transition from manufacturing under the brandname Dodge to the brandname Mercedes-Benz (http://www.postandcourier.com/news/2009/sep/03/dodge-is-out-mercedes-benz-in-at-north-charleston/).

Andreas was joined by Jennifer DeWitt, Executive Director of Lowcountry Manufacturers Council (http://www.lmcsc.org/). Jennifer spoke candidly about her early career path, and provided insight regarding Boeing’s recent decision to locate a manufacturing facility in North Charleston.

The event was a success, as reflected by student feedback:

“Monday night’s meeting was great insight into the mind of an executive leader. Andreas, your story is inspiring and learning about your climb through Daimler was certainly memorable. I enjoyed hearing how you diversified your career through different industries and how a generalist mentality has boded well for you throughout your career…. Personally, the most important lesson I took out of last night meeting was the idea of reciprocity in management. The more you give to employees the more they give back to you. Your story of the recent 80% paid leave was a true example of the mutual relationship between management and employees. You were able to care for the workers and the workers have responded with their resounding loyalty by returning to work after the factory opened again. That story I will take with me as a key example for any leadership/management position that I may have in the future.” – David Munson

“Andreas, one thing I admired is how direct you are while still very considerate of the people around you, such as with your workers when you needed to shut down the business for a short time.  The most profound thing I took from our conversation is realizing how much international experience I lack and how in this globalize economy, I will need to gain a lot more experience in the international playing field if I want to be successful… Jennifer, from our conversation, I would have to say that I learned a lot from hearing how you dealt with different companies approaching you to offer employment.  I often look out for what’s in the best interest of the company/organization rather than my personal goals.  So it is very interesting to hear how you were able to handle those situations without feeling bad about your decision.” — Maureen Porzio

“I was very inspired by your advice and  your perspective in the necessity of global experience was dead on.  It helped grab my attention when you used analogies and stories to demonstrate your point, so definitely continue to do that when working with students.  I appreciated your directness and honesty (I think I threw some tough questions at you).” — Jamie Shafer

“I feel very driven to pursue an MBA in France after speaking with Mr. Maas, the importance of foreign living experience was clearly reiterated. I have thought about this for a while, and after our meal I feel more strongly that this would be a great opportunity for me.” — Lucy Lesniak

“Of the things we talked about, the thing that stuck with me the most was talking about the long term.  American’s are so focused on the short term and instant gratification.  I was really able to get a grasp about how important it is to think of our lives in a long term prospective.” — CJ O’Dell

Heather Crouch is applying for a Fulbright English Teaching Assistantship for the 2010-2011 year.  She is pursuing a position in Colombia, South America where she will serve for 10 months both as an assistant in English classes and as a volunteer with non-profits focused on education.  Attaining this competitive award is a long process, but Heather is hopeful that it will jump start her career in the non-profit sector.

On October 5th, the Schottland Scholars gathered at Hall’s Chop House on King Street for dinner with Peter Schottland and his family.

http://hallschophouse.com/

The meal was a huge success. The students were given the opportunity to learn more about Mr. Schottland’s outlook, background, and experiences. They also were given samples of items packaged at Schottland’s American Packaging Corporation.

Corporate Etiquette Expert Cindy Grosso, founder of the Charleston School of Protocol and Etiquette, joined the students for dinner on Monday, September 7th. Ms. Grosso has appeared on Oprah and the Dr. Phil Show, and has written about etiquette in various publications including BusinessWeek, Working Woman Magazine, and The New York Times.

Over dinner, topics included how to sit, dine, toast, and order appropriately. Ms. Grosso also discussed the purpose of business dinners, and shaped the students’ philsophies on etiquette and impression management. College of Charleston senior Lucy Lesniak noted, “I thought she was very inspiring!”

For more information on Cindy Grosso and the Charleston School of Protocol and Etiquette, visit:

http://www.charlestonschoolofprotocol.com/home.asp?pid=9#Scene_1

 

At 6:00 in the morning on August 19th, the Schottland Scholars came dressed, packed, and prepared to load into a van for a three day tour of organizations. Over the course of three days, the Scholars visited:

• Bush Beans in Dandridge, Tennessee
• BMW in Greer, South Carolina
• Duke Energy’s Allen Steam Station outside of Charlotte, North Carolina
• ALCOA – Mt. Holly outside of Charleston
• Piggly Wiggly’s Distribution Center outside of Charleston

While seeing and touring the facilities was educational in itself, the real opportunity was in meeting and talking with the folks who operate and directe each organization.

At Bush Beans, Max Fultz (Corporate Safety, Security, and Community Relations Manager) took the time to explain the company’s history, clarifying how the impact of the family ownership on the company’s culture.

Greg Augsberger (Engineering Manager) and Sandy Martin (Manager of Economic Development) depicted the role of coal in the economic landscape at Duke Energy’s Allen Steam Station.

ALCOA’s Phil Wilson (Controller) and Henk Van Der Mayden (Environmental Director) described aluminum production, then Mark Wilson (Safety Manager) provided the students with a tour of the facility.

Finally, at Piggly Wiggly, Woody Arsenault (Director of Warehouses and Distributions) and Wesley Sams (HR Specialist) explained product distribution, and gave the students the first hand experience of standing inside of a frozen food storage facility at twenty degrees below zero.  

