University of Richmond Students Spent Summer South of the Border This Summer - And Vice Versa
August 29, 2003
Students at the University of Richmond may have passed each other in the air between Virginia and Central and South America last summer.
The highlight of biology student Ken Yanek's summer was catching and identifying frogs and lizards with herpetologists and ichthyologists in a Brazilian rain forest. Meanwhile, Mexican business students traveled to Richmond to take an international business class and develop marketing plans for two American companies doing business in Mexico.
Yanek, a graduate student, attended a conference in Manus, Brazil. He and fellow Richmond student Anne Rettig made a poster presentation to international scientists on DNA research on evolutionary relationships between different frogs in a particular Neotropical species. Their professor, Rafael de Sa, spoke at the same conference.
Yanek used to work at the American Museum of Natural History in New York, but left for Richmond to study under de Sa, whose research is funded by several major grants.
The 12 students from Mexico's Monterrey Technical Institute won a competition in Mexico among university teams developing business plans for new enterprises. First prize was a free business course at Richmond. Through the class, they got to learn from and consult for Hamilton Beach/Proctor-Silex, a manufacturer of appliances in Glen Allen, and Tallant Industries in Fredericksburg, a manufacturer of roofing products.
One of the two student teams analyzed an allergen reducer called True Air that HB/P-S manufactures and sells in Mexico. The students identified for the company the numbers of Mexicans who could actually afford the product and the replacement filters it requires. They also pointed out how important a doctor's recommendation is in Mexico. "If the doctor says you need it, they will buy it," the report says.
The students also identified an upcoming conference for doctors who treat allergies.
"There are some good opportunities," said Mark Buss, vice president, international for HB/P-S, which will send sales reps to the conference. "We can apply some of the students' ideas immediately to our business plan."
"You've come up with some very interesting ideas," he told them. The thought process was really good. You didn't waste time on areas we already had answers to. You looked at special opportunity ideas. It is very much appreciated, and you should feel very good about it."
Will Hall, director of export sales for Tallant Industries Inc. in Fredericksburg, agreed. Five students, four from Mexico and one a rising senior at Richmond, studied the Monterrey area of Mexico for Ondura, a roofing product Tallant manufactures. "All the students had background in the industry and were way ahead of the curve vs. the average student," he said. "They brought me contacts I would not have gotten. One student is still doing follow-ups even though the class is completed."
The executives also gave the students some career advice. "Companies have less money and hire fewer people," HP/P-S's Teresa Boyd, also a Richmond graduate, said. "You have to work smarter, you have to work as part of a team, and you have to come with solutions. You have to do a lot of thinking and have a lot of initiative. If you don't, you'll stay at the bottom."