This week on the podcast, we turn the mic to Matt as he is interviewed by incoming interim dean and new podcast host, Brent Williams. They reflect on Matt's transformative 8-year tenure as dean and how they initially met when Brent was a student of Matt's. They discuss key highlights during Matt's time as dean and then look to the future. Looking ahead, Matt shares his plans to return to research and teaching, while also supporting entrepreneurs across Northwest Arkansas. Stay tuned for next week's episode where Matt will interview Brent about the future of the Walton College in his final episode as host.
Episode Transcript
Matt Waller 0:00
That difficult time I had made us better. We trusted each other more, because we had
to trust each other more. And we were able to just work so efficiently and effectively.
It was a it's a memorable time in my life.
Excellence, professionalism, innovation, and collegiality. These are the values the Sam M. Walton College of Business explores in education, business and the lives of people we meet every day. I'm Matt Waller, Dean of the Walton College, and welcome to the be epic podcast.
Brent Williams 0:20
Well, I have with me today, Matt Waller for this audience. He probably needs absolutely
no introduction. But you've been listening to him for some time as the moderator of
this podcast. But Matt, as you know, is the outgoing dean of the Sam M. Walton College
of Business, has been a professor at the University of Arkansas for many, many years,
and has just been a valued member of the community here. So Matt, thank you for being
willing to join me today.
Matt Waller 0:51
Thank you for having me. This is the first time I've been a guest on the be epic podcast.
Thanks for taking it over.
Brent Williams 0:58
Yeah, you're on. You're on the other side of the of the table. Well, the last eight
years that you have been dean at, I think, has truly been remarkable for the Walton
College, I think the college has gone through in its history, you know, a couple of
real transformational periods. But in, you know, being able to be around the Walton
College for at least the last 20 years and understand a lot of its history. I I do
think that the last eight years that you've been dean has been transformational. So,
you know, well, one. And so I want to, I want to get to some of the highlights. But,
you know, I was thinking that this audience with you, as the moderator may not have
really gotten to hear your story. So I mentioned, you know, you've been a faculty
here, but you've also been a founder, you're clearly an entrepreneur. So maybe tell
us a little bit about your background?
Matt Waller 1:54
Sure. Well, when I came here, in 1994, I came as a visiting assistant professor, that
means I had a job for a year, essentially, I didn't know exactly what I was going
to do after that. But I, after I moved here, well, even before I moved here, I had
been following what was going on with Walmart and the suppliers moving to town. And
I remember even when I was a doctoral student at Penn State, I read an article about
Walmart. I think this would have been in 1989. I can't remember, somewhere around
there. I read an article about Walmart, sharing point of sale data with Procter and
Gamble, and they were planning on rolling it out to all of their suppliers. So that
means sales data by store by day on hand inventory, many other variables. And I got
to thinking about it. And you know, part of this story really well. I was very fortunate
at Penn State, I had some amazing classes and professors, I really did. And they were
just leaders in their fields and research. But in one of the classes, it was a economics
like an advanced economics class in macroeconomics class, we read a paper. I think
it was called something like information substitutes for inventory. And it was just
the idea that the more information you have, the less inventory you really need. Because
inventory can help you still need some because you can economize by having more inventory.
Anyway, I won't go into all of it, but you don't need as much safety stock. In other
words, if you knew exactly what was gonna happen, then you could just have that that
amount of inventory and you'd satisfy demand. You may still have some cycle stock
for economizing on the inventory, transportation, for example, but I thought okay,
this makes sense. Walmart would share this information to substitute for inventory.
And in retail inventory is so critical. It's like, you can't live with it and you
can't live without it. If you have too much inventory, your return on assets is going
to go down your return and that will affect your stock price. If and you'll also have
more inventory going bad if you have not enough inventory, you're gonna miss sales
and you may miss the margin on those sales. You may have customers leave the store,
eventually you may lose the customer altogether. And I believe based on my research
that and experience that is part of the reason Kmart failed, you know Kmart, Walmart
and Target all started in 1962. And Walmart just grew so fast. It's unbelievable.
