NASA SCaN Representatives Outline New Frontiers in Space Business During Smith School Visit
Financial Wellness Center Hub Opens in McKeldin Library
Teaching AI Literacy Through Fun and Games
Alumni
March 23, 2026
Investing in the Future
Isa Farhat ’96 switched from architecture to accounting during a recession, building a career as a Deloitte partner. A first-generation student, he overcame personal challenges and now gives back to Smith through mentorship and support for future accounting professionals.
Alumnus Dials in the Dollars in Senior Role at T-Mobile
Johannes Thorsteinsson, MS ENGR ’05, MBA ’07, leveraged engineering and finance training at UMD to rise to T-Mobile senior vice president and treasurer. He credits Smith for shaping his career and now mentors students, emphasizing curiosity, resilience and relationships.
Building Meaningful Relationships
Wealth management advisor John Bates, ECON ’83, mentors Smith finance students through the Financial Advisory Council. With decades of industry experience, he emphasizes networking, real-world skills and collaboration with faculty to better align education with careers in financial services.
May 08, 2026
NASA officials visited the University of Maryland’s Smith School of Business to discuss Artemis missions, space communications challenges and growing commercial partnerships, highlighting opportunities for business students to support space commerce and help shape the agency’s evolving strategy.
University of Maryland’s Financial Wellness Hub opened in McKeldin Library, offering peer mentoring, workshops and classes on budgeting, investing and loans, aiming to improve financial literacy for students, faculty and staff across campus.
May 07, 2026
Smith faculty led an AI literacy workshop where students used interactive tools and peer presentations to explore practical applications, emphasizing AI as a collaborative assistant while highlighting its limits and role in improving academic, professional and entrepreneurial outcomes.
Faculty Insights On Latest News
May 30, 2025
Summer Reading List 2025
Get ready for summer with the 22nd Annual Summer Reading List for Business Leaders—featuring Smith School faculty picks on investing, neuroscience, human connection, and more, including a novel inspired by a radio show turned TV series.
Management and Organization
April 24, 2025
“The Future is Not What it Used to Be”
Ambiguity arises when choices must be made despite unclear outcomes, says Professor J. Gerald Suarez. In today’s fast-paced world, discernment, flexibility, and embracing uncertainty—not rigid control—are key to navigating change, complexity, and an unpredictable future.
Marketing
October 04, 2024
Small Businesses Take Big Hit from Apple’s Privacy Regulation
Smith marketing professor Daniel McCarthy's research found that Apple's 2021 App Tracking Transparency (ATT) significantly impacted small direct-to-consumer businesses. ATT caused a 37% drop in ad click-through rates and up to a 60% revenue decline for smaller firms reliant on Facebook ads.
March 24, 2026
Referred for the Job, Less Welcome by the Team
Employee referrals can aid hiring but carry hidden downsides. Research by Smith’s Rellie Derfler-Rozin finds staff often see referred hires as less meritorious and offer less support, despite strong performance. Clear communication about hiring rigor and involving employees can reduce bias.
March 10, 2026
Where GenAI Consumer Research is Likely Headed
Generative AI expands access to consumer research but risks biased, generic findings detached from real behavior, Roland Rust and Ming-Hui Huang say. They identify democratization, the “average trap” and model collapse as growing threats, urging human-centered methods to prevent synthetic, nonhuman results.
March 03, 2026
Debate Training May Help Employees Rise as Leaders, New Research from Smith’s Hui Liao Shows
A study co-authored by Smith School professor Hui Liao finds debate training boosts leadership advancement by increasing assertiveness. Published in the Journal of Applied Psychology, the research shows structured training helps participants emerge as leaders and earned a 2025 Academy of Management award.