 

 

One of the keys to success is having a clear understanding of self. Often, we do not get the chance to reflect on insights from the people who work with us, the people who live with us, and ourselves. We want to make sure that the Schottland Scholars have a clear understanding of themselves in order to capitalize on their strengths and minimize their weaknesses.

In July, the Scholars completed a set of inventories that provided each with an in-depth summary of his or her personality characteristics. First, they completed the Hogan Personality Inventory (HPI), the Hogan Development Survey (HDS), and the Hogan Motives, Values, and Preferences Inventory (MVPI; http://www.hoganassessments.com/). The HPI characterized the Scholars as they typically behave and act. The HDS noted behaviors that the Scholars display when under pressure… behaviors that are typically strengths, but can be substantial weaknesses when used inappropriately. The MVPI included a summary of their values, helping them to gain a better understanding of how different careers might satisfy their needs.

But the Scholars wanted more! Some wanted further clarification on the career options that might alighn with their strengths, interests, and values. Others wanted confirmation that the path they have chosen for next year will lead to success. As a result, they were also given the opportunity to complete the Career Interest and Skill Survey (CISS; http://pearsonassess.com/haiweb/cultures/en-us/productdetail.htm?pid=PAg115&Community=CA_Psych_Settings_Safety).

All of these inventories left the Scholars with over 40 pages of information to digest – that is A LOT of self-exploration. Each met one-on-one with Dr. Blair in order to better understand the feedback, to make sense of contradictions and misgivings, and to set a plan for personal development. Soon after, Dr. Glenn DeBiasi (http://www.leaderfit.us.com/whatwedo.html) volunteered to lead the group through several sessions focusing on using the data to set a clear plan.

The group met with Dr. DeBiasi in August. They will meet with him again in October. In preparation for that meeting, each Scholar is creating a description of what their life will look like in the year 2020.

A tentative schedule is set for the 2009-2010 Academic Year.

August 2009: 19, 20, 21 3 days of travel to visit multiple organizations in NC & SC

August 2009: 28 Personality Assessments Due

August 2009: 31 (7-9:30 PM) Dinner Etiquette Training

September 2009: 7 (7-9:30 PM) Interpretation of Assessments & Goal setting

September 2009: 21 (7-9:30 PM) Dinner & Training with Mentors

October 2009: 5 (TBA) Reception and Mingling with SOBE Board of Governors

October 2009: 19 (7-9:30 PM) Roundtable Dinner – What everyone should know about accounting

November 2009: 2 (7-9:30 PM) Job Search and Interview Techniques Training

November 2009: 16 (7-9:30 PM) Dressing for Success – Proper Business Attire

December 2009:  7 (7-9:30 PM) Roundtable dinner: Gaining a perspective on local government

Events that are scheduled for the Spring of 2010 include a discussion of the impact of unionization on organizations, a discussion of the relationship between for-profit businesses and social responsibility, a lesson on the stock market, and a tutorial on hiring subordinates. The students will also participate in a community project. Finally, students will enjoy an outing to the driving range, as well as a graduation celebration dinner.

The Schottland Scholars program is already off to a successful start.

That is, nearly 30 students submitted complete applications for the program.

Each student was interviewed by a panel of interviewers… and the panel interview was in itself a pretty amazing developmental experience. More specifically, the interview panel included:

• Peter Schottland (Schottland Scholars benefactor; CEO & President of American Packaging Company; Member of the College of Charleston School of Business and Economics Board of Governors)
• George Spaulding (Retired Executive from GM; College of Charleston Executive in Residence; Member of the College of Charleston School of Business and Economic Board of Governors)
• Rhonda Mack, Ph.D. (Associate Dean of the School of Business and Economics and the College of Charleston)
• Michael Duncan (Director of the Higdon Student Leadership Center at the College of Charleston)
• Carrie Blair, Ph.D. (Assistant Professor; Director of the Schottland Scholars Program)

During the interview, applicants were asked to discuss future aspirations, personal beliefs about necessary skills, and current economic issues.Each student participant had the opportunity to recieve developmental feedback following the panel interview.

After the interview, ten students were selected to participate in the Schottland Scholars program for the 2009-2010 Academic Year:

• Heather Crouch
• Brett Fader
• Ben Gordon
• Peter Graves
• Lucy Lesniak
• David Munson
• Charles (C.J.) O’Dell
• Matthew Pierce
• Maureen Porzio
• Jamie Shafer

In addition, Chris Haley and Brian McCarn were selected as program alternates.

On February 16, 2009, a major donation was made to the College of Charleston Foundation. Peter and Susan Schottland agreed to provide $10,000 in seed money to fund a new program in the School of Business and Economics. The Schottlands also agreed to donate $50,000 each year for four years in order to further fund the program.

The purpose of the program is to guarantee the success of exceptional College of Charleston students by providing them with extra development and assessment opportunities.  In honor of the donors, the program was named the Schottland Scholars program.

Peter Schottland is President and CEO of American Packaging Company. Both he and his father, Stanley, serve on the Board of Governors for CofC’s School of Business and Economics. With their donation, Peter and Susan Schottland continue a Schottland family tradition of giving to the College of Charleston.

Peter and Susan Schottland, along with their four children, reside in Rochester, New York. Two of the four Schottland children are College of Charleston students.