And I won't go into all of this, but I remember so before I came here, Kmart was bigger
than Walmart. Yet again, through some I took a class in. And we didn't talk necessarily
about Walmart, specifically, but I would happen to find articles on it. But we talked
about economies of scope and economies of scale and how you build your network. And,
you know, the Walmart idea of using distribution centers close to stores, was a unique
idea. You know, the competitors to Walmart would just put stores in the best location.
And Walmart would say, let's build the stores within a certain distance of a distribution
center. Because by having them close, you can have a shorter lead times to the store,
meaning you need less inventory at safety stock in the stores. But you can also have
full truckloads to the stores. Heterogeneous truckloads. I won't go on and on about
all this stuff. But my point is the seed had been planted for Northwest Arkansas.
And I kept reading more about what was going on here. And I was fascinated by it.
But I also talked to my doctoral peers, I would talk to my professors about it, they
knew very little about, I knew more about Walmart than they did. But I was always
using Walmart as an example of what I was learning. And Walmart, again, you could
argue, well, okay, great. They're in a small part of the country. They're probably
not going to do very well, given where they are, you know. But once the economies
of scale kicked in, Walmart blew past everybody. And of course, Walmart is really
good at pivoting, which is a whole nother story. So when I first came here, I was
very fortunate. I got to have lunch with Lee Scott, who was Executive Vice President
of logistics, for Walmart. I had no idea who was going to become a CEO. We had a long
lunch. And he agreed to he got me involved in a project at Walmart. And I, my co author
was a industrial engineering professor. And we worked on this cool optimization problem.
And I got to know a bunch of people there and loved it. And I won't go on and on.
But I've always been involved with Walmart to some degree, and the vendors and the
carriers. And so my knowledge of the retail value chain just kept going up. Because
I kept, I started doing lots of research and I, I did research and, you know, on the
intersection of merchandising and logistics, and lots of other areas, but so I came
here, there was only, I had a year. And I met some business people, some retired people
from Walmart. And there were four of them. And we started a consulting firm, early
on in my time here, doesn't exist anymore. But it was called Bentonville Associates,
which is a cool name you know.
Brent Williams 8:44
Yeah.
Matt Waller 8:45
It it signals what it is pretty quickly. And within the first year, we I think we
did $650,000 year one, and we had no overhead. And we didn't even have to rent the
space because one of my partners owned the first real major office park here, Bo Terre.
And so we use space there. We even used his admin. So I mean, it was, you know, that's
the thing about Walmart. They think let's do things efficiently. And it was a good
lesson for me in life. I live that way personally, as you know. And but I thought,
wow, it makes so much sense. You can make better decisions when you're frugal. You're
not dependent on every dollar, you know, you can say let's do what's best. But so
I Doyle Williams was dean at the time, and he was unbelievably good dean, great dean.
Brent Williams 9:56
I think he was the other period of transformation by the way.
Matt Waller 9:59
Oh my gosh, he was remarkable. And I was fortunate in that similar to you, he let
me get involved in things I had no business being involved in, including the first
gift, the big gift we got from the Walton Family Charitable Support Foundation, the
$50 million that resulted in us being the Walton College of Business, I got involved
in that process a little bit early on, and I was an assistant professor, so I did,
Doyle, the other thing is Doyle believed in me. And so he took a position an existing
position from the finance department and moved it to the marketing department, because
we didn't have our own department back then, it was marketing and transportation.
And and I got that position.
Brent Williams 10:50
Well, you know, I don't know that I've thought about this, Matt. But it's kind of
a funny story, Doyle believed in you, and found a position and made it happen. And
I don't know if you remember this. When I was transitioning from the master's program
to the Ph D program, there was not a slot for me. And you believed in me, and you
had to go find that slot and made it happen. I've never thought about the parallel
between those stories.
Matt Waller 11:16
Boy, that's true. And I had to go to another department, I actually went to, well,
I had to do a bunch of things. But one, one thing was funding. And so, Bill Hargrave,
who's now the president of the University of Memphis, was running the RFID Lab. And
there was a project we were working on, and I said, hey, could we fund this doctoral
student? He said, absolutely. He's a great guy to collaborate with.
