Tommy Doss, director of leadership initiatives for the C. T. Bauer College of Business, hosted the MBA/MSF leadership workshop on Thursday in which he shared his personal experiences to encourage students to reach their full potential and helped them devise a plan to lead themselves and others going forward in their careers.
“My passion is leadership development. We all have skills, and the choice is how we go about using them,” Doss said. “Leadership is critically important for sustained success. You must understand your leadership style and approach, how you lead within teams and how you influence others to implement and execute business objectives.”
Doss’s awareness and passion for leadership developed in his previous job as human resource director for Memorial Hermann Hospital. Once he realized its importance and knew he could help others, he decided to make a career change, go back to school and start a career in which he was able to make a difference in the lives of others.
“The No. 1 power we all share is the power of choice. You all started by making a choice to commit to the MBA program,” Doss said. “Now you have to be able to lead yourself successfully. You have to know who you are and what you’re about in order to become a leader and make a change.”
Most in attendance, like first-year MBA student Adithy Iyengar, attend as many career development workshops as possible and gain much from the experience when guest speakers open up about themselves, share their stories and give advice.
“The speakers are always someone who is able to give great advice and instruct us on aspects of our professional careers,” Iyengar said. “I attend because I want to enhance my skills, network and hear perspectives from other leaders in the industry.”
For first-year MBA student Jenny Childers, this was her first leadership workshop to attend, and after hearing Doss, she plans to attend as many as she can in the future.
“I think the staff is extremely knowledgeable about many things and they get me thinking differently,” Childers said. “This was a great opportunity to take advantage of opportunities that Rockwell offers and to learn a lot of things about myself and my career.”
The leadership workshop was developed by the Rockwell Career Center in the Bauer College. It is designed specifically for MBA students, but Bauer also offers initiatives for undergraduates, such as the Ted Bauer Leadership Certificate Program and the Bauer Leadership Council.
