BBA LEADERSHIP INSTITUTE

 

Paula Strasser - Director of the Edwin L. Cox Business Leadership Center and BBA Leadership Institute at Southern Methodist University.  At SMU she is also an adjunct professor and a faculty advisor/instructor for Executive Education.  Paula is a Leadership Consultant to various organizations including:  Westwood Management, Texas Instruments, Archon of Goldman Saks, and U-Line.  Paula served as Director of International Training and Communication for Pearle, Inc. from 1978 to 1990.  Prior to joining Pearle, her experience includes Director of Training/Assistant Vice President for two major bank holding companies, Educational Therapist for a psychological academic center, and Personnel Manager at the University of Kansas.  Paula is a graduate of the University of Kansas where she received Bachelor of Science degrees in Business and Education and a Masters Degree in Educational Administration with an emphasis in Personnel Management/Psychology.  Paula provides leadership consulting services for not-for-profit organizations in the areas of leadership, executive presentation techniques, assessments, communications, and teams.  Currently, she serves on the board of several public and private organizations.

Jack Miao - Principal of Jack Miao and Associates.  He works with capitalists, entrepreneurs and corporations to significantly improve their decision making and program execution.  Jack is an innovative, entrepreneurial, enthusiastic executive with over twenty-five years of outstanding performance, based on solid formal education, customer and results-oriented business achievements in computers and telecommunications.  He is excellent in team recruitment and development.  Jack developed and implemented the Global Customer Care Services Strategy for Nortel Networks’ Internet product line, which grew at 75-100% per annum to $1B+.  He also developed Meridian Solutions business (Voice Mail and Call Center) globally from $10M (1989) to over $400M (1993) and #1 market leadership with excellent profit margins.  Jack has a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from Central College and a Graduate degree in Educational Administration from Bishop University.

David Perryman - Assistant Dean of Marketing and Communications and as such is responsible for the Cox School’s overall marketing and communications strategy, activities, and budget.  Before joining the Cox School, David was director of enterprise communications at USAA, a Fortune 200 financial services company with more than $81 billion in owned and managed assets and offices throughout the United States and Europe. In that position, he was responsible for managing the internal and external communications for USAA’s Investment Management Company, Financial Planning Services Company, and Life Insurance Company. David also has held management positions at Fleishman-Hillard and EDS, where he served as an executive speechwriter and editor-in-chief of the print and CD-ROM versions of the EDS annual report.  David has taught rhetoric and business communications classes at the undergraduate and graduate levels.  David has a bachelor’s degree in English from Wesleyan University in Connecticut and a master’s degree in English and Creative Writing from Southern Methodist University.

Dave Gunby - (Creativity and Accelerated Learning) is the founder and principal of MINDimensions, a leadership training and facilitation company. He has worked with a number of companies, including EDS, General Motors, Raytheon, Wells Fargo, and the Internal Revenue Service. Dave teaches Managerial Communication Skills, Advanced Managerial Communication Skills, Creativity Techniques, Memory and Process Mapping, and formerly led the Cox Masters program. Dave was previously with EDS as a Leadership Development trainer and facilitator. Before joining EDS, he was a Project Director for Belden Associates, a market research firm. Dave received his B.S. in Management Science with a concentration in Marketing from the State University of New York at Geneseo.
 
Butch Nicholson - (Interpersonal Relations) is CEO of Pravasa, an Atlanta-based training and coaching firm for executives and sales professionals and he is one of its founders and lead trainers. After successfully applying the principles taught by Pravasa to his own business, Butch now dedicates his life to sharing these principles with other professionals. He brings 21 years experience in the insurance industry, as well as extensive training in sales, marketing, adult education and human behavior. Butch began his career in the financial services with Equitable Life Insurance. He then went on to become the President of NB Financial Group, a fee and commission based retirement and estate planning firm. Before joining Pravasa, Mr. Nicholson served as the CEO of a national training and consulting company specializing in the financial services industry. Butch is a Chartered Life Underwriter and Chartered Financial Consultant, a life-time member of the Million Dollar Round Table, member of the National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors, the Association of Advanced Life Underwriters, Society of Financial Services Professionals, and the American Society of Training and Development.

 

Paul Thomas- (Ethics and Integrity) is a partner in Sunergeo, Inc., a family-owned healthcare company in Houston, Texas. Prior to his involvement with Sunergeo, Paul was a consultant with Sapient, an international business and technology consulting firm. Paul received his undergraduate degree in Electrical and Computer Engineering from Rice University, where he was an academic all conference football player. He received an MBA from SMU Cox School of Business, graduating with honors. Paul also serves as a trip leader with Leadertreks, a student leadership development organization.