Brent Williams 11:45
Well, Bill reminded me of that many years ago, when I was at Auburn, and told him,
I was coming to Arkansas. He was my dean at Auburn. And he reminded me of that story.
Matt Waller 11:58
Well, you know, and it gets this gets back to this concept of being frugal, too. Okay,
we didn't have enough resources for it. But we figured out how to make it work. I
think that sometimes, being a little scarce on resources teaches you to be more creative,
more innovative, more entrepreneurial, you know. And, boy, when I look at, you know,
the resources we have today, compared to what we had, then it's so different. I remember,
as a new professor here, there used to be this rule that. So we have the University
of Arkansas Fort Smith, but it used to be called West Ark Community College. And there
were some rule that we had to teach an MBA class there every year, at least one per
year. And I had the fortune of being selected because I was the newbie, I think I
did it while I was a visiting assistant professor. Yeah. So I had to teach this course
in Fort Smith. And back then we didn't have I 49. And the road was very dangerous.
And I taught it on Monday nights, from six to 10, six to 10. And you know, Brent,
I'm a morning person. I'm in bed by nine o'clock. And so I had to drive down this
really dangerous road. And I found out later, it was the sixth most dangerous road
in the United States based on deaths per mile per year. And I was, so I struggling
you know I would teach. And it took a long time. Now, it's pretty quick to get to
Fort Smith. But back then it took a long, long drive.
Brent Williams 13:41
Well, I mean, quite a departure, you know, from where the Walton College is and the,
you know, the, I guess, and you've, you've been a huge part of finding ways to I think
you have infused an entrepreneurial spirit into into us as a college that I think
existed, but you really helped to accelerate that. And, you know, when you look back
over the last eight years, that you've served as dean, and while I know hard at times,
I truly believe you've loved it and given it absolutely everything you had. What are
some of the highlights that really stand out to you during that period?
Matt Waller 14:26
Well, that's a good, good question. I'm gonna bring up one that's very personal. And
it shows the importance of having a good team. So you are an Associate Dean, Anne
O'Leary Kelly, Alan Ellstrand. And we had Tanya and the whole team and in 2017, I
was diagnosed with colorectal cancer that had spread and yeah, it didn't look good.
I had to go through radiation and chemo and the fall in the fall, spring of 17, surgeries
in the summer of 17 more chemo in the fall, and then a final surgery in November of
2017. And, you know, when I was, I had only been dean for two years by that point.
And I talked to some people and I said, Matt, you're gonna, you're gonna really feel
tired after the chemo and the radiation and weak. And I thought, oh my gosh, because
you're right, I love I love being dean. And I loved great being an entrepreneurial
dean and being starting new things and growing them. And I thought, well, I'm not
going to have the energy for that. You know? And, but, so I started thinking about
delegating more. So this was a great lesson for me. But it's a lesson to anyone, the
importance of delegation. Okay, so I had to delegate a bunch of stuff to my entire
team, because I thought that I was gonna be weak, and not be able to operate fully.
And, of course, I was in the hospital for a month in Dallas, and, and you and I was
in the hospital for 10 days in Northwest Arkansas, in November, I think, or October,
no November. But, but I delegated all this work to you all. And it turns out, I didn't
have as bad a reaction to the radiation and chemo, as a lot of people do. And I was
able to function quite well, I, I worked every day, I never missed one day of work,
due to chemo and radiation, at least in the spring. Now, in the fall, there was one
exception where I did. But you know, we got a lot done in 2017. And I wouldn't have
got as much done, had I not delegated. So my sickness, forced me to delegate, but
that delegation wouldn't have worked if I wouldn't have had a good team. So people
that are listening to this, I can say one leadership takeaway that I've learned, is
build a great team and delegate to them. And don't micromanage them.
Brent Williams 17:46
Well, and I think maybe that connects to you know, what I would have added to that,
which was empowerment, you know, so when I think about being a part of that, one,
we were a close team, in a really short period of time, we had bonded, and we're all
on the same page, and all understood the mission and what we were trying to accomplish.
