Centers & Initiatives
Pioneering business research can prepare students to be transformational business leaders, and equip companies to transform themselves and their markets.
At the Smith School we have created a cluster of Centers of Excellence that serve as the intersection of scholarship and the marketplace, putting breakthrough research at the service of students and companies. Each of our centers immerses our students in complex and evolving marketplaces in which success depends on critical thinking, creativity and entrepreneurship.
We have also added exciting new Initiatives to further augment the learning experience, align with industry and government trends, and chart the future of business.
Centers
The Center for Artificial Intelligence in Business pioneers AI research and outreach. With a focus on human judgment and creativity, it fosters safe, innovative products and services through intentional AI-enabled design and governance frameworks.
The Center for Excellence in Service (CES) is an academic research center with a network of Smith faculty members who are thought leaders in service marketing and management.
The Center for Financial Policy leverages the Smith School’s world-renowned faculty, leading research, and proximity to Washington, D.C. to promote a collaborative exchange of ideas on the key issues that affect financial markets.
The Center for Global Business (CGB) is the driver of internationalization and global mindset education at the Smith School and a preferred partner for international commerce in the state of Maryland, specifically in regard to training and supporting students, companies, and current and future business leaders to engage successfully in global business.
The Center for Social Value Creation embodies a passionate mission: to educate, engage and empower the Smith community and the world through thought-provoking dialogue, thought leadership, and hands-on experience.
At the Dingman Center, we create an inclusive environment where we educate, empower and equip students with the business skills needed to be an entrepreneur and the resources necessary to make their business ideas a reality.
The guiding principle for the Ed Snider Center is that social progress is born of free and creative individuals who, driven by self-motivation, passion, and a positive approach to trading value for value, make the world a better place.
The Supply Chain Management Center at the Robert H. Smith School of Business is dedicated to conducting research and education designed to further the discipline of supply chain management.
Initiatives
Expanding understanding of business analytics and relevant careers, the Robert H. Smith School of Business runs the Smith Analytics Consortium (SAC). A partnership between industry and Smith’s diverse, inclusive community, the Consortium serves as a central hub for networking, thought leadership, experiential learning, co-curricular activities and collaboration opportunities enhancing the Smith student experience and giving back to the business community.
Promoting veterans as strategic assets for a united economy.
The imperatives facing America's government and market leaders have rarely overlapped with the complexity they do today. At the Smith School, we aim to help with new programs and partnerships to promote the future of U.S. public-private talent, training, and research.
Corporate risk officers are grappling with a host of nontraditional risks associated with and ranging from cyber to climate. The Smith Enterprise Risk Consortium recognizes these emerging risks and endeavors to address them through research, tools and education.
News
Sue Townsen, partner and chief diversity officer at KPMG, spoke about the importance of diversity, inclusion and a global mindset at the Global Diversity Fireside Chat on Feb.
Greg Rafal, program manager of undergraduate programs for the Center for Global Business at the University of Maryland's Robert H. Smith School of Business writes about the Global Showcase, held on Feb. 15, 2018, in Van Munching Hall.
The Dingman Center for Entrepreneurship produces Bootstrapped, a podcast featuring founders, investors and serial entrepreneurs. The podcast is hosted by Elana Fine, Executive Director of the Dingman Center, and Joe Bailey, Associate Research Professor at the Smith School.
Kara Gordon, class of 2019, is an Impact Ambassador in the Center for Social Value Creation at the University of Maryland's Robert H. Smith School of Business. She recently talked with undergraduate student Liza Curcio-Rudy about her experience as an Impact Ambassador, her professional interests, and internship opportunity with the Aspen Network of Development.
More than 100 students, faculty, staff, and alumni attended the 2018 Fishlinger Family Lecture Series on Feb. 7, 2018, with featured speaker Jeff Sonnenfeld, senior associate dean of leadership programs and the Lester Crown Professor in the Practice of Management at the Yale School of Management.
Students Nicolas Santeriano and Devin Thrasher, along with Greg Rafal, a program manager for undergraduate programs in the Center for Global Business at the University of Maryland's Robert H. Smith School of Business, write about a short-term study abroad course to the United Kingdon, France and Italy over winter break.
Forty graduate students from RMIT University in Melbourne, Australia, visited the University of Maryland's Robert H. Smith School of Business for a two-week study program, Jan. 8-19, 2018. Eight Smith School faculty shared their expertise with the students on topics ranging from international business to personal branding and from integrated marketing to supply chain management.
This past winter-term, 20 students at the University of Maryland had the opportunity to learn about design and innovation in the Spanish context. While in Spain, students had a full itinerary of company visits, workshops and cultural activities.
The Dingman Center for Entrepreneurship produces Bootstrapped, a podcast featuring founders, investors and serial entrepreneurs.
Fasika Delessa, class of 2018, is an Impact Ambassador in the Center for Social Value Creation at the University of Maryland's Robert H. Smith School of Business. She recently talked with undergraduate student Huw Ball about his experience as an Impact Ambassador and a double major in operations management/business analytics and marketing with a minor in sustainability studies.