But I think Anne and Alan would agree with me that we all felt empowered. And we felt
empowered to make decisions. We felt supported when we made those decisions, even
if they weren't, right. And there's absolutely no doubt that we I'm sure made mistakes
and might have made decisions that you wouldn't have made. But I think that boy that
period really created trust. And it it just gave us more bandwidth in a really short
period of time that seemed to launch us into that next phase, even though it came
from, you know, something terrible.
Matt Waller 18:48
Well, that's right. And I was really sad about it. Because I probably get too much
of my identity from my job. And at my accomplishments, you know, I thrive in that
and probably too much, but I was so sad when this diagnosis came. I was not scared.
Even though I had heard I may have only a 10% chance of living five years. That didn't
scare me as much as the thought of not being able to do a good job by far, and I was
sad for a long time. And so once I started getting the radiation and chemo, I realized,
oh, I can do okay, I'd already delegated a bunch of stuff. And I was supposed to be
in the hospital for three days in June of that year and I wound up being there a month.
Thank goodness I delegated. And you really took the ball and ran with the McMillon
Studio. We had already had the gift but you know we got that going. We got the Brewer
Hub up and running that year. We got a $7 million gift for the supply chain policy
initiative. We got the online accounting degree created, the online undergraduate
supply chain management degree. And then in the next year, you know, the Blockchain
Center of Excellence was started, which was terrific. And we started the Dean's roundtable
of entrepreneurs and market makers. And then we got the Walton College at 2nd and
main going, we got another million dollar gift from Doug and Shelly McMillon, and
then things just started rocketing from there. That's, I really think 2020 is when
all of the fruit of that started being manifested because in 2020, we started a brand
new department, the department of strategy, entrepreneurship, and venture innovation,
which has been great. The supply chain undergraduate program got ranked number one
in North America by Gartner, the Dillard the the accounting department got endowed
with a $10 million gift William Dillard Department of Accounting, we created the Master
of Science in economic analytics, the Master of Professional Accounting, the Master
of Applied Business Analytics, master of supply chain management, Master of Science
in finance. We started the business integrity leadership Initiative, with Cindy Moehring,
who used to be the chief ethics officer at Walmart for 20 years, we started the supply
chain hall of fame in Rogers, the we got a gift from JB Hunt for 2.2 million. All
of that really happened in 2020. But it was based on work that had already really
been done, it just came to fruition. And I do think you're right, that that difficult
time I had made us better. We trusted each other more, because we had to trust each
other more. And we were able to just work so efficiently and effectively. It was a
it's a memorable time in my life. This doesn't happen much in leadership teams. There's
very few times throughout history, where you get to experience that kind of productivity
as a team really.
Brent Williams 22:32
I couldn't agree more. You're right. And and then you get that really creates joy
out of the work.
Matt Waller 22:40
It does.
Brent Williams 22:41
You know. So, as Dean, you know, when I think back to what you just read us, I mean,
there truly was an entrepreneur, entrepreneurial, I guess, mindset that was really
at hand. And in doing that, I think that wasn't about us. It was about really serving
our stakeholders, right, it was about bettering our students, it was about getting
them better jobs and helping them succeed in life. And then, you know, it's about
serving our state better by bringing expertise. It truly was about building things
that built up our stakeholders.
Matt Waller 23:22
Well you know, the entrepreneur mindset. Really, it's about saying, what are the problems
out there? And how can we overcome those problems? If you look at what we did over
the past eight years, as a team, we focused on that we see an issue. We try to address
it. And we don't I mean, you look at all these things we did. We didn't have the resources
to do it. But we did it. And it generated more resources than we could have ever imagined.
The budget of the college has just grown dramatically. And we're contributing back
to the university a lot of resources as well.
Brent Williams 24:04
Yeah, a virtuous cycle.
Matt Waller 24:06
It is.
Brent Williams 24:07
Well, let me switch gears to the podcast. You know, you've had, you've had some dedicated
listeners for the last several years. And I think that as of your last podcast, I
think it's around 240 episodes, if not maybe a touch more. So, you know, for those
that have been dedicated listeners following along, what is the podcast experience
been for you? Why did you think it was so important because you've clearly dedicated
a lot of your time and resources to it. But I think it's made a tremendous impact
for expanding the reach of the college.
Matt Waller 24:53
First of all, there's no other dean of a business school that has 240 podcasts. So
I, you know, we, our college podcast episodes, usually universities, and Dean's or
whoever start them and they quit, or they start them and then handed off to someone
else. I felt it was important to stick with it. And I'm glad you want to do it and
continue it. Because if you think about it, one of the most important variables in
leadership is setting the direction of whatever entity it is gaining alignment of
people, motivating people. And the podcast can do that in so many different ways.
You know, you you wind up, of course, I have talked to faculty, staff, alumni, and
other people. Sometimes I read a book and I think I really liked this, I call the
author and say, can I interview you for this book, I've done that maybe four or five
times maybe more than that. But with alumni, and not just alumni, but people somehow
who might be related to the college in some way or should be related. It forms a bond
between between them and the college, when they finally do a podcast. And then me
as the dean, I've actually had people asked me, you know, why don't you just have
someone else do the podcast rather than you? And the answer is, I'm the leader of
the college I, I'm the one that takes responsibility for boundary spanning and for
sense making. And boundary spanning and sense making are two important functions of
a leader. And so in a way, this allows me to span the boundaries, but it also allows
me to make sense to to engage in sense making I hear something, and in the podcast,
I'll start talking about how it relates to the college. And so people say, oh, that's
how it relates to the college. And I think as you know, we've actually had, I remember
a few years ago, there was a student who was a freshman at KU. And he started listening
to our podcast. KU, University of Kansas. And he thought, there's more going on at
Arkansas, and Walton College than I'm seeing going on here. No offense to KU, but
it's a this is what he said. And he switched. his sophomore year, he was here in the
Walton College, he's graduated.
Brent Williams 27:46
As dean, you're certainly the chief executive. But I think in watching you in the
role, you also served as chief learner for the college. And I think that this podcast
was probably a way for you to learn from more than 240 people.
Matt Waller 28:10
I've learned something from every podcast, some podcasts, I've learned a lot. And
one thing I noticed, when you do a podcast recording interview of someone, you remember
more content, than if you just have a discussion with someone. At least that's been
true for me, it anchors it in your brain. And so then when you see them the next time
you remember all this content, and it allows you to connect to them better, but it
also has actually made me start, some of the initiatives I've started in part have
been a result of things I've learned through the podcasts. And also you learn things
that people don't want public. There's been times I've interviewed faculty, staff,
students, alumni, and they'll say, let me tell you something, Matt, I'm not gonna
say this on the podcast, but I've been wanting to tell you this. So it gives people
a opportunity to share things with you that they wouldn't normally share. And I think
that the fact that you're inviting someone to be on the podcast, it starts. It shows
that, you know, trust has three components. And one component is that you have the
person's best interests in mind. And that component, like if you if you, if you have
someone on as to interview them, it shows you care about them to some degree, or you
wouldn't have mind. So trust starts building as a result of that.
Brent Williams 29:39
Well, I'm excited to keep the podcast going. I think it's very important. And I look
forward to meeting all the future guests and learning from them. This is a tremendous
opportunity for me. So thank you for making it a reality. And I know for those of
us that have been dedicated listeners, we've all learned from you and from your guests.
So here's a question that I think you we've got to be of interest to those that have
followed you and followed the podcast. Well so you've been dean for eight years, well,
one, why are you going back to faculty? And but you know, after you explain that,
tell us a little bit more about what's in your plans.
Matt Waller 30:25
Sure. So, you know, I believe in rotational leadership, there's this concept called
rotational leadership. And I've encouraged it in our college, I like to take people
out of positions, they're comfortable in after a few years and put them somewhere
else. I mean, amongst the associate, deans, we've mixed up all kinds of thing. But
I do think, you know, it's like for department chairs, I don't think department chairs
should be in that position for 10, more than 10 years for sure. Eight years is probably
enough. Now, there's some cases where you need to keep them going. So I want to say
this. And I've said this publicly before, if you were not wanting to be Dean, I wouldn't
step down right now. Because even though I think it's better for me to rotate out,
I wouldn't do it unless I knew there was someone really good to take my place. And
in your case, I think you will excel as dean, I think you're gonna take us to new
levels.
Brent Williams 31:41
Thank you.
Matt Waller 31:44
I wouldn't step down right now. Now. And usually they don't let Dean's be a part of
the search process to replace them, which I think is a mistake. Who else? I mean,
you definitely want the input of the sitting dean or the former dean. I don't understand
that at all. But but that's what I would do. And but you're ready. There's no question
in my mind. And I've used a lot of my entrepreneurial spirit has been important during
this phase. I think you bring things that I don't have, that we need. And I think
that, and I know you do, because I've worked with you for 20 years, so I know what
your strengths are. And I think it's time for a change. I've given my best to this
organization. But I'm also a little bit like that I I prefer new things now that this
I'm so if you would have asked me year one, do you think you'll stay in this job for
eight years? I would have said no.
Brent Williams 33:02
I would have agreed with that, knowing you eight years ago. Yeah.
Matt Waller 33:05
It's just not me to do that. I've been very loyal to the university. I've stayed here
for 30 years, but I come into 1994. I quickly be you know, I'm a very loyal person.
And it would be hard for me to leave the University of Arkansas, all my friends are
here. I mean, I know so many people in all the colleges of our campus. We have lots
of wonderful people. And especially, of course, I know a lot of people in the Walton
College. And I wouldn't want to leave, it's just not in me. I've had lots of opportunities
to do so. But I would feel I just wouldn't feel good about it at this point. I, this
is my university, that I'm part of, this my college. And so that's part of the reason
I think it's time for me to leave. I also think I can help Northwest Arkansas and
the state as a professor, more than I can as Dean now I've got, I've become aware
of some things I'll share some ideas of what's going on.
Brent Williams 34:18
I was about to say for most that's probably a counterintuitive statement. I believe
it's true. I understand for you why it may be true, but share a little more.
Matt Waller 34:30
Sure. And so I want to say this over the next year. As I continue to prepare for teaching
and I'm already doing research again, by the way, I was way behind on research, I
had no pipeline and I just remember I just noticed the other day I've got to be careful
now because I've got like seven major projects going. But I do I you know if you look
at if you look at professors by citations on Google Scholar. I'm in the top 20 at
the University of Arkansas. I want to maintain that I want, I'm 58. I'm going to turn
59 in August. I hope to be able to be a great contributor for at least 10 more years,
maybe 12. Maybe, maybe till I'm 70 or 71, or 72, I don't know. But tell me, Brent,
when, I when I am doing terrible in the classroom, I hope you tell me to leave. But
my goal is to be one of the top researchers in the Walton College and in the country
in supply chain management. And I having been dean, I've seen it all. I actually know
how to do it now. I did, I did pretty well before. But I know way more about how to
do it now. And I'm young enough to where I can still do it.
Brent Williams 35:59
There's absolutely no doubt in my mind that you will be tremendous in the faculty
role. And I'm thrilled that you've chosen to stay as a faculty member in the Walton
College of Business. I know you're going to do some other things too, what's what's
in what's in the works? To really drive the you know, you mentioned, continuing to
advance Northwest Arkansas and the state of Arkansas. And that's, you know, I think
so appealing to me to hear you say that.
Matt Waller 36:34
I will I want to talk about an elephant in the room before I get on to that,
Brent Williams 36:39
Okay.
Matt Waller 36:40
And the elephant is many people know, I applied to be chancellor and I didn't get
it. And I just want to say this, and I mean it I'm not Brent knows this, and people
who work with me know this. I'm glad I didn't get it. I mean, this is not a way of
just dealing with something. There was a part of me that was disappointed, I was ready
for something new. And I thought I had some ideas that could really advance the the
university actually some of the things I did at the college I wanted to do at the
university, it would have been very hard to do but but I think I fully support Charles,
he's doing a great job and Terry, I'm behind them, and I will help them if they call
upon me for help. I'll be there. There's no sour grapes. I'm really blessed in that
it's just not a part of my wiring. I think it's one of the reasons why I've been a
successful entrepreneur, I can try something, if it doesn't work, I can go on to the
next thing and I don't dwell on it, I go to the next thing I didn't become chancellor,
I was not selected. I don't think I did as good a job in the interview process, as
my competitors did. I'm not sure that I even have the background necessary for it.
So I'm thankful. And now that it had quite a few months, I guess almost a year since
I found that I wasn't in the running. I have discovered. wow the opportunities are
unbelievable. I mean, I've always you know, Brent, I've always at the university as
a professor, you're allowed to do one day per week outside of the university of consulting
or working with industry or whatever. And I and we have to fill out a conflict of
interest form and come up with a plan and fill out an outside employment form if that's
necessary. And I've done it every year I've been here. I've always been engaged. And
there's many summers. I took note most of the summers before I was an administrator.
I took no compensation, because I wanted to be fully outside. And I did. And in fact,
I took a leave of absence one semester with Bentonville Associates. I left the university
for a few years, gave up my tenure, because of Mercari technologies. My software company
came back in 2002. So I am an entrepreneur, I've got things going on already. And
I'm very blessed with my network, which is off the charts incredible. Now, one thing
I'm doing again, that I think will help this will be announced more fully soon. But,
you know, we've got lots of entrepreneurs support organizations in Northwest Arkansas.
We have the big companies here have venture arms. We have a few venture capital companies.
We've got some private equity companies. We've got seed funding going on, and we have
small businesses. And so I'm going to be helping bring focus to companies that fall
into the retail value chain, in Northwest Arkansas, we're going to do this through
the Northwest Arkansas Council, but I'm going to be leading that through the council.
That is, all these organizations, plug and play, and many others are engaged in these
things. But there's no one that is bringing a focus to it. But if you look at it,
there is nothing in Northwest Arkansas, or the state of Arkansas in my opinion, that
has more brand equity, more talent, than the retail value chain, that includes logistics,
supply chain, retail, CPG, and technology associated with that. That's been my career
here, too. It's been my research, it's been my teaching, it's been my company's my
consulting, everything's been kind of in the retail value chain for Matt Waller. Now,
what I want to do is try to help the region develop it further. And I'm blessed in
that I can do it now.
Brent Williams 41:06
Well, Matt, at the beginning of the podcast, I should have introduced you as a force
for good because I believe that to be true, and I'm excited for your future. Because
you are going to be a force for good in the region. Well, one in your family, like
you have your entire life. And with your friends, this region, this state and I actually
think the world. And in doing so and your alignment with our strategy as a college,
our strategic areas of focus, retail, supply chain management, analytics, entrepreneurship,
everything you're doing is completely aligned with the strategy of the Walton College.
And as a faculty member doing all these things, you're going to shine a great light
on us and reflect so well on the college. So I'm excited for your future. And, you
know, I've got to say I think I get an opportunity to thank you, I thank you on behalf
of me for what you've done for me personally, for this college over the last eight
years and really your whole career. And I thank you on behalf of this faculty and
staff because I think every one of them would thank you if they are sitting in this
chair, I just get to be the one that says it. And and thank you on behalf of all of
our alumni and our state. You've done an amazing job as dean, and we're thankful that
you're gonna continue to be a part of the Walton College of Business.
Matt Waller 42:32
That's very encouraging. I appreciate it.
Brent Williams 42:34
Thank you, Matt.
Matt Waller 42:35
Thanks.
Brent Williams 42:38
On behalf of the Walton College thank you for joining us for this captivating conversation.
To stay connected and never miss an episode. Simply search for be epic on your preferred
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Brent D. Williams is the Dean of the Sam M. Walton College of Business at the University of Arkansas.
With a deep commitment to fostering excellence in business education and thought leadership,
Dr. Williams brings a wealth of experience to his role, shaping the future of the
college and its impact on students and the business community.
